I've had a trying time these past six weeks. Most of it involves talking to therapists, lawyers, and apologizing to so many people. Normally I wouldn't find this too difficult, but I've not been myself lately. With everything I've gone through, I don't feel particularly strong or brave. On the contrary, I've mostly been feeling embarrassed and ashamed. It really isn't easy to face others when they are mad at me and admit to them that I was wrong, but my guilt and love compels me to do so.

Most of the time, the reaction I get is more gentle than I expected, even when it came from the law.

One of the reasons I'm getting a more gentle sentence has to do with the insanity defense. I've got to admit, there is much validity in that. In these past few months, I have had hallucinations which include audio and visual. During that time, two alternate personalities attempted to drive me towards opposite actions. There is no telling how successful they were in influencing me. Not even my memories of Sombra gives me any definite feedback.

Speaking of which, his memories have been fading from my mind over these past several weeks. A large part of me expected that for logical reasons. Equestrian magic notwithstanding, it seems to me that the human mind is not designed to store over a thousand years worth of knowledge, especially to have so much of it downloaded in such a short amount of time. At first those memories were so vivid that it left me confused who my true identity was, but, as those memories faded, only my memories of Cozy Glow are left. As time went on, it felt more and more like a dream I had, or rather a nightmare.

For my part, I'm content to allow those memories to fade because those memories do not match who I am anymore. Perhaps I never was that person in the first place.

Sunset Shimmer went through a similar transition these past several weeks, but she seemed to be able to maintain her extra memories better. That alone was enough to ensure that not all that went through my head is just my imagination. For her to be able to recount in detail what happened to me while she was in jail, including many of my most private thoughts and feelings, demonstrates that something more occurred rather than just me going insane.

At first I thought that Sunset possessing extra memories of sharing her life with me would make our relationship together feel awkward and creepy, but instead, it turned out to be a comfort because I knew for sure that she truly understood me. I didn't need to explain myself to her anymore or express how sorry I am to her. She already knew all that without needing me to say a word, not that I could anyway. Instead, it was her that ended up explaining things to everyone else. I felt relieved to have this trustworthy and competent ally by my side. It sure made things easier when I don't feel so strong.

As time went on, things gradually returned to a semblance of normal. During most of that time, someone was always there to watch me just in case I had lingering suicidal thoughts. My sister, Diamond Tiara, kept an especially close eye on me. She didn't go as far as following me into the bathroom, but she knocked on the door to check on me if I was too quiet and alone for too long. Although I still couldn't speak, a knock on the wall sufficed to appease her concerns.

“Helloooooo! Earth to Cozy! Come in Cozy!” obnoxiously declares Scootaloo. I focus ahead and see Scootaloo right in front of me as she bends down a bit while waving her hands a few inches in front of my face to clear me of my reverie of the past few weeks.

Before I have a chance to respond, two more girls sit right beside me on the left and right end of the couch. Sweetie Belle sits to the right of me and Applebloom sits to my left. Both of them grab one of my arms facing towards each of them. Sweetie Belle additionally leans into me to give me a side hug.

“There is the birthday girl!” Sweetie Belle cheers.

“Wow! Ya turn’in eighteen today! Ya are officially an adult now!” Applebloom announces, also in a cheerful and “informative of the obvious” mood. “How does it feel?”

“Actually, she doesn't technically turn into a real adult until she turns twenty-one,” Scootaloo corrects as she moves to sit on the master armchair of the living room. “When she's old enough to properly drink legally, then she can call herself a proper adult!” Scootaloo said with a big thumbs up and wink towards us, me in particular.

By sitting on that armchair, she now has to regard me off to her left side.

“Well, she's old enough to vote now!” Sweetie Belle says brightly. “So . . . she's like a young adult now! She can also do all kinds of other stuff without adult permission anymore!”

“So y’all going to answer ma question?” Applebloom prompts me.

I would, but both of the girls flanking me are holding each side of my arms. I look at Applebloom as I give her an innocent shrug and wiggle my arms a bit for emphasis.

“Oh. Right. Sorry.” Applebloom releases me, followed shortly by Sweetie Belle. The latter girl continues to lean close to me, though.

I lift both of my hands and type on a virtual keyboard that I can only see because of my augmented reality glasses. Once I finish the message, I hit enter which sends the message to be spoken by a text-to-speech program on my cellphone. In this case, it is uploaded with a synthesized version of my own voice. Without the more advanced setting of the editing software on my computer, however, my voice comes out sounding somewhat robotic and monotone on my phone.

“Eighteen is just a number. One of many to come, most likely,” the synthesized version of my voice announces from my phone.

“Well, yeah, but . . . it's a number with many legal ramifications,” Scootaloo puts in.

“Yeah!” Sweetie Belle agrees. “It means you've lived on this earth and in this form for eighteen solid years. That's quite an achievement.”

“Achievement unlocked!” Scootaloo adds with a grin as she waves both hands in front of her in a dramatic pose. “Gained the title, 'Young Adult'.”

Eighteen years as Cozy Glow . . . wow. Not that I stop and think about it, my life has been really remarkable. I've gone through many ups and downs, but I believe things are starting to really pick up for me. Most of my blessings stem from my many wonderful friends and family, many of which are visiting my home right now. They've all gathered together to celebrate my birthday today and Hearth's Warming tomorrow.

“Excuse me,” puts in Silver Spoon as she peeks at us from the kitchen. Once she has our attention, she resumes. “Where are the hors d'oeuvres being served, and who is serving them?”

I raise my hands to type an answer, but the girls around me beat me to it.

“I know that my sister Rarity brought some,” Sweetie answers to Silver Spoon. “It should be on the kitchen table, but you'll have to serve yourself. On it, I know there are some cucumber sandwiches. There is also some cut celery and carrots. You can dip them in the ranch in the center of the pallet.”

“Self-service?” Silver Spoon reflects with a slight wince. “That's . . . quaint. But, eh,” she shrugs carelessly, “at least that means I can get what I want, when I want.

“Um,” she looks into the kitchen, “on the table you said?”

“Yeah,” Sweetie confirms. “It's actually pretty tall. You can't miss it. It looks like several wheels stacked on top of each other. Each wheel towards the top is smaller and smaller.”

“Oh, I think I see it!” Silver announces. “Thanks. I'll go ahead and collect some.”

Silver Spoon returns to the adjacent kitchen.

I look at my hands with a frown. I'm adapting, but it still feels a little painful not to be able to speak again. I cannot type messages fast enough to keep up with others who are talking, especially since I have OCD, which compels me to make sure my spelling and grammar is impeccable. That, however, slows me down considerably. Sometimes there are also digital lags.

“Let's see what your horoscope says,” Sweetie Belle spontaneously declares as she fishes out her cellphone. “Man, you're really lucky to be born on Hearth's Warming Eve! First you get to celebrate your birthday, and then you get to have Hearth's Warming the very next day! You get presents two days in a row! Pinkie must be so jealous of you.”

Actually, yeah. She has mentioned that to me before. As early as today, in fact. I think this is the sixth year in a row she's told me that. It almost feels like a tradition, but something tells me she forgot that she told me that each year for the past six years.

“Oh wow! So you're a Capricorn,” Sweetie realizes after she consults her phone. “Neat.” She shrugs. “I guess that makes sense.”

“Why?” Applebloom asks curiously as she leans forward in order to see Sweetie across the other end of my chest. “What does it say about them?”

“Ah . . .” Sweetie blinks in confusion, then regards Applebloom as she asks, “are you asking about Capricorns in general?”

Right after Sweetie asked that, K-9 happily came over to her and yaps at Sweetie hopefully. In response, Sweetie pats her lap invitingly to the robot dog. Promptly, the dog hops up to join her on her lap then gives pleasant moans as she absently pets it.

“Well . . .” Applebloom looks as if she is fishing for more specific information, but then changes her mind with an accepting shrug as she says, “Sure. I'd love to hear what it says about her, but I also wanted to know her fortune for the day.”

“Okay.” Sweetie looks back at her phone. She thumbs through it as she reads aloud, “'A Capricorn's greatest strength is their intelligence.'”

“Huh.” Scootaloo blinks. “I can definitely vouch for that.”

Sweetie pauses to make sure Scootaloo doesn't have anything further to add on that point, then looks back at her phone as she dictates on. “'They are detail-oriented and will not take no for an answer when they want something. Their hard-working attitude is an inspiration to all. They truly believe they can achieve anything with hard work. A Capricorn is always ready to learn new skills, and sees something they don’t know—like changing a tire or boiling the perfect egg—as a challenge they must undertake. This attitude makes them a master of all trades, and they have esoteric knowledge that is impressive to all who know them.'”

Sweetie pauses there as she scrolls down on her phone with her thumb. Meanwhile, we're all nodding in silent agreement.

“'Capricorn's weaknesses,'” Sweetie reads on. “'A Capricorn can be incredibly hard on themselves and just as hard on other people. They can hold grudges and hold other people in their lives to impossible standards.'”

“Oh my GOD, that is so true!” Scootaloo strongly agrees. “That fits Cozy to a T.”

“'Capricorns sometimes see one narrow way of doing something,'” Sweetie continues. “'and broadening their horizons and perspective can be incredibly helpful in giving them and others a break.

“'Horoscope for the day: Congratulations on being born on Hearth's Warming Eve. That surely is a lucky achievement worthy of Pinkie Pie's envy, as she's opt to remind you every single year.'”

“What?!” Scootaloo exclaims. “That's awfully specific.”

I snicker a bit because I already realize that Sweetie is just making this up at this point, but Scootaloo is still taking this seriously even though she's becoming more doubtful. I find that, more than what Sweetie is saying, privately amusing.

“'Do not take your friends for granted, for they are a treasure trove full of wisdom from which you may grow,'” Sweetie resumes, “'Be not afraid of new change, for big changes are coming your way, and it will be a good thing.'” She scrolls down further. “Ah . . . let's see. It says here, 'It is especially important that you listen to your friend Sweetie Belle, for she is the smartest friend you have besides your own mother and yourself. She is also known to crack occasional good humor, as this horoscope entry attests.'”

“Does it really say that?” Scootaloo asks doubtfully. “Let me see that!”

“Sure,” Sweetie casually invites as she stands up to pass her phone to Scootaloo, which disturbs and forces K-9 to hop off her lap. “It says it right here.”

Scootaloo sifts through the text, then widens her eyes in astonishment. “Oh my GOODNESS! It does say that!”

Applebloom joins me in our quiet snicker.

Scootaloo looks confused as she says, “Wait.” Evidently, she found something suspicious, then she looks at her friend Sweetie beside her as she accuses, “This is an e-mail that you sent to yourself!”

Sweetie Belle instantly bursts out laughing, unable to hold it in anymore.

“Ha-ha! Real funny!” Scootaloo says sarcastically with a roll of her eyes while handing Sweetie her phone back. “That was so funny I forgot to laugh.”

Examining her carefully, I notice that Scootaloo is, in fact, struggling to prevent a grin from reaching her face.

“Was any of that a real horoscope?” Applebloom asks Sweetie curiously as Sweetie sits back down on the couch beside me. During that time, Applebloom is still cracking up a bit.

“Ah . . . yes. The beginning parts were copy and pasted from online,” Sweetie answers more seriously.

We all simmer down as we watch Flurry Heart approach us, and me in particular. She approaches to stand in front of me and looks directly into my eyes. As she does so, I examine her chest and notice she is holding a stuffed doll of some kind of snail. I forgot what she called it, but it was some wacky infant-type name.

“Hi Flurry. How is my favorite cousin doing?” I ask through my phone after I type it up and send it.

She continues to examine me quietly for a few more seconds, then reaches forward to touch the center of my chest. She seems to pause for a moment as she inwardly examines something, then she smiles brightly up at me as she says, “Beh-ter.”

I smile at her warmly and lovingly as I type then send the message, “Yes, Flurry. I am feeling better, especially with you here to celebrate my birthday.”

After that, I bend down to scoop her up into my arms. I pull her up so she sits on my legs on top of my skirt. From behind her, I squeeze her warmly to my chest. As I do so, she giggles happily a bit.

I bend my head down to kiss the top of her head. That is when I notice that her hair smells really nice! It smells like lavender roses.

Oh! I love you so much, Flurry Heart! You smell nice, too.

An image of Sombra's memories flashes through my head. Within it, I see him holding the crying and terrified pony version of Flurry Heart when she was still an infant. In Sombra's mind, I notice him feeling smug because he knows he has a hostage that will cow any opponent that would dare to raise a hoof or horn against him. He felt like he had already won by capturing Flurry Heart alive.

Also, he was interested in Flurry Heart personally because he suspected she had an intimate connection with the Crystal Heart, hence the reason she was born an alicorn. He figured that, if he could corrupt her, then he could also corrupt the Crystal Heart itself. If that happened, it could be a more useful weapon for him rather than a threat against him.

Whoa! Wait! Flurry Heart was born an alicorn in the pony universe?

I double-check my memories as Sombra. Those memories confirm it. The pony version of my cousin does indeed have a pair of wings and a horn. Also, her head looks pretty large.

Oh wow! Even in the pony universe, my cousin is very special. It actually hurts my heart to recall her infant, pony self looking up at me with such misery and fear.

But this version of Flurry isn't doing that. She is sitting on my lap, cooing happily and loving the fact that she's being hugged by me.

“Ooo! I want a turn to hug her next!” Sweetie announces with jealousy.

“Okay! Where is the birthday girl?” Sunset Shimmer calls as she enters into the living room with searching eyes that quickly spots me. Behind her back, she is obviously trying to hide some kind of surprise. “Oh! There you are, Cozy! I have a surprise for you!”

Off the corner of her arm, I catch a glimpse of what she is hiding, and it makes my heart sink with shame. Apparently, behind Sunny's back, she is hiding the very magical laptop computer I planted false evidence against her on. Seeing it now renews the pain of my guilt.

Sunny sees the pain on my face. Because she also has the memories of her other self within me these past several moons, she also deduces why I grow depressed. This causes her to frown a bit as she also shakes her head in denial.

“No, Honey. You don't understand,” Sunset assures me. “Now I know what you are thinking and feeling right now, but trust me . . . this is a good surprise.”

She reveals her laptop in front of her while also opening up the lid. She triumphantly declares, “Tah-dah!” as she opens it.

On the screen, I see a rather crowded image of many of the pony versions of my friends and family.

“HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!” they all cry out simultaneously. Right after declaring that, a “boom” sound and an explosion of party confetti showers down on top of them.

“Congratulations, Cozy!” the pony version of my mother tells me from within the video of the screen. “I've been told that you turned eighteen now, and that is a significant milestone for humans in your world.”

“Happy-happy birthday!” pony Pinkie Pie sings as she starts popping in and out around the screen, sometimes viewing through the screen from impossible, gravity-defying angles. I notice her wearing a pink party cone on her head during this time. “A fine birthday to you! Happy-happy birthday, a birthday song to you!” She then blows on a party favor which bursts out party confetti to the camera on her end . . . or is it a magic mirror?

“Congratulations there, Sugar Cube!” pony Applejack commends while barely visible at the bottom corner of Sunny's screen.

“What are you going to do now, Sport?” pony Rainbow Dash asks me curiously while flying in the background, facing towards the “camera”.

“Let us see! Let us see!” cries the voice of Sweetie Belle within the video which immediately captures the rapt attention of her human counterpart.

A bunch of ponies clear the way on their end. Enough so that a pretty adult-looking pony version of Sweetie Belle, Applebloom, and Scootaloo crowd the view of the screen from our end.

“Was that Sweetie Belle I heard in the video?” our Scootaloo asks curiously as she looks over her left shoulder at Sunny who is still standing between us.

Meanwhile Sunny is looking around for something, then asks, “Um . . . Cozy, where do you guys put that foldout table?”

I raise my hands to type a message, but human Applebloom beats me to it.

“I know where it is. It's behind the couch, right?” Applebloom gets up to check behind the couch. Sure enough, she finds what she seeks.

“Oh my gosh, Crusaders! Look!” exclaims pony Scootaloo on the screen. “It's the human versions of us!”

“This is so amazing!” human Sweetie exclaims beside me. “Why haven't we done this years ago?”

“Actually, I can answer that question,” Sunset mentions. “After you busted your mother's portal,” Sunset says with a slightly scolding look to me but quickly goes on in a brighter mood, “she went ahead to repair it, but made some additional improvements as well.”

“Plus, the magical link between our two worlds has shifted over time,” pony Twilight explains behind the Crusaders. “It used to be very weak until some of Equestria's magic leaked through into your world.”

“Which is why your mother and her counterpart worked to find and close those leaks,” Sunset lectures.

Meanwhile, the Cutie Mark Crusaders on both ends of the screen regard each other with brimming excitement, but they patiently wait their turn to speak.

During that time, human Applebloom set out the folding table. Sunset then moved to set the laptop on it facing towards us. After that, she moves to the couch and requests us to make room on it. In order to oblige her, Sweetie scoots away from me while Applebloom and I scoot further to our left. We don't make much room, but it's enough for Sunset to sit down and join us on the couch.

“Horsies!” Flurry Heart exclaims brightly while pointing at the computer screen then claps while giggling happily.

Seeing human Flurry Heart makes the pony version of the CMC’s head’s quake with excitement and cuteness overdose, but they still politely wait their turn to speak. Besides, what was being said kind of fascinated them.

“For the longest time, there was a time discrepancy between our worlds as well,” pony Twilight adds. “For instance, in our world, it is not your counterpart's birthday or even Hearth's Warming Eve, but she is here.”

“However, over time,” Sunset picks up, “our worlds slowly got in sync with each other.”

“Ooo! Is that why Princess Luna once said that if you stayed in the human world for longer than three days, you couldn't return for thirty moon cycles?” pony Sweetie asks pony Twilight. While she asks, the CMC's back off from their end and make room for Princess Twilight to join them, or rather stand behind them.

I notice that, despite the pony CMC's being an adult, Princess Twilight still towers over them enough to be seen.

“Exactly,” Princess Twilight confirms. “Back then, our two worlds were badly out of sync.”

“Which of our two worlds proceeded faster?” human Scootaloo asks.

“Theirs, obviously,” human Sweetie answers. “Look how much older our pony selves are.”

“That's true,” Sunset confirms. “Their world used to travel faster. It still does, but it's a lot closer now due to the magical leaks. However, because there still is a time discrepancy between our worlds, the link between our worlds won't remain strong enough to maintain this video connection for more than a few minutes a day.”

“Which is another reason why we didn't make this video communication before,” pony Twilight adds as if both she and Sunset are building their argument together. “Sending text messages is a lot simpler than sending full audio or video.”

“Believe it or not, even sending us through the portal is simpler,” Sunset says. “That is because sending people or objects through the portal crosses the threshold in one large burst of information. To have a video conference like this, however, means continuously transmitting data back and forth through the portal.”

“That, coupled with the time discrepancy previously made this feat impossible,” pony Twilight notes. “But things have changed over time, and we've also learned to calculate the time differentials between our two worlds.”

“Once we figured that out, we knew how to compensate for the differences,” Sunny put in.

Pony Twilight closes her eyes, sighs, shakes her head, then says, “That wasn't an easy thing to do because the time difference kept on changing.”

“We couldn't even figure out why,” Sunny adds. “We knew it had something to do with the magical leaks, but when we started to find and shut down those leaks, we figured that the time discrepancy between our worlds would grow again because we were shutting down those leaks.”

“But the precise opposite happened,” Twilight says. “That caught us by surprise.”

“It turned out that, as we shut down those leaks, the few that remained grew a stronger and stronger link,” Sunny informed us. She gestures to her computer. “Portals such as the ones your mother is using to access Equestria, and my computer is using to communicate with it.”

“I feel like you two are speaking a different language,” human Scootaloo complains.

“You said it,” her pony counterpart agrees. “I never learned to speak Egghead, even though I am a teacher now.”

“Really? You're a teacher?” human Scootaloo asks her pony self in surprise, then gestures to herself, “Is that what I'm supposed to be?”

“What?” pony Scootaloo looks taken aback, then says, “No! Of course not!

“Well, you can if you want to,” she amends, “but you don't have to follow my hoofsteps precisely. You are your own individual pony! You can do whatever you want.”

“Um, I think you meant, 'individual human', Scootaloo,” pony Applebloom corrects.

Pony Scootaloo waves a hoof off-screen as she says, “Whatever! She knows what I mean.”

“I think I do,” human Scootaloo agrees. “So what you are saying is, even though we look and kind of act alike, we each have our own destiny!”

“Exactly!” all three pony Cutie Mark Crusaders say simultaneously.

“Oh wow!” human Sweetie marvels. “You three do that with each other too?”

Pony Twilight clears her throat to regather attention, then continues with her lecture, “Anyway, the link between our two worlds has almost stabilized. The more the human world catches up to our speed, the slower it catches up. I calculate that our two worlds will be in perfect sync with each other in three-hundred and twenty-two years, seven months, three weeks, four days, seven hours, and fifty-three minutes in our world.”

“What, no seconds?” I sarcastically ask electronically.

“Well,” the pony version of my mother waves me off while rolling her eyes as she says, “I have to leave room for some variables!”

“Wow! Your manes look just like our hair!” human Sweetie marvels to their pony counterparts. “Do your tail colors match your manes as well?”

“Yeah!” pony Sweetie confirms, then offers, “Want to see?”

“Please do!” human Sweetie eagerly agrees.

Pony Sweetie steps back a bit, turns about, then waves her tail towards the screen.

“WAIT! Go back a bit!” human Scootaloo exclaims. “Can we see your cutie marks?”

“Sure thing!” all the pony Crusaders agree simultaneously. After that, they turn to their sides and proudly display their cutie marks.

“Oh wow!” human Applebloom exclaims. “Look, Crusaders! Their cutie marks are exactly like our club flag colors!”

“It was for us, too,” pony Applebloom agrees. “We also had the same colors when we formed our club.”

“Although . . . I am confused about something,” pony Scootaloo brings up with a confused expression. “Why would you three also call your club, 'The Cutie Mark Crusaders' when you don't get cutie marks in your world?”

“The funny thing is, these three called themselves that before Twilight even came to this world,” Sunset announces. “So they couldn't have based their decision off their knowledge of Equestria.”

“I don't know,” human Sweetie answers with a shrug. “We just sort of liked it. It had a nice ring to it.”

“What was the original purpose of the club if not to seek cutie marks?” pony Scootaloo queries further.

“Their friendship, of co'warse!” pony Applebloom declares as if that is obvious.

“Actually, my pony self is right,” human Applebloom agrees, then looks at her counterpart smugly as she adds, “Apple doesn't fall far from the tree, does it?”

“Hey! That's my line!” pony Applebloom playfully complains, then they both laugh together, shortly followed by all six CMC's, human and pony alike.

I have to admit, this is fascinating to watch! This feels like a psychological experiment gone wonderfully right.

“Hey, we should do this more often!” both versions of Sweetie Belle suggest simultaneously. After that, they blink at each other in surprise, then all the CMC's have another round of giggles.

These six really are on the same wavelength. It's almost as if they have a subconscious hive mind effect.

“Pardon me, but is that human Cozy Glow I hear?” a somewhat unfamiliar male voice speaks up until I compare it to Sombra's memories. When I check, I widen my eyes as I realize that voice belongs to a reality-warping entity known as Discord.

Sure enough, a very mixed up racial individual coils and spirals himself into existence after a brief white flash in front of Twilight and the pony CMC's. He has a deer antler on the right side on top of his head, a blue goat horn on the left, one long fang in his mouth, different-size eye pupils, a snake tongue, a goat beard, and white bushy eyebrows. He has the right arm of a lion, the left claw of an eagle, the right leg of a lizard, and the left leg of a goat. In addition, he has a bat's right wing, a pegasus' left wing, a horse's mane, and a dragon-like snake's tail with a white tail tuft. The shape of his body resembles that of a snake.

“Well hello there, birthday girl!” Discord greets me from the other side of the screen. “My-my! I finally get to meet the main character of the story here, and boy do I have a surprise for you!”

The human CMC's around me scream, startled, when Discord suddenly pushes himself through the computer screen and emerges into our world. As for me, I would have screamed if I wasn't mute.

Although Sunset does not scream, she does seem aghast and surprised.

“Happy birthday to you!” Discord cheers while floating in front of me in our world. He has the pose like he's laying on an invisible table. It reminds me of Cheshire Cat from Alice in Wonderland. He snaps his lion's paw. A flash of white light bursts six inches above that paw. A tiny red and green present falls into that same paw. The size of the present looks about correct to fit a wedding ring in. Once he has this, he offers it to me.

“Here you go!” he offers. “Open it.”

“Discord! What are you doing?!” Princes Twilight cries out behind him, still on the other side of the computer screen.

“Fulfilling a promise I made,” he answers. He gives a brief, narrow-eyed snide look back at the Princess as he asks, “Do you mind?”

His answer makes Princess Twilight very curious, so she asks, “Promise to who?”

“To the daughter of one of your favorite poets,” he answers back at Twilight. “You know, the one you received a mysterious letter from a few years ago.” He then regards me again. “Since I know you possess King Sombra's memories now, I ask you to recall a certain blue unicorn descendent of yours who challenged and defied you in your own cave. He ultimately destroyed your Black Obelisk along with the rest of his friends. Do you remember how he did that?”

Not as well as I used to, but I do.

To answer his question, I simply nod.

“Well,” Discord waves the present he's holding towards me back and forth, “that little red crystal was something he passed on to his daughter, and she also had herself a little joyride in a certain famous blue box which traveled through time and space. Incidentally, she also happens to be one of my dearest friends, and she asked me to pass this on to you after she created it.

“Go ahead.” He thrusts the present closer to me. “Open it.”

I feel stunned and bewildered, so I look at Sunset Shimmer for advice.

“Ah . . . I don't know too much about Discord other than what Twilight told me but, from what I gather, I think his presents will be harmless enough,” Sunset says with a thread of nervous uncertainty.

“He won't harm you,” Pony Twilight assures from the screen. “Otherwise Fluttershy will be mighty upset at him!” she adds as a critical reminder.

“Oh, don't you trust me, Twilight?” Discord teases as he flashes her a trollish grin, but he follows it up with a serious expression. “Of course, you do have a point. Don't worry so much.” He looks back at me with an expression so serious that I have a major gut feeling it's uncharacteristic of him. “I really am simply fulfilling a promise to a dear old friend of mine.”

As if to break the ice of tension in the room, Flurry Heart on my lap claps and laughs playfully then reaches out to Discord, presumably to give him a hug or something.

“Aww! Aren't you a cutie?” Discord smiles at human Flurry Heart, then snaps his eagle talon. He ends up creating a plushy version of himself. This toy he presents to Flurry Heart who eagerly accepts it.

When she investigates it, she notices that the toy has a pull string at the back. She pulls on it then lets the string go slack. As the cord winds back up into the plushy version of Discord, his voice announces, “Chaos . . . is a wonderful . . . wonderful thing!”

In response to that comment, Flurry Heart giggles and claps happily.

I sigh as I gather my courage, then reach to snatch the gift Discord is presenting to me. I bravely open the top, half expecting some explosive surprise to emerge from it. The wince and sharp intake of breath from Sunset beside me indicates she has similar expectations.

My eyes widen in recognition and a bit of horror as I behold what is in the present, for it appears to be none other than the very flash drive I used against Sunset Shimmer.

Flurry Heart pulls the string on her Discord plushy again, and it responds with the following comment, “Just so you know, Flurry Heart, I'll only respond to this string pulls one out of twenty number of times per day.” We hear the sound of a dice roll, then he announces, “Seventeen! Lucky you!”

I gaze up at Sunset in horror. In return, she is shaking her head as she says, “I have my crystal back. It's right here!” She reaches under her shirt and pulls out her magic red crystal which is attached to a string. “See? I pulled that flash drive apart and recovered my crystal several weeks ago. In fact, you should know this because I used it on you to help contact your memories, remember?”

“It may look like the same flash drive, but it's not,” Discord explains to us. He pauses as he looks at Flurry Heart when she pulls on the string of her new plush toy again.

“Shhh!” The toy shushes her. “You really should pay attention to what's going around you, Flurry Heart. This is important to your cousin.”

Although surprised at that response, Flurry Heart actually seems to understand. She looks up at Discord then nods at him cooperatively. She does this while hugging her new and old toy close to her chest.

“Atta girl!” Discord commends as he gives Flurry Heart an affectionate pat which she smiles happily at.

After that, he regards me again as he says, “As I was saying, although this flash drive looks like the one you used against Sunset Shimmer, it is not. It does, however, have a magic crystal in it as well, but it's not hers this time, my dear.” He presses his talon on my nose which oddly makes a squeaking sound, then says, “It's yours.”

I tilt my head at him curiously.

“Oh yes,” Discord confirms my non-verbal question. “The crystal within this flash drive was made using the Red Crystal which housed your original and true soul, or rather . . . King Sombra's. This crystal is basically a shard of that same Crystal, although this one isn't possessed by your original spirit. That one moved on to his proper rest.” He lays his elbows down in an apparently invisible surface and uses his claw/talon to hold up his head while he swishes his tail behind him casually and lazily. “So, basically, this crystal is attuned to you, my dear, just like Sunset's crystal is attuned to her. It's like your horn, basically.”

“Which means it has Equestrian magic!” Sunset realizes.

“Bingo!” Discord confirms as he glances at Sunset, then looks at me again. “This one also comes with instructions on how to use it, but I'll let her tell you how to make the first few steps.” He gestures to Sunset without looking at her as he says, “Go on, my dear. Be a teacher again.”

All the CMC's regard Sunset with excitement and delight. I regard her with a hopeful and attentive expression.

Sunset takes a deep intake of breath, holds it for a second, then releases it. After that, she tells me, “Well, the way Equestrian magic responds to a person depends largely on who they are. Equestrian magic has a light and dark side, just like the force. In your dream, you encountered what it felt like to channel dark magic. Did it appeal to you?”

I shake my head, then type out an elaboration then send it to my phone.

“I'll admit, Sombra's magic was very powerful, but it left me feeling empty and fake inside. I don't want to use that kind of magic again if it costs me my very soul.”

Sunset nods in understanding. She even seems to expect that answer, probably because of her own memories she gathered from within me, and/or her own experiences with tapping into dark magic. Then she tells me, “In that case, if you want to channel the alternative light magic, then grasp the flash drive between both of your hands.” I do so. “Close your eyes.” I do so. “Now . . . what I want you to do next is channel all of your feelings of love and friendship you feel about everyone you care about. Think of them in your mind and how much they mean to you, and especially focus on the feelings it evokes in your heart. Use that emotion as a guide. The magic should rise from the depths of your heart.”

I do so. As a result, loving warmth quickly fills up inside of me. This is the opposite feeling I had from King Sombra's experience. So much emotional depth fills me that, if anything, it makes me feel like I was fake before this experience and I'm finally learning what it feels like to be real.

As this feeling continues, the tingle of magic rises from within me. It spreads out from my chest and stretches to every inch of my skin. It fills me with pulsing warmth.

Flurry Heart grabs my hands that clasps the flash drive. That almost distracts me, but then I feel my feelings come into focus. It's as if she's somehow channeling my emotions and raising it to the surface in a powerful but also controlled way.

I realize I feel love and gratitude to her for her assistance. As soon as I feel that, I also feel the magic inside me become stronger. Flurry Heart's own emotions seems to hug me from within my soul. Doing so intensifies the magic even more. It fills me and shines out from within me.

Then, strangely, information rises up to my mind. Information that feels like it literally downloads into my brain. Information about how to use my new gift properly.

I quickly realize, with a start, that the instructions came from myself. My future self!

I get it now! I understand everything!

“You said that your friend traveled through space and time in a blue box,” I say to Discord through my phone again, but with three differences.

Number one, I did not type it this time. I channel my magic into my phone and bring out the message with technopathy. I realize, now, that I can use this crystal to communicate with and control any electronic machine up to a certain distance and type. The stronger my feelings of friendship and love are, the greater the range and power of that ability.

Number two, unlike before, I can use my power to put emotional inflection into my digital speech now. I can make it sound exactly the way I want. It's not exactly like getting my voice back with my throat, but it's close.

In some ways it's better because I can make any type of sound that I can imagine.

Number three, my magic has just recharged my cellphone and should indefinitely hold it up as long as the magic of friendship radiates inside me. While that type of magic can be conditional, it is also potentially unlimited.

“At first, I didn't understand why she would do this for me considering the fact that we've never met each other,” I continue to say using my phone. “But time travel is a factor, so the reason she did this for me is because we will meet! Am I correct in this assumption?”

“In a manner of speaking, yes,” Discord answers. “But in another context, it's already happened. You met each other in a splintered reality that was fractured. There, the two of you became good friends. To further augment that relationship, she created this crystal for you in the hopes that, one day, you two would meet for real in 'normal' reality.” Discord says while using finger quotes on the word “normal”, then goes on to say, “But who is to say what is reality anyway? In the end, we're all just fictional characters, so we might as well make it a good story.

“By the way, speaking of which, I put some information into that flash drive since it is technically capable of it. In it, I stored a whole bunch of my favorite fanfics based on this universe,” he gestures all around us, “the one I came from, and many others.” A trollish grin grows on his face as he adds, “One of those stories is actually focused on you, my dear.”

“It is?” I ask as I tilt my head at him.

“Oh yes! It's called, 'The Shadow Queen', and it's the most popular story your author has written so far, so,” He suddenly reaches forward to vigorously shake my right hand as he says, “Congratulations, my dear! You're popular! A great deal of people added your story to their favorites folder, and likely many will continue to do so.”

“Ah . . . thanks?” I say through my phone in confusion.

How does one respond to that? Am I thanking him for merely existing?

“Incidentally,” Discord goes on as he finally stops shaking my hand, “you're also the first of many experiments your author made. For example, you're the first My Little Pony story your author has written from start to finish that is fixed on a first-person perspective. As a result,” his trollish grin returns as he adds, “If you wish to talk to your readers, all you have to do is 'think' it!” He points to his head using both of the pointing fingers of his claw and talon. “Since your story is a first-person narrative, they are always inside your head!”

Oh my God! If he's right, I feel so creeped out and invaded right now.

Ah . . . hi . . . audience? Are you good? Reading a nice little story? Did you enjoy laughing at me and taunting me as I went through my struggles in life?

Um . . . you didn't follow me in the bathroom . . . did you? If so, you are sickos and you should be ashamed of yourselves.

Oh God! I really don't want to go down this rabbit hole, so I quickly store this information in the deep vault of my mind where I store things I can't handle.

For some reason Discord seems a bit disappointed in my reaction, but then he literally shrugs it off as he says, “Since this scene right now is the second to last chapter of that story, reading that story on that flash drive won't give you too much spoilers of your future, but there is a bit. Since that story never actually says if you read it before the last true chapter, I guess we can leave it as the headcanon of your readers to decide whether you do or not.”

“So . . . basically it's up to her,” Sunset figures.

“In a manner of speaking,” Discord partially agrees. “But like I said . . . we are all fictional characters to some degree, including the one who wrote this story and the ones who read it.” He flashes another teasing grin as he proposes, “So imagine the higher beings who wrote up your author or read that person's story.” He chuckles a bit, then adds, “Food for thought.”

Right after he says that, we visibly see a red apple appear beside him within a cloud-like thought bubble. He proceeds to reach for it, pull it out of the thought bubble, then takes a casual bite of it while continuing to give me a teasing grin.

“Anyway, tah-tah, my dear! Enjoy your new gift. In the meantime,” he rubs his paw and talon together as his face gets an expression filled with evil glee. During that time, the red apple disappears after he took only one bite of it. After that, he says, “I've got some delicious chaos to brew!”

He pops out of existence within a brilliant flash of light, leaving us all feeling stunned.

Seconds later, I feel a very tiny version of him appear next to my left ear, to which he whispers, “Oh, by the way, I do have the same voice actor as that other show you compared me to!”

Following that announcement, he vanishes again.

“Ah . . . yeah,” Princess Twilight breaks our stunned silence about twelve seconds later. “He does have that effect on a lot of ponies. You get used to it,” she droops her eyelids halfway as she adds drolly, “eventually.”

Sunset taps me on the lap to gather my attention. When she gets it, she asks, “I notice you're now speaking through your phone without typing anymore, and your voice on it sounds richer and possesses more emotional depth. Is that because of your new magic?”

I nod at her as I digitally explain through my phone, “Uh-huh. I can use it to commune with and control machines. I can also recharge them if they are not too big. Right now I can indefinitely hold up the charge on my cellphone, but for me to do the same thing to this whole house or entire town will require me to be filled with a lot more friendship magic.”

“I see,” Sunset notes with a deeply thoughtful expression.

“That's so cool!” human Sweetie Belle gasps in amazement. “Ooo, you're so lucky, Cozy!”

“You've got to admit, she went through a lot to get that kind of power,” Diamond Tiara says. We all look at her and notice she's now standing in the living room. Hell if any of us know how long she's been standing there. “I don't think you'd feel so jealous of her if you knew everything she went through to earn this prize.”

Scootaloo shrugs as she says, “Maybe not, but it's still awesome.”

“I'll help teach and guide you how to properly channel and use this power if you want me to,” Sunset offers me.

In response, I nod to her eagerly. Using magic was something I had always wanted in my life. It's the one component that always made me feel incomplete to lack.

If King Sombra really was my past life, then it makes sense why I always felt that way.

Sunset shakes her head slightly as she says, “I don't think you'll ever be able to channel enough power using your crystal to power the whole town for even a moment, but the Magic of Friendship is greatly multiplied with each person that joins that channel. In theory, if you ever had to pull off a trick like that, then that's how you do it.”

I nod as I say through my phone, “Intellectually, I think I understand. Experience, however, is another matter entirely.”

Sunset strongly agrees as she says, “I definitely agree with that. Experience is the best teacher. Without that, you do not really have true knowledge. All you really have is theories and beliefs.”

I nod at her in return. I completely agree and understand.

“Flurry! Where are you?” her mother, Cadence, calls from within the kitchen. “Please come here my Sweetie-kins.”

In response, Flurry Heart leaps off my lap. She turns around to give me one last great big hug, then runs off into the kitchen. I have a strong feeling that she's going to show off her new toy, and it definitely did not escape my notice that her new “toy” intelligently responded to its local situation.

As she departs, K-9 yaps at her then proceeds to follow Flurry into the kitchen.

“By the way, hey Twilight,” human Scootaloo calls to pony Twilight in Equestria through Sunny's computer, “why are you guys gathered right now? Is it just for Cozy's birthday on this side? You said it isn't her birthday on that side, nor is it Hearth's Warming Eve.”

“Which is a real bummer,” pony Pinkie Pie calls out somewhere in the background on their side.

“Um . . . can I take this one, Twilight?” asks another mare from their side of the screen. I can tell, from the sound of the voice, that she is Starlight Glimmer.

I feel Sunset nudge me. I look up at her as she tells me, “See? Starlight is alright. Everything you experienced in that nightmare never happened.”

I nod in agreement and relief, then look back at the screen as I see Starlight's approach to the screen.

“The truth is . . . I am the one that called this meeting,” Starlight Glimmer explains.

“Who are you?” Diamond asks Starlight.

Starlight looks slightly taken aback by that question. She answers that question with a question of her own. “You really haven't met me in the human world?”

“Come to think of it, no, we haven't!” Sunset realizes in astonishment. “We really should change that.”

Uh-oh! They're in for a shock when they learn what happened to human Starlight!

Starlight's ears droop as she mopes a bit when she hears that answer, then she says, “Well . . . that's depressing to hear . . . but at least you'll meet my human self soon if you keep your word.” Then she realizes something startling, and afterwards she gets a sheepish look as she warns, “Um . . . you might be in for a bit of a shock when you meet my human counterpart.”

“What do you mean?” Sunset asks Starlight in concern.

“Well,” Starlight rolls her eyes in a wide circle before saying, “let's just say that my history in Equestria wasn't exactly spotless. You don't have much magic in your world so I might turn out very different in your world, but I wanted to warn you to brace yourself just in case. I can assure you, if she's anything like the pony I was in my youth, she definitely could use the message of friendship, but it might take some convincing to get through to her at first.”

“Oh. I get it.” Sunset grins. “Well, lucky for your counterpart, I have plenty of experience redeeming others that have lost their way and need help finding the light within themselves.

“In fact, I was thinking of doing something like that in my world professionally.”

“What do you mean?” human Scootaloo asks Sunset curiously.

Sunset gives a great big sigh, then explains, “Back when I was in jail, I actually made a lot of friends who, like I was in my past, have lost their way. Not all of them regret what they have done, but of those that do . . . it's really hard for them to forgive themselves and move on with their life.

“As I watched them struggle, it reminded me of how I used to struggle with the same thing, so I was thinking of maybe returning to jail again, but this time under my terms . . . as a guidance counselor working with those who earnestly wish to redeem themselves.

“If I do this, they might get a lighter sentence in prison and come out the other side a much better person. Moreover, I can continue the relationships I've built while I was in there, for I have no intention of allowing the friendships I've made to die out. I want to make sure that they don't feel abandoned. I promised them that, and I fully meant it.”

“Good for you!” Starlight Glimmer cheers. “I was a Guidance Counselor too, many years ago at this school. This place was never a prison, but still . . . it's good and decent work. A lot of people need psychological guidance, and something tells me you have a lot of wisdom to share.”

“But . . . what about your old job?” human Scootaloo asks Sunset in a tone of rejection and regret.

Sunset shakes her head as she says, “Despite the fact I am clear of all charges, I don't think I'll be offered my old job back. I've lost a lot of trust in the eyes of the public. That would be a factor for the members of the School Board, and I don't want to put them in that kind of pressure. I suspect most of them would be sympathetic to me, but still . . . the situation remains quite awkward and uncomfortable. I don't want to make the situation worse by pressing this.

“Besides, I found my true calling while in jail. I've realized, since then, that many other people are out there who need help, just like I once did. I want to be there for them and prove that there is a better way to live. I want to prove that nobody has to be alone or miserable anymore. Instead, we can all be happy if we join together in friendship.”

“Wow!” Diamond marvels. “The way you talk about it . . . it sounds inspiring . . . but . . .”

“But we're going to miss you at Canterlot High,” human Sweetie admits sadly. “You are one of the best teachers our school ever had!”

“You can be its teachers once you graduate,” pony Scootaloo puts forward, “But like I said before, you can do whatever you want.”

Sunset Shimmer shakes her head as she states assuredly, “I made up my mind. I know what I have to do now. I know how I can fully and completely make up for my own past mistakes. The more I help other people recover from their own tragic past,” she says with a quick glance to me, then resumes speaking to everyone else, “the more I'll feel like I've earned all the blessings I've gained since then.”

Those words hit me very hard, which makes me reevaluate my own future too.

“Well, you certainly helped us out a lot,” Diamond tells Sunset warmly. “We are all grateful for all the lessons and blessings you've showered upon us, and I'm sure I speak for all of us when I say that we wish you well on your next journey.”

Sunset grins at Diamond as she says to her, “You say that like I'm going to die or stay in jail, but no. I won't be an actual prisoner next time. I'll simply work with them some of the time, but I'm coming back home after work every single day, so you'll all still see me around.”

“That's a relief to hear!” human Applebloom cheers.

Looking back at the computer screen, I finally notice that the pony versions of the CMC are no longer there. Maybe they got called away? It is a party over there, after all. It looks as crowded over there as it is here.

“Well . . . anyway . . . as I was saying,” Starlight brought up again, “I'm the one that called for this gathering. My friends accepted easily, although Rarity complained just a bit, primarily because of the short notice and the fact she's really busy.”

“Is the pony version of my sister into fashion too?” Sweetie Belle asks Starlight curiously.

“Oh, very much so,” Starlight strongly agrees. “But I digress.” Starlight looks at me as she says to me, “You are the real reason I've called this meeting. Everypony else has their own excuse, but you are mine.”

“You're not talking about my birthday, are you?” I realize. I widen my eyes as an epiphany occurs to me, then I ask her, “It's Cozy Glow, isn't it? I mean, my pony self. She's not been the same since she visited me, I take it?”

Starlight shakes her head sadly as she admits, “No, she's not.” Starlight glances behind her, then back at me as she says, “To tell you the truth, I feel that she's on the verge of a breakthrough. Previously she was cutesy and conniving, but now she's quiet and sullen. I don't know what you did or said to her, but she's never been the same since.

“To get to the point of the matter, I've called this meeting so that all of my friends can act as a support group. When I heard from Twilight that we'd also get an opportunity to communicate with you in your world, albeit temporarily, I realized that this is an opportunity that I needed to take full advantage of. For the most part, I just want to collect all the relevant information that I can, so can you shed some light on what you did to her?”

I notice how everyone in the room is now looking at me in addition to Starlight in the pony world.

“I gave her a warning,” I tell Starlight. “I showed her what my life was like and the consequences if she remains on her destructive path. Based on what you are telling me, it sounds like I've really gotten through to her.”

“Not just her, actually,” Starlight corrects. “Tirek has changed too.”

“Oh?” I ask, feeling intrigued.

“He's also grown withdrawn and forlorn,” Starlight elaborates. “The thing is, despite the fact that this is almost normal for him in this kind of setting,” she gestures around her room with a hoof, but I have a feeling she is actually referring to the pony party in their world. “I get the feeling that the reason he's changed is because of Cozy,” Starlight explains. “He noticed the fact that she changed, and I sense that bothers him.”

Starlight grows a thin but hopeful smile as she says, “I hope that means that he cares for the little filly, and there is some evidence to suggest that he might.

“You see, in my world, the entire reason Cozy Glow was able to threaten my world with the loss of magic is because of the advice that Tirek gave her, but that means that he responded to somepony. Despite the end results, that's actually an encouraging sign for his emotional development. It's also a bit surprising. He used to hate all ponies.

“Then, during the time she got incarcerated in Tartarus, Cozy Glow was his adjacent cellmate. I didn't know that until recently, because I wasn't the one who sent them there.

“After that, they worked closely as partners while they worked to take over Equestria. The thing is, even if they worked towards an evil agenda, they still did it as partners, and that develops a camaraderie between them which I think we can build upon.

“Now,” she lifts a hoof towards the screen as she adds, “I'm pretty sure if I asked either one of them if this is true, they'd both deny it, but I suspect it's true nonetheless.”

“You said Tirek has changed, but what about Chrysalis?” Sunset checks with Starlight. “Is there any reaction from her?”

Starlight's ears droop as she gains a very droll look while she says, “For a changeling, Chrysalis is the most stubborn of the three to resist change. Even now she's ranting and raving about how we're torturing her with this party and the fact that she'd rather be turned back into stone. I don't think she really means it, but she's making her displeasure as clear as possible. She's also talking about being a Queen and revenge and grand plans. Blah-blah-blah. 'I'll get you one day, Starlight Glimmer!' The whole shebang.”

Sunset sighs as she shakes her head, then advises, “Just be patient with her. You can't force her to want to change, but you can encourage it by being kind and patient.”

“I know,” Starlight agrees with a roll of her eyes. “But, frankly, she gets on my nerves sometimes. Maybe it's the fact that she just might mean some of the nasty things she says. Despite her anti-magic collar, she honestly does make me a little nervous. I know she's just trying to get into my head like she always does. I hate to admit it, but . . . it's kind of working.”

“If you need help with her, there is plenty you can reach for,” Sunset suggests.

Starlight smiles a bit as she says, “I know, and that thought does help because I know I have a lot of friends. That's very reassuring.”

Starlight looks at me squarely as she asks, “In the meantime, I was hoping you can offer me some advice on how to hoofle your alternate self. In all likelihood, very few know her better than you do. Now I know you come from another world and you have a whole different background, but any advice you can give me might be helpful.”

Once again, everyone in the room, and a few beyond, regard me.

I look down as I gather my thoughts for about thirty seconds in silence, then I look up at Starlight as I answer, “Shower her with love. She'll see you as a sucker for it for quite a while, but eventually it will occur to her that she'll feel guilty to double-cross you after all that you've given her. She is going to lie, cheat and steal as much as she can get away with, but through it all, . . . always be there for her. She needs you . . . significantly more than she knows. For all her ambitions, it does not remove one very core fact. Deep down, she is terrified of being alone.”

“Aren't we all?” Scootaloo agrees somewhat sadly.

“I second that,” Diamond quickly agrees.

“Me three,” Sweetie Belle chimes in.

“Frankly, I don't really know what it's like to be alone,” Applebloom admits. “My family was always there for me when I needed them. In addition, I have my friends on top of that.

“But the prospect of being alone . . . yeah, that scares me, too. Wherever I go and whatever I do, I want to always do it surrounded by my dear and wonderful family and friends.”

“That's something important to keep in mind, then,” I say emphatically to Starlight. “Cozy Glow is no exception. She might try to abuse you, but in the end . . . she needs you, so you have some leverage over her.

“In addition, I've shown her what doesn't work in life personally. You can build off of that. Right now I think she's just scared because she feels insecure, but if she learns that she can keep running to you to find her security then . . .”

“We'd eventually earn her loyalty for real,” Starlight realizes.

I shake my head as I say, “Not just her loyalty, but that too. More importantly, if you earn her love, she will defend you no matter what obstacle is placed in front of her. Part of her blind ambitions means she holds onto whatever is very dear to her heart. If you become one of those things, then you are an equation she'll consider inseparable from herself. I warn you that she might try converting you to the darkside if she senses an opening for that, for it is more familiar territory for her, but stick to your guns and give her time.”

“Ah . . . guns?” Starlight asks.

“Remain determined on the mission,” Sunset clarifies.

“Ah!” Starlight nods. “Gotcha.

“Thanks, Cozy Glow! That was very helpful!”

“I just hope it helps,” I say sincerely. “I don't want her to suffer through the same lessons that I went through.”

“Well, she had her own fair share of tragedies herself,” Starlight admits sadly.

I nod in agreement as I respond, “All the more reason for us to learn from our lessons. The point of life is to grow and get better. We do that by moving forward in life, not backwards.”

“I'll keep what you said in mind, and I'll do my best to get through to her. I promise,” Starlight said sincerely, then brightens cheerfully as I sense she's about to change the subject drastically. “In the meantime, enjoy your own party! I wish you a happy birthday, Cozy, and I'd like to add that Twilight was right about you. Your mother did a wonderful job raising you. I'll use that as an example of how we should approach your pony self.”

I blink as I nod while I have my phone say, “You're very welcome, Starlight. I'm glad we have a chance to repair our relationship with each other, too. I'm really not the same girl you met last time. I've gone through a lot of painful stuff since then, and I've done a lot of growing up accordingly.”

“Well,” Starlight shrugs lightly, “age is just a number. What's more important is the quality of your life. Sounds to me like yours had a rocky start, but your future is looking up.”

“It will be if I make it so,” I assure her. “And I will make it so. I have more than enough incentive to ensure that.”

The image of Starlight phases out for a moment then focuses again. She looks confused as she asks, “What happened?”

“Time is getting out of sync again,” Sunset explains. “Twilight and I have compensated for this some, and as our worlds get more in sync, this should happen less but, for now, the video link between us should cut off soon. We can keep texting each other, but I'm afraid the video and audio link will soon terminate.”

Starlight waves us off as she says, “Well, that's okay. I've addressed the most important issues that I had in mind. You all have a wonderful time out there, and we should do it again sometime.”

“Call back soon!” the human CMC's say simultaneously.

Starlight giggles because of their reaction before fading further out for a moment before coming back into focus, but not as clearly as before.

Sunset gets up to approach her computer. She reaches up to grab the top of the computer lid. Before she shuts it, she bids, “Wish everyone there goodbye for us. I hope your mission goes well.”

“Yeah. You too,” Starlight returns.

Sunset shuts the lid.

“Oh wow!” Sweetie Belle squirms in a giddy way. “Our pony selves were so adorable!”

“Yeah.” Applebloom agrees. “I wish we could get a plushy version of ourselves.”

“Or exchange it between ourselves,” Scootaloo refines the suggestion.

“Is my pony self doing alright in Equestria?” Diamond asks Sunset directly.

“That depends.” Sunset regards Diamond as she asks her, “Would you consider being the Mayor of Ponyville doing alright?”

“Ah . . . probably,” Diamond says with only a little bit of uncertainty. “Based on what I've heard, Ponyville is a very nice place.”

“Actually, most of Equestria is,” Sunset corrects. “Of the places within that land, Ponyville does stand as one of the friendliest towns.

“Listen. I can write letters to any of your pony selves if you want me to,” Sunset offers. “Just write me an e-mail on what you want to write to them. In return, I'll make sure they get the message. I'll even let you know if they respond.”

Sweetie shrugs as she says, “Well, it's nice and all to get a peek at our alternate selves from another universe, but I consider it more important to make this one as pleasant as possible.”

“What better way to do that than in the company of our friends?” Diamond asks pleasantly. “Speaking of which, Sis,” I look at her, “your birthday cake is just about ready. That is why I've come. I did it to fetch you.”

“Sure.” I get up from the couch. “Let's all get some cake.” I peer at Diamond carefully as I ask, “By the way, what kind of cake?”

“You've made yourself abundantly clear to Pinkie,” my sister assures me. “It's strawberry cheesecake.” Diamond looks off to the kitchen to her left. “However, for those with more finicky diets, alternatives are offered on the kitchen table.” She smiles as she looks back at me. “My father, for example, is bragging about how much he makes a mean cup of chili. He's very eager for you to try some.”

I smile at her brightly as I tell her honestly, “I can't wait!”

I double-checked. This is officially the longest chapter in the story, but not by a long shot.

Glad I could post this chapter in time. There was some concern about that considering the server crash just recently.

Yesterday, I heard a song on Pandora that was very appropriate for this story, particularly chapter forty five, "Hospital Visit Part 2, My Mother". Since most of you already read that chapter and are unlikely to go back and check the authors note there, I figured I'd post the link here. It's called "In My Arms" by Plumb. Let me know if you agree or disagree about the song lyrics for this story. I know it made me think of Cozy's relationship with her mother, and particularly Twilight's feelings to her daughter.

Also got a picture for you below which thankfully it loads! Had a bunch that didn't. This one seems to fit the mood of this chapter.