Misty tossed and turned, unable to get any real sleep. After dinner earlier, as she promised, she tried searching for Princess Flurry Heart, wandering the castle, but she found no hint of the pink alicorn. Finally, after four hours of searching, she decided to just head to bed and try again tomorrow evening.

However, now she just couldn't sleep. This wasn't unusual for her. She'd often have sleepless nights, but they usually happened after waking up from a nightmare. It was one in the morning and she had yet to fall asleep. She didn't understand why.

She looked over at the neighboring bed, sighing heavily. Zipp was fast asleep, with a book lying open on her chest. Every time Misty moved, Zipp would readjust and her breathing would hitch. If she kept this up, she'd wake Zipp up.

Misty slowly sat up and got out of bed, slowly creeping towards the door. She slowly opened it and closed it behind her once she was out in the hallway. She began to walk down the hall, keeping her head down, her surroundings blurring around her.

This was a common habit for her. She typically walked when she couldn't sleep. Walking always helped her focus her thoughts that would otherwise be a scrambled mess that'd keep her up at night. She practically did it every night at the Zephyr Heights castle for the six months she lived there. The night guards actually became accustomed to her nightly walks and actually came to expect her, sometimes with small gifts that were meant to help her sleep.

None of her friends knew of her nightly walks. She wasn't sure why she never told them. It was something she had done since the night Opaline found her. She'd pace the length of her small bedroom. Back at the Brighthouse, she'd purposefully go outside and walk around the Brighthouse to avoid detection. She'd even hide from Izzy a couple of times when she'd come out to get some tea leaves for her sleepy-time tea.

Misty felt bad about hiding it from her friends, taking such precautions to keep them from finding out. It made her feel stupid. Everypony had their late-night habits. Like how Izzy put Senior Butterscotch in her bed when she left it in the middle of the night. Or how Sunny liked to sleep with her lantern by her bed because it reminded her of when she was a filly. Or how Zipp fell asleep holding notes on the thing she was investigating at the time since she'd read them until the moment she fell asleep. And yet, whenever Misty thought about telling them, she'd feel her heart race and she'd become terrified.

Misty walked through the darkened hallways. The windows were covered by blackout curtains to block out the light of the dimming artificial sun. Her mind was blank, which was also odd. Her thoughts typically raced during these walks.

Come to think of it, she hardly slept since that night. Since the night that creature sang to her. Misty shook her head. Thinking of that creature and that song made her head hurt. And yet, she couldn't stop thinking of it.

What did that creature mean? That she wanted to be her friends' pawn? And how did that creature know about her deepest insecurities? That she's always been an outcast? That it's hard to know for sure if they really are her friends or if they're fakes? That they're just using her for her empathic abilities and when they're done with her, they'll just dump her somewhere like Opaline threatened to do all the time?

Misty stopped her thoughts right there. She refused to think of Opaline. Not after everything Opaline put her through. Not after years of finally being free from her. She would no longer give Opaline the time of day, or night unless she absolutely had to. And she didn't have to. Not now.

Misty looked up to see herself in front of the big ornate wooden doors of the research hall. She was about to walk past it when she saw that the door was cracked open and a lantern was on inside. She hesitated, not sure what to do, before slowly creeping up to the door.

She slowly peeked through the crack, but there wasn't anypony in her line of sight, meaning they were further in. Misty took a deep breath and quietly opened the door, stepping through.

Misty gasped when she saw who was on the other side, making her presence known and causing the pink alicorn with a blue and purple mane to turn and look right at Misty.

Pipp's eyes slowly opened to see the reflections of a lantern light. She sighed heavily. Slowly, she looked at the clock on her phone. One thirty in the morning. Of course. This wasn't the first time he was up this late. She glanced at the door, considering just getting up and leaving to get Sunny so she could levitate him to bed. He probably fell asleep at the desk again but decided not to.

She turned to her other side to see Hitch leaning over the desk in their room. "Babe…?" She called out softly, only to get no response. "Baby?" She called out again, only to get silence.

She sighed, preparing herself to get up, lying on her back. She would've just left him there, but the first time she did that, he was complaining of back pain and could barely walk from sleeping like that with his back hunched for hours. Since then, during the last two times he fell asleep there, she'd get up, and get Sunny so she could levitate Hitch to bed since Pipp wasn't strong enough to lift him on her own.

She stopped though when she heard Hitch yawn. She turned to see him shaking his head and quietly smacking his lips, rubbing his eyes with his hooves before rubbing his face and then going back to reading.

Something was keeping him up at night. She knew that much. She just didn't know what. He refused to talk about it, even though it was keeping him up nearly every night. She was starting to see the toll it was having on him, stressing and worrying and not sleeping. She'd try to pry it out of him, but he'd always tell her he was fine and not to worry about him.

It was killing her inside. They were supposed to be married. They were supposed to be a couple. They were supposed to do this thing called life together. And yet, of felt like They were two strangers, forced to stay together. She began to wonder if he loved her anymore. Now that they were married, did the novelty of being with a pegasus wear off? Was this all that it was to him? A novelty, an experiment, to see what being with a pegasus would be like? Was that what was keeping him up at night? Him trying to find a way to tell her so that he'd still keep his valor in the end? Is that why he didn't tell her?

Pipp shook her head. No. That wasn't it. He loved her more than life itself, right? It was just nerves building up in her. She was just…scared. She knew that their love was all she'd ever need. If that was gone, she was afraid she'd end up all alone again. She didn't want to be left behind.

"Honey…?" Pipp called out, sitting up.

Hitch started, looking up at her. His eyes were sad, but they were quickly replaced by a mask of kindness. "Oh. I'd ask if I woke you up, but…I think I already know the answer to that."

Pipp lay back down. "Honey, come back to bed…" she tried to say in her sexiest voice, but there was a slight tremble that showed her insecurities. "Please…?"

"I can't sleep," Hitch said briskly. "I don't want to wake you up by tossing and turning and…"

"Hitch." That was all she said, but Hitch knew that tone of voice and that look she was giving him. He knew not to test that look.

He sighed and reluctantly dragged his hooves to bed. It made Pipp's heart sink. Did he really not want to be around her that much?

He climbed into bed. She was about to turn her back to go to sleep, giving him the space he so obviously desperately wanted, but was surprised when he wrapped his hooves around her and guided her to lay on his chest.

"Are you okay?" Pipp asked, her voice just above a whisper.

"Yeah. I'm fine."

"Are you sure? I'm just…I'm worried about you, you know. I love you. You know you can tell me anything, right?"

"I know, hun. Don't worry about me. I'll be fine."

Pipp sighed, dropping her head on his chest. "Okay." She said shortly.

There was a moment of silence before Hitch asked, "Can you…can you sing for me? It helps soothe my soul."

Pipp smiled at that. He always loved her singing. "Yeah. Sure. Any requests?"

"Whatever comes from the heart. I wanna know what you're feeling."

That was when it hit Pipp. She wanted Hitch to share his feelings and his heart, but she didn't talk about her feelings either. He had no idea she was feeling so alone, so distant from him. How could he? She never told him. She was never good at sharing her feelings. Just like him, she was used to wearing a mask every day for the public to see. It was just so ingrained in her, that she didn't even realize she was doing it for him too. How could she expect him to share his deepest insecurities and feelings when she had yet to do it herself?

Pipp sighed. "Alright. This is a brand-new song. One I'm making up as I go…

🎵I never imagined myself out on my own,
Trying to salvage what's left of me.
I thought our love would always be my home,
Left behind the mare I used to be

But I guess as time goes by,
Everypony has to go out on their own.
And maybe someday I'll have to try,
Something new that's just for me,
A little something that could be
Just my own, so I won't feel so left behind.

We used to say that we'd be always side by side.
But maybe things are changing, and this could mean goodbye.
I always thought our love was all I'd ever need.
I thought we promised forever,
What else is there for me? 🎵

Tears filled Hitch's eyes as he heard Pipp's new song. He had no idea she felt this way. That she felt just like he did. She was scared that now that she'd dived in with all four hooves, he'd leave her and she'd be alone. That maybe him leaving her was inevitable, and that maybe she should distance herself so that wouldn't happen. So she wouldn't feel left behind. It was exactly what he felt.

When Pipp was fillynapped by the changelings, he was so lost without her. He found out that with her gone, he was no longer himself. He had barely functioned properly. The only thing that kept him going was Sparky. And then he found her and he couldn't have been happier.

And then she died, and this time was worse. When she was fillynapped, at least there was hope of her coming back. But…when she died…he knew she was gone. Sure the Unity magic brought her back, but…he didn't know that at the time. And had everything been normal, she wouldn't have. He felt so alone. So broken. Like half of him died right along with her.

And then she jumped in front of Misty when Flurry Heart tried to blast her. She was lucky Hitch was able to grow that plant in time. If he didn't…Hitch didn't want to think of that. He didn't even realize that he had been distancing himself. It wasn't like he could tell her to stop jumping in front of other ponies. But…he was so afraid of losing her again, that he put up that barrier so that when he did, it wouldn't hurt as much. So it didn't feel like she was trying to leave him behind.

As Pipp sang the chorus again, Hitch quietly sang along with her, his voice full of emotion:

🎵But I guess as time goes by,
Everypony has to go out on their own.
And maybe someday I'll have to try,
Something new that's just for me,
A little something that could be
Just my own, so I won't feel so left behind.🎵

Tears also filled Pipp's eyes. Finally, finally, she knew how he felt. By expressing her own emotions and fears, she was able to figure out that he felt the same way. She finally got to understand what he was terrified of. It was the same thing she was scared of. And she knew how to help.

"Hitch, I'll never purposefully leave you. And if you and I are separated, I won't truly be gone. I'll always be in your heart. And, whenever you truly need it, somehow, someway, I'll give you a sign. I'll figure it out. I promise."

And just like that, it felt like the distance between them closed up. They suddenly didn't feel like two perfect strangers forced to stay together. They felt like the married couple they were. They were one being and their souls were interconnected. Just like it was supposed to be.

Hitch squeezed Pipp tighter and Pipp smiled. And that was how the two of them fell asleep, Hitch getting his first restful night of sleep since that day at the changeling kingdom as he fell asleep with a small smile on his face.

Misty froze as Flurry Heart and Misty stared at each other in complete silence. Misty didn't know what to do. Flurry Heart was a landmine so to speak. If she said the wrong thing, Flurry Heart would close herself off again.

Misty stared into Flurry's eyes, seeing a mess of emotions she was not sure her friends would even notice. Fear. Guilt. Anger. Shame. All of it cultivated into one big monster that ate at her from the inside out. Misty was about to put her shield up, the emotions Flurry felt being like a punch in the gut, but she didn't. Sure, her emotions brought Misty back in time to when she felt those things back when she was nothing but Opaline's servant. And yeah, she still felt those emotions ninety percent of the time and instead of dealing with them, she just buried them. But she needed to feel these emotions in order to connect with Flurry on a deeper level. Maybe then she could help her. And, who knows, maybe they could help each other.

"Hi," Misty said in a voice just above a whisper.

"Hi." Flurry Heart turned back around, looking down at the rug in front of her with all the images.

Misty took a shaky breath and slowly walked up to Flurry, sitting down next to her. "What…" her voice came out trembly and wobbly, so she cleared her throat, and tried again. "What are you…looking at?"

"Memories." Was all Flurry said.

Misty was silent for a moment before she built up the courage to speak again. "What do those symbols on the rug mean?"

"Those are the Cutie marks of all of my Aunt's friends. She didn't want me to forget them and…she wanted me to always remember they'll always be here." Flurry Heart pointed to three apples. "This one belonged to my Aunt Applejack. And this one?" She pointed to a rainbow wonderbolt with a cloud. "This one was my Aunt Rainbow Dash's. And this one was Aunt Starlight's." She said as she pointed to a star with two streaks of magical light-green energy coming from it. "She and Aunt Twilight taught me everything I know about magic. And this one was my friend, Pumpkin's cutie mark. Her twin brother's, Poundcake, is right there." She pointed at two cutie marks, which were a pumpkin pie and a chocolate cake. "And this was my friend Peach's cutie mark. And my other friend Orion's." She then pointed to a peach Cobbler cutie mark and a constellation one.

Flurry paused as tears filled her eyes. Misty looked around the rug, trying to find something to distract her. She then found one with a crystalline sky-blue heart with a gilded golden frame and another one that was a dark blue shield with three stars over it. They kind of looked like Flurry Heart's cutie mark.

"What about those? Who are they? They kinda look like yours," Misty asked, pointing at the Cutie marks that were side by side.

Flurry sighed, looking away. "Those belonged to my parents."

Misty closed her mouth. Great. Now she just made Flurry Heart feel worse. She stayed silent, not wanting to make things worse. But…that was when a thought occurred to her.

Misty sighed, praying she didn't make this worse. "You know, Princess…I…I understand what it's like to lose a parent…and…I understand how you're feeling.

Flurry crossed her hooves and rolled her eyes, scoffing. "Sure you do."

I do. I…you feel so alone and that…" Misty squeezed her eyes shut as tears filled them. "That you lost the only pony who could ever understand you and that you'll never find another pony like that again…and…and that you'll be alone your whole life and that even if you did have that parent if they could see you now…they'd hate the pony you became because…you couldn't do anything right! No matter how hard you tried, you'd always fail! Because everything you'd do, everything you ever been involved in, you'd screw it up! And the one pony you looked up to as a parent after you lost your first one kept telling you how much of a screw-up you are and…and that nopony could ever love you and because you dont remember life before her, you believe her and think she's right and you start to believe it's true! And then you find out she was wrong and you make all these friends who claim to love you but even though she's gone, and you found your real parent again, and life's perfect all around, her words still ring through your head and because that's all you've been told your whole life, you can't help but wonder if they're true! So you hide all your feelings from your friends in an attempt to keep them because if you let the tiniest emotion slip, you'll lose them all and prove that pony right!"

Tears were streaming down Misty's face as the emotions she kept buried for so long came bubbling up to the surface. She hadn't even felt these emotions since she was a filly. She buried them, along with her memories, almost two and a half years after Opaline fillynapped her, because, on top of Opaline's constant abuse, it was way too hard on her. She wouldn't have survived otherwise. She…she would've eventually taken her life because of it.

She quickly wiped the tears away with her hoof, opening her eyes to see Flurry Heart just staring at her with wide shocked eyes, completely taken aback by her outburst. She had never expected this out of Misty. She was just so shy and meek and…suddenly, Misty's behavior made sense. She just assumed Misty acted the way she acted because she was shy or an empath. But now …now it made sense. She had just told Flurry Heart. She hid all her feelings in fear that if she let them show, she'd lose them, and prove somepony right. What in the hay happened to this poor mare to make her so…so much like Flurry?

Misty's eyes widened when she realized what just happened and to whom. She did not mean to let that all out. She didn't mean to have a mental breakdown in front of a very temperamental, very powerful, alicorn princess. Her emotions were still raw and her reopened wounds were still fresh. She started to regress to her old behavior. Instead of a light pink alicorn with a blue and purple mane, she saw a magenta-pink alicorn with a white and blue mane.

"I-I'm so sorry, Princess. I'm…I don't know what came over me. Please don't be mad at me!" Misty squeezed her eyes shut and she was once again in the lair with Opaline, as though nothing had changed. "Please, don't hurt me! I promise none of it was true! Please, Opaline, I beg you! I–"

Flurry Heart froze. Did…did she just say Opaline? "W‐what happened to you?" Flurry asked softly, not sure what to think.

She didn't think any of these ponies could understand her. That their lives had been just as blissful and perfect as it was before Opaline showed up. She didn't think anypony could possibly understand the mental torture she put herself through every day. The closest pony she thought could ever understand her was M.O.R.I.C., and he wasn't even a pony. But…maybe…just…maybe…she was wrong.

"I don't know, Opaline! I don't! I'm so sorry! It all just came spilling out and…and I–"

"Hey…" Flurry Heart said gently, grabbing hold of Misty's shoulders, and causing her to flinch. Flurry Heart considered letting go, but Misty was stuck in the past like Flurry so often was. Flurry had M.O.R.I.C. to get her out. Now Misty needed her to do the same. She had no idea what to do to comfort a pony, after a thousand years in complete isolation, so she just did what M.O.R.I.C. did to her. It always worked with her, why wouldn't it work for Misty? "Look at me, Misty. Just look at me."

Misty slowly opened her eyes, waiting for the blow, when her heart stopped. This wasn't Opaline. This…Misty's panic seemed to grow rather than fade away. "I'm so sorry Princess. I just…I didn't know…"

"Misty. It's okay. I'm not mad. I just…I just want to know what happened to you to cause…all this."

Misty sighed, looking down at her hooves as Flurry Heart slowly let go of her. Surprisingly, she didn't feel embarrassed. She just felt…numb inside.

"Well, as you already know, I was raised by Opaline. What Izzy failed to tell you was that she abducted me when I was a little filly. After a while of her abuse, my mind naturally repressed memories of my life before Opaline. She told me…she told me that together, we'd be great. We'd rule Equestria, and every wish, every desire would be granted. She dangled the one thing I wanted in front of me. That if I helped her, she'd give me a cutie mark. She'd…she'd make me special. But…every time I failed, she wouldn't hesitate to call me worthless. A screw up. And I'd fail her…a lot. She'd give me impossible missions, missions she knew I'd fail at, just for the excuse to call me a nothing. And that nopony would love me. She…she beat me down so much, I couldn't help but believe her. She made me feel as though I couldn't do anything right. I believed that she was the only pony who'd ever even stand my presence, let alone love me."

Tears filled Misty's eyes as she explained her life under Opaline. She never told another pony this, not even Zipp, despite how close they became after the shattering of the Unity Crystals. Misty was always the one who listened, not talked. But, it wasn't like any of the ponies ever asked her about her life with Opaline. The only pony who remotely seemed to care about those years was her dad, Alphabittle. But, she could tell talking about it always made him so sad, so she avoided the topic as much as possible.

She's never been a pony who focused on herself. She'd always focus on others before she even gave a thought about herself. If Misty had to guess, it was probably due to years of serving Opaline. That she always had to think of Opaline first. Would Opaline be pleased with that? Would Opaline want to hear that? Would Opaline punish her for that? She was conditioned to never think of herself around Opaline. If she did, there'd be major consequences.

But, talking about her past to Flurry Heart, who seemed to get it, felt natural. She never really had a pony who truly understood her. But Flurry Heart…even though she didn't know what Flurry Heart's past was with Opaline, she had felt the same feelings that Misty had, and still did undergo.

"How…how did you…get out?" Flurry asked gently.

"Opaline had asked me to infiltrate Sunny's friend group. You see, it was them who brought back magic. She knew they were special, and she wanted to know everything she could about them. But, what Opaline didn't account for, was how amazing they'd treat me. You know the saying? It's better to forever be in the dark than to see the light and have it ripped from you? It was like that. In my life with Opaline, I didn't know what I was missing. Everything that happened, to me, was normal. That was how everpony was treated. That was how ponies behaved. The strong on top, the weak at the bottom.

"But, when I met Sunny, she was nothing like Opaline. Yes, she was an alicorn, but she was kind and she treated me like a real friend. Opaline would try to combat my newfound happiness by saying that if they knew who I was, a blank flank, they'd never want to be my friend. That they'd cast me out. And…I believed her. But when Zipp cornered me, I told her I was a blank flank, and I was so sure she'd hate me. But, in fact, she told me that they needed me and that they still loved me just for being me. Izzy made me this charm bracelet." Misty held up her hoof to show off the charm bracelet she always wore, refusing to take it off for any reason. "It had all the cutie marks of my best friends on it, so whenever I felt lonely, all I had to do was look down and know I wasn't alone. But, Opaline raised me on the belief that nopony could ever love me and I still believed Opaline's words and…and I screwed up royally."

"What did you do?"

"Hitch has a baby dragon named Sparky. Opaline has been wanting him so that he can refuel her alicorn firepower. She had wanted me to take him. So, finally, I did. But, I felt so guilty betraying the first ponies who were ever nice to me, who only treated me like family. I went back to them to make things right. I led them to Sparky so that they could save them. I was a blank flank with no magic, there was nothing I could do. But…when I brought them to where Sparky was…Opaline found them…and trapped them. I wasn't even trying to get them captured. Everything Opaline told me about how I screw up everything no matter how hard I tried not to seemed to be true.

"And, for the first time in my life, Opaline was actually proud of me. She told me that as soon as she was done taking Sparky's dragon fire, she'd give me a cutie mark. I had everything I ever wanted. But…it didn't feel like I thought it would. I still felt guilty. I had lost the ponies that had ever meant something to me. I realized…it all boiled down to who I wanted to be as a pony. I realized that I'd rather be a pony without a cutie mark forever than live one more day as a pony that does the wrong thing! So…I freed them. And by doing so, I earned my cutie mark." Misty pointed to the coral and magenta butterfly on her flank. "Once I stopped worrying about wanting a cutie mark, Opaline had lost the only incentive she had for me. And when I had finally earned it, I was my own pony. I no longer had to live under her rule. I freed my friends and helped them save Sparky, and a couple of months later, I was able to help them defeat Opaline.

"Now life is perfect: I have the best friends who became my family, I have my cutie mark, I found my father, I have a home, I have everything I ever wanted, and, even though it's been a while, I'm finding my faith in them and that they'll stay. I still…I can't get used to it. I'm up at night thinking I might just lose it all. That somehow, I'll screw it all up just like she said I would. And I feel so guilty. I know I have enough. I have everything I ever wanted. I have peace. And I have love. I visit my father every month. So, if everything's good, and don't get me wrong, it's great, why do I sit and wait until it's gone? You know. I just…I just need these beautiful things in my life. I don't want to lose these beautiful things that I've got. I can't."

Flurry Heart stared at Misty as she wiped away tears from her eyes. This Misty…Flurry understood why she was the Element of Empathy. It wasn't just because she was an empath. It was because of how much she could relate to other ponies. Not just to their experience, but to the emotions that underpin that experience.

Tears filled Flurry's heart. The fact that Misty shared gave Flurry the courage to share her own experience. She didn't feel stupid in front of Misty for falling for Opaline's manipulations because Misty went through the same exact thing.

"Opaline manipulated me too," She finally said. "I was fifteen and still didn't have a cutie mark. Of course, Aunt Twilight taught me that nopony could give you a cutie mark. I knew that. But…still. Something about it felt right. Like she could really do what she said she could…" Flurry trailed off, sighing heavily. This was the first real-time she actually talked about it. She tried to visit the past as little as possible.

"A manipulation spell. That's what she used with me too, until she figured out I had repressed my memories and she realized she didn't need to do that anymore."

"I agreed and she…every year, my parents, who were the King and Queen of the Crystal Empire at the time, threw me a grand party for my birthday for…reasons." Flurry Heart didn't want to bring up the Crystal Heart. "I invited her to it and…let's just say…it's my fault she became so powerful to begin with."

Misty put her hoof on Flurry's. Flurry looked at Misty, who was still looking at the ground. "By the time I made the right decision and saved my friends, it was already too late. Opaline had already drained Sparky of his dragon fire. If she didn't get his dragon fire, she wouldn't have been able to kidnap two full-grown dragons and steal the cutie marks of everypony in Equestria." Misty looked up at Flurry Heart. "You're not the only one who made mistakes when it came to Opaline, Princess. We all did."

Flurry Heart smiled softly, blinking back tears. She quickly wiped away any remnants, saying. "Thanks, Misty. You know, it really makes me feel better, having somepony who went through something similar. Having somepony to relate to. It makes me feel…less alone."

"Same here. What I told you, I've never told anypony else. And, you can just call me Tea. All my friends do."

Flurry Heart looked at Misty with shock. "We're friends? After what I did to you? After what I did to your friends?"

"Yeah. Of course. Nopony can fault you for what you did. You were just trying to protect your kingdom and you were overwhelmed. Trust me, when I first moved into the Brighthouse after we conquered Opaline, I had done something similar. They can be…a bit much. And, they'll usually realize it after somepony blows up. You're not the first, Princess."

"Oh, enough with the formality crap. We're friends now, remember? You can just call me Flurry." Flurry sighed, looking at the clock. It was already two in the morning. She didn't realize they'd been talking for a half hour. "Well, I best be going to bed. I have early mornings."

"What time?" Misty asked as Flurry stood up.

Flurry smiled. "5:55 in the morning. Well, have a good night. I hope…I hope you find everything you're looking for."

"We won't stop until we find a way to save your kingdom. I promise." Misty said with determination.

Flurry smiled before walking out of the study.

Guilt welled up in Flurry. She already knew how to save her kingdom, but as her father told her a thousand years ago, it wasn't the right time. She'd know when that time came, her father assured her of that much, but she just had a few more loose ends to tie up.

Author's Note

Ha! Take that FimFiction!

Okay, so maybe I oughta give you a little context here…

So, originally, I wanted Misty to sing the song "Beautiful Things" by Benson Boone, but that wasn't going to work because it's not a damn Mlp song! (it should really count if you modify the lyrics for MLP, but whatever, rules are rules.) So I switched the song to Pipp and Hitch and did "Out On My Own" instead.

Though, there's always a way around rules. So, I incorporated some of the lyrics, okay most of the lyrics, in Misty's conversation with Flurry Heart, spread out a bit.

So, I repeat: Ha Fimfiction!

Okay, so, now that my little pat on my own back's done, I know this chapter was a bit mellow on the action and heavier on the emotions, but, it will get spicier next chapter and whatnot.

FIY: Next chapter is going to be all flash back, just like this chapter is all present, so do I need to italicized all of it, or will you guys be able to realize it's the oast and not the present? (That was a rhetorical question. Dont answer that)

Welp, see you next chapter and I hope you enjoyed this one.

Hakuna Matata!