Diamond Tiara wants to keep the abuse she had suffered with her mother a secret. The most likely reason that I can see for this is probably two-fold.

Reason one; she does not want to damage her relationship with her mother too much on the off chance that either one of them changes their mind and decides to move back together. Diamond also probably felt some lingering loyalty to her mother, no matter how little it is deserved.

Reason two; Diamond probably does not want to deal with the drama of this situation, especially from a public perspective. It is hard enough to show her face in school as it is while coping with all of that emotional baggage. She probably did not want to suffer the looks of pity from her classmates on top of that. That, she figures, would overwhelm her.

Unfortunately for Little Miss Prissy, I have three reasons to oppose this plan.

Reason one; I LOATH Diamond Tiara with a passion! If she wants to sweep this whole issue under the rug, that's reason enough for me to expose her secret.

Unfortunately, this also means I won't be able to use this evidence as leverage against Diamond if I use it to expose her secret, but whatever!

Fuck you, Diamond Tiara! You are the entire reason I set up this Shadow Queen network in the first place. I went through all of this trouble just for the chance to harm my primary target. Now that I am finally tasting blood on your neck, I shall savagely tear into the wound.

Reason two; although I hate to admit this, Spoiled Rich might be the true source of my woes. What Diamond has done to me can never be forgiven, but at least now it is somewhat understood. In fact, Spoiled seems ten times worse. If abuse on that level had always been the case, no wonder Diamond turned out the way she did, so it's very easy for me to copy and paste all of my rage for Diamond to Spoiled.

Seeing Spoiled scream and slap her daughter like that brought back painful memories that I still don't fully comprehend. All I know for sure is these are likely repressed feelings that I despise every bit as much as I equally fear it.

Spoiled Rich is a frickin’ monster that does not deserve protection, love, or loyalty. In just one move, I can threaten everything that Spoiled cares about, which is fantastic in my book. Spoiled needs to rot in hell for all that she's done.

Reason three; doing this supports the goal of my mother. Anything I can do to make her happy is reason enough for me to act.

Just recently, I learned that my mother wants to turn her home into a foster home just to support one girl. If Child Protective Services learns of what happened to Diamond with her mother, then it would go a long way to convince such an agency that my mother's initiative is a smart and necessary move.

Removing Diamond from her mother does not guarantee that Diamond will be allowed to move in with us, but I calculate at least an eighty-one percent chance that my mother's request will be approved before the end of the week. For each day that goes by after that, the odds further increase by half a percent.

The reason I think this is because my mother has an overwhelmingly good track record with the adoption agency already. Not only did she already pass a thorough background check six years ago, but she continued to impress the agency when they sent a follow-up agent once a year to check on our progress together. What they saw as a result of that checkup has produced a glowing report.

This is an arrangement that the adoption agency plans to continue once every year until I turn eighteen which will happen by the end of this year.

My mother has succeeded in taking an emotionally wrecked child (which is not that uncommon for those adopted by the agency, unfortunately) and turned her into a National Chess Champion, Prestigious winner of Music Awards for the violin, subject of interest to multiple Ivy League colleges with an offer of full scholarship benefits, and Student Council President of Canterlot High.

On her own merits, my mother is exceptionally smart, educated enough to qualify and certified to be a teacher (and she has done that for me for several years while my confidence was still building), she is financially and emotionally stable, she has a good (I would even say great and futuristic) home, she has strong social contacts, she is kind and loving, she never ignores me when I need her attention, she is firm but fair when she needs to be, she puts her child first before all other priorities, she is a trained medic, and she is surprisingly talented in multiple, and I would even say highly unusual, ways.

For instance, like her ability to cast magic or invent gadgets decades ahead of our time.

She has proven capable of providing for me in every possible way that matters, including security. How many others can honestly say they have a superheroine for their mother?

My mother is the kind of person a vast majority of the world wishes they had, and I'll gladly tell that to her face as many times as it takes to convince her of that.

By most standards of our society, this is easily considered a “winning” and “best-case scenario” to the adoption agency. They are probably using my mother as an example to the rest of the agency of what they are aiming for with the rest of their youths.

Because of the glowing reports the agency has received from our relationship (and my mother certainly deserves every word of it), they would be thrilled with another opportunity to get a troubled youth off of their hands, otherwise Diamond could end up costing taxpayer bits to support her.

For all these reasons combined, I feel as confident that my mother's request will be approved as I do that Spoiled Rich's actions will be condemned.

I know that Spoiled Rich's lawyers are too well paid to expect the worst-case scenario for Spoiled right off the bat. Thanks to them, they may temporarily protect her from being sued or sent to jail.

However, custody of her child, I figure, would very quickly be called into question. Spoiled will certainly lose face in the eyes of the public and her peers, and I know her well enough now to realize that will definitely hurt her. She's been kissing ass of her equals or better all of her life. After her crimes get exposed, however, I figured it would not take long for her to stop getting invited to fancy parties. That negative reputation is also likely to damage future fortune down the road.

I'm also counting on the fact that her husband will not only want to divorce her (because most of the reports I have on him say that he's a relatively okay guy), but also sue her financially and attempt to gain sole custody of Diamond, unless my mother gets it first. Filthy Rich can hire just as formidable lawyers as Spoiled, if not better. Since he's the true breadwinner of that family, I suspect he has deeper pockets compared to his own wife.

Plus, with the damning evidence against her in full public view, it wouldn't be difficult to convince a jury which side to favor between the two of them. One parent has been a bit negligent, and the other is downright abusive to the point of nearly driving her daughter to suicide. It's pretty easy to calculate which way the odds favor in this scenario, but my mother intervening is probably a better case still.

Which, of course, complicates my revenge scheme against Diamond as well, but I'll cross that bridge when I get to it.

To get this information out in the first place, I stole Silver Spoon's cellphone data, specifically for the video footage she recorded at the Rich family manor when Silver recorded Diamond's computer screen while it was displaying the video footage from my “Eye in the Sky” drone.

I did not choose Silver's phone at random. I chose hers because she was the first to record the screen aside from myself, and she isn't me (so suspicion is somewhat sidetracked away from me).

I knew Scootaloo's phone was totally not an option because she actually has a dumb phone. Scootaloo took only a few snapshot pictures of Diamond's computer screen, and she did not take many because the storage capacity in Scootaloo's phone is very low. Of those pictures, many of them are low quality to boot. Specifically, they are grainy and most of them have too much glare. A photographer Scootaloo certainly is not, but I have to admit that she wasn't working with sophisticated equipment. As a result, I cannot entirely pin all the blame on Scootaloo’s skills, or lack thereof.

By weighing all the other options at my disposal, taking Silver Spoon's footage is the best sample, aside from my own.

Armed with that footage, I distribute it to various minions as the Shadow Queen. I instruct them to spread this information to make sure it becomes common knowledge in Canterlot High.

With that done, I know it is only a matter of time before the press gets a hold of this information, too.

However, Silver Spoon's footage did require some editing before I spread it. For instance, she recorded a good seventeen seconds of me collapsed on the floor and suffering an epileptic seizure.

Sweetie Belle, on the other hand, had the courtesy to stop recording at that point. Aside from that, she was trained to respond on how to handle that situation. She knew where I stored my shot of emergency insulin.

For once, I did not have my emergency insulin on me at the time because I was wearing only the one long shirt. Instead, it was stored elsewhere within the room back then.

It is eerie to watch my body collapsed and wiggling on the floor from an outside perspective. During that time, I knew that the lights were on but nobody was home. I recall how my mind was elsewhere during a vivid, waking nightmare. It also meant I was not in control of my body at the time so, for all intents and purposes, that was not my body during that brief moment. It wiggled on its own like the body of a chicken with its head cut off.

Since I had no desire for that footage to spread across Canterlot as well, I edited it out as well as a few bits of potentially incriminating information.

There are consequences to this strategy, though. Consequences that I certainly expect. For instance, I knew that I had no leverage to keep Silver Spoon's mouth shut on this issue.

Naturally, she is furious that someone hacked into her private information and exposed it to the entire school. She wants to make it clear to everyone that she was not responsible for this heinous act. She especially wants to make that clear to Diamond Tiara.

This, in turn, puts the activities of the Shadow Queen into more public light.

Rumors start to spread. As they do, the students and faculty at Canterlot are starting to realize how complex of a network I have in my dark web. Originally every minion I have at my disposal was only aware of their own acts. I compartmentalized their knowledge on purpose so they wouldn't realize how wide-scale my reach is, but this is the first time one of my acts reaches public knowledge. As they discuss it, the students are beginning to realize more and more how many other fellow victims there are.

And yeah, that is a risky move on my part, but it is all to help me attack my primary target. The network exists to make Diamond suffer in the first place, so I might as well use it to its extreme even if it exposes me some.

However, to my surprise and secret disappointment, Diamond did not react the way I thought she would. I was with her when she first got the news. At first she really was horrified, but then I saw a sudden shift in her attitude that I calculated to have extremely low odds of occurring.

Suffice to say, Diamond seemed to have suddenly “decided” to skip past four stages of grief and go straight into its final stage, acceptance. Not only did she accept this with a shrug, but part of her seemed openly glad that this was happening.

By studying this perplexing (and unwelcome) reaction, I realize that the reason has something to do with her anger towards her mother. Apparently her breakthrough in my bedroom against the virtual copy of her mother hit home far harder than I had anticipated.

Now that she decides to accept this, she goes ahead and confirms this story to every student who asks her if this footage does indeed show her and her mother in the middle of those cruel acts.

It doesn’t take long after that for the school's counselor to call Diamond Tiara about this new footage. I am there in one of her classrooms while she is called to the counselor’s office. It is easy to predict how that conversation will go.

Before the end of school on that day, I pass a note to Sweetie Belle, Applebloom, Silver Spoon, and Diamond Tiara to meet me after school so we can discuss “something important”, as I put it. Specifically, I tell them to meet me at DJ's Rave for our first official Cutie Mark Crusaders meeting.

Since they agree to meet me, I plan my next move.

* * *

DJ's Rave is a combination of a sit-down restaurant, a liquor bar, and a dance joint. It is often a karaoke bar too, hosted by Vinyl Scratch during those times.

However, I chose this meeting spot two hours before the karaoke part starts just to make sure it was a little quieter during our meeting. Nevertheless, Sweetie Belle is quite excited to make this discovery and eagerly begs the rest of us to remain so we can join her for karaoke night.

For my part, it's why I chose this establishment and time. I knew Sweetie would want us to partake of the singing after the meeting. Frankly, I am surprised that Sweetie Belle, of all people, didn't already know about this place.

She knows about it now, though, and told me she owes me big time for pointing this out to her.

Score!

“Thank you all for coming,” I announce when the six of us settle into a large, rounded booth. This is also after we order our drinks, but before the drinks actually arrive. “I, Cozy Glow,” I knock on the wooden table lightly, “would like to call our first official Cutie Mark Crusader meeting to order, and we have a lot to discuss on the docket.”

I open a notepad on my cellphone to review my notes, then I look at Diamond Tiara as I say to her, “Well . . . you have had a very interesting day. I have to say, you're taking it really well.”

Indeed, too well! It is true that I wanted to fatten you up by restoring your confidence before consuming you, but I also wanted to figuratively drag you by your hair, naked, kicking and screaming across an entire field of broken glass. It feels downright annoying how fast your recovery is considering the substantial risk I had to use in order to attack you. I can't believe how badly I miscalculated your reaction.

This is yet more evidence that I am losing my touch.

“Yeah!” Sweetie Belle agrees as she looks at Diamond enthusiastically. “I agree! You are handling this whole situation remarkably well!”

“I have to admit, part of me is surprised as well,” Diamond agrees. “I guess I'm just fed up with my mother's bullshit. I'm a beautiful diamond who deserves much better treatment than I have been receiving.”

“Here-here!” Scootaloo cheers. “Way to go, Diamond! I'm so proud of you for finally standing up for yourself! Nobody should have to be bullied like you were. Not even you, a former bully.”

“And I will apologize for that as many times as it takes to convince you all that I have, indeed, changed,” Diamond announces sincerely. “I don't want to be that kind of person anymore because, if I do, then it means my mother wins.” She shook her head. “She doesn't deserve that victory. She may have given birth to me, but she does not own me.

“Also,” she looks across all of us very gratefully, “I thank you all for being with me to support me. Honestly, without your support, I don't think I could have been nearly this strong.

“I especially want to thank you, Sweetie Belle, for staying with me and keeping me from making the worst mistake of my life.

“As for you,” Diamond addresses me, “what you told me at your home has helped me immensely. I don't know how many more times you are going to keep impressing me. A lot of your advice and tactics are brutal, but it's just what I needed to hear. You finally slapped enough sense into me to give me a sharp wake up call. Now I feel like I'm finally aware of my environment and who I am for the very first time.”

“Which is proof ya are a true, genuine Crusader!” Applebloom announces to me proudly, then says to the entire group. “Welcome to the team, y'all!”

“I can't believe how much time I've wasted under her cold thumb,” Diamond says in disbelief as she looks at the table with a shake of her head. “It really is amazing how different I feel.”

“Different enough not to feel like killing yourself again, I hope,” Scootaloo says to Diamond.

Diamond smiles at Scootaloo as she assures, “Don't worry. I'm well over that now, thanks to all of you.”

“Did you tell the counselor about that?” Silver asks Diamond beside her curiously.

Diamond almost answers, but pauses when our waitress comes and delivers our drinks. The same waitress also asks if we're ready to order any food. Silver, Diamond, and I say no, but when the waitress turns to look at Sweetie Belle, she orders a giant plate of nachos for the whole table. She looks across the rest of her friends at the table to see if they agree. Silver and Diamond simply shrug, but Applebloom and Scootaloo eagerly agree.

“That sounds fine,” Silver Spoon says indifferently. “Also, I'll pay for it.”

“You sure?” Sweetie double-checks with Silver.

Silver waves Sweetie off as she says, “It's fine. Don't worry about it.”

The waitress accepts our order. After confirming that is the only item we'll be ordering for now, she leaves, but we keep one menu just in case we change our minds later.

“I swear, it's going to take me some time to get used to the fact that we actually have a rich club member now among the Crusaders,” Scootaloo says in bewilderment. She looks at Diamond, then adds, “It would have been two if it weren't for your situation. No offense.”

“I'm beginning to learn that the term, 'wealth', is fairly relative,” says Diamond. “I told you at my mansion that all of that stuff came at the expense of my chance for happiness. For the first time, I'm beginning to learn what it's like to have that pattern reversed.”

“It's great, isn't it?” Scootaloo checks with hope in her voice. “Now you totally get to have freedom from your mother and her awful judgments. Plus, you're staying at Cozy's house now, and she has the best mom ever! She isn't as awesome as Rainbow Dash, but she is still pretty awesome in her own right.”

“I think my mother is very awesome,” I say with a minor frown.

Scootaloo looks at me in alarm. “No, no! I don't mean . . .” She sighs in frustration. “Please don't put words into my mouth.”

Seeing Scootaloo uncomfortable, Sweetie decides to be a sweetheart by trying to change the subject a bit. In accordance with that, she looks at Diamond and asks her, “So . . . how is it at Cozy's so far? Do you like it?”

Diamond takes a deep breath, expels it, then says, “Honestly, it doesn't feel real yet. For the past two nights, I woke up in a strange new place and I briefly panicked because I forgot where I was. When I recall, part of me is thinking, 'Really? Is this real? Am I finally free?' I feel so terrified that I'll wake up from this wonderful dream and return back to my mother's mansion.”

Those words struck a nerve with me. I look at Diamond in amazement as I honestly tell her, “That's how I used to feel for many years after I moved in with my mother. Sometimes I still feel that way. Every time she hugs me, it helps to reassure me, but deep down . . . part of me is still convinced that this isn't real.”

Diamond widens her eyes at me as she says, “I know, right? Your mother feels too good to be true.

“While that does help to soothe our soul, part of us just can't accept it because it feels too darn good.

“You came from the orphanage before this, right? So you know what it's like when life used to suck. When we've grown so accustomed to being in hell, it feels jarring to suddenly be thrust into heaven. It does feel nice but we can't quite trust it. You know?”

OH . . . MY . . . GOD! Am I having a moment of rapport . . . with DIAMOND TIARA?! This can't be happening!

But, in a way, it is comforting. I always felt, deep down, that my mother is too good to be true. By listening to someone else say the same thing, it validates my feelings. It helps me to feel less alone and more understood.

Okay. I'll make myself a deal. As long as Diamond talks about my mother in a good way, I'll dismiss her history. I would love to talk about how much I love my mother with anyone. Even her!

“I have to admit, I’ve never seen you smile like this,” Silver says to Diamond happily. “I'm so happy for you!”

“Thanks.” Diamond pats Silver's left hand since it is closer. “You, my friend, have been my oldest and dearest friend. I will always be grateful for the love and support you've given me over these years.

“And . . . I'm sorry that I've been a royal pain at times.”

Silver shrugs as she says, “Mutual circumstances sometimes make strange bedfellows. You were a pain in the ass many times, but enduring that was better than the alternative. It was better than being alone.”

“You said it,” Diamond agrees.

Huh. Yet another thing we seem to have in common.

I wonder . . . is that the worst fear of most of humanity? Do we all fear to be totally alone?

“Um,” I focus on Diamond. Saying that drew her attention to me. “I want to bring up a question Silver asked earlier before we got interrupted. Did you tell the counselor that you were having suicidal thoughts and some actions earlier?”

Diamond sighs a little, then says, “Honestly, I didn't have much of a choice. I was sent to the nurse’s office first.

“No, wait. I was sent there second then I went back to the counselor with the test results. They discovered the cuts and bruises I had on me, especially around my wrist. I did admit to causing those myself.”

“I see,” I look forward at nothing for a moment, then look back at her. “I imagine that she was quite alarmed to hear that. She probably insisted on arranging for a suicide counseling session or something.”

Diamond nods. “In fact, she did. She also told me that this is one of the few kinds of information she legally could not keep confidential. She is going to report this to the police.”

“That makes sense,” I say to her. “That's to be expected.

“I take it she also asked you if you still had suicidal thoughts, and you told her no?”

“Wow!” Diamond blinks at me. “It's as if you were there, spying on me somehow.”

“Speaking of spying,” Silver slaps the table in fury, “someone STOLE information on my cellphone and practically splashed it all over the news, or might as well have. I don't know if you can tell, but I am so PISSED OFF RIGHT NOW!”

“As well you should be,” I agree to Silver. “Which is another reason why I called you all here for this meeting. I wanted to discuss the hacker that has caused this.”

Silver suddenly sends me a sharp look as she asks me, “You know something about this?!”

I lift a finger to her as a signal for patience while I sip my cherry/coke soda. I resume speaking to her when I'm done.

“Indeed, I do, and I have something to announce to you all, especially you, Sweetie Belle.” I look at her. “You were right about the fact that I have talked to Button Mash, but the reason isn't as invasive as you think.

“You see, he approached me first to warn me that a hacker by the name of the Shadow Queen has been bullying him in cyberspace. Apparently, she has some incriminating pictures of his mom and such. He told me she tried to use it to blackmail him into talking to you,” I point at Sweetie then swing that point to Diamond, “about her.”

“The Shadow Queen?” Scootaloo winces. “You mean she's real? I heard rumors about her at school, but I thought it was just a bunch of B-S. You mean this shit is real?”

“Very real,” I assure Scootaloo firmly. “This Shadow Queen sent Button a text message right in front of me,” I tell them to plant the idea in their heads that I am innocent. “I even took a picture of it using my own cellphone before the text erased itself.”

Scootaloo squints one eye at me as she asks, “Wait. The text erases itself? Then how would this Shadow Queen know that Button looked at it at all?”

“Maybe it's programmed to know if the screen turns on,” Silver suggests. “Or maybe it uses our phone’s own camera and matches it with facial recognition software. Honestly, if this hacker is worth her salt, there are plenty of ways to do anything she wants.”

Sweetie shudders. “Ooo! This sounds so scary!”

“Sweetie Belle . . . there is something else you should know,” I bring up, winning her attention back to me. “Button Mash . . . he tried to protect you. Despite the leverage the Shadow Queen had over him, Button didn't want you involved because he didn't want you to get hurt. He really cares for you deeply even though you rejected him years ago.

“I, ah . . . just thought you should know that.”

“Rejected him?!” Diamond asks with a surprising amount of alarm. “Sweetie, does she mean that Button once proposed to you or something?”

“Uh . . . yeah . . . sorta,” Sweetie answers as she glows beet red. “but that was years ago. Button and I were still just little kids.”

Sweetie looks embarrassed to have this secret exposed. That in itself is not surprising. What is astonishing is actually Diamond's reaction to this news. She actually looks furious and defensive.

I look back and forth between Diamond and Sweetie Belle. Sweetie is embarrassed to be caught, and Diamond is reacting like Sweetie cheated on her.

Oh, you gotta be SHITTING ME! Diamond and Sweetie . . . REALLY?!

But then I recall something Sweetie almost said back in my office when I first confronted her and Diamond. After Diamond left, Sweetie Belle almost confessed something else but bit her tongue at the last second. Is this what she was going to say back then?

Studying their reaction more carefully, I soon realize that Sweetie isn't even sure she is in the closet in the first place, let alone ready to come out of it. She seems like she's on the fence.

Meanwhile, Diamond's reaction is much more intense, so between the two, if there was any romantic advances between either one of them, then Diamond was almost certainly the instigator.

I wish I could chalk that up as a fluke. A temporary loss of control due to heightened emotions. After all, Sweetie Belle literally saved Diamond's life.

But, if that was all it was, Diamond wouldn't be acting so defensive now.

Just in case, I take stock of the reaction of all the other girls at the table.

Silver Spoon looks like she couldn't care less.

Applebloom seems amused. She looks like she is restraining a giggle. She also doesn't look surprised. Maybe Sweetie confessed this part to Applebloom earlier. Beyond that, Applebloom doesn't look too judgmental at all. She probably tried to console Sweetie at one time by saying something like, “It's okay if ya have feelings for Diamond. Ya can have a crush on anyone ya want.”

Scootaloo's reaction is also startling. She looks depressed, as if lamenting the fact that Diamond beat Scootaloo to the punch. Does that mean Scootaloo has feelings for Sweetie Belle too?

Come to think of it, Scootaloo is easily the most masculine girl sitting at this table right now. From a distance, based on her attire and appearance, she could easily be mistaken for a boy. So much so that part of me even wonders if she really does identify as a boy.

Actually, that's interesting to think about, because all three girls of the original CMC seem to illustrate a different side of femininity. While Scoots is the most masculine, Applebloom is down the middle. Even now she is wearing jean pants, and her blouse looks more functional than aesthetic, but it leans on feminine due to the laces at the edge of the blouse. In A-B's case, the true dead giveaway to her gender, speaking strictly in terms of attire, is the great big red bow in her hair. That, above all, signals to everyone else, “Yeah, I am a girl, and don't you forget it!”

Sweetie Belle completes the circle by leaning totally on the feminine side. She is a girly-girl both in terms of attire and personality. This is most likely her sister Rarity's influence.

In fact, I am not sure if I have ever seen Rarity design clothes for men. I'm sure she could, but she seems to specialize in women's clothes. Considering the fact she can wear what she designs, I see the appeal for Rarity.

“So . . . that is why Button came at me all of a sudden,” Sweetie Belle realizes. “I must admit, I did think it strange that he did it out of the blue. I was especially confused at his interest in Diamond. At the time, I thought that he was romantically interested in Diamond, except he asked about some of her problems. I didn't want to tell him that she was suicidal, so I told him something else to throw him off the scent.

“So . . . did Button say anything else about me?” Sweetie Belle asks me shyly while also glowing red with embarrassment, but her curiosity is too strong not to ask. While she asks, she absently twirls a finger through her hair.

“The main thing is he cares for you a great deal. He seems determined to protect you, which is why he doesn't want you involved with this Shadow Queen business. What I'm discussing with you right now he might consider a betrayal, but with everything that happened with Silver recently,” I nod to her, “I thought I should warn you guys about this.”

I look at Diamond as I say to her, “For some reason, the Shadow Queen seems especially interested in you. Button and I used to think that she was trying to get leverage over you so that she could persuade you to betray me, but now I'm thinking you might have been her primary target all along.”

“Oh?” Diamond asks me with a blink.

“Think about it!” I lean toward her across the table. “As far as I know, you are the only one she openly attacked. Everyone else she held at ransom. Her normal m-o seems to be to use information to blackmail people into giving her more information to blackmail others, but not you. She broke her pattern with you. Instead of threatening you, like she did for everyone else, she instead exposed your information about your mother without giving you a chance to defend yourself. That tells me that, whomever she is, she has a personal vendetta against you specifically.

“Tell me, Diamond Tiara, do you have any special enemies in the past that you have harmed? Someone who might bear an overwhelming grudge against you?”

I examine her response very carefully. I want to see if there is any hint of remorse within her about what she has done to me.

But, instead of remorse, I see confusion.

“I was a bitch for a great deal of my life,” Diamond announces. “I think my problem is that the list of suspects is too long. The only hint I can offer is that, among them, someone is a professional hacker who also has a personal vendetta against me. Right now, I have no idea who that is.”

“I see,” I say a bit emptily as I look down.

I don't know why I feel so disappointed. I guess I was giving her one chance to apologize to me now. If she did, I might have been willing to call off this war, especially for my mother's sake.

But noooooooooooooo! She doesn't even remember me! She doesn't think that the wrong she did against me is worth remembering. The biggest insult and injury she did to me in my entire LIFE . . . and it is not worth remembering?

Okay, then. Game on, Little Miss Prissy!

“We should probably discuss that list anyway,” Silver suggests. “We might find a way to narrow it down later.”

Yeah. If I appear on that list at all, I might be just an afterthought.

“We can try,” Diamond partially agrees with a half shrug.

For a very brief moment, I look up at Diamond with a harsh glare of burning hatred flaring deep in my eyes, but then I remember to compose myself. I wipe it away with a fake look of concern to Diamond.

“I feel it is my duty to point out,” I say to gather their attention again, “that Diamond might not be the Shadow Queen's only direct victim. There is a good chance that Sunset Shimmer also suffered her wrath.”

“OH!” Sweetie Belle covers her mouth with a sharp gasp. “I didn't even think of that, but you're right! I always suspected Sunset Shimmer was framed, and now I am hearing of an evil hacker at our school? That can't be a coincidence!”

“Button and I reached the same conclusion,” I agree, followed by another sip of my drink.

“So this Shadow Queen framed Sunset Shimmer?!” Scootaloo asks in astonishment, then she pounds the table with two fists. “Ooooo! Now I’m REALLY mad! How dare she hurt one of my dearest friends!”

“We should take this here information to the po’leese!” Applebloom proposes. “That might help tah clear Sunset's name!”

“With what proof?” I challenge Applebloom. “Button Mash suggested the same thing, so I'll tell you the same thing I told him. It would be very unwise for us to take this to the police because that might force the culprit to go deeper underground. If that happens, we could lose our chance to unmask this villainess. If that happens, it also means we'll lose our chance to save Sunset Shimmer.”

“But what can we do?!” Sweetie asks with worry. “We're just teenagers!”

“Teenagers who happen to have one of the world's greatest geniuses join their little Crusade,” I remind the group. “Remember, strategy is my specialty.

“For now, I advise patience and for us to keep our heads cool . . . for Sunny's sake.”

“Ooo! I know what we can do!” Sweetie says brightly. “Let's discuss this with my sister Rarity! She said she is investigating this case anyway, and you just know she isn't the culprit.”

I wave Sweetie off as I tell her, “No need. Rarity already came by my office about this. She seems to have some decent leads. I even think she has a suspect, but I don't think she'll be inclined to tell us about it.”

“Why not?” Silver asks defensively. “If she has any idea who hacked my phone, then I want to know about it!”

“Then you'll have to discuss it with Rarity,” I advise Silver.

Actually, I am worried about that, but the threat exists regardless of what I tell them, so tipping them off doesn't change much other than allowing me to have some control over the flow of information.

“I think I will,” Silver says with a huff as she crosses her arms. She still looks really furious. “If this hacker merely stopped at looking through my information, I would be insulted but could ultimately let it slide. However, by using that information to attack one of my dearest friends is unforgivable!

“Plus, if she really did send Sunset to jail unjustly, then that is another thing I cannot let slide.”

And Rarity really is a dire threat to me.

Damn it! Did I just make a grave miscalculation here? That's been happening way too often lately for my taste.

“You'll tell us what she said?” Scootaloo asks Silver hopefully.

“If she tells me any information worth mentioning, then sure,” Silver agrees. “But, just in case, I probably should tell you in person rather than relying on my compromised phone.”

“Ah . . . if you are not going to use it anymore . . . can I have it?” I request hopefully. After all, the cellphone case alone is worth a fortune! I think Silver put actual diamond dust on it. With it, I could cast a stone skin spell if Ogres and Oubliettes were real.

Silver passes me a piercing stare for a moment, then she lifts her phone as she says, “Actually, you have a point. I'll loan you my phone on one condition; you must promise me to have your mother take a look at it. She might be able to determine something about it that could help us narrow down our list of suspects.”

“Certainly! I'll take it to my mother right away,” I lie.

Silver slides her phone across the table at me. I sweep it up and deposit it in my purse.

“Tell your mother to give it back to me in person after she examines it thoroughly,” Silver instructs me. “Make sure she knows to hand it to me in person because I can't trust a digital format right now. Even if it's a video call, the hacker might find some way to fake the call.”

Ooo! Clever girl! Now that request puts me in a bind.

I'll have to check the phone myself to make sure I clean it of any evidence before presenting it to my mother.

“Good idea,” I agree to Silver. “In fact, from now on, we should all be careful what information we share using our phones. There is no telling who else’s phone might be hacked.” I lift a finger. “Only use your phone if you don't mind the information being handed to the enemy, like misinformation, for example.”

“Oh, that's clever!” Sweetie agrees.

For the first time in my experience with Sweetie Belle, I actually see an evil smirk from the otherwise very innocent looking girl. That reveals to me a side of Sweetie Belle I never encountered before. I kind of like it!

“Since we're aware that she might be tapping into our phones, we could use it to lure her into a clever trap!” Sweetie proposes deviously.

“Play that card very carefully,” I caution. “If it's too obvious then we might tip her off that we're on to her.”

“I think we should file that thought away for now,” Diamond advises. “In fact, if anyone here can come up with a clever ploy to use that tactic, it's you, Cozy. You are our resident genius here.”

“The Shadow Queen might be as well. We should be cautious,” I advised in return.

“What if she isn't smart, but she is resourceful?” Scootaloo brought up. “What if she is using Equestrian magic to get her way?”

“Ya bring up a mighty fine point,” Applebloom agrees. “This here Shadow Queen might be using Equestrian magic. If she is, she could be capable of anything.”

I shrug as I say, “I don't see any way to safely confirm or deny that right now.”

“Just in case, you should talk to your mother about this,” Sweetie Belle brought up. “She has almost as much experience with Equestrian magic as Sunset Shimmer, and she does have the most experience when it comes to weaving that magic with technology.”

I shrug again. “I suppose there is no harm in asking. If worse comes to worse, she can at least . . .

“Hey! How do you know if she has experience combining Horse-Land magic and technology?”

“My sister Rarity told me,” Sweetie answers.

I growl a bit. “That information was supposed to be confidential. I'll have to have a little chat with Rarity.”

“Don't tell her that I said this!” Sweetie panics. “I don't want her to be mad at me!”

My expression towards Sweetie calms down as I tell her truthfully, “Don't worry, Sweetie. I know how to keep a secret. Better than your sister Rarity, it seems.”

* * *

Over the next few hours, it occurs to me, as I speak with my “fellow” Crusaders, that I've never done this before. Just hang out somewhere to socially chat with fellow members of my species. Usually, when I converse with others, it's all business.

This situation was no different at first but, as the hours dragged on, our conversation drags on from topic to topic. It shifts through so many topics that, after a while, it gets difficult to remember where the conversation originally started. Typically I have an eye for detail too, but the mind just grows numb after trying to pay close attention to so many different things.

No wonder I'm so exhausted when I collapse on my bed every night!

Another thing that's kind of new to me, at least among those at my age range, is singing karaoke at DJ's Rave. When Vinyl finally strutted into the joint like she owned the place, both Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo were very happy to see her. Sweetie Belle obviously felt that way because it meant this social gathering could progress to the part she is really looking forward to. As for Scootaloo, my guess is she simply thinks Vinyl is cool.

In fact, of all of our group, Scootaloo seems to be the most personally familiar with Vinyl Scratch. Despite Scootaloo's taste for “cool” people, I honestly didn't expect these two to be on a first-name basis.

Huh. I guess I learn something every day.

At first I am a little annoyed by this new shift in activity. Deep down, I also feel a bit nervous.

Singing is not really my “thing”, but I'm not bad at it. Thanks to my mother, I've gotten some decent practice at it, and I am way better at it than some of these others at the bar, especially Scootaloo! That darn girl practically made my ears bleed!

But I can at least appreciate how much Scootaloo enjoys it. Despite her horrible quality, Scootaloo pours her heart out to the microphone, and that has its own sort of charm. Part of me even admires her for how much she could ignore other people's criticism and not let that stop her from doing something she loves to do.

Reading my face, Applebloom points out to me that Scootaloo has actually gotten much better over the years. I widen my eyes at Applebloom as I thought to myself, “You mean, that horrible banshee voice is actually better than she used to be?” I shuddered at the thought of how bad she must have been before.

My reaction causes Applebloom to giggle.

Sweetie Belle is easily the most talented member of our table to sing. Fortunately for us, she is also the one who took the microphone the most often. She even joined several of us in a duet, me included.

I know I can sing, but doing it in front of a crowd is kind of a new experience for me.

I sweep my gaze across the audience as I am handed the microphone. I notice that the majority of the restaurant's patrons aren't paying attention to the singers. Instead, they are mostly talking among themselves.

But there are a few among the audience that are obvious enthusiasts of karaoke. They seem determined to cheer on the performers, no matter how bad they may be. But, when they did give compliments, I could tell they came from the heart. For instance, I'm sure they meant it when they said that Sweetie Belle sings like a little angel.

“YOU GOT THIS, GIRL!” an elderly country sounding and looking lady shouts out to me, cupping her hands to both sides of her mouth to enhance her volume. She cries out a cheer, then shouts, “SING IT!”

I think that country lady realizes that she does not recognize me as having been in this bar before, so she's trying her best to be supportive and encouraging before I even start to sing.

I've stood in front of a crowd before. That is one of the reasons I don't panic, but I don't feel like I'm in full control in this situation either.

Sweetie Belle ends up choosing a total of three songs to sing with me. Something they have in common is they are all duets and they got quite a beat to them that I honestly find quite infectious.

We sing the songs, “Put A Little Love In Your Heart,” “We’re Not Going To Take It,” and “We Built This City.”

I am nervous for the first few lines, but Sweetie Belle's singing and swaying dance infects me. Before too long, I swing my arms and my hips back and forth with attitude. I let that feeling sink into my singing too. It does not take long before I fully immerse myself in the moment.

Oh my God! I am actually having a lot of fun up here!

Another thing that surprises me is Diamond Tiara's performance. Diamond is the only one among us to nearly match Sweetie in terms of quality.

Diamond, too, seems very nervous at first, but the exact same thing happens to her as it did to me. Once she sinks into the groove, Diamond is actually amazing!

Two songs that Diamond sings is “You light up my life,” and “Let it go.” While singing the former, I have a feeling she was especially singing to Sweetie and me. As for the latter song, she was probably thinking about letting go of the pain of her past, but while I sat there and listened to her song, I kept on hearing Sunset Shimmer speak to me in my mind about the importance of letting go of old grudges and to accept that the past is in the past.

Thinking of Sunny made me a bit teary-eyed, and I could not help but feel like it is a personal request. I soon swallow that sensation down, instead thinking that art can be interpreted in so many ways for each individual person and moment.

I can't believe this is happening. Am I actually having fun with Diamond Tiara?

To be honest, it's not just her. It's really all the girls that are making this moment feel special. I feel an inward glow in my chest that I can barely identify, but it closely resembles the feelings I have for my mother except . . . something is off about that. The feeling is nearly as intense, but it doesn't match the idea of looking “up” at someone above me. Instead, it's the kind of enjoyment from others within my same age range, and that feels . . . strange. Unfamiliar.

Is this what friendship feels like? If so, I kind of like it.

Even after our meeting, while Diamond and I are heading home, many of the songs we sung at the bar get stuck in my head. I find myself singing it all the way home until I turn on my computer and see an unwelcome message on my computer screen.

Dark King: It is good to get close to the enemy, but don't lose focus! Remember, let hatred be your guide!

“Oh, SHUT UP bizarro Jiminy Cricket!” I cry out at my computer monitor. “I actually had some fun today, so GET OFF MY BACK!”

I turn the computer monitor back off.

Concurrent to the date of this post, I bid you all, "May the Fourth be with you!"