Queen Haven stood on the coastal street of Maretime Bay, watching from afar as her younger daughter positioned her phone and took a picture of her older daughter, who was posing in front of a movie theater with a unicorn, two earth ponies, a seagull, and Alphabittle's armadillos.
"Stunning!" she heard Pipp claim moments after she looked at the shot she had taken.
"Alright, I don't know about you, sis, but I definitely have to see this movie," Zipp said, nodding up to the large marquee above the theater entrance, showcasing a film called 'Judgement Neigh'.
The celebrating among their newfound unity was nice and all, but truth be told, Zephyr Heights' deposed ruler had other things on her mind. If this rainbow wave had truly reached across the continent, how was their city reacting at this very moment?
She saw a familiar face over by the sidewalk, also looking at the various theater posters showcasing the films the venue was playing.
"Staff Sergeant Zephyrwing," Haven began, approaching the sky blue armored mare.
"What can I do for you, Your Majesty?" the guard replied, giving Haven her complete attention.
"Your honest opinion, Staff Sergeant. With these new revelations, I am honestly wondering if my daughters and I have a home to return to."
Zipp and Pipp had overheard her, and trotted over.
"Yeah, you actually bring up a really good point, mom. Are we fugitives or what, Zoom?" Zipp asked, who had always been less than formal with the royal guards.
"I don't believe I have the knowledge to say, or the authority, for that matter. My squad gave chase after you three pretty quickly, so I can't say how things proceeded in the city, and that was before everypony could fly. I would hope they're more concerned with not colliding into each other in midair."
"I mean, the royal family played a part in getting these crystals and started the reunification of Equestria. That has to count for something, right?" Pipp offered.
"And that's supposed to make up for the years and years of deception?" Haven asked incredulously.
"I mean... Yeah, why wouldn't it? Pegasi can fly again, mom. That's pretty big," Zipp answered.
Haven didn't know quite how to reply. There would be no telling how Zephyr Heights' population, who rose up against them with astonishing speed a couple nights ago, now felt with flight having returned to all pegasi everywhere.
"You know what this calls for?" Pipp said, digging her phone out again and checking the signal and battery life. "An apology video."
"A what?" Zipp asked.
"An apology video. Streamers do it when they've screwed up big time."
"I don't think you've ever had to do one of those before," Zipp quipped.
"First time for everything. But it'll be great for optics. All of Zephyr Heights is no doubt elated right now, so let's take this opportunity to improve our optics, and tell everypony that you and I played a part in getting the magic of flight back to everypony."
Haven stood bewildered, never really having grasped the streaming culture her younger daughter had become almost completely engulfed in.
"Well, sweetheart, I think we'll defer to you here, because you're clearly the expert. Is this video rehearsed, or what?"
"It depends on the situation, and ponies are usually really good at figuring out if you're being sincere, or if you're reading something from a script. So while I don't think it should be live, I don't think it should be rehearsed, either. We need to come clean about the years of deception and the genuine good that we believed it would do."
"But, just how many of us are returning home? I don't know about you, Pipp, but I want to stay in town here with Sunny, Izzy, and Hitch," Zipp interjected.
"Yeah, me too, but we should at least find out if we have a home to go back to when we need to go back there," Pipp replied, as she began to go into her phone's camera settings.
"However and wherever we're doing this, I'm sure you have to charge that battery, and I'm not going on camera with my mane looking like this. I'm sure there's a stylist around here somewhere..." Haven said as she began to look around for a directory, or a local who could point her in the right direction.
"Hmm, a stylist... You might be onto something there, mom," Pipp said as the seeds of a new idea were implanted in her head.
Zipp glanced towards the glass doors of the movie theater, saw her reflection, and immediately decided that her mane looked fine, so she would just play the waiting game while her mom and sister got themselves ready for the camera, and she now wondered how to keep herself occupied because that could take anywhere from fifteen minutes to half the day. Glancing around, she saw Sunny and Hitch standing over by the former's smoothie cart, still looking up at the streaks of rainbow that were arcing across the sky and over the horizon.
"Hey, Sunny," Zipp called out, trotting across the street to join her friends. "I know the past few hours have been, you know, intense and celebratory, but... Do you have a place to stay?" the pegasus asked.
"Phyllis has already made arrangements," Hitch told her. "CanterLogic is going to pay for a hotel room for as long as it takes for the lighthouse to be rebuilt. I've already got a team of movers getting everything salvageable out before demolition starts."
"Well, that's good news," Zipp replied with a smile.
"What about you, Pipp, and your mom? Do you guys have a place to stay?" Sunny asked.
"We're actually in the process of figuring that out right now. But no matter what Zephyr Heights thinks, I know that I want to stay right here, for now, with you guys."
Sunny smiled warmly at the pegasus.
"I still can barely believe this is happening after envisioning it for so long my entire life. All three pony kinds in the same town, the same street... Getting along."
"Thanks to you," Zipp told her. "You convinced us all to do our part," Zipp said, bringing her hoof up and softly bumped it to Sunny's before putting it to her barrel. "Hoof to heart."
The warm moment was interrupted when the rainbows in the sky suddenly intensified their glows, as the streaks of multicolored light began pulsing back towards the remnants of the lighthouse, and Hitch, Sunny, and Zipp could swear they felt a tingly warmth underneath their hooves.
"Wh-what's going on?" Sunny asked, alarmed.
"Look!" Hitch said, pointing back towards the hills. The pegasi and two earth ponies immediately began to gallop down the coastal street towards the damaged lighthouse, as the rainbows overhead continued to ebb and pulse brighter...