Garden State of Mind
Izzy was now entering her third straight minute of rattling off a list of her favorite Bridlewood unicorn traditions.
Zipp didn’t mind this. Even though the sheer volume of events being named had so overwhelmed her ability to retain them that they had formed a long train of meaningless sound, currently taking an express route from one ear to the other, she was so fully engrossed in the sheer joy on her friend’s face that it didn’t matter. After witnessing her become so stressed in her attempts to micromanage the perfect slumber party, it was a welcome respite to see Izzy’s boundless joy reassert itself in reminiscing on her past.
The four of them were sitting around the kitchen counter, with Zipp next to Izzy, Pipp on the other side and Sunny at the far end. Inside, it was dim, with only a few lamps in other rooms providing illumination. Outside, the garden was bright, with long strings of lanterns and innumerable fireflies enhancing a beautiful moonlit landscape. Even from a distance, Zipp could spy it through the front window to her left, and her eyes wandered in that direction as Izzy briefly paused for another breath.
And those eyes noticed something strange.
For just the briefest of moments, she’d detected movement. Not the gentle streaks of light left by the movements of the fireflies, but a shadow. Perhaps it could have been some creature, but…
The thought entered her head, and it wouldn’t leave.
Misty.
It’s Misty out there.
The hitherto unknown blue unicorn that Izzy had met that very day and immediately decided to host a slumber party for. The one who claimed to have grown up in Bridlewood just like Izzy, yet seemed just as mystified by Izzy’s traditional unicorn practices as the rest of them, while also backtracking on almost everything she said, presenting a baffling revisionary retelling of Sunny’s story of the Guardians of Harmony and getting herself bizarrely lost on the way to the washroom.
And then running away, leaving the party in shambles until Sunny had gotten Izzy talking again.
If that’s really Misty out there…
I should do something. I have to do something. Right?
Zipp hadn’t quite figured out what she was going to do if Misty was out there. Investigate more? Follow her? Confront her? Figure out just what was going on with this stranger whose every word feels tinged with half-truth (at best) and why she would lie to her and her friends–
She was brought back to reality by a whisper from Sunny, who was leaning into her right ear as Izzy was saying something about Glowpaz stones and Wishiehoof holidays.
“Psst, Zipp! Can you distract Izzy while we redecorate a little?”
Zipp turned to face Sunny. Her concern must have been evident on her face, as Sunny looked slightly startled at her appearance. She replied with a whisper of her own.
“I would, but… I think somepony is in the garden.”
“What?”
“It’s Misty. It’s gotta be Misty,” Zipp hissed as she planted her forehooves on the table, raising herself slightly upward. She winced, realizing she’d likely made too forceful a move to go unnoticed, but when she peeked back at Izzy, nothing had changed; the unicorn was still too caught up in her list to notice her.
She turned back to Sunny. “I should go see what she’s doing.”
“Zipp…” Sunny replied, some hesitancy evident. “Are you sure?”
“Pretty sure.”
“Well… go check, then. If it’s her, don’t be too harsh. Just try to bring her back inside, okay? Izzy would really appreciate it.”
Zipp nodded.
Sunny leaned over to Pipp. “Alright, you keep Izzy distracted, I’ll handle the Brighthouse myself.”
Pipp beamed. “Oh, you know I’ve got this.”
As Pipp shifted her seat to more wholly encompass Izzy’s immediate line of sight, Zipp and Sunny slid off their chairs and crept out of the kitchen into the next room. From there, Zipp took off, silently gliding her way around the interior back to the front entrance. Once landed, she gently pressed down on the latch and slunk outside, leaving the door cracked behind her to avoid any unnecessary noise from closing it.
Now on the front steps under the soft glow of the Brighthouse and the moon, Zipp could get a much clearer look down to the garden where, indeed, there was a figure moving back and forth behind the fountain. Zipp went down the stairs and trotted toward it, staying on the grass on the right side of the path to muffle her hoofsteps. A swift flight down the hill seemed overly risky; too sudden and visible of a movement to go unnoticed.
Once she’d made it parallel to the garden’s fencing, she took a short leap from one side of the path to the other and crouched under the large, purple-leaved willow tree. Cautiously, she peered up into the garden.
It only took the briefest of glimpses to confirm the pony inside was indeed Misty, mumbling to herself as she paced back and forth, head lowered. Zipp decided to wait a few moments before making her presence known, wanting to get a sense of why their new companion hadn’t left yet.
“Oh, I don’t know…” Misty was saying, taking rapid breaths between sentences. “What do I do, what do I do? I’m not prepared, what was I thinking…” She paused, and broke into an uncomfortable laugh. “I can’t pull this off– she was right. She was right, she was right, they’ll never believe you–”
She? Zipp pondered. Was Misty talking about Zipp herself, for having been openly suspicious of her at the party? Yet that felt wrong, somehow. But who could the she in that sentence be, then?
They’ll never believe you…
Lost in thought, Zipp absentmindedly stepped forward onto a leaf, which made a surprisingly loud crunch underneath her. Misty’s head instantly snapped up and looked around for the noise; Zipp quickly ducked out of view. Knowing she couldn’t keep hiding, though, she crept behind the tree trunk, then galloped out from behind it.
“Misty!” she shouted, as the unicorn mare’s eyes found her. “I saw you out here from the Brighthouse – we were worried about you! Can…” She stopped at the garden’s front gate, Misty’s outline visible through the other side. “Can I talk to you?”
“Ah… ah-ah-ahhhf course! Of course you can! I mean why wouldn’t I want to have a chat, I mean that’s why I’m still here, right? I mean– uh, come in!”
Oh-kaaaaayyyyyy…
Zipp pushed open the gate and stepped inside. Misty had backed up as close to the fountain as she could get and hooves now frozen in place, watching her with wary eyes. She held her position as Zipp trotted closer to her, though Zipp could see she was shaking.
“So, uhhhh…” Misty stammered. “How’s the… party?”
“Um, well, it stopped, Misty. When you left, Izzy didn’t want to keep things going. The whole party was supposed to be for you.”
Misty cringed. “Oh…”
“She’s fine, though. I mean, kinda. She’s really disappointed, but we’re helping her feel better. But–”
“But I should just leave, right?”
Zipp blinked. “Huh?”
“Yeah. Uh, I should just… I should just leave, and go, so I stop ruining everything. I should have left earlier, I shouldn’t have just been wandering around in your garden, I shouldn’t be here–”
“Misty…”
Misty had started pacing again, even more agitated than before. For a moment, Zipp had an instinct to chase after her, stop her from trying to flee, but by the time the thought had occurred, Misty had already begun trotting back in the other direction. The stress of the night had clearly sunk in deep.
“–and now I don’t know what to do!” Misty continued. “I can’t leave! I don’t want to go back, but if I stay here, then you’ll just keep asking me questions and I’ll just end up blurting it out that I’m not from Bridlewood–” Misty instantly silenced herself, eyes wide as her body again froze and horror etched itself across her face.
But now the words were out there.
“You’re not…” Even though Zipp had been practically certain already, hearing the words from Misty’s own mouth took her aback.
“No… I’m not. I-I-I lied. I didn’t mean to lie, but…” Misty swallowed, her eyes momentarily darting back and forth so quickly that Zipp almost didn’t notice. “But Izzy seemed so happy in town when she thought I was from Bridlewood, and I couldn’t let her down. Not after what she did for me.”
Still reeling from the shock of Misty simultaneously validating and completely undermining her earlier investigation, Zipp could only respond with confusion. “What she… did for you?”
“She called it a hug.”
Said confusion was reaching an altitude so great that, to anypony that high in the sky, Zephyr Heights would have been but a tiny speck below. “You’ve never heard of a hug…?”
Who is this pony?
“I-I-I-I mean I’ve heard of it, yeah, um, obviously. Obviously? Right, yeah, definitely,” Misty replied shakily, starting to pace again. “But, I mean, I don’t get them very often. Not for any weird reason or anything, I just don’t.” Misty sighed. “But when Izzy hugged me in town, it… actually, it was pretty intense. She said she was kind of an intense hugger. But it felt really good! Like really, really good!”
Zipp nodded along silently, trying her best to absorb all the information she was being fed.
“And, well, I don’t know, I guess, um, I just really appreciated that! And when Izzy said that she was gonna throw a party for me, I couldn’t say no! Not after that! Otherwise how would she know I appreciated it? Am I saying appreciated too much? Maybe? Who knows!” She gave another mirthless laugh. “But then she just said I must be from Bridlewood, and I was worried saying I wasn’t might make her not like me! But now I can’t tell her I’m not from Bridlewood, or she’ll think I’m just a liar! Ohh…”
Now on the far side of the fountain to Zipp’s right, Misty stopped as her back legs gave out under her, dropping into a sitting position on the hard stone as she rubbed her eyes with a forehoof. Zipp could see a tear glinting on her muzzle.
The gears in Zipp’s detective brain were turning. There was so much going on here — not just the things Misty had admitted, but also her stressed behavior, her obvious discomfort in talking about herself, the fact that she barely knew what a hug was…
The words she was right, she was right echoed inside her, and for a moment, Zipp fixated on them, and who she might be. And then something clicked into place.
Misty wasn’t leaving out details of her background because she’s some sneaky liar or villain, she was leaving them out because they still hurt…
She cringed as the realization hit her fully.
Because somepony hurt her. She hurt her. A lot.
Zipp Storm knew she had grown up in a privileged life. She and her mother could have their disagreements, certainly, but, at the end of the day, she knew she was loved. And Pipp loved her, too. So she couldn’t personally relate to the experience of growing up in an abusive environment. But it was far from unheard of in Zephyr Heights.
As a filly, amongst all the adoration Zipp had gotten from her peers regardless of whether she wanted it, some of her classmates had reached out to her for a different reason – unable to find anypony else they could tell about their desperate situation, they were reaching out for royal intervention as their last hope. Indeed, she had related every instance of this to her mother, though she couldn’t be certain about the outcome of each case. She knew some had been foals simply overreacting to a mild verbal spat with a parent – but some had been very serious indeed. So Zipp had learned to recognize signs of abuse.
Looking at Misty once again, she could see those signs all over her.
Carefully, Zipp began to walk forward towards the downcast unicorn.
“Hey, um…”
She paused for a moment as Misty looked up, then slowly continued moving.
“Misty… I’m sorry if I was being too harsh in there, before. I was just being, well, overprotective, I guess, of my friends. I’m not mad at you for ly– uh, for saying you were from Bridlewood. And I won’t tell Izzy you’re not; you can tell her, when you’re ready.”
“...really?”
Zipp nodded. Now directly in front of Misty, she stopped. “But if it’s okay with you — and I won’t tell anypony else — could you tell me where you are from?”
She was looking Misty right in the eyes, but the unicorn turned away and shut them.
“Do I have to?”
Zipp flinched, wondering just how past-tense Misty’s pain was.
She can’t be, right? She can’t still be with whoever was hurting her. With her. And she would never have let her spend the night with us… would they?
After a moment’s thought, she dismissed the idea. Too implausible.
But however far in the past it was, though, it was still clearly too much for Misty to dwell on. And Zipp couldn’t ask that of her.
“No,” she replied. “You don’t have to say anything.”
Misty looked back at her, eyes open again, and wide.
“Thanks, Zipp.”
She smiled, and Zipp smiled back.
Having given up on pressing for details, Zipp instead let herself indulge in a bit of speculation. Maybe Misty had come to Maretime Bay to get away from her, whoever she was. Maybe she was trying to find a fresh start. Maybe she was just trying to make new friends… friends who could give her the care she hadn’t gotten before.
Friends who would give her a hug, like Izzy had.
She spoke again. “We were hoping to get the party started again inside. Do you want to come back inside with us?”
Misty trembled. “I… I want to, but… nopony probably wants me in there.”
For just a brief moment, Zipp grimaced. Then, she crouched down to Misty’s level on the ground.
Zipp Storm was a pony that had learned to trust her instincts. True, they had led her a bit astray that evening, reading Misty’s awkward behavior and half-truths solely through the lens of a potential threat, and not as a pony who might need their help — her help. But those instincts had also led her here, to this conversation. To the truth, or at least all the truth she needed to hear to see Misty in a new light.
And those instincts were telling her exactly what to do to make things right.
She reached out with both forelimbs and wrapped them around the unicorn, who squeaked in surprise.
“Zipp?”
“You said you haven’t had many hugs before, didn’t you?”
“Yeah…”
“Well, here’s one more. Just for you.”
Misty’s body shuddered against hers, and Zipp could sense the surprise radiating off her. After a moment, though, she could feel Misty’s own forelimbs lift up and wrap around her.
“See? You’re getting the hang of this already.”
And she allowed the hug to last for as long as Misty kept it going, letting the feeling of the embrace and the ambience of the fountain wash over her.
After about a minute, Misty pulled back, and Zipp withdrew. “Th-thanks,” Misty said softly. “Thanks for that.”
Zipp smiled. “Anytime.” She drew back to her full height. “Ready to go inside?”
Misty slowly got to her hooves, and, as though the lights of the garden and the beauty of the flowers had washed away all the darkness and grief that had clouded her face all evening, looked like a whole new mare. “Definitely.”
Zipp hadn’t entirely assuaged her concerns about – or for – Misty. But she was ready to put them aside, at least for now.
There was a party waiting, after all.
A few hours had passed. The party had resumed, and Misty had eventually come clean to Izzy and the others that she wasn’t from Bridlewood. Even with Zipp’s assurance, she’d still been rather surprised at their understanding. None pressed her for details. From there, the evening had gone rather smoothly.
Now, though, it was late at night, and everypony had decided to turn in. Izzy was on her bed, while her housemates were all in sleeping bags around it. Misty, having not had a bag to bring, was laying on some blankets Izzy had offered.
They were all asleep. Misty wasn’t.
She was laying on her side, fixated on the item balanced on her hoof. The closed compact mirror, the one she’d left for Sunny to find days ago, through which Opaline had tried to reach out to Sunny, to explain her true nature.
Why hadn’t she listened? Misty had wondered. Opaline is so wise, so smart, so powerful… who could hear her words and not see the truth in them?
And yet the longer Misty looked at the mirror, the more she realized she didn’t want to open it.
I’ve got to, she thought. I have to report. What have I been doing tonight if I can’t at least tell Opaline about everything I’ve seen here? No, I didn’t find the lantern, but I’ve learned so much about magic, about these ponies!
Like how they’re kind, they’re understanding, they listen, they give me hugs…
Her face fell. I can’t say anything like that. Opaline doesn’t care about that stuff. She only wants to know what a good job I did being a spy.
She let the mirror drop from her hoof onto the blanket as she rolled onto her back. There were so many nice things these ponies had done for her, in one night, that Opaline never would have. Like that hug. That amazing, wonderful hug Zipp had offered, that had made all the bad thoughts go away, just for a moment. It was almost magical, in its own way. But not a way that Opaline cared about.
But could it really be magic? Real magic? Misty pondered. If it is, why wouldn’t Opaline want to know about it? Maybe she’s forgotten. She’s been separated from her magic for so long, maybe it’s something I should tell her about so she’ll remember!
And yet she still couldn’t bring herself to pick the mirror back up.
I owe her so much, she found me, she raised me, without her I’d have nothing, she’ll give me a cutie mark one day…
All of a sudden, she heard another voice. But she never hugged you.
Startled, she sat up, looking at the ponies to her right. They were all sound asleep, blissfully secure in the dreamscape of the moon.
Yet she’d sworn the voice had sounded just like Zipp.
Gently, she laid back down. Her eyes fell back on the mirror. She knew Opaline was waiting on the other side, itching for Misty’s report.
And she just stared at it.
Also LikedSimilarAuthor
- Admiral Producer · 4.1k words · 116 5 · 4.6k views
- Briarlight · 3.1k words · 63 3 · 1.8k views
- Whinifree · 2.1k words · 50 0 · 1.3k views
- NavelColt · 1.4k words · 116 3 · 1.7k views
- WilloIllo · 1.5k words · 48 0 · 1k views
- RedRanger3142 · 5.6k words · 29 20 · 857 views
- Necrogen Lord · 3k words · 34 0 · 730 views
- Admiral Producer · 6.3k words · 69 7 · 2.7k views
Stats
Page generated in 0.127 seconds
Total duration
1,064 users online
2,134,790 hits today, 2,280,440 yesterday
FIMFiction
My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic Fanfiction
Designed and coded by knighty & Xaquseg - © 2011-2024
Follow & Support Us
Support us
SubStar
Chat!
Discord
Follow us
Twitter
MLP: Friendship is Magic® - © 2024 Hasbro Inc.®
Fimfiction is in no way affiliated with or endorsed by Hasbro Inc.®
She really does...
parental/familial abuse.
Well no kidding
Yeah she really was abused probably not physically but emotionally I felt bad for her
Ooooh, this was a really good Misty story digging into her potential origins. Very well done!
Darn it you beat me to it. Now I can’t write my little Misty fic!
Or can I? 🤔 
Misty does deserve so much better. Serious case of Stockholm Syndrome happening there. I wonder, I think it’s pretty obvious at this point Misty will eventually turn on Opaline much like Tempest did the Storm King, but what do you think are the odds of Opaline getting a redemption arc with Sunny and Misty at the helm? Right now I’d say maybe 20% chance. Sunny would probably try to convince her there’s so much good she could do with her alicorn power if she used it to help others instead of serve herself.
*hugs Misty*
Incidentally, I finished getting caught up on Make Your Mark just a matter of minutes ago, so this is good timing for me!
Poor Misty though, and agree she is effectively in an abusive environment with Opaline that she should get out of when she can...and get many, many, many more hugs.
Man. There are so many sadfics on this site, but when you read one and realize that it might actually be canon...
Anyways, this was really well done. Zipp was a good choice here: sure, she is the most cynical and world-weary of the mane 5, and while initially that nearly lead her into trouble with Misty but she also has an empathetic side that got to shine through here. And I like how the revelation was handled. Zipp's intelligent enough to understand that Misty isn't going to tell her everything right away, and while she is making a big step in the right direction Misty's problems aren't instantly fixed in the end.
All in all, not a bad read.
11389274
Aww you should definitely write it anyway. More love for Misty!
You broke my heart. Thank you so much for writing this
11389286
Hehe yeah I will.
11389184
The end of the last "Make Your Mark" episode has Misty second-guessing whether working for Opaline was a good career move. I would expect something along the lines of this story to happen relatively soon.
Sigh oh Misty if only you open your eyes and see the truth about Opaline true intention
I would say this is a pretty nice story and yeah she really does need a lot of hugs so it looks like Zipp was looking out the window and she saw misty out there and she didn't leave yet so she went out there to talk with her and apparently she's been acting a little bit more agitated nervous and apparently she never gotten a hug before when Izzy hugged her and apparently she never had any love like that apparently zipp thanks that she's been abused and she still has no idea about Opaline but all she knows that she needs a friend that can help her to get through whatever she's going through which that's pretty nice of her and Misty is very conflict about this whole situation but she has to do her mission despite her psychological abuse from Opaline she is so desperate for the cutie mark I just hope that someday that sunny and the others can help her again this was a pretty good story keep out the good work
If Hasbro doesn't redeem Misty and have her join the Mane Five, someone is going to pay.
11389559
Same.
Also, I can't help but wonder how they'd all feel finding out she has no cutie mark at her age..
11389559
At this point, I’ll be very shocked and disappointed if they don’t.
so adorable,,,
Yes.
Yes she does.
11389175
Honestly, if it wasn't a kids show, I'd suspect Opaline of actually being Misty's mother, just not acknowledging it and treating her like crap because she came out "just" a unicorn. But that might be tad heavy of a subject for the target audience.
This was a beautiful story, and honestly, if I could make this canon, I would. I feel like Zipp and MIsty have such great chemistry, simply because Zipp was so suspicious of her, and Misty is really bad at inventing stories. When the Mane 5 finally do find out that Misty and Opaline are connected, I think it'll be Zipp who first finds out, and I really hope that, when she does eventually find out, we get some nice character development with Zipp where she sees Misty as, like in this story, not a potential threat, but a pony who just needs help. Beautifully written - going in the Favorites list!
This is one of the first G5 stories I've enjoyed. Thank you.
11389837
...
Oh my gosh. I hope you're wrong about it being to dark, because that would be a perfect
and horribletwist...She might want to be petted as well.
derpicdn.net/img/2022/10/2/2959190/large.jpg
I really wish this was what happened- I feel like someone should’ve noticed her trauma and offered to help or talk to her or something.
I’m surprised that Misty didn’t start crying when Zipp hugged her.
Adding this story to my G5 faves.
Opaline as far as the show is concerned doesn't give two whits about Misty or anyone else. She cares only for power, her power. The latest episode of MYM pretty much establishes that Misty is starting to open her eyes to things.
Here's hoping that future episodes don't undo her progress or worse try to force a redemption on Opaline. Evil for the sheer sake of evil is boring, but a one hug/song redemption isn't very satisfying either.
No, Eileen,you need a hug. Writing one of the greatest G5 fics I have read
Just realised I never actually commented on this. Derp! It’s an absolutely adorable piece, heartbreaking and sweet in just the right balance, and everything just feels right for the characters.
Excellent stuff, and thank you.
I want to SLAP the person who put a thumbs down.
11391724
Hey now, no need for any slapping, especially with this story. But I'm glad you liked it!
11391769
Ok no Slappies
*lowers wooden spoon*
11390852
that is totally evident misty is realizing that opaline is only using her because what misty wants so much is to have her cutie mark and opaline knows that she can take advantage of that to use misty for her own benefit, but misty is realizing that opaline it is only its use and sooner or later you will have to choose a side
11394251
If I haven't said it before in this comment chain I saw some art of Opaline actually considering the cutie mark issue. It gave me an idea on some dialog for the situation:
Misty: "I'm finally getting my CUTIE MARK?!" (excited squee)
Opaline: (chiding) "Now Now Misty settle down or I won't be able to concentrate"
"All right, now close your eyes...and no peeking I mean it"
Misty: 😆
Opaline: "All right Misty you can look now"
Misty: 🟦🤔😕 "I don't get it Opaline...it doesn't look like there's anything there?"
Opaline: "That's right Misty, very good (grinning) To put it simply your cutie mark is nothing...(lowers voice to a loud whisper) just...like...you are."
Misty:
Opaline: "Oh for the love of Faust, Spare me your insipid waterworks".
Maybe, but it's your decision Zipp.
Your just gonna make things worse Misty, not to mention upset Izzy.
Good going Misty.
Hugs aren't that bad once toy get used to them. I dislike them the last few years, but these days I love them whenever I have the opportunity to get one!
And that someone is opaline!
No, she's evil Misty!
She won't Misty, she's lying.
Excellently done. Deep-hitting emotional impact without feeling manipulative, wonderful warm fuzzies without feeling sappy. And the last bit with Misty's internal conflict is a great note to end on. Thank you for this; I'm glad I was able to get to it once I had the needed context.
An oddball ghost happened across your fic and read it. Have a review!
Misty really does need this given how badly Opaline abuses her.
This was a very well-executed piece! Pacing, characters, and descriptions all hit their mark. I'm so glad that g5 is giving authors like you the room to work your magic, by giving us these wonderfully rich scenarios.
*insert story title here*
Ponies are usually very at hugging.
You can simply say you managed to infiltrate them.
That would satisfy Opaline (at least for now), and it isn't even a lie.
Title of the sequel: "Opaline Needs a Hug"
Good story!
I enjoyed reading it.
11389320
And you did!
- MLP Gen 5
- Sad
- Slice of Life
After receiving a verbal lashing from Opaline following her latest failure, a distraught Misty is left evaluating her situation in life.11390279
True!
But to be fair, this applies to most ponies.
(Be careful around evil alicorns though.)
11394315
That would be so horrible, and so very in character in all the worst ways. And so I shall revise it to end with the ever-wonderful Gabby, sensing a fellow creature who wants their destiny, swooping in and giving Opaline a full-speed Captain Griffon Punch.
So, only just discovered this fic, and yeah. It's exactly the sort of thing you hope would have happened, but it didn't work out that perfectly for Misty, sadly.
As the weeks have gone by since then, every time we see the little blue boo, it's just twisting that knife a little deeper. When the 5 find out about Misty, it's going to be heartbreaking for everyone, especially Izzy and Misty.
And even when we get that "YOU GO, GIRL!" moment of Misty finally telling Opaline to go take a flying leap. .. even that is going to be heartbreaking. That's the tragedy of it.
Misty is trapped in that horrible spot where she's starting to realize that, wait, the way Mom treats her isn't normal. It isn't normal for somepony who raises you to hurt you. It isn't normal to be used, lied to, gaslit, and constantly torn down by the pony who's the closest thing she has to a parent.
But she still wants that love so very badly. She's starting to see what normal actually is, and the realization that she is never going to get that from Opaline is going to rip all our hearts out.
Hello! Have a review and a like. The first specifically Make Your Mark-inspired fic I've read, so I'm glad to be able to say I liked it. Perhaps it feels more like a beginning than a story complete in itself, but I found Zipp's characterisation satisfying. And yes, I want to hug Misty now!
You really capture the conflicted feelings abusers inflict in their victims.
I agree with everyone else: Misty really needs a hug.