Twilight checked her bags once more to make sure that everything was packed. She held up a checklist with her magic and checked off items as she read them aloud. “Ink, check. “Romecolt and Filliet”, check. Food and water, check.”
“What is this meet-up, anyway?” Rainbow Dash asked as she pulled off one of the Daring Do books from one of the bookshelves.
“It’s some kinda readers meet-up, where ponies get together and discuss books,” Spike explained. “Sounds kind of boring if you ask me.”
“Hm…Maybe I should go, too,” Rarity suggested, causing Twilight to flinch and pause her checking. “I do like a good book, and I’ve read my fair share of romance novels. I may be able to raise some good points.”
“No!” Twilight shouted, startling the other ponies. She shifted her eyes between each pony, trying to think of a reason for Rarity not to go. “Um…We mostly read, er…Sci-fi! That’s right, sci-fi stuff, so I don’t think you’d be interested!”
“Oh, come now, Twilight. I’m nothing if not open to new things.”
“Um…They can get pretty violent! And gory!”
“You make it sound like I’ve never read a gore story before. Trust me, I’ll be fine. I’ve read Pinkie Pie’s stories, so I should be able to handle anything your group may throw at me.”
Twilight paused to think about what kind of stories Pinkie Pie was writing. ‘I think I’ll have to check those out at some point.’ She cleared her head and tried to think of something else. She wracked her brain to think of the one thing Rarity hated more than anything. “Blueblood!” She shouted out, causing Rarity’s eye to twitch.
“I beg your pardon?”
“Blueblood’s gonna be at the meeting! So, you know…I suppose you could come, but…”
“Uh, never mind. I think I’ll just stay here after all.” Twilight sighed as Rarity backed down, and continued packing her bags. “But will you really be alright, staying in Manehatten all by yourself? I mean, won’t you get lonely?”
Twilight smiled and started to blush. She was glad that she was faced away from the others, so they couldn’t see her. “I’ll be fine,” she assured Rarity. ‘I’m not really going to be alone, anyway.’
Twilight arrived at Manehatten a few hours later. The town was as noisy as ever, with ponies filling the streets, moving from one place to another, too busy to spare even a word to another pony.
Twilight moved through the crowded streets, occasionally getting knocked down by ponies in a hurry, and occasionally having to use her magic to get past a huge crowd of ponies. By her fifth teleport, she was starting to feel dizzy, and wanted to take a break and clear her head. Unfortunately, even if she did stop, the town was far too loud for her to get any peace and quiet.
She finally made it through the vast majority of the crowds, and reached the Manehatten public library, where she told her friends that the meeting would be taking place. This, however, wasn’t the truth.
It was merely a little lie that she told her friends so that she could be away from them for the weekend without arousing suspicion. Her true destination was a little further down, and so, after taking a deep breath and preparing to make her way through more crowds, Twilight pushed on down the streets of Manehatten.
Twilight finally managed to reach her target location: a small park that, at this time of day, was mostly empty. There were one or two ponies cutting through, but for the most part it was completely free of any ponies. In particular, Twilight was heading towards a small wooden caravan that was sitting in the park, near the pond.
The caravan wasn’t very big, and along the side of it was a carving of a wisp of smoke and a star-shaped wand. On the front of the caravan was a sign hanging on the door reading: “The G&PT is sleeping! Do not disturb!”
Twilight ignored the sign, raised her hoof, and knocked on the front door of the caravan. She received no response, so she knocked again. This time, she heard a groan and the sound of somepony crashing to the floor from inside the caravan.
“Go away,” said a voice from inside the caravan. Twilight groaned and knocked again, this time putting emphasis into each knock. Finally, the caravan doors opened. “WHAT do you WANT!?” asked the pony who emerged.
It was a Unicorn with a blue coat and purple eyes. Her mane and tail were a beautiful silver colour. Twilight couldn’t help but let out a small laugh at Trixie’s bed mane, which looked like she had just been on the receiving end of a magical misfire.
“Oh, Twilight!” Trixie shouted in surprise. She looked down at the purple Unicorn who was laughing at her, wondering what was so funny. She realised that Twilight was laughing at her mane, and quickly ran back inside with a blush on her face. She grabbed her pointy purple hat which had a starry pattern on it.
Trixie placed the hat on her head and made her way back to the entrance of her caravan, her mane now hidden from view. “You’re here earlier than Trixie expected,” Trixie said, and then let out a quick yawn. “You interrupted her sleep.”
“Sorry,” Twilight said, letting herself into Trixie’s caravan. She wrapped her front legs around Trixie’s neck, and her hug was returned by the blue Unicorn. “I just got so excited that I took an earlier train.”
“Honestly, you’re like a filly excited about going on a field trip.” Trixie let out a snicker as she imagined a filly version of Twilight bouncing around in a circle, chanting “yes!” over and over again. “Trixie thinks she’d like to see that.”
Twilight pulled away from Trixie and lifted her hat up, much to Trixie’s dismay. She levitated a brush from Trixie’s dresser and brought it over to Trixie’s mane. “Here, let me take care of this,” she offered.
Trixie just nodded and turned around, letting Twilight brush her mane for her. “So, did you tell your friends you were going to that meet-up again?” Trixie asked, letting out another yawn and rubbing her eye with her hoof.
“Yeah…Is that…A problem?” Twilight asked, slowing down her brushing as she awaited Trixie’s answer.
“Of course not…Trixie just hates only being able to see you on weekends.”
Twilight let out a deep sigh, and sped up her brushing again. “I know, I hate it too. But they’d get suspicious if I left too often, or if the days of the meets were all over the place. I’m just afraid they won’t accept our relationship if they found out about it.”
Trixie used her magic to prepare a cup of coffee without having to get up. “Surely there’s at least one friend you have that will be ok with it and can help you out.” Trixie brought two cups of coffee over to her, and offered one to Twilight.
Twilight took her cup with her hooves, her magic still busy with brushing Trixie’s mane. “Of course there are. There are Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, and maybe Cheerilee, too. But…I can’t ask them to go out of their way just for us.”
Trixie frowned as she brought her cup of coffee up to her mouth. She drank a little of it, and then placed it down next to her. “Yeah…Trixie guesses you have a point. It wouldn’t really be fair.”
Twilight stopped her brushing and put her front legs around Trixie, resting her chin on Trixie’s shoulder. “Come on, now. We didn’t get to see each other last week, so we need to make this week twice as fun.”
A grin formed on Trixie’s face as she raised her front hooves and connected them with Twilight’s. “Yeah, you’re right. We should make the most of the time we have together.” She turned her head so that she was looking into Twilight’s eyes, and then leaned forward to kiss her lover on the lips.
Twilight kissed Trixie back. She felt Trixie’s tongue pushing past her lips, and met it with her own. The two of them continued kissing for a few minutes, before finally breaking for some air. “I’m almost done with your mane,” Twilight said, picking the brush back up and bringing it to Trixie’s mane.
Trixie grabbed the brush with her hoof and lowered it. “Later. It’ll just get messy again anyway.” Trixie pulled Twilight into another kiss, causing Twilight to drop the brush as she lay down on the floor and let Trixie take the lead. “You’ll need to be punished for ruining Trixie’s beauty sleep.”
Twilight and Trixie lost track of how long they had been lying in bed together. They lay down with their legs wrapped around each other, with Trixie’s chin resting on Twilight’s head as Twilight rested her head against Trixie’s chest.
“Trixie hopes you’ve learned your lesson, Twilight.” Trixie stoked her hoof through Twilight’s mane, and took in the scent of her lover. The scent made her heart beat even faster, which Twilight noticed easily.
Twilight giggled and wrapped her legs tighter around Trixie. “Sorry, Trixie. I’m not your student.” Her face turned even redder than it already was when Trixie gave Twilight’s horn a teasing lick. ‘And besides, if I’ve learned anything, it’s that I should wake you up more often.’
A sudden movement up one of Twilight’s back legs made her flinch and let out a small squeal. “Trixie, wait…I don’t think I have enough energy to go again right now,” she said as she turned her head up to Trixie and looked at her with big, pleading eyes.
Trixie looked down at her with a look of confusion. “Trixie didn’t do anything.”
There was a short silence after that, and then, almost immediately, the two of them sat up and looked down at Twilight’s back legs. Lying down on one of them was a small green lizard, looking up at the two.
“Leon! How did you get out of your cage?” Trixie asked as she picked up the small chameleon with her hooves. She looked towards the cage and noticed that the lock had been melted. “How did that…Oh.” Trixie’s face turned red as she remembered the last activity she and Twilight took part in, which involved a fair amount of horn play.
“Did…Did my magic do that?” Twilight asked, blushing as she reached the same realization as Trixie.
“Indeed…Trixie’s glad ponies are immune to raw magic castings.” She placed Leon back in his cage, and used a padlock from one of her stage props as a temporary lock for the cage. “We’ll have to get a new cage. This is beyond repair.”
Twilight’s face turned into a frown when she heard this. Trixie asked her what was wrong, and Twilight used her magic to pull out a scroll from her saddlebag. It unravelled to reveal a very, very long checklist. “I had our whole two days planned out. It was going to be perfect, but now…”
Trixie let out a small giggle at the depressed bookworm, who responded by glaring at Trixie. Trixie put the scroll down and patted Twilight’s head. An act which Twilight’s wasn’t against at all. “Twilight, any date with you will turn out perfect, planned or not.”
“But-”
“Besides, half the fun of going on a date is spontaneity – knowing anything can happen. Sure, we could just stick to the schedule, but…” Trixie leaned in and kissed Twilight on the forehead, and the pulled back to finish what she was saying. “Wouldn’t it be more exciting if we just let things happen naturally, and simply go with the flow?”
Twilight put a hoof to her chin in thought, and then looked back at Trixie. “But…I don’t know how to do that. I’m always so organised, and-”
Trixie silenced Twilight by placing her hoof to Twilight’s mouth. “Don’t worry, Twilight. Just trust in Trixie, ok?”
Twilight nodded slowly, and then noticed the scent on Trixie’s hoof. She looked Trixie up and down, and turned a deep crimson when she noticed that Trixie’s coat was entirely drenched in…“Um, Trixie?”
“Mhm?”
“I think…You should have a bath.”
Trixie didn’t expect that, and looked at Twilight with a surprised look. “Beg pardon?” Twilight held Trixie’s hoof up for her to see, and Trixie realised what Twilight was getting at. Trixie blushed as she examined Twilight, seeing that she was in a similar state. “Looks like we could both do with a bath.”
Twilight looked at her own body, and then looked at Trixie with an annoyed look. “This is your fault, Trixie! I told you we should’ve stopped after the first two rounds!”
Trixie leaned in closer to Twilight with a seductive grin, chuckling under her breath. Twilight moved back until she was against a wall. “Well then, should Trixie clean you up?” Before Twilight could answer, Trixie was busy working her tongue over Twilight’s body, and all Twilight could do was fall to her haunches as she lost herself to Trixie’s teasing.
After Twilight finally manage to convince Trixie to stop, the two wrapped picked up some bits and decided to make their way towards the nearest spa. There was one not too far from the park, but they still wanted to be careful walking there in the states that they were in, so they wrapped towels around themselves to hide their bodies from view.
Once they were at the spa, they paid the entrance fee for a simple bath. They didn’t order anything extra, since they wanted to spend the day walking around Manehatten together and exploring the sites.
Once they were all cleaned up, they made their way back to Trixie’s caravan, although Trixie insisted on making it a race, causing the two to take even longer since they kept using magic to slow each other down. By the time they were back, they felt like they needed another bath; they were covered in sweat, and there was dirt from the ground down their bodies.
“Ha! Beat you…Twilight…” Trixie managed to say between breaths as Twilight approached her.
Twilight wasn’t doing any better than Trixie, herself all worn out and desperate for a drink. “No…Fair…You…You can’t do that…In public…” She said, blushing as she remembered the single trick that assured Trixie her victory: exploiting Twilight’s biggest weakness, by pressing her hooves against Twilight’s horn and licking the tip of it with her tongue.
“All’s fair in…In love and…” Trixie couldn’t finish, as she was too tired from her long run from the spa to her caravan.
The two decided that, since neither was in any condition to argue, they’d just let it slide and take a rest inside the caravan.
Once they were well rested, and were able to breathe properly again, Twilight and Trixie prepared to head out. Trixie levitated her cape into the air and prepared to put it on. Twilight walked up to Trixie and looked at her nervously. “Um…Trixie?” she asked, gaining Trixie’s attention. “Do you think…I could wear your cape again today?” A blush appeared on Twilight’s face, and she had to turn away so that she didn’t look Trixie in the eyes.
Trixie also blushed, remembering the first time Twilight had asked her to wear her cape.
“Twilight, why did you want to wear my cape today?”
“Because…It feels like your always holding onto me if I wear it…And it makes me happy that I’m the only other pony allowed to wear it.”
Trixie levitated the cape over to Twilight, and fastened it around her neck. “Here…Trixie will have to make you your own cape, if you like it so much.”
Twilight’s eyes brightened up at that, and she rubbed her head against Trixie’s neck in a loving manner. “That’d be great! ‘Cause…” Twilight used her magic to levitate her saddlebag over to her, and pulled out something from it. “Actually, I made you something last week, since we couldn’t see each other.”
Trixie looked at the small object floating before her. It was a manepin, styled in the fashion of Twilight’s Cutie Mark. “This is…Lovely,” she said, taking the manepin with her hooves and examining it closely.
“I made one for me, too!” Twilight shouted cheerfully, happy that Trixie liked her present. Twilight pulled out a second manepin. This one was styled in the fashion of Trixie’s Cutie Mark. Twilight put it on, and then stared at Trixie expectantly. “Well?”
Trixie blushed as she looked down at her manepin, and then, slowly, she moved it up to her mane, and attempted to put it on…To no avail. “Trixie has…Never worn a manepin before. She’s not used to putting them on…”
Trixie fumbled with her manepin a bit, and Twilight couldn’t help but laugh at Trixie’s cute clumsiness. Trixie frowned at this and ordered Twilight to stop laughing at her. Twilight took the manepin into her magic, and fixed it onto Trixie’s mane for her. “There, now let’s see…” Twilight examined Trixie with her new manepin attached. She had to turn Trixie to face her, since Trixie had tried to turn away in embarrassment. “Perfect! I knew it’d suit you!”
Trixie was happy at Twilight’s compliment, and happy that Twilight had gone through the effort to make her this nice gift. But neither was the reason why she currently carried a big, stupid grin on her face as she mentally reminded herself of how much she loved Twilight. The reason was because Twilight made both of them manepins, styled after each other’s Cutie Marks. This was a sign, Trixie hoped, that Twilight wanted their relationship to move further, and was less afraid of certain other ponies finding out about them.
“Thank you, Twilight,” Trixie said, levitating a small mirror to look at herself with the manepin. “Trixie will cherish it.” She smiled at Twilight, who smiled back with a blush on her face, and then rose to her hooves. “Let’s go, while it’s still light out.”
Twilight nodded and followed Trixie out of her caravan. Once they were both outside, Trixie locked her caravan with her magic. The two walked side-by-side into the streets of Manehatten, with Twilight resisting the urge to rest her head against Trixie as they walked, simply because navigating Manehatten was difficult enough even when paying full attention to where you were walking.
Their first stop was a new bakery that had become very popular recently. Trixie insisted that Twilight try their famous sponge cake, which was easily their top selling product. The two split the cost and shared a cake together. Twilight took one bite, and immediately fell in love with the delicious snack. While she continued taking more bites with a look of bliss on her face, Trixie stared at Twilight with a big grin, her heart beating faster as she took in the sight of her lover making one of the most adorable faces she had ever seen.
Twilight noticed that Trixie wasn’t eating much, and frowned at the stage magician. “Hey, what gives? Are you trying to make me fat or something?” she asked, putting down the piece that she was about to eat. “If you’re concerned about your figure, you should exercise more, not make others fatter.”
Trixie’s smile faded, and she glared at Twilight as she took a piece of cake and bit into it. “How dare you! Trixie has no need to worry about her figure!”
Twilight grinned devilishly and reached over the table to poke Trixie’s side. “You sure about that? I think you should cut down on the junk food a bit.”
Trixie batted Twilight’s hoof away and looked at her with an annoyed look. “Trixie will have you know that she’s been on a diet for the past few months now!” she shouted, pushing what remained of the cake towards Twilight. “Trixie is done. You can have the rest, Twilight.”
Twilight argued that Trixie should have half since she paid for half of the cake, but Trixie insisted that she had had enough. It eventually ended with the Twilight giving in and taking most of the cake with her to eat later.
The rest of the day passed quickly for the two mares, much to their disappointment, since it meant their time together was drawing closer to the end. After the bakery, the young couple visited the Manehatten tower, where they could get a great view of the entire city, then they visited the Manehatten museum of natural history, as per Twilight’s request, and then they visited a restaurant for a romantic dinner.
On the way back to the park, the two passed by a karaoke box, and Trixie suggested they stop by. Twilight was nervous about singing in front of Trixie, but she really wanted to hear Trixie’s singing voice, so she nodded and followed Trixie inside.
“Trixie would like to rent a booth for the next hour, please,” Trixie said to the stallion at the counter, placing a few bits in front of him.
“Sorry miss, we’re full up,” the stallion replied.
“What!? Seriously?” Trixie asked with a disappointed look. The stallion nodded, and she turned back to Twilight with a frown. “Fine then. We’ll just have to try again tomorrow…”
Twilight also looked disappointed at missing the chance to hear Trixie singing, and the two prepared to leave the building, before a voice called out to Trixie. “Trixie? Is that you?”
Trixie and Twilight turned to a stallion carrying some drinks next to a vending machine. He was just a little taller than Trixie and Twilight, and had an orange coat and a spiked blonde mane and tail. His Cutie Mark was 5 sparkling stars. “Razzle Dazzle!”
Trixie and Razzle approached and hugged each other. They pulled apart when Twilight cleared her throat to get Trixie’s attention. “Oh, who’s your friend? I don’t think we’ve met before…” Razzle noticed the manepin in Twilight’s mane, and the one in Trixie’s, and a sly grin crossed his face. “Ooohhh, I see. I had no idea you were married, Trixie.”
Trixie and Twilight exchanged wide-eyed glances, and then turned back to Razzle. “Nonononono!” Trixie shouted, flailing her front legs in front of her. “We’re not married! Not yet!”
Twilight turned to Trixie, who quickly silenced herself by placing her hooves to her mouth. An awkward silence passed by the three, but was interrupted by a mare’s voice. “Razzle? What’s going on?”
The three turned to see an approaching mare. She had a pink coat, with a yellow mane and tail. “Heather! Sorry, did I make you wait?” Razzle asked as he approached the mare. She looked at Twilight and Trixie with a confused face, and Razzle explained to her that Trixie was a friend of his at school, and that they hadn’t seen each other in a long time.
“I see. Well it’s nice to meet you, Miss Trixie and…”
Trixie shook Heather’s hoof, and then moved aside for Twilight to introduce herself. “Twilight Sparkle. I’m Trixie’s…” A blush passed over Twilight’s face, and Heather giggled.
“So, you two are unable to rent a booth?” Razzle asked. “Then how ‘bout you join us? We could make it like a double date.”
Twilight and Trixie considered the offer, and accepted it. Trixie was excited with the idea of catching up with her old friend, and Twilight still wanted to hear Trixie sing, and was always excited about making more friends.
The four ponies made their way to the karaoke booth, where they spent some time getting to know each other before singing. Trixie and Razzle explained that they were not only friends at school, but were also partners when Trixie started her showmare career.
They used to do duo acts together, but when Trixie wanted to start performing Equestria-wide, Razzle wanted to stay in Canterlot and continue his studies. The two went their separate ways, and hadn’t seen each other since.
Razzle met Heather during a visit to Manehatten, and the two hit it off fairly quickly, and now, they’re engaged to each other. Twilight and Trixie noticed that his story had a lot in common with how their own relationship started; they met by chance at a sci-fi convention in Manehatten, and after talking to each other, they became friends and started arranging secret meetings (since Twilight was afraid of her friends’ reactions to Trixie), and eventually, they became a couple.
At one point, when Razzle was singing onstage, Twilight wanted to ask Trixie something important. “Trixie, earlier, you said we weren’t married yet.” Trixie tried to pretend she was focusing on the music, but Twilight wasn’t buying it. “Are you…Expecting something soon?”
Trixie turned to Twilight and shook her head. “No, Twilight. You misunderstand. Trixie is happy with our relationship now.”
“Then why did you say that?”
“Well…Trixie’s sure that we’ll get married someday, but she didn’t mean soon.”
Twilight stared at Trixie in surprise. “Y-You’re sure that…We’ll get married? I mean, you’re actually thinking that far ahead?”
Trixie looked upset, and leaned in closer to Twilight. “Of course. You’re…Ever since that night, Trixie knew that you were the only one for her. She thought you felt the same way…”
Twilight hesitated, and turned her head to face the floor. “I…Don’t know…I mean, I’ve never felt this way about somepony before…I’m not sure what to expect in the future. And what about my friends? What if they don’t like you?”
“Why should that matter?” Trixie wrapped her front legs around Twilight, pulling her into a warm hug. “What, you can’t be with Trixie unless your friends approve?”
“That’s not it! I just…”
Trixie sighed and released Twilight. She rose to her hooves and approached the stage. “Trixie will not be here next weekend.” Twilight’s eyes widened and she turned to Trixie. “Or the weekend after that, or the weekend after that. Trixie has a new weekend job, which means the only time you can see her is during weekdays…Whenever she has time off.”
“What do you mean? When were you going to tell me about this!?”
“Twilight, please think about what’s more important to you. Your friends, or Trixie.” Trixie grabbed the mic onstage with her magic, and Razzle shot up to his hooves.
“Oh, you’re singing, Trixie?” he asked with a panicked look on his face. “That’s cool! I just, erm…I need to use the bathroom! Don’t bother waiting for me, it’ll probably take a while! Later!” He dashed out of the room, leaving three confused mares staring at the door.
“He always was a strange one…” Trixie remarked, before scrolling through the list of songs. “Now, let’s see here…” Trixie selected the song that she was searching for, and picked up a second mic. “Twilight, this one’s for two ponies. So come sing with Trixie,” she said, levitating the mic over to Twilight.
Twilight looked at the mic, and then to Trixie, who was smiling at the purple Unicorn. Twilight wondered how Trixie could be so happy when this may well be their last weekend together, but then realised that’s why Trixie was doing her best to be happy. If this was to be their last weekend, she wanted it to be enjoyable, and memorable, not filled with sadness.
Twilight nodded and took the mic with her magic, and then approached the stage, where Trixie was waiting. She took a look at the song, and then prepared herself.
The song began with Twilight singing the first part. Trixie was pleasantly surprised at Twilight’s beautiful singing voice, and almost missed the part where she was supposed to join in. Twilight readied herself to hear Trixie singing, but wasn’t prepared enough for what emerged.
Twilight and Heather both covered their ears with their hooves, and cringed at the horrible, tone-deaf singing coming from Trixie’s mouth. Neither of them could say that they were expecting her to be so bad at singing, and they realised that there was still 40 minutes left in the room, where Trixie could suddenly want to sing at any time.
Trixie didn’t seem to notice their reactions to her singing, and seemed to be proud of her singing voice. When she asked Twilight what she thought, with those big puppy dog eyes, Twilight couldn’t bring herself to tell the truth. She instead tried to move the topic to something else. “Um…It was…D-Do you sing often? Like, when you perform?”
Trixie folded her front legs and pouted. “No, for some reason the crowds run away whenever Trixie sings. They must jealous of Trixie’s wonderful voice!” Trixie flicked her mane and raised her head up. “Well, Trixie’s more of a storyteller, anyway.”
The rest of the evening went smoothly, for the most part. After Razzle returned, the four ponies continued sharing stories with each other, and took turns singing. Whenever Trixie’s turn came up, Razzle and Heather practically raced to find some kind of excuse to leave. Twilight wanted to think of something too, but she felt bad about leaving Trixie all on her own, and decided to just bear with it.
After their time in the karaoke booth had ended, Twilight and Trixie said goodbye to Razzle and Heather, as each couple went their separate ways. On the way back to the park, Trixie decided to share some of her stories with Twilight.
Most of Trixie’s stories were made up, or the details were greatly exaggerated, and it was obvious to Twilight, but she didn’t mind. Unlike her friends, she didn’t take them so seriously. She simply enjoyed them for what they were: stories, meant to entertain ponies.
“And that’s how Trixie saved the small coalmining town from the Earth Titan.”
Twilight then realised that, despite telling so much of her own past, Trixie had never shared any of her true past to Twilight. That upset Twilight, as she wanted to know more about the stage magician. “Trixie…”
“Next, Trixie will tell you about her 10 day and night training expedition in the deadly Everfree forest.”
“Trixie, I actually want to hear something else about you.”
“Oh, a request? Very well, what would you like to hear?”
“I want to know more about you, Trixie. The real you.” Trixie stopped moving, and Twilight also stopped. The two stared into each other’s eyes, before Trixie turned away so that Twilight couldn’t see her frowning.
“Trixie’s life…Isn’t worth talking about,” she said. “Trixie would rather tell you a story worth hearing. Like how she triumphed over the dreaded-”
“Trixie!” Twilight shouted, stamping her hoof to get Trixie’s attention. “No story about you is not worth hearing. I want to know everything there is to know about you.”
“But…” Trixie looked into Twilight’s pleading eyes, and couldn’t resist her any longer. She finally gave in, and let out a deep sigh. “Fine. What do you want to hear about Trixie?”
Twilight’s face lit up, and she motioned over to a nearby bench for them to sit down on. “How about you tell me how you got your Cutie Mark?”
Trixie hesitated and looked down at her Cutie Mark. “…It’s not really a very interesting story…” She looked into Twilight’s pleading eyes again. “Er…Ok, Trixie will tell you.”
“When I was a filly, I spent a lot of time studying magic, trying to become skilled enough to impress everypony around me. I looked up to Star Swirl the Bearded and, just like him, I wanted to be looked up to. I wanted my name to go down in history.”
Trixie examined the contents of her book closely, making sure she had every detail of the spell down. “Um…Let’s see…” Trixie’s horn lit up, and moments later, a series of fireworks launched from the ground, and exploded in the air. “Yes! Illusionary fireworks: success!”
Trixie jumped about happily at her success, but stopped when she heard the sounds of screaming nearby. “W-What was that?” She moved towards the direction of the screaming, carrying her book with her. She was stopped and knocked down by a sudden explosion up in the sky, and when she looked up, she saw the most amazing site she had ever seen.
“T-That’s…”
“I almost didn’t believe what I saw. I’d only ever seen it in textbooks before. A Sonic Rainboom. A legend passed down through many generations, only ever pulled off by one other Pegasus, thousands of years ago.
“Two months later, a talent show came along at the school I attended. I intended to show off my magic, and finally get noticed by all of my classmates. But it was hopeless. No matter how hard I tried, I could never amount to anything. So…I moved on to the next best thing. If I couldn’t perform great feats myself, I thought I’d share the great feats of others.
“Out of all the magic I had learned, illusionary magic was my strongest point. I decided to tell the story of the amazing Pegasus that pulled off the Sonic Rainboom. Of course, since I didn’t see the whole incident, I had to make up the details about the Pegasus in question, but the important part was recreating the Sonic Rainboom with my magic.
“The show was a smashing success, and that’s when I realised…Telling amazing stories, and bringing them to life with magic and props. That was my talent. And from that, I earned my Cutie Mark. But…It wasn’t my dream. I didn’t want to just retell the feats of others. I wanted to be one of those great ponies myself, whose name went down in history.
“Since there was no hope of that…Since I was so weak and helpless…I had to make up stories that told of my greatness, and use my magic to make ponies believe them.”
Trixie leaned her head against Twilight’s shoulder, and Twilight wrapped one of her front legs around Trixie, holding her close. “I could never be the Great and Powerful Trixie, so I had to make do with a fantasy. With my magic, fantasy and reality are indistinguishable, and I can become whoever I want.
“Ponies had mixed reactions to my stories. Some enjoyed them, some hated them. It was to be expected. In any art, there are always haters and admirers. But the biggest motive for me to continue…What helped me to continue with my stories…Was the foals.”
“The foals?” Twilight asked. Trixie slowly nodded, with a depressed look on her face. Twilight frowned at this, but still listened to Trixie’s story.
“The foals loved my stories, even more so than the adults. And by making myself the central character, it was easier for them to look up to and admire me. It was thanks to them that I was able to continue being “the Great and Powerful Trixie”, and was able to continue making up stories to make myself look better. But…” Trixie wrapped her front legs around Twilight, and pressed her face against Twilight’s shoulder, to hide her crying. “It wasn’t the same. I’m not the Great and Powerful Trixie. I’m just a weak and helpless filly, who can’t accept reality.”
Twilight placed a hoof on Trixie’s head, and slowly ran it up and down Trixie’s mane, stroking it in an attempt to calm her down. “That’s not true, Trixie,” Twilight said, though it didn’t seem to help. “Your magic is amazing, and you’re able to bring happiness to many ponies through the stories you tell. You spread valuable lessons across Equestria, and thanks to you, legends that get swallowed up by the flow of time are reborn, and engraved in the memories of future generations.
“You may not be the same as ponies like Star Swirl, but in your own way, you are most defiantly great and powerful.” Twilight put a hoof to Trixie’s chin, and pulled her head up so that they were looking into each other’s eyes. “After all, you’ve made me the happiest mare in Equestria. How many ponies can boast that?”
Trixie’s tears slowed down, and she looked at Twilight in wide-eyed surprise. “Twilight…” Before Trixie could say anymore, Twilight leaned forward and connected her lips with Trixie’s.
The two shared a passionate kiss together, before Twilight broke it and pulled away. Trixie’s crying had stopped, but there were still tears on her cheeks. Twilight wiped them away with her hoof, and smiled at Trixie. “Trixie, tomorrow…Would you like to come to Ponyville with me?”
Trixie let out a surprised gasp at this. “But…What about-”
“I’ve made up my mind. I want to be with you, Trixie, no matter what. If that means I have to reveal our relationship to my friends, and risk causing a conflict with them, then so be it. I’m sure they’ll come around eventually. They’re good ponies at heart, just…A little overemotional sometimes.”
Trixie smiled back at Twilight, but only for a second, before she started to feel guilty. She turned her head away from Twilight. “Um…Now I feel like a jerk…”
“Hm? Why?”
“Well…You know how I said I wouldn’t be able to visit you on weekends anymore?” Trixie peeked back at Twilight, and saw Twilight looking at her with a stern look on her face. “I’m sorry! I just…I need to know how you felt about me!”
“So…You lied to me!?” Twilight pulled away from Trixie and looked at her with an upset look. “How could you do that!?”
“Because…You didn’t seem so sure about us…I needed to make sure that you truly cared about me. About us…” Trixie stared at the ground and shuffled her hoof against the bench she was on. “I’m sorry.”
Twilight took note of the guilt on Trixie’s face, and let out a soft sigh. She wrapped her front legs around Trixie, who was taken by surprise by this sudden act. “It’s ok, Trixie. I think I can forgive you.” Trixie looked up at Twilight with a puzzled look, but Twilight continued before she could say anything. “But from now on, I want to hear the truth from you. I want you tell me all about your life. Your dreams, your happy memories, your sad memories. Everything.”
Trixie smiled and rested her head against Twilight’s chest. “Trixie will be happy to tell you about herself…Though she can’t guarantee it will be an interesting story.”
“And stop being so hard on yourself. You’re an amazing mare, and I won’t allow anypony to say any different.”
Trixie let out a soft chuckle, and then looked up at Twilight. “My, since when did you take the top role?” Trixie wrapped her front legs around Twilight, and moved her face closer to her. Twilight began to blush as she felt Trixie’s breathing against her neck. “We can’t have that. Trixie is the one who stands at the top, after all.”
Trixie pinned Twilight down to the bench, and stared down at her with a seductive gaze. Twilight felt her body beginning to heat up, and found it hard to find the right words. “Trixie…”
“Hm?”
“Isn’t it…A little risky, doing something like this here?” Twilight pointed out that they were still outside, and Trixie’s face turned red very quickly, especially when she realised that ponies from the restaurant across the street were watching them.
“Um, yeah…Let’s continue this at Trixie’s caravan…” The two mares got up, and began to walk down the street in silence, ignoring the strange looks from passing ponies who happened to see that incident between them. “Tomorrow, Trixie will tell you everything about her…So, make sure you get a good night’s sleep, ok?”
Twilight looked over at Trixie, and rested her head against her lover’s shoulder. “Yeah. With you, I should be able to sleep easily.”