There was a skull in the MLP movie.

As for the hugging, she’s the cutely innocent best filly who could never do wrong. She’s hugging a dear, old friend… possibly in love with death itself. The Element of Death. Yes.

@TheMultiBrony21
I would hug him 🤓

When the then four-year-old Cozy Glow was scoured by the Elements of Harmony two days before Nightmare Moons’ return, not only was her Magic and Immortality taken from her, but her essence had been tethered to the Tree of Harmony. While the rest of existence had faded when Twilight Sparkle, and her son Spike attempted to stop Starlight Glimmers’ manipulations in preventing the Sonic Rainboom fifteen years ago, Cozy Glow was spared from Non-Existence and was continually dragged sideways into multiple alternate timelines, fully conscious and aware of what even was happening to her. And unlike Starlight Glimmer who always rewound to a point before Twilight arrived in the past, or Twilight and Spike using the modified spell as a “Get Out Of Jail Free” Card to leave these alternate timelines, Cozy Glow could only leave when the timeline would eventually fade and collapse into oblivion, meaning that she stayed in these new timelines far longer than Twilight ever did.
 
In these Alternate Timelines, Cozy Glow had done what she always did: gather and prepare for her Retribution against Equestria. Because of the 15-year difference in these alternate timelines, any number of possibilities and probabilities would be reality in them that would give her a clear advantage, an advantage that her own original timeline was lacking in. Resources, Information, Skills, Knowledge, Cozy had accrued a veritable arsenal to take with her when she managed to finally leave, unable to actually age and resetting to the peak of her health to when she was first dragged into these timelines… the skull is one such artifact, an important reminder for everything that she had lost, and what she is fighting Celestia to get back.

Someone probably gave that skull some trepanning.

@ElderD
 
“and next, you lower the bone drill to—oh. ew. well, we’ll save that one for a display skeleton. on to the next specimen! I mean volunteer!”

While it could be a science skull, the hairline cracks on the cranium have some unsettling implications.

You can see Neighsay seriously regretting numerous choices he made in the past.

@redweasel  
That’s a tag I can live with

@Smudge_Proof
 
>iwctcmswhtt  
>I want cozy to crush my skull with her tumtum

 
Because it is/was a friend of her.

One tends to get all nostalgic about their first kill.

Crush my skull with your tumtum please.

“Alas, poor Yorick! I knew him, Neighsay…”

Cozy Glow just wants to make friends, no matter what shape they’re in.

CN: Cozy Glow, where did you find that pony skull and it isn’t real right?  
CG: Don’t ask.  
CN: But I already did.  
CG: It looks like I’ve found my second pony skull, HURRAY!  
CN: W-w-w-hat

@infinita est lux Solis
 
but those were just drawings of skeletons.
 
@pony1944
 
oh right, I forgot about that one.

@redweasel  
And several entire skeletons in Dungeons and Discords.

@redweasel  
Also that one scene in scare master

@Jarkes
 
I don’t think the show’s ever had a pony skull in it at all, that wasn’t just snuck in for a few frames as “underground bones”
 
unless you count the spiny back ponysaurus.

Never mind that, why does she even HAVE a skull?

@redweasel  

 
Why not both!

@redweasel  
Because she doesn’t want to hug Neighsay and it’s the only thing available for her to hug?

@TheMultiBrony21  
yes I know she’s holding it, but why’s she hugging it?
 
@infinita est lux Solis  
or her first victim!
 
@TheMultiBrony21  
still doesn’t explain why she’s hugging it.

@infinita est lux Solis  
I think it’s a science skull. She has been stealing stuff.

Because it’s a dead parent/friend/sibling…