My Little Pony: Harmony and Chaos

by AlphaToothless95

Dragon Hunting and Love's Burning Pt. 2

Author's Note:

I’m baaaack. Sorry I’ve been gone a while. There’s a lot going on and I will try to get back into this story as much as possible. For now, sit back, grab your ponycorn, and prepare for the drama.

It had been a while since Sparky turned back into his normal self and the villains hadn’t really attacked again, which was good… but it was unsettling to everyone. It helped that Askari and the others had come back to Maretime Bay to help keep watch and prepare for whatever the villains would do next, but this was an enemy that they didn’t know quite enough about, which was frustrating to say the least. They could handle it though… probably. Which brought up another issue.

Over the last few days, they had been talking to Misty and she had not given any indications to whether she was innocent or not. That frustrated everyone, especially Zipp, which had ultimately led to more altercations between her and Izzy and eventually Sunny… again. All the negativity had started to get so intense that Sunny had felt the same sensation she felt all those years ago when magic had started to glitch and everyone noticed, so they had agreed to stick to the plan of using the Manesquerade Ball to find out if she was on their side without any complaints… but if it went wrong then not only would they owe Misty a huge apology, something else could happen that would put everyone even more on Posey and half the world's bad side than they already were.

A little over half now due to Posey's recent news interview which allowed her to voice her displeasure with all the action and drama that took place the day they found Sparky.

That had caused quite a big crowd in Maretime Bay to start turning against Sunny and if they didn’t figure something out soon… they just needed to figure it out. They asked Haven ahead of time and she was fine with their plan, but only as long as it didn’t turn into a brawl when they did find out and if it did, they had to take it outside so no one would get hurt. They could do that. Speaking of which, they were all currently getting ready to go to the Manesquerade Ball. They were putting on their outfits that they wore for the party in Askari's hometown, if only just a bit updated to fit the occasion.

Izzy had made masks for each of them and one for Misty. They were beautiful and so were the outfits. When Solaris and Sky Blazer asked to go, Izzy made masks and outfits for them as well. Solaris had a purple and gold dress with silver accessories and white star markings in some places and Sky Blazer had a blue, pink, and black dress with a few multicolored flames on the hem of her dress and multicolored lightning on the dark blue arm tights she wore. Both their manes were tied into ponytails with a bit of glitter thrown in them, compliments of Izzy Moonbow.

Everyone was amazed at their new looks. “O. M. G. You two look totes AMAZING!” Pipp squeals when she sees the two and they both smile sheepishly, not yet used to the new styles that Izzy provided them with.

“Thank you…” They both mumble before they all hear the doorbell ringing and they all get ready, knowing who it was since they had invited her a while ago.

“Everyone ready?” Sunny asks and after everyone nods, she walks to the door and opens it, seeing Misty nervously smiling on the other side. She does her best to smile back, despite her suspicions. “Hey Misty. Glad you could make it.” Sunny says as she steps aside, allowing Misty to walk into the Brighthouse.

“Well… I didn’t wanna be rude and decline an invitation. Besides, I’ve been told that I need to get out more. Y'know… expand my social skills, meet new ponies and other creatures, make friends, that sort of stuff.” Misty says as she looks at everyone, amazed by their outfits. “Oh wow. You all look awesome. Makes me feel… a bit underdressed.” Misty says as she gestures to her own outfit which consisted of jeans, a purple shirt, a light blue hoodie, and blue and black shoes with green highlights.

“Well… just in case you didn’t have anything pretty to wear to the ball, Izzy and I made you a dress and a mask.” Pipp said, earning a really frantic nod from Izzy. Before Misty can protest, they drag her upstairs and when they come back down, Misty now has a blue and purple dress with black and purple arm tights. They all notice that the torso part resembled what they assumed to be butterfly wings but they had a beautiful pattern that also consisted of light blue, dark blue, and purple. “See? It suits you.” Pipp says and Misty looks at herself before looking at the pegasus.

“How’d you know I liked butterflies?” Misty asks and Pipp shrugs, giving her a sweet smile.

“You just seem like the type. There’s something about you that just screams “I’m a butterfly lover.” So… that kinda inspired us to make this for you.” Pipp says and Misty smiles back before she realizes she’s staring too long and she looks away, blushing.

“U-Ummm thanks Pipp. I… You really know how to read ponies, huh?” Misty asks and Pipp smirks and gives a confident flick of her hair.

“It’s one of my many talents.” Pipp says before winking at Misty and Misty blushes more before shaking her head and chuckling nervously. “Anyway, come on. We’re gonna be late for the ball.” Pipp says and they all regroup with the others who all love and compliment Misty’s new dress, even Zipp who has to admit that Izzy and her sister really outdid themselves. When they leave and get in the Marestream, Izzy gives Misty her mask which was also butterfly themed. Misty smiles at it before putting it away as the Marestream takes off to Zephyr Heights.

Meanwhile, Zipp takes the chance to search Misty for anything she hasn’t noticed about the unicorn yet. She didn’t look as tired as she did last time, she could see… a few faint scars on her arms and a on her back, peaking just a bit from underneath her dress, she could see just how toned Misty's muscles were, which raised a few questions, and she could see… bruises on Misty's knuckles. What did Misty do to get scars and bruises? And how could a pony with a personality like that… be as muscular or almost as muscular as a pony with a personality like her own.

Maybe Zipp is reading too much into it, maybe she’s not. Regardless, something isn’t right. “So… Misty… If you don’t mind me asking, how did you get those scars? Or those bruises?” Zipp asks and she ignores the looks she gets from Izzy, Pipp, and Sunny as she notices Misty tenses up and start to shy away from her. Usually Zipp would feel like she crossed a line and apologize, but this could be a dangerous criminal capable of killing alicorns, which happened to include one of her friends. How could she refuse? Besides, it got her an answer.

“When I was little, both my parents were killed in front of me… by a bear. I would’ve been next until somepony came and saved me… but not before the bear got a few good swings in…” Misty says, feeling her eyes start to burn as a few tears start to form in them. “It-uhhh… it inspired me to get better… so that wouldn’t ever happen again. So I started exercising, training myself to be way stronger than I was back then. And with everything that’s happened over the years with you guys and Midnight and now all this… I wanted to push myself. Which sometimes included… punching stuff until my knuckles bled. Which they hardly do anymore.” Misty says, gaining shocked and sorrowful looks from everyone.

“Oh my god, that sounds awful… I’m so sorry Misty. No one should have to witness something like that… but we all know what it’s like.” Sunny says and everyone looks down and frowns as they agree. Misty smiles a bit as for the first time in forever… she truly feels like she’s not alone… like she’s around real family…. Ponies that really love and care about her. Sure, Opaline had saved her and taken care of her… but when she changed, she treated her differently. Like she was more of a tool than a pony… and after Opaline got some of her power back… it just increased. Every day that Misty and the others went without bringing her Sparky just served to increase Opaline’s rage and want for power.

But these ponies… they actually treated her like one of them, like she belonged… which just made knowing that they would all most likely suffer terrible fates after all this… just hurt that much more. For a moment, Misty is tempted to tell them the truth about everything… but before she can, they all see Zipp look ahead in her seat and turn off the autopilot before grabbing the controls again.

“Hold on to your flanks everypony.” She says as she makes the Marestream accelerate even faster until they breach the clouds and see Zephyr Heights for the first time in a while. Misty pretends to be amazed since she’s already been there once when she and Titania… well… you know. “We’re here.” Zipp continues before going to the landing pad at the end of the pathway leading up to the castle. Everyone puts on their masks and Misty does the same… both physically and mentally… preparing for what’s to come.

---

Minutes later, Castle Throne Room

So far, everything was going well. The party was going good, ponies and other creatures were socializing, Sparky was being kept under watch at all times and so was Misty. Surprisingly but unsurprisingly, she hadn’t made one move towards Sparky. If anything, it send as though she might be afraid of him. Maybe she heard about his rampage in Maretime Bay and other places? Maybe she was afraid of him going out of control again and actually witnessing it? Or maybe… it was just an act to make them drop their guard so she could steal him for Opaline. These were Zipp's thoughts and feelings and she had a nagging feeling that she was going to be right about the last one.

She had watched Misty closely, especially when she was around Pipp or anyone who had Sparky. She noticed that Misty's eyes would linger a bit on Sparky then focus their gaze somewhere else. When Izzy had brought him close though, Misty shied away from him a bit, keeping her distance… but he wasn’t growling at her like Hitch said he had done the first time they saw Misty… which was strange. She also noticed that Misty mainly kept to herself unless she was with her or one of the others. Seems Misty doesn’t like crowds. Hm… guess that’s one thing they have in common.

She sees Pipp walk up to her and sees them talking about something and it looks like Pipp is pleading for Misty to try dancing. Just as she’s about to walk over, she hears a familiar voice, one that she had hoped to avoid getting called by for the rest of the day.

“Zephyrina? There you are!” She hears her mother say, cringing at the volume and preparing herself before she turns around, coming face to face with her mother and… Alphabittle? What was he doing here… and why were their arms locked?

“Hey mom…” Zipp says in a monotone voice, tossing Pipp and Misty one last glance before walking forward. She had to end this conversation quick then get back to keeping an eye on the possible traitor in the room.

Meanwhile, Pipp was trying to wrap her head around the fact that Misty had never learned how to sing or dance. Not once in her life. It was… sad to hear… then again, with Misty's past, she isn’t that surprised.

“Well then… I’ll teach you. Come on!” Pipp urges as she drags Misty to the dance floor, despite her protests. Once they get to the center, they stop and Pipp turns to face Misty, telling her the basics before releasing her hand and starting to move to the rhythm of the music. Misty looks confused and very nervous but tries to mimic Pipp’s movements… looking ridiculous and almost tripping over herself while doing so. Pipp laughs and moves a bit closer to Misty with a smile on her face, looking her straight in the eyes. “Maybe you’ll do better with a partner.” Pipp says before grabbing both her hands and starting to move again.

Misty blushes but tries her best to sync up with Pipp, it takes a bit but eventually they sync up, matching each other's movements. Pipp chuckles, causing Misty to smile as she realizes she’s actually doing pretty well.

“Look at you! You learn pretty fast.” Pipp says and Misty blushes more and starts stuttering as she tries to thank her for the compliment until they bump into somebody and Pipp instantly turns to apologize. “Oh my gosh! We’re so sorry about that! We weren’t paying attention, and… Vi?” Pipp asks, recognizing her marefriend who also turns and recognizes her.

“Pipp? What are you doing here? And who is she?” Vi asks, pointing at Misty who shrinks back a bit and silently gulps nervously.

“Wait wait, I can explain. Misty is a new friend of mine and the others and we got an invite from my mom. She told us it was ok for us to bring one other pony and Misty has never been to an event like this so… we just wanted to show her how much fun stuff like this is.” Pipp explains frantically as Violet crosses her arms, her gaze switching between her and Misty.

“Ok, but why are you dancing with her? And why didn’t you tell me about her?” Violet asks, feeling a little bit jealous and just a little threatened by Misty.

“I-I'm sorry Vi. I just never found the time to tell you, and I was teaching her how to dance, she never learned how to dance or sing so… I wanted to help her.” Pipp asks, more than a bit nervous because of the look Vi was giving her. She knew that look even though she rarely saw it… Violet was angry and irritated. “Vi please… I’m telling the truth. Misty's just a friend. That’s it.”

“Uh-huh… sure.” She says before looking at Misty and walking forward a bit. Misty takes one step back, just in case. “Since Pipp probably hasn’t told you about me, allow me to introduce myself. I’m Violet Sparkles, but all my friends call me Vi or Sparks.” Vi says, directing a look at Pipp while emphasizing that one word, dropping a subtle hint/threat to what would probably happen after the ball, causing Pipp to frown and look down in shame. She holds her hand out for Misty to shake and Misty hesitantly does so.

“Uhhh… nice to meet you. I’m Misty.” She says, earning a raised eyebrow from Vi, which confuses her until she realizes… Vi is waiting on a last name. “Oh, umm Misty Brightdawn.” Misty says and Vi nods before letting go of her hand but before she walks off, Misty feels the need to try and fix things. “Listen, I’m really sorry about this. Pipp really was just trying to help me learn how to have fun. And as a matter of fact… she did talk about you. Quite a bit actually.” Misty says, causing Vi to look shocked. Even though that was kind of a lie, she did know some important stuff about how Pipp feels about Vi. Now she just had to keep it up.

“She did?” Vi asks, earning a nod from Misty.

“Yeah. She mentioned how beautiful you were, how you make her feel, how your voice could always bring her joy and peace when she was down… how she wanted to spend the rest of her life with you.” Misty says and with every word, Vi looks more and more regretful as she looks at Pipp and back at her. “So you don’t have to worry about me or be threatened by me. She’d never do that and I could never replace you, nor would I. As far as I see it… Pipp's lucky to have you.” Misty says and Vi puts her hand over her mouth as tears start falling down her cheeks and she looks down before looking at Pipp.

“I’m… I’m so sorry Pipp. I’m so sorry I doubted you. I just… I… lately I’ve felt like I haven’t been doing enough, so when I saw you with her, I just… my insecurities… my doubts… they won for a minute.” Vi explains and Pipp starts crying as well before she hugs her and rubs soothing, comforting circles into her back.

“Come on now Vi… you’re more than enough. You do everything you can and that. Is more. Than enough. Ok? Don’t ever forget that… sometimes I worry about the same thing but you always reassure me. Now it’s my turn… I’m always here for you, ok? I love you.” Pipp says and Vi hugs her back, nuzzling her cheek against hers lovingly.

“I love you too… and I always will.” Vi says tearfully and Misty sadly smiles at the scene, starting to tear up herself. She slowly backs away to give the two some space, happy for them… until she feels like she’s being watched and she looks around… but sees no one watching her.

“Misty.” She hears Opaline's voice in her head, making her jump and look around before she starts to try and act casual. “I’ve sent Nightshade to your location since you are clearly having… issues… with your mission. I’ll guide you to where you need to meet her. Come up with a plan fast… or I will. Oh, and Misty? I’m just warning you now. My plan will involve a lot of blood being spilt until the dragon is retrieved. So… do try to hurry. The clock is ticking. And if you fail me or if I have to come up with the plan myself… some of that blood might end up belonging… to YOU.” Opaline says with a subtle hint of venom in her voice throughout the sentence. Misty feels a chill go down her spine as she knows that whenever Opaline says in that tone of voice that she’ll do something… she means it.

She subtly nods and walks off, following the directions that she’s given through Opaline's Alicorn empathy. Once she gets to the bathroom, she can feel that Opaline has stopped watching her… for now… so she lets out a heavy sigh until she hears laughing in her head and looks at the mirror as she recognizes the cold sound of the voice in her head that sounds almost exactly like her own.

“Pathetic. Weak. Soft. When are you gonna get it? These aren’t your friends! You don’t have any, and you don’t need any! The only thing holding you back is you and your pity for these disgusting little nobodies!” The voice says and Misty finds herself getting frustrated and angry real quick.

“Shut up…” Misty says through gritted teeth as she slams her hands on the sink, clinching them onto it.

“Awww, did I hurt the widdle baby’s feewings? Try growing a backbone and doing something about it! Make your choice already! You can let me take over and finally be strong… or you can continue to be a weak, whiny little bitch who will keep crying over her lack of a cutie mark forever.” The voice says venomously as Misty's eyes flash purple in her reflection and it’s at that point where she’s had enough.

“I said SHUT UP!!!” Misty screams before she suddenly turns towards the wall next to the mirror and delivers her hardest punch, majorly cracking the wall and badly damaging it. Misty just stays in that position, breathing heavily until she realizes what she just did and quickly looks around to make sure no one heard her. She sighs in relief until she hears a sound, causing her to jump and look up as Nightshade starts to come out of the vent in the ceiling. She drops out of it and lands in a crouched position before slowly looking at Misty and standing up straight.

“Oh… uhhh… h-hey Nightshade. Um… h-how much did you hear?” Misty asks, knowing damn well she got caught… but she can’t help but sigh when Nightshade uses sign language to tell her answer.

“Enough.” Nightshade signs and Misty sighs and holds her head, pacing back and forth. “It’s that spell Opaline put on you, isn’t it? You can’t let it get to you, we have a job to do and we can’t afford to slip now because of something so trivial as this. Stop letting your weakness get the better of you. You are stronger than you know. Opaline raised you and trained you since you were a foal right?” Nightshade asks and Misty frowns and nods. “Then start acting like it.” Nightshade signs aggressively and Misty nods and sighs as she can feel Opaline watching again.

“Ok, you’re right. I need to start acting like I actually want my cutie mark… wait… acting. That’s it! Do you know any shapeshift or illusion spells?” Misty asks and Nightshade nods, causing her to smirk. “Well you can use one to turn into me and crash the party, asking for Sparky. Just don’t… don’t kill anyone… not unless you need to.” Misty says hesitantly. She didn’t want anyone else to die, but she knows that it’s better this way than Opaline's plan. “This way my cover won’t get blown and we get Sparky and Opaline can get her power back and hopefully no one has to die.” Misty says and Nightshade thinks about it then signs to Misty.

“Don’t get your hopes up. But for your sake, I hope you’re right.” She says before starting to walk back under the vent. She takes a second before looking at Misty and gesturing to the wall she punched then signing. “Your swing is getting better. Good strength and power.” She says, causing Misty to look down and chuckle, looking at the wall then at her with a thankful smile.

“Thanks.” She says, still having the smile on her face. Nightshade nods then starts signing again.

“Maybe the spell is the motivation you need to be at your best… use the anger it gives you to your advantage… and you’ll come out on top.” Nightshade signs and Misty nods before Nightshade jumps back into the vent, closing it behind her. Misty sighs then looks down, shaking her head.

“I’ll try.” She says before composing herself and exiting the bathroom.

“Hey.” Zipp says from beside her, causing her to jump and look at the princess beside her, who has her arms crossed while glaring at her. “Who were you talking to?” Zipp asks, moving to open the bathroom door but Misty moves in front of her, blocking her off from going inside.

“Myself! Nopony else! I… I…” Misty frantically tries to lie before sighing and pretending to be sad. “I had a small panic attack… after I met your sister’s girlfriend. I needed some time to myself. That and I don’t really like crowds… I just… I… I don’t fit in anywhere and what happened back there just proved that.” Misty says, gesturing back towards the throne room while slumping her shoulders and slowly forcing tears to well up in her eyes. Zipp notices this and gets confused.

“Whoa whoa whoa. Back up, what happened? You said you met Vi, but it doesn’t sound like that was a good thing.” Zipp asks and Misty explains what happened, letting the tears fall which causes Zipp to actually feel… sorry for her. “Oh… I see. Well at least you fixed things in the end. That's what matters most. You were there for my sister when she needed it most… you really do care… and… I should’ve realized that sooner. I’m sorry Misty.” Zipp says as she starts to wipe her tears away, feeling extra guilty as she does.

“All this time… I thought you were one of the villains without even really getting to know you. Then you told us about your past and now this… this proves that I was wrong to judge you. I guess that… after I saw Rag… that monster almost kill my little sister… I was determined to keep her safe at all costs… and I thought that meant keeping her safe- keeping everyone safe… from YOU… Part of me knew I could be wrong… but the rest of me was still so blinded by my hatred of him that the thought of you being just like him and toying with us… scared me. I judged you so unfairly… and I’m so sorry for that Misty… I’m so… so sorry.” Zipp rambles, sounding on the verge of crying herself. Without thinking, Misty pulls her into a hug, one which she quickly returns.

“It’s… It’s ok Zipp.” Misty says, now sad but also very nervous because of how close Zipp was to discovering the truth. “You were just protecting your family and your friends… something I wish I could’ve done. So trust me when I say… I understand.” Misty says before pulling back and holding Zipp's hands, smiling at her, causing her to nod back and slightly smile. “Friends?” Misty offers and Zipp chuckles and slowly nods.

“Friends.” She says and Misty smiles more before they both start laughing a bit, happy for the understanding. They suddenly hear frantic footsteps heading their way and look to see Pipp heading towards them. “Sis? What’s-?” Zipp starts to ask before Pipp stops in front of her, grabs her by her arms and starts aggressively shaking her back and forth with a surprising amount of strength.

“You have got to come quick! You will never believe who’s here! Come on, hurry! Both of you!” Pipp says before flying back towards the throne room before either of them can stop her. They look at each other before rushing after the pegasus, both anxious to see who could’ve showed up to get such a reaction from Pipp… but Misty has a feeling that she knows exactly who…

And she has a feeling that things were about to get very dark soon… and she would have to make a very… very hard choice.

To be continued…