Author's Note

Before we get started, I'd... like to say something. Between the time my last story was posted and now... I lost my two best friends.

There was a misunderstanding within a message that one friend sent me about the other friend and when I was confronted with that misunderstanding, I lied about it.

That was something I never should have done.

I learned that they never really forgave me about it, and... after that incident went down, and they got closer... I started getting jealous. I loved that I brought them together, but with my crazy schedule with school and this series and my own life... I felt left out.

But... lying about the misunderstanding was wrong, and I should've just told the truth.

I don't know if I'll ever get their trust back, and for that, guys... I am so sorry. You guys never gave up on me... at least, until now.

Truth is... I deserve to be given up on. I never meant to drive you guys away, but I guess I did.

I accept if we're not gonna be friends anymore, if that's what you guys really want, but... I at least wanna dedicate this story to you.

One of the friends planned to write this story with me before we argued, and this was always one of the other friends' favorite movies.

You'll always be my friends, even if you don't consider me your friend anymore.

...let the story begin, I guess.

The Grand Reopening of the Bridlewood History Museum

It had been a couple of weeks since the Mane 6's last Unity Quest ended, and needless to say, they were in some desperate need of some time off.

On their last mission, they reunited with Mystery Inc and a bunch of new friends to save a maiden space voyage, and they once again had to face off against Alterro in order to successfully escape from the moon base, which the culprits behind the alien, former astronaut Shannon Lucas and a Sun Jaguar named Aruna, set to blow.

Naturally, everyone escaped, but they knew that Alterro's thirst for revenge was only going to get more intense from that moment on.

They had to be more careful on these Unity Quests, otherwise their next mission could be their last.

After their last mission, the Mane 6 took the opportunity to spend some time on the Boardtrot, tending to their stations and going on rides when they had a free moment-- Sunny even got Comet a job so he could look after her shop when she wasn't there.

But one day, Izzy got an invitation in the mail all the way from Bridlewood… and from her favorite crafting protege, Violette Rainbow!

Violette’s aunt, Scarlet Cloud, had been restoring the Bridlewood History Museum for quite some time, and now, it was finally ready to be re-opened, and she wanted Violette to invite the Mane 6 to be guests of honor for the ribbon cutting ceremony!

How could our heroes say no to that?

And as we speak, they are currently heading to Bridlewood for this all-important ceremony, not knowing that this would lead to their most important Unity Quest mission yet... and this was a mission that would bring them back to a place they've already been with friends that they had already met.

XXXXXXXX

“Whoo-hoo!!!” Izzy cheered with her head out the window of the Marestream as it flew through the sky. “I can taste the wind!!!!”

“And, you’re also going to catch a fly if you don’t stop sticking your head out the window,” Hitch said, pulling her away. “So… probably not the safest idea.”

“Your loss, Hitchie-Poo,” Izzy shrugged. “Oooh… I’m just so excited to see Violette and meet her aunt!”

“It has been a while since we’ve seen her-- probably since training camp to be ready for if Allura invaded,” Sunny said in thought. “And I know that she’s probably gonna be over the Luna moon to see us all again.”

Misty noticed that Sunny had been unusually quiet during the course of their trip, and couldn’t help but wonder what it was about. “Sunny? Are you thinking about Alterro again?”

“How can I not, Misty? He… he tried to manipulate me,” Sunny shuddered. “Maybe not with his magic, but he tried to make me think that I was superior to everyone else.”

“I didn’t wanna admit it at first, but… our last encounter with Alterro scared me too, just like it scared Sparky,” Hitch said. “I’m glad I left him with Grandma Figgy for the day so, in case we had to face Alterro again, it wouldn’t bring back any bad memories for him.”

“Good call, Hitch,” Pipp sighed before remembering something that honestly made her shudder. “Do you think… Alterro escaped from Sly Moon Prime before it went down in flames? He was trapped in that ice…”

“I don’t know,” Zipp sighed, shaking her head from the driver’s seat. “I mean… the good side of me hopes he DID survive, but… then again, if he did, he would be free to search for the other map pieces.”

“And if he did,” Misty sighed, “he would be two steps ahead of us.”

“...hey, we can’t think like that, ponies,” Izzy said to her friends gently. “We’re gonna find the alicorns and Sunny’s mom, I can feel it in my hooves! Like Sunny always says... we just need to have hope.”

“...you’re right, Izzy. My mom has to be okay, and we’re gonna find her soon enough,” Sunny nodded with a faint smile. “And, we might even find something to further our search in the Bridlewood History Museum!”

“And speaking of Bridlewood,” said Zipp with excitement in her voice as the Marestream began to descend, “we’re here!”

Turns out, Zipp was right-- they were touching down right in front of La Villa Izzy, the treehouse (quite literally) where Izzy used to live before she moved to the Brighthouse in Maretime Bay.

And wouldn't you know it? Violette Rainbow was already there waiting for them!

Violette Rainbow is quite the special filly-- not only is she Izzy's crafting pupil, but she also has a unique look. She had a purplish brown unicorn with white spots she has due to vitiligo, long lavender dreadlocks that swoop over to her right and she has a cutie mark with a pink heart-shaped paint board with two paintbrushes.

And upon seeing her teacher getting out of the Marestream, Violette gasped and immediately ran over to her. “Izzy!!”

“Violette!” Izzy squealed just before she hugged Violette tightly. “Oh, my glitter, it’s been so long since we’ve seen you!”

“I hope it’s okay that you’re here to see us, Violette,” Sunny said. “The opening ceremony is gonna start soon, and your aunt might be wondering where you got off to.”

“It’s not like when I ran away with the Buddies, trust me. I told Aunt Scarlet I was gonna come and escort you to the ceremony and she said that was a great idea,” Violette said. “Nothing to worry about. Oh! And Aunt Scarlet wanted me to ask Pipp if she wanted to perform a song before the ceremony started, to kinda get ponies hyped up.”

“Oh, it would totally be my honor!” Pipp said with an excited tone in her voice. “And I know just the song I wanna perform!”

XXXXXXXX

Within just a few minutes of arriving, a huge crowd had gathered in front of the museum, which (like a lot of buildings in Bridlewood) was built into a large tree, and they were all eager to hear Pipp perform one of her biggest hits...

...and one of Pipp's personal favorites.

Pipp: I'm feelin' fresh
Like my mane is on fleek
Happiness is all I need
Spreadin love from you to me (Uh, uh)

Somethin' about about the way I'm feelin' (Feelin')
Like everypony got a glow (Glow)
Shining brightly with a power (Power)
Just spread the colors of the rainbow (Rainbow)

I got my make up on
Got that glitter and glam
Oh, this my favorite song
Yeah, they playing my jam

I feel beautiful, I feel powerful
I feel me...

The crowd cheered at the top of their lungs as Pipp reached the second reprise of the chorus.

Pipp: I'm feelin' fresh
Like my mane is on fleek
Happiness is all I need
Spreadin love from you to me

I'm feelin' fresh
Magic all around my friends
Celebration never ends
Oh cuz we always a ten

Wo, ho, ho, ho, ho
I'm my best self everypony can tell
Wo, ho, ho, ho, ho
I'm my best self everypony can tell

Izzy then tossed Pipp a hand mirror prop to use in the next verse of the song, and Pipp found it hard to stop admiring her reflection while doing so.

Pipp: When did this mirror get so gorgeous? (Gorgeous)
Who's that, is that me? (Me)

I got my make up on
Got that glitter and glam
Oh, this my favorite song
Yeah, they playing my jam

I feel beautiful, I feel powerful
I feel me

I'm feelin' fresh
Like my mane is on fleek
Happiness is all I need
Spreadin love from you to me

I'm feelin' fresh
Magic all around my friends
Celebration never ends
Oh cuz we always a ten

Wo, ho, ho, ho, ho
I'm my best self everypony can tell
Wo, ho, ho, ho, ho
I'm my best self everypony can tell

And by the time the song ended, the crowd was on their hooves, cheering and applauding as Pipp left the stage to reunite with her friends. “Nice one, sis,” Zipp said to her sister with a proud smile. “You really got them hyped up.”

“Thanks, sis,” Pipp said, flicking her mane to the side. “It takes a lot of work to keep your fans happy, you know.”

“Look!” Violette said as she pointed to the stage again. “There’s my aunt!”

As it turns out, Violette's aunt, Scarlet Cloud, was now taking the stage-- her pink coat glimmered in the sunlight, and there was a singular white streak in her pink mane and in her pink tail. She also had emerald-green eyes, and a cutie mark of a feathery quill, representing her need for writing down notes and studying different artifacts.

And once the cheering had died down, Scarlet stepped up to the microphone and smiled. “Thank you, Princess Pipp for that astounding performance-- and thank you to all your friends for joining us today. We are so excited to be reopening the Bridlewood History Museum after such a long restoration, and I think you’ll all be thrilled to see more exhibits than ever before!”

The crowd cheered once again to this, and Scarlet levitated a very large pair of scissors up into the sky for the crowd to see before levitating them over to Sunny. “Sunny, would you and your friends do the honors of opening the museum to the public?”

“It would be an honor, Scarlet,” Sunny nodded with a smile, and she and her friends each put a hoof on the scissors. “And now, we declare the Bridlewood History Museum officially… reopened!”

And with that, the ribbon was snipped, and everyone cheered before slowly making their way inside the museum, leaving the Mane 6, Violette Rainbow and Scarlet Cloud outside to oversee that everyone got their time inside.

Scarlet Cloud happily sighed and rubbed her niece’s head affectionately once they were alone. “Your mother is lucky that I offered to take care of you while she was at a conference in Zephyr Heights. And I’m so glad I finally get to meet your friends in person.”

“We’re glad to meet you too, Scarlet,” Misty smiled. “Violette’s quite the little adventurer, if you didn’t already know.”

“Oh, I know all about my niece’s adventurous spirit,” said Scarlet with a chuckle. “She told me quite a bit about her Unity Quest adventure with all of you, and the golden retriever puppies she met and made friends with.”

“The Pippsqueaks told me they got to meet the Buddies too,” Violette added. “And I’m glad they’re friends, but… I kinda sorta miss them.”

“Aww, they miss you too,” Pipp said. “Especially Mudbud and Rosebud. But maybe we’ll get the chance to take you back to Fernfield.”

Scarlet then turned to Sunny, a sympathetic smile on his face. “Violette also heard that you’re looking for the pieces of a map to Skyros in order for you to find your mother. I found a few alicorn related artifacts that I think might be able to help you in your search.”

“Really?! Oh, that would be so amazing! Thank you so much!” Sunny said, gladly shaking Scarlet’s hoof before turning to her friends. “What are we waiting for, guys? Let’s go in and get searching!”

“Aunt Scarlet, can I go in and help them?” Violette asked her aunt sweetly. “You know how much I love spending time with Izzy and her friends.”

Scarlet nodded to this, a smile growing on her face. “Sure you can, sweetie pie. Just stay with them at all times, okay?”

Violette nodded to this, a wide smile growing onto her face. “I will!”

And so, the Mane 6 and Violette filed inside the museum to look for the Skyros and alicorn exhibit, hoping to get a good clue as to where the next piece of the map was going to be hidden.

XXXXXXXX

They managed to find the alicorn and Skyros section rather easily, and from what they found, alicorns were able to control all sorts of different elements-- fire, water, plants, crystals, ice, wind, dark magic, light magic… all the works.

However, since Sunny could shift from earth pony to alicorn form, she wasn’t sure what kind of special alicorn magic she possessed.

That was when Zipp found an interesting piece of parchment in a glass picture frame. “According to this, before Princess Cadence turned into an alicorn, she was found as a pegasus filly in the forest, and she was taken in and raised by a village of earth ponies. And as she grew, she filled their lives with love and compassion.”

“Oh, I heard that story from my dad once!” Sunny nodded. “One day, Prismia, a reclusive sorceress who harbored jealousy toward the villagers, used a powerful necklace that amplified her evil and jealousy to drain the villagers of their love, causing them to become sad and afraid.”

“Oof… that sounds like something Opaline or Alterro might try,” Misty said. “So, what happened next, Sunny?” Violette asked. “Did Prismia drain Cadence’s love too?”

“I’m getting to that,” Sunny chuckled before turning to her friends and getting back to the story. “When she saw what Prismia had done, Cadence confronted her and defeated her with the very magic she stole, and Prismia changed her ways. And as a result, Princess Celestia, one of Opaline’s sisters as we now know, recognized Cadance as a true princess, turned her into an alicorn, and adopted her as her niece.”

“So it sounds like ponies like Twilight Sparkle and Cadence were one of the VERY few ponies who ascended to alicorn-hood,” Misty said, “and Sunny is the first earth pony in history to do the same!”

Sunny chuckled nervously to this. “Great… no pressure or anything.”

“That just makes you really special, Sunny,” Hitch said, putting a hoof right on Sunny's shoulder. “And why you’re the perfect pony to lead us-- leading is in your blood.”

Violette then looked down and saw a very familiar sight-- the Mane 6’s cutie marks glowing, and when she looked down, she gasped when she saw her cutie mark glowing as well. “I don’t think Sunny will have to wait long to put her leader skills to good use-- look!”

And by the time the Mane 6 noticed their glowing cutie marks, their magic caused a portal to open up on a nearby wall. “All right!” Izzy cheered. “Unity Quest time again!”

“And it looks like you’re coming with us, Violette,” Zipp smiled. “Just stay close and we’ll be fine.”

“All right!” Violette cheered. “Let’s go go go!”

And so, the Mane 6 leapt right into the portal on the wall with Violette Rainbow following behind, and soon, they were off on another Unity Quest mission... though they didn't have any idea where they were going this time.