//------------------------------// // Chapter Sixty One: Pinkie's Secret is Out // Story: Trixie and Maud: Heart of Stone // by TheCrimsonDM //------------------------------// HEART OF STONE Chapter Sixty One: Pinkie’s Secret is Out Written by TheCrimsonDM Trixie stood at the edge of the forest next to her much taller friend. She let out a sigh and slipped the memory wipe potion into her saddlebag before looking back at Red Velvet with a sad smile. Red Velvet returned the smile and nodded before walking back into the woods. Trixie couldn’t help but stare after the unicorn she had befriended. “I’ll visit you again, Red,” Trixie said quietly. Red Velvet looked back and her smile grew, for a moment she was silent but just as Trixie thought that she wouldn’t receive a reply Red Velvet said, “I will look forward to it. For now I will focus on healing your mother, while I do that, you may be better off helping your friend…” Red Velvet looked away and continued walking, Trixie watched until Red was out of her sight. Trixie turned back towards Ponyville and started walking. She had to bring this potion to Maud and quickly, because if she didn’t, Pinkie Pie would only continue to suffer. Things were looking good though, and if Red Velvet spoke true, then things were about to get even better. When she had reached Ponyville Trixie saw various ponies trying to clean up the snow around town. It was a little early for the snow but there wasn’t a whole awful lot that anypony could really do about it now. So everypony was simply trying to get as much as they could out of the way. Trixie was pretty sure where she would find Pinkie Pie right now, and so she began heading into the direction of The Sugarcube Corner. Trixie stopped abruptly as a yellow coated pegasus wearing a green jacket walked into view. Something inside of Trixie stirred at the sight of Fluttershy, maybe it was the dream that Trixie had, maybe it was the green jacket, or perhaps it was the adorable green socks complete with leafy designs, but whatever it was that was doing it to her, she just couldn’t stop staring. After a moment Fluttershy’s cheeks began turning a light shade of pink and Trixie suddenly looked away feeling her own face heating up quickly. “S-s-sorry, I didn’t mean to stare,” Trixie apologized. “N-n-no that’s okay… I um… I don’t mind if you want to stare…” Fluttershy replied. Trixie looked over at Fluttershy again and couldn’t help but to examine Fluttershy’s tall and slender form. She had noticed it before, a long time ago, but right now it was impossible not to focus on how perfectly shaped Fluttershy’s body was. Trixie had an especially hard time not eyeing up Fluttershy’s tiny yet still curvy flanks. The hotter Trixie’s face became the harder it became to ignore the fact that she was currently eyeing up somepony that wasn’t her fiancé. Trixie finally looked away and began walking toward Sugarcube Corner again. Fluttershy joined her side and smiled at Trixie. After a few steps a gentle yellow wing reached over and draped itself over Trixie’s back. Trixie was so surprised that she nearly bucked in response, but she managed to control that instinct… barely. Fluttershy shortened the distance between the two of them a little before saying, “I… um… it’s really cold out here. I don’t want you to get sick.” Trixie knew that she should be pushing Fluttershy away, she knew that this was wrong, and finally she knew that she enjoyed this. Trixie opened her mouth in an attempt to tell Fluttershy to quit but all she could manage was a quiet mumbling sound. Trixie gave up and tried to ignore her embarrassment, and her enjoyment, for now. *** Once at The Sugarcube Corner Fluttershy finally let go of Trixie and in that moment Trixie decided to get some distance between them by walking ahead of Fluttershy. Trixie wasn’t aware of the fact that Fluttershy could have this much confidence, but maybe this had taken Fluttershy a long time to work up to? Whatever was causing Fluttershy to start making moves, Trixie knew that she couldn’t talk to Fluttershy about it at the moment, she had already wasted enough time, she would have to bring this up to her later though. Trixie made her way up the first set of stairs, past the Cake’s who wore worried expressions and up the second flight. Now at Pinkie’s open bedroom door Trixie could hear the soft muffled sounds of ponies talking. Trixie looked back at Fluttershy and put a hoof up to her mouth while whispering, “Shhh.” Trixie then snuck a little closer and peaked through the cracked open door. It looked like everypony was in there, Rarity, Applejack, Rainbow Dash, and even Twilight Sparkle. Pinkie Pie was laying on her belly, on the floor, her head was lying on Maud’s lap. Trixie listened to the conversation that was currently going on. “Pinkie Pie, I said I feel fine,” Maud said flatly. “But how do you feel? Fine is not an emotion, are you happy, mad, or are you scared like everypony else is?” Pinkie said in a trembling voice. Twilight gave a kind smile to Pinkie and said, “We are not scared. We are worried about you, that’s all.” “That’s complete trash, I can feel your emotions, you are all scared of me now that you know that I can read minds,” Pinkie Pie said. Rainbow Dash looked around and shrugged. “Yeah, well it is kinda a big deal ya know. I mean have you been doing that the entire time, like even when we were dating?” Pinkie Pie gave a tiny cry before saying, “I don’t abuse it, I promise. Do you think that I like being able to do this?” “Well I would, I would totally read Spitfire’s mind,” Rainbow Dash said. Pinkie just whimpered. Twilight jumped in and asked, “Have you read everyponies mind? Ours? Trixie’s? Celestia’s?” “I can’t read Celestia’s mind, and right now I can't read Trixie’s or Maud’s,” Pinkie tried to explain. Trixie let out a sigh and bracing her heart walked through the door saying, “I have a potion that will fix this. Maud,” Trixie said while walking towards her lover, “If you drink this, Pinkie will be able to read your mind again and then she will be happy.” Trixie levitated the bottle from her saddlebags and gave it to Maud who accepted it cautiously. Everypony stared hard at Trixie for a moment in silence and then Applejack asked, “Uh… sugarcube, did you just use magic?” Trixie gave her a glance and then focused on Maud again. “Yes I used magic, now onto important stuff. Maud, please drink that so Pinkie will be okay.” Maud looked at the potion and then she looked up at Trixie and asked, “Why?” Nopony made a sound, and the still silence filled the room as everypony waited in both shock and wonder for Maud to explain what she meant. Maud didn’t answer though, she just stared flatly at Trixie. After a few minutes Trixie finally had enough of the silence and explained, “Because Pinkie’s only solace seems to be taken from the fact that she could read your mind. Now please drink it.” “But why would I want somepony, even if it is my sister, to read my mind. My thoughts are private, Trixie,” Maud explained flatly. ‘Oh crap’ Trixie thought. Trixie coughed nervously a few times before saying, “But if you don’t drink it, Pinkie is going to continue being upset. You don’t honestly want that do you?” “Of course not, I love my sister, but I don’t like the idea of my personal thoughts being read by somepony else. It’s disgusting,” Maud explained flatly. Trixie had to look away in order to stop herself from letting on how much that statement hurt her, as well as Pinkie. Trixie could feel Pinkie’s heart shattering underneath the heavy weight of Maud’s words. Suddenly an idea came to Trixie, and she said, “Hey, Pinkie, what does your gift do to you? You know in regards to how you interact with others?” Pinkie Pie sniffled, and then said, “When a pony is happy, I can feel it and it makes me happy too. When a pony is sad, I can feel it, so I go out of my way to cheer them up. I know that it was wrong of me to hide this from everypony, but I was so scared that you would all be afraid of me and not trust me anymore… and look at this, I was right.” “Pinkie, I still trust you,” Maud said. “Then why won’t you drink the potion?” Pinkie asked. “Because I want my privacy, do you think that I want you to know about all the things I think about? Especially when it involves Trixie?” Maud asked. “I don’t read minds very often, and when I do it’s usually an accident. I just want to be able to feel your emotions, is that so wrong?” Pinkie asked, tears spilling over and running down her cheeks. Maud was quiet for a long moment and then she said in a stern tone, “okay, I’ll do this… on one condition.” “What is it?” Pinkie asked. “If you could read minds, feel emotions, and do all of that. I want you to tell me, tell… us, exactly what my parents were thinking when they sent you away from the farm,” Maud explained. Pinkie closed her eyes and gave out a small whimper. Everypony else looked at each other and then Rarity asked, “What do you mean by that, darling?” Pinkie Pie let out a quiet sob before explaining, “My parents sent me away… they didn’t want me anymore, they thought of me as being the black sheep that never belonged in the first place. They sent me to the Cake’s because I would fit in better here… and because I was nothing but trouble for them. “I cried, I never cried so hard in my life. I raged, I broke things, and then I cried again. My own parents didn’t want me, I never belonged, I was never meant to be with them, I was nothing but their mistake. And all this is what they thought about me. If your own parents think those kinds of things about you, than how are you supposed to not believe that they are true?” Pinkie Pie finished just before breaking out into another sobbing fit. Maud held her sister close, and stroked her mane gently. She only took her hoof away so that she could grab the bottle, pulled the cork with her teeth, and then drank it down. After a moment Maud’s eyes flashed green and then she smiled that tiny smile that she did when she was happy. Pinkie looked up at Maud and shook her head a few times. She then looked at Trixie and then back at Maud and a giant grin covered her entire face. Pinkie Pie wrapped her legs around Maud’s neck and shouted, “THANK YOU!” Pinkie Pie looked back at Trixie said more quietly, “I can hear her heart again… it’s so peaceful. Thank you, Trixie.” Trixie smiled and said, “It was nothing.” “Where exactly did you get that potion again?” Applejack asked. Trixie tired to remember but found a blank spot in her mind had suddenly appeared. She tried to think deeper on it, and felt a slight headache arise, but she remembered the Everfree Forest. Trixie shook her head and said, “The Everfree Forest.” “Was it Zecora? I mean she has all sorts of potions and junk,” Rainbow Dash offered. Trixie nodded and said, “Yeah, she does.” Although not actually a lie, Trixie knew in her heart that wasn’t Zecora. Whoever it was however had left their mark on Trixie, she felt like something really good was going to happen soon, and she couldn’t wait for whatever it was.