Twilight starred out the castle window and sighed as the cloud and rains slowly danced with the wind outside. It had been a week since she and Tempest had confronted Spring Rain and learned the horrible truth about Tempest's parents demise. And though she knew that the sociopathic unicorn was locked away in the dungeons below Canterlot and it would only be a matter of time till Celestia and Luna would sentence him to an eternity locked away in Tartarus it still didn't undo what he had done. Twilight walked back towards her bed where Tempest still slept soundly, still recovering of the events of the past week. Twilight just stared sorrowfully at the unicorn mare and stroked her mane. All of a sudden her still sleeping form began to wiggle as she yawned and opened her eyes.

"Good morning princess" she rasped as she broke from her slumber.

"Good morning Tempest" Twilight responded in kind, smiling at her friend.

"so, today's the day, isn't it?" Tempest asked, her voice a bit nervous yet also excited.

"Yes, i'm afraid it is, though I, i still wish you would wait a bit longer." Twilight sighed.

"Apologies Twilight, but i've already waited long enough. I wanted to return to Pranceton as soon as Luna spent Spring off in chains to the dungeon, but I headed your advice and gave myself a week to grieve, to heal my wounds as best I could and get myself together. I know that returning to my childhood home shall not be easy, but if I am ever to have proper closer on my past I need to do so." Tempest stated in a confident and serious tone.

The princess just sighed "I know, I know you need to do this, its just...." Twilight paused as she did her best to retain her composure. "That day in Trottingham, seeing how much Spring's words hurt you, I, i don't want to have to put you through something like that again." Twilight exclaimed as she looked back at the mare her eyes wide and sorrowful as she remembered the sight of Tempest breaking down in tears, barely able to stand as she sobbed into Twilight's chest.

"And I am grateful that you care for me so Twilight, but you know as well as I do the longer I put this off the harder it will be to do it." Tempest argued. Twilight just sighed once more as she nodded in agreement. She knew Tempest had to do this, she had to have the chance to put the past behind her once and for all. And at least she wouldn't be alone, Twilight would be there for her, right by her side, always.

Being a small village to the northeast of Canterlot, Pranceton did not have a train station in which ponies could easily gain access to it, only a single dirt road leading to and from the small borough. Thankfully Princess Celestia had gifted Twilight one of her chariots for the day so getting to the town was not the hard part, the four pegusi guards pulling the golden cart were more then capable of getting both Twilight and Tempest to the edge of the town. As the chariot slowed and reached its descent Twilight and Tempest hopped off, Twilight turning around to thank the guards and asking them kindly to wait until their business here was finished.

Tempest and Twilight walked down the simple dirt road until they reached the enterance to the small town where the dirt gave way to smooth and fine cobblestone streets, a small sign above saying "Welcome to Pranceton: The Small Town With A Big Heart." Tempest and Twilight looked around seeing that despite the sublte earthy beauty of the old town, it was as they had been told all but abandoned. The shops windows gathered with years of dust and the hay on the roofs looking rather ragged, the bricks molded and cracked. Tempest walked around and looked at the old shops, as she did memories flooding back to her as she began to feel a trickle of water slowly fall from her eyes.

"Are you ok?" Twilight asked, the concern ever evident in her voice.

"Yes" Tempest sniffed. "It's just, its all still here, its a tad worse for wear, but its all still hear." She joyfully exclaimed as tears rolled down her muzzle. "The bakery where father and I would get our favorite tea cakes, the fabric shop mother went to, where she and her friends made my very first Nightmare Night costume. I was Nightmare Moon" She chuckled her happy memories returning with each step she took into the town. "And the toy shop where Glitter and I would always beg our parents for one of those ridiculously overpriced life-sized Celestia plush, until my mother just got fed-up and made us both our own set of princess plushies." She laughed.

"It sounds like your mother was a pretty good pony" Twilight chuckled back.

"She was" Tempest replied, "Father too." She melancholicly sighed as she and Twilight continued to trek through the tiny town. Soon after walking through the shops and a couple of rather winding neighborhoods they came to what Twilight could only guess was the center of the town, abandoned carts and stands that most likely sold things like produce and papers still standing but abandoned and full of cobwebs and dust. In the middle however a statue, and not just and statue, but one bright and shiny and bronze, with three ponies lovingly embracing each other, a tall unicorn stallion, a medium sized unicorn mare, and a small unicorn filly. Tempest and Twilight freezing at the sight as they come to the realization as to what it was. Gulping Tempest slowly trotted up to the memorial and read the plaque below.

"This statue is dedicated to the Fizzle Family." Tempest nervously read aloud. " Our beloved mayors Tangy Pop, Cherry Fizzle and their beautiful daughter Fizzlepop Berrytwist." Tempest continued to read as she did her best not to choke up. "They were the light and life of this town, and though they may be gone they will never be forgotten, may all who read this plaque know that they were loved and will always be in the hearts and memories of those that lived in this town, as the stories of their kindness will be told by all for generations to come." Tempest finished as she let the tears roll out full force.

Twilight trotted up to the mare and embraced her with her wing. "The ponies here really did love you and your family, didn't they?" She softly acknowledged as she rubbed her cheeks against Tempest's, the mare just wiping her face with her hooves in and replying "yeah, yea I guess they did." She softly smiled.

All of a sudden the moment was interrupted as the two ponies heard hoof-steps against the cobblestone heading their way. The duo just stood still as they slowly looked at the path they heard the steps coming from and slowly an old earth pony stallion came into view, his light brown fur and grey mane indicating he was much older then the princess and Tempest, and his thick silver beard helping to concrete this. The old stallion just looked up at the two and his eyes became large and wide, he gasped as if he could not believe his eyes, as if he had just seen a ghost.

"I dun believe it!" The old stallion exclaimed as he trotted towards Tempest. "Lil Fizzy? Lil Fizzy dat you!?" The old stallion asked excitedly.

"Um, yes, but, who are..." Tempest began to ask as another flash of memories suddenly came back to her. "U, Uncle Dusty!?" Tempest asked her voice happy yet anxious.

"Why as I live & breath it tis, it tis you!" The old earthpony exclaimed as he embraced the still somewhat surprised mare.

"I'm sorry, uhh, but what's going on here?" Twilight asked rather confused by the whole display.

"Oh, ahh, pardon mah excitement." Dusty exclaimed as he released Tempest from his grip and bowed to Twilight. "The names Dusty Roads, but all the lil colts n fillies used ta call me Unca Dusty" he laughed.

"Dusty was one of my father's closest friends" Tempest explained. "He was in charge of town maintenance, we'd always see him dusting the streets or helping somepony repair the front of their shop, he was the all in one town handyman." She chuckled with a smile.

"Aww, t'wernt nothing, just helpin mah fellow ponies, s'all" Dusty blushed. "But, where in the three rings of harmony have you been!?" Dusty asked Tempest, his tone now rather serious and somewhat angry. "Yer parents and I looked fer you fer years! Do you know how hurt they were, how hard everypony and town looked for you, right, right up until, the incident" He huffed as his ears fell down and his beard began to sag.

Tempest walked up to the old man and sighed "I'm sorry, I know, i've been told of everything that happened here after I left, the horrid fate that befell my parents, how the village was abandoned, I, i'm sorry." Tempest sobbed as she embraced the old stallion.

"aww, I ain't mad." Dusty replied. "yea was juss a lil filly, and yea was hurtin after the accident with that Ursa, I know yea were just angry and scared, yea didn't know any bettah." He sighed as he moved a few steps back. "How bout you and yer friend dere come over ta my place, we'll get some warm tea and catch up." The old earth pony nervously chuckled.

"A warm cup of tea sounds lovely. Thank you Mr. Roads." Twilight replied as she put her wing back around Tempest who merely nodded in kind.

"So, that's what really happened" Dusty sighed as he put down his cup of tea. "I can't hardly believe it, I always thought that yer friends were such nice lil ponies, but stabbin yea in the back like that, over such silly things. And then Spring, well, what that bastard did is just dern unforgivable!" Dusty huffed.

"I agree, infact, that's why we're here" Twilight exclaimed, looking over at Tempest. Tempest just let out a low sorrowful sigh as she looked over at her dear uncle "I need to go and see it, where the manor used to be, either that or my parents graves. I need to apologize to them, I, I need to tell them how sorry I am that I ran away, how much pain and heartache I brought them, how I wasn't there to save them when they needed me most." Tempest exclaimed as she did her best to hold back the tears as a knot developed in her guts.

"I undastand sugah, and i'll help yea as best I can." Dusty replied as he took Tempest's hoof in his. "Yer daddy was the best friend I evah had, and i'll do anything to help his kin. We may not be blood but we's still family" Dusty stated as he sniffled trying to hold back tears of his own at this point.

"Thank you" Tempest sniffled as she wiped the tears from her eyes. "Yes, thank you very much" Twilight chimmed in.

"well then" Dusty said as he slowly got out of his chair. "We best get goin, should probably get up the hill fer the rain starts back up" He chuckled.

The three ponies slowly trotted up to the hill where at the top Tempest's family manor once resided. The trek was a tense one as no pony dare speak a word for they knew not what to say. Twilight's mind raced with potential comments or topics of conversation starters to help lighten the mood, but she knew nothing of the sort would be appropriate. Dusty just trotted in front occasionally looking back and letting giving Tempest and Twilight a soft smile before returning to his slow but steady trot. And finally Tempest was doing her best to prepare herself, it had been so very many moons since she had walked along this path, since she had seen her childhood home, as they approached the top of the hill, all she could do breath heavily and close her eyes before opening them once more to take in the sight.

Tempest looked around the gate at the front had partially fallen down, the rocky fence left untouched as moss grew, the remains of her playground rotting to the left as the sandbox was more of a sand sinkhole now, the slide twisted and halfway fallen and the swings broken the bars rusting and the metal on its last leg. To the right nothing but ash where a garden once stood and the fountain scorched and deformed. In the center nothing, no remnants of her manor or child hood home remained. Instead just two large gravestones with pictures of her parents cutie marks carved in them.

"Tweren't really nothing left ta bury, but we still thought we'd giv e em proper headstones anywho, put what was left o yer dad's favorite pipe under his and what was left a yer mom's sewin kit under hers." Dusty sadly stated.

"I see, thank you." Tempest sorrowfully replied. "And I guess you're the reason there isn't one for me" she sorrowfully chuckled. Dusty nodded "Tweren't ever any evidence yea were gone and I knew yea was still alive no mattah what anypony else said, I wasn't gonna let everpony else just act like y'all were all gone fer good when there was still hope." He sniffled.

"Well thank you for that, Uncle Dusty" Tempest replied. as she slowly trotted up to the graves and sighed. "If you don't mind, I, I think I would like a minute alone with my parents." Tempest sniffled as she looked back at Dusty & Twilight.

"Of course." Twilight acknowledged as she nodded in agreement and motioned for Dusty to follow her back down the hill. After the two were out of sight Tempest turned back towards the headstones and let out a deep breath before speaking.

"Hey mom, hey dad, how yea been." She nervously chuckled. "I, I just wanted to say, that..." She stopped as she bit her lip, unsure if she'd be able to do this without breaking down and crying, but she persisted none the less. "I just wanted to say that i'm sorry, i'm sorry that I ran away, I know, i know it was wrong, but I was just so angry, and sad and scared. I was just a filly and I, it felt right, at the time, nothing you or the doctors did was fixing my horn and I just, I just wanted it back so bad." She pointed to her stub as she began to cry. "I, I wish I had been there though, I wish I had been there to save you from the fire, to protect you from Spring, but I wasn't and i'm sorry!" She began to sob.

"Oh, this, this is just stupid!" She exclaimed as she slammed her hoof on the ground. "Why am I even doing this, its not like they can really hear me!" she screeched as she slammed her hooves against the concrete slabs right at her parents faces. All of a sudden the wind picked up and the etchings in the rock began to glow white, Tempest was moved back confused by what she saw, then there was a bolt of lightning striking right in front of her and everything went black.

Tempest's head was throbbing, she blinked and opened-up here eyes and all around here was, well she wasn't sure what it was, lights, like millions of little stars just lights floating in a see of purple and blue energy. "is, is this dream realm?" She asked herself. "Is this, this my mind?" She asked again. "Close, but not quite." She heard a familiar voice exclaim. Tempest looked back to see Princess Luna.

"Princess Luna?" Tempest asked rather confused.

"This young Fizzlepop is the space between, a nexus between the worlds of the living and the dead, not many are allowed to venture here, talking to the deceased is often unwise, but I cannot let a friend such as yourself lie in anguish, so I shall let you speak to them, but only for a minute or two, as even my power cannot penetrate this space for long. "Luna replied."

"Speak? Speak to who?" Tempest asked.

"Why us of course, you silly little filly" she heard a loving voice chuckle. Tempest looked around to see a bright light and out of it two unicorns walked out, but not just any unicorns, but Tempest's own parents.

"Mom!? Dad!?" Tempest cried in joy as she ran to embrace her parents. "I, is, is this real, not just some cruel dream!?" She asked.

"its real dear" Her father said as he gave her the strongest embrace she had felt in a long time. "But how!?" Tempest asked.

"As I told you, this is a nexus between our world and the next, this is my gift to you Tempest, but as I said I can not keep this portal open for long, so please, do make the most of it." Luna chuckled.

Tempest just looked at her parents her eyes like pools of joy and sorrow and every other emotion imaginable. "I, i'm so sorry" She sobbed "I'm so sorry, for everything, I, I shouldn't have ran away, I was just, just so angry, nothing was working, nothing fixed my horn and I wanted it back so bad." She sobbed.

"Sssh, sssh, it's OK" Her mother reassured her as she embraced her. "We know dear, its not your fault." Cherry Fizzle exclaimed.

"and, its not just that, I, I really lost my way" Fizzlepop stated as she continued to cry "I, I went to work for a very bad man and I did very bad things in his name, I know you taught me better but, but I did it anyway, just because he said he could get my horn back, I, i'm sorry" She exclaimed as tears continued to roll down. "I, I even gave away the Princcess Celestia Doll you gave me." She added.

Her mother just looked at her and chuckled. "We know dear, we may be dead but we aren't deaf, even after we were gone from this world we were watching over you." Cherry replied. I am so sorry that we couldn't be there for you, if I could've I would have saved you from it all Fizzy, that mean old desert, that mean ol Storm King." Her mother sighed, but all I could do was watch and beg the goddess that you would stay safe and find your way home someday." The mother somberly replied.

"And I knew it would all work out" Her father chuckled "You were always so brave and strong, Nothing was gonna get you down." He added as he once again joined his wife in embracing his daughter.

"Thank you, both of you." Tempest chuckled as she wiped the tears from here eyes. "I, I love you, and, and I really miss you." She chuckled once more as she did her best not to cry.

"Do not worry little one, we will be watching over you, always." Fizzlepop's father exclaimed as he held up her head with his hoof. "And we will never stop loving you." Her mother added giving her a kiss on the forehead below her horn.

"Thank you, thank you both." Tempest sniffed as she looked again at her parents.

All of a sudden the bright light began to shine again. "Welp, looks like our time's up. See yea round kiddo" Tangy chuckled. "Be well, and tell that Twilight I approve, she's a real keeper." He added. Cherry just chuckled as she gave one last hug to her daughter and waved goodbye as the two dissipated back into the light.

Tempest just turned around and bowed "Thank you Princess Luna, thank you for everything" Tempest exclaimed.

Luna just nodded and dissapeared back into the ether.

Tempest shot-up as she found herself back where she was before, only now the sky was clearing-up and the white glow of her parents gravestones was gone. "Tempest? Are you OK!?" She heard a nervous voice ask in a rather high pitched tone. She looked back to see Twilight running towards her.

"Oh my gosh, oh my gosh, Dusty and I saw the lightning and, ahh, I was afraid you were struck by it, I am so glad that you're ok!" Twilight nervously ranted as she embraced the mare.

"I'm fine, more then fine, infact you know, for the first time in a long time, I think, I actually feel whole." Tempest smiled as she returned the princesses embrace.

The group headed towards the exit of the town Twilight rather glad this ordeal was finally over, but suddenly stopped as she noticed Tempest was no longer at her side. She looked around and saw the mare staring back at the town.

"Um. is, is everything OK Tempest?" Twilight asked.

"I, I think i'm gonna stay here for awhile." Tempest replied.

"What!?" Twilight nervously shrieked "WHY!?"

"This town, everything, it, it was my parents legacy. I can't just leave it abandoned like this. I have to fix it, ponies can live hear again, Pranceton can know laughter and joy again, it just needs somepony to help it." Tempest replied with a smile.

"But, but." Twilight stuttered. Tempest stopping her putting her hoof on Twilight's mouth

"Don't worry princess, i'm not abandoning you, i'll be back, I Promise. Just give me two months, two months for Dusty and I to fix this place-up and i'll be back in time for Hearthswarming. I promise." Tempest replied as she gave Twilight a kiss on the cheek.

Twilight just blushed as stuttered, uncertain how to react. "Uh,uh, OK" She snorted. "But you know this is still a pretty big job for two ponies to do alone, I could maybe, talk to the other princesses and get them to send some ponies over to help with the repairs, uhh, if you want." Twilight blushed.

"Why that sounds mighty fine ta me!" Dusty chimed in. Tempest just nodded in agreement.

"OK, and just two months right?" Twilight asked.

"Yes, just give me time to get things right here, help find a new mayor, and two months from this day we'll meet in Canterlot, just you and me, an official first date." Tempest boldly stated.

Twilight just blushed. "Um, ok, sounds good, well, ahh...see you soon I guess" she nervously chuckled as she awkwardly blew a kiss towards Tempest's direction and trotted out the town doing her best to hide her beet red face as she approached Celesta's carriage.

Tempest just chuckled and turned around looking back at the small town. "C'mon old man, we've got work to do." She chuckled as she motioned for Dusty to come along and the two trotted back into town the sun slowly shining down through the lingering clouds.

Author's Note

Man, now that was one long chapter. But hey at least Tempest finally got to come to terms with her past and her happy memories are back. Nice of Luna to let her see her parents again.

Anywho thanks for reading this rather long and ridiculous penultimate chapter. Come back next time for the Finale of Life Is A Tempest as Tempest and Twy go on their first date and we learn the final fates of Spring Rain, Lemon Crescent and Glitter Drops. Oh and I guess touch on what Grubber has been up to while all this has been going on I guess. NO I didn't forget he existed, I promise!

Anywho thanks for reading, and as per usual will try to come back and fix errors later on!