Equestrian Prideby RedRanger3142ChaptersMaretime Bay Pride (Stormblazer)Bridlewood Pride (Starbow)Zephyr Heights Pride (Brightpetals)Pony PrideMaretime Bay Pride (Stormblazer)When Zipp woke up it was very quiet. This was surprising, considering she lived under the same roof as Sunny, Izzy, Pipp and Misty. Of the other four mares Misty was the only one Zipp could classify as quiet. When she lifted her head and glanced at her alarm clock she learned why it was so quiet. “Ah, I overslept.” Zipp cried as she leapt out of bed. She and the others had agreed to get up at eight so they could be in town for half eight to oversee the start of the celebrations. It was now half twelve. The festivities would be well underway by now. Pipp isn’t going to be happy with me, Zipp thought as she bolted out the door. She was really looking forward to this and now I’ve gone and overslept. Zipp took flight and started flying towards Maretime Bay. From her elevated position she could see rainbow banners and streamers decorating every street. Vendors were selling different pride flags and Sunny and Izzy had even repainted the former’s smoothie stand with a rainbow colour scheme. The Earth Pony liked the finished product so much she was considering making the change permanent. Well everything seems to have gone off without a hitch, Zipp observed, before spotting a familiar stallion walking along. Speaking of… “Hey sheriff.” Zipp called as she flew down to meet him. “Zipp. There you are,” Hitch greeted. “I was worried when you didn’t show up with the others, but they said you were just sleeping in.” Hitch looked at her, concerned. “You seem to be doing that a lot lately. Are you alright?” Zipp sighed as she landed beside Hitch. Even though Opaline was gone now, Zipp had continued her efforts to investigate magic and the unity crystals, but she still wasn’t making any progress. She had been staying up later as a result, turning night into day as Misty put it. “I’m fine,” Zipp muttered. “My sleep pattern is just messed up. I’ll get it back on track.” Hitch nodded as Zipp took the opportunity to look at the celebration from ground level. “So, everything running smoothly?” Zipp asked. “So far.” Hitch answered. “A few local residents have been sticks in the mud about the whole thing…” he nodded his head towards a cafe table where a pink coated mare with a curly blonde mane was hiding her face behind a newspaper. “But overall everything is going well. Posey and Windy are organising the parade and even have a firework display planned for the evening.” Zipp nodded, then noticed the lack of a baby dragon on the stallion’s back. “Hey, where’s Sparky?” she asked. “Your mom offered to take care of him for the day,” Hitch responded. “And it’s just as well. I was watching over everything by myself until you showed up.” “Really? Where are the others?” “They went to see the celebrations in the other towns. Sunny and Izzy have gone to Bridlewood and Pipp and Misty took the Marestream to Zephyr Heights.” While Hitch was talking Zipp saw several foals standing around some plants. More specifically two Earth Pony colts seemed to be trying to grow rainbow coloured flowers while two Unicorn fillies and two Pegasi colts watched on in amazement. In one go the Earth Pony colts appeared to put too much magic into one of the flowers as it grew huge and collapsed under its own weight. It nearly fell on the Pegasi colts, but fortunately Zipp flew over quick as a flash and pulled them out of the way. “Sorry.” The Earth Pony colts cried as Zipp gently dropped the Pegasi colts back on the ground. “It’s okay. No one got hurt.” Zipp said as she landed, before spotting a crudely made sign one of the Unicorn fillies was holding in her magic. “Pride plants,” she read. “That’s pretty clever.” The Unicorn filly gave a smile that strongly reminded Zipp of the one Izzy gave the night around the camp fire while the group were travelling to Bridlewood for the first time. “Thank you, Princess Zipp.” The filly said quietly. Zipp’s own smile faltered slightly. “It’s just Zipp.” She corrected before turning tail and diving into the nearby sheriff station. Hitch, who had been watching the interaction, decided to check on his friend. It wasn’t like Zipp to just take off like that during a conversation, especially since Zipp loved talking to foals. When Hitch entered the sheriff station Zipp was busy unpacking stuff at her desk. Despite having been appointed detective of Maretime Bay ages ago Zipp had initially refused to have a desk in the sheriff station, insisting that her work space in her room at the Brighthouse was enough. Pipp and Misty were eventually able to get Zipp to accept Hitch’s offer of a workplace desk by pointing out that Zipp was often visiting the station so having her own personal space there would be beneficial. Even though the desk had been installed and Zipp had brought some of her belongings from the Brighthouse to the station she had been dragging her hooves over setting her desk up. Now though she seemed laser focused on the task. Zipp looked up briefly when Hitch opened the door, then went back to what she was doing. Hitch sighed. He could see what she was doing, avoiding eye contact. Whatever was bothering her she wasn’t ready to talk about yet. Deciding to wait it out Hitch walked over to his own desk, sat down and pulled out a jigsaw puzzle. “Hitch?” Zipp said suddenly. “Yeah?” Hitch looked up from the half finished jigsaw to see that Zipp had finished organising her desk. The two had been sitting in silence for the past twenty minutes and it seemed Zipp was finally ready to talk. “What’s up, Zipp?” Zipp sighed before speaking. “Do you think of me as a princess?” Hitch tapped his chin in thought. “Not really,” he admitted. “There’s a ton of other things to describe you that come to mind before ‘Princess’. You’re my friend, the detective of Maretime Bay, a talented flyer, Pipp’s sister and Haven’s daughter. Honestly the fact that you’re a princess slips my mind most of the time.” Zipp smiled. “Thanks, Hitch. It’s just…” she sighed again. “I guess I’m still getting used to the fact that mom is giving me some space from being a princess, especially after she spent most of my foalhood reminding me that I would be the queen one day. She even named me after the fact.” Hitch tilted his head in confusion at that statement. “It’s my name,” Zipp explained. “Zephyrina. It comes from Zephyr, as in Zephyr Heights. My mom named me after the place I was ‘destined’ to rule. Pipp was the one to start calling me ‘Zipp’ because she could see how uncomfortable my name made me feel.” Hitch took in all he had just been told. This explained why Zipp didn’t like being called Zephyrina. It was a reminder of the destiny Zipp wanted no part of. Apparently all of it was still hanging over Zipp, even after Haven gave her daughter the chance to find what she wanted to be. Zipp started flying around the room, likely trying to work off nerves. Hitch considered going back to his jigsaw, but he couldn’t take his eyes off Zipp. The mare was quite the enigma. A rather beautiful enigma, Hitch admitted. Most would say Pipp was the better looking of the two sisters, but Hitch disagreed with that statement. While the pop star was indeed pretty, the down to earth sheriff found himself more drawn to Zipp for the lack of effort she put into how she looked. Aside from her mane, which she liked to keep gelled up, Zipp was perfectly comfortable with how she looked naturally. It wasn’t just her simple looks that made Hitch admire her. Zipp was a joy to be around. She was serious when she needed to be, but loosened up and became more easy going and fun loving when she was with her friends. She could be very sly when she felt like it, and was very intelligent. During all their time spent together as friends and coworkers Hitch had grown rather fond of her. “Hitch?” Zipp asked suddenly. “Can I get a hug?” The stallion nodded and spread his forelegs. Zipp flew over and buried her face into Hitch’s neck as he wrapped his forelegs around her. How did I not see this storm brewing inside you? Hitch asked himself. Hitch wasn’t sure how long they were in that position for, all he was aware of was that Zipp suddenly started laughing out of nowhere. “What?” he asked as she pulled back slightly to look at him. “Nothing,” she answered. “Just that making contact with one’s wings during a hug is considered an intimate gesture by Pegasi.” Hitch swiftly withdrew his hooves, worried he had weirded Zipp out. “Ah. Sorry.” He apologised. Zipp giggled. “It’s okay, Hitch. If I was uncomfortable I would have tried to wiggle out.” Hitch stared for a second, then a thought occurred to him. “What if it had been somepony else?” “Then I would have been uncomfortable.” Zipp answered without thinking. Then she realised her mistake and covered her mouth with her hooves. She had just admitted she was alright with Hitch specifically hugging her like that. He gave her a cheeky smile. “Un huh,” he said. “Zipp is there something you want to tell me?” “Oh!” Blushing furiously, Zipp buried her face in Hitch’s chest. “This is embarrassing.” She muttered into his fur. Hitch gently pulled her back slightly so she was looking at him again. “It’s okay, Zipp. You can trust me.” He said softly. Zipp hesitated. In truth, Hitch made her swoon. He was everything she had always been looking for in a stallion; he was brave, charming, loyal, serious, funny and very handsome. Deciding that if the worse came to the worse Hitch would let her down gently Zipp finally let it out. “I like you, Hitch. Like like you. A lot.” “Really? For how long?” Hitch asked, eager to know the full story. “Since Maretime Bay day.” “What? That was months ago. Why did you never say anything?” Zipp looked at the ground, avoiding Hitch’s gaze as she answered. “When I was growing up several of my mom’s friends told me that my tomboyishness would make me seem less attractive to any potential partners and that if I ever wanted a coltfriend I should act more feminine like my sister. I’m not gonna lie, this whole time part of me believed them.” “Zipp,” Hitch started firmly, lifting her head with his hoof so that their eyes met. “You don’t have to be feminine to be attractive. I love you just the way you are in your natural, simple way.” Zipp started blushing again as Hitch’s words fully registered. “Wait. You like me too?” Hitch nodded. Zipp’s eyes widened, but then her muzzle adopted a sly smile. “Well then, you won’t mind if I do this.” Zipp said, before leaning in and pressing her lips against Hitch’s. Hitch was caught off guard, but then returned the gesture, wrapping his hooves around Zipp’s neck. “You sly mare.” Hitch muttered as Zipp pulled back and started aggressively nuzzling him. “I know.” Zipp responded as Hitch hugged her close. “But I wouldn’t have it any other way.” Hitch said lovingly. From outside the sheriff station two ponies were watching the events unfolding inside through the window. “Well, would you look at that.” Windy commented. “We didn’t even have to do anything. They got together all on their own.” Posey nodded in agreement. “One down, two to go.” She said, taking out her phone and typing in a group chat. Author's Note Remastered on June 12th 2024. Bridlewood Pride (Starbow)Sunny and Izzy were walking through Bridlewood towards the latter’s old cottage. Both their manes were currently glossy and sparkling and Izzy’s mane now had rainbow stripes running through it like Sunny’s did, courtesy of Jazz and Rocky’s ‘makeup and styling’ stall. Like with Maretime Bay, the pride month celebrations in Bridlewood were in full swing. Stalls had been set up all over the place where vendors were selling their products, light was being reflected through crystals to create the pattern of different pride flags on trees and there was a huge community dance happening around the Bridlewood Together Tree, better known as the Wishing Tree. Sunny had offered Izzy a dance, and one dance quickly turned into five. As a result, both mares now had sore hooves. “Ah, home sweet home.” Izzy said as she opened the door and trotted inside. Sunny followed her in. “Don’t get me wrong, I love the Brighthouse, but sometimes I just miss this place.” “I wouldn’t know what it’s like to miss an old home,” Sunny commented. “The Brighthouse is the only home I’ve ever known. Sure the current building is new because Sprout knocked the old lighthouse down, but I’ve lived on that hill for my whole life.” The Unicorn hummed in response. “I can see why. The Brighthouse is far enough away from the town that you get peace and quiet, but close enough that you get a nice view of all of Maretime Bay.” Izzy sank down onto the floor. “I am exhausted.” Sunny giggled as she walked over to the kitchen to grab a snack. After checking all the cupboards she settled on a bag of marshmallows. Izzy looked up as she heard Sunny returning, saw the bag she was holding in her mouth and took it in her magic as she pushed herself into a sitting position. Sunny sat opposite Izzy as she opened the bag. “Thanks for offering to dance with me, by the way.” Izzy said before popping a marshmallow into her mouth. “No problem.” The Earth Pony replied as Izzy offered Sunny a marshmallow. While she was chewing Sunny noticed rays of sunshine were shining in through a window on the second floor and hitting Izzy in such a way that it made her mane sparkle like the night sky. And whatever Jazz and Rocky had added to her mane only amplified the effect. Feeling a similar heat rising to her cheeks Sunny looked away before her friend could see her staring. While Sunny loved all her friends she could safely admit that Izzy was her favourite. The Unicorn’s cheerful, energetic and creative personality always gave Sunny a warm feeling inside when she saw it in action. That and Izzy was stunning, particularly in certain lights which had the aforementioned effect on her mane. Sunny had known for a long time that she was into mares, but she had spent so much time when she was younger trying to warm other Earth Ponies up to the idea of pony unity she never had the chance to pursue a relationship. Until Izzy came along. At the start Sunny was afraid to say anything for fear of ruining their blossoming friendship but as the two grew closer Sunny began to notice how Izzy acted. Wanting to stand next to her, nuzzling her during even the smallest interactions, stealing glances when she thought Sunny wasn’t looking and being extra cheerful whenever Sunny was around. Izzy was anything but subtle. At first Sunny thought Izzy hadn’t said anything for the same reason she had, but now she wondered if there was a different reason. By Izzy’s own admission, Sunny was her first ever proper friend. Maybe the Unicorn was afraid of ruining her friendship with Sunny by adding romance to it. Sunny recalled when she had described the whole thing to Pipp and Hitch during a conversation. ”You’re drawn to each other. The sun and moon coming together to form an eclipse.” That was how Pipp put it. While Sunny was thinking everything over Izzy was watching Sunny think. She looks cute like that, Izzy thought. Oh, what am I saying, Sunny always looks cute. And Sunny wasn’t just cute either. She was friendly, sweet and gentle, the best friend Izzy could ask for. Of course Izzy saw Sunny as more than just a best friend. Right from the moment they first met, Sunny had been the first pony to accept Izzy for who she was. No Unicorn in Bridlewood had ever done that before, and yet when Izzy first came to Maretime Bay while all the other Earth Ponies were running around terrified, there was Sunny ready to welcome Izzy with open hooves and eager to learn about Unicorn culture. Sunny’s kindness and unconditional friendship had swept Izzy off her hooves, but now Izzy was unsure how to proceed. Would telling Sunny about her crush unnerve the Earth Pony. Izzy would rather give up Unicycling forever than risk losing Sunny. Realising that keeping her feelings bottled up would probably only hurt her (and possibly Sunny as well) in the long run, Izzy decided to take a leap of faith. She cleared her throat. “Sunny?” Sunny snapped out of her train of thought and gave Izzy her full attention. “Yeah?” “I, er… have something to tell you,” Izzy started, tapping her hooves together nervously. She was already second guessing her decision, but she couldn’t stay quiet forever. “So you see, I kinda, sorta…” Izzy’s face went redder by the second as she started pulling at her mane. Sunny realised what Izzy was trying to do and gave her an encouraging smile. That gave Izzy the confidence to complete her sentence. “I… I love you.” Izzy squeaked and shut her eyes. She heard Sunny move closer then felt the other mare’s lips connect with hers. Izzy melted into the kiss as Sunny pulled her closer. Sunny’s lips felt soft and sweet, just like Izzy imagined, and the two still having the taste of marshmallows on their breaths was a bonus. Eventually the two pulled apart and Sunny started gently stroking Izzy’s cheek with her hoof. “Hoof to heart, I promise I’ll always love you too.” Sunny whispered softly. Izzy squealed and started nuzzling her cheek against Sunny’s. As Sunny enjoyed the gesture, an idea came to her. “Hey Izzy. What do you think about arriving back in Maretime Bay in style?” Izzy looked at her curiously. “Oh. I’m listening…” From outside the cottage, two ponies were watching through one of the windows. “Yes. I told you it would be worth it leaving the stall unattended for a few minutes.” Rocky declared. “Alright, I admit it. You were right,” Jazz rolled her eyes before pulling out her phone. “That’s two down, just one more to go.” Author's Note Remastered on June 13th 2024. Zephyr Heights Pride (Brightpetals)Misty fiddled with her Cutie Mark bracelet as the Marestream soared through the skies towards Zephyr Heights. It wasn’t that she was afraid of crashing. Pipp might not have been Zipp, but she was able to fly the Marestream fairly well. No, Misty’s nervousness came from the fact that she was alone with the Pink Pegasus Princess next to her. Pipp was oblivious to Misty’s nervousness as she hummed to herself whilst piloting. Pipp was the cause of Misty’s nervousness, not that the Pegasus was aware of that fact. More and more Misty was finding she was being left alone with Pipp when the group weren’t all hanging out together. This was because the others sometimes had other things to do. Whenever Sunny wasn’t working at her smoothie cart she and Izzy would go off exploring and come back at sunset covered in mud and twigs. Zipp and Hitch were nearly always at the sheriff station, being the only two employees. Sure, Pipp had to run Mane Melody as she was the owner, but she would usually invite Misty to come along so the Unicorn would have company during the day. Something Misty noticed during all this time spent with Pipp was that her heartbeat always picked up whenever when the two were together. At first she had no idea what was happening so she described how she felt when she was around Pipp to Sunny and Izzy one day. To Misty’s surprise her fellow Unicorn started rolling around on the floor laughing while Sunny (through giggles) explained that Misty had a developed a crush on Pipp. And the more Misty thought about it, the more she realised that her friends were right. Once you took the time to get to know Pipp outside of the persona she presented to her fans you saw how wonderful the pink Pegasus truly was. Pipp loved doing things for and with her friends, whether it be something like giving them a makeover or taking part in a pillow fight. That and Pipp was very comforting to be around. She could be surprisingly gentle and sincere when she wanted to be. Then there was her appearance. A lot of ponies described Pipp as beautiful, but Misty wondered if those ponies understood just how beautiful Pipp was. From her green eyes that shone brighter than the emerald gem in her tiara to her fluffy wings that felt like a warm snuggly blanket. All these aspects combined to make Pipp seem like a shining star in the sky, illuminating Misty’s life. “We’ll be at Zephyr Heights in ten minutes.” Pipp reported. She looked over to see Misty fiddling with her bracelet. “Careful, Misty. You’ll break it if you’re not careful.” Misty quickly stopped. “Right. Good point.” While trying to think of a way to spend the next ten minutes she suddenly felt herself pulled towards her friend. “Um, Pipp? What are you doing?” Misty asked, realising Pipp had pulled her into a wing hug. Pipp didn’t answer, instead pulling out her phone and switching on the camera. For a second Misty thought Pipp wanted a selfie, then she realised Pipp was using the camera as a mirror, checking the two were presentable. Misty glanced down at her shoulder, which was brushing against Pipp’s. The lack of space between them made Misty blush. Just because she now knew why she reacted this way around Pipp didn’t mean she knew how to approach the situation. A short time later the Marestream landed outside Zephyr Heights castle. Pipp and Misty disembarked to find Queen Haven waiting on the platform, noticeably without her guards flanking her. “Mom.” Pipp called, jumping into her mother’s waiting embrace. “Hello, my little Angel.” Haven greeted. Misty watched the two hug, desperately trying to not think about how Opaline never treated her like that before she found herself being greeted by Sparky and Cloudpuff. “Careful you two, try not to scare the poor girl.” Haven said as she let go of Pipp. Cloudpuff returned to his owner while Sparky climbed onto Misty’s back. “Hey Misty,” Pipp said. “Can you and mom talk amongst yourselves for a minute. I have something to do real quick.” The young Pegasus flew slightly away from the others and pulled out her phone. “Livestream?” Misty asked as she walked over to Haven. “Livestream,” Haven confirmed. The queen glanced around before leaning in and lowering her voice. “I’ve been meaning to ask one of you, have either of my daughters ever shown an interest in someone romantically?” Misty raised an eyebrow, but decided to answer the question. “Pipp’s not interested in anyone as far as I can tell, but Zipp seems to have a crush on Hitch.” Haven gasped. “Really?” “Really,” Pipp said, returning to the group. “But she’s pretty subtle about it.” Haven shook her head. “I need to spend more time in Maretime Bay.” “There’s a firework display later today if you want to come.” Pipp informed her. “I bet dad will be there.” Misty teased. Pipp giggled as her mother’s face turned red. “Um, yes… well… er, don’t you two have somewhere to be right now?” she stuttered. Pipp nodded. “Right. There’s a place I want to bring Misty that’ll have a great view for the upcoming parade. And since I know she’s not the best with crowds I sent Zoom and Thunder to check the area was clear of ponies.” she winked at the shy Unicorn. “So that’s where those two went.” Haven whispered as Sparky jumped from Misty’s back to Haven’s. “See you later, Queen Haven.” Misty called as she and Pipp left the station. “It’s just Haven, dear.” Haven called back. Pipp and Misty set off into the castle. Inside there were streamers of different kinds of pride flags hanging everywhere, with some walls also having full size flags hanging on them. Suddenly there was a bang from inside one of the rooms and confetti flew out of the open door, showering over Pipp and Misty. Misty squealed and leapt in fright before huddling against Pipp, who draped her wing over the Unicorn’s back. “Sorry.” Someone called from inside the room. “Confetti cannon.” The princess laughed, before noticing Misty still seemed frightened. “Hey,” Pipp said, trying to get Misty to focus on her. “I’m not going to leave your side, okay?” Misty looked into Pipp’s green eyes. “Promise?” Pipp smiled at her. “Promise.” As the two neared their destination Misty started to realise where they were going. “Wait,” she said, turning to her friend. “Pipp, don’t tell me…” Pipp smirked, before opening a large pair of double doors that led out into a grassy area where a familiar tree stood. “You brought me to the Together Tree?” Misty asked. “Yeah. I noticed during the Manesquerade Ball that you weren’t too comfortable with large social gatherings, so I figured we could watch the parade from up here, just the two of us.” Pipp explained. Misty smiled at her. “Thanks, Pipp.” Pipp smiled back. “No problem.” Suddenly her ear twitched. “Hey, do you hear something?” Misty paused to listen, and then she heard it too. “Yeah.” The two crept towards the source of the sound. Peering around the tree they found the royal guards, Zoom and Thunder, in the middle of kissing. The Pegasus and the Unicorn quickly hid behind the tree. Pipp shook her head slightly. “No, we are not interrupting their moment.” She whispered to herself. Then she turned to Misty. “We’ll come back later. I can show you my old foalhood room in the meantime.” Misty nodded her head. “Okay.” Zoom and Thunder were gone when Pipp and Misty returned twenty minutes later, probably having returned to Queen Haven’s side. “You know,” Pipp asked. “Since it’s pride month, are you part of the LGBT community?” “I think I’m a lesbian,” Misty answered. “Or at least the only crush I’ve ever had has been on a mare.” “Oh, so you’ve got a crush on a mare?” Pipp asked curiously. “Who is she?” Misty smiled nervously. She wasn’t about to admit her crush on Pipp right to the mare’s face. “That my secret. For now, at least.” “Alright.” Pipp didn’t press the point. “Me personally, I’m bi. I’ve had relationships with both mares and stallions in the past, but none of them ever lasted more than a month. I’m not really good at romance.” “Ouch,” Misty said as they approached the edge of the platform. “Tough luck, Pipp.” Pipp chuckled as they leaned against the railing. “I know, tell me about it.” While Misty focused her attention on the crowd below Pipp pulled out her phone and stared at her. Something about Misty drew Pipp to her. The hidden bravery behind the shy exterior, the unlimited kindness in spite of how she was raised and the Unicorn was downright positively cute. Pipp had concocted a plan a week ago but now that she had Misty here she was hesitant to enact it. It’s wasn’t the best approach to take with a timid pony like Misty, but Pipp couldn’t think of anything else. She could scare Misty off if she wasn’t careful. But the image of Zoom and Thunder kissing was stuck in her head. Choosing to go through with her plan Pipp got Misty’s attention by waving her phone in front of the blue Unicorn’s face. “Hey, before the parade starts, wanna get a selfie?” Misty’s smile brightened. “Sure.” Misty stood beside Pipp as the Pegasus held the phone out in front of them. “Little closer.” Pipp muttered. “Like this?” Misty leaned closer so that she was nearly cheek to cheek with Pipp. Pipp smiled slightly. “Perfect.” Right before the camera took the photo Pipp closed her eyes, quickly turned her head and pecked Misty on the cheek. As soon as she heard the click Pipp pulled away. Misty had frozen, her expression stunned. Pipp looked at her phone to find to her relief that the image had been taken before Misty’ smile had vanished, just how she wanted it. Suddenly the phone was lifted out of Pipp’s grasp by Msity’s magic. The Unicorn glanced at the screen, then back at Pipp. “What just happened?” she asked, clearly confused. Pipp tapped her hooves together nervously. “Well, you see I really, really wanted to kiss you but wasn’t sure how.” Misty stared at Pipp blankly for a few seconds. Then to the Pegasus’ shock, she smirked. “Really? I thought you were confidence personified.” Misty teased. Pipp laughed lightly. “Not at romance,” she admitted. “Like I said, I’ve been in a few relationships before and none of them worked out.” “Well…” Misty began, leaning in and kissing Pipp on the lips. The Pegasus was taken aback, but then melted into the kiss. “Let’s see if we can’t change that.” She finished when she pulled away. Pipp giggled happily and let out a dreamy sigh as Misty began tapping furiously at Pipp’s phone. When she was satisfied with her work she showed Pipp what she had done. The Pegasus gasped. “How did you know what I was going to type?” she asked. “I know you.” Misty simply said. Pipp smiled at her and hit the ‘upload button’ before the two went back to watching what was happening below. While the two were watching the Pride parade they were oblivious to a certain duo watching them from within the branches of the Together Tree. “All right. We’ve got all three.” Zoom celebrated. “Told you putting the image of kissing in Pipp’s head would work.” “Yes, alright.” Thunder relented. “So, operation firework?” “Operation firework.” Zoom confirmed as she pulled out her phone. Author's Note Remastered on June 14th 2024. Pony PrideZipp was standing outside the Brighthouse waiting for the others to return. Posey had roped her into leading the Pride parade and decorated her mane so the Pegasus resembled a walking Pride flag. She turned around when she heard doors opening and saw Hitch emerging from the Brighthouse. Zipp burst out laughing when she saw that he had added rainbow stripes to his mane. “What?” Hitch asked as he walked up to her. “I thought we’d match.” “Oh, I’m not complaining.” Zipp said. “It’s just amusing in a cute way.” “Zipp, Hitch. Good to see you both again.” A voice called out. The two turned and spotted Alphabittle approaching. “Hey Alphabittle. Are Sunny and Izzy not with you?” Zipp asked. “I texted them when I was leaving Bridlewood,” Alphabittle explained as he stopped in front of the two. “They said they’d be right behind me.” Suddenly the three heard cheering from above and looked up to see Sunny in her Alicorn form preforming aerial stunts. When the Earth Pony turned Alicorn did a mid air twirl they saw she was carrying Izzy on her back. Hitch and Alphabittle’s jaws dropped, but Zipp simply looked impressed. “Hey everyone. What’d we miss?” Sunny asked as she landed and Izzy climbed off. “Other than me leading the parade, not much.” Zipp informed them. “Uh,” Izzy pouted. “Oh well. I’m sure we’ll get to see you leading a parade sooner rather than later.” “You know it.” Zipp replied. Sunny walked over to Hitch and held up her hoof in the air. Hitch smiled as he picked up on the gesture. “Up here, down low. Hitch it to a post. Flip it Sunny side up and on a piece of toast.” While Sunny and Hitch were doing their foalhood rhyme, the Marestream flew overhead and landed outside the Brighthouse. Zoom and Thunder climbed out first, followed by Haven, Sparky and Cloudpuff. “Thanks for the lift, dear.” Haven called over her shoulder. “No problem, mom.” Pipp replied as she exited the Marestream, followed by Misty. “Haven.” Alphabittle greeted, bowing his head. “Alphabittle.” Haven returned the greeting. Sparky walked over to Hitch, who lifted him up into a hug. “Sparky. Did you have fun with Queen Haven?” Sparky nodded, then started reaching out towards Zipp. Hitch noticed and handed Sparky over to the Pegasus. “Hey, Sparky.” Zipp said gently as Sparky hugged her. “I guess she recognises her mother figure.” Hitch whispered in Zipp’s ear. Zipp laughed. “Guess so.” she said, putting Sparkly back on the ground. “Aw,” Pipp said suddenly. “Why didn’t you four tell me you were going to be using makeup to get into the spirit of things?” “We didn’t plan it,” Sunny explained. “We just bumped into Jazz and Rocky at their stall in Bridlewood and they styled our manes for us.” “We didn’t plan it either,” Zipp added. “Posey got me to lead the parade and styled me up for it, and Hitch styled his mane to match.” “Well, might as well join in.” Pipp decided. “Come on, Misty.” “Coming.” Misty called as she followed Pipp into the Brighthouse. Right after the two went inside, Jazz and Rocky arrived, panting heavily. “Wow. It is difficult keeping up with someone who is flying.” Rocky commented, gesturing to Sunny. “You know you could have just flown after them, right?” Jazz pointed out. Rocky snorted. “And leave my marefriend to walk back alone? No thanks, I’d rather keep you company.” Jazz smiled. “My knight in shining armour.” She kissed her coltfriend’s check. “Ah. Here you all are.” Posey said as she arrived with Windy. The Pegasus looked around. “Where are Pipp and Misty?” She asked. “We’re here.” Pipp declared as she and Misty came out of the Brighthouse. In addition to both of them now having rainbow stripes in their manes Pipp had face paint on her left cheek depicting the bi flag, while Misty had the lesbian flag painted on her left cheek. Posey gestured with her hoof. “Right then. Come on, everypony. It’s time for the fireworks display.” A short time later a large crowd of ponies had gathered on blankets at the beach. “So you’re sure these fireworks are going to take the shape we want?” Jazz asked Posey. “Positive,” the mare answered. “I even asked Sprout to help design them and had some Unicorns use their magic to ensure the fireworks retain their shape in the air for longer.” Jazz raised her eyebrows. “You asked Sprout to help you design the fireworks?” She hid her face in her hoof. “Oh my glitter, this is gonna be a disaster.” “Come on, Jazz.” Windy said as she draped a wing over her marefriend’s back. “Posey wouldn’t ask for Sprout’s help unless she thought he was the best pony for the job.” “I know, it’s just… Sprout doesn’t have the best track record for designing things that work properly.” Posey giggled. “If you’re thinking of the Sproutous Maximus, it did work as intended, Sprout just didn’t know how to operate it. We know what we’re doing with the fireworks.” Jazz sighed. “I guess you’re right.” “So, how long will the images stay in the air exactly?” Rocky asked. “By my estimations, around half an hour.” Posey replied. “Do you think they’ll be mad?” Thunder said suddenly. “Doubtful,” Zoom answered. “Pipp and Misty aren’t even trying to hide it. They even uploaded a photo.” “Really?” Jazz was curious. Zoom nodded, showing Jazz the picture on her phone. Meanwhile on another part of the beach Haven had also found the photo of Pipp and Misty. Accompanying the photo was the text Happy Pride Month, Pippsqueaks! “What in the…” she asked out loud. Alphabittle glanced at the phone screen and laughed. “You know, I often wonder what those six get up to every day.” He commented. Over with the Mane Six they were all recounting their day. “Wait,” Pipp realised. “So you’re telling me we all got together with our crushes on the same day?” “Looks like it.” Izzy said. The six all looked at each other, then they all burst out laughing. Back with the firework organisers Posey was plugging a microphone into a pair of speakers, allowing her voice to be heard across the whole beach. “Attention everyone, the fireworks show is about to begin.” Everypony looked up to the sky as Posey gave the signal to start lighting the fireworks. Ponies “oh”ed and “aw”ed as fireworks of different colours and shapes appeared above them. “And now, for the grand finale!” Posey declared, before giving a nod to Windy, who launched the final three fireworks. Rather than being generic fireworks, these ones took distinctive forms. More specifically, the shape of six ponies; Izzy hugging Sunny, Zipp giving Hitch an envelope with a heart on it and Pipp kissing Misty on the cheek. For the group in question the reaction was instantaneous. Sunny’s eyes widened, Izzy’s horn sparked, Zipp gasped, Hitch’s jaw dropped, Pipp’s wings flared and Misty blushed furiously. Over with Haven and Alphabittle, the queen put a hoof over her muzzle and whispered “Oh my,” while Alphabittle muttered “What the…” under his breath. Meanwhile the ones who set the fireworks were all rolling around on the floor laughing. Jazz managed to control herself enough to grab the microphone and announce “That’s all, folks. If you’d like, you can make your way over to the Canterlove community centre where a community dance is just starting.” Slowly, ponies started to disperse from the beach and headed towards the community centre. Rocky spotted Pipp flying amongst the crowd, making a beeline for them. “And now, we run.” He cried. The six of them bolted. “Get back here, you lot!” Pipp called. She tried to chase after them, but Misty grabbed the Pegasus’ tail with her magic and pulled her back. “Woah, Pipp. Let’s not do anything rash. I don’t think yelling at them in public would be a good idea.” Zipp and Hitch were still staring up at the fireworks. “You know, I wish they asked our permission before doing this, but the fireworks do look nice.” Zipp commented. “Yeah,” Hitch agreed. “They really do.” Pipp sighed as she landed beside Misty.. “Yeah, I guess you’re right.” The pop star might have seemed upset, but the small smile on her muzzle and the fact that she took out her phone to take a photo of the fireworks revealed how she really felt. “I take it you lot didn’t know this was going to happen?” Haven asked as she and Alphabittle came over to the group. Misty shook her head. “No. We were just as surprised as everyone else.” Haven smiled. “Well, why don’t we all head on over to the dance and you can tell the two of us how your day went. Because judging from this,” she held up her phone with the picture of Pipp kissing Misty’s cheek on it. “It was very interesting.” The group nodded their heads in agreement and they all started walking towards the community centre. Sunny and Izzy lagged behind slightly. “So, our second community dance of the day.” Izzy pointed out. “Yeah, but I don’t mind. I’m with great company, after all.” Sunny said. Izzy giggled, nuzzling into Sunny’s side. “Me too, Sunny. Me too.” Author's Note Happy pride month, everypony.
Maretime Bay Pride (Stormblazer)When Zipp woke up it was very quiet. This was surprising, considering she lived under the same roof as Sunny, Izzy, Pipp and Misty. Of the other four mares Misty was the only one Zipp could classify as quiet. When she lifted her head and glanced at her alarm clock she learned why it was so quiet. “Ah, I overslept.” Zipp cried as she leapt out of bed. She and the others had agreed to get up at eight so they could be in town for half eight to oversee the start of the celebrations. It was now half twelve. The festivities would be well underway by now. Pipp isn’t going to be happy with me, Zipp thought as she bolted out the door. She was really looking forward to this and now I’ve gone and overslept. Zipp took flight and started flying towards Maretime Bay. From her elevated position she could see rainbow banners and streamers decorating every street. Vendors were selling different pride flags and Sunny and Izzy had even repainted the former’s smoothie stand with a rainbow colour scheme. The Earth Pony liked the finished product so much she was considering making the change permanent. Well everything seems to have gone off without a hitch, Zipp observed, before spotting a familiar stallion walking along. Speaking of… “Hey sheriff.” Zipp called as she flew down to meet him. “Zipp. There you are,” Hitch greeted. “I was worried when you didn’t show up with the others, but they said you were just sleeping in.” Hitch looked at her, concerned. “You seem to be doing that a lot lately. Are you alright?” Zipp sighed as she landed beside Hitch. Even though Opaline was gone now, Zipp had continued her efforts to investigate magic and the unity crystals, but she still wasn’t making any progress. She had been staying up later as a result, turning night into day as Misty put it. “I’m fine,” Zipp muttered. “My sleep pattern is just messed up. I’ll get it back on track.” Hitch nodded as Zipp took the opportunity to look at the celebration from ground level. “So, everything running smoothly?” Zipp asked. “So far.” Hitch answered. “A few local residents have been sticks in the mud about the whole thing…” he nodded his head towards a cafe table where a pink coated mare with a curly blonde mane was hiding her face behind a newspaper. “But overall everything is going well. Posey and Windy are organising the parade and even have a firework display planned for the evening.” Zipp nodded, then noticed the lack of a baby dragon on the stallion’s back. “Hey, where’s Sparky?” she asked. “Your mom offered to take care of him for the day,” Hitch responded. “And it’s just as well. I was watching over everything by myself until you showed up.” “Really? Where are the others?” “They went to see the celebrations in the other towns. Sunny and Izzy have gone to Bridlewood and Pipp and Misty took the Marestream to Zephyr Heights.” While Hitch was talking Zipp saw several foals standing around some plants. More specifically two Earth Pony colts seemed to be trying to grow rainbow coloured flowers while two Unicorn fillies and two Pegasi colts watched on in amazement. In one go the Earth Pony colts appeared to put too much magic into one of the flowers as it grew huge and collapsed under its own weight. It nearly fell on the Pegasi colts, but fortunately Zipp flew over quick as a flash and pulled them out of the way. “Sorry.” The Earth Pony colts cried as Zipp gently dropped the Pegasi colts back on the ground. “It’s okay. No one got hurt.” Zipp said as she landed, before spotting a crudely made sign one of the Unicorn fillies was holding in her magic. “Pride plants,” she read. “That’s pretty clever.” The Unicorn filly gave a smile that strongly reminded Zipp of the one Izzy gave the night around the camp fire while the group were travelling to Bridlewood for the first time. “Thank you, Princess Zipp.” The filly said quietly. Zipp’s own smile faltered slightly. “It’s just Zipp.” She corrected before turning tail and diving into the nearby sheriff station. Hitch, who had been watching the interaction, decided to check on his friend. It wasn’t like Zipp to just take off like that during a conversation, especially since Zipp loved talking to foals. When Hitch entered the sheriff station Zipp was busy unpacking stuff at her desk. Despite having been appointed detective of Maretime Bay ages ago Zipp had initially refused to have a desk in the sheriff station, insisting that her work space in her room at the Brighthouse was enough. Pipp and Misty were eventually able to get Zipp to accept Hitch’s offer of a workplace desk by pointing out that Zipp was often visiting the station so having her own personal space there would be beneficial. Even though the desk had been installed and Zipp had brought some of her belongings from the Brighthouse to the station she had been dragging her hooves over setting her desk up. Now though she seemed laser focused on the task. Zipp looked up briefly when Hitch opened the door, then went back to what she was doing. Hitch sighed. He could see what she was doing, avoiding eye contact. Whatever was bothering her she wasn’t ready to talk about yet. Deciding to wait it out Hitch walked over to his own desk, sat down and pulled out a jigsaw puzzle. “Hitch?” Zipp said suddenly. “Yeah?” Hitch looked up from the half finished jigsaw to see that Zipp had finished organising her desk. The two had been sitting in silence for the past twenty minutes and it seemed Zipp was finally ready to talk. “What’s up, Zipp?” Zipp sighed before speaking. “Do you think of me as a princess?” Hitch tapped his chin in thought. “Not really,” he admitted. “There’s a ton of other things to describe you that come to mind before ‘Princess’. You’re my friend, the detective of Maretime Bay, a talented flyer, Pipp’s sister and Haven’s daughter. Honestly the fact that you’re a princess slips my mind most of the time.” Zipp smiled. “Thanks, Hitch. It’s just…” she sighed again. “I guess I’m still getting used to the fact that mom is giving me some space from being a princess, especially after she spent most of my foalhood reminding me that I would be the queen one day. She even named me after the fact.” Hitch tilted his head in confusion at that statement. “It’s my name,” Zipp explained. “Zephyrina. It comes from Zephyr, as in Zephyr Heights. My mom named me after the place I was ‘destined’ to rule. Pipp was the one to start calling me ‘Zipp’ because she could see how uncomfortable my name made me feel.” Hitch took in all he had just been told. This explained why Zipp didn’t like being called Zephyrina. It was a reminder of the destiny Zipp wanted no part of. Apparently all of it was still hanging over Zipp, even after Haven gave her daughter the chance to find what she wanted to be. Zipp started flying around the room, likely trying to work off nerves. Hitch considered going back to his jigsaw, but he couldn’t take his eyes off Zipp. The mare was quite the enigma. A rather beautiful enigma, Hitch admitted. Most would say Pipp was the better looking of the two sisters, but Hitch disagreed with that statement. While the pop star was indeed pretty, the down to earth sheriff found himself more drawn to Zipp for the lack of effort she put into how she looked. Aside from her mane, which she liked to keep gelled up, Zipp was perfectly comfortable with how she looked naturally. It wasn’t just her simple looks that made Hitch admire her. Zipp was a joy to be around. She was serious when she needed to be, but loosened up and became more easy going and fun loving when she was with her friends. She could be very sly when she felt like it, and was very intelligent. During all their time spent together as friends and coworkers Hitch had grown rather fond of her. “Hitch?” Zipp asked suddenly. “Can I get a hug?” The stallion nodded and spread his forelegs. Zipp flew over and buried her face into Hitch’s neck as he wrapped his forelegs around her. How did I not see this storm brewing inside you? Hitch asked himself. Hitch wasn’t sure how long they were in that position for, all he was aware of was that Zipp suddenly started laughing out of nowhere. “What?” he asked as she pulled back slightly to look at him. “Nothing,” she answered. “Just that making contact with one’s wings during a hug is considered an intimate gesture by Pegasi.” Hitch swiftly withdrew his hooves, worried he had weirded Zipp out. “Ah. Sorry.” He apologised. Zipp giggled. “It’s okay, Hitch. If I was uncomfortable I would have tried to wiggle out.” Hitch stared for a second, then a thought occurred to him. “What if it had been somepony else?” “Then I would have been uncomfortable.” Zipp answered without thinking. Then she realised her mistake and covered her mouth with her hooves. She had just admitted she was alright with Hitch specifically hugging her like that. He gave her a cheeky smile. “Un huh,” he said. “Zipp is there something you want to tell me?” “Oh!” Blushing furiously, Zipp buried her face in Hitch’s chest. “This is embarrassing.” She muttered into his fur. Hitch gently pulled her back slightly so she was looking at him again. “It’s okay, Zipp. You can trust me.” He said softly. Zipp hesitated. In truth, Hitch made her swoon. He was everything she had always been looking for in a stallion; he was brave, charming, loyal, serious, funny and very handsome. Deciding that if the worse came to the worse Hitch would let her down gently Zipp finally let it out. “I like you, Hitch. Like like you. A lot.” “Really? For how long?” Hitch asked, eager to know the full story. “Since Maretime Bay day.” “What? That was months ago. Why did you never say anything?” Zipp looked at the ground, avoiding Hitch’s gaze as she answered. “When I was growing up several of my mom’s friends told me that my tomboyishness would make me seem less attractive to any potential partners and that if I ever wanted a coltfriend I should act more feminine like my sister. I’m not gonna lie, this whole time part of me believed them.” “Zipp,” Hitch started firmly, lifting her head with his hoof so that their eyes met. “You don’t have to be feminine to be attractive. I love you just the way you are in your natural, simple way.” Zipp started blushing again as Hitch’s words fully registered. “Wait. You like me too?” Hitch nodded. Zipp’s eyes widened, but then her muzzle adopted a sly smile. “Well then, you won’t mind if I do this.” Zipp said, before leaning in and pressing her lips against Hitch’s. Hitch was caught off guard, but then returned the gesture, wrapping his hooves around Zipp’s neck. “You sly mare.” Hitch muttered as Zipp pulled back and started aggressively nuzzling him. “I know.” Zipp responded as Hitch hugged her close. “But I wouldn’t have it any other way.” Hitch said lovingly. From outside the sheriff station two ponies were watching the events unfolding inside through the window. “Well, would you look at that.” Windy commented. “We didn’t even have to do anything. They got together all on their own.” Posey nodded in agreement. “One down, two to go.” She said, taking out her phone and typing in a group chat. Author's Note Remastered on June 12th 2024.
Bridlewood Pride (Starbow)Sunny and Izzy were walking through Bridlewood towards the latter’s old cottage. Both their manes were currently glossy and sparkling and Izzy’s mane now had rainbow stripes running through it like Sunny’s did, courtesy of Jazz and Rocky’s ‘makeup and styling’ stall. Like with Maretime Bay, the pride month celebrations in Bridlewood were in full swing. Stalls had been set up all over the place where vendors were selling their products, light was being reflected through crystals to create the pattern of different pride flags on trees and there was a huge community dance happening around the Bridlewood Together Tree, better known as the Wishing Tree. Sunny had offered Izzy a dance, and one dance quickly turned into five. As a result, both mares now had sore hooves. “Ah, home sweet home.” Izzy said as she opened the door and trotted inside. Sunny followed her in. “Don’t get me wrong, I love the Brighthouse, but sometimes I just miss this place.” “I wouldn’t know what it’s like to miss an old home,” Sunny commented. “The Brighthouse is the only home I’ve ever known. Sure the current building is new because Sprout knocked the old lighthouse down, but I’ve lived on that hill for my whole life.” The Unicorn hummed in response. “I can see why. The Brighthouse is far enough away from the town that you get peace and quiet, but close enough that you get a nice view of all of Maretime Bay.” Izzy sank down onto the floor. “I am exhausted.” Sunny giggled as she walked over to the kitchen to grab a snack. After checking all the cupboards she settled on a bag of marshmallows. Izzy looked up as she heard Sunny returning, saw the bag she was holding in her mouth and took it in her magic as she pushed herself into a sitting position. Sunny sat opposite Izzy as she opened the bag. “Thanks for offering to dance with me, by the way.” Izzy said before popping a marshmallow into her mouth. “No problem.” The Earth Pony replied as Izzy offered Sunny a marshmallow. While she was chewing Sunny noticed rays of sunshine were shining in through a window on the second floor and hitting Izzy in such a way that it made her mane sparkle like the night sky. And whatever Jazz and Rocky had added to her mane only amplified the effect. Feeling a similar heat rising to her cheeks Sunny looked away before her friend could see her staring. While Sunny loved all her friends she could safely admit that Izzy was her favourite. The Unicorn’s cheerful, energetic and creative personality always gave Sunny a warm feeling inside when she saw it in action. That and Izzy was stunning, particularly in certain lights which had the aforementioned effect on her mane. Sunny had known for a long time that she was into mares, but she had spent so much time when she was younger trying to warm other Earth Ponies up to the idea of pony unity she never had the chance to pursue a relationship. Until Izzy came along. At the start Sunny was afraid to say anything for fear of ruining their blossoming friendship but as the two grew closer Sunny began to notice how Izzy acted. Wanting to stand next to her, nuzzling her during even the smallest interactions, stealing glances when she thought Sunny wasn’t looking and being extra cheerful whenever Sunny was around. Izzy was anything but subtle. At first Sunny thought Izzy hadn’t said anything for the same reason she had, but now she wondered if there was a different reason. By Izzy’s own admission, Sunny was her first ever proper friend. Maybe the Unicorn was afraid of ruining her friendship with Sunny by adding romance to it. Sunny recalled when she had described the whole thing to Pipp and Hitch during a conversation. ”You’re drawn to each other. The sun and moon coming together to form an eclipse.” That was how Pipp put it. While Sunny was thinking everything over Izzy was watching Sunny think. She looks cute like that, Izzy thought. Oh, what am I saying, Sunny always looks cute. And Sunny wasn’t just cute either. She was friendly, sweet and gentle, the best friend Izzy could ask for. Of course Izzy saw Sunny as more than just a best friend. Right from the moment they first met, Sunny had been the first pony to accept Izzy for who she was. No Unicorn in Bridlewood had ever done that before, and yet when Izzy first came to Maretime Bay while all the other Earth Ponies were running around terrified, there was Sunny ready to welcome Izzy with open hooves and eager to learn about Unicorn culture. Sunny’s kindness and unconditional friendship had swept Izzy off her hooves, but now Izzy was unsure how to proceed. Would telling Sunny about her crush unnerve the Earth Pony. Izzy would rather give up Unicycling forever than risk losing Sunny. Realising that keeping her feelings bottled up would probably only hurt her (and possibly Sunny as well) in the long run, Izzy decided to take a leap of faith. She cleared her throat. “Sunny?” Sunny snapped out of her train of thought and gave Izzy her full attention. “Yeah?” “I, er… have something to tell you,” Izzy started, tapping her hooves together nervously. She was already second guessing her decision, but she couldn’t stay quiet forever. “So you see, I kinda, sorta…” Izzy’s face went redder by the second as she started pulling at her mane. Sunny realised what Izzy was trying to do and gave her an encouraging smile. That gave Izzy the confidence to complete her sentence. “I… I love you.” Izzy squeaked and shut her eyes. She heard Sunny move closer then felt the other mare’s lips connect with hers. Izzy melted into the kiss as Sunny pulled her closer. Sunny’s lips felt soft and sweet, just like Izzy imagined, and the two still having the taste of marshmallows on their breaths was a bonus. Eventually the two pulled apart and Sunny started gently stroking Izzy’s cheek with her hoof. “Hoof to heart, I promise I’ll always love you too.” Sunny whispered softly. Izzy squealed and started nuzzling her cheek against Sunny’s. As Sunny enjoyed the gesture, an idea came to her. “Hey Izzy. What do you think about arriving back in Maretime Bay in style?” Izzy looked at her curiously. “Oh. I’m listening…” From outside the cottage, two ponies were watching through one of the windows. “Yes. I told you it would be worth it leaving the stall unattended for a few minutes.” Rocky declared. “Alright, I admit it. You were right,” Jazz rolled her eyes before pulling out her phone. “That’s two down, just one more to go.” Author's Note Remastered on June 13th 2024.
Zephyr Heights Pride (Brightpetals)Misty fiddled with her Cutie Mark bracelet as the Marestream soared through the skies towards Zephyr Heights. It wasn’t that she was afraid of crashing. Pipp might not have been Zipp, but she was able to fly the Marestream fairly well. No, Misty’s nervousness came from the fact that she was alone with the Pink Pegasus Princess next to her. Pipp was oblivious to Misty’s nervousness as she hummed to herself whilst piloting. Pipp was the cause of Misty’s nervousness, not that the Pegasus was aware of that fact. More and more Misty was finding she was being left alone with Pipp when the group weren’t all hanging out together. This was because the others sometimes had other things to do. Whenever Sunny wasn’t working at her smoothie cart she and Izzy would go off exploring and come back at sunset covered in mud and twigs. Zipp and Hitch were nearly always at the sheriff station, being the only two employees. Sure, Pipp had to run Mane Melody as she was the owner, but she would usually invite Misty to come along so the Unicorn would have company during the day. Something Misty noticed during all this time spent with Pipp was that her heartbeat always picked up whenever when the two were together. At first she had no idea what was happening so she described how she felt when she was around Pipp to Sunny and Izzy one day. To Misty’s surprise her fellow Unicorn started rolling around on the floor laughing while Sunny (through giggles) explained that Misty had a developed a crush on Pipp. And the more Misty thought about it, the more she realised that her friends were right. Once you took the time to get to know Pipp outside of the persona she presented to her fans you saw how wonderful the pink Pegasus truly was. Pipp loved doing things for and with her friends, whether it be something like giving them a makeover or taking part in a pillow fight. That and Pipp was very comforting to be around. She could be surprisingly gentle and sincere when she wanted to be. Then there was her appearance. A lot of ponies described Pipp as beautiful, but Misty wondered if those ponies understood just how beautiful Pipp was. From her green eyes that shone brighter than the emerald gem in her tiara to her fluffy wings that felt like a warm snuggly blanket. All these aspects combined to make Pipp seem like a shining star in the sky, illuminating Misty’s life. “We’ll be at Zephyr Heights in ten minutes.” Pipp reported. She looked over to see Misty fiddling with her bracelet. “Careful, Misty. You’ll break it if you’re not careful.” Misty quickly stopped. “Right. Good point.” While trying to think of a way to spend the next ten minutes she suddenly felt herself pulled towards her friend. “Um, Pipp? What are you doing?” Misty asked, realising Pipp had pulled her into a wing hug. Pipp didn’t answer, instead pulling out her phone and switching on the camera. For a second Misty thought Pipp wanted a selfie, then she realised Pipp was using the camera as a mirror, checking the two were presentable. Misty glanced down at her shoulder, which was brushing against Pipp’s. The lack of space between them made Misty blush. Just because she now knew why she reacted this way around Pipp didn’t mean she knew how to approach the situation. A short time later the Marestream landed outside Zephyr Heights castle. Pipp and Misty disembarked to find Queen Haven waiting on the platform, noticeably without her guards flanking her. “Mom.” Pipp called, jumping into her mother’s waiting embrace. “Hello, my little Angel.” Haven greeted. Misty watched the two hug, desperately trying to not think about how Opaline never treated her like that before she found herself being greeted by Sparky and Cloudpuff. “Careful you two, try not to scare the poor girl.” Haven said as she let go of Pipp. Cloudpuff returned to his owner while Sparky climbed onto Misty’s back. “Hey Misty,” Pipp said. “Can you and mom talk amongst yourselves for a minute. I have something to do real quick.” The young Pegasus flew slightly away from the others and pulled out her phone. “Livestream?” Misty asked as she walked over to Haven. “Livestream,” Haven confirmed. The queen glanced around before leaning in and lowering her voice. “I’ve been meaning to ask one of you, have either of my daughters ever shown an interest in someone romantically?” Misty raised an eyebrow, but decided to answer the question. “Pipp’s not interested in anyone as far as I can tell, but Zipp seems to have a crush on Hitch.” Haven gasped. “Really?” “Really,” Pipp said, returning to the group. “But she’s pretty subtle about it.” Haven shook her head. “I need to spend more time in Maretime Bay.” “There’s a firework display later today if you want to come.” Pipp informed her. “I bet dad will be there.” Misty teased. Pipp giggled as her mother’s face turned red. “Um, yes… well… er, don’t you two have somewhere to be right now?” she stuttered. Pipp nodded. “Right. There’s a place I want to bring Misty that’ll have a great view for the upcoming parade. And since I know she’s not the best with crowds I sent Zoom and Thunder to check the area was clear of ponies.” she winked at the shy Unicorn. “So that’s where those two went.” Haven whispered as Sparky jumped from Misty’s back to Haven’s. “See you later, Queen Haven.” Misty called as she and Pipp left the station. “It’s just Haven, dear.” Haven called back. Pipp and Misty set off into the castle. Inside there were streamers of different kinds of pride flags hanging everywhere, with some walls also having full size flags hanging on them. Suddenly there was a bang from inside one of the rooms and confetti flew out of the open door, showering over Pipp and Misty. Misty squealed and leapt in fright before huddling against Pipp, who draped her wing over the Unicorn’s back. “Sorry.” Someone called from inside the room. “Confetti cannon.” The princess laughed, before noticing Misty still seemed frightened. “Hey,” Pipp said, trying to get Misty to focus on her. “I’m not going to leave your side, okay?” Misty looked into Pipp’s green eyes. “Promise?” Pipp smiled at her. “Promise.” As the two neared their destination Misty started to realise where they were going. “Wait,” she said, turning to her friend. “Pipp, don’t tell me…” Pipp smirked, before opening a large pair of double doors that led out into a grassy area where a familiar tree stood. “You brought me to the Together Tree?” Misty asked. “Yeah. I noticed during the Manesquerade Ball that you weren’t too comfortable with large social gatherings, so I figured we could watch the parade from up here, just the two of us.” Pipp explained. Misty smiled at her. “Thanks, Pipp.” Pipp smiled back. “No problem.” Suddenly her ear twitched. “Hey, do you hear something?” Misty paused to listen, and then she heard it too. “Yeah.” The two crept towards the source of the sound. Peering around the tree they found the royal guards, Zoom and Thunder, in the middle of kissing. The Pegasus and the Unicorn quickly hid behind the tree. Pipp shook her head slightly. “No, we are not interrupting their moment.” She whispered to herself. Then she turned to Misty. “We’ll come back later. I can show you my old foalhood room in the meantime.” Misty nodded her head. “Okay.” Zoom and Thunder were gone when Pipp and Misty returned twenty minutes later, probably having returned to Queen Haven’s side. “You know,” Pipp asked. “Since it’s pride month, are you part of the LGBT community?” “I think I’m a lesbian,” Misty answered. “Or at least the only crush I’ve ever had has been on a mare.” “Oh, so you’ve got a crush on a mare?” Pipp asked curiously. “Who is she?” Misty smiled nervously. She wasn’t about to admit her crush on Pipp right to the mare’s face. “That my secret. For now, at least.” “Alright.” Pipp didn’t press the point. “Me personally, I’m bi. I’ve had relationships with both mares and stallions in the past, but none of them ever lasted more than a month. I’m not really good at romance.” “Ouch,” Misty said as they approached the edge of the platform. “Tough luck, Pipp.” Pipp chuckled as they leaned against the railing. “I know, tell me about it.” While Misty focused her attention on the crowd below Pipp pulled out her phone and stared at her. Something about Misty drew Pipp to her. The hidden bravery behind the shy exterior, the unlimited kindness in spite of how she was raised and the Unicorn was downright positively cute. Pipp had concocted a plan a week ago but now that she had Misty here she was hesitant to enact it. It’s wasn’t the best approach to take with a timid pony like Misty, but Pipp couldn’t think of anything else. She could scare Misty off if she wasn’t careful. But the image of Zoom and Thunder kissing was stuck in her head. Choosing to go through with her plan Pipp got Misty’s attention by waving her phone in front of the blue Unicorn’s face. “Hey, before the parade starts, wanna get a selfie?” Misty’s smile brightened. “Sure.” Misty stood beside Pipp as the Pegasus held the phone out in front of them. “Little closer.” Pipp muttered. “Like this?” Misty leaned closer so that she was nearly cheek to cheek with Pipp. Pipp smiled slightly. “Perfect.” Right before the camera took the photo Pipp closed her eyes, quickly turned her head and pecked Misty on the cheek. As soon as she heard the click Pipp pulled away. Misty had frozen, her expression stunned. Pipp looked at her phone to find to her relief that the image had been taken before Misty’ smile had vanished, just how she wanted it. Suddenly the phone was lifted out of Pipp’s grasp by Msity’s magic. The Unicorn glanced at the screen, then back at Pipp. “What just happened?” she asked, clearly confused. Pipp tapped her hooves together nervously. “Well, you see I really, really wanted to kiss you but wasn’t sure how.” Misty stared at Pipp blankly for a few seconds. Then to the Pegasus’ shock, she smirked. “Really? I thought you were confidence personified.” Misty teased. Pipp laughed lightly. “Not at romance,” she admitted. “Like I said, I’ve been in a few relationships before and none of them worked out.” “Well…” Misty began, leaning in and kissing Pipp on the lips. The Pegasus was taken aback, but then melted into the kiss. “Let’s see if we can’t change that.” She finished when she pulled away. Pipp giggled happily and let out a dreamy sigh as Misty began tapping furiously at Pipp’s phone. When she was satisfied with her work she showed Pipp what she had done. The Pegasus gasped. “How did you know what I was going to type?” she asked. “I know you.” Misty simply said. Pipp smiled at her and hit the ‘upload button’ before the two went back to watching what was happening below. While the two were watching the Pride parade they were oblivious to a certain duo watching them from within the branches of the Together Tree. “All right. We’ve got all three.” Zoom celebrated. “Told you putting the image of kissing in Pipp’s head would work.” “Yes, alright.” Thunder relented. “So, operation firework?” “Operation firework.” Zoom confirmed as she pulled out her phone. Author's Note Remastered on June 14th 2024.
Pony PrideZipp was standing outside the Brighthouse waiting for the others to return. Posey had roped her into leading the Pride parade and decorated her mane so the Pegasus resembled a walking Pride flag. She turned around when she heard doors opening and saw Hitch emerging from the Brighthouse. Zipp burst out laughing when she saw that he had added rainbow stripes to his mane. “What?” Hitch asked as he walked up to her. “I thought we’d match.” “Oh, I’m not complaining.” Zipp said. “It’s just amusing in a cute way.” “Zipp, Hitch. Good to see you both again.” A voice called out. The two turned and spotted Alphabittle approaching. “Hey Alphabittle. Are Sunny and Izzy not with you?” Zipp asked. “I texted them when I was leaving Bridlewood,” Alphabittle explained as he stopped in front of the two. “They said they’d be right behind me.” Suddenly the three heard cheering from above and looked up to see Sunny in her Alicorn form preforming aerial stunts. When the Earth Pony turned Alicorn did a mid air twirl they saw she was carrying Izzy on her back. Hitch and Alphabittle’s jaws dropped, but Zipp simply looked impressed. “Hey everyone. What’d we miss?” Sunny asked as she landed and Izzy climbed off. “Other than me leading the parade, not much.” Zipp informed them. “Uh,” Izzy pouted. “Oh well. I’m sure we’ll get to see you leading a parade sooner rather than later.” “You know it.” Zipp replied. Sunny walked over to Hitch and held up her hoof in the air. Hitch smiled as he picked up on the gesture. “Up here, down low. Hitch it to a post. Flip it Sunny side up and on a piece of toast.” While Sunny and Hitch were doing their foalhood rhyme, the Marestream flew overhead and landed outside the Brighthouse. Zoom and Thunder climbed out first, followed by Haven, Sparky and Cloudpuff. “Thanks for the lift, dear.” Haven called over her shoulder. “No problem, mom.” Pipp replied as she exited the Marestream, followed by Misty. “Haven.” Alphabittle greeted, bowing his head. “Alphabittle.” Haven returned the greeting. Sparky walked over to Hitch, who lifted him up into a hug. “Sparky. Did you have fun with Queen Haven?” Sparky nodded, then started reaching out towards Zipp. Hitch noticed and handed Sparky over to the Pegasus. “Hey, Sparky.” Zipp said gently as Sparky hugged her. “I guess she recognises her mother figure.” Hitch whispered in Zipp’s ear. Zipp laughed. “Guess so.” she said, putting Sparkly back on the ground. “Aw,” Pipp said suddenly. “Why didn’t you four tell me you were going to be using makeup to get into the spirit of things?” “We didn’t plan it,” Sunny explained. “We just bumped into Jazz and Rocky at their stall in Bridlewood and they styled our manes for us.” “We didn’t plan it either,” Zipp added. “Posey got me to lead the parade and styled me up for it, and Hitch styled his mane to match.” “Well, might as well join in.” Pipp decided. “Come on, Misty.” “Coming.” Misty called as she followed Pipp into the Brighthouse. Right after the two went inside, Jazz and Rocky arrived, panting heavily. “Wow. It is difficult keeping up with someone who is flying.” Rocky commented, gesturing to Sunny. “You know you could have just flown after them, right?” Jazz pointed out. Rocky snorted. “And leave my marefriend to walk back alone? No thanks, I’d rather keep you company.” Jazz smiled. “My knight in shining armour.” She kissed her coltfriend’s check. “Ah. Here you all are.” Posey said as she arrived with Windy. The Pegasus looked around. “Where are Pipp and Misty?” She asked. “We’re here.” Pipp declared as she and Misty came out of the Brighthouse. In addition to both of them now having rainbow stripes in their manes Pipp had face paint on her left cheek depicting the bi flag, while Misty had the lesbian flag painted on her left cheek. Posey gestured with her hoof. “Right then. Come on, everypony. It’s time for the fireworks display.” A short time later a large crowd of ponies had gathered on blankets at the beach. “So you’re sure these fireworks are going to take the shape we want?” Jazz asked Posey. “Positive,” the mare answered. “I even asked Sprout to help design them and had some Unicorns use their magic to ensure the fireworks retain their shape in the air for longer.” Jazz raised her eyebrows. “You asked Sprout to help you design the fireworks?” She hid her face in her hoof. “Oh my glitter, this is gonna be a disaster.” “Come on, Jazz.” Windy said as she draped a wing over her marefriend’s back. “Posey wouldn’t ask for Sprout’s help unless she thought he was the best pony for the job.” “I know, it’s just… Sprout doesn’t have the best track record for designing things that work properly.” Posey giggled. “If you’re thinking of the Sproutous Maximus, it did work as intended, Sprout just didn’t know how to operate it. We know what we’re doing with the fireworks.” Jazz sighed. “I guess you’re right.” “So, how long will the images stay in the air exactly?” Rocky asked. “By my estimations, around half an hour.” Posey replied. “Do you think they’ll be mad?” Thunder said suddenly. “Doubtful,” Zoom answered. “Pipp and Misty aren’t even trying to hide it. They even uploaded a photo.” “Really?” Jazz was curious. Zoom nodded, showing Jazz the picture on her phone. Meanwhile on another part of the beach Haven had also found the photo of Pipp and Misty. Accompanying the photo was the text Happy Pride Month, Pippsqueaks! “What in the…” she asked out loud. Alphabittle glanced at the phone screen and laughed. “You know, I often wonder what those six get up to every day.” He commented. Over with the Mane Six they were all recounting their day. “Wait,” Pipp realised. “So you’re telling me we all got together with our crushes on the same day?” “Looks like it.” Izzy said. The six all looked at each other, then they all burst out laughing. Back with the firework organisers Posey was plugging a microphone into a pair of speakers, allowing her voice to be heard across the whole beach. “Attention everyone, the fireworks show is about to begin.” Everypony looked up to the sky as Posey gave the signal to start lighting the fireworks. Ponies “oh”ed and “aw”ed as fireworks of different colours and shapes appeared above them. “And now, for the grand finale!” Posey declared, before giving a nod to Windy, who launched the final three fireworks. Rather than being generic fireworks, these ones took distinctive forms. More specifically, the shape of six ponies; Izzy hugging Sunny, Zipp giving Hitch an envelope with a heart on it and Pipp kissing Misty on the cheek. For the group in question the reaction was instantaneous. Sunny’s eyes widened, Izzy’s horn sparked, Zipp gasped, Hitch’s jaw dropped, Pipp’s wings flared and Misty blushed furiously. Over with Haven and Alphabittle, the queen put a hoof over her muzzle and whispered “Oh my,” while Alphabittle muttered “What the…” under his breath. Meanwhile the ones who set the fireworks were all rolling around on the floor laughing. Jazz managed to control herself enough to grab the microphone and announce “That’s all, folks. If you’d like, you can make your way over to the Canterlove community centre where a community dance is just starting.” Slowly, ponies started to disperse from the beach and headed towards the community centre. Rocky spotted Pipp flying amongst the crowd, making a beeline for them. “And now, we run.” He cried. The six of them bolted. “Get back here, you lot!” Pipp called. She tried to chase after them, but Misty grabbed the Pegasus’ tail with her magic and pulled her back. “Woah, Pipp. Let’s not do anything rash. I don’t think yelling at them in public would be a good idea.” Zipp and Hitch were still staring up at the fireworks. “You know, I wish they asked our permission before doing this, but the fireworks do look nice.” Zipp commented. “Yeah,” Hitch agreed. “They really do.” Pipp sighed as she landed beside Misty.. “Yeah, I guess you’re right.” The pop star might have seemed upset, but the small smile on her muzzle and the fact that she took out her phone to take a photo of the fireworks revealed how she really felt. “I take it you lot didn’t know this was going to happen?” Haven asked as she and Alphabittle came over to the group. Misty shook her head. “No. We were just as surprised as everyone else.” Haven smiled. “Well, why don’t we all head on over to the dance and you can tell the two of us how your day went. Because judging from this,” she held up her phone with the picture of Pipp kissing Misty’s cheek on it. “It was very interesting.” The group nodded their heads in agreement and they all started walking towards the community centre. Sunny and Izzy lagged behind slightly. “So, our second community dance of the day.” Izzy pointed out. “Yeah, but I don’t mind. I’m with great company, after all.” Sunny said. Izzy giggled, nuzzling into Sunny’s side. “Me too, Sunny. Me too.” Author's Note Happy pride month, everypony.
