When she finally woke up in the morning, Cozy was surprised at how well she had slept. For reasons she still couldn’t quite come to terms with, she didn’t feel threatened by her surroundings, or at least, not immediately. Scout’s assurance to her that her identity was safe with him was… unexpectedly pleasant. Not having to lie awake, afraid of being turned in at the drop of a hat was a privilege she didn’t expect to have on this venture. Nevertheless, as soon as she was awake, she quickly checked the room to see if there was anything off.
Instead of anything that could mean somepony had snooped around while she was asleep, all she found was a plate with two pieces of toast and jam, fresh salads, and eggs. Frowning slightly, she poked at the food and realized it was somewhat cold. Raising a brow, she looked around for a clock but found none. Glancing out the window, though, she gasped as she saw the sun was almost halfway across the sky. Had she really almost slept till noon?
She was about to rush out of the hotel room when she suddenly realized how messy her hair was. Hesitating just a moment by the door, she let out a defeated sigh and trudged into the bathroom to get her hair under control. After several long, painful minutes, her cadet blue mane was in a presentable enough state that if she were caught today, the mugshot wouldn’t be too bad. Without wasting another second, she went racing out of the hotel room listening carefully for the sounds of anypony else. However, as she ran down the empty hall and made it to the staircase, she came to the realization that there was probably nopony else around.
Pausing at the wooden staircase, she finally stopped to think about what exactly she was doing. As much as she hated to admit it, she needed to stay at the hotel at least one more night in order to get some sort of direction as to where she was and where she could go. Though she would like to have simply pressed on, exploiting the strangers’ kindness and passing through before they could come to regret it, she was dangerously unfamiliar with most of Equestria. If the hotel had a library, perhaps she could nab a map. Either way, there was no benefit to leaving today. So what was the hurry?
Feeling redness in her cheeks, Cozy glanced around at the empty floor once again. There really wasn’t anypony else in the hotel, or at least, nopony else that hadn’t been there when she’d gone to sleep. Licking her lips, she turned her gaze down the wooden spiral stairs, wondering what awaited her down there. This hotel was the family’s business, so unless they were on an impromptu trip to the closest town leaving her alone in their home and establishment, she would find the family of three down there. What would they want from her, though? She was a filly who had randomly shown up with their son, and there was no doubt they at least knew Scut had gone to talk to her last night.
Suddenly, she remembered the feeling of him tugging on her tail, pulling her hard enough that she was forced back, but not so hard it hurt. Glancing over her shoulder, she flicked her tail towards herself, perplexed at how she could almost feel it in memory. Shivering slightly, weirded out by herself, she thought about how he had acted regardless. He had been looking for her, for Cozy Glow, last night when he had dragged her into the room. It was for her sake that they had privacy, not his. And from what he talked about, the way he presented himself, it seemed purely out of good intentions and curiosity.
It was the second trait, however, that threw her for a loop. Curiosity is what had caused her to be trapped in stone, the aspiration to see if she could really become Empress of Friendship. A flicker of warm pride resurfaced at the memory of having both wings and a horn, the power of being a true empress. A soft, devious giggle escaped her as she wondered what plots to regain that power she could come up with once she had truly escaped Starlight Glimmer’s watch. Before her mind could carry her too far, her memory reminded her of the ultimate fate becoming an alicorn had led to.
Cold isolation and terrible pain when she had returned.
All of the glee of remembering her past glories died in an instant, her slight smirk dropping into a flat line. Cozy Glow had learned very early on in Equestria that if she wanted to be stronger than everypony else, to truly control whatever situation she was in, she had to acknowledge her weaknesses. As painful as it was, she had to admit that she was traumatized. The very thought of being turned to stone again… she felt a primal fear when she remembered the imprisonment alone, but a repetition of it, the threat of being encased again, made her stop in her tracks. Her only weakness right now, it seemed, was the threat of being trapped in stone again, and it was enough to make her change course completely.
Cozy laughed coldly at the thought.
All it took to cull any thought of taking back her power was the looming threat of becoming living stone again. At least she could take some twisted pride in knowing that, even as a filly, she had incurred enough fear in ponies that being turned to stone was their protection against her. She had been more powerful than any pony had ever been, maybe even more powerful than Celestia herself. That level of power was obviously beyond her now, and any attempt to replicate it would result in permanent isolation. The future was grim, and now that she was free, Cozy could only now realize how few options she had.
“Are you gonna stand on the stairs all day, looking halfway to tears, or do you want some lunch and fresh air,” Star Scout suddenly questioned, startling Cozy out of her thoughts with a squeak.
“What are you talking about,” she asked defensively, holding back a sniffle. She really was about to cry, wasn’t she? “I’m not crying!”
“No, but you look like you're about to,” Scout noted kindly, looking up at her from several stairs down. Lowering his voice, he softly inquired, “Wanna talk about it?”
“There’s nothing to talk about,” she replied sharply, beginning to descend the stairs. Frowning slightly, Scout nodded and began to walk down the stairs as well, though he waited so they would be side by side going down. Cozy was tempted to give the colt a glare to try and ward him off, but she figured it was probably better not to aggravate him. Besides, it wasn’t like he was doing anything fundamentally wrong by escorting her. Him seeing her weaker than she would like just had her on more of an edge than usual.
As soon as she stepped hoof on the bottom floor, her stomach let out an embarrassingly loud growl. Her eyes darted to Scout as a blush crept across her face at the involuntary beg for food. He chuckled softly, nudging her as he told her, “Don’t worry about it! I’m starving too!”
“Um, didn’t you eat breakfast though,” Cozy asked, trying to get both their minds off her hunger. “I mean, how long have you been awake?”
“Oh, about four hours,” Scout answered dismissively. “I was gonna eat some breakfast, but I decided to wait for you, and then I got distracted waiting for you and one thing led to another and now I’m hungrier than ever!”
“Why were you waiting for me,” Cozy inquired, walking so that there was a little more space between them. “Didn’t you have anything better to do?”
“Wow, show yourself a little more appreciation,” Scout sheerfully jabbed. He glanced around the lobby before suddenly leaning in and whispering, “I mean, you’re the Cozy Glow! How could I not be intrigued enough to wait for you!”
“Um, not really sure how to take that,” Cozy grumbled uncomfortably. The colt’s bright eyes and ever friendly smile in spite of him blatantly laying out that he knew she was one of Equestria’s greatest threats was more unnerving than Tirek’s rants about consuming everypony’s magic.
“As a compliment, trust me,” Scout assured her with a nod. “I’m just a bit astounded by the fact that-” he paused again to make sure there was nopony around “-I’m walking and talking to you!”
“Yeah yeah, you’ve said so before,” she groaned, rolling her eyes. “What is it with your weird obsession with me anyways?”
“It’s not an obsession, that would be weird,” Scout corrected. “Consider me an intrigued scholar! You see, I’ve heard all sorts of things about the type of pony Cozy Glow was before she got turned to stone. How she was deceptively innocent and cheerful, manipulating every situation to her advantage! The way in which she outsmarted the ponies around her even though she was younger, smaller, and less powerful than them. It’s fascinating and terrifying of course.”
“I am a bit of a megalomaniacal genius,” Cozy couldn’t help but gloat. “But your point?”
“My point is that I haven’t really seen that filly,” Scout shrugged.
“How dare you,” Cozy instantly shouted, appalled. “I’m just as smart, manipulative, dangerous, and evil as I was before I was turned to stone, and don’t you doubt that!”
“I mean, you kinda just proved my point,” Scout pointed out, though he had backed away slightly. However, when Cozy glared at him, she realized it wasn’t out of fear. He was just… giving her space.
“What do you mean,” she growled angrily, sitting down.
“Well, that whole outburst was very un-Cozy Glow of you,” he began. “You exploded without control over your emotions, just kinda shouting. You’re definitely more insecure and afraid than you ever were before you got turned to stone. And, of course, you haven’t really been the most cheerful or innocent filly in the short time I’ve known you. Not to mention you’ve done nothing in the way of manipulation.”
“I was able to stay in your hotel, wasn’t I,” Cozy countered, before instantly realizing her mistake.
“If I remember correctly, I had to convince you to come to the hotel so you wouldn’t freeze your tail off,” Scout teased victoriously. “You aren’t really on your A game right now, are you?”
“Getting turned to stone will do that to you,” the filly grumbled, glancing to the side in defeat. “So what is it to you, then, a game?”
“Sweet Celestia, no, I think this is a very good sign,” Scout exclaimed excitedly.
“A… good sign,” Cozy repeated, confused.
“I think it means you’re that much more open to becoming a good pony, reformed, if you will,” he told her with a smile.
“Oh, okay, for a second I thought you were smart, but now I see you’re absolutely crazy,” Cozy scoffed. “Why would I ever want to be good?”
“Um, because it’s a lot easier than being bad, and way more fun as well,” Scout replied. Cozy hesitated to answer. All of the other times she’d asked the question, she’d received some stupid, long-winded speech that left her eyes droopy. Having Scout answer it so simply was both refreshing and confusing. Seeing her hesitation, Scout continued, “I mean, c’mon, you’re a smart filly. You’ve tried being evil tiwice already. The first time got you thrown into Tartarus, and the second time turned to stone, and I’d bet my lucky stars on neither of those being any fun.”
“Okay, wise guy, you got me there,” Cozy admitted, before smiling vilely. “But what if I already have a fool-proof plan to conquer Equestria so that no matter what, it won’t matter if I’m good or bad? Everypony will love me regardless!”
“You don’t,” Scout replied flatly. “Otherwise, you’d be long gone and I’d be kicking myself for not being able to turn you in quick enough!”
“Wait, you’re turning me in,” Cozy asked, panic suddenly overtaking her as she stood up, eyes darting around.
“No no no, I’m not turning you in, Cozy, trust me,” Scout assured her, standing up as well. “I don’t know what you’re running from exactly, or who, but when I saw you in the woods, I knew you were just a scared filly who was trying her best to push through her troubles. I knew who you were, but for the life of me, I couldn’t just leave you to suffer in the forest. So, I decided to take a risk and invite you to my home, to eat dinner with me and my parents. I was scared… until I realized that you’re different from the stories. Until we talked in your room, I didn’t really know how. But I know now. You’re not good or bad. You’re just lost, lost and scared and with nopony to help you. I know I might be making a mistake in saying this, but I want to help you, so at the very least you don’t end up lost and scared again.”
“But why,” Cozy asked, slowly sitting back down. “I’m Cozy Glow, Empress of Friendship and one of the bad guys. You’re just some colt who could be living life without having to deal with me.”
“Well, when you say it like that, it makes me wanna help you more,” Scout winked. Slowly, though, his smile faded and he looked down at the ground. For a moment, Cozy wasn’t sure if he was going to say anything at all, but then at last, he muttered, “I wanna help because I’m still trying to be a good guy.”
Blinking in confusion, Cozy stated, “I think you’re a bit confused on the premise of good guys and bad guys. After everything you just said, you doubt that your a good pony?”
“Well, if I had left you in the woods, that would’ve made me a bad guy,” Scout said. “And if I had let you run off in the night and escape then I would’ve been a bad guy, and if I had let you escape in the morning before I could talk to you, I would be a bad guy. Now, I’m trying to be a good guy by helping you be a good guy too.”
“How righteous,” Cozy grumbled, quickly unenthused by the sentiment. “Look, as far as I can tell, you're the nicest pony in Equestria. I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but I’m not, nor do I care to be.”
“Honestly, it’s kinda funny how bad you are at lying, even to yourself,” Scout smirked. Cozy opened her mouth to retort, but he quickly continued, “You keep talking as if you’ve got nothing to live for now. Your tone is sardonic and cold, you only respond defensively, and you haven’t smiled honestly once all morning. You’re at your lowest Cozy, and whether you like it or not, you need somepony’s help. I’m not going to force it to be me, but I’ve got a strong feeling you ran away from the last pony who tried to help. If you keep running, your gonna run out of ponies who want to help. So what will it be?”
“Sweet Celestia, you’re worse than Starlight,” she mumbled under her breath, eyeing the colt up. However, when she stared at him, she was forced to admit that he was right. She had been lucky to run into somepony like Scout, a colt so naively good that he’d take his chance with her. Most everypony else would have sent her to Twilight and it’d be game over from there. With a defeated sigh, she finally mumbled, “Okay, fine, you win. What’re you gonna do to me?”
“Absolutely nothing,” Scout replied with a beaming smile. Suddenly, a loud gurgling escaped from his stomach, causing him to glance down at his blonde stomach and chuckle. “Though I would suggest a little food. Lunch is mac n’ cheese!”