The Pooka

by Mr. Grimm

A Royal Revenge

In the cool, cloudy morning, a quiet sobbing could be heard in the damp air around the edge of the forest, coming from a rickety wooden cart. Inside of this cart was a very sad and miserable sight. A blue unicorn sat in front of a mirror, surrounded by combs, brushes, and other grooming utensils. Her mane was in a horrible condition, tied and tangled so badly that even after six hours she had been unable to fix it. The unicorn had dark circles under her eyes from feverishly trying to comb her hair all night. The only thing that had resulted from her work was an aching scalp.

Trixie couldn’t bear to look at herself. Her flawless appearance had been spoiled by the rat’s nest that currently resided on her head. The Pooka had done something to her; had cast a spell or a curse. And in doing so, he had utterly ruined her. There was absolutely no way she could perform like this. She would never allow herself to be seen in such an atrocious state.

While this was happening, Trixie was totally unaware of the magnitude of trouble she was going to be in. In releasing something that had been sealed away by the princesses themselves, she had unleashed a spirit with a desire for revenge forged by millennia of imprisonment. Any rulers less benevolent than Celestia and her sister would have her head for what she had done. However, in the eyes of the Pooka, who was now merrily trotting through Canterlot, Trixie was a useful tool in escaping. Very attractive, too. But like so many foolish mares before her, she had been very rude to him, and already he was planning and locating her again and wreaking havoc for her.

The Pooka took everything personally. This aspect, coupled his power and obscene sense of humor, made him an extremely dangerous being to cross. And it just so happened that two sisters had crossed him some thousand years ago. The Pooka grinned up at the castle, eyeing its protective stonework that had stood for generations, as well as the countless guards who perpetually patrolled the grounds. He snickered to himself. Neither fortress nor soldiers could stop him in his pursuit of vengeance.

Celestia’s eyes snapped open when she felt something sharply pinch the end of her muzzle. The Alicorn’s head shot off her pillow as she looked to see what had so rudely awakened her. She was very perplexed when she saw that there was nopony else in her room.

“Luna?” called the princess, “Was that you?” She suddenly cried out as she felt the flat of a hoof slap her across the face. Celestia leapt from her bed, a furious look on her face. That had not been Luna.

“Celestia?” came her sister’s voice from behind the hall, “What is it?” Celestia’s ears perked up as she heard Luna shriek in pain. The white Alicorn rushed to the door, flinging it open with her magic. In the doorway stood her sister, tenderly rubbing her cheek. However, that was the second thing Celestia noticed about her. The first thing was her mane.

“In the name of Star Swirl!” cried the princess, “Luna, what happened to your hair?”

“My hair?” Luna said as her eyes went wide, “What’s happened to yours?” Instantly both sisters made a mad dash for Celestia’s mirror. They stood speechless at what they saw. Their beautiful flowing manes were hopelessly knotted beyond redemption. It looked to be the work of some mad genius. Celestia had seen ships with less knots in their rigging. Before either of them could comment on the wretched state of their manes, they screeched as they felt something smack them on the backside.

“Who dares-” roared Luna as she whirled around, but her words became a scream as the invisible assailant tugged on her ears. Celestia moved in to help, but could do nothing as she couldn’t see what was harming her sister. Alas, whatever it was tripped her, and she crashed into her sister. Luna felt something push against her ribs, sending her and her sister to the floor. The two Alicorns scrambled to get up, both now genuinely frightened.

“Enough!” cried Celestia, trying to remain calm, “Show yourself!” She received her answer in the form of another slap across the face. Luna squealed as the attacker pinched her hip. Celestia shrieked as her mane was yanked. Luna let out a ghastly scream as she felt an enormous set of teeth lock around her ankle. A handful of feathers was pulled from Celestia’s wing. It went on like this for several minutes, with the two being slapped, pinched, bitten, and everything in between, until the sisters lay on the floor, panting in exhaustion. They waited for the assault to continue. Minutes passed, but nothing happened.

“…Celestia?” whimpered Luna, “Is it…over?” Celestia looked over at her younger sister and tried to look reassuring.

“I…think so.” They both suddenly whipped their heads around just in time to see the wardrobe fly across the room and shatter to pieces against the west wall. Wood and timber cracked as the furniture was demolished by an unseen agent. The Alicorns stared dumbfounded at the destruction. The attacker suddenly grabbed them by the horns and smashed their heads together. The moment they were unconscious, a whinnying laugh broke out above their sleeping forms.

Luna groaned as her eyes fluttered open. Immediately her body was wracked with pain, and memories of a beating flooded her mind. But they were cast aside when she realized that she was hanging upside-down hundreds of feet in the air. Instinctively she opened her wings, when she noticed them to be quite cold. She strained her neck to look at them, and let out a horrified scream. The had been plucked bare, resembling ugly, pimply branches protruding from her shoulders. She blinked in an attempt to rid her eyes of the tears the clouded her vision.

As she could see the world once more, she suddenly felt something brush against her. She looked over to see the unconscious form of her sister, her wings also devoid of feathers. The wind suddenly picked up, and the sisters swayed back and forth. Luna looked up to see what was keeping them suspended in the air, and immediately wished she hadn’t. She saw that her tail had been spliced with her sister’s, forming a mass of uneven braids that bound them together. Whatever had done that to them had somehow transported them to the highest tower of the castle, and hung them on the outstretched neck of a gargoyle. Luna looked back at her sister. Bruises were beginning to form on her white skin. Luna’s mouth went agape as she saw that they were in the shape of cloven hooves.

Trixie was still sitting in wagon and feeling very sorry for herself when she heard a knock at her door. She looked around in panic, frantically wondering how she was going to answer it without exposing her problematic mane. The unicorn let out a joyful gasp as she spotted her hat. She scooped it up and shoved it on her head, adjusting it so nopony would know about what really lay beneath it. She swept all of her combs and brushes under her bed, dried her tears with her blanket, and trotted over to answer the door. Much to her dismay, Trixie was greeted by the grinning face of the Pooka.

“Good forenoon,” he cackled. Trixie was too stunned to reply. “I been thinkin’ ’bout it, and I guess I do owe ye somethin’ for all the trouble ye went through tae free me.” Trixie was even more shocked to hear this, but pounced upon the opportunity like a cat, careful not to seem too

“Really?” she asked timidly, “You’re going to help me?”

“Aye,” the Pooka said, “By givin’ ye a piece o’ advice.” Trixie’s little smile fell away, and was replaced with a nervous frown.

“Advice?” she she murmured, “What are you talking about?” The Pooka’s grin grew larger.

“Ye might want tae start runnin’.” And with that he turned around and ran off again. A chill suddenly shot through every inch of Trixie's body. She looked around anxiously, dreading the warning given to her by the golden-eyed creature. The unicorn had done a lot of running in her lifetime due to disgruntled monsters and angry mobs, and was not looking forward to doing more. But Trixie felt she had little choice. Undoubtedly, the Pooka had done something that would result in misfortune to her. Therefore she took it upon herself to begin fleeing. The unicorn turned around to begin packing.

She then became aware that her little wagon was filled with white and blue feathers. Although she knew that the Pooka must have done it, it was still quite a shock. Filled with an urge to be rid of them, she tried to move toward the broom she kept in the corner, but then tripped and fell over the feathers. The unicorn disappeared into the pile for a moment, then reemerged with a feather stuck on the brim of her hat. She was about to swat it away when she noticed something about it. It was of the purest white, and was far larger than any feather Trixie had ever seen before. No. She had seen it before, when she had been a filly. She had seen something similar in a parade in Canterlot. It looked like a feather from…

The unicorn’s eyes suddenly became pinpricks. Her jaw dropped in shock and horror as she dropped the feather. It fluttered down into the pile. Trixie broke out into a cold sweat as she looked at the sheer abundance of them. She knew that she was in deep, deep, trouble.