The Sun began to set over the horizon, creating a brilliant mix of yellow and red across the sky. It was a wonderful sight to behold for all who witnessed it, and it signaled that nighttime would soon be upon them. The stress of the earlier day was ending, and now there would only be darkness and shadows covering everything in its path. Time was running out for everything to be made right. But for one pegasus, it was enough.

After several hours of searching the entirety of Maretime Bay from top to bottom, Zipp eventually found Misty sitting alone in front of the town’s local Together Tree that she and the others had grown just a year ago. She was sobbing relentlessly and bystanders were watching on in concern. The whole day had been too much for the unicorn to bear, and she had clearly been there for a long time.

Deep down, the detective felt horrible for her. Putting her own feelings aside, It wasn’t right. It wasn’t right that either of them had been put in this predicament. They had just been living their lives as normal and suddenly they were thrust into accepting a changing family dynamic, and a stepfather they never wanted nor needed. It was all unfair, and she could only imagine the betrayal Misty must have felt, not being told by her own father about this earlier.

Wasting no time, Zipp silently motioned for Pipp to come over and the two slowly approached Misty so as to not startle her. As they got closer, she seemed to sense them coming and looked up from the floor, turning towards them.

“Hey…” she greeted them solemnly, wiping tears from her eyes using her hooves.

“Hey,” Zipp addressed her back gently. “We were looking all over for you. You were here this whole time?”

Misty nodded. “I tried to hide, but eventually, I just…came here. This Tree just gives me comfort sometimes, I don’t know why. It’s not the one I grew.”

“All Trees are connected according to Elder Flower,” Zipp explained. “If your Tree gives off that sort of energy, the others must as well. But that’s not important. I’m sorry you had to find out this way.”

“Yeah,” Pipp agreed. “I can’t believe Alphabittle didn’t tell you anything about this beforehand. That must be sooo messed up.”

“I know he means well,” Misty countered, shaking her head. “I know he does. He loves me. But I wish he told me that I would become a princess in Zephyr Heights sooner, and that…and that things were about to change. Mostly so I could process everything. I mean, you ponies are my friends. But soon you’re going to be so much more than that and I don’t know to feel about any of it. I thought I knew where I belonged already and…it’s all so much to take in.”

“To be honest,” Zipp admitted. “I really don’t know to process this either, and I’m supposed to be the one to set an example, being the older sister and all. I should’ve been setting a good example for you. But I let my emotions get to me. I just can’t get over the fact that…Mom’s actually replacing Dad, and she wants us all to accept it.”

“And none of us want to accept it,” Pipp added. “None of us want to see this new stallion come into our lives and tell us he’s our father. It’s all so scary, but none of us were helping you in any way. You were dealing with your own problems, and we should have helped you.”

“It’s okay,” Misty told them, smiling sadly. “At least I don’t have to permanently move away. But becoming an official princess and having to be there at important events is going to be so scary. I barely even survived my own Cutie Blossom Bash party and that was months ago. I don’t think I can fit in with all these pegasi, who have obviously never seen a unicorn be part of the Royal Family before. They’ll never accept me as one of them…”

Zipp sighed deeply. “I wish I could tell you that everything will be fine, but even I know that’s not true. So instead…I will say this. Whatever happens, you don’t ever have to worry about being alone anymore. Those days are over.”

“What do you mean…?” Misty asked, sniffling.

Pipp smiled warmly. “Because…we’re your family now. And no matter how scary things get, that is something no marriage can ever take away.”

“You showed us that.” Zipp finished, smiling as well.

“Really?”

“Absolutely.”

“Searchin’ high, searchin’ low,” Misty began to sing to herself. “Lookin' for a place I belong…”

“Searchin' wide, tryin' to find…” Zipp joined in, adding her own verse. Her cutie mark began to shimmer as she did so. “Somethin' to make you feel less alone…”

“You know I heard it said,” Pipp sang, her cutie mark lighting up as she lifted Misty’s chin up to look at her. “Home is wherever you are. And friendship is forever…when you carry it in your heart!”

“And now I see,” both sisters were singing in unison now, their voices joining together in a perfect harmony as they danced in a circle around Misty. Their cutie marks glowed as bright as the sun, illuminating the encroaching darkness around them and dispelling it in an instant. “I've got you, you know you've got me too! When we're together, there's nothing that we cannot do!! And if your family can be the one you choose…I choose you, yeah, I choose you!!”

Misty watched this all happen with a mix of awe and shock. It was at this point that the Together Tree began to vibrate and pulse from the energy the cutie marks were giving off, amplifying their song to the rest of the town. Ponies began coming out of their houses to watch the ensuing spectacle.

Zipp then broke formation with Pipp and returned to the unicorn’s side for the second verse. She walked over towards her. “When you're up, when you're down…No matter what, I'll be by your side…”

Misty then began to smile, wiping a falling tear away from her right eye. “You and me, we're family…We're sisters 'til the end of time.” Her cutie mark was starting to shimmer with energy, creating a silver swirl of magic between all three of them.

“You know I heard it said,” Pipp picked up the verse instantly, returning to where her sister was. Her entire body was pulsating with the cutie mark magic. A yellow beam of magic then shot out from it and towards the direction of the Tree. “Home is wherever you are. And friendship is forever…when you carry it in your heart!!”

“And now I see,” Zipp reached out her hoof for Misty to grasp. She did so and got to her hooves. Before long, they were singing together, dancing all around the Tree and letting the power of their cutie marks amplify the sound for miles. The leaves shimmered and grew fuller than they already were. Magical fireworks burst into the air as the three sisters sang to their hearts’ content, pouring all their love and emotions into an even more powerful chorus. “I've got you, you know you've got me too!! When we're together, there's nothing that we cannot do!! And if your family can be the one you choose…I choose you, yeah, I choose you!!!”

A beam of magic shot into the sky once the third chorus started, creating a brilliant rainbow aurora in the evening sky. From a distance, Queen Haven noticed the sound of her daughters singing and instantly recognized it. She beckoned for Alphabittle to come over.

“That’s them!!” Haven cried with happiness. “That’s my daughters!!”

“We found them!!” Alphabittle exclaimed. “Quick! To the Together Tree!!”

The two parents ran as fast as they could in the direction of the Together Tree as each chorus line grew with intensity. The sound of the singing got increasingly louder with every step, so Haven knew they were headed in the right direction. They stampeded through town like the wind, tears streaming from their faces, back towards their beloved offspring.

The song concluded with a final chorus and soon all of the magic dissipated. The crowd that was watching them burst into a standing ovation, cheering them on with a thunderous applause. The three sisters stood in front of the Tree, only turning around once they realized that their parents were watching them as well.

“Those are our daughters!!” Haven boasted proudly, wiping tears from her eyes.

“We are so proud of all three of you,” Alphabittle complimented them. He walked towards Misty, who backed up a couple of steps. He looked at her in the eyes with a sincere expression. “Misty, I know I haven’t been completely honest with you, and I take full responsibility for not telling you everything sooner. You deserved to know about this life changing decision, and you deserved to have a voice in it too. I should’ve consulted with you. Can you forgive me?”

“Thanks, Dad,” Misty thanked him, sniffling as fresh tears came to her eyes. These were tears of joy, however, as she was so happy to see her father again. “You know I’ll always forgive you. How can I not?”

Alphabittle couldn’t take it anymore. Without missing a beat, he wrapped his daughter in a warm embrace, hugging her tightly and sobbing. He was relieved that she wasn’t mad at him, and he was willing to do whatever it took to make things up with her.

Queen Haven watched the whole exchange go down with a smile, before turning towards her own daughters. “Girls…I am so sorry for not considering your feelings when doing this. I love my Alphabittle so much, but I should have realized that you would be so affected by my choice to go right into marriage, especially with so little time to prepare.”

“It’s not just that,” Zipp told her. “I want you to be happy, Mom. Really, I do. I don’t want to make it seem like I don’t want you to spend your life with Alphabittle if that’s what you really want. But I’m just so afraid of him replacing Dad. It just feels so…” She squeezed her eyes shut to hold her tears in, unable to finish her sentence.

Haven nodded in understanding. “I understand how you’re feeling, Zephyrina-I mean Zipp. It’s just been so hard on me. With you being gone and out doing your detective work, Pipp opening up Mane Melody with that Jazz pony…each of you have very important jobs that only you can do. And that means time away from me. Alphabittle’s done more than giving me that spark of hope back, that I can continue without my precious daughters by my side.”

Zipp sniffled, wiping tears of her own from her eyes with her hooves. Pipp put a reassuring hoof on her sister’s shoulder, emotionally supporting her throughout the conversation.

“I know Alphie’s trying too hard,” Haven finished. “But he doesn't want you to stop loving your Dad. He just wants you to like him. And I think maybe there's enough room in your heart to do both.”

“Change is hard,” Alphabittle added, setting Misty down and walking over towards them. “But it helps us grow. I mean, without that, I wouldn’t even be here today. I would still be just as grumpy as I was for all those moons. But sometimes, change can be a good thing…as long as all parties are acknowledged in the transition, of course.”

“You’re right,” Pipp said. “We’re willing to give this relationship a second try, and properly plan out your wedding, of course. Right, Zipp?’

Zipp nodded in agreement. “Right. Just please…no more secrets. And you can tell us how you’re feeling whenever you want. No matter how silly it is. We’re just a phone call away.”

“Thank you so much, girls…” Haven said, hugging them both before letting go. “But yeah, about that wedding. We’ve decided that it’s best to postpone the whole affair.”

“Postpone?!” Zipp was shocked to hear this. “Why? You were so excited to do it!”

“We realized that having a ceremony two days was probably not the best idea,” Alphabittle explained, smiling sheepishly. “It would be too much stress on poor Hitch to properly prepare for. It also allows us to go through any loopholes that we give Misty in case she refuses the title of princess.”

“I asked.” Misty piped up, smiling. She stood with her two soon-to-be sisters, finally confident in calling herself one of them. “I’m okay with giving it a try now, but I might change my mind later.”

“And that’s perfectly fine,” Alphabittle replied kindly. “Of course, once we do decide on a proper date, you three will be the first to know before anypony else.”

“Then I think it’s settled,” Zipp declared. “If anything in Zephyr Heights is going to make it through the night, it’s a Royal Family composed of pegasi and unicorns.”

The newly expanded Royal Family then all gathered together in front of the glowing Together Trees. Their cutie marks glowed together and illuminated the surrounding vicinity. Fireworks went off in the night sky, symbolizing the dawn of a new era.

Author's Note

Okay, who’s cutting onions in the writer’s room?! I’m not crying, you’re crying!

For some reason, I tend to tear up at my own emotional resolutions. But yeah, what a story to write. This is…well, how should I describe it? It’s essentially my headcanon for this week’s Tell Your Tale episode, written in the format of a special. Now will the actual episode be like my story? Probably not. I don’t see the staff going THAT far with the premise, even the strongest episodes. But will it probably be a good one regardless? Hopefully. We’ll have to see in a few days. After listening to the then-unreleased song “I Choose You” and seeing all the speculation surrounding it, I just knew I had to write a story based off of this premise. This is essentially my pitch for how I would write the episode, as well as how I would write a TYT special in general. Now that I’ve exhausted writing G5 like the DC Snyderverse (for now), I thought…what would happen if I tried to write episodes for both Make Your Mark and Tell Your Tale? How would I write the canon versions of these characters? And well, you got your answer. This being my first crack at writing an actual episode script in story form, there might obviously be some flaws, but I’m genuinely interested to see what you all have to say about it. Depending if this story does well, this could very well decide the trajectory of my G5 stories going forward and how they’re written; more like episodes with a moral attached at the end of them, just like the classic FIM days. In fact, I combined at least two episode premises for this, that being “The Last Crusade” and most importantly, “Common Ground.” I think that worked for a sort of fitting matchup, with my own original twist to the plot. This is actually also my first time writing one of G5’s “epic magical moments” too, so I used “The Blockywockys” as my inspiration for the song scene, as well as the climax of “The Roots of All Evil” and “Portait of a Princess’s emotional song climax.

Overall, this was a very touching fic for me to write for Father’s Day. I really wanted to tackle the “episode” from Zipp’s perspective and how she would perceive this big change in her life, while also building up Misty’s plot line as well in the background. Feedback is always appreciated, and I’d love to see what you think of my first entry into a new way of writing these stories. Until next time, this is Admiral Producer…going to bed now because it’s 4:40 AM where I’m at. I seriously pulled an all nighter just to write this story. Hoof to heart. :)