//------------------------------//
// Chapter 11: Saturday 
// Story: Gusty and Ember 
// by Tobyc 
//------------------------------//

Chapter 11: Saturday


Trixie didn't wake up until 10 on Saturday morning, in part due to her having had difficulty putting down Daring Do and the Wooden Mask the previous night. Her horn had lost power around 2am and Trixie had fallen asleep mere seconds later. She was now eating breakfast in the kitchenette, avoiding telekinesis to help her magic recharge. Bow had left a note on the whiteboard, saying she was visiting a friend on the East side, and would be back around 4pm with refreshments for the movie marathon.

After finishing breakfast Trixie washed and dried her dishes, then walked to the living room, sat down and started reading over the play again. She'd just finished rereading the first scene between Islander and Bricklane when the doorbell chimed. Ember was waiting, wearing a saddlebag with four books sticking out of her open pockets.

"Ember! Come in and sit down," Trixie said, holding the door open. Ember walked through to the living room and shook her bag off.

"I have some... news," said Ember, her hesitation getting Trixie's full attention. "Not bad, necessarily, just really strange: Lanie got called back to Cloudsdale by TL yesterday afternoon, and I'm not sure why, or what time he'll be back."

Trixie blinked. "Do Medley's and Thunderlane's families have some connection?"

"Other than Cloudsdale? Not that I know of, and I know Lanie first met Medley at university, I think the same week as me and Gusty. Besides, the letter Lanie got wasn't anymore detailed than the one Medley left you and Bow." 

"Oh well, something to ask them tonight, hopefully," said Trixie, brushing the matter off for now. "So, four more books? Really?" she asked, gesturing to the saddlebag on the floor.

Ember laid the books out on the table. Three had the now familiar Daring Do logo - Alicorn's Shadow, Temple of Nightmare Moon and Legacy of Nightmare Moon. It was the fourth that got Trixie's attention - a history book about the Canterlot nobility, including - as Trixie guessed and then quickly confirmed by looking over the contents page - the Platinums, in a chapter to themselves spanning a little over fifty pages.

"Just when you have the time. I realise you have enough on your plate right now," said Ember.

Trixie smiled. "Yes, I suspect I'll have to slow down over this next month, especially if..." She was interrupted as the doorbell rang again, and she got up to answer it, Ember following her into the hallway.

Trixie opened the door to see Ingreen waiting with a (relatively) short male griffon. "Trixie Lulamoon, my co-star Rainclaw," Islander said.

Trixie shook his talon, then stepped back to let Ember do the same. She greeted him in griffon, which he returned after a moment of surprise. By way of explanation, she added, "My old colleague, Lewis. He was the deputy-editor of the World News pages when I came onboard." Ingreen nodded as she shook Ember's hoof, while Rainclaw raised an eyebrow in mild amusement.

Trixie and Ember led the actors into the living room. While Ember cleared away her books and took them to Trixie's room, Ingreen sat down in the recliner and pulled a notepad out of her saddlebag. "So, Miss Lulamoon, have you thought any more about my offer?"

Trixie nodded. "Last night I went over Islander's scenes with my... landmare, I guess? And I think I was able to adapt to the part well enough. I don't exactly have it memorised, but I think I'll be ready by Tuesday at the latest. Maybe tomorrow depending on how the dress rehearsal goes."

"So if I'm going to be put out of action, I could do it before the rehearsal, thus giving you the best opportunity to prepare?" asked Ingreen dryly, after taking a moment to figure out the other unicorn's reasoning. 

"That's... one way of putting it," replied Trixie with a nervous chuckle. Ember returned, joining Trixie on the couch. "So, if I do agree to be your understudy, how does that effect my investment?"

"It doesn't. In short, you reimburse the company for the half hour slot you're using for your magic act. In return, when we get the company's share of the takings, you'll receive 25%, discounting the customers who arrive towards the end of your act or afterwards. And I'll give you a small bonus out of my own share as long as you're attending rehearsals with us, and of course a much bigger bonus if you actually do have to go on in my place. With me so far?"

Trixie slowly nodded. "I guess, but are you sure that's fair? 25% for one pony vs... how many in your company?"

"Six of us, counting me and Rainclaw," answered Ingreen. "And yes, we all consider this offer fair - remember, you're paying more than any of the rest of us, so you deserve a bigger return."

Trixie nodded, feeling better about the deal. "Okay, I'm with you now. What are you asking?"

Ingreen passed over her notepad, containing the relevant calculations. Ember looked over the figures, then, without a word, got out her chequebook.


***


Ember had left as soon as the meeting was over, stating that she had a press conference to get to, and Ingreen followed suit to meet up with her other co-stars in the city. Rainclaw stayed behind to practice lines with Trixie, doing his best attempts at Bricklane and Lasso. Thankfully, he seemed satisfied with her delivery. The griffon had left around noon, but not before inviting Trixie for a coffee the following afternoon before rehearsal, to which she had agreed.

Trixie spent the next few hours finishing Daring Do and the Wooden Mask, and by the end she was beginning to realise just how much of a fanfilly she was becoming: Daring's recovery from the mask's influence had moved her to tears and turned her into a Herpy/Daring (Herring?) shipper - impressive, considering that she knew his rival was played by John Barrowmane. What's more, this was her first reaction to the chapter, despite her own recent experiences with corruption by powerful artifacts.

Before she could dwell on it, Bow walked in the door, carrying several bags of groceries. Trixie got up and followed her into the kitchen to help her unpack. As Bow put the soda bottles in the fridge, Trixie updated her on the meeting that morning, and what she'd learned about Thunderlane. Bow had no explanation for his absence coinciding with her sister's.

While they were waiting for the girls to turn up, Trixie had a look through the history book Ember had given her. By the end of the chapter, she was at a loss to figure out what Ember wanted her to find - none of the events coinciding with what she believed to be the timeline of the books seemed to be relevant to them. Maybe there'd be something in the three books Ember had brought over that morning. Or maybe she needed to borrow Amber of the Smooze again for clues.

Ember, Lyra and Bon Bon arrived a few minutes after half past 5. "Sorry we're a little late, but Bonnie insisted on waiting as long as we could in case the mailpony was running late," explained Lyra, prompting a glare from Bon Bon.

"Whereas I insisted that we make sure at least somepony would be here on time for the first movie," finished Ember, as she walked into the kitchen to inspect the snacks. "No word from Lanie or Medley?" she asked, turning to Bow and Trixie, who had followed her in.

Trixie shook her head as she tore open two large bags of chips. "Not since yesterday. But both of them said to start without them, so..." She finished pouring the chips out and carried the bowls into the living room. Bow followed her, carrying two bottles of soft drink. She put them on the coffee table and walked back to the kitchen to wait for the microwave. While Ember and Bon Bon carried the glasses in and Lyra got an extra chair from the kitchen, Trixie walked over to the television to set up the Sapphire Stone MVD.

As the other four mares took their seats, Trixie pushed play and sat down as the familiar theme music began.