S8 E6: Surf and/or Turf (What If?) (Bonus Chapter)
It had only been about a week since Twilight's School of Friendship had nearly been closed down by the EEA. But with the threat having passed and the school now cleared to operate, life had started to settle into a bit of a routine for all involved.
And that meant there were now things to be settled and sorted out that had previously been neglected: Among them was the issue of permission for field trips. Despite Twilight's school not being an EEA school, field trips were still deemed a necessity and students were expected to have permission before they could go on any of them.
So, before a weekend, Twilight had taken the liberty of having permission slips passed out to all students. "Remember, your parents, guardians, or caretakers must sign these forms," She told them. "Otherwise, you can't go on field trips with us."
Silverstream was one of the students most excited by the prospect of "Field Trips" despite never having been on any before! But there was one not so small problem that the young hippogriff/seapony faced in getting it signed, she didn't live solely on Mount Aris or in Seaquestria. And with both of her parents being required to sign the permission slip, she knew it was going to be difficult, especially considering what her family was currently working through.
Still, a trip back to Mount Aris (and inevitably Seaquestria) would give her a chance to see her baby brother, Terramar. He'd wanted to go to the school too, but his parents had said he was "too young" and no amount of pleading from him could change their minds.
As Silverstream was preparing to board a train back to Mount Aris, she was surprised to have her headmare greet her on the platform. "Headmare Twilight? What a surprise. Did I forget a homework assignment or something?"
Twilight shook her head. "No, Silverstream, your work so far is up to date," She then asked the hippogriff. "Have you seen Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo around by any chance?"
"No I haven't," Silverstream innocently answered. "Why?"
"Nopony's seen them since this morning," Twilight explained in an urgent tone of voice. "They didn't leave a note or anything, and there's no signs that they were abducted or otherwise harmed. But their families are concerned, and so I am. It's not like them to just disappear. If you happen to see them, please make sure to let them know their families are looking for them."
"You think they ran away from Ponyville?" Silverstream questioned with concern.
Twilight shook her head again. "No, they wouldn't do that. But I've already searched all their usual hiding places and haven't found them."
The hippogriff gave a salute. "Well don't worry, Headmare Twilight. I'll keep an eye out for them before I go back to Mount Aris! And if I find them, you'll be the first to know!"
Twilight smiled. "I'm sure you will, Silverstream. And make sure to tell your Cousin Skystar that Pinkie Pie says hello."
Silverstream nodded and then stepped aboard the train. Soon it had departed from the station in Ponyville and was on its way to Mount Aris. Once the hippogriff was certain she was alone in her train car, she bent down beneath her seat and said to a piece of baggage. "It's alright, you can come out now. No creatures are around but us."
The baggage (which was a suit case) opened up, and out tumbled the Cutie Mark Crusaders who had stowed away inside it! "Thanks for not rattin' us out to Twilight, Silverstream." Apple Bloom smiled.
"We didn't mean to make everypony worry about us, but we really wanted to see Mount Aris." Sweetie Belle commented.
"And Seaquestria!" Scootaloo declared while buzzing her wings in excitement! "You get to live in two great places! How cool is that?!"
But Silverstream sighed as a rare frown formed on her face. "It's not really that cool, it's tearing my family apart and I really don't like it." The hippogriff/seapony had good reason to think this as the train sped along to Mount Aris. She knew her family was still working out all the details of who would live where.
Yet even Silverstream couldn't have imagined just what was going to be in store for her and her guests upon arrival. They were going to be witnesses to a conflict that would be unlike anything any of them had ever dealt with before.
"What do you mean it's tearing your family apart?" Sweetie Belle questioned. "I thought your whole species went back to Mount Aris after the Storm King was defeated."
The young hippogriff corrected as her lips seemed to quiver. "Well, that's only half true. It's kind of complicated to explain," Her eyes soon settled on a discarded brochure lying on the ground in front of her. "Here, maybe this will explain things better than I can."
The Crusaders took turns reading aloud from the brochure: "Mount Aris and Seaquestria are two separate kingdoms jointly ruled by her majesty, Queen Novo. We have worked to restore our old home on Mount Aris to accomadate visitors, but we invite you all to visit Seaquestria and learn how the hippogriffs lived as seaponies after escaping the Storm King's clutches. Visitors are welcome day or night."
"That doesn't really explain it, Silverstream." Apple Bloom commented with a frown.
Silverstream nervously replied. "I know, because what my family's going through is something I don't think too many other families are going through," She tried to explain as best as she could. "After we learned about the Storm King's defeat, Aunt Novo said we didn't have to stay underwater anymore and we could go back up to Mount Aris to live. Some seaponies turned back into hippogriffs and joined her on land. My dad was one of the first to volunteer, he loves being a hippogriff. But others, like my mom, loved being seaponies and didn't wanna have to give that up to live on Mount Aris. So it was decided to split up the Pearl of Transformation among our kind, and Seaquestria could be its own little colony. Since one queen can't always make all the decisions for two kingdoms though, my mom basically acts as the leader of Seaquestria. So as you can probably imagine, I kind of do a lot of back and forth," She clutched her necklace. "This is what makes the transformation from hippogriff to seapony and back a possibility."
"Isn't it true that Twilight tried to steal the whole pearl once?" Sweetie Belle questioned.
Silverstream nodded. "Yeah, but it's all water under the bridge now. Since it ultimately led to the Storm King's defeat Aunt Novo decided to let bygones be bygones and all that," She then sighed anew. "I'm actually really glad you three are coming along with me. I'm already eager to learn all there is know about your world, and I can't wait to show you mine. But I'm worried about Terramar." A slight grin escaped her lips as the hippogriff chuckled. "Bet you'd never guess I was an older sibling. I'm older than Terramar by at least a year and a half. But he's the coolest and cutest little brother you'll ever meet."
Sweetie only commented. "It kind of sounds like my family, like how I'm always staying with Rarity because Mom and Dad are on vacation or something."
"Or how I've started spending a lot of time with my aunts because my parents are so busy with work." Scootaloo added.
The young hippogriff smiled briefly. "You all have such wonderful families. My family though..." She paused and put a claw to her chin. "This is gonna sound ridiculous coming from me, but my family's weird. Like really weird. Mom and Dad are really proud about being what they are, it's almost like it's a contest between them to prove which is better. And now Headmare Twilight basically wants me to get permission from both of them while I'm back home for the weekend."
Apple Bloom just saluted. "Well don't you fret none, Silverstream. We'll be here for you no matter what your family's like."
Scootaloo chimed in. "And there's no way your parents are weirder than mine. I love my mom and dad, but they have the strangest ways of showing their affection for me, it's embarrassing." Her cheeks flushed red at the statement.
The train finally slowed to a halt with a screech on the brakes and a puff of steam. The train station for Mount Aris resided at the bottom of the mountain, just before the daunting, spiral structure that led up to the top.
Just as Silverstream and her guests departed from the train and left the station, a seapony with an apple greenish white coat called out to them as he waved with a fin. He swam right over to them, allowing them to see his gentle, innocent moderate cyan eyes, and moderate cyan and pale turquoise mane. He suddenly leapt into the air, transforming midway through in a flash of light as he shed his fins and gained wings and a break. "Big sis!" He happily exclaimed as he landed on the ground and openly embraced his fellow hippogriff in a tight hug!
"Lil’ Terri-Mary!" Silverstream exclaimed right back as she returned the hug full force! "Oh, it's so good to see you again, little brother!" When the hug ended she gestured a paw over her fellow hippogriff. "Girls, this is my brother, Terramar," She then gestured to the Crusaders. "And Terramar, these are the Cutie Mark Crusaders: Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo."
Terramar smiled. "Nice to meet you all. You're the young siblings of some of Silverstream's teachers, right?"
"Kind of," Scootaloo massaged the back of her neck with a hoof. "Rainbow Dash and I aren't related, we're sisters on a technical level," Then she looked at the hippogriff. "That was pretty cool how you transformed in mid air like that!"
Terramar held up his Pearl of Transformation necklace. "Well, I kind of had to get good at it considering what's going on with our families, especially because we kind of have two houses."
Sweetie Belle seemed to pick up on what Terramar was saying as she slowly commented. "Oh... I see. I didn't know it was like that."
Silverstream protested. "No, no, no, it's not like that at all! Mom and Dad still love each other, we're still together. They're just really proud of what they are, and they kind of have jobs that make it difficult to be together all the time."
Terramar nodded. "Yeah, Dad's head of the hippogriff army, he and General Seaspray go way back!"
Silverstream promptly asked her brother. "Is Dad on duty? I need him and Mom to sign this," She pulled out her permission slip. "Headmare Twilight says I have to get them to sign off on this if I wanna go on field trips! And field trips sound so exciting!"
"Well actually, he's just about to kick off the 'Glad to Be a Hippogriff' Festival." Terramar told his sister.
"Wow, looks like we got here just in time!" Apple Bloom exclaimed with a gasp.
But both hippogriffs unhappily sighed and seemed to look embarrassed, Terramar especially as he explained in a whisper. "Not really, Dad does this every weekend."
The Crusaders followed the hippogriff siblings up Mount Aris, up the massive and winding stair case that left them exhausted. "You're lucky you can fly," Scootaloo panted as they neared the top. "I can't imagine how hard it must be to go up and down these steps all the time."
"That's kind of why we keep them. It's a lot harder to invade Mount Aris when you have to go all the way up to the top, not that it stopped the Storm King but he attacked from the sky so that's different." Terramar explained as Silverstream seemed to shudder briefly at the mention of the weather controlling monster's name.
The Crusaders barely had time to catch their breath when a rather tall male hippogriff landed in front of them. He had a commanding presence given his pale, light grayish sapphire blue coat, wavy white and light sapphire bluish gray mane and tail, and of course brilliant orange eyes.
Silverstream and Terramar weren't intimidated by the bigger hippogriff in their midst, they just threw their paws around him and hugged him tightly! "Dad!" They happily exclaimed.
The male hippogriff just let out a happy screech as he returned the hug. "Hey, kids, good to see you again, both of you," He smiled, first looking to Terramar. "Haven't seen you in days, son. Wish you'd come around more often. You could stand to learn more about how great being a hippogriff is," Then he looked to Silverstream. "And Silverstream, this is certainly a nice surprise. You keeping up with your grades in school?"
Silverstream nodded. "Yeah, Dad, Headmare Twilight says I'm one of the most promising students," And she cleared her throat. "Uh, it's okay if I brought some friends along with me, right? They wanted to see Mount Aris and Seaquestria, and I promised them I'd do that."
The male hippogriff smiled. "Oh of course, we're always happy to have visitors on Mount Aris. And they're just in time, I'm sure they'll adore the 'Glad to Be a Hippogriff' Festival. It's the absolute best time to be a hippogriff!"
Terramar, meanwhile, gestured a paw to the older hippogriff while looking at the Crusaders. "Cutie Mark Crusaders, meet our dad, Sky Beak."
"Pleasure to meet you, Mr. Sky Beak, sir," Sweetie Belle was the first one to speak up. "Can I just say how lovely Mount Aris is? It's like just being here is a full time vacation."
Sky Beak chuckled. "Glad you think so. I know not everyone agrees, but as far as I'm concerned there is no better place to be than Mount Aris, especially at this time of year," With a screech he called out to the other hippogriffs. "Come on, everygriff, let's show my daughter's guests some real Mount Aris hospitality! To the refreshment tent for a stein of salmon juice!"
Scootaloo couldn't help but blink. "Wait, you eat fish? But don't you live with them?"
"As seaponies, yes," Sky Beak explained. "We're careful not to eat any of our fish friends. We only eat invading fish species that would ruin our ecosystem. Besides, from what my daughter tells me, you ponies like to fish all the time."
Sweetie nodded. "Yeah, my dad loves to go fishing. When he's not on vacation or at work that's usually what he's doing. I don't really like fish, though," She grimaced a bit. "They're all scaly and slippery."
Sky Beak only chuckled. "Well, I think you'll find salmon juice to be a pleasant surprise. Be careful though, it has a real strong taste to it." And before anyone could say anything else, Sky Beak led them all away to a tent set up on the grassy festival grounds.
A short time later, a satisfied Terramar and Silverstream led the Crusaders away. Silverstream had forgotten all about her permission slip, until she noticed it sticking out from one of her bags. "Oh, I was having so much fun at the festival that I forgot to ask Dad to sign my permission slip. Shoot, a perfectly good opportunity wasted!"
"Hey, it wasn't all bad. We got to meet you dad and enjoy some refreshments," Apple Bloom reassured the hippogriff. "I'm sure there'll be plenty of time durin' the festival to talk to him."
"Yeah, your dad's certainly an... outgoing kind of guy." Sweetie Belle commented.
Terramar nodded even as he sighed. "He really is, isn't he? My whole family is. And that's kind of the problem."
But just then Sweetie's ears happened to pick up the faint sound of something, something beautiful. "What's that wonderful sound?" She asked. "You all hear that, right?"
Terramar nodded again as he began to explain. "What you're hearing are the legendary Harmonizing Heights! Legend says that..." He never got to finish as he saw the filly rush off at a breakneck pace!
The titular Harmonizing Heights consisted of an arch marking the entrance, and several hills surrounded by trees and a small stream with stone steps placed across them. The sound of birds chirping could be heard for miles around.
The little unicorn felt something tug at her as her eyes lit up and she started to twirl around! "Yeah! I love this! This is so awesome!" She shouted!
Terramar nervously asked the other Crusaders. "Uh, is she okay? I've never seen anyone react to the Harmonizing Heights like that."
"Oh, don't mind her, she just really likes music," Scootaloo explained. "I'm sure Seaquestria's got something just as great."
Silverstream massaged the back of her neck with a paw. "I dunno, the best we've got down there are whale songs. Kind of hard to have singing hills underwater."
"But that just means you never have to take a bath, because you get to swim in the ocean!" The pegasus filly buzzed her wings. "What's it like to live underwater and be a seapony?"
"Well, you can find out if you like," Silverstream offered as she grabbed her permission slip. "I need Dad and Mom to sign the slip, so since I missed my chance with Dad earlier I think I'll try my luck with Mom first. She always stays in Seaquestria."
Terramar firmly nodded. "Works for me, I'm actually supposed to stay with her tonight."
Apple Bloom eyed the permission slip as she nervously inquired. "But how are you gonna take that slip down to Seaquestria? Won't it get ruined by all the water?"
The pink coated hippogriff just giggled and chirped. "Headmare Twilight was already aware of that, and she came prepared," She promptly pulled out what looked like some kind of plastic. "This is a special waterproof cover. We tested it after class one day, it works just fine," She slipped the slip into the cover. "There, all set."
"Great, let's go!" Terramar encouraged. "Hopefully Mom isn't in an embarrassing mood like Dad is."
The group headed back down the steps to the docks near the train station. Terramar and Silverstream flew out over the water, motioning for the Crusaders to join them and hold their claws.
The Crusaders obeyed and felt an odd tingling sensation for a moment when they were transformed into seaponies, their hooves replaced with fins and their manes and tails replaced with scales.
None were more thrilled with the transformation than Scootaloo, who quickly got used to her new body and started swimming in loops! "Wow! So this is what living underwater's like! It's so cool! Hey, does my voice sound funny?! Everything sounds funny down here!"
Apple Bloom swam about a bit, but Sweetie Belle seemed kind of hesitant. "I dunno, it looks like it gets kind of dark down here. And is it just me, or does any other creature feel pruny right now?"
Terramar waved a fin. "Oh, don't worry, you'll get used to it. And yeah, it gets kind of dark down here, but as long as you're careful not to go too far away from Seaquestria you'll be okay."
"Just watch out for the currents, they like to change you on at the worst possible moment!" Silverstream cautioned. "Let's just say, going with the flow isn't as easy as it looks."
The five seaponies all swam through the coral reef, soon making their way through a tunnel that led them into the heart of Seaquestria. The whole place seemed vibrant and full of life, seaponies of all kinds were coming and going at will, as were some sea creatures.
Terramar and Silverstream swam up to one of the houses as the Crusaders followed. Inside said house was a female seapony who the Crusaders noticed didn't have a Pearl of Transformation necklace. Instead, she had a necklace that seemed to have been made out of pearl and sea shells. She had a pale, light grayish olive coat, innocent and sweet eyes of light purple, and a pale, light grayish purple and moderate magenta mane and tail (as well as fins). "Hi, Mom!" Silverstream and Terramar greeted.
Ocean Flow smiled and waved a fin. "Welcome home, my children. Always nice to see you again," She booped Terramar on the nose. "And Terramar, no excuses, baby. This time, you're staying for dinner. I was just about to prepare some kelp fritters, your favorite."
"Oh, that's okay, Mom. We already ate at the festival, and so did our friends," Silverstream explained as she gestured a fin. "These are the Cutie Mark Crusaders. They wanted to see what it's like underwater, so I thought I'd show them around while I was here."
Ocean Flow happily greeted her guests. "Any friend of my daughter is a friend of mine. Did she show you all her favorite hiding places from when she was younger?" She giggled. "Both my children are really smart, Silverstream especially. You wouldn't believe how many times she would sneak off with her cousin Skystar and get into trouble," Then she offered. "Would you like to see their baby pictures? I've got an entire scrapbook dedicated to my little pearls."
"Er, no thanks, Mom!" Terramar protested with a raging blush. "Uh, we have to go now. Bye."
Ocean Flow, suspecting nothing, just waved to the seaponies as they departed. "Okay, but don't stay out too long, it's getting late."
"Well, that went well," Terramar commented as all five seaponies returned to the surface and their transformation was undone. "Still, at least she didn't seem obsessed with Seaquestria as much, though I think she was about to mention it."
"Then I guess there's only one way to decide this!" Apple Bloom declared once everyone was back on dry land. "When we Cutie Mark Crusaders are faced with a problem, we draw up a chart. And that's just what we'll do. We'll make a chart comparin' Mount Aris and Seaquestria. Which gets more pros is where you two can stay, or at least Terramar can stay."
Silverstream shot the Crusaders a quirked brow. "Couldn't you just have Terramar flip a coin or something? Heads for Mount Aris and Tails for Seaquestria, or something like that?"
But Terramar protested. "That wouldn't solve anything. I already feel like no matter what I choose I'm letting someone down. If there's even a chance a chart could make my decision easier then I say it's worth a shot!" He looked at the trio of fillies and told them. "Make your chart, and do it quickly before Mom or Dad find out! They're sure to try anything to get me to stay in one place."
So the Crusaders made up a rather crudely drawn and hastily assembled chart in the sand with a roughly circular shape to symbolize Mount Aris and some squiggly lines to symbolize Seaquestria. Both had two columns divided by a line, one for the positives and one for the negatives.
Sweetie Belle used her magic to pick up a stick as she explained. "Okay, let's start with Mount Aris. Pros: It's beautiful, the Harmonizing Heights have no equal and there's always something going on." She drew three check marks in one column.
Scootaloo then took the stick from Sweetie Belle as she started to draw some x's for Mount Aris. "Cons: There's a ton of stairs you have to go up and down every day, 'Glad to Be a Hippogriff' Festival happens every weekend, and it's so big you can get lost easily," Then she went over to the Seaquestria side. "Now for Seaquestria. Pros: Swimming is the best, there's lots of great hiding places and everything sounds funny."
Sweetie took the stick back as she started to draw some x's for Seaquestria. "Cons: There's no paths to run on, it's dark and you've got the changing currents. Also, how do you..." She began but then trailed off.
"What?" Terramar asked her.
Sweetie shook her head. "Forget it, I don't wanna know. I'm sure you have some way of taking care of it," Then she eyed the chart. "Hmm, seems like there's good and bad things about both places. No wonder you're having such a hard time deciding," She turned to Apple Bloom as she declared. "What do you think, Apple Bloom? You haven't said much for either one, so it's up to you to be the tiebreaker."
But Apple Bloom gulped. "I don't know if I can choose. It looks like both are great places to live," She looked at Terramar and Silverstream as she told them both. "I can understand why it's hard for you to decide. Maybe a song will help." And the Crusaders began to sing all at once:
Your heart is in two places, yet you can only live in one.
You're torn between the hilltops and the tide.
Thank goodness that the Cutie Mark Crusaders have begun to give you hope,
And help you to decide.
But their singing happened to draw the attention of Sky Beak, who swooped down and noticed the chart. "Oh, deciding on where to live?" He commented with a smile. "I can help with that." And before his children could say anything in protest he grabbed them both and began to sing:
These hills, they call to you, they say 'Mount Aris'!
This is your home now, simple and serene.
The sun-dappled leaves or a mountain terrace.
And you can see twenty-three different shades of green.
To dare to compare anywhere to there,
Is simply unfair and just plain wrong.
Colt or mare or you wear feathers, fins, or hair
This is where you belong!
Sky Beak hadn't been singing for very long when Ocean Flow happened to surface. "Dear, don't you think you're being a bit unreasonable?" She pointed out. "You haven't told them what Seaquestria has to offer, but I can!" Then she began to sing:
Seaquestria's the most, you're supposed to be there!
Underneath the sea where you can feel at home.
Swimmin' with your friends, you can spend all day here.
Playin' in the bay here, or splashin' in the foam.
Sailin' through the wavy blue,
You'll view a slew of tortoises.
Forget the rest 'cause the sea's the best.
For all intents and 'porpoises'.
Sky Beak and Ocean Flow began to sing back and forth in argument, each trying to convince Terramar, Silverstream, and to a lesser extent the Crusaders that their view was right. The ensuing debate that was sung sounded something like this:
Build your nest here on Mount Aris!
Live it up here in Seaquestria!
Nothing quite compares to Mount Aris.
The eagles are so regal.
But the schools are cooler,
With their sweet maneuvers.
Star wishes every night.
Starfish by eel light.
Better.
Wetter.
Shinier.
Briner.
Seaquestria!
Mount Aris!
Seaquestria!
Mount Aris!
That's it, this is the end!
Don't talk to me again!
Both parents finished the song and glared at each other.
Terramar promptly ran off with tears in his eyes. "I don't wanna chose! Why are you making me choose?!" He sobbed.
Sky Beak and Ocean Flow were shocked and speechless to see their youngest child up and flee so abruptly! So shocked in fact that they forgot that they had just gotten into an argument and vowed not to speak to each other. "What he's so upset about?" Sky Beak pondered. "I thought he was going to spend tonight with you, Ocean Flow, just like he's been doing every day this week."
"Yes, because you got to have him all to yourself last week, Sky Beak," Ocean Flow explained. "And in case you've forgotten, I don't go up to Mount Aris, you have come down to Seaquestria."
Sky Beak fought back a gulp. "Honey, you know I can't just leave my post in the hippogriff army. Your sister would have my head."
Ocean Flow retorted. "And she'd chew me out if I even thought of leaving Seaquestria without someone watching over it."
Silverstream growled as she flew towards both of her parents, feeling quite flustered. "Mom! Dad! Please, this has to stop! This is exactly what I was afraid of!"
Both parents blinked. "What are you talking about, Silverstream?" They asked their daughter.
Fighting back tears of her own Silverstream explained. "You two are always fighting and arguing about this, about why you have to live apart from each other and force Terramar and I to live with only one of you. We want our family to be the way it was meant to be, the way it was when we were younger and all together. This is exactly why Terramar wanted to go to the School of Friendship too, so he could get away from all of this."
Scootaloo couldn't help but comment. "I know couples fight sometimes, and I know you both have important jobs, but are you sure what you're doing is really the best way to solve everything?" She pointed to her fellow Cutie Mark Crusaders as she told the two. "We've been to Mount Aris and Seaquestria, we think they're both nice places."
"And if it's hard for us to decide which is better, just imagine how poor Terramar must feel having to make this decision every day," Sweetie Belle pointed out. "To him it feels like he's being forced to take sides in a battle he wants no part of."
"Well, we thought that if we worked out an arrangement on when he would be on Mount Aris and when he'd be in Seaquestria, everything would work out just fine." Sky Beak commented very slowly.
Ocean Flow unhappily sighed as her fins drooped. "What we were really doing was refusing to address the issue or even explain it to our children. Terramar must hate us for putting so much pressure on him."
But Silverstream shook her head. "You guys are great parents, I'm happy to have you both! Dad, you always know how to make life on Mount Aris interesting! And Mom, it's because of you that Seaquestria is still a great place to hang out! I could never hate you, and Terramar doesn't either," She then pleaded. "But can't we work out a better solution than having to always go back and forth every week or so?"
Both parents pondered this proposal in silence for about a minute or so, neither saying a word in the mean time as they looked deep into each other's eyes.
At last, however, they both motioned for Silverstream and the Crusaders to come over, and they whispered something into their ears.
"You really think that'll work?" Apple Bloom questioned.
Sky Beak and Ocean Flow both nodded as Sky Beak insisted. "If I know Terramar as well as I'm sure I do, this is guaranteed to catch his attention."
"Just lure him back to the beach, and then leave the rest to us." Ocean Flow advised.
Silverstream saluted. "No worries, Mom and Dad! We've totally got this! Right, Cutie Mark Crusaders?!"
"Right!" The three fillies nodded in reply and followed the hippogriff as she flew away!
It didn't take too long for Terramar to be discovered. He was perched on a tree branch hanging out over the ocean, and looking rather sorry for himself.
"Oh, Terramar, thank goodness!" Silverstream exclaimed in relief. "Please, come out of that tree."
Terramar only stubbornly replied. "No! I'm staying here! That way, I don't have to be on land or in the water!"
"But don't you see that that means you're basically disappointin' both parents?" Apple Bloom pointed out to him. "If you ain't in either place then you're not pleasin' your mom or your dad."
"Isn't that better than pleasing one and disappointing the other?" Terramar pondered. "You're only making me more confused."
Sweetie took a deep breath. "Well, we're sorry. This is kind of hard for us. We're usually much better at solving problems, but I think we kind of got in over our heads this time. We didn't realize that maybe this wasn't something we should be tackling."
The hippogriff shook his head. "No, don't blame yourselves, you didn't do anything wrong. You three and my sis were only trying to help. You had a good idea with that chart," He unhappily sighed. "But Mom and Dad had to come along and make it all about themselves again, like they always do."
Silverstream flew up into the tree and landed on the branch besides her brother. "Terramar, you're not the only one who's affected by this you know."
"Yeah, but you get to go to that awesome school in Equestria. You don't have to worry about it every day like I do." Terramar protested.
The pink coated hippogriff shook her head as she looked deep into Terramar's eyes. "Maybe not, but not a day goes by where I don't think about you and what you're going through. Not a day goes by where I don't wish our family didn't have this problem," She pulled out the permission slip. "I'd probably already have this thing signed if Mom and Dad weren't separated from each other all the time. And I can remember a time when that wasn't the case."
Terramar only questioned as he continued to look out towards the sea. "So, you're not going to try to convince me one way or the other? You don't want me to choose like Mom and Dad do."
"If you come back to the beach with me, you may not have to worry about that choice for much longer," Silverstream explained. "So, whaddya say?"
The young male hippogriff reluctantly decided to oblige his sister's request. He came down from the tree branch he'd been perched on and followed the little entourage that had been sent to retrieve him.
His moderate cyan eyes could hardly believe the sight that greeted them when he approached the beach! Several hippogriffs and seaponies had gathered along the shoreline, some even changing back and forth at will from one species to the other. And right in the center of it were both his parents, who were waving to him from afar.
Silverstream happily explained. "Mom and Dad decided to get everycreature together for a picnic on the beach. And you'd better believe it when they mean everycreature: Hippogriffs and seaponies. Isn't it wonderful, Terri-Mary? It's just like old times."
"Really?!" Terramar hopefully inquired, his heart all a flutter!
Silverstream and the Crusaders nodded as Terramar approached his parents as they resides on both sides of a black and white picnic blanket along the shoreline.
"Hi, son!" Sky Beak greeted in a chipper tone. "Your friends told us how you've been feeling ever since our family's 'disagreements' started happening."
Ocean Flow booped her son on the nose with a fin as she apologized. "And we're sorry if we ever made you think you had to choose between worlds. That wasn't our intention, honey. Never at all."
Sky Beak added. "It doesn't matter if you're a hippogriff or a seapony, you're still our son. And regardless of where our jobs or life may take us, we're still a family and we're going to make more of an effort to be together more often."
Ocean Flow smiled. "You're more than just where you're from or who you live with. We love you because you're you, no matter where you choose to be. We're sorry if we didn't convey that to you in a way that made sense. From now on, even if you spend one week as a seapony and another as a hippogriff, our whole family is going to get together for these shoreside picnics at least once a month."
Terramar happily laughed as he transformed into a seapony to hug his mom and then back into a hippogriff to hug his dad.
Scootaloo then trotted up to Terramar as she told him. "There's one thing we forgot to add to the chart, something we should've taken into account much sooner: Both places have family and friends who love you."
Terramar nodded. "Well, I know that now, thanks to you three. And big sis too, she always knows how to cheer me up."
Silverstream waved a paw as she shrugged off the compliment. "Hey, what are big sisters for?" Then she suddenly remembered! "Oh, this is perfect! Mom! Dad! While you're here there's something I need you to sign for me!" She pulled out the permission slip, now worn and rumpled but still readable. "Headmare Twilight told me I have to get you both to sign this or else I'm not allowed to go on school field trips with my friends."
"How unusual, I don't know what 'field trips' are but I have a feeling you wouldn't wanna miss out on them," Sky Beak commented to his daughter before looking to his wife. "What do you think, Ocean Flow?"
Ocean Flow nodded her head. "These 'field trips' sound like a perfect opportunity for you to learn even more about the world around you, Silverstream. We'll sign it for you and you can give it back to Princess Twilight. Make sure she knows that she's welcome to come and visit Mount Aris and Seaquestria anytime she wants."
"Yeah," Sky Beak declared. "It's because of her that we can finally live in peace without worrying about that no good Storm King hanging around."
Silverstream just chirped! "Oh, I will! I'm sure Headmare Twilight would love to come here, it's like being on vacation all the time!"
"And boy does she need one," Scootaloo whispered under her breath. "I'm surprised she hasn't already booked a trip here because of 'research'." A faint giggle escaped from her lips as she said that.
Sweetie Belle, meanwhile, looked across to Terramar and offered. "I hope you come visit your sister in Equestria sometime. And if you're ever in Ponyville, just call on the Cutie Mark Crusaders! We'll be happy to show you around."
Terramar didn't reply, he was just happy to go off into the sunset with both of his parents. It felt so liberating not having to choose who to stay with.
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You're gonna do Sparkle Seven? That is gonna be interesting, especially with how the twist of Spike and Luna working together, and Twi and Shining calling Spike their brother goes against what you have set up in your universe where [spolier]Twilight adopted Spike.
Spoilered for thoes who A. Haven't seen Sparkle Seven, and B. Haven't read previous installments of this series.
Superb work on this latest chapter/episode. You made some REALLY good points in the author's notes as always and the exchanges, characterizations, general wrap-up and future episode set-up are all well done in all the right places. I especially liked how you cut out the Cutie Map portion, used the opportunity to give Silverstream some character development and used the Crusaders' own family experience to allow them to be more helpful here.
At any rate DEFINITELY looking forward to the next "episode".
Well these have been quite a few interesting rewrites, I liked a few of them to be honest.
So you're gonna do Sparkle Seven & Dragon Dropped? Wonder how these 2 will go since they were my fave Spike eps in S9, heck that last season was the one he shined the most in not only his own episodes but playing off alongside many characters in most of them!
10063241
Really good question.
As for "Sparkle's Seven", the twist is going to need a different reason (since Spike is Twilight's adopted son in this universe and not her little brother and Spike has no siblings in the present day [though he MIGHT get one or two during the two decade time skip in the series finale depending on how close Twilight and Flash get], meaning that Spike might have a similar motivation, but not an identical one).
As for "Dragon Dropped", all I'm going to guess is that Spike IS going to firmly choose between Rarity or Gabby (and, even THAT could be wrong).
10063448
Also gotta wonder the bullies reaction at seeing Spike's new look in Sweet & Smoky, especially since in this continuity he's about Smolder's height. 😉
10063573
Yeah. That's a good point. Not to mention Spike's recently returned biological mother (an adult dragon named Singe introduced in an earlier volume of SB12's "What If?" series) would probably not take too kind to Garble and his friends bullying Spike to begin with.
Does this warrant the Anthology tag?
10063905 I never really thought about it, but maybe it does.
Have Silverstream and her family thought about making a house that accommodates both Seapony and Hippogriffs? Like, an entrance that leads to the ocean inside the house.