Alphabittle stood at Izzy's dining room table, helping her get organized for her move to Maretime Bay. He wasn't sure how to feel; partly proud, perhaps, but this was also the first time he could remember that a unicorn was leaving Bridlewood.
Izzy could tell that he was at least a little bummed about that, regardless of how her and her friends were transforming Equestrian society.
"It's not like I'll never visit, Alphabittle. Once the trail gets more and more defined, I'll be able to make the trip in less than half a day! I mean, I made it to Maretime Bay in just about six hours the first time," Izzy said as she was packing her saddlebags.
"I know, but until last week, you've never been farther away than the other end of the forest," the stallion replied.
"And once Zephyr Heights gets here and puts up that tower and the phones, we'll be able to keep in touch instantly!" Izzy told him.
True, that would also be a rather drastic change, that level of technology coming to town. Instantaneous communication over distances that long seemed otherworldly.
"So, any last minute surprises before I leave town?" Izzy asked excitedly, as she strapped on her saddlebags.
"Well, I know you wanted a farewell parade, but with how preoccupied everypony has been with their own magic, I wasn't able to put together anything... Impressive, shall we say," the stallion told her.
With her house as ship-shape as it would be in, Izzy gathered the last of her things she was taking with her, and walked to the front door with Alphabittle. They turned left towards the meadows just outside of the forest, and before they got to the end of the treeline, there stood a red-maned, navy blue colt, who blew a farewell melody into the kazoo he currently had in his mouth.
Izzy giggled as she turned and waved goodbye to the forest.
"Yep, that was enough!" Izzy told him happily, turning back towards the meadow and continuing to walk towards it with Alphabittle. A few moments later, the two unicorns stood at the edge of the forest. Izzy turned to her adoptive father once again.
"Alright, this is it. I'm sure we'll be able to find each other on Ponygram once Pipp and the pegasi finish getting smartphones to everypony."
Alphabittle smiled down at her for a moment before he leaned down and pulled her into a hug.
"I'm proud of you, Izzy Moonbow. Never forget that. See you soon."
Izzy returned the hug, gave him another smile, and then headed out across the meadow, turning to wave one last time before breaking into a gallop, disappearing over the next hill after a couple minutes.
Alphabittle tried not to hurt inside; Izzy hadn't been living at home for years, but she had always been in the forest, always not that far away. As he fought back tears and headed back into the forest, he told himself that he wasn't losing a part of himself, but was instead letting that piece out to make all of ponykind stronger and more unified.
He couldn't help but take a little pride in being the one who raised one of the ponies who was reuniting Equestria.
Izzy's words were indeed true; a few days after she had left, a construction team of pegasi had arrived at Bridlewood to put a cell tower up right behind the Crystal Tea Room, thus minimizing the eyesore that it would prove to be to the rustic look of the rest of the forest. A second construction team had already built a new bridge across the ravine where the ancient one had crumbled. Alphabittle had immediately suggested naming it the Moonbow Bridge, in honor of the Bridlewood resident that had played a part in the reunification of Equestria.
After the tower had been erected, a team of pegasi from something called 'Z-Mobile' arrived with enough smartphones for all of Bridlewood. Several of the older unicorns politely declined, not quite willing to make such a leap in technology. Alphabittle himself was a bit bewildered with the device, but was willing to read through the manual and try his best if it meant keeping in touch with Izzy, as well as continuing to build his new friendship with Queen Haven.
If he didn't know any better, he was becoming the unofficial spokespony for Bridlewood.
The fact that half of Bridlewood now had smartphones affected the after-lunch crowd of the Tea Room considerably. Now that ponies had access to this region-spanning 'Canternet' was, they took longer on their drinks. It didn't lower sales terribly, because tea refills had been free for years, but it did mean that the trips to and from tables for refills was considerably slower after the lunch rush, and thus Alphabittle had more time to get used to his new device along with the rest of the unicorns.
"There's the unicorn I came to see," he heard a familiar voice call out a couple days later as he was leaning on the bar, scrolling through Ponygram. He looked up to see Queen Haven, accompanied by a pair of armored guards, one light blue and the other mint green.
"Your Majesty, what an unexpected pleasure," Alphabittle greeted with a widening smile, pushing off of the bar and inviting her over to one of the stools. She came forward and took a seat, waving off her pair of guards to one of the nearby tables.
"What can I get for you, Your Majesty?" Alphabittle asked.
"Please, Alphabittle, just Haven," the pegasus replied. "I've heard from quite a few returning tourists that the Tea Room's long island ice tea is divine. I believe I'll try one of those."
"Coming right up," Alphabittle said, immediately turning back to the shelves behind the bar and grabbing the bottles he needed. "Anything for you, soldiers?"
The mint green stallion got an excited expression on his face, but was quickly stared down by the blue mare, who was clearly his superior officer.
"Much obliged, sir, but we're on duty," Zoom replied.
"Captain Zephyrwing, would you live a little," Haven chastised. "I hardly wanted to make this an official visit, but you insisted. So I insist that you two have a drink. After all, you two have come just as far as me."
Zoom cleared her throat nervously while the stallion's ears perked up again.
"If her majesty insists, I'll have an apple whiskey," she replied after taking a quick look at the small menu standing on the center of the table.
"A long island for me as well, thank you," the stallion, Thunder, answered.
"Two long islands and an apple whiskey," Alphabittle recited.
It wasn't the first bar she had been in, and she was quite impressed with how quickly and expertly the unicorn stallion made the drinks. He served Haven hers first, then immediately walked around the bar and gave her accompanying escort their orders, before returning to the bar and wiping down the drink station.
"So, I take it prison or exile isn't going to happen?" Alphabittle asked.
Haven chuckled, taking a sip of her drink.
"I'm afraid not. It turns out you were right on the money; Zipp and Pipp helping in returning flight to the whole city was more than enough for all to be forgiven. Plus I don't think anypony else was really anxious to figure out how to take on my everyday duties."
Alphabittle took a look around, seeing how not busy the place was, quickly fixed himself an apple whiskey, then came around the bar again and took a seat on the stool next to Haven.
"I was happy to step back into my role. I owe Zephyr Heights that much. I'm glad it keeps me so busy, because to tell you the truth, when I'm not, I'm miserable," Haven told him, taking another swallow of her drink.
"Miserable?" Alphabittle said.
Queen Haven nodded immediately.
"My doctor calls it Empty Nest Syndrome; feelings of grief and loneliness once your children leave home. It even started to set in before Zipp and Pipp left for Maretime Bay, I started to feel it when they were packing... Pipp a lot more than Zipp. So when I had a day off, I knew I wasn't going to sit there all day and let it eat away at me, so I came here," Haven told him.
"Well, I'm glad you did. It certainly brightened my day up. It feels a bit emptier here in Bridlewood with Izzy gone, too," Alphabittle told her.
"Well, I suppose I can toast to that," Haven said, raising her glass. "To empty nests."
Alphabittle smiled gently at her.
"To new friendships," he said, picking his glass up and gently clinked it with Haven's. Together, they finished off their respective drinks, and Alphabittle got up, walked to the other side of the bar again, and began making them some refills.
"So what happened to your crown?" Alphabittle asked as he filled their empty glasses with ice cubes.
"Oh, I'm still waiting for a replacement jewel, seeing as how the turquoise one was a unity crystal, and is now on the top floor of Sunny's new lighthouse with the others," Haven told him.
"Well, I've been really looking for an excuse to come up and see Zephyr Heights for myself. There's certainly no shortage of crystals here, so let me see what I can find before I head up. I've got a couple days off coming up," the unicorn stallion told her.
Haven was clearly touched as Alphabittle slid her second drink over to her.
"I would be honored to have you as a guest at the castle, Alphabittle. I'm already looking forward to having you." Smiling, she took her glass in her hoof, and raised it.
"To new friendships."