A Herd in Maretime Bay

Chapters

Flowerbeds
Massaging
Arrangement
Advice
Conversation
Confrontation
The Start of a New Cycle
Parenting and Herding
Back at the Beach
On the Dance Floor

Flowerbeds

When Misty and her friends looked back on how she joined their little herd, the others said that they handled things poorly and that Misty handled the situation as well as she could have. Misty disagreed. In not talking to her friends and pretending to be ignorant about what was happening she had let her emotions bottle up until that conversation with her father and Queen Haven finally sent her over the edge and caused her to explode at her friends. But her friends refused to let her take the blame, insisting that they should have just told her so she didn’t have to pretend she didn’t know anything.

How did it all start? Several weeks ago at the Brighthouse the day had started out like any other. Misty was sitting on her bed reading a book, Pipp was busy writing a new song, Zipp was tiding up her clues from her most recent case, Izzy was making a homemade card and Sunny was remaking her bed. Then the front doors opened and Hitch’s voice called from downstairs. “Girls, I have something to show you outside.”

The girls all dropped what they were doing to come take a look. Misty was the last one down, her bed being the furthest from the ramp. She followed the others outside as Hitch led them to the community garden, where there was a new addition. Four flowerbeds; one containing mostly orange flowers with some blue and pink ones forming the shape of shooting stars, one mostly purple bed containing blue flowers forming the shape of a heart with pins in it, one mostly white bed containing blue, pink and yellow flowers forming the shape of a lightning bolt with a crown above it and a mostly pink bed with purple, white and yellow flowers forming the shape of a music note with a crown beneath it.

Misty watched in amusement as the other fours mares gushed about the flowerbeds forming the shapes of their Cutie Marks before all of them went to hug Hitch at the same time, resulting in the stallion losing his balance and the five tumbling to the ground. Misty giggled, closely followed by Izzy and Pipp. Then Sunny joined in the giggling, then suddenly all six of them were laughing. Once she managed to stop laughing and wiped a tear from her eye, Misty headed back inside. Hitch had clearly meant the other four when he said “girls”, not her. The flowerbeds were another romantic gesture from the sheriff for his four herdmates.

Misty knew her new friends well. In fact, she knew something about them that no pony else did. What was that? Well, it was a huge source of gossip around town that the most handsome stallion in Maretime Bay spent most of his time in the presence of four beautiful mares. Misty had eavesdropped on several conversations where ponies would argue which of the four Hitch would choose to date; the sometimes Alicorn childhood best friend, the cute Unicorn crafter, the hot tomboy detective or the sexy pop star princess. Misty initially dismissed these conversations as just gossip, but the more she observed her friends the more she realised Hitch had picked a fifth option the town’s ponies hadn’t considered; all four of them.

Herds in Equestria dated back centuries, but these days they were a mostly forgotten piece of history. Misty suspected that was why she was the only one had figured out her friends were a herd, barely anypony knew about them anymore. Of course, she learned later that she wasn’t entirely correct with that assumption. While she and her friends were the only ponies in the present day who knew about herds, Misty wasn’t the only pony who had worked out the truth about her friends.

Massaging

Misty had gone back to reading her book when the others returned to the room and started eagerly grabbing things.

“Misty, we’re going to the beach.” Izzy declared as she ran to the foot of Misty’s bed. “Do you want to come?”

Misty smiled excitedly as she closed her book. “Sure.”

Misty finished rubbing sunscreen on her arms and laid down on her blanket beneath her parasol. Looking to her left she saw the other girls rubbing sunscreen on themselves while Hitch laid out their things for them. Misty smiled before looking out across the beach. Considering it wasn’t as hot as the day she went surfing with Zipp, the beach was surprisingly packed. She spotted Seashell, Peach Fizz and Glory playing by the water’s edge. Seashell saw Misty watching them and waved to her. Misty waved back.

“You’re rather fond of those three, aren’t you?” Said a familiar voice.

“Oh, hey Jazz.” Misty greeted as the mane stylist approached her. “Yeah, I am. They’re the ones who taught me it didn’t matter what age I got my Cutie Mark, after all.”

Jazz nodded, then gestured to Misty’s friends. Turning her head to look Misty found Hitch massaging Sunny’s back while Izzy, Zipp and Pipp waited to have their backs massaged.

“They’re cute together.” Jazz commented.

“Yeah, they are.” Misty agreed.

That was apparently the wrong thing to say, judging by Jazz’s facial expression. “Come on, Misty. You live with four of them, I refuse to believe you don’t know what’s going on.”

Misty let out a squeak. She had thought she was the only one who had worked it out.

Izzy looked up as Hitch started massaging her back. “You okay, Misty?”

“Totally,” Misty said, her voice unusually high. “Everything’s fine.”

Izzy seemed doubtful, but let the matter drop.

“Jazz, what did you do?” Rocky asked as he walked over and put his arms around her waist.

Jazz playfully poked her coltfriend’s chest. “Why are you assuming I did something?”

Misty snorted at Jazz’s comment.

“Okay, maybe I did say something.” Jazz admitted.

Misty stood up and led Jazz and Rocky over to the water’s edge. “So you know the others are a herd?” She asked in a whisper.

Jazz and Rocky both looked confused. “What’s a herd?” They asked at the same time.

Okay, so Jazz and Rocky may have worked out the truth, but not necessarily all the details. “A herd is when a stallion has two to five mares as mates.” Misty explained.

“Oh,” Jazz and Rocky said together. “We didn’t know there was a term for it.”

Misty laughed softly. “So, how did you work it out?”

“Misty please,” Rocky replied. “Pipp is our boss, and the others visit Mane Melody often enough for us to see how they act together. It wasn’t difficult to put two and two together.”

“Well, aside from Zipp.” Jazz added. “She’s rarely ever in Mane Melody.”

Misty laughed again, louder this time. “Of course she isn’t,” she said at normal speaking volume. “This is Zipp we’re talking about. She hates being dolled up.”

“What?” Zipp called out just as Hitch was about to start massaging her back.

“Nothing,” Misty called back. “Just that you hate being dolled up.”

“Oh,” she replied. “Yeah I do.”

“So, Misty?” Jazz went back to whispering. “Are you part of their herd?”

Misty was taken aback by the question. Before she could answer an image suddenly popped into her head of her lying with her friends and Hitch massaging her back. Then as quickly as it came the image faded.

“No. No, I’m not.” She finally said in a flat tone.

Jazz gave Misty a smirk that suggested she knew what the Unicorn had just been thinking of. “Okay. Well, I’m sure you’ve got to at least have an idea of what happens behind closed doors.”

Misty shook her head. “No, actually. In fact, they haven’t told me anything about their herd. I just worked it out, like you two did.”

Jazz and Rocky were shocked.

“Wait, so they haven’t said anything about it to you, at all?” Rocky asked.

Misty shook her head again.

“That’s not right,” Jazz growled. She sounded angry. “You’re their best friend, and roommate in the case of the other girls, and they haven’t told you anything?”

“Jazz, calm down.” Misty whispered calmly. “What reason do the five of them have to tell me anything about their love lives?”

“Oh I don’t know,” Jazz replied sarcastically. “Maybe the fact that you hang out with the five of the them everyday and sleep under the same roof as four of them. Heck, you girls all share the same bedroom for buck’s sake, the same bedroom where Hitch and the others are probably cuddling, kissing and doing… you know? You deserve to know when it’s your bedroom too.”

Misty didn’t respond. Jazz had a point. The others should have told her.

Arrangement

After the group got back from the beach Misty closed the curtain around her bed, laid down and stared at the ceiling, deep in thought. Should the others have told her they were a herd? Their love lives were none of her business, but as Jazz pointed out, the others were probably getting up to who knows what in the bedroom she was sharing with the other mares. She did deserve to know so she didn’t accidentally walk in on something she didn’t want to see. Granted, she already knew to be careful whenever she came home so she didn’t walk in on something, but that was only because she figured out on her own the others were a herd. And then there was something else Jazz brought up.

“Are you part of their herd?”

…

“No. No, I’m not.”

Misty was part of their friend group now, but that didn’t mean she had that type of bond with the others. She knew how close the others were. Sunny and Hitch had been best friends since foalhood, Zipp and Pipp were sisters and Izzy quickly grew close to everyone she met (Misty being an example). The five of them had formed a companionship with each other when they went on a quest to restore magic to Equestria and Sunny, Izzy, Zipp and Pipp then grew closer still when they made the decision to move into the Brighthouse together.

By comparison, Misty’s connection to the others was… complicated. She had begun their friendship by lying to them, and while she was completely honest with them now and they assured her it was water under the bridge as far as they were concerned, she just didn’t click with the others the same way they did with each other. And yet, when Alphabittle asked the others if Misty could move into the Brighthouse with them they agreed immediately and welcomed her with open arms. And she felt less alienated from them by the day.

The image of her lying on the beach with the others while Hitch massaged her back returned, and she had to shake her head to get rid of it. Now wasn’t the time to be thinking about any of that. Right now she needed to talk to them about their herd, and if they weren’t going to bring it up then she’d have to. But since they hadn’t told her about it yet, or told anyone about it as far as she knew, that meant they evidently wanted it to be a secret. This meant the topic would need to be approached with delicacy, something Misty wasn’t exactly the best at.

Suddenly she was snapped out of her thoughts by a voice yelling “Hey, Misty!”

Misty shrieked and jumped, only to discover it was just Izzy poking her head through the curtain.

“Izzy?” Misty asked, calming down slightly. “What are you doing here?”

“It’s dinner time,” Izzy said in her usual overly cheerful and energetic tone. “Sunny said to come get you.”

“Oh,” Misty regained her composure. “Right. Okay. Coming.”

The next morning when Misty woke up there was no sign of the others in the bedroom. It didn’t take long to work out where they were as she could hear the shower running and the others tended to take group showers, having installed a shower taking up an entire wall of the bathroom for that reason. Sometimes Hitch would come over before breakfast and the five of them would shower together, entrusting Misty to look after Sparky while they did so. Misty showered by herself, which left her with a lot of empty space to work with since the shower was big enough to fit eight adult ponies if it needed to.

Deciding to go grab some orange juice while she waited for the others to finish in the shower, Misty walked downstairs in her pyjamas, only to find Hitch sitting on the couch. He looked exhausted.

“Morning, Hitch.” Misty greeted as she walked over to him.

“Being a single parent is exhausting.” Hitch responded. He leaned against the couch with his arms lying across the back of it. His eyes were closed.

Misty nodded. “It definitely is. I don’t know how Queen Haven would have managed it with Zipp and Pipp if she didn’t have her castle staff to support her, and I don’t know how dad managed it with Izzy after he lost me, but you’re not alone Hitch. Sparky has four amazing moms to help look after him.”

Hitch opened his eyes to look at her. “Technically, he has five moms now.” He corrected.

“But I’m not part of your herd,” is what she wanted to say, but she found the words stuck in her throat, so instead she asked “Where is Sparky anyway?”

Hitch closed his eyes again and pointed with a finger off to his right. “He’s over there, playing with some building blocks.”

Misty looked to where Hitch was pointing, and smiled. “Correction, he was playing with building blocks.”

Looking over to see what Misty meant, Hitch discovered that Sparky had turned the building blocks into picture frames with his dragon fire.

“Oh, Sparky.” He whined.

Misty laughed before walking over to the baby dragon. “It’s alright. I got him.”

Sparky giggled as Misty approached. She leaned down and picked up the picture frames. They all had photos in them; one was of Sunny giving Sparky a piggyback ride after taking him to try cotton candy for the first time, Sparky still happily chewing on his in the photo. The next was of Izzy and Sparky from the time Izzy tried to teach him how to paint. They were both covered in paint in the photo, but smiling happily. The third photo was of Sparky posing with Zipp in her detective gear after he helped her solve a case by picking up what turned out to be a vital clue. The fourth photo was of Pipp and Sparky backstage during one of Pipp’s performances, with Sparky sitting on Pipp’s lap and the Pegasus dressed up for her performance. Then Misty got to the last photo, and a small tear appeared in her eye. The last photo was of her and Sparky sitting exhausted on the couch, leaning against one another. Misty remembered that day, the others had been helping Queen Haven in Zephyr Heights so she looked after Sparky all day.

Feeling something pulling at her top, she looked down to see Sparky tugging at it. Curious, she bent down to his level and put the photos on the floor. Sparky hugged her, burying his head in her neck. Misty was taken aback, but wrapped her arms around him gently.

“See what I mean?” Hitch said as he walked over and put his hand on Misty’s shoulder. “He has five moms.”

Misty stood up, still holding Sparky. She carefully handed him to Hitch. “I’m… gonna go see if the others are out of the shower.”

Running back upstairs Misty found the others coming out of the bathroom, wrapped in towels. “Hey, Misty.” Sunny greeted.

“Hey, guys.” Misty greeted back.

“Misty,” Izzy said cheerfully, running over to hug her friend. “How are you?”

“I’m fine,” Misty replied, smiling. Classic Izzy, always so perky. “Just waiting to use the shower. Hitch and Sparky are downstairs, by the way.”

“Right,” Sunny said. “We’d better get changed.”

“You guys go,” Misty said. “I’ll join you down there in a few minutes.”

When Misty came back to her bed after getting out of the shower she found her phone ringing. The caller ID showed it was her father. She picked it up and answered. “Dad?”

“Hey, honey.” Her dad answered.

“Hello, Misty dear.” Said a second voice over the phone.

“Queen Haven?” Misty asked, recognising the voice.

“The one and only.” The queen answered playfully, followed by a bark from Cloudpuff.

“Okay…” Misty was surprised, though she should have known Queen Haven would have been with her dad. The two were dating after all. “So, to what do I owe the pleasure?”

“We were just wondering if you’d like to come have breakfast with us tomorrow morning?” Queen Haven asked.

Misty’s eyes narrowed. Something seemed… off about the tone of Haven’s voice. “Just me? And not the others?”

“Haven figured it would be a good idea,” Alphabittle explained. “We’ve had some family time with Zipp and Pipp so they could get used to their mom dating again. You deserve the same chance to get used to your father dating again.”

Nothing seemed off with her father’s tone. If Haven was planning something, her father didn’t seem aware of it. “Sure. I’d love to.” Misty answered cheerfully.

“Excellent,” her dad said. “Meet us at the cafe on Mane Street, ten o’ clock tomorrow. Got it?”

“Tomorrow, ten o’ clock, cafe on Mane Street,” Misty repeated. “Got it. See you then. Bye.”

“Bye.” Haven and Alphabittle both said, followed by another bark from Cloudpuff before Misty ended the call.

Misty stared down at her phone. She now had to have breakfast with Queen Haven and her father tomorrow and talk to the others about their herd at some point. She could do this. Totally.

Advice

Author's Note

Between the publication of this chapter and the last, chapters two and three have been edited. If you read them when they were initially published a reread may be in order.

Advice

A short time later Misty was dressed and downstairs having breakfast with her friends.

“So what’s the plan for today?” Hitch asked.

“Well,” Sunny began. “The four of us want to go clothes shopping at Zephyr Heights today.”

“Clothes shopping for what?” Misty asked.

“Swimsuits.” Pipp answered, as though it was the most obvious thing in the world.

Misty raised an eyebrow. “And what exactly is wrong with the ones you were wearing yesterday?”

“They’re old and worn out, so we need new ones.” Zipp explained.

Right. That’s one reason you’d want new swimsuits. I can think of another, Misty thought as she glanced at Hitch. Then again their bikinis did look rather faded yesterday. “And what if I’m happy with the swimsuit I’ve got?”

“You don’t have to come.” Sunny reassured her.

Izzy didn’t seem happy about Misty’s decision to sit the shopping trip out. “Awwww. But I wanted to get you a new swimsuit too, Misty.” She whined.

Izzy gave Misty a pair of puppy dog eyes that nearly made Misty decide to come along, but she held firm. “Sorry, Izzy. Maybe next time.”

“Huh.” Izzy slumped in her chair and crossed her arms, looking rather grumpy.

“And let me guess, you want me to come and judge how good you look in them?” Hitch asked.

Sunny, Zipp and Pipp nodded eagerly, but Izzy merely jerked her head. Misty had to fight to keep a straight face and not burst out laughing because her guess had been correct.

Hitch sighed. “Okay, but I want to take Sparky to Mane Melody at some point and get his claws trimmed.”

“Actually,” Misty spoke up suddenly. “I’m planning on going to Mane Melody anyway to see Jazz and Rocky. Why don’t I take Sparky with me and get his claws done while you guys go shopping?”

The idea had just popped into her head when Hitch mentioned Mane Melody. It was starting to dawn on her that she didn’t have the first idea how to approach the topic of herds, so she needed help. And since Jazz and Rocky were the only other ponies she knew of who knew about her friends’ herd they were her best option.

Hitch’s face lit up. “Really? That’s be great, Misty.”

Sparky waddled over to Misty and hugged her leg. She reached down and picked him up, letting him sit on her knee. Izzy watched the two out of the corner of her eye. Her arms were still folded, but she was smiling slightly. Misty smiled at her. Izzy unfolded her arms and smiled back.

Misty and Sparky waved to the others in the Marestream as it took off for Zephyr Heights, then started walking towards Mane Melody. When they got there they found the door was locked. Hardly surprising, considering it was twenty minutes before opening time. But Misty had come prepared, as she had borrowed Pipp’s key. So she just unlocked the door and walked in.

“Oh, hi Misty.” Jazz greeted as the Unicorn entered the shop, Sparky following her in. “What brings you here so bright and early?”

“Hitch wants Sparky’s claws trimmed,” Misty explained. “And I wanted to talk to you…” she dropped her voice to a whisper. “About the herd.”

Jazz nodded in understanding. “Ah.”

Rocky sat Sparky down in one of the chairs and began filing his claws with a re-enforced nail file specifically designed for dragon claws. Misty and Jazz sat down on the edge of the stage to talk.

“So what’s the problem with the herd?” Jazz asked.

“Well, I decided that if the others weren’t going to bring up the herd in a conversation then I’d do it. But when I tried to mention it to Hitch earlier the words sorta… caught in my throat.” Misty explained.

Jazz thought about it for a second. “Do you know why your words caught in your throat?”

Misty shook her head. “No. I had no trouble talking about it with you and Rocky yesterday or right now, but when I was talking to Hitch I couldn’t get the words out.”

“I have an idea why,” Jazz began, a cheeky grin on her face.

“Okay…” Misty said, not liking the look on Jazz’s muzzle one bit.

“Maybe it’s because you want to join their herd?” Jazz suggested.

Misty choked on nothing as her face turned red. The image of her and her friends on the beach while Hitch massaged her back jumped into her head again, clearer than it had been before. Misty shook her head desperately to get rid of the image. “What? I-I… no!”

Jazz didn’t look convinced. “Are you sure?” She asked in a singsong voice, her smirk growing.

“Yes!” Misty answered, feeling more uncomfortable by the second.

Her discomfort must have showed in her body language, because Jazz’s face changed from shit eating grin to genuine concern. “Sorry,” she apologised. “I just thought that since you were growing so close to them…”

Misty felt the blush start to fade from her face. “It’s okay,” she reassured Jazz. “But I don’t think that’s it.”

“So what do you think the problem is then?” Jazz asked.

Misty thought about it, and then an idea came to her. “I was on my own for a long time before I met my friends,” she began. She had technically been living with Opaline during that time, but she had been so neglectful Misty might has well been living on her own for all the difference it would have made. “It was difficult for me to get used to being a roommate. And the herd is an even more difficult topic to bring up, especially since they’re being so secretive about it.”

“Well, how did you bring up the topic of being roommates?”

“Er,” Misty paused. “I didn’t, actually. My dad asked the others if I could move into the Brighthouse, and they said yes. So they moved my stuff in for me and I just… moved in. The transition wasn’t easy, I felt extremely overwhelmed, but I didn’t say anything because I thought the others would be mad at me for not being grateful for what I had been given. Eventually it became too much for me and I ran off to spend some time with my dad. When I got back it turned out the others realised I needed my own space so they moved my bed into its own corner.”

Jazz shook her head, then gave Misty an encouraging smile. “Misty, you can’t keep bottling up your emotions until you snap. If you need to talk to the others about something then you need to take the initiative and just do it.”

Before Misty could respond Rocky interrupted. “Done.” He declared.

Sparky hopped off the chair and walked over to Misty to show her his trimmed claws.

Misty smiled at him. “Looking good, Sparky.” She looked up to the Pegasus stallion. “Thanks, Rocky.”

He smiled back at her. “No problem, Misty.”

Jazz looked at her phone. “It’s opening time in three minutes.”

Misty stood up and picked up Sparky. “We’d better get out of your hair.”

She quickly paid Rocky and went to leave.

“Bye, you two.” Rocky said.

“And good luck talking to the others.” Jazz called as Misty closed the door.

Misty was barely paying attention on the way back to the Brighthouse. She wasn’t really looking where she was going, nor did she notice that Sparky (who she was still carrying in her arms) was playing with her mane. Her mind was still on the conversation she’d had with Jazz, and in particular one line.

“Maybe it’s because you want to join their herd?”

The sentence was replaying in Misty’s mind like a record on loop. She didn’t want to join their herd, did she?

She thought about her friends one by one. Starting with Izzy; she was Misty’s best friend, and the first real friend she’d ever had. Her cheerful and energetic personality should have been off-putting for the timid and withdrawn Misty, and it had been at the start. But Misty had quickly gotten used to it, as well as the hugs Izzy always gave her. All of her friends, but particularly Izzy, taught her what true affection felt like. Misty might not be part of their herd, but with the exception of kisses Izzy was as affectionate with her as she was with the others, even nuzzling her on occasion. Izzy had clearly grown fond of her Unicorn friend, and Misty had grown fond of her too.

In contrast with her friendship with Izzy, Misty’s friendship with Zipp didn’t start out well, mostly because Zipp was the only one who saw through the lies Misty was always telling when she first met the group. Misty didn’t hold it against her, partly because Zipp had been right about her lying and partly because she knew why Zipp was so suspicious of her. Zipp was very protective of people she was close to, a trait that probably stemmed from being an older sister. She saw that Misty’s story wasn’t adding up and thought she might be trying to hurt her friends. Zipp had been determined to see beneath Misty’s mask, and when she finally did she saw the truth that not even Misty herself saw at the time, a frightened mare who desperately needed help. The Pegasus was the first to discover Misty’s lack of a Cutie Mark and rather than being disgusted, like the Unicorn thought she would be, Zipp was encouraging. These days the two got along much better. They would often go surfing together and Zipp had embraced Misty as part of the group, being as protective of her as she was of the others. Zipp made Misty feel safe.

Pipp had been hard for Misty to get a read on, but she soon realised that was because Pipp had two personas, the pop star princess she portrayed herself as in public and the real Pipp Petals she only showed when the group were alone. The pop star princess persona was a little… loud for Misty’s liking, but she understood Pipp just wanted to spread joy with her music. The real Pipp was much softer and always eager to make everyone feel welcome. When Izzy first introduced Misty to the group Pipp always made sure that Misty was included in activities and when Misty finally got away from Opaline, Pipp took her under her wing to make sure Misty was adjusting to life in Maretime Bay after living alone for so long. Misty enjoyed this more gentle side to Pipp. It made her feel comfortable.

Unlike Pipp, Sunny was easy to read, because the mare wore her heart on her sleeve. She was kind and caring to a fault, and her cheerfulness and energy could rival Izzy’s. Sunny was also an excellent cook, putting together meals for her friends that put even the five star courses Queen Haven had served them at royal events to shame. Sunny always tried to put a positive spin on situations and make others smile when they were feeling down. The Brighthouse had been her home all her life, but she was more than happy to let Izzy, Zipp, Pipp and later Misty move in with her. Sunny gave off an aura of positivity that was infectious.

And finally there was Hitch. Misty could see why the others fell for him. He was dedicated to his role as Maretime Bay sheriff to keep everyone safe, but that wasn’t his only dedication. He was a caring and loving father to Sparky. It wasn’t surprising Sparky chose to keep living with him instead of living with the other dragons at the Isle of Scaly. Hitch was also dedicated to looking after his friends. If he could help any of them in any way, he would. Not to mention he was also charming, not just to his herdmates, but also to other mares, including Misty. Add onto that his good looks and well toned abs…

Shit.

Misty stopped walking suddenly.

Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit.

Jazz was right. Misty did want to join the herd. Swaying on her feet from the realisation Misty fell against a lamppost and slip down it into a sitting position on the ground. Sparky looked at her in alarm, tapped her chin to try and get her attention. After several seconds without a response she shifted his head to look at him.

“I’m alright, Sparky.” She managed to say, sounding like she had a head cold.

How was she supposed to bring up the herd now?

Conversation

When Misty got back to the Brighthouse with Sparky the others weren’t back from Zephyr Heights yet. And honestly, Misty was relieved. She wasn’t sure how to face the others after what she had realised.

Since the Unicorn was walking around again, Sparky assumed she was alright now. But in actuality Misty was in a trance, barely aware of what she was doing. She only snapped back to reality when she tried to make peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for lunch and ended up getting most of it in her mane. Sparky stared at her in confusion.

Misty gave him a nervous smile. “Heh, heh.” Then she unexpectedly slammed her head into the counter top. “I’m a mess.” She muttered. Sparky reached over from his seat on the other side of the counter top and patted a part of her mane that wasn’t messy.

After this minor incident Misty decided to make jam on toast instead. She managed to put together the meal without making another mess, but only ate half of hers before leaving the rest for Sparky and running upstairs to take another shower so she could clean her mane.

As she stepped under the jet stream and began running her fingers through her mane (discovering it was also tangled, probably because of Sparky playing with it) her thoughts turned back to her friends’ herd. If the topic was hard to bring up before, it was going to be nearly impossible now. How was she supposed to talk about the herd without mentioning she wanted to be part of it. And then another thought occurred to her; would her being part of the herd even work? Given how her first few days living in the Brighthouse went, her honest answer was no. Something those days had taught her was that while her friends all had different interests, they were all very outgoing, Zipp a bit less so than the others, but it was still very easy to see that the five were romantically compatible. Misty on the other hand was a bit more private and preferred to keep to herself sometimes. It was why her bed had been moved from the centre of the bedroom to its own corner and why it had a curtain around it. Sure, Misty was more outgoing than she used to be and the others were always willing to be accommodating to her, but she still wasn’t sure she’d be romantically compatible with the others.

As she was grabbing the shampoo she heard the familiar sound of the marestream landing outside and found herself shivering suddenly. Right now the only thought going through her head was please don’t be too awkward in front of the others.

When Misty exited the bathroom with a towel around her, she found the other girls sitting on their beds.

“There you are,” Sunny said as Misty came into the bedroom. “Made a bit of a mess making lunch, did we?”

Misty laughed nervously and scratched the back of her head. “Sorry about that.”

“Don’t worry about it,” Izzy waved her hand dismissively. “We cleaned it up for you.”

Misty smiled at them. “Hey, thanks. By the way, where are Hitch and Sparky?”

“Down here,” Hitch called from downstairs. “We heard the shower running and worked out where you were. Don’t worry, neither of us are coming up until you’re dressed again.”

“Okay.” Misty called back. She ran over to her bed where she had left her clothes and climbed onto the bed, using her magic to close the curtain.

“Hey, Misty?” Zipp asked as the Unicorn was unwrapping the towel from around herself.

“Yes?” Misty responded as she started dressing.

“That’s twice now that you’ve gone off to see Jazz and Rocky. Is something going on?”

Misty let out a surprised squeak, which was fortunately drowned out by Sunny, Izzy and Pipp all rather sternly yelling “Zipp!”

“Can you not go two weeks without interrogating Misty?” Izzy asked, sounding very annoyed.

“Sorry,” Zipp said. “It’s just that I know for a fact that I came up in at least one of the conversations and I got the impression they were talking about us.”

“Well, no duh, detective,” Pipp said sarcastically. “They’re our friends, of course they would talk about us.”

“Misty, what were you three talking about?” Sunny asked, trying to settle things.

Misty took a few deep breaths to calm herself down. There was no way she was bringing up the herd after being put on the spot like that, so she needed to think of a lie, fast. Or, she could say something that was somewhat close to the truth. “Oh, nothing. Jazz and I were just having a playful argument about some gossip about you lot.”

“What gossip?” Zipp asked.

“The gossip around the fact that the most handsome stallion spends everyday with four very pretty mares,” Misty answered as she finished dressing and pulled her curtain back. “Jazz and I were trying to settle the debate of which of you four Hitch would choose to date. I’m dressed by the way.” She added, calling down to Hitch.

Sunny, Izzy, Zipp and Pipp all looked at each other, then burst out laughing.

“Are people seriously still arguing about that?” Sunny asked between laughs.

“Yes.” Misty replied, having heard towns’ ponies talking about it as recently as the previous week, yet she, Jazz and Rocky were the only ones she knew of who had guessed correctly.

“So what part of the gossip were you and Jazz talking about?” Hitch asked as he came upstairs with Sparky.

“Ah, it was stupid. We were just making points as to why you might pick one of the four.” Misty lied, feeling a familiar sense of self loathing bubbling up inside her chest.

Hitch chuckled. “Misty, you of all ponies should know that gossip is just gossip. I could never pick one of them over the others.”

Which is why you chose all of them, Misty thought before she remembered something. “By the way, Queen Haven and Alphabittle invited me to breakfast tomorrow.”

Pipp looked up at that. “Wait, what? I’d understand if it was just you and your dad, but why is mom going?”

Misty shrugged her shoulders. “They said it was so I could get used to my dad dating again, like how they did for you and Zipp.”

“Is that all they said?” Zipp asked curiously.

“It is, but…” Misty paused, her eyes narrowing. “Something was off with Haven’s tone. I think she’s planning something. Whatever it is, I don’t think dad’s aware of it.”

“Do you want any of us to go with you?” Izzy asked.

Misty shook her head. “No thanks. I don’t want to make a scene if I turn out to be wrong.”

The following morning Misty was up, showered, dressed and out of the house before the others were awake. On the way to the cafe she was cursing herself for lying to her friends again. She’d promised she’d left that part of her behind when she left Opaline’s side. Lying to her friends had always made her feel like shit before, but now it was even worse. Back then she’d been lying because Opaline had convinced her it was for a noble cause, and she was just getting to know the others anyway. Now though, the group had embraced her as one of their own in spite of the fact that they knew she had deceived them, yet here she was falling back on old habits because she didn’t know how to handle broaching a subject.

Jazz’s words about taking the initiative when she needed to talk to her friends about something echoed in her mind, and Misty felt even worse for lying yesterday, but she pushed those thoughts out of her mind as she arrived at the cafe. She could worry about the topic of herds later.

Entering the cafe she spotted Haven and Alphabittle instantly. She waved at them and walked over.

“Misty,” Her father stood up and hugged her. “How are you?”

“Hey dad,” Misty said. “I’m alright.”

“Hello, Misty dear.” Haven stood up to shake Misty’s hand after the father and daughter separated.

“Hi, Queen Haven.” Misty greeted, noticing there was something odd about the smile Haven was giving her. The Unicorn was already beginning to regret turning down Izzy’s offer of someone coming with her.

The three sat down, but as Misty was reaching for a menu her dad raised a hand to stop her.

“Before we order, I wanted to give you these.” He reached into his pocket and pulled out nine cards, all of them different colours. Misty took the cards and read one of them, which had her name on it.

Misty Brightdawn
You are invited to
the grand opening of the
Zephyr Heights Crystal Tearoom

Misty’s eyes widened in surprise. Haven and Alphabittle had mentioned the idea of opening a Crystal Tearoom in Zephyr Heights, but she had no idea it was actually happening, and so soon at that. Flipping through the other invitations she found they were for her friends and Sparky, Jazz and Rocky.

“Well, what do you think?” Alphabittle asked as Misty pocketed the invitations.

“I’m amazed. How did you manage to do it so fast?”

“You’d be surprised what can be accomplished when you combine Pegasus flight with Unicorn magic.” Haven commented.

Misty nodded her head. “I’ll give these to the others when I get back. Now can we eat?”

Alphabittle clapped his hands together. “Yes, let’s.”

Misty and Haven looked at each other, then giggled.

Breakfast was mostly pleasant, but Misty noticed that Haven was leaving Misty and her father to do most of the talking. The queen seemed to be deep in thought, and Misty had a feeling she was preparing herself for whatever she was planning.

“Haven, you’ve barely said anything,” Alphabittle said eventually. “This is supposed to be an opportunity for Misty to get used to us dating, and you seem like you’re a million miles away.”

Haven shook her head and smiled apologetically. “Sorry.” She straightened her posture and looked Misty right in the eyes. “So, how’s life in the Brighthouse?”

Misty felt a strange sense of foreboding, even though Queen Haven’s question was perfectly innocent.

“Everything’s fine, now that I’ve settled in properly.” She answered.

Haven nodded before looking out the window. She seemed to be steeling herself for what was coming next, which meant it couldn’t be good.

“Misty,” Haven began suddenly as she looked back to the Unicorn. “Is there… something going on between you girls and Hitch?”

Alphabittle had been adding sugar cubes to his tea, but he was so shocked by the question he missed the cup entirely.

Misty’s eyes narrowed. So that’s what this was about. Zipp and Pipp once had a chat with Misty about the fact that their mother was dating her father. During their chat the sisters talked about how their mother told them about the relationship while they were at the jinxie games… and how during the same conversation Haven had asked Zipp and Pipp if they were dating Hitch. The sisters had denied it, but Misty knew they were lying. She wasn’t sure exactly when the herd was formed, but she knew it definitely existed by that point. Evidently Haven still wasn’t convinced, if she was asking Misty.

“No, there isn’t.” Misty lied, feeling the sense of self loathing again. She didn’t like lying to Haven anymore than to her friends, but if her daughters wanted her to know the truth they would have told her when she asked.

Alphabittle looked at Haven in disbelief. “Is this why you wanted to invite Misty here? To ask her that?”

Haven stared down at her tea, unable to look him in the eye. “Partly.” She admitted quietly.

“It’s okay,” Misty said, trying to make the queen feel better. “I’ve overheard some ponies wondering if something’s going on.”

Alphabittle sighed. “Aye. People will do that when a good looking stallion like Hitch spends all his time with a group of attractive mares like you lot.”

Misty nodded in silent agreement.

“Oh,” Haven looked up suddenly. “This was foolish. I’m so sorry, Misty. I’ve ruined the mood.”

“It’s okay,” Misty repeated. “Just one question. Why are you asking me this? I haven’t been part of the group that long.”

“Perhaps, but you are part of the group.” Haven answered. “I assumed that if something was going on, they would have invited you to join in or at least told you about it.”

Misty didn’t respond. Alphabittle tapped on Haven’s shoulder. “If you wanted to ask my daughter something like that, you should have run it by me first.” He whispered in her ear. “We could have asked the six of them together, and in a more polite way.”

“I know, I know. I’m sorry.” She whispered back.

Suddenly Misty stood up so quickly her chair fell over. Haven and Alphabittle looked at her in surprise.

“I need to go.” Misty said hoarsely, before turning and running off.

“Misty, wait.” Her father called, but she didn’t seem to hear him. Misty left the cafe and bolted down the street.

Haven buried her face in her hands. “Oh Haven, you’re so unbelievably stupid. You’ve gone and upset the poor girl.”

Alphabittle looked from Haven to the cafe door, torn between going after his daughter and comforting his girlfriend. Deciding that Misty probably needed some time before she’d be willing to talk, Alphabittle pulled Haven into a hug.

Confrontation

Once she put some distance between herself and the cafe Misty slowed from a run to a walk, Haven’s words echoing through her mind.

“I assumed that if something was going on, they would have invited you to join in or at least told you about it.”

Misty felt anger spreading through her body like a poison. She wasn’t angry at Haven for bringing the topic up. Haven was just being curious, and had no idea what had been going through Misty’s mind the last few days. No, Misty was angry at herself for lying to loved ones again. And the worst part was that she was lying to protect a secret that she technically was never let in on. Misty knew the truth, but that was because she worked it out. Her friends never told her. Her friends. The ones who embraced her as part of the group in spite of her past, considered her as one of Sparky’s moms and let her move in with them so she could have a home where she felt welcome. And yet, they never told her.

“They don’t trust you,” said a voice inside her head that sounded an awful lot like herself. “Why would they? You lied to them for so long.”

Misty scowled as she approached the Brighthouse. She could see the others outside in the community garden. Hitch and Zipp were examining a wobbly section of fence with Sparky sitting on the nearby grass, Pipp and Izzy were taking photos of themselves in front of the Cutie Mark flowerbeds Hitch had grown and Sunny was kneeling in front of the carrot patch, growing carrots with her plant magic. There was a basket of recently pulled up carrots next to her.

Sunny looked up as she heard Misty approaching and waved at her. “Hey, Misty.” She greeted, before noticing how angry the Unicorn looked. Sunny’s usual cheerful smile faded and was replaced by a concerned look. She stood up and opened her mouth to ask what was wrong.

“Don’t say anything.” Misty snarled as she walked past. Ignoring the shocked look on Sunny’s face Misty walked up to the Brighthouse and pushed open the front doors with such force that they bounced off the interior walls. Misty stormed upstairs and over to her bed, pulling out the projector the others had given her from under it. Closing the curtain around her bed Misty sat down and turned the projector on. Projections of videos Pipp had taken of the group started to appear on the wall, but they did little to calm Misty down. In fact, all the videos did was remind her that she and her friends were supposed to be a family, yet the others hadn’t trusted her with their secret.

“Um, Misty.” She looked to the source of the voice, only to find Izzy poking her head through the curtain. “Are you… feeling okay?”

“I’m fine.” Misty growled.

“No, you’re not.” Zipp said as she appeared next to Izzy, pulling the curtain back to reveal that Sunny, Pipp and Hitch were there too. Sensing her friends wanted to talk, Misty decided she should at least give them her full attention. She turned the projector off and put it back under the bed before shifting around so she was facing her friends. The atmosphere wasn’t pleasant. Misty was sitting with her arms and legs crossed, glaring at the others, almost as if daring them to speak.

“So,” Pipp began finally. “What exactly happened? You went out for breakfast with mom and Alphabittle and came back in a huff.”

Misty’s only response was to look away from the group.

“Misty, please don’t shut us out.” Hitch said politely. “We’re your friends. We want to help you.”

Misty laughed bitterly at that statement. “Friends,” she repeated sarcastically as she looked back at them. “True friends don’t keep secrets from each other. I know that better than most ponies, especially after everything I’ve done.”

The others stared at her in confusion. “What does keeping secrets have to do with anything?” Zipp asked. “Are you hiding something from us again?”

Misty laughed bitterly again and shook her head. “No. This time it’s you guys who are keeping secrets.”

Izzy tilted her head in confusion. “What do you mean, Misty? What secret?”

They don’t even realise, do they? Misty thought, getting angrier by the second. They don’t even realise they’re hiding it from me.

“Your herd, that’s what.” She shouted at them. The five were so shocked they took several steps back from the bed. Misty glared at them in anger for a few seconds before the realisation of what she just said hit her, and she froze. Instantly all her anger vanished. Misty unfolded her arms and stared down at her hands.

“Misty?” Sunny asked gently as she slowly approached the bed again. She was acting like Misty was a ticking time bomb that could go off at any second, and Misty could hardly blame Sunny. She had just exploded at her friends simply because she was really worked up.

“Sorry…” Misty managed to say. Just saying that one word felt like a struggle. Why was it so hard to talk suddenly? “I didn’t mean…” she stopped when she noticed she was trembling. What the fuck was wrong with her?

Seeing the state Misty was in, Izzy ran forward and climbed onto the bed, pulling Misty into a hug. Misty melted into Izzy’s embrace. “What’s happening to me?” She managed to ask.

“Sometimes when your emotions are a wreck, your nerves are too.” Izzy explained. “You’ll stop shaking once you calm down.”

Izzy held Misty until the latter stopped shaking. Pulling out of the hug Misty found that Izzy was giving her a smile that was wide even by Izzy’s usual standards. Looking around Misty saw that the others had gathered around her bed again and were smiling too. Feeling like herself again for the first time since she left the cafe, Misty smiled back.

“So, our herd. You knew about it.” Izzy said.

Misty nodded. “I’d been trying to work out how to bring it up for the past few days, but I didn’t mean to just blurt it out like that.”

“That’s okay. Your head wasn’t in the right space to be thinking clearly.” Sunny assured her. “How long have you known, anyway?”

Misty had to pause to think about it. When had she figured it out exactly? “Since… about five weeks after I first met you guys.”

“What? You mean it only took you two weeks to find out?” Pipp asked.

Misty tilted her head in confusion. Two weeks?

“The herd was formed three weeks after we first met you, Misty.” Zipp explained, seeing the confused look on Misty’s face.

“Oh,” Misty said in understanding. “Right.”

“And you thought we didn’t trust you with our secret?” Hitch assumed.

Misty nodded again. “The thought did cross my mind.”

“Oh, we’re sorry Misty.” Sunny said. “We didn’t mean to hide it from you, we’re just so used to keeping it secret.”

“You know,” Izzy began awkwardly. “It’s actually a funny story.”

Misty raised an eyebrow. “What do you mean ‘funny story’?”

“Well, remember the day we first met Opaline?” Zipp asked.

Misty looked away in shame. That day was one of the worst in her life. It was the day she nearly got her family killed, just because she chose to follow Opaline’s orders.

“Hey, don’t give us that frowny face.” Pipp told her. “We’ve told you a million times it wasn’t your fault. Anyway, you came to see us afterwards, but you were too tired to walk back to Opaline’s castle so you ended up falling asleep on the couch next to Sparky.”

“I remember.” Misty said. She also remembered that the others must have moved her off the couch while she was asleep, because the next morning she woke up in Pipp’s bed.

“Well, after you fell asleep Izzy called a group meeting.” Sunny continued.

“Really? About what?” Misty asked curiously.

Izzy looked rather embarrassed. She mumbled a response, but Misty didn’t hear it, so she leaned forward. “Sorry Iz, could you repeat that?”

“To suggest inviting you to join the herd.” Izzy muttered quietly.

Misty’s heart leapt into her throat.

“And we all agreed we’d love to have you join our herd.” Hitch said.

Misty was silent. Her voice didn’t seem to want to work.

“But since you were just starting to wrap your head around the fact that you were free from Opaline, we decided that we shouldn’t invite you just yet.” Zipp explained.

“Although, we all agreed that we should tell you we were a herd,” Pipp said, picking up the story. “But between the Cutie Blossom Bash, you finding your father and moving into the Brighthouse, Nightmare Night, finding the Dragons and the final battle with Opaline we never got the chance to tell you, so we just sort of fell back into our usual routine of keeping it secret from everyone. Sorry about that.”

Still unable to speak, Misty nodded her head to show that she had heard.

“So, do you want to join our herd?” Izzy asked. There was an unmistakable tone of hope in her voice.

The image of her and the others on the beach with Hitch massaging her back appeared in Misty’s mind again, clearer than it had ever been before. Shaking her head to get rid of it, Misty finally got her voice back.

“Part of me does,” she admitted. “But remember, I’m very different to the five of you. You’re all socially outgoing and gel together really well, whereas I’m a social wreck at the best of times. Sure I’m getting better at the whole ‘being social’ thing, but there’s still a reason why my bed is away from the rest and why I have a curtain around it (she briefly grabbed the curtain with her hand for emphasis). I’m worried that me being part of the herd wouldn’t work.”

“If you’ve thought about it this much, then I’d say it’s more than just a part of you that wants to join the herd,” Zipp said, giving Misty a playful smirk. “Besides, who says we can’t make it work.”

“Yeah, we know you can get overwhelmed easily,” Sunny added. “If you’re uncomfortable with something, you can just say so. We’re not going to make you do it.”

Izzy leaned forward slightly. “So, you’ll join the herd?” She asked hopefully.

Misty thought about it for a second, then gave Izzy a wide smile. “Of course I will.”

“Yay!” Izzy cheered happily, giving Misty a quick kiss on the cheek before wrapping her up in another hug. “Welcome to the herd, Misty.”

Laughing at Izzy’s joyful reaction, Misty returned the hug. Then the other four climbed onto the bed and joined in the hug.

Eventually a familiar sound brought the group back to reality, and they looked up to see Sparky standing there. At some point during their conversation he had wandered up the ramp and was now standing a few feet away from Misty’s bed. He was looking at Misty with concern written all over his face. Figuring he was probably worried about her like the others had been Misty wiggled out of the group hug and climbed off the bed, walking over to Sparky and gently picking him up in her arms.

“It’s okay, Sparky. I just had a bad morning. I’m alright now.”

That was enough to satisfy Sparky, as he smiled at her before snuggling into her chest.

“Awww.” Hitch and the girls cooed from the bed. Misty was positively beaming. We really are a family.

The Start of a New Cycle

When Misty woke up the next morning she was briefly confused as to why there was a blue mane in her face, especially since her mane wasn’t blue anymore. But then she felt another body pressed against hers, and remembered that she was currently sharing her bed with Izzy.

“Iz?” Misty whispered, checking to see if her friend was awake.

Misty felt the other Unicorn shift in the bed next to her and the mane in her face pulled away. A second later Izzy’s face came into view above Misty’s.

“Hey.” Izzy whispered.

“Hi.” Misty responded.

“How are you feeling?” Izzy asked as she started playing with Misty’s mane. “I know you offered to share your bed with me, but if you’re uncomfortable with someone sleeping next to you…”

“Izzy,” Misty interrupted, reaching a hand up to play with Izzy’s mane. “If I‘m uncomfortable with something, I’ll say so.”

Izzy smiled, before her eyes flickered down to Misty’s lips. “Is it alright if I…” she trailed off.

It took Misty a second to figure out what Izzy was asking for permission to do. She’d never been kissed before, but she was so used to Izzy being physically affectionate with her that she was a good partner for her first kiss.

“Sure.” Misty said softly.

Izzy smiled wildly, before leaning down and pressing her lips against Misty’s. Woah, Misty thought. Izzy’s fur and mane had always been soft, but Misty hadn’t expected Izzy’s lips to be soft too.

Eventually the two broke apart and Izzy giggled softly. “You’re so sweet, Misty.” She said as she nuzzled her cheek against Misty’s.

Misty giggled and gently rubbed her thumb over Izzy’s other cheek. “Right back at you, Izzy.”

“Izzy, Misty, are you two awake?” Pipp called from across the room.

“We’re up.” Izzy called back as her horn lit up and she used her magic to pull back the curtain around the bed.

Hitch and Sparky had decided to stay the night, meaning they had five beds to share between seven people. Izzy let Sparky have her bed while Hitch chose to sleep with Sunny for the night. Misty offered to let Izzy share her bed and Pipp asked if she could sleep with Zipp to avoid feeling left out, which her sister agreed to.

“Alright, time to rise and shine, everypony.” Sunny said from her bed.

The group all got out of bed and stretched before gathering in a circle in the centre of the room.

“So what are we going to do about the shower situation?” Pipp asked.

“It’s big enough to fit all six of us,” Zipp replied. “It’s just a question of if Misty is comfortable with it.”

The other five turned to look at Misty, who thought about it. She had briefly seen the other mares naked on a few occasions while they were getting dressed, a result of the five of them sharing the same bedroom. Hitch on the other hand… she didn’t feel ready for that just yet.

“Um, is it alright if Hitch waits while us girls shower together? She asked.

“Of course,” Hitch said politely. “I have something I need to do in the garden anyway.”

Showering with the other girls turned out to not be awkward like Misty thought it would be. She still had plenty of room to herself, and no one entered her personal space uninvited. Sunny and Izzy were putting shampoo in each other’s manes while Pipp was laying on the floor with Zipp tickling her tummy.

“Gah! Zipp, stop.” Pipp squealed between laughs.

“Sorry Pipp, what was that?” Zipp asked teasingly.

Misty watched the scene with amusement before an idea occurred to her. When Zipp finally stopped tickling Pipp, Misty grabbed her from behind.

“What the-“

“Get her, Pipp.” Misty said.

The younger sister didn’t need telling twice. She instantly reached up and started tickling Zipp all over.

“Hey! No fair, you two. No double teaming.” Zipp cried as she was tickled relentlessly.

Sunny and Izzy both burst out laughing at their friends’ antics.

When the group got out of the shower and went back to the bedroom to change something fell out of the pocket of Misty’s hoodie when she picked it up.

“What was that?” Zipp asked, looking up at the sound.

Misty bent down to find it was the invitations her dad had given her the day before. She frowned as she picked them up. After Misty agreed to join the herd the others decided to celebrate and didn’t ask any further questions about what happened at the cafe. Still, Misty knew she would have to bring it up sooner or later.

“I’ll explain downstairs.” She said as she stood up.

Rather than simply walking down the ramp her friends elected to slide down the banisters, so Misty did the same. As the five reached the bottom the front doors opened and Hitch walked in from the garden.

“Hey, girls.” He greeted.

“Hey, Hitchy Hitch Hitch.” Sunny said cheerfully as she walked over to give him a quick kiss on the lips.

“My turn, my turn.” Izzy bounced over to let Hitch take her hand and kiss the back of it.

Zipp rolled her eyes playfully, before walking over and let Hitch kiss her cheek.

“Don’t forget about me.” Pipp said as she flew over and planted a quick kiss on Hitch’s snout.

Misty giggled as she walked over to the others. “Is this how you five usually greet each other when I’m not here?”

“It certainly is,” Hitch confirmed. “Speaking of which…” he gave an over dramatic bow and offered his hand to her. “Misty,” he said playfully. “Just the mare I was hoping to see.”

Zipp chuckled. “You dork, Hitch.”

Misty raised her eyebrows curiously. “What’s all this for?”

“I have something to show you outside.” Hitch explained.

Misty took his hand. “Okay. Lead the way.”

Hitch led Misty out into the garden and over to the Cutie Mark flowerbeds, where there was a new addition. A fifth flowerbed containing mostly light blue flowers with purple, pink and yellow flowers forming the shape of a butterfly.

“Do you like it?” Hitch asked as Misty stared at it.

Misty didn’t say anything, but her wide smile and bright red cheeks said it all.

“Wow, Hitch. It looks amazing.” Sunny complimented. She and the others had come outside to see what was happening.

“Yeah, well…” Hitch rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. “I should have given Misty her own flowerbed right from the start. Even if she wasn’t part of the herd yet, it was wrong to leave her out.”

Misty thought about it for a second and got an idea. “You know, there’s still something missing.” She said as she walked over to the other mares.

Hitch raised an eyebrow in confusion. “What?”

Misty stopped next to Sunny and whispered something in her ear. Sunny smiled and nodded in confirmation. She walked over to the flowerbeds and kneeled down, tapping her hand on the ground and releasing a burst of Earth Pony magic. A sixth flowerbed sprung up of mostly yellow flowers with orange and green flowers forming the shape of a badge with a horseshoe on it and little green hearts at the bottom of the badge.

“Now it’s complete.” Sunny said as she stood up again.

Hitch looked surprised. “I don’t…” a smile broke out across his muzzle. “Thanks, girls.”

Sunny giggled as she pulled Hitch into a hug. “No problem, Hitch.”

“So how are you adjusting to being part of a herd?” Izzy asked Misty.

“I like it,” Misty answered. “Thanks for letting me take things at my own pace by the way.”

“Well, of course we would.” Pipp wrapped her arms around Misty from behind. “You’re our friend, and herdmate now. We wouldn’t want to make you uncomfortable.”

Yeah,” Zipp added. “If you ever feel we’re pushing your boundaries, all you have to do is say something.”

Misty nodded in acknowledgment.

Parenting and Herding

After Hitch and Sparky showered, the seven of them gathered in the kitchen for breakfast. The baby dragon was currently sitting in the stallion’s lap, reaching out for a slice of orange Sunny was offering him. Sparky eagerly took the snack and happily began chewing down on it. Izzy, Misty and the Pegasi sisters cooed at the sight.

“Okay ponies,” Pipp said, pulling out her phone. “We need to plan our schedules for the week. Anyone have any plans?”

“I was thinking we could go for another beach day.” Sunny suggested.

Misty raised her hand. “Actually, I have news.” She pulled out the invitations from her pocket and dropped them onto the table. Zipp picked them up and examined them.

“Your dad is opening a Crystal Tearoom in Zephyr Heights?” She asked as she handed out the invitations to the others.

Misty nodded in confirmation. “He gave the invitations to me yesterday at the cafe, but after what happened when I got back home I kinda forgot about them.”

Pipp gasped as she took the invitations for herself, Jazz and Rocky. “Right, we need to add dress shopping to the to do list.”

Misty raised an eyebrow. “Why? What’s wrong with the outfits we wore to the Manesquerade Ball?”

“Misty, that was a literal red carpet event,” Pipp explained. “This is a grand opening. It’s a different kind of event that requires a different kind of formal wear. And we’re only going shopping for you anyway. You have no formal clothing. The dress you wore to the ball was lent to you by Izzy, remember?”

Izzy tapped her fingers together nervously. “About that…”

“She made me keep the dress.”

Sunny looked from one Unicorn to the other, confused. “But I distinctly remember you giving the dress back at the end of the night.”

“I did,” Misty confirmed. “And then I found it in my closet after I moved into the Brighthouse. When I asked Izzy about it, she refused to take it back.”

“Anyway, we still need to get you some formal clothes,” Pipp said, getting back on topic. “For the sake of variety if nothing else.”

“Well if we’re going clothes shopping, can we look at swimsuits?” Misty asked. “I recall someone wanting to get me a new one.”

There was silence for a moment before Izzy squealed with happiness and dashed out of her seat to hug Misty.

Later that morning the group were in the marestream, flying towards Zephyr Heights to go shopping.

“Misty,” Hitch said suddenly. “Can you tell us what happened at the cafe yesterday? I highly doubt that finding out that your dad is opening another Crystal Tearoom is what made you so upset.”

Misty sighed. “You’re right. It wasn’t that. It was what happened afterwards. Haven had barely said a word the whole time, and when dad pointed this out she asked how things were going at the Brighthouse. I told her everything was going fine and then… she asked if there was something going on between the six of us.”

Zipp jerked the steering wheel so hard that the others were thrown around the cockpit. Misty was flung sideways into Sunny, with Izzy falling on top of them a second later. Hitch collided with the wall and Pipp nearly fell out of the passenger seat. Fortunately they were just arriving at Zephyr Heights so they were able to land without any further mishaps.

“I’m sorry, she what?” Zipp asked as she spun around in her seat.

“Seriously?” Pipp complained. “It wasn’t enough asking us about our own love lives at the jinxie games. She had to go and ask one of our friends too.”

Izzy rolled off Misty, allowing her to get off Sunny. “Technically, it wasn’t the same question she asked you two. Before she only asked if you two were dating Hitch, but now she’s asking if all six of us are dating.”

“But how did she guess?” Hitch wondered.

Misty shrugged. “Honestly, you five weren’t exactly subtle. I worked it out, remember? So did Jazz and Rocky.”

“”WHAT?” The other five shouted at the same time, making Misty’s ears ring.

“Right, I forgot to mention that didn’t I?”

“So that’s what you were talking to those two about.” Zipp realised.

Misty nodded. “I had to explain to them what the term ‘herd’ meant, but they had already worked out that you five were dating all on their own.”

Sunny hesitated for a second before asking “And they seemed okay with it?”

Misty raised her eyebrow. “Jazz got a little mad when she found out you guys didn’t tell me about it, but other than that they were completely fine with it. But you’re asking that for a reason, aren’t you?”

“So that’s why Jazz was glaring at me the other day when she thought I wasn’t looking.” Pipp muttered.

“Well you see, the reason why we’ve kept the existence of our herd a secret this whole time is because we weren’t sure how ponies would react.” Sunny explained. “Remember, herds used to be somewhat common, but these days barely anyone seems to know that herds are a thing. In fact, I’m pretty sure ours is the only herd in modern day Equestria.”

“We don’t know that for sure,” Misty pointed out. “There might be other herds and they’re just hiding the fact like us. Besides, how are ponies supposed to learn about herds and get used to them if we hide?”

The others considered her words. “She has a point.” Izzy admitted.

Zipp sighed. “She does. It’s just… gonna be hard to be open about it after keeping it secret for so long.”

“Never mind that,” Pipp said. “How is mom going to react? I mean, we lied to her face about it.”

“So did I,” Misty informed them. “I felt like shit for doing it, but I knew you guys wanted to keep it secret.” The bitterness in her voice was barely hidden.

The rest of the group collectively winced. “That must have been hard for you,” Hitch commented. “Having to lie to people you care about again.”

“It’s wasn’t just that. It was also the fact that I was lying to protect a secret that I was technically never told. And then Haven saying that she thought that even if I wasn’t a part of what was going on you guys would have at least told me about it sent me over the edge.”

Izzy sucked in a sharp breath. “Yeah, I can see why you were so angry, now.”

“Anyway, should we get on with what we came here to do? Zipp asked.

The others nodded in agreement.

Once they arrived at the clothing store Izzy grabbed one of Misty’s hands while Pipp grabbed the other and the two of them practically dragged her over to where the swimsuits were.

“Geez, you two.” Misty said when they stopped and let her go. “Are you trying to pull my arms off?”

“Sorry.” Pipp apologised before gesturing to the swimsuits. “So, see anything that catches your eye?”

Misty took a minute to look at what was available before shaking her head. “Not really, no. Then again, after all the time I spent with Opaline I’m really not the best at shopping for myself.”

Izzy snorted. “The big meanie never let you pick things for yourself, huh?”

“Nope.”

“Alright,” Pipp said. “How about we pick something out for you and then you try it on and see if you like it.”

“Okay.” Misty agreed.

Izzy and Pipp nodded before they both started looking through the swimsuits, just as the others finally caught up.

“You two… seem.. even more excited… than usual.” Sunny panted.

“Yeah,” Zipp added teasingly. “You must be really eager to see Misty in a new swimsuit now that she’s our herdmate.”

Pipp gave her sister a quick glare before she resumed searching.

“I not sure what you guys are talking about. Those two always seem this energetic when shopping.” Misty said.

“Trust me, Misty.” Hitch replied. “Once you’ve been on enough shopping trips with those two, you’ll be able to spot the difference.”

“Find anything yet?” Pipp asked Izzy.

“Yeah, but it’s a bit unoriginal.”

Pipp looked up. “Unoriginal?”

“It’s the same kind of swimsuit as Sunny’s new one, but in a different colour.” Izzy explained.

Pipp thought about it for a second. “That kind of swimsuit could work for Misty, actually.” She looked over to Sunny and Misty. “Provided you two don’t mind having the same type of swimsuit.”

“I don’t mind.” Sunny said.

“Me neither.” Misty added.

“Then let’s give it a whirl.” Pipp decided.

Izzy nodded before handing the swimsuit over to Misty. It turned out to be a light blue bikini top with a matching mini skirt. Pipp then ushered Misty into the changing rooms so she could try it on.

“So this is the same kind of swimsuit that you got, Sunny?” Misty asked as she began changing.

“Yep, except mine’s pink.” Sunny replied from outside the changing rooms.

Izzy gasped suddenly. “I just realised, we never showed Misty our new swimsuits. We need to do that when we get home.”

Misty giggled at Izzy’s signature enthusiasm as she finished putting the swimsuit on.

“Well, how’s it feel?” Zipp asked.

Misty looked at herself in the mirror as she gave a twirl. “It fits, it’s comfortable and it’s not too revealing. You girls come in here and tell me what you think.”

The other four mares entered the changing room while Hitch remained outside. They all gasped at the sight of Misty in her swimsuit.

“What do you think? Do I look good?” Misty said, striking a pose.

None of the girls responded, but the tinge of pink across all of their cheeks was enough of an answer for Misty. She giggled again.

“I’ll take that as a yes. Come on, we still have dresses to look at.”

In the end Misty got two dresses, a light blue dress for semi formal occasions and a purple dress for fancier events. Pipp and Izzy had wanted to keep shopping, but after trying on a dark blue dress that was so tight she couldn’t breathe in it Misty put her foot down. To the surprise of the other three, Pipp and Izzy listened. Once they arrived back at the Brighthouse Misty ran upstairs to put her purchases away while Hitch collapsed onto the couch.

“I’ll prepare lunch.” Sunny called as she walked towards the kitchen. Izzy and Pipp followed her. Zipp leaned over the back of the couch as Sparky climbed up Hitch’s leg and onto his lap.

“Everything alright, sheriff?” Zipp asked teasingly.

“Yeah, just recovering from having to go shopping with Izzy and your sister.” Hitch muttered in response.

Zipp laughed. “Hey, if you think they’re bad, you should try shopping with my mom.”

“Papa Hitch?” Sparky looked at the stallion with concern.

Hitch looked down at the baby dragon and smiled, rubbing his head. “I’m alright, buddy. Just a bit tired.”

“I still can’t believe that he was able to grasp that you’re his dad despite the species difference at such a young age,” Zipp said, leaning closer. “Sparky’s a smart kid.”

Sparky started reaching towards Zipp, indicating that he wanted the Pegasus to hold him. Seeing this, Hitch lifted him up and handed him to Zipp.

“Mama Zipp.” The little dragon said as he snuggled into her chest.

Hitch and Zipp both froze. Zipp’s wings flared.

“What…” Hitch began.

“…did he just say?” Zipp finished, looking down at Sparky in her arms.

At that moment Pipp wandered over. “Is everything okay?” She asked, seeing the two’s shocked faces.

Upon hearing her voice Sparky started reaching out towards her. Pipp took him from the arms of the still frozen Zipp.

“Mama Pipp.” Sparky said, grabbing at the end of her mane.

Pipp’s wings flared too. “Huh?” Was all she could say.

“What’s going on here, ponies?” Izzy asked as she bounced over.

Sparky shifted in Pipp’s arms so that he was looking at Izzy upside down. Izzy giggled at the action before taking him from Pipp and starting to gently rock him in her arms.

“Mama Izzy.” He cried out happily.

Izzy stopped rocking instantly. A few sparks flew off her horn. “Okay, that’s new.” She said weakly.

Sunny looked up from what she was doing and saw that her friends had all frozen. Confused, she walked over. “Did I miss something?”

Sparky clambered up from Izzy’s arms to her shoulder to get a better look at Sunny, who decided to take him into her own arms before he fell.

“Mama Sunny.” He said, hugging her.

Sunny’s Alicorn form flickered into existence for a second before disappearing. “Um, I’m sorry. Did he just call me mom?” She asked no one in particular.

At that moment Misty came back downstairs, stopping at the foot of the ramp when she saw the shocked looks on the others’ faces. “Okay, what happened? I was only upstairs for a minute or two.”

Sparky’s eyes lit up when he saw Misty. Noticing this, Sunny put him down on the ground and let him run over to the Unicorn, hugging her leg.

“Mama Misty.” He declared.

Misty’s eyes widened, a few sparks flying off her horn. Then to everyone’s surprise, she smiled. “Huh. Clever little dragon, aren’t you Sparky?” She said as she picked him up and tickled his tummy.

Reality finally seemed to sink in for the others. A huge grin broke out across Sunny’s muzzle. “We’re his moms now.” She yelled happily as her Alicorn form appeared and she pulled Izzy and Pipp into a hug.

“I mean, technically we already were.” Pipp pointed out.

“Yeah, but it feels different now.” Izzy said.

“Yeah. It feels more… real, if that makes sense.” Zipp added.

“I know the feeling,” Hitch replied, smiling. “I was always Sparky’s dad, but after he started referring to me as such, it made it feel more official.”

“Oh, I just remembered.” Izzy spoke up suddenly. “We still need to show Misty our new swimsuits, girls.”

“Oh, yeah. Lunch can wait a few minutes.” The girls started running upstairs. “You coming, Hitch?” Sunny called.

“Nah, I’ve already seen them.” He called back as Sparky returned to his side. “I’ll get lunch ready.”

Back at the Beach

The next day the group were at the beach again. Aside from the fact that the mares were now wearing their new swimsuits, things started out the same as last time. They arrived, set up their belongings, put on sunscreen then Misty dug into her book while Hitch began massaging the others’ backs one by one. But of course, things were different this time. Misty was part of the herd now, which meant…

“Hey Misty,” Hitch said, approaching her. “Would you like me to massage your back too?”

Misty let out a little squeak. The image that had been popping into her head several times over the past few days was becoming a reality. Was this a dream? She pinched her own cheek to confirm this was real. It was.

“Sure.” She replied, a bit hesitant. Misty put her book down and shifted so she was lying on her stomach while Hitch knelt down behind her. She couldn’t help but tense up when she felt his hands on her back, but then he started massaging her and all Misty’s tension and nerves quickly faded away. She let out a contented sigh as she closed her eyes. “I can see why you girls enjoy this now.”

Unbeknownst to the group Haven and Alphabittle were sitting further up the beach and were watching them from a distance.

“Misty seems to be alright now.” Alphabittle commented, sounding hopeful.

“Maybe, but that doesn’t mean she isn’t still upset with me.” A rather dejected Haven countered.

“Hey,” the stallion placed a hand on his marefriend’s shoulder. “Misty might just have been having a bad morning that day. And I’m sure she isn’t upset with you.”

Haven sniffed. “I hope so.”

Back with the herd Misty heard two ponies approaching before a familiar voice spoke. “Well, someone sure looks like they’re enjoying themselves, huh Misty?”

Misty opened one eye to see Jazz and Rocky standing over her and Hitch. The Pegasus stallion had an amused expression on his face while the Earth Pony mare was sporting her signature shit eating grin. Misty closed her eye again. “Oh, shut up and let me enjoy this Jazz.”

Misty couldn’t see it, but Jazz’s grin widened. “So you are enjoying it then.”

“Hey, Pipp.” Zipp said suddenly. “Don’t you have something to talk to your employees about?”

“Oh yeah.” Pipp grabbed the invitations from her bag before ushering the two away from the others.

“What was that about?” Sunny asked.

“Pipp wants to make sure Jazz and Rocky know to keep quiet about our herd,” Zipp explained. “And she can give them their invitations to the grand opening at the same time.”

“No, I get that. I was asking Misty why Jazz seemed so keen on teasing her for enjoying getting a massage from Hitch.”

Misty turned her head and opened her eyes so she was looking at Sunny. “When I went to talk to Jazz about how to bring up the topic of the herd after I tried to talk about it during a conversation with Hitch she suggested that I might be struggling because I wanted to join the herd. I said no at the time but then on my way back to the Brighthouse afterwards I realised that she was right. I think she’s just realised that she was right as well and is feeling all smug about it.”

“Ah.” Sunny nodded her head in understanding.

Once Hitch finished massaging Misty’s back he started playing with Sparky while Sunny and Izzy began construction on a rather elaborate sandcastle. Instead of returning to her book Misty elected to remain lying where she was and enjoy the sea breeze, until she felt a shadow fall over her. Looking up she saw Zipp standing there with two surfboards, Misty’s and her own.

“Hey, Misty. Want to go try and catch a wave?” The Pegasus mare asked eagerly.

Misty stood up and stretched. “Sure. Let’s go.”

Misty honestly wasn’t sure what happened. One moment she and Zipp were surfing together, then the next moment a large wave came along and wiped them both off their boards. Neither of them must have been paying attention. All she knew was that suddenly the two of them were lying in the shallows, panting heavily to try and catch their breath after ending up underwater unexpectedly. Once she got her breath back Misty noticed that she and Zipp were lying face to face.

“Hey.” Zipp said, a flirtatious tone to her voice.

“Hey.” Misty replied breathlessly, getting lost in Zipp’s blue eyes. For a moment, it felt like it was just the two of them. Then the moment was shattered.

“Oh goodness. Are you girls alright?” Haven asked, running over.

Misty saw Zipp’s expression flicker for a second before a very fake smile appeared on her muzzle as she stood up. “We’re fine, mom.” Zipp answered, dusting herself off before offering a hand to Misty to help her up.

“Yeah, fine.” Misty added as Zipp pulled her up. There was a slight edge to the other mare’s voice. Apparently Zipp was still mad at her mother for feeling the need to ask Misty about the group’s love lives.

“Good, good.” Haven looked directly at Misty. “Listen, Misty dear. I wanted to say…”

Misty felt Zipp start to move beside her, probably to step between Misty and Haven. Thinking quickly, Misty took advantage of the fact that she was still holding Zipp’s hand to squeeze it, sending a silent message to Zipp to stay put. Fortunately, Zipp seemed to get the memo.

“…sorry for what happened at the cafe. It was very foolish of me.” Haven continued, not seeming to have noticed anything.

“You don’t have to apologise.” Misty said quickly, shaking her head. “I should be the one saying sorry for running off.”

“Misty, we’ve gone over this.” Zipp groaned. “You don’t have to apologise for needing some time to yourself.”

“So, why did you run off, if you don’t mind me asking?” Alphabittle asked as he joined the group.

“Well…” Misty began, not entirely sure how to answer.

“Are you two okay?” Pipp interrupted, flying over to them. A second later Hitch ran over, carrying Sparky in his arms. Glancing over her shoulder Misty saw Sunny and Izzy swimming out to retrieve Zipp and Misty’s surfboards.

“We’re okay, sis.” Zipp assured her.

Sparky was looking at Zipp and Misty with concern. “Mama Zipp? Mama Misty?”

Zipp, Pipp, Hitch and Misty all froze. Well, shit. Misty thought.

“Fu…” Zipp and Pipp both started to say at the same time.

“…dge.” Misty finished quickly, cutting them both off. It was a trick she had seen Izzy do once before when Pipp was so frustrated with trying to write a song that she nearly swore in front of the Pippsqueaks.

Hitch let out a sigh of relief. “Good catch, Misty.”

Haven and Alphabittle were looking from Sparky to Zipp and Misty, confused expressions on their faces. “Did he just refer to you two as mama?” Haven asked.

“Er…” Zipp had no idea what to say.

“Why don’t you both come to the Brighthouse for dinner tonight and we’ll explain everything.” Misty said quickly.

Hitch and the sisters shot her a look that said they didn’t like the sound of that plan, but before they could say anything Haven clapped her hands together. “Excellent. We’ll be there for eight.”

“Um, sure. See you then.” Pipp said awkwardly.

Satisfied, Haven and Alphabittle departed. The group watched them go. “We’re screwed.” Zipp said as soon as they were out of earshot.

“Yep,” Misty agreed. “I know I’m the one who said we should stop hiding, but I kinda wanted to have a plan first.”

Pipp sighed. “Well, cat’s out of the bag. Better go tell those two.” She pointed in the direction of Sunny and Izzy.

Sunny spotted the others as they were walking back and waved to them, sporting her usual smile. But something about their facial expressions or body language must have alarmed her, because the smile quickly faded. “Did something happen?” She asked.

“Sparky called Zipp and Misty mama right in front of mom and Alphabittle.” Pipp explained.

Sunny and Izzy paled. “Oh, snap.” Izzy said quietly.

“And now they’re coming over for dinner so we can explain everything.” Zipp added.

Sunny gave a nervous chuckle, then groaned. “We are so done.”

“Izzy, is the fruit cake ready?” Sunny asked frantically as she and Pipp set the table.

“Not yet.” Izzy reported, bending down on her knees to examine the cake through the glass oven door.

“Table’s all set, Sunny.” Pipp said, putting the last of the cutlery in position.

Sunny nodded in acknowledgement. “Good. Zipp, Hitch, is the salad done?”

“Just about.” Hitch replied.

Misty looked up from the microwave as she finished setting the timer for the ponycorn. “Um, don’t you lot think you’re overreacting just a smidge?”

“Misty,” Izzy stood up and approached her, her eyelids twitching. She grabbed Misty by the shoulders and began shaking her. “We’re just about to reveal to two people we care about that we’ve been lying to them for months. You of all ponies should know what that feels like.”

Misty’s expression darkened before she shoved Izzy away from her. The other Unicorn stared at her in shock. Misty’s expression quickly turned apologetic. “Sorry,” she apologised, her voice hoarse. “I just don’t like being reminded of bad memories. Anyway, you shouldn’t compare this situation to mine. This secret is nowhere near as bad as the one I was hiding. Heck, this secret isn’t even bad.”

“Maybe, but to paraphrase something I once said to you, we haven’t been honest Misty.” Zipp said.

“Yeah. Lying to your loved ones is never a good thing, no matter what it’s about. I mean, this is our mom and your dad we’re talking about.” Pipp pointed out.

“Alphabittle’s also technically my guardian.” Izzy added.

“How are you being so calm about this anyway?” Hitch asked Misty. “I figured you’d be the most stressed about all this, given your past.”

“I’ll agree that these circumstances are less than ideal,” Misty admitted. “But I still don’t think that it’s enough to warrant…” she spread her arms to gesture at the others, who were all various levels of frantic, particularly Sunny. “This reaction.”

At that moment the microwave beeped. Misty turned her attention back to it, opening the it and using her magic to levitate the ponycorn onto the table. Then there was a knock at the door and everyone except Misty leapt.

“They’re here? Oh no, no, no. We’re not ready yet.” Sunny tugged at her mane in panic.

Misty walked over to the over and knelt down. “The fruit cake looks ready.” She reported. “You guys finish setting the table, I’ll get the door.”

Leaving the others in the kitchen, Misty approached the double doors. Sparky, who had been sitting on the couch this whole time, jumped down and ran after her. Misty opened the door to see Haven and Alphabittle waiting outside, arms linked.

“Hello, Misty.” Her father greeted. “I hope we’re not too early.”

“Oh no, you’re right on time.” Misty replied. She glanced over her shoulder to see if the others had finished and saw Sunny coming over, a rather forced smile plastered across her muzzle. Misty groaned. This is what the rest of my night is going to be like, isn’t it? Keeping my herdmate from breaking out into a full blown panic.

“Hey, Alphabittle.” Sunny said, putting her arm around Misty’s shoulder. “Hi, Queen Haven.”

The two of them quickly picked up on Sunny’s nervousness and shared a concerned look. “Sunny, are you alright?” Haven asked.

“Ptth. I’m fine.” Sunny tried to dismiss their concerns, waving her hand nonchalantly, but her facial expression betrayed her.

“She really is fine,” Misty assured them, sounding bored and trying to ignore the fact that Sunny was leaning most of her body weight on her. “She and the others are just making a bigger deal out of this than it is.”

“Mama Sunny?” Sparky piped in.

This drew Haven and Alphabittle’s attention to the baby dragon. “Does he refer to all five of you as mama now?” The queen asked.

“Yes, but he only started doing it yesterday.” Misty admitted.

“So it’s a very recent development. But why would he start doing that unless…” Alphabittle trailed off. His eyes widened, and Misty knew her father had worked it out. He covered his face with his hands. “That conversation at the cafe…”

“Conversation at the cafe?” Haven repeated, sounding confused. “What’s that got to do with any…thing.” A look of realisation appeared on Haven’s face.

Sunny’s smile became somehow more forced than it already was. Now Misty was starting to get seriously worried. “Sunny-bunny, I’m beginning to think you’ll hurt your face if you keep trying to force your smile like that. Maybe ease up a little.” Sunny didn’t respond. “Sunny? Sunny, for the love of Opaline say something!”

Sunny shook her head. “For the love of Opaline?”

Once she registered what she’d said Misty wanted to slap herself. Damn you, Opaline. Damn you for putting those phrases into my head.

“Dinner’s ready.” Izzy called.

Sunny jumped slightly. Misty gave a small smile. “Well, shall we eat?”

“So about that question I asked you at the cafe, Misty.” Haven said as she helped herself to a slice of fruit cake.

“Huh?” Misty had stuffed her mouth full of ponycorn. She quickly swallowed it all. “Oh, right. I admit I was lying when I answered.”

Haven leaned forward eagerly. “Tell me everything.”

Zipp tapped her fingers against the table nervously. “Mom, have you ever heard of herds?”

The older Pegasus’s face scrunched up in thought. “Herds? That does ring a bell. Oh, I remember now. I read a book about them in the castle library back before I was queen.”

Zipp blinked. “There’s a book about herds in the castle library?”

Her mother nodded. “I forgot the name for it was herds, but I remember the concept. That’s why I asked Misty if there was something going on. I figured you lot could have that type of relationship and make it work.” She smirked. “And I was right.”

Alphabittle chuckled. “So if none of you knew about the book at Zephyr Heights, how did you find out about herds?”

Misty muttered something about a collection of books Opaline had in her castle while Hitch, Izzy, Zipp and Pipp all pointed at Sunny, who slid down in her chair until only the top of her head and her ears were visible above the table.

“To make a long story short, Sunny told me about herds back before pony kind reunited. She had found some texts referring to them amongst her father’s research.” Hitch explained. “Then later after we met Izzy and the sisters I realised I had four friends, all of whom I found attractive. I wasn’t sure what to do at first, until I remembered about herds.”

“So Hitch came to me and proposed the idea of him forming his own herd,” Zipp continued. “I liked the idea, so we formed it. Then he invited Sunny to join, then Izzy, then Pipp.”

Alplabittle looked over to his daughter. “And Misty?”

Izzy let out a nervous laugh. “Funny story. We meant to invite her ages ago, but with so much going on in our lives we kinda forgot.”

“And as a result, Misty didn’t end up joining our herd until two days ago when she brought the topic up herself.” Pipp added.

“Wait, two days ago?” Haven asked. Pipp nodded. “Was this before or after you met with us at the cafe?”

“After,” Misty answered. “Like literally right after when I came back to the Brighthouse.”

“Can someone please help me up?” Sunny said suddenly. She was still slid down in her chair.

“I got you, Sunny.” Izzy stood up from her chair and pulled Sunny up back into a sitting position.

“Thanks, Iz.” Sunny half stood up and pecked Izzy on the cheek.

“So you six are a herd,” Haven stroked her chin as Izzy sat back down. “That’s gonna be one complicated wedding to plan out.” She joked.

The group’s cheeks all turned pink, Sunny’s Alicorn form flickered into existence for a second, Izzy and Misty’s horns both sparked and Zipp and Pipp’s wings both flared. “Mom!” The sisters both yelled.

Alphabittle burst out laughing. “Never mind the wedding, what’s the proposal gonna look like?”

The herd’s cheeks turned from pink to red. But soon the blushing subsided as they all started laughing too. Once the laughter died down Misty noticed that her herdmates’ nervousness from earlier had vanished and they were back to acting like their usual selves. Well, would you look at that. Everything turned out alright.

On the Dance Floor

A few days later it was time for the grand opening of the new Zephyr Heights Crystal Tearoom. After a quick group shower the herd (barring Hitch) were in the bedroom of the Brighthouse getting ready. Misty had changed into the light blue dress she had bought the other day and was currently looking herself up and down in the mirror.

“You look wonderful, Misty.” Izzy complimented as she walked up behind her friend and placed her hands on Misty’s shoulders. The other Unicorn was wearing a dark blue dress to contrast with Misty’s light blue one.

“Thanks.” Misty smiled nervously. “I know this is a big moment for my dad, and I want to be there for him. Goodness knows, we’ve been absent from each other’s lives for long enough. But, at the same time…”

“I know, large crowds aren’t your favourite thing in the world.” Izzy pulled Misty into a hug from behind. “That’s where we come in. If you feel overwhelmed at any point, just say something. We’ll get you away to someplace quiet. Your dad will understand.”

Misty turned around and kissed Izzy on the cheek. “What would I do without you guys?”

“That’s not something any of us want to think about.” Pipp said. She was standing nearby, trying and failing to zip the back of her dress shut. Eventually she gave up. “Can someone give me a hand here?”
Izzy ran over and zipped it for her. “Thanks.”

“Do you always have to stand out?” Misty asked as she joined them, gesturing to Pipp’s sparkly purple dress.

“Honey, I’m a pop star and a princess. It’s my job to stand out.” She replied.

Misty smirked. “Well, at least I can look at you this time without my eyes stinging.” I’m pretty sure that golden dress she wore to the Manesquerade Ball briefly blinded me during our performance of the unity shuffle. “It’s a shame to have such a stunning sight that hurts to look at.”

Pipp rolled her eyes before leaning up and giving Misty a quick kiss. “Charmer.” She muttered.

“Do my eyes deceive me?” Sunny called from the other side of the room. “Zipp Storm is wearing a dress!”

“What?” Izzy and Misty both said at the same time, looking over. Sunny was standing on the other side of the room wearing a bright red dress, and sure enough, standing next to her was Zipp wearing a sparkly silver dress. It was a far cry from the ripped jeans wearing tomboy they were used to seeing.

“Why are you three acting so surprised?” Zipp asked.

“You can hardly blame them, sis. All the times you’ve gone with them to a formal event previously you’ve worn a tuxedo.” Pipp pointed out.

“Yeah, I usually wear tuxedos for these occasions, I just find them more comfortable. That doesn’t mean I’m opposed to wearing dresses.” Zipp responded.

“You say that, yet this is the first time I’ve ever seen you wearing something that has a skirt.” Sunny countered.

Zipp sighed. “Alright, I admit I don’t wear them often. That doesn’t mean I never do.”

Their conversation was interrupted by the sound of the front door opening. “That you, Hitch?” Sunny called down.

“Yeah. You girls ready to go?” He called back up.

“I think we are.” Misty said.

“Come on, ponies. Let’s roll.” Izzy declared.

One downside of using the marestream to get around was that since no one else had a similar mode of transport it meant there were no designated landing pads anywhere. This meant the group sometimes had to land in the best available space and then walk to their destination. Such was the case this time, as they landed at the Zephyr Heights castle then began the ten minute walk to the new tearoom. Sparky was clearly excited, running circles around the group as they walked.

“I just thought of something.” Pipp said suddenly.

“What?” Her sister asked.

“Mom suggested that Alphabittle should open a tearoom in Zephyr Heights so they could be closer together because she doesn’t always have the time to visit Bridlewood, right?”

“Right.” Zipp confirmed.

“Well, that’s actually happening now.” Pipp turned to Misty. “Did your dad say which tearoom he would be running personally?”

Misty blinked. “No, he didn’t. Hold that thought.” She pulled out her phone and sent her father a text asking that very question. A few seconds later he responded. “The new one here in Zephyr Heights,” she said. “He says he’s moving into the castle with your mother.”

Hitch stared at Pipp, eyebrows raised. “So Haven and Alphabittle are moving in together. And? I thought you and your sister were over the fact that your mom was dating again.”

“We are,” Pipp answered. “That’s not what I’m getting at.”

“Then what are you getting at?” Sunny asked.

“Alphabittle made a joke about proposals a few days ago when we told him we were a herd, remember? What if he said that because proposals were on his mind.”

There was silence as that sunk in. “I think she might be right.” Izzy said finally.

“Hey, it’s just a thought. I’m not saying that’s what’s happening.” Pipp reminded her.

“Yeah, let’s not jump to any conclusions.” Sunny agreed.

At that point loud music started to reach their ears, and it only grew louder as they neared their destination. When they reached the street the tearoom was on they found that the music was coming from inside the tearoom itself.

“Okay. Showtime, ponies.” Pipp said.

The group all started walking forward, except for Misty who was rooted to the spot. Izzy was the first to notice.

“Misty, are you alright?” She asked. The others all turned to look back at her.

Misty gave a nervous laugh. “I give myself half an hour at best.”

Once they were inside they discovered the music was coming from a DJ whose setup included a pair of speakers larger than the ones Pipp had at Mane Melody. No wonder it was so loud. So loud in fact that they had to shout to be able to hear each other.

“I hate this already.” Misty yelled as she huddled next to Izzy, covering her ears with her hands.

“Why is this like a bloody disco?” Sunny yelled.

“Evidently Alphabittle decided to put mom in charge of planning the grand opening.” Zipp yelled back.

“Hey guys.” Jazz greeted as she and Rocky walked over. “Haven sure has an interesting idea of what constitutes a grand opening, doesn’t she?” She nodded over to the Pegasus queen, who was currently serving behind the bar with Alphabittle.

“Wait, mom’s working the bar?” Pipp couldn’t believe what she was seeing.

“Apparently so.” Jazz answered.

“She must have picked a few tricks of the trade from Alphabittle.” Rocky added.

Just then a jazz song started playing.

“Is that jazz music playing?” Jazz wondered.

“Huh. Must be fate.” Rocky smirked before pulling his marefriend onto the dance floor. She let out a yelp of surprise, but it quickly turned to joyful laughter as they started dancing.

“Hey. You and I both like jazz. Want to dance?” Sunny asked Izzy, offering her hand to the Unicorn.

Izzy broke into a wide smile before taking Sunny’s hand and guiding her onto the dance floor. Hitch and the sisters elected to stay behind with Misty.

“Well, might as well make the most of it while we’re here.” Pipp said, helping herself to refreshments.

Unnoticed by everyone except Sparky, Misty let out a small whimper. Concerned, the baby dragon started tugging on her dress to get her attention. “Mama Misty?” He asked.

Misty bent down and tried to give him a reassuring smile, but she could tell it wasn’t convincing. “I’m alright, Sparky. It’s just a little loud, is all.” Well, it’s very loud, actually. Okay, extremely loud, but he doesn’t need to know that.

After that, Misty decided to just sit on the floor with Sparky in her lap. After the jazz song ended a hip hop song that Zipp liked started playing so she and Hitch took to the dance floor while Sunny and Izzy returned. Following that there was a pop song that Pipp started to dance along to before she and Zipp traded places. Once the song ended they returned to the others. Then the next song started playing, and Misty recognised it. For a brief instant she was transported back to the past during her time in Opaline’s castle, and one of the few pleasant memories she had of the fire Alicorn. She uncovered her ears and stood up, clutching Sparky in her arms. “Is that tango music?”

Her friends were surprised by her change in attitude. She seemed excited now. “Um, yes.” Zipp answered. “Do you know it, Misty?”

“It was Opaline’s favourite type of music. She taught me how to dance to it.”

“I’m sorry, she what now?” Pipp asked.

“Well, ‘taught’ is a bit generous.” Misty clarified. “It’s more accurate to say that she dragged me around with the music playing in the background until I worked out how to dance to it.”

“But you can dance to it?” Pipp sounded hopeful.

“Yes. Why?”

Pipp let out a small shriek of excitement as she began hopping on the spot.

“Why’s she so giddy all of a sudden?” Misty asked.

“She’s been trying to teach the rest of us how to tango dance with no luck,” Zipp explained, sounding amused. “I think she’s just excited that she finally has a dance partner who knows how to tango.”

Pipp held out a hand to Misty. “Shall we show them how it’s done?”

Misty placed Sparky back on the ground before taking Pipp’s hand and following her onto the dance floor. The Unicorn was slightly nervous that since she hadn’t done this in ages she would be a little rusty, but to her surprise she was able to keep up with Pipp just fine. And the Pegasus was good. Better than good, she was brilliant. In fact, Misty felt sure that Opaline would have been jealous of Pipp.

Soon the two were joined by Sunny and Izzy, followed shortly by Zipp and Hitch. The other four evidently had no idea what they were doing, electing to try and copy what Pipp and Misty were doing. At least they had the sense to not attempt any of the more difficult moves.

“Huh, they’re actually starting to get the hang of it.” Pipp muttered to herself.

“Maybe your lessons are finally paying off.” Misty suggested.

Pipp giggled. “Maybe.”

By the time the song finished Misty was starting to really enjoy herself. That was until a rock song started blasting out of the speakers so loud that she yelped and leapt into the air in fright before running off the dance floor and hiding under one of the refreshment tables, covering her ears and curling up into a ball. After a few seconds Izzy crawled under the table and began shaking Misty.

“Misty? MISTY!”

Sunny joined them under the table. “Are you alright?” She asked.

“Why does it have to be so stupidly loud?” Misty shouted.

Sunny’s gaze hardened before her Alicorn form materialised. “Right then. Enough’s enough.”

She crawled out from under the table and walked away. Moments later the music cut out abruptly. Hesitantly Misty removed her hands from her ears and uncurled from her ball.

“What happened to the music?” Izzy asked.

“Sunny pulled the plug on the DJ’s setup.” Zipp answered from somewhere nearby.

“Literally.” Pipp added.

“Hey. What do you think you’re doing?” The DJ yelled.

“Shutting you down before you deafen someone.” Sunny replied, a cold fury in her voice. “You’ve already scared my friend.”

“Well that’s their fault for coming here if they can’t handle my music, then.” The DJ said dismissively.

“She’s the owner’s daughter. Why wouldn’t she be here for the grand opening.” Sunny growled back.

Izzy and Misty crawled out from under the table, Zipp and Pipp helping them to their feet. Sunny was staring down the DJ, who had a look of fear spreading across his face. Haven approached the pair.

“I’d listen to her if I was you,” she told the stallion, glaring at him. “After all, she is an Alicorn. It would be a good idea not to make her angrier than she already is.”

Under the combined stares of a queen and an Alicorn, the DJ relented and nodded before adjusting several settings on his setup. Reluctantly, Sunny plugged the speakers back in. The music started playing again, albeit not nearly as loud as it was before. Sunny’s Alicorn form vanished as she walked back to the others while Haven returned to the bar.

“Thank goodness,” Hitch commented. “I can hear myself think again.”

“How are you feeling?” Sunny asked Misty.

“I’m feeling a bit better now.” Misty managed a small smile.

Later after everyone else had left Misty and her friends stayed behind to help Haven and Alphabittle clean up. Jazz and Rocky were also still there, entertaining Sparky so he didn’t accidentally transform something with his dragon breath.

“Well aside from the DJ, I’d say this grand opening was a success.” Alphabittle said as he wiped down one side of the bar.

“Yes, he wasn’t my first choice but he was the only one available for tonight.” Haven admitted as she wiped down the other side of the bar.

“I don’t know how he isn’t deaf yet if that’s the volume he always plays his music at.” Sunny muttered angrily.

“Sunny, are you okay?” Izzy asked. “You seem very angry.”

“Of course I am. That jerk scared Misty.”

“Are you being protective of her as a friend or a herdmate?” Jazz asked teasingly. Pipp had told her and Rocky that Haven and Alphabittle knew about the herd now, so she could talk about it in front of them.

“Both.” Sunny replied.

Pipp was browsing on her phone. “According to social media, that DJ has a reputation for being a… something I can’t say in front of Sparky.”

Zipp glanced over her sister’s shoulder before mouthing the word “asshole” to the others.

“Being careful not to swear in front of the kid? You’re really starting to sound like a mother, Pipp.” Rocky said, amused.

Hitch snorted. “She and her sister weren’t very careful at the beach the other day.”

Both sisters looked embarrassed.

“Oh, I just remembered.” Haven reached into her bag and pulled out an old and slightly tattered looking book.

“What book is that, mom?” Zipp asked as she flew over.

“It’s the book about herds that I read when I was younger,” Haven explained as she handed the book to her daughter. “I went through the library and found it. I thought you might like to read it yourself.”

Zipp examined the faded cover, a look of wonder on her face. “Woah. Cool.”

After that the group worked in relative silence until they finished cleaning up.

“Are you sure you lot don’t want to spend the night at the castle?” Haven asked as they all began to leave.

“No thanks, mom. We need to get back to Maretime Bay because several of us have work in the morning.” Pipp replied. “By the way, do you two want a lift back on the marestream?” She asked Jazz and Rocky.

“Sure.” Jazz answered.

The others walked out the door, leaving Misty and Alphabittle to finish locking up.

“Are you sure you’re alright?” The stallion asked his daughter as he began switching the lights off. “That was quite a yelp you gave on the dance floor.”

Misty was leaning against the wall with her arms crossed. “I’m fine now.” She reassured him. He didn’t look entirely convinced. She rolled her eyes. “Look, I know I was a bit of a nervous wreck when we reunited. Heck, I’m still a bit of a nervous wreck and at this point I’m pretty sure I always will be. But I’m doing better now. I have a support system. I have friends and family who care about me.” She smiled. “I’m part of a herd that loves me.”

Alphabittle sighed. “Perhaps, but that doesn’t stop a father from worrying sometimes, especially after you went missing for so many years.”

“I know, dad.” Misty said patiently. “But you have to trust that I can look after myself, and that my friends will have my back whenever I get stuck.”

Alphabittle smiled before leaning over and kissing Misty on the forehead. “My little girl’s all grown up.”

He turned off the last light before the two exited the tearoom, locking the door behind them.

Author's Note

Well, this story took a lot longer to complete than I expected. Like, several months longer. Whoops.

Anyway, while this is the end of this first book if you’ve read the description then you know that this is part one of a series. I have a sequel and a few shorter stories planned, but I’m not sure when they’ll come out. In the meantime I hope you enjoyed this story, and let me know what you think.