//------------------------------// // Quick Escalation // Story: Pinkie Pie, the Stage Magician // by MemeSurvivor //------------------------------// Trixie swung the door to her wagon open and began collecting various items she thought she might need. Most importantly, she grabbed extra smoke bombs. They were her greatest tool for trickery and escape, as far as she was concerned. Pinkie stepped in front of her on her way to the fireworks. She looked serious, furrowed brow not suiting the upbeat mare. “Trixie, stop!” The assertive tone from her friend made Trixie freeze in shock and drop the items she was holding. A chain reaction caused the fireworks to erupt and fire all around her wagon, causing a seemingly endless amount of smoke to accumulate. Trixie and Pinkie rushed through the open door, coughing. Once she finished collecting herself, Trixie looked to Pinkie with worry and saw that she was fine. Then, she looked to her wagon and saw that it too was fine. Relieved, Trixie turned back to Pinkie, hoping for the smile and optimism typical of her companion. Instead, she was met with a stern look. Trixie apologized and said, “Trixie should probably invest in equipment that isn’t so easy to set off.” Pinkie let out a frustrated breath from her nose. “You said you would explain, right? I think it’s time you explained what in Equestria is going on, don’t you?” Trixie froze. She knew that this was coming but explaining herself was a prospect that worried her a great deal. “Yes. Trixie supposes she promised an explanation after the show. You have been rather patient. Trixie has been putting it off for a while.” Pinkie’s gaze softened considerably. “Just tell me, okay? No matter what you have to say, you’re still my friend.” She nervously shifted her gaze, cheeks heating. “And, you know, I like you.” Trixie felt the words come to her lips and fall away several times as she mapped out how best to explain herself. “I…I’ve been dishonest this whole time. You didn’t know who Trixie was, but sh- I knew who you were. It became obvious who you were after you started describing your ‘best friends ever.’ At first, I was just starved for pony interaction that wasn’t so…sparse. I was even willing to talk to one of her friends. You were…a lot different than I expected. I asked Maud for a description, knowing who you were, but let’s just say that nopony could be prepared to meet you, Pinkie Pie.” Pinkie looked like she wasn’t sure how to take this. “Okay? That’s what you’ve been hiding this whole time?” Trixie was a little emboldened because Pinkie had not reacted outright negatively so far. “No. The truth…” she could feel her stomach tying itself into knots. “…the truth is that Trixie wanted to use you for revenge somehow. I didn’t really have a plan, exactly. I wanted one of her own friends to help me take her down a peg!” The hurt look on Pinkie’s face ripped her apart inside. Pinkie stepped back a little. “So, you wanted me to help you this whole time. That’s why you talked to me? That’s why…did you even want to travel with me at all?” At this point, she looked as though she was trying her best not to cry. “Of course!” Trixie assured. “My stupid plan went out the window a long time ago! When I realized something, before I left the farm, I understood that…we’re friends. We were really friends. I’ve never had somepony even try to be my friend before.” That sad admission didn’t bring Pinkie any closer to smiling, but it gave her some hope. “You were serious about everything, then?” “Pinkie, I’m not that easy to get along with. Either somepony thinks I’m unbearable, or they think I’m too good for them. At least, that’s what I’ve always thought. You pointed out that I was already friends with Maud. You became my friend, too. You’re the reason I met Ruby and the reason that I didn’t just give up on my passion. Until I met you, my life was one long series of great disappointments. You brightened up my entire world. I only realized as much when I thought we would go our separate ways.” Seeing that Pinkie wasn’t about to respond, Trixie continued. “My life changed after I met you, and I was afraid it might go back to the way it was. That’s why I wanted you to come with me, and that’s the truth.” Pinkie let relief wash over her. For a moment, she had thought it was all a big stupid lie. Instead, it was a beautiful, stupid lie. Pinkie tried to think of what to say but was overcome with an inability to express herself. Never in her life had she been so unable to find what words to say. Trixie relaxed at the sight of Pinkie’s tension draining out. “When I thought you would leave, I realized that you didn’t just brighten up my life around the farm. I realized that… the world was brighter. And ever since, I noticed more and more how much better my life is when you’re around. Of course, I thought you were just some kind of super special friend until you went and kissed me.” That was awkward to say, but it was the truth. She remembered thinking as much back on the farm, but she never quite connected all the dots. She never quite understood her own feelings until she began laying her heart out. She must be a bit dense because she never realized how deep her feelings ran until this moment. “I think I’m falling in love with you, Pinkie.” The sheer honesty in Trixie’s words floored her. Pinkie let her mouth hang open as she made no sound, mind completely blank. She salvaged her thoughts and thought of a way to express herself. “Um…” That wasn’t her planned response. Trixie, with hesitant hope, offered her hoof. “Friends? Marefriends?” Pinkie finally snapped out of it. “Both, silly!” Instead of interacting with her awkwardly offered hoof, Pinkie wrapped her up in a hug. With a serene smile, Pinkie sighed contentedly. She showered Trixie with kisses, to Trixie’s embarrassment. “I love you too, Trixie.” Pinkie realized something. “Wait, what about the letter you got? You know, the Princess?” “Ah.” Trixie had forgotten. “Yes, well, not exactly. The truth is…It sort of relates to why Twilight wants to ruin Trixie’s life so much.” Twilight and her friends moved from street to street in Mareway, divided into two groups. Twilight, Rainbow, and Fluttershy were combing one area while Applejack and Rarity searched elsewhere. The town was Humble in size, though larger than Ponyville. She reasoned that the search would be a quick one. They stuck to the main street, lined with vendors selling various wares. After questioning random ponies, the three of them found their first real lead; a stallion and his marefriend selling an assortment of fruit. “Sure, I saw the Great and Powerful Trixie perform.” He laughed, but it didn’t seem malicious or annoyed. Twilight scrunched her face at hearing Trixie’s, presumably self-assigned, moniker. “Did she have a pink mare with her named Pinkie Pie?” The mare stepped in. “Oh, yes. They were doing magic together. They were so cute.” They lost all three of them with the description. “Cute?” Rainbow wondered aloud. Juxtaposed to Fluttershy’s confusion, she had a look that was more uncomfortable than perplexed. The mare looked back and forth in a manner that revealed her secret love for gossip. “Well, you didn’t hear this from me. They had a great show that I saw at Pinkie’s request. She gave an impassioned plea on her friend’s behalf. She said some very flattering things.” The mare blushed and laid her hoof on her cheek in recollection. “If you ask me, she had love in her eyes. My mare’s intuition confirms it!” “Oh dear…” Fluttershy said covering her open mouth. Twilight was only attempting to explain to herself what was said. She had no idea Pinkie even liked mares. She didn’t even know anypony who did. At least, she didn’t think so. She never considered that this was possible. She supposed that Pinkie often excelled at doing things she never considered possible. “That jerk!” Rainbow shouted, startling the couple. Twilight tried to stop the oncoming headache that came with her perspective changing . “What is it?” Rainbow almost looked offended that Twilight didn’t catch on to what was happening. “Obviously, she is manipulating Pinkie!” “Um…” Twilight frowned. “I don’t follow.” “She’s messing with her head about us. Not to mention, she’s tricking Pinkie into…having feelings for her and junk,” Rainbow concluded with certainty. “Um, girls…” Twilight considered the possibility. “What makes you think that? I mean, we did get the information from two strangers.” Rainbow rolled her eyes. “Come on, it’s obvious! You remember the letter? Trixie is trying to turn Pinkie against you, and she’ll use whatever dirty tactic she can.” Twilight began to realize the troubling implications. Pinkie wasn’t exactly mature. She seemed like the type to be too easily trusting. “Girls!” Fluttershy repeated. After seeing that she had finally drawn attention to herself, Fluttershy shrunk away from that attention. “W-Well, sorry for interrupting but Trixie’s staring at us.” Twilight whipped her head in the direction Fluttershy was pointing her hoof to see that Trixie was indeed watching them. She was leaning against a nearby building, back to the wall and forelegs crossed, in a position that didn’t seem particularly comfortable. She bet that Trixie thought it looked cool, Twilight thought to herself irritated. “Well, well, well. Twilight Sparkle comes to ruin the Great and Powerful Trixie once again,” Trixie said dramatically before realizing something. “Or, uh, you’ve come to do something that Trixie isn’t assuming is bad.” The strange backpedaling was confusing. But, seeing Trixie again was only reinforcing her previous irritation. Before Twilight could get any words out, Rainbow way in front of Trixie. “Where is Pinkie Pie, you jerk?” Trixie resumed a normal standing posture and started backing up. “Trixie has no reason to tell you that, Rainbow Brash.” She shook her head. “Trixie means to say tha-“ Any further discussion got cut short when Rainbow tried to tackle Trixie to restrain her. Trixie threw up a quick magical shield, causing Rainbow to bounce off it and crash into the nearby fruit stall. The couple from before shouted indignantly as fruit scattered all over the ground. Twilight could only gape at the chaos as Rarity and Applejack, hearing the commotion, rushed to the scene while glaring daggers at Trixie. The fight had begun to draw a crowd, many ponies gathering in a circle around them to watch the situation unfold. Rainbow recovered and stood with the rest of her friends, looking angrier than any of them. Trixie smiled awkwardly. “Trixie believes that we should…talk this out.” The last part seemed especially forced. Her words prompted Twilight to remember her mentor’s words and wonder if she should agree or not. It appeared that Rainbow was more than willing to make that call in her place. “We’re not going to let you manipulate our friend!” This caused everypony, save Twilight and Fluttershy, to stand a little more confidently. “We know that you tried tricking her into not trusting Twilight, and you tricked her into being your marefriend!” They were only feeling more unified as a group until the last part. Having not known about this bit of information, Applejack and Rarity lost all their fight. Applejack looked like she had heard the craziest thing ever. Rarity bit her lip and looked at Trixie with a new layer of trepidation. “She has a type, I suppose,” Rarity mumbled to herself under her breath. Twilight only barely caught it. “How did you know about that?” Trixie blurted out. She seemed to understand the implications of what she said. “N-Not about the manipulation! Trixie never manipulated anypony ever!” This might have been the worst thing to say, bringing memories Trixie’s lies about an ursa major to the front of their minds. To her credit, Trixie understood how she was making the situation worse. She threw a smoke bomb in front of them, obscuring their vision and causing them to cough. The smoke cleared, and instead of seeing no sight of her as expected, they caught her trying to wiggle through the end of the crowd. “Get out of my way, you mountains!” Trixie screamed as she finally emerged at the other end of the crowd. She immediately took off at full speed. Twilight saw her friends start their pursuit and she wondered if there was still any chance to talk this out. The situation had gone from bad to worse in no time at all. She had intended to only talk, but why didn’t she express as much to her friends? Twilight sighed and ran after friends.