The Fate of the Magic

by Harrison Sparrow

6. Dragon-Dad Problems/Shocking Reveal

Hitch and the girls met back up at the Brighthouse to discuss what went down with him and Sparky at the site.

"You did what?!" Zipp asked in shock.

"*groan* It wasn't my fault!" Hitch argued. "I didn't think Sparky would just fly away like that after I told Zack to go easy on him."

"But Zack's a nice guy." Sunny stated. "He would never threaten anyone."

"And you also said to him that Sparky's your son?" Zipp said.

"Of course I did!!" Hitch shouted. "What was I suppose to do, not say those things at all!?"

"Hitch, calm down!" Sunny interjected. "I'm sure he's okay with Grandma Figgy, but we've talked about this before; everyone changes and start to understand more when they grow up. And we all know that, do we?"

"Yeah, me and Zipp had problems growing up, even when we lost our father, but we ended up bonding together in the end. It's not a big deal, really."

"Ah, a big deal? Well, even though Sparky has been changing and that he can now talk, he's still a baby dragon, and I still care about him, okay?! So I can't have him risking his life out there and potentially getting himself into danger! Do you even know how l look right now?!" He sighs and lowers his head in disappointment.

"Oh, Hitchypoo, we understand how you feel, but there's no need to be scared." Izzy said, remaining positive. "Hopefully, with Sunny's new power, we'll make sure nothing ever happens to him. And besides, we don't just care about Sparky, we care about everypony, even ourselves."

"I know, but... I guess being a dragon-dad has become much more challenging than I ever thought."

"But you also know that we're here for you, Hitch." Zipp said in comfort, holding his hoof with a smile. "Whenever you need us."

Hitch began to smile at her back, but then, Misty came back from her time with Alphabittle, walking through the door with a sad look on her face.

"Whoa, what's wrong, Misty?" Sunny asked with worry. "Are you okay?"

"I'm sorry, Sunny, I... *sniff* I just can't. Not right now." She ran upstairs with tears pouring from her eyes.

"What? Misty!" She tried to go after her, but Zipp stops her.

"Don't. I think she needs some time alone."

"But something must've happened to her. Shouldn't we..."

They then turn to see Grandma Figgy arriving with Sparky by her side, who's not in a good mood.

"Sparky!" Hitch said, sighing in relief as he walked up to him and tried to give him a cuddle. "Thank goodness you're alright."

"Don't touch me!" The little dragon snapped, leaving Hitch and the others stunned, and then turned to Figgy with a little smile. "Thanks for the hot cocoa, Grandma." He then walked into the Brighthouse.

"You're very welcome, Sparky." Figgy replied, before facing Hitch with a sigh. "I'm sorry about that, he's still feeling upset."

"I think I know why. I'll see what I can do from here. Thank you for taking care of him."

"Anything for my grandson. If nothing changes here, Hitch, then you will let me know, will you?"

"Always." He and Figgy embraced. "I'll see you later." As soon as Figgy left, Hitch closes the door and turns to face Sparky with anger. "Right, I need answers from you, Sparky Sparkeroni!"

"About what!? How you embarrassed me in front of Zack back there?! I can't believe you did that!!"

"Well, I can't believe you just flew away from me! So why did you do it!?"

"BECAUSE OF WHAT YOU SAID! Why don't you trust me when anypony goes near me or when I go near them all the time?! You told me that I can make as many friends as I want!"

"*sigh* I know that, Sparky, but that doesn't change the fact that I still care about you and your safety. Do you have any idea what will happen if someone nasty took you away from us again? Just like last time, when that monster Opaline Arcana tried to drain all of your magic and make you fall?! You could've been killed back then!"

As the two continue to argue, the girls just watch on with concern.

"Zipp, shouldn't we do something about this?" Pipp asked.

"I wouldn't get involved if I were you."

"So what are you gonna do now? Ground me?!" Sparky asked, desperate for Hitch to answer.

"Yes, I can do that right here and now if I have to! Because no matter what I do, you're always pushing yourself to extremes, and you're not even ready for that!"

"YOU CAN'T CONTROL MY LIFE!!" Sparky suddenly shouted. "YOU'RE NOT EVEN A REAL DAD!!"

Having had enough, Hitch then shouted at him back. "I AM YOUR DAD, SPARKY!! I CAN CONTROL YOUR LIFE, SO I DECIDE AND SAY WHAT'S RIGHT FOR YOU!!"

Sparky felt scared by that, and the girls were left in a sad shock. Because of Hitch's shouting, Sparky ran upstairs sobbing.

"Sparky? Sparky!" He tried to follow him, but Sunny, feeling disgusted, stopped him.

"HITCH, STOP! You've done enough!"

Hitch then realized what he'd done, as he faced Pipp, Izzy and Zipp with guilt. He tried to say something, but just couldn't do so, as he sighed and turned away.

"Hitch..." Zipp said softly, as she watched the saddened stallion in despair, who then walked out of the Brighthouse.

"What are we supposed to do now?" Izzy asked with worry.

Zipp thought of something and sighed. "I'll go with him. The rest of you check on Sparky and Misty, alright? We have enough problems as it is."

"Sure, Zipp. Something's really not right here..." Sunny said with concern, as she, Pipp and Izzy went to the balcony, whilst Zipp headed down to the station.

Misty was cradling Sparky in her hooves whilst on her bed, as they were both trying to fight back their own tears.

"I'm really sorry he yelled at you like that, Sparky."

"Why can't I try and look after myself? *sniff* He never trusts me..."

"I don't know, maybe it's because you're... a little too young? Or it could be because of Opaline..." Sparky looked up to her with a little scare. "I know I shouldn't have sent you to her, and I'm never gonna do that again. I may have told you before, but I thought it was the only way of getting my cutie mark. I always wanted one, but... I should've known earlier that they're meant to be earned."

"I don't blame you, Misty." Sparky said, and Misty looked down on him with a little smile. "Your mark is beautiful."

"Hey, you two." Sunny said, walking up to them with Izzy and Pipp by her side. "How are you feeling?"

"I... I heard what happened downstairs. Sparky needed me, so I just didn't know what else to do."

"Well, it's nice that you're trying to make him feel better." Izzy said. "He's been going through a lot recently, just like you had."

"Yeah... I see that."

"We know it's not easy being young and all, but that doesn't mean we should change who we are, right?" Pipp said.

"Of course." Izzy agreed. "We love being who we are, and that's what matters."

"But we also need to know what happened between you and Alphabittle, Misty, and we wanna know why." Sunny said.

But Misty still didn't want any of it. "Sunny, I told you..."

"Don't shut us out. We've given you some time alone, so now you should tell us. We made a promise; no more secrets, no more lies. Remember?"

After a few seconds, Misty exhaled deeply and nodded her head. "We did... and you deserve to know everything." She got off her bed and sat down on the floor with her friends around her.

"You can tell us. We're here for you." Sunny said warmly.

"Okay... So, Alphabittle took me down to his house, and he thought we wanted to know more about each other."

"But, Misty, that's a nice thing to do." Pipp said with a smile. "Why'd you get upset with that?"

"No, Pipp, I... Look, the reason I got upset was because... he said he knew me and my parents years ago..."

---

Around an hour ago, back at Bridlewood, Misty followed Alphabittle into his house and had a look around. She saw a huge line of souvenirs stored on one shelf, including an old clock, a bracelet, a wool hat, and many more.

"Whoa. No wonder you have a lot of everypony's favorite souvenirs." Misty said. "You must've had a long winning streak, huh?"

"That's right, but... that's not the reason why I brought you here, Misty." Alphabittle said, becoming a little sad. "It's much more than that. It's about you."

Misty turned to face him in question. "Me? What do you mean?"

"Now, you may not understand, but I have something I want to show you." He said with a cautious voice, as he opened up his old locker whilst Misty walked up to him, trying to find out what it is. Alphabittle turned to her and reveals a portrait of Misty's parents.

Misty took the portrait from him and looked at it closely, but she doesn't know who they really are. "What is this?" She asked softly.

"Your parents." Alphabittle answered, and Misty looked up to him, raising her eyebrows. "Well, they were. See, I knew them a long time ago. Even before you were born."

"H-how did you...?"

In a flashback, the unicorns were all running from a villainous monster, screaming for their lives.

"The night after your birth, though... there was a malicious attack, and we didn't know what to do, except run." Alphabittle stated with sadness. "I saw what happened to them..."

Misty's parents saw what was happening from inside their house, and they decided to take foal Misty with them and sneak out, in hopes that they would get away without being spotted. But they turn to see the monster fast approaching, and they all got in a panic and started to run. But in a few seconds, Misty's mother tripped and got her hoof stuck in a twig. Her father turned in fear and tried to reach her, but it was too late, as the monster closed in on her.

"RUN!!!!!" Misty's mother screamed, as her father had no other option but to run away in tears, leaving her as the monster attacks and kills her.

Having ran so far away, Misty's father ran out of breath and stopped at a huge tree near the outskirts of Bridlewood. He thought he escaped, but it wasn't to be, as the monster was coming back at him, having followed his hoofsteps. Fearing that his time has come to an abrupt and heartbreaking end, he gently lays Misty on the ground. "Goodbye, Misty..." He said, as he kissed her forehead and left her behind, leaving her wailing. But it wasn't long before the monster attacked and killed him too, as Alphabittle caught up and watched in horror.

"The moment I saw them die, the monster was tall and... it had big wings." Alphabittle added. "I tried to retrieve you myself, but I was too late."

Having heard Misty's wailing, the monster walked up to her and picked her up, taking her away as a little piece of paper dropped from her blanket. Alphabittle ran up to it and picked it up, revealing that it was her exact name that her parents decided to call her. The saddened stallion broke down to the ground and sobbed in tears, having failed to save her in time.

Misty, after hearing everything, got into a heartbreaking panic, as she dropped the portrait, which its glass shattered, and just couldn't believe what Alphabittle said. "No... No, no-no-no, please tell me that's not true. Please tell me it isn't true!"

Alphabittle raised his hoof and tried to comfort her. "Misty, I'm sorry, I-"

"DON'T YOU DARE TOUCH ME!" Misty snapped away in anger, stunning him, as she began crying. "So you brought me down here... just so you would get the chance to tell me that the life I had was built on lies? That Opaline... killed my parents?! And... and you just watched them die?!!"

"I didn't have a choice! I didn't wanna suffer the same fate as they did! From the moment I saw you at the Manesquerade Ball that night, Misty, it all came back to me, everything! I remembered your parents, and more importantly, I remembered you!"

Misty started yelling at him. "YOU DON'T KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT ME!! I COULD'VE HAD A FAMILY, I COULD'VE HAD A HAPPY LIFE, AND I WOULDN'T HAVE GONE DOWN THAT DARK PATH WITH OPALINE IF IT WERE FOR YOU!! BUT WHAT DID YOU DO?! YOU DID NOTHING!!"

"THAT'S NOT TRUE!! I TRIED TO SAVE YOU!!" Alphabittle yelled back, stunning Misty, but then immediately snapped out of it. But when that reminded Misty when Opaline raged at her that day, she continued crying and got even more angry. Realizing what he just did, Alphabittle tried to apologize. "Misty-"

"STAY AWAY FROM ME!!!" Misty yelled at the top of her lungs, as she stormed out of the house and ran away sobbing.

"MISTY!" Alphabittle called out, but Misty just completely ignored him, leaving him upset as he lowered his head in shame.

---

Sunny, Izzy, Pipp and Sparky took in all of what Misty said real seriously, and they were all shocked with sorrow.

"Is... is that true?" Izzy asked, and Misty broke down and cried.

Sunny began tearing up. "Oh, Misty, we're so sorry!" She and Izzy hugged her tightly.

"Opaline killed your parents?! Why would she do that to you!?" Pipp asked.

"I don't know, I... *sniff* I just... She kept that from me... lied to me this whole time... I'm sorry..." Misty weeped.

"No... Misty, what happened to your family, it wasn't your fault. You were just a foal, and... the way we see it now, you were never lost, you were taken. You only ran away because your past came back to you."

"Well, what was I suppose to do instead?" Misty asked. "Move on and just accept that it happened, end of story? I know I shouldn't have yelled at Alphabittle earlier, but I just couldn't bare to hear any more of it."

"But, Misty, he knew your parents a long time ago, and he tried to save you, so he was telling the truth." Izzy said. "I'm sure he didn't mean to make you cry." Something then came up, and she began to think of it. "And maybe, because he also knew you, too..."

"*gasp* He could be your uncle!" Pipp said with a big smile.

Misty raised her head in a tick. "My uncle?!" She said in surprise.

"YES! That's amazing, you should be really happy with that! Right, Sunny?"

"I agree, and... I think it's right if you owe him an apology." Sunny advised, and Misty turned her head slightly in deep sorrow. "Misty, we understand that it's hard to process everything that was said to you earlier, but you're not alone. You know we're here when you need us with you."

"I'm grateful, Sunny. But I should've known what it's like to have a father figure in my life... or a family."

"We're your family now." Izzy said with a smile. "As long as you're happy with that."

"And hey, if you never had a family, or more importantly, us, then you wouldn't be who you are right now." Pipp said.

"That's right." Sunny agreed. "And we're very happy to have you here with us."

Misty smiled back at her, and then turned normal again. "You know, Opaline once told me that, without her, I wouldn't have any friends or family, and that made me think she would be my mother. But now I know that was all a lie." She wiped her tears, and showed a touch of anger on her face. "I hate her so much..."

"We all do." Sparky said, holding her hoof.

"And I promise you, when the time comes, we will stop her once and for all." Sunny said firmly, yet positively. "Together."

"Together." Misty nodded.

"We love you, Misty." Pipp said lovingly. "Always and forever."

"*sniff* I love you all, too..." Misty said tearfully, as she and the others gathered for a heartwarming hug. "Thank you for having me..."

---

Back at the Sheriff Stallion, Hitch and Zipp have been having a heated discussion about the sheriff's problems with Sparky.

"I just don't get it, Zipp!" Hitch said, pacing around the room. "First, I embarrassed him in front of Sunny's new friend, and now, I yelled at him right in the face and got punished for it?! *scoff* Yes, maybe it's because I went too hard on him and didn't even apologize! I can't win, can I?!"

"Well, I've never seen you treat anyone like that! It's just that Sparky's changed a lot! I mean, we of all ponies and dragons get that, but there's no need for you to take it so seriously."

"No, Zipp. No, no and no! I take it very seriously. I'm the sheriff, for Equestria's sake, and what's my job here? To maintain everyone's safety and well-being, including Sparky's!"

"And as your detective partner, Hitch, I get that. And like Izzy said, we all care about everyone as much as you do, but there will obviously come a point where they'll be able to take care of themselves. It took me a few years to embrace it, so... why don't you see that?"

"Zipp, I do see that, but... *sigh* Look, I've spent such a long time doing this huge job of mine. But ever since I found Sparky's egg down on the beach that day, I started to find a new light. A new path, to say the least. And when he hatched, it was the most touching moment I have ever had in my life. I was trying so hard to be a good dragon-dad and sheriff at the same time, but now, months have past, and... somehow it's gotten more complicated." He walked over to his desk and sat on his chair in depression. "Maybe I should give up on doing both, and just focus on the one thing that's important the most."

"What, you're gonna give up being a dragon-dad?"

"No... being the sheriff."

"What...?" Zipp said softly, having not seen that coming.

"Maybe I need to let that go and have somepony else take my place..."

"No!" Zipp disagreed, as she went up to him and brought his head up. "No, don't you even think about that. You are hoofs down the greatest and most skilful sheriff in all of Maretime Bay, Hitch, and nopony would be ever safe without you. It's what you wanted your whole life! Me and the girls wouldn't want you to let that go, not even your grandma. And if there's no sheriff, there will be no detective either. Like it or not, we have to be here for everypony, it's what we do, hoof to heart."

"I know, but what about Sparky? Do I have to let him go and leave him on the Isle of Scaly? Do I have to stop being a dragon-dad for my own good? Who's gonna take care of him if I'm not? You?"

"Well, that's hard to predict from my point of view, but... how about Misty?" Hitch became shocked by that option. "You know she likes animals the same way as you do."

"Misty? *scoff* Misty?! You'd really expect me to believe that? How can she look after Sparky? She dragon-napped him, Zipp!"

"That was under Opaline's control!" Zipp reminded.

"But what if, suddenly, Misty takes him away and sends him to her again!? You know what happened last time when she betrayed us, right? And we could've lost Sparky as well!"

"I understand, but that's never gonna happen! She left Opaline behind and she's now on our side, remember? We broke her out of that darkness, and brought her into the light, with us." Hitch sighed as he may have forgotten about Misty's redemption. "I know it's hard for ponies to make a tough choice. But, whatever you decide, sheriff or dragon-dad... I'm with you."

"I appreciate that, but I... Yeah, I just need more time to think, see how things go from now on. But in the meantime... I'm lucky to have you, Zipp."

Zipp smiled warmly. "Me too. And I love you, Hitch."

The stallion felt touched by that, and smiled back at her. "I love you, too."

As the two leaned in to kiss, Zipp's phone suddenly pinged as she had a look and saw a text by Pipp, saying 'Opaline killed Misty's parents and filly-napped her' with an angry emoji next to it.

"*gasp* Oh no..." She said softly.

"What is it?"

"It's Misty... Her parents... Opaline killed them and took her away."

Hitch felt stunned as he took a couple steps back. "Why...?"

From outside, a glowing dark purple rat was spying on them through the window. This allowed Opaline to see what they were doing from her lair, and hear what they were talking about.

"You found out, didn't you? I had a feeling that would happen. But just wait till you see what I have in store, little ponies, when I finally break out of here and come for you... and your cutie marks!" She giggles evilly.