//------------------------------// // 21. Selling Trixie // Story: Azure Days // by Anzel //------------------------------// When I got to the Mare Contraire, there was already a line outside of the door. Had this happened before? It had. It had been happening more and more now, though. “Pardon me, excuse me, royal guard coming through!” I called as worked my way past the mares at the front of the line and into the club. When I got inside, I found Mango standing there wearing a tight black shirt and dark sunglasses. “Hey, baby.” “Hi,” I replied before trying to trot past. She lifted up a hoof and set it against my chest. “What? What are you, a bouncer now? Move!” I ordered as I briefly looked past her. Dolly had adjusted to our new reality and changed the club into a venue. The dance floor had been reduced to half the size, several booths had been converted into a stage, and area just beyond the bar was now home to rows of seats that were brought in on show nights. They were all filled. There were small standing tables all around the main area, facing the front… and those were crowded, too. I tried to push past Mango, but she shook her head. “Oh, no, no, no!” “Mango, let her past or so help me I’ll fire you again!” Dolly shouted from behind the bar. “Okay, buh-bye!” Mango chirped before removing her hoof. I trotted over to the bar and looked at Dolly. “Really? You let her be a bouncer?” Dolly shrugged. “Believe it or not, she’s very good at it. Besides, it means she is doing less harm back here.” “Why don’t you fire her then! I mean for real this time?” “Oh come on, she isn’t that bad.” I looked at her. Dolly looked back. We continued to stare at each other. Finally, Dolly sighed. “Okay, I feel bad. She’s been with me forever, she doesn’t ask for much, and where else would she work?” “It’s your bits,” I replied before tapping the bar. “Sangria please. Big glass.” Dolly started to fix my drink, her brow rising. “Long day? You didn’t even change before you came in.” “Yeah, there is this whole crazy thing at the palace. We…” I trailed off. I couldn’t tell Dolly anything. It was all confidential information that she didn’t need to know. She was also a huge gossip. That was also precisely why she was now eyeing me like a hungry predator. “Hmm?” I leaned in close. “We’re going to have to bring guards in from outside of the city due to the wedding. It’s getting that out of control.” Dolly snorted and looked clearly disappointed. She dropped my drink in front of me. “Tell me something that isn’t obvious.” “Princess Celestia likes to make popsicle stick castles,” I muttered, sipping my drink. “I’d believe that.” Dolly turned from me to an older pegasus mare two stools down. “What can I get you, toots?” “White wine spritzer, please,” she replied before looking my way. “Are you the real security tonight? Besides the green thing at the door?” I chuckled. “Green thing is tougher than she looks. No, I just didn’t get a chance to change after work. I’m a friend of the talent.” The mare gave a knowing nod, her short black-and-pink mane bobbing. “I see! Well, that is nice. I’ve been hearing about this Trixie the Magnificent all over Canterlot and I just had to come see her myself.” Dolly brought the mare her drink and sat it down. “Well our Trixie brings ponies in every night. We’re less of a club and more of a theatre now. I guess.” “Oh, are you her agent, too?” the mare asked. With a snort, Dolly replied, “No, I’m her manager. I guess Sunny there is her agent.” The mare’s brow rose. “A royal guard and a talent agent? That is an odd combination.” “You have no idea,” I replied before draining my sangria. My glass floated over to Dolly and bumped her cheek repeatedly until she swatted at it and grabbed it in her magic. “I get it, Sunny! Give me a minute. I have a lot of real customers!” I put a hoof to my chest in mock offense. “Hey, I pay the same bits they do!” “Sure, sure. As if you don’t enjoy the employee disc—” The lights suddenly went out and everypony cheered. It was showtime. Several smaller lights behind the bar popped on. They were subtle, soft blue, but not distracting. That was how the staff kept working. At the head of the room, a single light burst into life, casting a pure silver beam down onto the stage. Then there was a sudden puff of smoke and Trixie appeared, dressed in her purple hat and cloak. “Good evening, mares, fillies, stallions, and colts! Tonight, you shall witness illusions the likes of which you have never dreamed! I, Trixie the Magnificent, welcome you to the Mare Contraire and our mystifying show!” Several small fireworks erupted from behind the stage and popped before Trixie as she threw her signature cloak open. I’d had to beg the fire marshal to allow that. Everypony stomped and cheered. Trixie pranced to the front of the stage. That was a move she’d stolen from me, but nopony pranced better than Sunny Day the Pranceificent. “Trixie the Magnificent has many talents beyond mere magic. For instance, did you know she could read a pretty mare’s mind?” Trixie started before scanning the front row. “You, there. The pretty mare with the honey mane, would you come closer?” There were giggles and chuckles in the room. Stallions came to the show, but Trixie had geared it for Dolly’s normal clientele. That, and Trixie preferred pretty mares, and the one that trotted up was certainly that. “What is your name?” Trixie asked. “I’m Bee,” the mare replied sheepishly. “What a cute name. Tell me, Bee, do you know how to play poker?” Bee shook her head. “No.” Trixie grinned brightly and looked right at the crowd. “Great! My favorite kind of girl. Drop by my room later and we’ll play.” Everypony laughed. The older mare near me looked over and said, “She has quite the stage presence.” “Oh yeah,” I replied. “She’s been practicing a lot.” “Now, Bee, Trixie is going to give you a deck of cards. She wants you to pick one out. Any one at all. Whichever one you like best. Just pick it out, write your name on the front side with this pen, and slip it back in, okay? Oh, and whatever you do, don’t let Trixie see! She prefers to read your mind.” Trixie levitated both a deck of cards and a pen towards Bee. Bee giggled and nodded eagerly. She took the deck, sorted through it, found a card, and signed it. “Great! Now Trixie just going to shuffle all of the cards ten times,” Trixie said before doing just that in her magic. While she was shuffling, she asked, “Bee, do you know what a royal flush is?” “No,” Bee replied. Trixie happily clapped her hooves. “It is the best poker hand you can get. You see it requires an ace, a princess, a governor, a knight, and a ten of the same suit. It is extremely rare. Now, Bee, Trixie wants you to take the deck back and pull out any ten cards you like. Just pull them out and toss them on the ground.” The deck flew back to Bee and she carefully chose ten cards before tossing them down and offering the deck back to Trixie. “Ponies, we know a royal flush is hard enough to assemble. Imagine doing that after a cute mare just took ten of your cards and threw them aside! What if she got all of the princesses? What if she threw away her card? Who knows? Trixie the Magnificent, that is who!” With a theatric flare, Trixie thrust her hoof out to Bee. “Come, Bee, join me on stage!” Bee sheepishly took the hoof and Trixie helped her up. “Now for the magic,” Trixie said cheerfully, taking the deck into her hoof and offered it to Bee. “A kiss of the deck if you please.” “Should I?” Bee asked sweetly. “Trixie is afraid the magic won’t work without it.” Bee giggled again and kissed the deck. “Very good!” Trixie said before holding the deck and swirling her hoof over it. “Now, it is time, Bee. Time to find your card! Trixie has already set it perfectly in this deck. All she needs you to do is draw the first four off the top and show them to everypony.” Bee nodded and reached for the deck. Before she could touch it, Trixie pulled it away and Bee squeaked, “Oh!” Trixie grinned. “Sorry, before you draw, Trixie has to read your mind. After all, you chose a heart, didn’t you?” Bee gasped! “Yes!” The crowd happily stomped. “And you picked the biggest number in the deck, didn’t you, Bee?” “Yes! Celestia’s sun, yes! I picked the ten!” Bee squealed in delight. Trixie then offered the deck back. “Please draw the first four cards, one at a time and show the audience.” Bee’s hoof reached out with excitement. She pulled the first card off the top. “Ace of hearts!” Trixie called. Bee drew again. “Princess of hearts!” And again Bee drew. “Governor of hearts!” Trixie’s voice lifted, ever more excited. The crowd was going wild at that point, knowing what was coming next. When Bee pulled the fourth card, showing the knight of hearts, the room was practically quivering with anticipation. Trixie just grinned and held the deck out. “What do you think, ponies? Has Trixie done it? Is this Bee’s card?” she asked as she carefully levitated it up, keeping the back to everypony. “Yes! Yes!” they called. “Show us!” they shouted. The lights went to a soft pink and Trixie sidled close to Bee before turning the card around, showing that it was, in fact, the ten of hearts with Bee’s name on it. The Mare Contraire exploded with cheers. “That is one hay of a trick!” the older mare near me commented as she clapped her forehooves. “Yes, she had to work on that one for months,” I commented, setting my hoof on the bar. I still didn’t understand how it worked, either. She’d shown me six times. It seemed like magic to me, but it wasn’t. “Thank you, Bee, for being such a great assistant,” Trixie said before kissing Bee on the cheek. “Everypony cheer for Bee!” They did so. Loudly! The only reason I showed up anymore was to support Trixie. The bar had long since become too noisy and packed for me to even enjoy. Still, it was great to see her hit her stride. While the show continued in the background, the mare we’d been talking to shifted her attention to me. “Tell me, girls, aren’t you worried somepony is going to swoop in here and hire her?” Dolly snorted. “Look, I’m proud of that filly. If she gets to be more successful, that’s fine with me. Plus, honestly, this has been great for business, but it is wearing me and my staff out.” I tapped my hoof on the bar. “Agreed. She needs a bigger venue that‘s geared for this.” The mare clapped her forehooves together. “That is what I was hoping you’d say. Ladies, here is my card,” she trailed before pulling it out and sliding it over to me. Dolly snatched it up in her magic before I could get to it. “Madam Anneau, Traveling Wonders?” “Yes, you see, I look for the best acts I can find. Comedy, magic, thrills, you name it and I seek out those that perfect it. Then I sign them on for my tour. We go city to city and play the biggest venues every season. I’m filling out some spots for my latest. “A lot of the ponies I sign are so good they normally only make one or two tours before they go solo, so I’m always out looking and let me tell you, Trixie is a perfect fit.” “So you’re saying you want to offer Trixie a job?” I asked. Madam Anneau shook her head. “No, I want to sign her act. You are her agent, right? You should know how this works.” Dolly laughed and waved a hoof. “We’re not a real agent and manager. We’re just playing the part to help her find her footing. So, signing her, what does that mean?” The mare’s eyes twinkled briefly before she replied eagerly, “It means she owns her act, but may only perform it exclusively with me for the season. I cover all of her expenses and arrangements and she gets a percentage of the ticket sales. Her agent and manager would get a portion of that too, of course.” “Of course,” I replied. I didn’t really want Trixie’s bits. I just wanted her to be successful and, more importantly, to leave my condo. Dolly shook her head. “No deal.” Madam Anneau and I looked over at her in surprise. “It’s not a good deal for our girl,” Dolly explained. “Forgive me. Madam Anneau. but we don’t know you or your tour. We don’t know what your gross sales are. Does she get a portion of the tickets before or after your expenses? If a show doesn’t sell well does she have to perform unpaid? I may not know show business. but I know regular business.” Dolly was awesome. No doubt about that. Madam Anneau grinned. “I can see you’re a shrewd mare. We would work all of that out in the contract. but I can tell you I treat my acts fairly. First and foremost, they can never go unpaid because I’m paying full room, board, and transportation whether the show sells or not. They’re guaranteed that for the whole tour. That incentivizes me to advertise and publicize to the best of my ability.” I looked back to Dolly. I was going to keep my mouth shut. Dolly nodded. “Yes, yes. it does. You certainly have bits at stake in that case. Of course, you’re also signing ponies exclusively to you. If you’re willing to hire Trixie, others may be. I also know how much she makes per performance here.” It was decent, but not that much. I knew that, too, but I could tell Dolly was negotiating hard. “And I know how much extra business she brings in, which results in her getting a share of our profits.” That was a slight stretch, although Trixie did get tip share for her shows. “I’m sure we can come to an agreement,” Madam Anneau replied smoothly. “My shows are almost always sold out and the performers play the biggest venues. One season of exclusivity leads to huge opportunities that she’d never get in this bar. No offense, of course.” Dolly shook her head. “None taken. We’re not set up for this. I know that.” Madam Anneau nodded. “Agreed. So, one season, room, board, and travel. 5% of ticket sales and I’ll throw in a small weekly stipend for her to have pocket money. You can work out how much of her 5% you get with her.” “We’re talking in the same ballpark now,” Dolly started before she leaned against the bar all cool like. “6% of gross ticket sales, in writing, the small stipend, a room of her own—not shared—board, travel and you have to put her name on the marque. It can be on the bottom, but it has to be legible.” The mare idly reached up and tugged at her own ear, eyeing Dolly and then looking up to where Trixie was on stage. Trixie was halfway through one of her larger tricks that involved ‘crushing’ a mare with a giant stone cat. She’d said it was symbolic. The silence drug on and it was starting to get to me. I just looked back and forth as Madam Anneau and Dolly stared each other down. Finally, Anneau thrust out a hoof. “Deal.” Dolly bumped it. “You won’t regret it. She’s a good girl, and her act is amazing. You haven’t even seen the finale yet.” Madam Anneau grinned. “Oh, I have. This is the fourth time I’ve been here. I just had to play the part of the amazed spectator.” “Clever girl,” Dolly grinned before turning. “I’m going to get some champagne.” Once she was gone, Anneau said to me, “Your friend is a great negotiator.” “Yup, the best. You know, she basically raised me and helped me get Trixie where she is today. In the end, though, it’s all Trixie. She doesn’t buy any of her tricks. She makes them up herself.” As I said that, there was an explosion behind me. It didn’t even startle me anymore. Trixie exploded, disappeared, and the show was more or less over. There was just one final part. Everypony was stomping and looking around with anticipation of where she’d gone. Without warning, a big pink puff of smoke shot up from behind the bar right in front of me. Trixie popped out, the spotlight fell on her, and the room went wild. “Thank you, everypony! That is my show tonight. Please stay for the drinks and tip well. The staff of the Mare Contraire are so kind to host us, so let’s show them love!” “Hey, Trixie,” I said while everypony stomped and cheered. I motioned to Anneau. “This is Madam Anneau. Dolly sold you to her.” Confusion crossed Trixie’s face as she tried to figure out if I was kidding. That happened just as Dolly returned with the champagne and four glasses. “Dolly, did you sell Trixie to this mare?” Trixie demanded. Dolly just laughed and set the bottle down. “In a manner of speaking, yes. Yes, I did, but you’re going to love it. Let me tell you all about your good fortune.” I just leaned back to listen. Dolly had a great way of explaining things, and this was good news. My long day was starting to melt off me. Trixie was getting a great opportunity, I was getting my apartment back, and there was booze to drink. All in all, it was going to be a fun evening, even if somepony had messed around with the lighting so much that pink light seemed to ooze in through the blacked-out windows and doors. I’d talk with the girls about that later. For now, this was all about Trixie.