Flash Sentry, Defender of the Peace S3

by Banshee531

Magic Duel

Today's adventure opens up outside Fluttershy's cottage. She and her animal friends were there, alongside Flash, Twilight, Spike and Springer. They were preparing to work on a special show that Twilight would be doing tonight as entertainment for several delegates from the nearby land of Saddle Arabia.

Fluttershy was currently laying on the ground, completely eye level with all the animals. "Don't be scared, little friends. Twilight is wonderful with magic." It was then she spun around with speed that would put Rainbow to shame, and glared at Twilight. "Anything happens to them Twilight, so help me-" She didn't get to finish her threat, as in that moment, Spike got between them.

"Aww, don't worry Fluttershy." Spike walked the mare away. "Twilight's magic has gotten a lot better since she accidentally crushed me and Applejack with a giant snowball." This got a blush from Twilight, while Flash and Springer snickered under their breath.

"She sure showed how much fun that Winter Wrap-Up thing was," Springer added.

"No kidding. I wish I could have been both there and with a camera for that," Flash finished, only to get a glare from Twilight. "Oh, don't give me that look. You know you'd be saying the same thing if it was me who'd done it."

Twilight rolled her eyes, but the smirk on her lips showed she was not denying it. Fluttershy on the other hoof, continued to worry as panic began to race through her mind, "Of course Twilight's good with magic, she's great with magic. I guess I just don't want my little friends to be scared." Her whole body shook in fear as she looked over at her critters. "Oh! Oh look how scared they are!"

Everypony turned towards the animals, all of them cheering without a single trace of fear on their faces. Flash snickered at this, turning to Fluttershy with a grin, "Oh, they're absolutely terrified. I'm surprised their fur isn't falling off from worrying so-Ow!"

Twilight had pulled Flash's ear with her magic once again, yelling in his ear. "Stop that Flash!" She then pointed to now doubly shaking Fluttershy, "Now look at what you did."

"I was just joking Twi-Ow! Stop that!"

"Yeah yeah, I know." Twilight growled as she moved over to the pegasus mare and placed her hoof on her side. "I promise Fluttershy, nothing bad will happen to them."

"I know," Fluttershy replied through gritted teeth. Twilight then stepped up to the animals with a serious look on her face, her horn glowing as a magic aura enveloping the group in one go. But as she did, Fluttershy then screamed, "Stop!" She laid on the ground and hid herself behind her hooves. "Please stop. They can't take it."

Everypony looked back at the critters and saw that they looked perfectly fine, completely unphased by the magic surrounding them. Twilight rolled her her eyes at this, now refocusing her magic. One by one, the animals shot into the air, moving around like they were super heroes. With a few flicks of Twilight's horn, they began to move in different directions and were soon performing an aerial feat that would put the Wonderbolts to shame.

"Whoa..." Springer gasped as he watched this.

"Twilight, that looks amazing." Spike added, his eyes shining like Springer's.

Flash nodded in agreement. "Not bad."

Twilight replied with a knowing smirk as sweat poured down her head. Deciding to wrap up the performance, she re-positioned the animals into a line before lowering them to the ground. As soon as the last bunny had its large feet on the ground, she sighed in relief as she wiped her brow.

The animals suddenly crowded around her, obviously wanting to go again. "That's all for now, little ones. Maybe we can practice again later, if Fluttershy says it's alright." Everypony watched as the animals rushed over to Fluttershy, the mare still hiding behind her hooves.

Spike turned back to Twilight. "Your magic has really improved since we came to Ponyville, Twilight. Princess Celestia's gonna love it."

Twilight smiled down at him. "Thanks, Spike. I have to be at my best when she arrives with the delegates from Saddle Arabia. I can't believe she's trusting me with the entertainment."

"I can. Who else could put on a better magical show?" Flash said before showing a large frown, "which I won't even get to see. Can't believe I'm stuck doing border patrol with Iron."

Twilight patted him on the side. "Just goes to show how well Celestia trusts you if she's letting you handle security for such important ponies. Sometimes being trusted means putting responsibility before personal enjoyment."

Flash still tried to frown, but hearing those words made it impossible for him to do anything but smile. That is, till-

"TWILIGHT, FLASH!"

The two looked up to see Rainbow flying towards them. "What's up?" Flash asked her in worry until he spotted the smirk on Rainbow's face. If something bad were happening, Rainbow wouldn't be smirking. Most likely, she would fly at them so fast, she would end up knocking them over.

"You two've gotta get over to Ponyville. You'll never believe who's here!"

Flash and Twilight shared a confused glance, but quickly shook them away and rushed off to town, Spike and Springer on their heels.

---

When the four of them eventually arrived on the edge of town, where were greeted by the sight of a barrage of fireworks gracing the sky. Seeing them made them all share a knowing smirk at one another as Flash said, "There's only one pony I know that can make great fireworks like that."

Twilight nodded in agreement as the two made their way to the center of the town. When they arrived, they spotted a large group of ponies gathered around something. Flash and Springer took to the air, while Twilight and Spike pushed themselves to the front, soon seeing the pony they were talking about. It was a familiar light blue unicorn, who was performing a bunch of different spells on a large stage. Her name was Trixie Lulamoon, and was currently dressed in her traditional magician hat and cape.

Everyone watched as she unleashed a bunch of fireworks spells, all exploding into different shapes. Many ponies were reminded of the last time they had seen Trixie do this, only to see that the shapes were much more detailed and moving more fluidly. They watched as the lights morphed into the shapes of manticores, serpentines, dragons, and ursa minors, which began to dance over the heads of the ponies. The younger ponies were amazed by this, while the older ones clapped in an impressed manner.

When the fireworks faded, they looked over to Trixie, who was now levitating a batch of eggs in front of them. She then tapped her hooves as the eggs flew into the air, her horn shooting a volley of beams at the white spheres. Each magical beam struck the eggs, causing a brilliant light to shine, only to fade immediately and reveal a bunch of flying doves.

The doves flew over the ponies heads, only to once again be struck by Trixie's magic and revert back to their egg forms. The crowd began their applause again, Twilight's eyes going wide as they did. "Did she just perform...an age spell?" Twilight whispered to herself, her voice lost in the cheering audience. "Those spells could only be done by the strongest of unicorn wizards..."

As she continued to stare in awe, Trixie performed several more tricks, only to soon bow, ending her show. A chorus of claps followed this, the crowd pleased at the performance before dispersing. Soon enough, only Flash and his friends, minus Fluttershy, were left, and they moved over to her as she began to pack up her cart.

"Trixie!" Flash called out, causing the mare to turn around and smile.

"Hey everypony!" Trixie replied as she grabbed a leaping Springer and pulled him into a hug. "It's so good to see you all again."

"What are you doing here darling?" Rarity asked her. "Not that we're not happy to see you, its just a surprise and all."

Trixie turned to her with a big cheeky grin. "Princess Luna suggested I come and help out with the entertainment for the Saddle Arabian guests."

"Really?!" Spike replied with his eyes shining, "That's great! With you and Twilight working together, this show's gonna be awesome!"

Trixie nodded in joy as she turned to Twilight. "So Twilight, ready to work with the Great and Powerful Trixie?!" She then laughed at mocking her old persona, the rest of them quickly following suit.

Twilight was the only one who didn't laugh, still thinking about that dove and egg trick. "How'd you do that?" Trixie looked at her in confusion. "How could you do an age spell? That's only for the highest level of unicorns."

Trixie just shrugged, a smile on her face. "Maybe I'm one of those highest level unicorns." She giggled under her breath, only to see Twilight looking at her expectantly. "Oh relax, I'm just kidding. It wasn't an age spell."

"But I saw you turn those eggs into doves!"

Trixie just smirked before moving over to her cart and opening it up. "You mean these doves?"

Everypony looked inside and saw several cages with the doves they had seen her use before. They then looked back to the unicorn and saw her hold a basket full of the eggs, which on closer inspection, they realized that they were plastic fakes.

"I'm confused," Pinkie admitted as she scratched her head.

"I teleported them," Trixie explained as she closed the cart back up. "I threw them in the air, then used a teleportation spell to swap them with the doves. Then I did the same trick to change them back."

"Incredible...." Twilight gasped as she glanced back at the closing cart. "That takes incredible accuracy and mental visualization to pull off. It took me years to gain that kind of technique, but you've mastered it in such a shot time."

Trixie blushed at this. "Thanks. The first time I tried it was with an apple, only I ended up teleporting the table it was on instead." This caused everypony to laugh, Twilight now giggling as well as Trixie continued, "Now I can teleport myself and small objects, but I'm getting better." She then gave Twilight a serious stare. "So anyways, what's the plan for tonight? I'm sure there's someway I can make it even better."

Twilight smiled back. "Well, I was gonna levitate some of Fluttershy's animal friends into doing a midair dance."

"That's a good main performance idea." Trixie replied as she rubbed her chin in thought, "I'm sure a few fireworks will work there, as long as the animals don't get frightened."

"I'm sure they'll be fine," Flash told her with a smirk, "Trust me, she was practicing with them earlier and they loved it."

"Sounds good to me." Trixie said with a nod before turning back to Twilight. "Then what's after that?"

Twilight raised an eyebrow. "Come again?"

"After the midair animal dance, what do we do then?"

Twilight twiddled her hooves at this. "Um...that's kind of all I have planned."

Trixie looked confused by this, blinking at the mare. "Okay...how long is this show?"

Flash was the one that answered. "An hour, hour and a half."

"An hour and a half?!" Trixie gasped, worry immediately plastering itself on her face.

"What's wrong with that?" Twilight asked back, still twiddling her hooves.

"Well, take it from a pony who used to make a living by keeping others entertained. Crowds, no matter who they are, tend to have short attention spans. Flying animals will probably keep them entertained for about fifteen minutes, twenty tops. But an hour and a half...they're gonna get bored."

Twilight was gonna try and argue with her, only for her eyes to shrink at this fact. An hour and a half of flying animals, that was gonna get boring eventually. Hearing this, Twilight began to panic, instantly starting her usual pacing, "This is bad, this is really really bad!" she yelled to herself as her hooves started their treading into the ground, "I need this show to be amazing, but I've only got an opening act!" She crouched down and grabbed her head, "WHAT AM I GONNA DO!?"

Flash sighed at the sight, remembering all the other Twilight panic attacks over the years. He then moved in front of her and lowered his head to her eye level, only to get a face full of her breath before saying, "Twilight, calm down. We'll think of something else to put in the show."

"Like what?!" Twilight yelped, "We're already on a time table here Flash! What do I do?!"

Flash stood back to full height, the smirk on his face giving Twilight hope. "I have no idea."

Twilight groaned as she rolled her eyes at this, her horn starting to shine as an aura appeared on Flash's ear, "I have an aunt called hope Flash, would you like to kill her too?"

"Oh relax." Flash waved his hoof at her, "I'm sure you'll think of something. Just stay calm and think."

"Right...stay calm and think." Twilight picked herself up and began pacing again, "think....think...THINK!"

Trixie kept blinking at this sight before letting out a small sigh, "As amusing as this is to watch, I think I should step in here." She walked up to Twilight and placed a hoof on her shoulder. "Alright Twilight, the first thing to consider when designing a show is the location. So, maybe being there will help you imagine it better."

"Right!" Twilight cried before rushing off, a pony shaped dust cloud left in her wake.

"Whoa....she always that fast?" Trixie asked as she looked back at Flash.

"Yup." Everypony laughed at Flash's reply, the defender then turning to the others. "Leave this to us. Pinkie?"

"Yes?" The party planning pony asked with a salute.

"Could you come up with some confections to offer the delegates? You know, in case they get hungry."

"On it!" Pinkie replied before bouncing off to Sugarcube Corner.

"Ah'll go to," Applejack added as she began to follow the pink pony. "Two heads are better than one."

Flash nodded and turned to Springer. "Do me a favor and tell Iron I'll be late for patrol. Just say its me helping with the stuff we'll be doing later."

The jakhowl gave him a two fingered salute before rushing off with the others, leaving Flash and Trixie alone. There, Trixie turned to Flash, "Alright Flash, could you escort me to the stage that Twilight ran off to?"

"You go it. Follow me," Flash replied as the two of them headed off to the stage. As they walked, Flash turned to the blue mare. "So, how's it been Trixie?"

Trixie shined her usual smile as she replied, "Its been quite well, me being Princess Luna's apprentice and all. In fact, I just met Ruby Scarlet a few days ago."

"Oh?" Flash responded, slightly tilting his head. "And how is she?"

"She's uh...good." Trixie said as she almost started to twiddle her hooves. Flash could see a bit of nervous sweat appearing on her forehead as she continued, "She told me about you after she said Luna had told her about my...history before becoming Luna's student. In exchange, she told me it was fine and then told me how she became Luna's student."

"I see. She didn't say anything bad about me, did she?"

Trixie shook her head. "Oh no, quite the opposite in fact. She praised you a bunch, though mainly to Grand Hoof. Apparently, it was their first meeting as well."

Flash was taken back by this. "Really? I thought she said she was going to join the Royal Knights as soon as possible after the Crystal Empire stuff."

"She said she had a lot to do in the empire before she was finally able to come to Canterlot." Trixie slightly shuddered as she then said, "Though uh....I really wish I wasn't there when she came."

"What do you mean?"

"Well....let's just say Ruby wanted to test Grand before she joined the knights."

Flash's eyes went wide as he heard this, a gulp quickly going down his throat. "Uh-oh. Don't tell me she insulted him, did she?"

Trixie slowly nodded. "Yup. She uh....didn't exactly like the fact that he only sent a 'squire' to the empire, even if it was you. She said he had no right to just send one soldier against a monster."

"Oh no..." was all Flash could say.

That is, till Trixie let out a nervous chuckle, "She also said she wasn't impressed with Grand when she first saw him."

Flash wanted to facehoof at this. "Don't tell me...they got into a fight, didn't they?"

"Well...."

---

A few days ago....

Trixie sat motionless at the scene before her. Pure streams of sweat covered in fear dripped down her face as she watched the sight in front of her eyes. It was the castle's training ground, where her mentor Princess Luna was sitting right beside her, a huge grin on the alicorn's face. Trixie knew she couldn't escape this situation, as Luna had declared it to be a great learning experience, and something she just really wanted to watch. This also included over half of the soldiers in Canterlot, all of them sitting on the sidelines of the field with amazement in their eyes.

As for what they were watching, it was two ponies in the middle of the training field. On the left was a middle-aged earth stallion who had cuts all up his front-hooves and a giant bruise on his right face cheek. His mane was tattered, all of his hair scattered like it had been through a tornado and then covered in sweaty water. On the right was a red-haired unicorn mare, who's left eye was closed due to a cut above her forehead that was making blood flow over it. She had less cuts than the earth pony, but her sides were plastered with bruises, all blows from either hooves or a certain hammer that the earth pony wielded. Her horn was just spurting tiny sparks of magic as she tried to summon a crystal weapon, only for it disappear in an instant.

"HA!" the earth pony called out, his tongue flapping in the wind as he panted a volley of deep tiring breaths, "Looks like yer…*huff* *huff*….oh..." he moaned as he tried to retort, his hooves slightly shaking side to side, "Looks like yer outta magic now! You're...*cough* oh...gotta catch my breath. *huff* *huff* You're going down!"

"Not a chance! I'm gonna....*cough* *cough* *cough*…..win, ya geezer!" the mare shot back as she then pointed to the side of the castle behind her, "After all, even if I can't make a weapon, you sure can't get that hammer of yours anymore." She was pointing to Grand Hoof's signature weapon, Grand Slammer, which was now stuck in a barrage of bricks on the side of the castle's wall. "And that was just two rounds ago Grand Hoof, and I've been beating....*huff* *huff*…..I've been beating you with ease the entire time."

"What was...*huff*….what was that?!" Grand barked back, anger trying to slightly show itself on his face. Well, mainly just blood-shot eyes as his face was mainly covered in bruises. "Oh no you don't! Don't think for a second I'll go easy on you anymore!"

Ruby just gestured a 'come-on' stance with her right hoof, "I can go another fifteen rounds, ya old fogey. Now come on, show me what..." Ruby's hooves fell down for a moment as she had to catch her breath. A second later, she put them back up, "Show me what you got!"

"Oh, I'll show ya. I'll...*cough* *hack* *cough*….augh!" Grand yelled before coughing up a bit of blood, his stance wavering. That is, till he looked back up and shined an almost visible confident grin. He then charged forward, both hooves swinging, "This old pony ain't don't yet Ruby Scarlet! Bring it on!"

Ruby's horn did one last sputter before going silent, her eyes narrowing. She clenched her front hooves before taking an offensive stance. As she did, Grand closed the distance between the two, ready to throw the next punch. But as his hoof raised itself, she raised her's as well as she barked back, "Let's go Grand! Its round sixteen, you old geezer!"

---

The Present...

"Whoa..." was all Flash could say.

"Yup." Trixie said with a slight gulp before turning away. "And um...don't ask me on who won. I'm actually not allowed to specifically tell you, or one of them will uh....they said they'd kill me."

"Got it." Flash immediately replied, crossing his hooves. He had a good feeling who won if that's the case, but decided to not bring it up. Instead, he asked, "So...did you do anything else with Ruby? I know her and Luna know each other very well."

"They definitely do." Trixie turned back to him, only to show an even more fearful face. "And I...I actually witnessed something even worse because of that."

"Really? How do you top that?"

Trixie's eyes darted back and forth as she slowly answered, "Let's just say...apparently, Luna and Ruby liked to...'go out for drinks' in the old days." Flash's expression slightly whitened at this, but Trixie continued, "Also, Ruby and Luna found out that there were a lot new drinks invented in the thousand years that they were gone. As such, they decided to bring me along and try them all at the same time!"

Trixie began to shake like a leaf at the thought of those memories, causing Flash to put his hoof on her shoulder. She looked back at him and saw a compassionate smile on his face. "Don't. You don't have to tell me anymore of that story."

Trixie's cheeks started to show a hint of red, "Thanks."

In that moment, the two of them arrived at the stage. Twilight was still pacing, but now in a motion that had her constantly checking every place around the stage repeatedly. Seeing this, Trixie and Flash nodded to each other before Trixie spoke up, "Twilight, we're here! Is this the stage?"

Twilight turned back to them and rapidly nodded, "Yes!" Twilight then pointed to a large box on top of a tower. "Celestia and the dignitaries will be up there."

"Alright..." Trixie replied before her horn glowed and she disappeared in a flash of pink light.

"Where'd she go?" Flash asked.

"Up here." They two looked up at the box, only to see Trixie now examining the box intently, seeing all the angles and positions she, and thus the dignitaries, could see. Eventually, she nodded before teleporting back to them. "Alright, we can differently work with this."

Flash shined a big grin as he said, "Great. Now, I wish I could stay and help you two, but...Iron's probably alright angry at me for being this late." He spread his wings. "I'll see you girls later. Think you can survive for a few hours without me?"

"Oh please," Trixie waved with a coy smile on her lips. "We'll probably be able to get this done faster without you here mucking it up."

Flash gave her a fake offended smirk. "What do you mean, muck it up?"

"Oh, you should know." Trixie told him before giggling. "I've been told that trouble follows you wherever you go."

"Who told you that?" Flash snorted as his coy smirk slightly disappeared.

"My teacher." Trixie replied, her eyebrows hopping up and down, "And Princess Celestia...and Grand Hoof."

"Everypony, huh?" Flash added, a comically deadpan stare on his face now, "Shows how much everypony trusts me."

"Oh, we do." Trixie giggled as she nudged his shoulder. "We just know you too well to know you're trouble."

As the two continued to playfully argue, Twilight watched them with shifting eyes. Her eyes blinked rapidly as she now saw Trixie and Flash hugging, big grins on their faces. But as she saw that happiness, she felt a sudden clutch in her chest. She immediately tapped her chest, and looked back at the Trixie and Flash, only to see no anger in their arguing, just...happiness. When that thought entered her head, the clutching on her heart felt like it tightened.

"What...what is going on?" Twilight whispered to herself, making sure no one could hear her.

"Well then, let's see how well you do without me," Flash finished as he gave one last grin, chuckling as he flew off with a smirk on his face.

Trixie turned back to Twilight, the biggest smile on on her face. "That Flash, what a card. Am I right?"

"Yes...." Twilight muttered back, "he's quite the character."

Trixie then gave her a coy smile, gesturing her head back to the sky, "By the way, you and he aren't...you know?"

Twilight gave her a confused glance. "What? What are you-" It was then that Trixie's eyebrows moved up and down two or three times, making Twilight's eyes go wide. "NO!" She then coughed, "I mean, no. We're just friends."

"Oh..." Trixie replied as she turned back around and looked at where Flash flew off to, "Then I guess you wouldn't mind if I asked him out?"

"WHAT!?" Twilight yelped, only to immediately try to lower her voice.

Trixie looked back at Twilight, "Why not? If he's not seeing anypony…."

"I just...I didn't realize you...and him. That you...well...like him."

"Well, I wouldn't say I like him for sure," Trixie said as she turned around again. "But isn't that the purpose of going on a date? To see if there can be more between two ponies than just friendship?"

Twilight opened her mouth, only for no sound to come out. She didn't know how to answer that, at least that's what her brain told her. She actually did know the answer, but something inside her refused to say it out loud. "I...I guess...maybe?"

Trixie just shrugged, not noticing the panic creeping onto Twilight's face. "You know what? I'll focus on asking him out later, maybe after the show or something. For now, let's focus on working out some more routines."

"Right...." Twilight said with a nod, Trixie hopping onto the stage with her.

Over the next few hours, the two unicorns came up with several more ideas for the show. Actually, Trixie came up with them and Twilight just agreed to every single one. For some reason, she couldn't keep herself focused enough to come up with any of her own ideas, which she apologized to Trixie, saying she wasn't a showmare like her. Trixie just patted her on the back at this, saying it was fine and agreed to show Twilight some basic magic show tricks. The techniques would be easy with her level of magical abilities, along with Trixie explaining proper showpony etiquette.

Eventually, the two decided to break for lunch and would reconvene an hour later at the stage. Trixie went off on her own, while Twilight found herself outside a local café, slurping on a chocolate milkshake.

As she did this, Twilight let out a long sigh, "Mmmm...what is wrong with me? Why couldn't I think up anything for the show? All I had was the animal trick...." She then laid her head on the table, her mind repeating what Trixie had asked her. And as that memory was put on repeat, she took another sip, "Why is that bothering me? I mean, Trixie's just going to ask him out and..."

She laid her head down again, unable to finish that sentence. All the while, she couldn't keep her mind from daydreaming about Flash and Trixie. She imagined the two of them on a date, then another date....then Flash moved back to Canterlot, proposed to Trixie and then there were foals and-

"AUGH!" Twilight moaned as she lifted her head up, only to slam it into the wooden surface. She then muffled out, "What's wrong with me?"

"Twilight?" Her head came up to see Spike, Rarity, Fluttershy and Rainbow moving over to her. "What's wrong darling?" Rarity asked as the four of them sat down around her. "You have the most miserable look on your face. Are you alright?"

"Oh...its nothing." She muttered back as she put her head into the table again, all while magically angling the straw into her mouth.

"Uh-oh," Spike said as he looked at the contents of the milkshake. "That's chocolate, isn't it?"

"What's wrong with chocolate?" Rarity asked the drake, only to see a grimace appear on his face.

"Its her comfort flavor. She always drinks it when she's depressed."

Twilight's horn was about to shine, ready to use some magic to punish the dragon assistant for saying that, only to sputter out. She didn't have the energy or motivation. Seeing this, Fluttershy leaned over and quietly asked, "What's the matter Twilight? Why are you depressed?

"Yeah, you can tell us." Rainbow added, "Is it about the show?"

"No..." Twilight moaned while still faceplanting into the table, "Trixie and I managed to come up with some more entertainment ideas."

"So what's the matter?"

"I'm not sure," Twilight muttered as she slowly looked back up. "Its weird. We were about to start working on the show when my heart suddenly felt like it had been stung by a Scorpentine."

Hearing this made her friends all share an unusual glance at each other, Spike speaking up next, "Are you coming down with something? Maybe you should let Trixie take the lead on this and get some rest."

Twilight slowly shook her head. "No, I'm not sick. At least...I don't think I am. It just came out of nowhere."

Rarity just stared at the mare, obviously suspecting she knew what was happening, though she knew she had to clarify it, "Twilight, darling....before this odd feeling appeared, what were you and Trixie talking about?"

Twilight's eyes began to go wide at this question, blinking at the mare as a nervous looked appeared on her face. "I'm...not really sure. We were talking about a lot of things."

"Well then darling, could go through them all?"

"Well...first me, Trixie, and Flash were looking over to stage and what we can do, then Flash had to go on patrol. Before he did, he and Trixie started like...playfully arguing or something."

"So they were flirting?" Rarity asked, her eyebrows raised at this.

"NO!" Twilight yelped, her eyes turning into a small glare, "It was a...it was more like how me and him argue."

"So flirting," Spike added, only to feel a magic tug on his ear.

"I said they weren't flirting Spike!" Twilight grumbled as she laid her chin on the table, now looking away from the others. "Anyways, Flash left us, so me and Trixie got to work. But then Trixie asked if Flash was seeing anypony, because she was hoping to ask him out."

"SHE WHAT?!" They all exclaimed in unison.

"Oh my, I didn't know Trixie liked Flash like that," Fluttershy added, her hoof over her mouth.

"She said she wanted to see if there could be anything other than friendship from it," Twilight muttered, taking another sip.

"Makes sense," Rarity said before tapping Twilight's shoulder. The purple unicorn then turned back around, only to see a look of pure seriousness on Rarity's face. "I'm guessing this is when that stinging feeling appeared in your chest, am I right darling?"

Twilight blinked at this, taking another sip before looking up to the sky. Her mind reeled through all her memories of that hour or so with Trixie, only to see Rarity was right. "Yeah...it happened around then." Twilight looked back at Rarity, "How'd you know?"

Rarity shook her head, chuckling, "Oh Twilight, can't you see?" She put her hoof on Twilight's shoulder, "Twilight, you're jealous."

Twilight's eyes went as wide as dinner plates at this, her mouth immediately opening with a yell, "Jealous?! Why would I be jealous?!"

"It's instinctual dear," Rarity told her as she nudged Twilight's shoulder. "You feel like Trixie's encroaching on your territory."

The others all rolled their eyes, Rainbow then saying, "She's not a tiger Rarity."

"We're all animals Rainbow Dash," the fashionista told the pegasus. "Even if we're highly evolved, we still have instincts that can react without warning. Trixie is causing Twilight's instincts to flare, making her jealous."

"But why would she be jealous?" Spike asked as he pointed at Twilight. "Trixie and Flash have been around each other before."

Rarity smiled at the young, naïve drake. "Yes, but back then, there wasn't a threat of Trixie taking Flash away from Twilight. Now, she thinks she is."

"That's ridiculous!" Twilight barked back, slamming the table with her hoof. "Even if Flash and Trixie started going out, why would I be jealous?! Me and Flash aren't like that!"

Rarity gave her a knowing look, only to then shake her head. "Okay, let's say that's true. How long have you and Flash been best friends? Ten, eleven years?"

"Yes."

"And in that time, you've forged an incredible bond, one that many ponies wish they could forge between one another. Now in comes Trixie, who wants to date the one you have a strong bond with. How do you think that makes you feel?"

Twilight saw everypony at the table stare at her, making her feel like all the times she had had to give an oral report at school. She searched her feelings, remembering the daydreams she had had before. "I guess I'd be worried that if Flash started seeing somepony, he might forget about me."

"Exactly darling," Rarity said as she slung her hoof around Twilight's neck, "and that fear of being forgotten is causing you to become jealous of Trixie."

"But when we first met you, you flirted with him and I didn't feel anything then."

This time, Fluttershy tapped her hoof on the table, getting Twilight attention, "That's because your relationship has changed. When you first came here, you were just best friends. But think about everything that's happened to the two of you since coming here."

"Yeah," Rainbow agreed, nodding. "You two went from being a pair of lackeys for Celestia and Grand, to being leaders that everypony in town looks to for answers."

Rarity gave her another nudge, "And that in turn, led the two of you to lean on each other more, which caused your bond to grow stronger. Especially after what happened the last time the two of you fought Big Score and his minions."

"Yeah...I guess so." Twilight mumbled, her eyes staring holes into the table.

Seeing this, Fluttershy nudged Twilight with a hoof, "Um...Twilight?" The purple mare gave her a slow glance, "You know we're all here for you, just like Rainbow said that the town looks up to you two. But..." Fluttershy twiddled her hooves at her next words, "Well, what do you think about all this? Would you mind Flash being with Trixie?"

Twilight thought about what they were saying. It was true, she did feel like her and Flash had grown closer since they first arrived in Ponyville. But as she thought this, she shook off Rarity and slumped back down on the table, admitting her feelings as she said, "I want Flash to be happy. I want him to find somepony special and one day have a family."

"Of course you do darling," Rarity added as she put her hoof back onto the table. "But even so, you are subconsciously scared about being left behind. Like you were when you learned your brother was getting married."

Twilight groaned in agreement, slamming her head into the table again. "What do I do?" This time there was no reply, causing her to look up at her friends. "Well?"

Everypony shared an unsure glance before looking at her. "We don't know," they said in unison.

"It's not like we have experience in these matters," Spike told her with a shrug.

"Maybe you should talk to Flash about it," Fluttershy suggested.

Twilight shook her head. "That'd be way too embarrassing." She got up from the table. "I'm just going to ignore it and focus on tonight's show." She turned to Fluttershy, a mix of despair and dread on her face as she asked, "Can you bring your animal friends over to the stage later? I need to practice with them."

"Oh...I guess so." Fluttershy replied, already not liking Twilight's response to her suggestion.

"Good," Twilight replied before turning and walking off. "See you all later."

Once she was out of earshot, everypony shared a glance at one another. Rainbow then broke the silence, "Wow...and I thought Flash was oblivious."

"I feel so bad for her," Fluttershy added, twiddling her hooves.

"Well, there's nothing we can do." Rarity told them. "I mean, Princess Cadance, the Princess of Love, said she couldn't get them to realize anything. I'm betting that if we try and force them to realize it, they're just going to deny it even harder." She let out a long sigh, "We'll just have to let them figure it out on their own."

"I guess," Spike finished as the others nodded in agreement at his next words. "I just hope they figure it out before its too late."

---

As Twilight made her way back to the stage, her mind was still a mess. The words her friends had told her, though she knew they meant no harm, hadn't really helped her view on the situation. She kept thinking about Trixie and Flash, her breathing becoming slightly frantic as she kept thinking. "I gotta focus..." she whispered to herself, "I just...what is wrong with me?!"

But then, she found that her own words meant nothing as she arrived at the stage.

Flash and Trixie were sitting on the stage, looking like they were enjoying a picnic together. The two were sitting side by side, eating sandwiches and both chuckling at each other. She then saw Flash get some of the ketchup he had on his sandwich on his chin, causing Trixie to magically pull out a napkin and wipe it away.

Afterwards, she watched the two lock eyes. And as their pupils did this, Twilight's horn immediately sparked, creating a flash of purple light as she appeared between the two of them. "Hey, you two!" she said in a tone that was a little too high pitched for her own liking, "So...what's going on with you guys?!"

Flash and Trixie, still surprised by her entrance, shared a look before shrugging. "Just...hanging out." Flash replied as he blinked at the sight of Twilight, noticing a tinge of anger on her face. "Springer and I were about to have lunch when we bumped into Trixie again."

"So we agreed to have lunch together while we waited for you," Trixie finished.

Twilight nodded at this. "So, where's Springer?"

"Oh, he's up there," Flash said as he pointed at the delegate box. Twilight looked up at it and saw the jakhowl sitting on the top, munching on an apple and waving at her when they locked eyes.

Twilight waved back before focusing on the two ponies. "So, what were you two talking about?"

"Oh, nothing much." Trixie replied, a grin slowly forming on her face, "Just making plans."

"Plans?"

"Plans for what we're gonna do tomorrow," Flash explained as he pulled a muffin out of his saddlebag and started eating it. "Since Trixie's going back to Canterlot the day after tomorrow, we thought we'd hang out tomorrow."

Twilight's heart rate suddenly started to race, causing her to squeak out, "Like...a date?"

Flash looked at her in confusion. "What was that?"

Twilight just shook her head. "Oh nothing. Nothing at all." She turned to Trixie, her teeth almost chattering. "If you're done with lunch, we should start practicing?"

Trixie nodded before tossing the last piece of her lunch into her mouth. "I'm down for that."

"Twilight!" They all turned to see Applejack and Pinkie rushing up to them, Applejack pulling a cart full of delicious looking goodies. "We've finished the treats for everypony."

Flash licked his lips as he moved over to the cart and inspected the treats. His tongue began to roll out of his mouth, "Yum....those look delicious."

"Flash, you're drooling," Trixie told him before grabbing his ear in her magic and pulling him away.

"Ow!" The pegasus cried as he was yanked back. "Not the ear! Not the ear!"

"You just had lunch," Trixie groaned as she pointed to the food. "And those are for the delegates. Not you."

Twilight frowned at this as well, seeing the two of them act like she and Flash would. Once again, she could feel a tug at her heart, only to quickly shake her head. "Focus Twilight, you gotta stay focused." she said to herself before walking up to Pinkie and Applejack, "They look great you two. Good work."

"Thanks," Pinkie replied before pulling out a tray of weird knickknacks. "I've also got a bunch of things we can sell to the crowd." She pulled out an orange stick that looked like it had a fork like appendage on the end, which she pointed at Applejack. "Flank scratcher?"

"Ah told yah before Pinkie, no."

"Flank scratcher?"

"Pinkie no."

"Flank scratcher?"

"NO!"

Pinkie's hair deflated as she lowered the device. "Flank scratcher..."

Everypony rolled their eyes at this before hearing the sound of another cart, which made them turn to see Fluttershy. She was pulling a cart of her animal friends behind her. "Hey everypony," she said as she unhooked the cart from her back. "We're, um...." she gulped, her whole body shaking, "ready to practice."

"Okay," Twilight replied as she magically unloaded the little animals. "So, let's run through the opening routine."

"Right." Trixie added as Flash, Pinkie, Applejack and Fluttershy moved to the side and sat down.

"Okay Trixie, let's go over the plan." Twilight said as she put the animals in position before turning to the blue mare, "We'll start with the flying animal routine for fifteen minutes. Then we'll be moving onto the animal light show."

"Animal light show?!" Fluttershy shrieked, her whole being now trembling.

"Maybe a preview will help calm your nerves," Trixie explained before her horn glowed. She then shot it at the animals, causing Fluttershy to squeal in terror, only for her eyes to widen a second later. The furry creatures were now glowing different colors, which got applause from the other ponies. Trixie turned to Fluttershy, "Pretty cool, huh?"

Fluttershy ignored this, rushing over to a bunny and picking it up. "Are you alright? That didn't hurt you, did it?!" The rabbit replied in a happy tone, shining a big smile.

"See? They're fine." Trixie told her as she put a hoof on Fluttershy's shoulder, "The illumination spell has no side effects, and I can stop it with a thought."

"Oh....okay." Fluttershy placed the bunny back on the ground.

Twilight nodded at this before turning back to the animals. "Okay everypony, let's do this!" The little critters all cheered as the unicorn closed her eyes and concentrated. Second later, the animals were all engulfed by her magic and started to be lifted into the air. Everypony watched in amazement as this happened, watching as the animals once again began their routine. That is, except Fluttershy who was still cowering away again, Flash being the one to support her this time.

"Alright Trixie," Twilight called out. "Start the illumination spell."

"On it," Trixie replied as he horn glowed. The animals then began to glow, the colors switching around while also dimming and brightening in perfect sync.

The ponies watching were all amazed at this sight. Even Fluttershy stopped panicking long enough to enjoy the sight.

That is, till Flash spoke up and said, "That's amazing Trixie."

Hearing this caused a snap to happed Twilight's brain. She started to remember all the times she showed Flash magic, showing off all the things she achieved....only to get a 'not bad' or 'it looks great'. But she couldn't remember the last time he said amazing or wonderful or...anything like that.

And in that single moment of broken concentration, Twilight's horn began to flare. Time felt like it came to a stop, as she instantly knew she had messed up. "Oh no."

But it was too late. As her horn flared, the animals all let out a cry, their bodies suddenly being flung like ragdolls through the sky.

"TWILIGHT!" Fluttershy screamed as she saw this.

"Sorry!" Twilight cried as she tried to get her magic under control. Despite her best attempts, her focus was gone. As soon as would get a hold of one animal, she lost her grip on another, causing them to be sent flying again.

"Twilight! What are you doing?!" Flash yelled as he and Fluttershy leapt into the air, grabbing a racoon that was flying over his head, only for a line of critters to rush past him.

"I'll get one," Springer added as he leapt into the air as well. He managed to grab a bunny, only to be pulled along for the ride as the bunny flew through the air, "WHOA!" He yelped as he let go, only to then crash into a nearby wall, "AUGH!"

Fluttershy was flying around at her top speed, trying to grab as many animals as she could. But as she did, she saw a beaver shoot towards the cart that was filled with the desserts Pinkie and Applejack had made, causing Fluttershy and the two earth ponies to gasp. Trixie quickly stepped in, jumping between the beaver and cart before her horn glowed. She unleashed a magical beam that struck the beaver, causing it to disappear. Fluttershy gasped at this, but before she could ask what was going on, Trixie fired several more beams. Each one struck one of her animals, only to clear the sky in a few seconds.

"My animals!?" Fluttershy exclaimed, tears appearing her eyes.

"They're fine, trust me." Trixie assured her. "I just teleported them somewhere."

Trixie's horn glowed again, causing a large flash that faded to reveal all the animals. They were unharmed, though very dizzy, as Fluttershy rushed over to check them. "Are you all okay?" The animals all collapsed from the dizziness, though they all said something that made Fluttershy frown. "That was not fun. Beaverton Beaverteeth junior almost slammed right into the dessert cart, which would have severely injured him and ruined Pinkie and Applejack's hard work!"

Twilight stepped up to Fluttershy, a huge frown on her face. "I'm so sorry. I...I don't know what happened."

"You lost focus." Twilight tensed up at the sound of that voice. She turned around, only to see Trixie, who was standing next to Flash. "You lost focus and then was unable to regain focus."

Twilight gave the unicorn a deadly glare. "What, you trying to rub it in?"

Trixie eyebrow raised in confusion, "No. I was just explaining what happened."

"Well nopony asked you!" Twilight barked back, making Trixie backpedal while shocking everypony else.

"Twilight!" Flash replied sharply, causing Twilight to flinch back and realize what she had just done. "What are you doing?! That was uncalled for!"

"I....I just..." Twilight began to stare at the ground, only to shamefully lift her head back up at Trixie, "I-I-I'm sorry Trixie, I just...I um...."

"It's okay, Twilight." Trixie told her as she slowly walked back up to Twilight. "But something's obviously up. Are you okay? Why did you lose focus?"

"Yeah." Springer added as he rubbed his forehead, the pain from his collision still lingering. "what's the matter with you? Why'd you do that?"

Twilight looked back at the ground. "Its nothing."

"It's not nothing sugarcube," Applejack said, "Ah never seen you mess up magic like that."

"Applejack's right." Flash agreed as he gave her a firm stare, "Something's obviously wrong if you of all ponies lost that much focus. And then you snapped at Trixie, which is not like you." He moved over to her and tried to place his hoof on her shoulder. "What's wrong?"

Twilight sharply pulled her shoulder away, surprising the pegasus. "I said I'm fine! Leave me alone Flash!" She once again flinched, realizing what she had just done. But before anypony could try and ask again, she turned away from them all, "I uh...I think it would be best if Trixie did the show on her own. I...I can't do it."

Flash tried to say, "Twilight, what are you-" But he did not get to finish, as in that moment, Twilight disappeared in a flash of purple light.

"Twilight?"

---

That evening...

As Celestia and Luna magically shifted the celestial bodies that they governed, we find Twilight sulking in her room. She was currently scoffing down a tub of chocolate ice cream on her bed, using a hoof and spoon combo to do so, as she didn't trust her magic right now. She had used her magic to do one thing though, which was her creating a force field around her room to prevent anypony from entering.

Knock, knock, knock...

Though it did not stop them from repeatedly knocking.

"Come on Twilight," Flash's voice spoke through the door. "Please open up."

Twilight didn't respond. Instead, she simply scooped more ice cream into her mouth, brain freeze be damned.

"Twilight..." this time it was Spike. "Come on Twilight, at least say-"

"Let us in!" Rainbow interrupted, smacking the door now.

"Rainbow, stop that! That's not helping!" Rarity added as she pulled the mare away before saying, "Twilight darling, please let us in. We just want to help."

"Please," Pinkie asked next. "We're all worried."

"And I'm not mad about what happened," Fluttershy softly said, "Please open up."

"Come on sugarcube," Applejack finished.

No response. Twilight was just sitting there, still stuffing the ice cream down her gullet as her ears had shut off the world around her. She was not going to move, with the exception of her mouth and the hoof giving it food.

On the other side of the door, the seven of them all sighed after hearing no response. They then turned to each other as Rainbow asked, "Now what?"

Flash sighed again as he slammed his head against the door. "I don't know. I wish I knew what's wrong with her."

The others all shared a worried glance. After what had happened, Flash had flew off to the library while the others decided to get all of Twilight's friends to together, knowing that all of them could help her. Fluttershy, Pinkie and Applejack explained what had happened to Rarity and Rainbow, while those two told the earth ponies about their talk with Twilight earlier. It didn't take long for them to all know what was wrong with her, and they didn't know if they should tell Flash this, thinking it could get much worse if they did.

Flash knocked on the door one more time. "Twilight, we gotta get going for the show. Please come to it. I'm sure Trixie could really use your help." But once again, no answer came. Seeing this, Flash let out another sigh before walking downstairs, his friends following as he asked, "This isn't good. We're out of time and she won't respond. Just what is going on with her?"

The others shared another glance, making sure Flash didn't see it as he walked to the middle of the library and slumped down in a chair. He knew he had to go on to patrol, as Celestia and the dignitaries were going to be showing up real soon. With that in mind, he looked up at his friends and said, "I gotta go and do my job. Please keep trying to get her out of there."

"We will darling." Rarity replied as the others nodded, "Go ahead and get going."

---

Meanwhile...

Back in Twilight's room, she finished off the ice cream and threw the tub to the floor. Somehow, the brain freeze didn't happen. Her mind was still focused on being mush, small tears going down her face as she continued to sulk. "I ruined it all..." she moaned as she looked down at the empty tub on the floor, "And I'm still hungry...."

She put her hooves onto her head, her head now feeling cold as she muttered to herself, "What is wrong with me?! Why am I...why am I messing up like this?" The unicorn mare began to sink into the bed, feeling like she wanted to just melt into the bed and forget all her troubles. That is, till-

SHING!

"Whoa!" Twilight yelped as a flash of pink light appeared in front off her face, making her leap back and fall off the bed.

The light faded to reveal Trixie, who looked around the room. "Twilight? Where are you?"

"Down here...." a familiar voice moaned.

Trixie looked over the bed and saw her laying on the floor. "Oh, there you are." She walked around the bed. "You okay?"

"I'm fine..." Twilight said as she picked herself up. "How'd you get in here? I put a forcefield spell up and everything."

"Teleported. I'm guessing you forgot to account for that in your forcefield."

Twilight let out a low groan, now realizing that she was not used to not being the only one able to do that trick. "Whatever..." she moaned as she got back on the bed. "Can you go away please? I'm sulking."

"I noticed." Trixie grumbled as she sat down. "So...you wanna tell me why you're sulking?"

"No." Twilight immediately replied, her head now burying itself in her pillow.

"Had a feeling you were gonna say that." Trixie said as she crossed her hooves, glaring down at the unicorn that was still sinking into the bed. "Well, it doesn't matter. I already figured it out. You're upset because I want to ask Flash out."

Twilight's head shot off the pillow, quickly glaring at Trixie. "How-"

"I might not be as smart as you Twilight," Trixie interrupted as she leaned down, her glare unchanging. "But don't consider me an idiot. Considering you were acting fine until I brought up me asking Flash out, it was pretty easy to figure it out."

Twilight let out a low snort before placing her face back into her pillow. Seeing this, Trixie rolled her eyes as she asked, "So...are you finally gonna admit to liking him?"

"No. I don't like him...." Twilight muttered into the pillow. "I'm just...I don't won't to lose him from my life."

Trixie blinked at this, almost leaning back as she tried to understand how Twilight got to the conclusion. "What the-why do you think that would happen?!"

"Because if Flash started dating, he'd spend less time with me and then eventually he'll move out." Her head slowly up off the pillow. "He's been in my life so long, I can't picture myself without him."

A big frown followed this as Trixie let out a low hiss, "Are you kidding me?! You just want to keep Flash all to yourself despite not having any romantic feelings for him?!" The unicorn's horn began to glow as she leaned down, "I can't believe you would be that selfish!"

Twilight once again pulled her head up. "What'd you just say?!"

"I said you're selfish!" Trixie barked back, her horn now sparking along with Twilight's. The blue unicorn then leaned forward, her forehead touching Twilight's as they locked eyes, "You think you can just hoard Flash because you can?!"

"Why you-I'm not being selfish! I just-"

"NO!" Trixie interrupted, tapping her hoof into Twilight's chest. "You're being a selfish brat Twilight!" Trixie then saw Twilight about to open her mouth, only for Trixie's hoof to cover it as she asked, "What if it was the other way around, huh?! What if you really like somepony and Flash didn't want you dating them because he wanted you all to himself?"

"I..." Twilight tried to reply as she swatted Trixie's hoof away. But as she did, her mind instantly thought over Trixie's words, "I...I don't know." Twilight admitted as she looked down at the floor, her brain already catching on, "I'd...I'd say that's pretty selfish."

"Exactly," Trixie grumbled as she rubbed her hoof. "Besides, why would him dating somepony cause you to be forgotten? Does that honestly sound like something Flash would do?"

"No...it doesn't." Twilight quietly replied.

"Exactly," Trixie said as she looked back at her. "I think this is something you need to talk to Flash about. But you can do that after the show, because right now, I need your help." Twilight looked back up at this, only to see worry all over Trixie's face as the showmare continued, "I can't pull off all those tricks we came up with, at least not on my own."

"But you're-"

"Stop it." Trixie interrupted again, tapping Twilight chest once more. "I need your help. So either get your flank in gear, or I'll have to go tell Celestia that the show has to be cancelled. I'm sure she and the dignitary will be severely disappointed."

Hearing this caused Twilight to grimace. If there was one thing she would never want to do, it was disappoint her mentor. Letting out a low gulp, she sighed as she said, "Okay Trixie. I'll...I'll try."

Trixie smiled and nodded at this. "Good. Now...um...could you...I'm still only able to warp myself." Trixie then glanced at the clock in Twilight's room. "And we really gotta get going."

Twilight rolled her eyes before sparking her horn, causing the duo to soon be consumed in a flash of purple light. When it faded, the two of them were now standing behind the stage. Seeing this, Trixie moved over to the corner and saw everypony in the stands. She then looked up at the box and saw Celestia and the ponies from Saddle Arabia, waiting patiently for the entertainment to begin. "Or its happening right now because of course it is." Trixie turned back to her partner, "Alright, you ready?"

Twilight took a deep breath and nodded. "As much as I'm going to be after that. Let's do this."

With that, the two stepped out towards the stage.

---

Meanwhile...again.

In the center of town, we find Flash, Springer and Iron patrolling. The Saddle Arabians as it turned out, did have their own protection detail and they were also scattered around the area, surrounding the town. Flash, Springer and Iron were likewise keeping an eye around the town, due to the three of them knowing the place the best.

"Looks like the shows starting," Flash said as the sound of applause filled the air.

"Wonder if your marefriend's gotten over herself?" Iron asked.

"She's not my marefriend," Flash deadpanned back.

"Yeah, sure," Iron scoffed, rolling his eyes. "So her little freak out earlier had nothing to do with the fact that that Trixie mare has been hanging around you?"

Flash had no idea what he was talking about, which he then said. "I have no idea what you're talking about."

"You keep telling yourself that moron."

"Who are you calling moron, ya metalhead?!"

Springer laughed at this as the three of them began their patrol. And as they did, Flash just sighed as he went down one of the town's paths, his eyes staring into the ground. "I wish I knew what was up with her." Then, in that very instant, he froze as a bulb went off in his head. "Of course, that's it!"

---

An hour and a half later...

The show had gone off without a hitch. Twilight had managed to stay focused on what the act, the duo creating an assortment of magic with the animals that would make circuses the world over jealous. And as the finale finished, the two of them bowed as the ponies continued to applaud before getting up off their seats, ready to return home.

Twilight's friends all rushed over to her, all giving her words of congratulations. She shined them all a big smile as she told them, "Thanks everypony. I'm so sorry I worried you all."

"It's okay sugarcube," Applejack replied as she patted her friend's shoulder.

But before anypony could say anything else, Celestia stepped up to them, her presence simply demanding attention. "Excellent work, both of you." She turned to Trixie. "Ms. Lulamoon, I'm pleased to see my sister's teachings are going so well." She then turned to Twilight, "And I knew I could count on you, my little pony."

"Thank you, your majesty," Twilight and Trixie said with a bow of the head.

Celestia nodded at this. "Well, I'd better be getting the dignitaries to Canterlot. I'll be seeing you all later."

"Yes Princess," all of them bowing as she walked off. They then started heading towards their own homes, only to see Flash, Springer and Iron walking towards them.

Flash was the first to speak up, "Hey you two! How'd the show go?"

"Brilliantly," Trixie said while tipping her hat. "Twilight should do more stage acts with me more often."

"Awesome," Flash replied before turning to Twilight. "You okay now?"

Twilight let out a long sigh, but then nodded. "Yeah, I am."

"Good," Flash said before turning to the others. "Is it okay if I talk to Twilight and Trixie alone for a moment?" The others all nodded before walking off. Once out of earshot, Flash turned to the mares. "I've finally figured out what's been going on with you."

Twilight's eyes went wide at this. "You...you have?"

"Yeah, it was kinda obvious." He admitted as he looked the unicorn directly in the eye. "You Twilight...are jealous."

"J-J-Jealous?!" Twilight squeaked, her lips quivering as her mind started to race. "I-I-I-"

Flash pulled back and nodded with his eyes closed. "Yes, you're jealous of Trixie." He opened his eyes and stared at her. "And I'm here to tell you that you shouldn't be, because this doesn't affect you at all."

Now both mares were wide-eyed as Twilight yelped, "How can you say that?! Of course this affects me!"

Flash's eyes darting away for a second before biting his lip, "Right...sorry. That was a poor choice of words." He then put his hoof on Twilight, who was still too stunned to swat it away, "But what I'm saying is, this doesn't affect you in a bad way. So what if you're not the only one anymore? Who cares? I mean, this doesn't change who you are or how others see you." He gave her a big, almost too happy smile. "It definitely won't change how I see you."

Those words seemed to cut straight to Twilight's heart, causing her to remember what Trixie had said earlier. She was right, Flash would never just forget about her. So what if Flash started dating somepony else? That didn't mean she was any less important to him. This caused her to smile, tears beginning to form in her eyes.

Seeing this, Flash's grin continued to grow, "See? No need to worry."

"Yeah....yeah, you're right." Twilight admitted before turning to Trixie. "I'm sorry about how I've been acting."

Trixie just giggled at this, winking at the mare. "Eh, don't worry about it."

"Yeah, we all get jealous sometimes." Flash added as he patted Twilight's shoulder, "But like I said, so what if Trixie's magic is getting better? That doesn't change how good you are Twilight."

"You're rig-" Twilight didn't finish her sentence, as she and Trixie just stopped and blinked at what Flash had just said. They both shared a glance before turning to him and saying, "What?!"

Flash looked between them, confused by the question. "You know what Twilight, Trixie's magic is improving and you're jealous since you might not be the princess's number one student anymore." His grin grew even more as he continued, "But it doesn't matter Twilight, because you're both tied now and I know you'll both get better." It was here that he stopped, only to now be greeted with two very angry glares, "What?"

---

Ten seconds later...

Two ponies stared at the dish in front of them, the dish showing an orange pegasus laying on the ground. The pony was covered from head to hoof in injuries, including two bent wings, a right black eye, a rolled out tongue flopped over into the grass, and several hoof kicks to the crouch.

"So...any of your visions see that coming?" one of the ponies asked, a big smirk on his face.

"No." the other replied with a roll of her eyes, "And I'm pretty sure what he just did comes from your side of the family."

"My side?!" the stallion barked back, "I know for a fact that I wasn't that oblivious or naïve when I was his age."

"Really?" the mare let out a snort, cocking an eyebrow as she leaned over to him, "Remember how much I flirted with you before you asked me out? If I remember correctly, it took oh...I don't know, maybe a few years?!"

"It didn't take that long!" The stallion yelled, only to then grab the mare's hoof with a big smirk on his face, "And I'm pretty sure you fell for me after that first date, didn't you?"

The mare glanced away, hiding a big grin, "No. I'm sure you fell for me." She looked back at the dish, "And I'm pretty sure the same thing will need to happen with our son."

It was here that the duo saw Flash slowly rise from the ground, groaning as he tried to regain his balance before moaning, "Oooohhhh...that really hurt. What was with those two? What did I say wrong?"

"And its gonna take him a while to really figure it out, isn't it?" the mare asked sarcastically.

"Yup. That's our son."

---

Meanwhile....one more time!

"Boys..." Trixie groaned as she and Twilight walked away from the beaten defender.

"You can have him." Twilight told her.

"Naw," Trixie replied as she looked at her, "I think I'll hold off on asking him out." She then leaned in and whispered, "But you'd better ask him yourself sooner or later. I won't wait forever."

Twilight turned to her, confusion clearly on her face, "Huh?"

Trixie laughed at this, waving her hoof. "Oh nothing. By the way, there's something I want to ask you...though Princess Luna also asked me to ask you this."

"What's that?"

"Well..."

---

The next morning....

Before Celestia raised the sun, Twilight was already up and sneaking out the library. As she walked through the streets on her way out of town, she was completely alone. That was okay though, for this was something she wanted to do alone. She eventually reached the edge of town, her destination just ahead. It was Flash's canyon training grounds, where the two of them had agreed to meet.

And as she arrived, Trixie was sitting patiently on a rock, waiting for her opponent to arrive. When she heard the hoofsteps, she looked up, smiling when she saw Twilight. "You came."

Twilight smirked at her, ready to do what they came her to do. "Of course I did."

"Good," Trixie leapt off the rock and moved over so she and Twilight were now standing face to face, just a few feet from each other. "Then let's find out who the real number one princess student is."

Twilight's smirk increased. "Nothing against you, but I've had years more experience."

"Maybe..." Trixie said as she lightly chuckled, winking at the mare in front of her. "But I'm a fast learner."

"So am I," Twilight replied, cricking her neck.

The two of them stood in silence, staring at one another and waiting to see who would make the first move. Finally, the silence was broken by the blowing of the wind, causing the two of them to spark their horns. The pink and purple lights shot off and flew towards the opponent, the two clashing and causing a brilliant flash of light.

Their magic duel, had begun.

Author's Note:

The seed is planted. Trixie seemed like the best pony to get Twilight real feelings to start blooming, so I hope you enjoyed it.

Comments

[Brawny Steed]

Oh, about time! I was starting to worry with all the skirting around the subject, it never really coming up, etc, etc. This was a good chapter that actually addresses the issue at the heart of things and I love the execution.

Though, the first meanwhile could have been done without. I think it'd be better with a phone call at the hospital about a stallion getting attacked by two mares and the receiver thinking it's a prank call. Maybe it's me or something, but sometimes we don't need the point of view from recurring characters about the scene in question.

[Foxhelm]

This chapter was a misnomer. There was no duel.

Nice to see some tension between Twilight and Trixie and the two come together, but did Flash really deserve a beating, couldn't the mares be left stupified?

Beyond that, did you really have to make Flash oblivi...
Buck it, throw the two into a room they can't get off until they both realize they love one another, this plot thread is dangerously close to overstaying it's welcome.

[SuperSonicHeroes]

Wow, I never would have guessed that Trixie would be the one to help Twilight realize her feelings for Flash. Also, that scene when they beat up Flash for his obliviousness was pretty funny. I guess stupidity around girls fits the Woman Scorned trope too.

[Godslittleprincess]

"What...what is going on?" Twilight whispered to herself, making sure no one could hear her.

Let me spell it out for you. Y-O-U A-R-E J-E-A-L-O-U-S. What does that spell?

Okay, I know that beating was for comedic purposes, but did Flash really deserve that? I mean, how was he supposed to know that Trixie had a thing for him and that that's the reason why Twilight's jealous?

[Sherlock Hooves]

Oh wow this is almost as bad as Lina and Gaoury from Slayers. I really hope you move this plot thread along faster than they did. Not sure if you're going to do anything with Equestria Girls, but I'd stop the oblivious lovers thread there. By then it would be really obvious to Twilight about her feelings.

[Godslittleprincess]

HOLD IT! Is Trixie helping spell out Twilight's feelings for Flash going to be a recurring thing in your stories? The only set where Trixie makes an appearance where this hasn't happened is the Power Rangers series.

[SageBrony07]

YEAH!!!! GO Trixie!!! I hope that Twi and Flash realize there is something between then either after Twilight ascends or when she goes through the mirror.

[Jake De Poni]

And we have more Flash abuse. LOL

[Reximus-Prime]

"Thanks," Pinkie replied before pulling out a tray of weird knickknacks. "I've also got a bunch of things we can sell to the crowd." She pulled out an orange stick that looked like it had a fork like appendage on the end, which she pointed at Applejack. "Flank scratcher?"

"Ah told yah before Pinkie, no."

"Flank scratcher?"

"Pinkie no."

"Flank scratcher?"

"NO!"

Pinkie's hair deflated as she lowered the device. "Flank scratcher..."

Peter Griffin from Family Guy has his butt scratchers. Pinkie Pie has her Flank Scratchers.

[Thyrrnatf]

"Thanks," Pinkie replied before pulling out a tray of weird knickknacks. "I've also got a bunch of things we can sell to the crowd." She pulled out an orange stick that looked like it had a fork like appendage on the end, which she pointed at Applejack. "Flank scratcher?"

loved this joke <3

[nathanb]

A really funny chapter and who won the duel in the end.