//------------------------------// // 9. Opaline Strikes/Betrayal // Story: The Fate of the Magic // by Harrison Sparrow //------------------------------// A little while later, in the evening, Sunny and Zack have arrived back at the Crystal Brighthouse, having had such an adventure. "Well, home sweet home." Zack said. "Gotta say, you have quite a house." "Yeah, it really is magical. And having additional friends makes it even more magical." "If I had a house like that, I'd be living the dream." "I'm already living mine." Zack chuckled, and brought something out of his bag. "Before I go... I have something for you." It was some sort of plain looking sphere, as Sunny took it with confusion. "A sphere? Why would you gimme something like this?" "I know you may think that, but it has a big surprise inside. It's for the big finale. It's on all day, right?" "The festival? Yeah, but what will it even do?" "Just place it in the sky at night, and it'll activate. I tested it out myself before, and I think you'll love it." "Hmm... alright." Sunny said, as she put it in her bag. "You have anything else for me?" "Well, I guess I can give out a compliment about your hair. I prolly didn't tell you how colorful it looks." Sunny looked at her mane with a smile. "Thank you. What else do you like about me? My cutie mark? My... friends and their talents?" "I actually like yours more." Zack replied. "And about your dad, did he like shining stars?" "*giggle* Maybe he did. Did your mom like bursting clouds?" "Oh yeah, and she loved eating cherries. It was her favorite." Sunny felt touched by that and smiled at him even more. "Thanks for today, Zack. I know it was, well, a little crazy, but... I had a great time." "Me too... and you're welcome." "So, are you gonna come down tomorrow?" "*sigh* Sorry, but I'm working, so I don't have the day off. But I'll be able to see it on TV. I really wish I could go, though." "Okay." Sunny said, feeling a little disappointed. "I guess that's more important, right?" "Yeah..." "Well... see you around?" "See you around." Zack nodded. They smile at each other for one more time before Sunny runs off to her home, as Zack watched on lovingly. Inside the Brighthouse, Sunny's friends were about to have dinner, as Izzy and Misty brought down the chicken curries to the table. "Alright, everypony, dinner is served!" Izzy said. Sparky had a sniff of the curry, and felt wowed. "Smells good!" He said. "Already calling this meal my favorite!" "Yeah, don't have it right now, Sparky, it might be too hot." Zipp reminded, then had a smell of it herself. "But you're right, it even looks good." "I'm a dragon, Zipp, and dragons eat hot things!" "Oh, do they?" "I wish Sunny would be back by now." Misty said. "She wouldn't want hers to get cold." Just as she said that, Sunny stormed right in with a huge smile on her face. "GUYS!" "Hey, Sunny!" Izzy said happily. "Well, you're back right on time, Sunny Starscout." Hitch said. "We thought you'd be too late." Sunny had a sniff of the meal. "What are we having tonight? Ooh, chicken curry?" "Yup, all on the house." Izzy said. "We actually thought it'd be a good choice." Misty said, as Sunny sat down to eat. "So, tell us, Sunny, how was your date with Zack?" Pipp asked. "Oh, it was amazing! And you will not believe where he just took me today." "Ooh, somewhere happy and exciting?!" Izzy asked. Sunny brought out her phone... "Check this." ...and showed them a video of Melody Water Park. "Melody Water Park!" "Wow!" Sparky said, as he and the others were starstruck. "Well, would you look at that!" Zipp smiled. "I've never been to a water park!" Misty said. "It looks incredible, Sunny!" "I know, right?! So many games and slides, it's the biggest park there's ever been in the entire land! And FYI, me and Zack did everything there." "*gasp* No way." Pipp said. "Can we go there someday, Sunny? Please??" Sparky begged. "Certainly. I wouldn't want any of you to miss out." "YES! We'll start planning a trip right away and we will try everything there!" "Hold on, Sparky Sparkeroni, not until a few days after Glastonpony." Hitch said. "But yeah, I quite like that idea." "I think you two made amends today, haven't you?" "Yeah, we've forgiven each other. I may have been a little too hard on him, but we've agreed that he can make friends with ponies and dragons that we trust." "Okay. And what about Misty and Alphabittle?" "We went down to Bridlewood and I said sorry." Misty replied. "He said he wanted to forfeit his role, but he feels a lot better now." "Wait, you went to Bridlewood? Izzy, you were supposed to be doing my job!" "And I did! We just had to take care of a little friendship problem. Friends and family always come first, you know." "Oh, right. I did mention that Misty owed him an apology. My bad..." "But the biggest surprise, Sunny, was that Misty called Alphabittle her dad!" Pipp revealed, and Sunny was shocked as she faced Misty. "I had to." Misty said with a sad face. "Because I wanted to know what it was like having a family." "But, Misty, we're your family." "I know, but... I meant a family who... who would be your parents. You know, the first family you would have when you were a filly? I would've had something like that, like all of you ponies did... but Opaline took that away from me..." "We understand. But I don't blame you, Misty. We're really proud of you that you now have a dad." Sunny smiled. Misty took that in, feeling touched as she smiled back at her. "We sure are." Zipp nodded, and she brought out the book she got from earlier. "And hey, I'm also really proud that I was able to win this book today." "You won that from Alphabittle? How?" Sunny asked. "Rubik's Cube challenge. Nailed it in one quick shot." "Wow, Zipp, I'm... I'm surprised! What's it about?" "The history of magic in Equestria. I know the alicorn magic book was intriguing, but this one? It has an article about something called 'The Elements of Harmony'." Zipp said, as she opened the book and turned to the page. "What are the Elements of Harmony, Zipp?" Hitch asked. "It says on this page, that they are ancient, legendary objects. Also know as the most powerful magic known to ponydom, each artefact represents an element of friendship and only activates if the wielder possesses the corresponding trait and if all six are used in conjunction." "I remembered when my dad used to tell me a story about this." Sunny said. "Really?" "Yes. Twilight Sparkle and her friends have wielded them on rare occasions as a last resort to restore and enforce the balance of peace and order across Ancient Equestria." "But what do they really do?" Izzy asked. "How powerful are they?" "Well, if you ask me, very powerful." Zipp answered. "If the magic of all six elements are combined together, they can ultimately overpower and banish someone for good." "So, how do we activate them?" Misty asked. "Will they help us defeat Opaline?" "I don't think we can." Sunny said. "Dad said they were destroyed, so they're a thing in the past now. As are the ancient guardians." "But there's gotta be something to bring them back, right? If Opaline begins her attack at any point, maybe we should be the ones who can wield the elements against her!" "Misty... Sunny's right." Zipp said, as she closed the book. "It's not possible anymore. And besides, we're not guardians. We're just... us. You know, just regular ponies with only simple forms of magic." Misty lowered her head in shame. "*sigh* I wish we could be the new guardians..." "Us being the new Guardians of Harmony?" Izzy said. "Wouldn't that be the ultimate dream?" "Alright, alright." Sunny interjected, raising his hoof. "Tomorrow is a big day for all of us, so how about we not worry about Opaline for now and just think that everything will be smooth and it'll be a memorable day?" "Smart thinking there." Zipp nodded. "But I'll try and keep a lookout for any trouble, just to be extra safe." "You should leave that to the guards, Zipp." Pipp said. "It's their job, you know that?" "Yeah yeah, but come on, I'll enjoy the show at the same time! And I can't wait to see Mom rocking it on TV." "And Tongues of Fire are gonna storm the stage like FIRE!" Sparky said. "Well, you should be happier that they'll be our first act, Sparky." Hitch revealed, and Sparky cheered loudly, causing everyone to laugh. A few hours later, at the dark castle, Opaline was planning her assault, and she brought out an amulet that has five rings. "There are you are, my precious. Soon enough, you will give me the ultimate power of destruction! By the time I fill you up with five cutie marks, that is. But that'll only be part of my plan, as I know there's even more I can steal out there. Now, if only that pathetic bubble-shield would be gone by now! How long has it been since I started tearing it apart!?" Just as she said that, she heard a loud bang outside as she went to have a look. The dragon stone she set alight in the sky has fully destroyed Twilight's invisibubble, and that means one thing... Opaline is finally free! "*laugh* Yes! YES!!!" Opaline shouted, as she lit up her fire powers in pure evil. "FINALLY! After all these moons, I AM FREE!" The dark alicorn flew out of her castle as she went down to reclaim the dragon stone, and she looked up to the sky with a menacing smile. "You have failed, Twilight Sparkle! Now I can start taking back what's rightfully mine!!" She then looked out at the distance... "And very soon, you will fail too, Sunny Starscout." ...and unleashed her most villainous laugh yet, as lightning struck over. Oh no... this could be bad... A few hours later, the biggest day has arrived, as everyone was arriving at the Glastonpony festival site! The sky was completely blue and sunny, a perfect day for the event, and cameras where absolutely everywhere. Haven and Alphabittle were being filmed on TV as they were doing their roles together, and they seemed to be loving it. "Greetings and salutations to everypony who came down here today!" Haven said. "We are live at the Glastonpony festival in what promises to be the most magical, spectacular music event in all of Equestria." "I don't know about you, Queen Haven, but I haven't seen such a massive crowd like this before. They should all be in for a real treat today, especially that we have a line-up that absolutely won't disappoint us." "Right you are, Alphy. Electric Blue, Ruby Jubilee, The Dreamlands, and so much more are gonna be having everypony throwing their hoofs up high!" "Hey, don't leave out us!" "*chuckle* I wasn't even thinking about that. Our very first act will be coming on stage real soon, so stay tuned right here, and get yourself ready for Glastonpony!" Down at the festival grounds, everyone was playing games, eating food, and having a nice chat together. Sunny and her friends are waiting patiently and excitingly for the show to begin. "As soon as Tongues of Fire get on that stage, they oughta steal the show right from the get-go!" Sparky said heroically. "*laugh* I can tell you're already feeling the energy, Sparky." Sunny said. "Good way for you to build up the hype." "IT'S ALREADY TO THE MAX!!" Sparky cheered loudly, and the ponies around him cheer along. "Way to go, Sparky Sparkeroni!" Izzy praised, and she turned her head to the stage. "Ooh, here comes Pipp! It's starting!!" Pipp shows up on the stage, hovering in the air as she gives everyone a massive cheer. "Hello, everypony! Where are my fans at!? Lemme hear you scream!!" The crowd screamed in absolute excitement. "Love it! We're really honoured to have you all down here with us today. Oh, and before I step aside, can you please send a shoutout to my friends who have worked ever so hard together in turning this dream into a reality - Izzy Moonbow and co!" Everyone cheered for Izzy and the others for all their hard work, as they feel so proud. "And now, it's time to experience the biggest event you will ever witness in the whole world - it's GLASTONPONY!" "Please welcome, our first act of the day, and also the first-ever dragon act in history, making their rocking debut, and coming all the way from the Isle of Scaly, it's TONGUES OF FIRE!!!" Everyone roared as the punk rock band appeared on the stage. Flamber took the mic with a massive smile. "WHAT'S UP, EQUESTRIA!?!?! YOU READY TO ROCK THIS WORLD AND TAKE IT ALL THE WAY TO THE SKY?!!" Everyone agreed with another cheer. "Stoner, drop the hammer!" Stoner nodded his head as he began rocking with his electric guitar to start their first song. Reaper used his bass guitar, Doomer started banging on the drums, and Flamber sang into the mic. They were already sending Glastonpony off to a big start, as everyone was jumping along to the music. Sparky was so happy to see them performing, it took him over the moon. Jelly, thought to have been late, just arrived down on Sunny and her friends. "*exhale* Sorry! Thought I was running late!" "Jelly, you've made it!" Sunny said happily. "Hey, Sunny!" Jelly said, as they had a high-five. "I was hoping to make a more super-heroic entrance. Really loving this kinda music, though! Who are these guys?" "They're Tongues of Fire, my favorite band!!" Sparky yelled within the loud noises. "Thank you, little one, I heard that perfectly!" "These are my friends, by the way!" Sunny told her. Her friends waved hi to Jelly, and Izzy was admired with how she looks. "Hi, new dragon friend! I'm Izzy!" "Hi, Izzy! Nice meeting you!" Jelly said, as they shake hoofs. "Sunny said you came up with this idea together, huh?" "Yes, YES, YES!! Just wait till the end, your eyes will not deceive you!" "Whoa, what's gonna happen?!" "Pipp Petals is our closing act! And if you haven't heard, she's a princess who loves singing! Plus, she has a massive surprise for all of us!" "Whatever it is, I can't wait!!" Having heard that however, Sunny looked into her bag and finds out she had forgotten the sphere that Zack gifted her yesterday. "Oh no... Still have time." She said to herself, as she ran back to the Brighthouse, but her friends were unbeknownst about it, as they were all distracted by the music coming from Tongues of Fire. As soon as the band finished their first track, everyone cheered for them. "OH YEAH!! How about that for a rocket start!?" Flamber said. "YOU ROCK, TONGUES OF FIRE!!!" Sparky yelled. "ALRIGHT! Glad you're enjoying it right now, but that's not all we have for you yet, as our next song goes out to a very special little fan of ours, who's a part of a very special family of friends!" "Hey-hey, that's you, Sparky!" Hitch said happily. "ME?!" "That's right, we're pointing right at YOU, Sparky Sparkeroni!" Reaper said. "Give him a nice cheer wherever you are, as this one's called..." Stoner tried to say. Suddenly, a massive fleet of dark clouds approached and covered the festival site. Everyone was looking up with a worried and scared look. "Wait, what's going on?" Flamber asked. "What's happening?" "Dude, look!" Doomer said, pointing at the sky. "Oh no..." Stoner said softly. "I don't like the look of this." Reaper said. "What are these clouds doing here?" Pipp asked. "I thought the weather was supposed to be clear all day!" "No..." Misty said, as she knew they looked familiar. "It's not that, it's..." "What is it, Misty?" Izzy asked. "...Opaline!" Then, a wave of fire lines strike from the clouds, as they hit Tongues of Fire, who didn't see them coming for even a second, and they posses them. Everyone gasped with terror, as the possessed dragons are under control by the evil Opaline, who descends from above and cackles madly, scaring everyone. "She broke out of Twilight Sparkle's enchanted invisibubble with the Dragon Stone!" Misty said. "What?!" Zipp said loudly. "Your special guest has arrived, little ponies! All fear the most powerful fire alicorn, OPALINE ARCANA!!!" Opaline shouted, as she and the possessed dragons began blasting fire all over the site, destroying everything and causing everyone to scream and run for their lives. Sunny's friends were in a massive shock as they tried to remain brave and stay behind, but they were forgetting one thing. "Wait, where's Sunny!?!" Izzy asked. And then, Opaline commanded the possessed dragons to fire their flames around Sparky and the five ponies, trapping them. "Nowhere to run now." She chuckled menacingly. Back at the Brighthouse, Sunny was still looking for the sphere. She tried looking everywhere downstairs and had no luck, and then ran upstairs. "*groan* Where did I leave it!?" She asked herself in frustration, then, she went to her bed, looked under it, and finally found the sphere. "There you are! What was I doing?" Suddenly, the sounds in her head kicked in again, showing her another vision, and it revealed that Opaline has trapped her friends in separate bubbles back at the destroyed festival site. She gasped in horror and got into a massive scare. "No! NO-NO-NO-NO-NO!!!" She quickly put on her alicorn form and zipped out of the Brighthouse to try and rescue them. "Well, well, well. We met again, hopeless ponies, and for the last time!" Opaline said. "Why are you doing this!? You're a MONSTER!" Zipp yelled angrily. "LET US GO!!" Izzy shouted, slamming her hooves. "I don't think I can do that, not after you ponies tried to stop me and ruin my plans!" Opaline said, and she faced Misty. "Especially that you left me to do all the work myself, ever since you brought your pathetic, careless friends to me, Misty! You shouldn't even be here since you betrayed them." "They're not pathetic, you are!" Misty struggled. "And I should've betrayed you when I had the chance!" "WELL, YOU ALREADY DID, YOU BACK-STABBING LITTLE TRAITOR!!!" She raged. "After all you have done for me, THIS IS WHAT I GET?!! And all this time, I thought we were friends!" "NO! We were never friends! You treated me like a slave, and I never should've worked with you!" "Then it figures. Well, how about I return the favor by TAKING YOUR CUTIE MARKS!!??" Opaline said, as she used her magic on the five ponies to steal their cutie marks, and installed them in the amulet, filling in the five rings and making her even more powerful. "NO!!" Pipp yelled. "Well, look at this!" Opaline said, surprised by Misty's mark. "I should've known you were hiding yours from me, Misty. Oh, and it appears that your little dragon friend has not met his defeat yet! Don't mind if I do?" She then pulled in Sparky towards her and trapped him in a separate bubble. "SPARKY, NO!!!" Hitch screamed. "HELP ME!!!" Sparky screamed. "Oh, don't be scared, little dragon. Opaline will look after you from now on." "PLEASE, LET HIM GO!!!" Misty begged tearfully. "STOP!!!!" Sunny shouted from afar, as she charged towards them fast and hard. But the possessed dragons stop her and hurdle her to the ground. "SUNNY!!" Izzy yelled. "You're too late, Sunny Starscout! A shame you couldn't keep me trapped in your own bubble forever. Say goodbye once and for all, little ponies!!" Opaline laughed maniacally, as she threw the trapped ponies out of their bubbles and into the ground. "NOOOOO!!!" Sparky screamed, as he was then taken away by Opaline and the dragons. Shortly after, the ponies regained consciousness and slowly got back up on their hooves. They looked around, assessing the destruction of the site. "Sparky... We have to save him!" Zipp said, as she tried to fly, but failed. She looked at her wings and was shocked to find out that she lost her magic. "No-no-no-no-no!" "What?" Izzy said speechlessly, as she tried and failed to light up her horn. "We... we lost our magic?" Misty sat down in utter sadness. "Without our cutie marks... we did." She revealed, as the others gasped weakly and sadly. Sunny turned to see her friends with a worried face, who couldn't look at her for a single second. "Are you all okay?" She asked. Pipp took a couple breaths and faced her in anger. "No thanks to you." Sunny didn't understand. "No thanks to me? What happened?" "Misty said Opaline used the Dragon Stone to break out of Twilight Sparkle's enchanted invisibubble..." Hitch said softly. "How did she-" Sunny asked, but got cut out. "AND OPALINE ATTACKED US!!" Hitch suddenly shouted, putting Sunny in shock. "Yeah, and you weren't here to stop her!" Pipp said. "You promised you'd keep her away from us!" "Where were you, Sunny!?" Zipp asked madly. "Where did you go!?" Sunny sighed and sat down, facing away from them. "I'm asking again: where did you go??" "*sigh* I went back to the Brighthouse." Sunny answered in depression. "Why?" "Because... I forget my gift that Zack brought me." "Your gift from Zack?" Hitch said in disgust. "Zack Thunderlane?! Your boyfriend?!!" "He gave you a gift?! Why didn't you tell us about that last night when you got back!?" Misty asked. Sunny stood back up and faced them with frustration. "Look, I didn't know that Opaline would do this, okay?! I just got so caught up with everything that's been happening to me these past few days! Being with Zack, organizing the festival, handling my new powers, ALL OF IT!" "Ah, so your powers have failed you now?" Hitch thought. "*scoff* Really hard to believe!" Sunny felt insulted by that. "You think you understand how it works, don't you? No." She spread her wings. "I'm the alicorn here, not you!" "Oh, so what!? You think it's okay to do whatever you want, whenever you want?! What happened to keeping everypony safe!? What happened to keeping us safe!?" Sunny scoffed and turned away from him. "If only it weren't for that smart boyfriend of yours." He scowled. Having to have heard that, Sunny turned back in such anger. "Don't you DARE bring Zack into this!!" "NO, SUNNY! Look around you!! Look at US!! All of this happened because you weren't here to stop any of it! Opaline destroyed Glastonpony because of you. She stolen our cutie marks and our magic because of you! She possessed Tongues of Fire, and Sparky is gone, BECAUSE OF YOU!!" "But it's not too late! We can still stop her! We can still save him!" "How, Sunny!?" Zipp asked furiously. "How are we supposed to do all that without our cutie marks!?!" "I DON'T KNOW! But I'm going to figure it out!" Sunny said, as she turned away and started walking off, having had enough of their argument. "Oh yeah?! Well, you should've figured out by now, Sunny Starscout, that Opaline Arcana is too dangerous to have any friends!!" Hitch shouted. Sunny stopped and ran up to him in a snap. "WELL, I DON'T EVEN KNOW WHY WE'RE FRIENDS!!!" Her alicorn horn sparkled as she yelled angrily. Hitch and the other girls gasped in horror of what Sunny just said. Sunny snapped out of it, deactivating her power, and realized what she did. Hitch looked down as the girls stare at her. As Misty whimpers, Hitch looked up at Sunny, feeling completely hurt. "You know what...? Neither do I..." He said weakly, as he turned away and strides off. He went by the other girls, who were still staring at Sunny, and soon began to shed tears. "Girls..." Sunny tried to talk, but they were't having any of it. "Come on, Pipp... We're going home..." Zipp said, as she and Pipp turned away and followed Hitch. "Pipp, Zipp, I..." Sunny tried to speak, but they completely ignored her. She then faced a heartbroken Misty. "Misty..." "Don't apologize." Misty said tearfully. "I don't want to hear it..." She turned away and walked off as well. She was so sad when she accidentally betrayed Sunny at Opaline's. But now, she was betrayed back. Sunny gasped, realizing those similar words when she said them to Misty, and her voice started to break. "No..." She tried so hard to not cry herself, and she then looked at Izzy. "Izzy..." But the devastated unicorn faced away. "*sniff* Just don't talk to me..." She whimpered, as she abandoned her as well. "No! Izzy!" Sunny called out, breaking down and begging for her to come back. "Izzy, please...!" Now all alone, she continued sobbing, having lost everything she loved. She betrayed her friends, which also meant she failed friendship. Meanwhile, at the drinking factory in Zephyr Heights, Zack was doing his job until he looked up at the TV, where the ZBS news program was showing the Glastonpony disaster. "Major tragedy has struck at the Glastonpony Festival today, as hundreds of music fans were under attack by a mysterious alicorn, who has brought nothing but reign of terror and fear down on what could've been the most magical and exciting music festival in all of Equestria. No casualties have been reported as of now, but this was a very unexpected and devastating thing to happen." Skye Silver reported. Zack took all of that in, and became so worried. "No... Sunny!" He said, as he decided to make a big decision. "*sigh* I'm sorry, Mom..." He madly took off his apron and handed it in to the main office. "Sorry, boss, but I have to go." "What? Where do you think you're going, Mr. Thunderlane!?" The boss asked, getting angry as he got out of his chair and followed Zack to the exit. "You haven't even completed your shift!" "Yeah? Well, there are other things that mean a lot to me in life than just making drinks all day." "Like what!? I swear, Mr. Thunderlane, if you walk outta that door, you will be kicked outta this company for good!" Zack looked outside and then turned to the boss with anger. "You know what? Say goodbye right now! I quit." He said, as he ran out of the door and flew away to find Sunny. Down at a small, quiet lake, a grief-stricken and guilt-ridden Sunny sat down and looked over the water, shedding tears as they splashed onto it. "I'm so sorry, Dad..." She whimpered, as she's never felt so upset since failing to bring magic back on her first adventure. But this situation was a whole lot worse, seeing that she accidentally pushed her friends away after not being there for them when Opaline attacked. She's lost all hope. She had nothing. She's alone. A few seconds later, Zack, after having a long search, has found her, as he walked up slowly. "Sunny?" Sunny slowly turned to see him. "Zack?" She continued sobbing as they embraced. "What are you doing here? I thought you were doing your job." "I quit. I saw the news, I was so worried about you. What happened?" "Oh, Zack... This is all my fault... My friends... the festival..." "What do you mean it's all your fault? You would never do anything wrong!" "I... I got into a fight with my friends. I forgot about the gift you gave me. I went back home to get it, but then... Opaline attacked everyone, and she... she stole my friends' cutie marks... and took Sparky... I wasn't there to stop her..." "Wait, who... who's Opaline?" "You know when you told me that nopony saw a real alicorn for a long time?" "Yeah...?" "Opaline Arcana is one of them... but she's evil... And she's still here... I know I should've told you about her before, but I couldn't because I didn't want you to be afraid... I'm sorry I kept her from you..." "No... Sunny, I don't blame you for that. I understand where you're coming from. You can still turn things around." "No, I can't! I lost my dad... and now I lost my friends... I'm supposed to be the alicorn who would keep everyone safe, but now... I'm just not... I don't know who I am anymore..." Zack became very sad himself, seeing that Sunny had been abandoned, and he sat down next to her. "I remember a time when... when I was supposed to have a dad. I should've told you that before." Sunny turned to him with her head still down. "What...? Why didn't you have one?" "Mom said she'd met him years ago, and they've been hanging out for so long. But then, one day, when Mom became pregnant and was about to have me... Dad got so scared and... and he abandoned her... like he didn't want to be part of a family. A few years after I was born, I knew how much she was struggling without him, so I tried to help out and make her happy, by telling her stories, and playing a lotta games... just to show how much I loved her. And it all worked out." Sunny understood that, and she told him about her mother. "I was supposed to have a mom, too... but she died at filly-birth. I wish I knew what it was like to have a mother..." Zack elbowed her for another hug, as they both closed their eyes. But then... "We know what that felt like." Someone said, as Sunny and Zack reopened their eyes and turned to see in surprise, that it was the spirits of their deceased parents, Argyle Starshine and Cherry Cloudburst! They stood up and got so emotional. "Mom...? Is... is it really you?" Zack asked in tears. "Yes. It's really me, Zacky Boy." Zack hugged her, having missed her for so long, and she hugged him back. "Look at you. All grown up!" Argyle touched her daughter's cheek, who gasped in tears of joy. "Dad..." "I'm right here, my little pony." Argyle said with a smile, and Sunny immediately hugged him. "I missed you... How is this possible?" "We heard you've lost all hope." Cherry said. "You were so sad and alone." "You were... watching over me?" "Of course we were." Argyle said. "How could we not?" "So... you saw what happened? At the festival?" Argyle and Cherry nodded, and Sunny went teary again. "I didn't mean any of it. *sniff* I never wanted to fallout with my friends..." "We know." Cherry agreed. "I'm so sorry... I failed friendship..." Argyle nuzzled her in comfort. "Sunny... everypony makes mistakes by accident, even if it breaks their hearts sometimes." "Believe me, we both did." Cherry said. "But at some point, we learnt how to fix them and move on." "Exactly. But I don't want my beautiful daughter to give up on everything. I told you that before, remember? Before the day I passed?" Sunny nodded weakly. "We were talking about you two yesterday." Zack said, wiping his tears. "How you wanted us to hold onto our dreams." Cherry giggled happily. "I'm surprised! You two were sharing your own stories with each other." "We even shared ours, too." Argyle said. "Wait, what are you two talking about?" Sunny asked in confusion. "*sigh* It's a long story, but... we found a new light, one day." Cherry told. In a flashback, Argyle was walking through the woods. It was a little dark, but he felt so calm and brave. Then, he came across Cherry, who was also having a stroll of her own. They looked at each other in shock, and Cherry went to hide behind a long bush, panting in a panic. "Hey, it's okay!" Argyle called. "I'm not gonna hurt you. You can trust me." "But you're an earth pony!" Cherry argued. "How do you know I can trust you?" "Well, because... I'm friendly. It took me a long time to finally see a real Pegasus myself, but I'm not scared of you. And I wouldn't be scared to see a real unicorn either." "But Pegasi said that earth ponies are strangers. And so are unicorns!" "Really? Well, I find that very hard to believe." "Why would you think that?" "Because I believe there could be magic and friendship in Equestria again, just like there were in ancient times." He said, and Cherry realized this as she slowly came out of hiding. "Do you feel the same way?" "I... well, yes. Yes, I do." Argyle giggled surprisingly. "That's great! Now, I have to ask... can you fly?" Cherry felt saddened as she flapped her wings and couldn't take off. "No, I can't. Nopony can." "Oh... I'm sorry." Argyle said in disappointment. "But all the earth ponies back in Maretime Bay don't know that." "They don't?" "No. They're just too blinded by fear and mistrust. All they care about is... themselves." "Then, if they're all back there, where it is safe... what are you doing out here?" "Well, I decided to have a nice, relaxing walk. You know, keep my hooves moving, whilst my daughter is at school." "Wait, you have a daughter?" "I do, and she believes in the same thing. You have somepony in your family?" "Yeah, I... I have a son. And he also wishes for all pony kind to reunite and be friends again. I... I never thought I would come across somepony who wanted something similar. It's like it came out of nowhere!" They both chuckled by that, and smiled at each other. "I'm Argyle Starshine." "Cherry Cloudburst." They shake hooves, and Argyle looks at Cherry's necklace by surprise. "Hey, I didn't think you would have a similar necklace." Cherry widened her eyes as she looked at Argyle's. "Oh, neither did I. Isn't that something?" She and Argyle chuckled once again. "Ever since we met, it was like we found our one true happy place... but it didn't last long." Cherry said. "No. When the earth ponies and Pegasi found out we were seeing each other... they've torn us apart. And we never met eye-to-eye ever again." Sunny took that in, as she looked at Cherry in shock. "You... you met my dad?!" "I did. Does that ring a bell to you?" "I... I remembered him telling me that he met a Pegasus... but I didn't know it was you!" "I didn't know your dad met my mom, either." Zack said, smiling. "Zack... do you still have it?" Cherry asked. "Yeah, I do." He said, as he brought out the necklace she worn. Sunny was so surprised as she brought out the same one her dad worn. They stared at one another with a loving smile, and turned to their parents, who had a nuzzle. "Mom... ever since you left, I had a huge hole in my heart. But you gave me courage, strength and hope to be the son I should always be. And I will never ever forget that about you." "I know you won't." Cherry smiled lovingly. "And I've been so lucky to have you." "And Dad... I didn't know where I was since I lost you. But because of your love and care, you made me the daughter I am still now. I never wanted to let you or any of my friends down..." She looked down in shame. "But hopefully, it's not too late for me to make a change." "It isn't." Argyle agreed, as he brought her head back up. "And it's never too late for you to get that spark back. And more importantly, your friends. Your family." With those words, Sunny smiled tearfully and gave him one more big hug. "I love you so much, Dad..." Argyle hugged her daughter back. "I love you too, Sunny-Bunny." "Actually... can't we all just have a hug together, please?" Zack asked in tears. "This is already too much!" Cherry giggled as they all had a massive group hug. It was like they never got to have something like this, but now, it miraculously happened. A one of a kind miracle. "Zack... promise me, you'll take care of my daughter." Argyle said. "I will, Mr. Argyle. I promise." He nodded, and he faced his mother. "I will always love you, Mom." "And I'll always love you more, my baby. We may not be here anymore, but we will always watch over you two. No matter what." "We'll do our part, hoof to heart." Argyle reminded. Taking that in, Sunny and Zack joined in and they all did it together. "Hoof to heart." Argyle and Cherry's spirits ascended back into the sky as Sunny and Zack waved them goodbye. Sunny took a deep breath and wiped her tears before looking down at her dad's necklace. "So... who are you?" Zack asked. Sunny closed her eyes and pressed the necklace on her neck before looking back up with a determined face. "I am Sunny Starscout... and I'm gonna do what is right." From this moment, she never gave up after all. She was gonna save Sparky and Equestria, one way or another.