//------------------------------// // Entry 7, Part 1 (Boast Busted) // Story: The Poisoned Barb's Tale // by ManlyDerp //------------------------------// “... Come on Barb." "No." "Please?" "No." "Pretty please?" "Pretty no." "Ugh! Barb, you gotta be reasonable here. I need the practice...” "..." ... Sigh "... I know you do, Dusk," I at last concede, upon better evaluating my position. "I know you do... But why can't your friends help you out with this part? Why does it have to be me...? "Because you’re a dragon!" Dusk groans out in reply, clearly not happy answering what I feel to be a fair and reasonable question. "Your scales resist magic! You’re the best candidate I have for strength based spell checks!” Darn it. I was afraid he was going to pull the old 'magic resisting scales' card on me eventually. Looks like my original fears for today's practice were warranted. Why oh why did he have to pick now to use it though?! “Bleh. Okay," I grunt out roughly, making my displeasure known. "I guess that’s true… "... But does it really have to be that spell?!" I shoot back heatedly, granting Dusk a well deserved angry glare. "You know I hate it!” “Yes it does!" Dusk shoots back harder, unfazed by my protests. I blame the natural adorableness of my baby cheeks. "It's the last one on my list! I can’t leave it unchecked!” “But Dus-” “I can’t leave it unchecked, Barbara," my charge snarls maniacally, unable to hold his OCD-fueled thoughts back any longer. "I just CAN’T!! One incomplete checklist could lead to two, or maybe even three! W-what if it leads to tardiness next?! O-or maybe even lateness!!" "Those are the same things Dus-" "It's a slippery slope!!” Dusk cuts me off for the second time, eyes now going wide. "One checklist could lead to me flunking school and losing my mentorship and joining a street gang and getting a tattoo and going to jail for shoplifting and resisting arrest and I CAN'T go to jail, Barb!! I can't!! I WOULDN'T LAST A DAY!!!" ... ... ... Weeeeelllll... poo. Guess I can’t argue with such sane and totally not crazy sounding logic like that. “Fine,” I throw my arms up in the air as I forfeit this unwinnable battle. “Fine fine fine. Just... j-just get it over with quickly, okay?” “You can’t rush magic,” scolds a panting Dusk, once he's able to return to a somewhat normal breathing pattern. After I stroll my way across the library's floor, and over to my designated position, he resumes. “We'll want to make sure that this growth spell only affects your upper lip. Anywhere else and the results could be disastrous.” With arms crossed, I resume pouting over my fate. It's just not fair. “Oh yeah. Solaris forbid we try to add hair to my head or anything. Can’t have me actually enjoying this now can we?!” My attempt at cynicism ultimately falls flat, as Dusk continues on as if I were being honest. “You know we can’t do that." Please remind me later to get him 'Sarcasm for the Humorly Challenged' for Hearth's Warming this year. "Hairs connected to the scalp naturally absorb excess mana generated in the aftermath of the hypothalamus’ daily cycle," the scholar keeps lecturing, unaware that I'm slowly nodding off and only hearing every other word. "They act as an extra magical reservoir for even the most basic of spell tasks! Adding artificially created fibers to that process could severely impede your everyday life! Thankfully most magical creatures’ bodies tend to reject such haphazardly thought out incantations, but can you imagine how sick you would get if we could do something like that?” “I can imagine how sick looking I could get if we could,” I snap back at the only part of his rant I actually paid attention to. “Barb!” “Yeah yeah,” I wave Dusk Shine off flippantly, resuming my age appropriate fuming. “I get it. No mane for me. Just get it over with and turn me into the bearded lady already. I know you want to.” “... Fine," he grumbles with horn glowing. "You don’t have to be so rude about it.” “Eh. Whatever,” I groan, waiting for this to be done with. "Staches are so gross." “...” “...” “... You know, Barb… if you don’t want the mustache, I could always aim at your armpits, nostrils, or chest inste-” “HEY WANNA HEAR WHAT'S IN FASHION?!” I shout frantically all of a sudden, not allowing Dusk’s train of thought to reach its logical conclusion. “FU MANCHUS! FU MANCHUS ARE TIGHT RIGHT NOW! GIVE ME ONE PLEASE!!” A knowing little smirk now graces my manipulative friend’s face. “Attagirl,” Dusk, looking more like Prince Solaris by the day, chimes cheerfully as he lowers his horn. A smell not unlike melting plastic soon fills the air, along with a quiet buzzing across my scales, moments before the spell is completed and then promptly fired into my upper lip. ZAP! Fwwoomp! Yuck. The things I put up with to be Dusk’s number one assistant. A brief peek over at the room's vanity mirror reveals for me everything I need to see. A long thick piece of black lip fuzz is now invading my features, taking up residency a little ways under my snout and draping itself all the way down to my chin. At a glance the conjured hairs appear more like a Winnfield in design than what I had requested, but I guess my input was of little concern in the grand scheme of the trials.  All that mattered was whether Dusk was capable of casting the spell at all, and in that respect he passed with flying colors. “Congrats,” I cheer the unicorn on truthfully, shrugging off our earlier fight. “Growing magic is officially your thirtieth mastered spell, Dusk.” As I place the final check mark down on the neatly organized chart, the one next to the mirror, I can practically feel it in the room as my charge's anxiety over the incomplete list dissipates completely. Unhealthy chart obsession aside; thirty spells is a huge accomplishment for a pony to hit. Once this homework is dragon-mailed back to Canterlot, it’ll mark Dusk as the undisputed top dog in his senior class for runic recall! Minor fire summoning, artificial wind manipulation, growth magic, scrying-based telekinesis, pocket space conjuration, transfiguration, and let's not forget his cutie mark's Talent Spell of magic copying... Dusk Shine's Spell Sheet is longer than even my O&O’s Wizard’s is, and she’s imaginary! Not even his old foe, teleportation, is slowing him down anymore; I bet he's going to crush his licencing test in the fall... ... That said, there are a few spells on this list that I don’t quite approve of him having... ones that I can clearly tell were sought after in a bout of boyish curiosity… but whatever. I’m still proud of him all the same. Blushing due to the praise, Dusk sputters in reply, “T-thanks again, Barb. Sorry about the stache.”  “It’s okay,” I answer back as I rub a claw through the foreign feeling intruder on my lips. I observe how it reacts in the mirror. So weird. “It wouldn’t be okay if Elusive was here or something, but now that I think about it… that pony would probably relish the opportunity to work with a ruggedly feminine face such as mine! He could probably make it work; I know that he has the talent for sure, hehe.” Well… at least I think he has the talent. I might be projecting Jason’s memory a tiny bit here without really meaning to. “Well hate to break it to you, Juliet,” Dusk giggles lightly in response, reusing the nickname he bestowed upon me back when we first met the mentioned stallion. “But as unique and inspiring as you may look; it’s just for practice, and it’s gotta go.” Pop! With a single effort of will, Dusk Shine’s horn flashes brightly for a second time before the light and mustache both equally disappear into nothingness. Glad to be done with it. Good riddance to bad rubbish I say… … … Though... a real fu man chu might not look all that bad on a dragon’s face. Might even make me look more mature... Hmmmm… "So, hey," Dusk suddenly comments, thankfully silencing my thoughts before they could properly take root. With a third wave of his horn he magics away the mirror, and his checklist too thank Solaris, before turning to address me directly. "I don't know about you, but I could sure use a stretch after all that hard work. Up for a walk?" "Um-hum," I nod my head cheerily, liking that idea a lot. "I'm down! It's been a super long time since we last did that. It'll be nice to just hang out again." Dusk blinks confusedly at this claim of mine. "... What?" he then asks me. His eyebrow rises as well. "It hasn't been that long, Barb. Why, just the other week we bot-" "Went over to Guilder's party?" I cut him off, causing him to don a surprised expression which I quickly chuckle at. "Or do you mean before that when we went to help Applejack out on his farm? Or... maybe you mean before that where we went to check on the ponies effected by the baked bads?" This surprised look of his swiftly warps into a thoughtful one, as Dusk rubs a chin in contemplation. "... What are you getting at?" he questions, apparently not catching what I'm suggesting. His obliviousness forces me to snort back a second laugh. "All I'm saying is that it's been more than 'awhile' since we last walked together with the reason being... just cause! It's always 'help this pony with this' or 'our schedule says we have to be here!' There's nothing wrong with all that, it's just... well..." "I'm always busy," Dusk finishes for me, eyes widening as he realizes what I've been trying to say. "Huh... Guess I never realized that until now... How long has it been since we just hanged out together?" "Canterlot." "What? That can't be right..." A deadpan look now crosses my face thanks to this. Okay; there's 'cute' obliviousness, and then there's 'dumb' obliviousness. This one very much falls into the latter. "Oh no, it is," I explain neutrally. I then shake my head in a bid to clear it from the frustrated voices that were threatening to form within it. Remember that he's still just a novice friendship student, Barbara; give him time. "I remember it quite well. I remember when we last walked like that... "... because it was my birthday at the time and I asked if we could... You thankfully said 'yes', in case you don't remember." Dusk now winces. "O-oh," he replies, ears drooping. "I-I didn't realize it had actually been that long..." "..." ... Seeing his flustering, I sigh momentarily before vowing to make an attempt to sooth his troubled soul. I hadn't meant to make him upset, just introspective. "To be fair, Dusk," I begin my apology, aiming to take some of the blame off of his withers. "I've been just as busy these last few weeks too. Playing with Sweepy Belle and Scooteroll takes up a lot of my time; as does grocery runs, ink runs, cleaning, checklist filing, book shelving, schedule management..." "That last one's my job though, Barb," Dusk interjects. "I'm the one who makes the schedules." "And I'm the one who checks to make sure that they're not the ramblings of a mad pony, Dusk~" "... Point taken..." Dusk is now sighing alongside me. "... We've had a lot on our plates ever since we moved here, haven't we?" "You know it, dude," I answer sagely as my arms cross. "So much studying and tests..." "Don't forget the friendship making and parties," I point out helpfully. "... Yeah... B-but I haven't been able to read nearly as much as I used to thanks to the guys! They're always wanting to grab my attention..." "..." "..." "And... what's your opinion on this, Dusk?" "..." "..." "... I wouldn't change this for the world, Barb," the once lonely stallion replies truthfully, his answer clearly coming from the heart. Good. "Heh. Thought you'd say that," I snicker at his conviction. "I feel the same way." And that's the honest truth, folks. Not even a month in Ponyville and look how far we've both come! Dusk isn't shuttering himself off from the world anymore... and I haven't devolved into a complete crying mess in at least three weeks! I'm so proud of us! "Good!" Dusk parrots my thoughts. "Glad to hear that we're on the same page... "... Soooo," the pony resumes his earlier prodding, as he starts to make his way over towards the front door. With head tilted back my way, to see if I'm following, he asks me once more, "up for that walk?" Smiling toothily, I bow my head back once in a simple response of 'yes'. "Great," he cheers as he heads his way outside. "Let's seize the day!" With a roll of my eyes for his newfound enthusiasm, I bite my tongue on the sassy comeback it was conjuring as I make my way out the library, and lock it closed behind me. Chores and training can wait for later, I feel. A nice break sounds like the perfect way to start off such a beautiful looking day. ◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠ ~Dear Diary~ Something has gone terribly wrong. ◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠ With no real destination in mind, the two of us ended up traveling aimlessly through the streets. We're attempting to better memorize where things are located here in this surprisingly large town. While Canterlot has designated districts for specific types of needs, Ponyville instead has a very chaotic looking farmer's market spread out across several blocks. The positions of individual stalls rotate in a fixed manner throughout the week, but said locations are only known by the shopkeepers themselves and the regulars. Some more successful business owners are able to afford actual buildings for themselves, which obviously don't rotate around nearly as often, but said buildings usually act as the owner's personal home as well. This causes them to easily blend in unintentionally with their non-business owning neighbors, which means one has to really be on the lookout for plaques or signs that mark a specific home as the shop that it really is. No neon allowed here, I'm afraid; Mayor Mustang apparently banned their usage years ago when they made Ponyville 'tacky looking', or something to that effect. It's certainly a strange setup, but one we're ready to tackle! Once the two of us ease ourselves into a comfortable walking rhythm, where we're able to look around and talk in equal order, I decide to strike up a conversation by pointing out “Thirty, Dusk. Thirty different kinds of tricks and counting.”  Dusk’s cheeks begin to tint once again at the achievement. He can be embarrassed by my prodding all he wants; it doesn’t change the fact that he’s more than earned the praise. I may not know a whole lot about magic personally, outside of how my scales help me detect it, but even I can tell how big of a landmark victory this was for him. Not every unicorn can do the things he does… which reminds me. “I thought that unicorns were only supposed to have a little magic that matches their special talents?” I now ask him, generally curious about the answer.  I don’t really understand cutie marks all that well yet, or how they influence a pony’s skills, growth, and Talent Spells. Even after seven years they're still a mystery to me. Researchers aren’t all that certain on their nuances either, and have been unable to provide all that many answers about their function or origin… At least, that’s what my own studies on the subject have told me. I may enjoy reading about such things as language, lore, and the pony sciences, but I’m more of a casual student of such things rather than a true one. Outside of language, I’ve never had a real need to batten down the hatches and study one of these subjects thoroughly before. I mean, why study when I can get answers straight from the horse’s mouth? … Said horse is Dusk Shine, in case you needed that clarified. “That's true,” ‘professor’ Shine begins to detail for me. “... for ponies whose talents are for things like cooking or singing or math. But… what if a unicorn’s special talent is magic?” “Like you, Dusk,” I point out, catching the hint. “And you sure do know a ton of magic.” Dusk may only know thirty different incantations, but he's also well versed in the basics of every major tree of magic; from abjuration to illusion and beyond. In a sense, he does know a literal ton about the art even if he won’t admit it. “Oh, Barb, stop,” the modest pony shoo shoos my compliments. “I’m sure there are lots of ponies right here in Ponyville that know just as much magic as me.” Haha, yeah right. From what Sweepy Belle has told me about his parents' woes in finding a magic teacher for him, Ponyville was most assuredly lacking in that particular department before Dusk and I moseyed ourselves into town. I make sure to highlight this fact by stating “Are you kidding? I don’t think there’s another unicorn in all of Equestria with your kind of ability, Dusk.” A bit of an overblown statement, I’ll admit, but my words were still honest. Twilight was certainly the strongest regular magic user in the two full seasons of My Little Pony that I can still remember, so I’m pretty confident in stating that this fact will remain true for at least the foreseeable future ahead of us. I’m also finding it hard to imagine another pony out there being just as studious or gifted as Dusk is, so how could there possibly be- “Gangway! Comin’ through!” Huh? Whose screamin- WHOOMP!! “Augh!” I cry out as I’m suddenly whisked away off my feet by the force of two fillies running right through me. The ponies with the grayish opal and amber coats pay me little mind as they unwittingly drag me away from Dusk’s side. Staring at them for a moment, through squinted eyes, eventually tickles the memory portion of my brain and reminds me of their names. “Sugar, Spice!” I cry out as I remember now how I already met these two fillies briefly during Nightterror Nebula’s dream prison. “What’s going on?” Upon either realizing that they had accidentally abducted me without permission, or instead upon realizing that I was disconcertingly close to their sharp horns, the two unicorn girls halt their gallop and come to a screeching stop. I’m unfortunately thrown prone as a result... but thanks to weeks of practice, and pure determination, I’m now able to work my body into an elegant role. This allows me to land perfectly on my feet without a single scratch on my person whatsoever! … … … Okay… that was a lie. I got thrown into the side of a building as per usual. One day I’ll land gracefully though... One day~ “Wha?” Spice, the taller of the two children with the appropriate cutie mark, drones out slowly. If I hadn’t met these two prior, and already discovered that they’re both just the tiniest bit slow upstairs, I would have guessed that she was referring to my crash landing and not instead my earlier question as she is obviously doing. “Haven’t you heard?” “There’s a new unicorn in town!” Sugar, the smaller and plumper filly with the equally appropriate cutie mark, finishes for her friend. Strange how they're one of the few ponies I've met so far with different cutie marks to their colt counterparts... Maybe names play a role that I hadn't considered before? Something to write about later, I suppose. With a nod of her head, Spice adds in to her friend's statement, “Yeah! They say that he’s got more magical powers than any other unicorn here!” “R-really,” Dusk asks nervously as he approaches our impromptu gathering. The hitch in his voice was not lost on me. It looks like all my earlier hype talk has gone on forgotten… … Good. I was expecting this to happen eventually. I was expecting this… and this episode! Ready or not, Boast Busters, because Barbara The Dragoness has got your number! ◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠ I was so happy at the time to had remembered an episode completely before it “aired.” Up to that point I had been forced to play catch up whenever the show started playing, with only half remembered bits and pieces of the event to keep me safe and on the right track. Rarely do I even recall a title. Boast Busters was different though. Boast Busters was the first episode where Jason joined Ashley and I on the couch to watch. My husband only did this with a scant few episodes. Boast Busters was one, The Return of Harmony was another, and there were a few others too though I can't think of them all. I don't know if he ever really liked the show as Ash and I had; all I can recall is how he would infrequently rewatch clips in order to gain “inspiration” from then. His reasonings were always odd, and I’m fairly certain that he never paid attention to little details like character names or plots. Return of Harmony was rewatched due to Discord’s voice actor being some big character from a show called Star Trek, for example... ... Boast Busters was rewatched due to Trixie’s cape and hat having once caught his interest, for another. “Sweetie pie? What was the name of the episode about the unicorn that was full of herself?” is what he asked me one day, which led me to research and unintentionally memorize its title. As for the event’s timing; I had recalled it having taken place a bit before the story that involved Fluttershy and a dragon, but also after the one that starred Gilda. Since Rainbow and Berry had just finished up with Guilder, and since I’ve been seeing the odd black smoke cloud billowing in the sky as of late, it was fair to assume that this particular episode was about to "air" any day now. With the knowledge of the impending release date, and with a second viewing under my belt to aid me with the lines I often fail to recall, I felt that I was more than prepared to handle this story versus any other so far. I was wrong. ◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠◠ With a little prodding, Dusk was able to successfully get the location of this so called ‘super unicorn’ from Sugar and Spice’s lips. Trailing after the overly excited duo into town square, we were eventually met by an ocean of equines chatting amongst themselves in front of a seemingly barebone’s wagon. Word of mouth travels fast in this town apparently, as even the likes of Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Butterscotch, and Elusive are out and about and equally congregating with one another. Pushing our way past big old Butterscotch, who was standing perfectly fine in the back, and wading our way through the crowd to join the rest of our friends upfront; Dusk and I end up making it just in time to behold the wagon unfolding and revealing itself fully as the grand stage that it is. Okay… so far so good. Everything is exactly how I remember it…  … My eyes can’t help but wander over to Elusive as the magic show readies itself to begin. Jason has seen this episode too, so if Elusive is him then I’m definitely going to want to keep a close eye on his reactions and words during this. He’s still close-lipped on his past, and inconspicuously out to lunch every time I try to confront him at his boutique about it, so this may be my best bet to twist his arm and remind him of who I am.  My husband may have been blessed with a better poker face than me, but his acting was always subpar. If that mask of his is going to crack, this would be the day. “Come one, come all!” suddenly cries out a stallion, as the audience oohs and awws over the fireworks launching forth in the wake of the wagon's grand transformation. I turn my head away from Elusive in order to watch the show along with the others... …only to blink in surprise as I discover a pony on stage not matching up with my original vision for how this day was going to go down. The stranger is a unicorn, I can tell that much even with the pale pink top hat resting neatly atop his head… but his mane is all wrong. The shade of his coat is also completely off, as is the design of his tail. His voice is nowhere near what I was expecting male Trixie to sound like either, and his eyes are differently hued to her's as well. Lastly, thanks to his butler-esque suit, I can also tell with certainty that his cutie mark is incorrect as well. This isn’t Trixie. This is another pony entirely. “Come and witness the amazing magic…” the new stallion declares loudly as he radically rolls his hoof up in the air before us. “... of the Great and Powerful…” He then, with a performer's flair... ... takes a single step to the side, revealing in a puff of smoke that there’s been a second stallion on stage this whole time. “... Trixster!” the first unicorn declares proudly with a pointing of his hoof and a bowing of his head. More fireworks blast off soon after in his wake, raising the crowd's excitement levels through the roof. Okay... this new pony looks more like a male Trixie. Phew. Guess the other one is some kind of hired hoof or something. Azure coat, grayish violet eyes, and a purple cape with accompanying wizard cap full of exploding stars; definitely Trixie to a, well, T. This stallion doesn’t look that much different age-wise than Dusk himself, though come to think of it neither does the other unicorn on stage. Said unicorn isn’t departing, I notice, despite Trixster's near overwhelming presence. “Watch in awe as the Great and Powerful Trixster performs the most spectacular feats of skill ever witnessed by pony eyes,” Trixster boasts unabashedly, yanking my attention again off of the second stallion. Fireworks launch outwards following his welcoming cheer, hurting my ears in the process. Ow! At least the performance still seems to be just as ‘modest’ as the original's was. I guess that’s a good thing. “My, my, my! What boasting!” Somehow having been able to speak over the ringing in my ears, I grant Elusive a sideways glance for his words. A frustrated look settles itself on his face as he glares up at the stage, just as I recall Rarity doing. Hmmm… Either his words are honest, or he remembers his lines a whole lot better than I ever do. I stopped trying to replicate Spike’s words a long time ago, and I don’t remember exactly how he originally reacted here when it was just Trixie, so let’s see how well Elusive handles some... ad libbing. “Oh come on,” I raise my voice, trying to catch his attention and only his attention. “Nopony’s as magical as Dusk! Especially not this Trixie-, opps~, I mean Trixster!” Elusive now grants me a side glance of his own thanks to this. I wave back cheekily for my intentional slip up. “Hi.” He makes to say something. I lean in closer. “T-there’s nothing wrong with being talented… is there?” … Damn it Dusk and all your self doubt.  I almost had Elusive’s attention fully if it weren’t for you! But now he’s looking up at you and away from me and, just… bleh. Worst part is that he doesn’t even say anything to you once he takes his eyes off of me!  Instead, Rainbow Dash does! How unfair is that?! “Not really,” answers the pegasus pony in the cute long skirt, turning to address Dusk. “Some cutie marks are just geared towards it, like mine.” He lifts the rainbow-colored hem of his one piece of clothing to illustrate. “You gotta be careful with how you do it though. Not everypony can fly, and not everypony can do magic. It’s basic stuff.” With a nod of his head, Elusive adds in to this affirmation. “Indeed. Just because one has the ability to perform magic, or even a lot of magic, does not mark them as better than the rest of us.” “Yeah,” Applejack grunts to confirm. “Magic shmagic! Ah didn’t need no fancy magic to make me the flank kicker ah am today!” “Earth ponies consume more mana than most other races on the planet, AJ,” Rainbow, of all ponies, states flatly. Dusk looks a little disappointed that he wasn't the one who got to point this out. “Aww boo you, birdbrain,” is AJ's very mature response. “Boo.” Perhaps thinking that the booing was aimed towards Trixster, the second stallion on stage steps forward. “Well, well, well,” he singsongs as he approaches the edge of the arena. “It looks like we have some neighsayers in the audience,” he whinnies. I try my hardest not to chuckle at this aggressive horsedge of his… Snort !! … A curious peak towards Elusive yields a sight most unusual; that of a pony very much trying to hold in a chuckle of his own at something that should be considered intimidating, not humorous, to his ears… … Hmmm… interesting… Before I’m given the chance to ponder on this further, the top hat wearing stranger stomps a hoof and gains back the entire audience’s notice. “... Trix?” he then asks the other stallion standing center stage, once attention had been reestablished. “What’s your opinion on neighsayers?” he again whinnies. "..." ... With head held high, and chest puffed out, the magician answers back plainly and clearly for all to hear... “The Great and Powerful Trixster adores them, faithful assistant.” Silence falls over the gathering. The first pony, the one with the flat mane doo, nods his head in understanding. “That’s what I thought.” He then turns back towards the crowd and raises both hooves. “If anypony here wishes to test their skill, they are more than welcome to enter the arena and prove themselves worthy in the eyes of the Great and Powerful Trixster! “Be warned though, fillies and gentlecolts… You’ll be stepping into the presence of a pony who bested an Ursa Minor!” the top hat unicorn finishes this statement with another stomp, releasing a firework which forms into the shape of a single Ursa Minor. Conversations restart abruptly thanks to this last declaration and display of pyrotechnics. I, meanwhile, remain quiet as I digest these words. Trixie... boasted about beating an Ursa Major before... right? It was the most impressive feat she bragged about during her episode... But Trixster’s apparent assistant just claimed that it was a Minor instead… Why change that kind of story? Isn’t his job to make Trixster look better? That’s what he’s been doing this whole time at least, so I had just assumed… Trixster isn’t making any bids to correct this slip-up either… … He... must be okay with him low balling the story or something... ... ... What does that mean though?! It's such a minor change that I really shouldn't be giving it as much thought as I'm doing right now, but I can't help it! Why is this beginning part playing out differently to how I remember it did? Guilder’s episode changed from being about pranks to makeup, sure, and that was undoubtedly a bigger deviation in comparison to this... but this extra stallion is making Boast Busters feel… odd. I glance back at Elusive and try to gain so much as a hint of an answer. Elusive’s expression is unfortunately unreadable... … … Argh! I can’t keep distracting myself with all this Jason nonsense today! Things are clearly different somehow, but so was Gilda’s episode! The future is a River and a Stone; the path may be bumpy but the destination's the same. I can't forget that I have a job to do here, and that job is to get Dusk to break out his magic just like Twilight did! He will learn today’s lesson, damn it! Regardless of the obstacles in our way I’ll make sure he gets there. Thankfully, I know just how to get this ball rolling down stream. Number one assistant once again to the rescue. “It’s just a bluff!” I cry out, gaining a fair bit of attention. I give Applejack, Rainbow Dash, and Elusive each a single nod of my head as I state factually how, “We all know that Dusk here is-” “Barb!” shushes my charge under his breath, as he rudely uses the tip of his horn to push me away from the crowd. “Shhhh!” “What?” I answer back innocently. “What’s wrong?” “You saw the way they reacted to those two,” Dusk hisses my way. “I don’t want anypony thinking that I’m a show-off too!” “Bu-” “Please, Barb,” he then insists, gently placing a hoof over my heart. “Don’t…” he mutters lowly. A pained expression is now settling on his face. The sight of it is like a punch to the gut for me. This is such a necessary evil that it’s not even funny, but it needs to be done. Dusk needs to build confidence in himself if he’s going to survive some of the future episodes coming up! To do that, I need to push him over this hurdle. This feels like that ticket crap all over again, only this time I’m the only jerk present in this scenario!  Before I can dwell on this any further, the murmuring of the audience intensifies as the first volunteer steps themselves onto the stage. “Ahhh,” purrs Trixster as he eyes his competition. “The Great and Powerful Trixster welcomes you to his stage, Mister…?” “Applejack,” the earth pony challenger states plainly. “And ah’ve had it up to here with all this gloatin’! If you’ve got somethin’ to prove…” Raising up his hat, Applejack yanks out his trusty lasso from underneath it and begins to twirl it around. “... Then prove it with actions, not words!” Trixster’s eyes linger on the rope for a moment… … before smiling softly and providing a single nod towards his assistant. The assistant bows back in turn and, with a flare of light turquoise magic from his horn, walks over to the back curtain and produces a cape that's a complete replica of Trixster’s own. Floomp! Releasing his hold on the cloth, the stallion allows the item to gracefully land on Applejack’s back. It covers him completely down from neck to tail. “Hey!” AJ shouts in response to this strangeness. “What’s the big idea?!” “If you’re going to compete with The Great and Powerful Trixster,” the unicorn on stage (the one who doesn’t speak in the third person) begins to explain, all the while tightening the yellow gem holding the outfit together. “then you have to be ready to look the part after you succeed.” “After ah… what?” asks Applejack on our behalf, just as confused as the rest of us. Whispers are now spreading throughout the audience like wildfire. “After you succeed,” the assistant repeats himself, as if he had declared that the sky was blue. “Well... if you succeed. I promise you that you won’t, but if you somehow do... well then the mantle of Great and Powerful will be yours to keep... I think that’s a fair enough prize, don’t you?” “The cape won’t interfere with your performance, Mister Applejack,” Trixster adds in as he waits patiently on the other side of the platform. “You have The Trixster’s word.” “Like your words mean a load of hay,” Applejack swears under his breath, grumbling. The fact that I can hear it from down in the audience should indicate to you just how ‘quiet’ he’s actually being. Think Butterscotch’s level of ‘whispering’ but louder and blunter. “Well… whatever. Ah’m still gonna wipe the floor with you, you no good blowhard!” “Then, by all means, go right ahead,” retorts said blowhard, as he stands by for his opponent to begin.  The second unicorn is stepping back towards the stage’s shadows, I notice; perhaps to avoid being in the way. Anyways; channeling years of rodeoing and wrangling into his jaw, Applejack goes on to display all the skill of a master rancher as he twirls and whirls his lasso all around himself. He's expertly switching his hold on the rope between his teeth and tail faster than the eye can catch, jumping over and through the loop without disturbing the rotation, and not allowing a single hint of strain to grace his features. For his grand finale, AJ chooses to pinpoint grab a single apple off of a nearby tree and eat it whole in one fell, skillfully calculated, swoop. This showcase of his is exactly how I remember it was from the show, even down to the country fiddle playing in the background via the use of minor Heartsong magic. Most importantly, Trixster was right; that cape of his didn’t interfere at all. If anything it added to Applejack's performance as it bellowed powerfully behind him, never once lifting off from his flexing back. Once his amazing display comes to it's talented end, the crowded masses around me cheer unabashedly for their hometown hero and his undisputed success. Trixster, meanwhile, never ceases his gentle smiling. “Well,” Applejack pants deeply as he wraps up his show. Pointing a hoof now across the stage, towards his opponent, he shouts out a heated and non-negotiable decree of “Beat that!” without a moment's hesitation. “The Trixster will certainly try,” the other caped stallion on stage answers back… humbly? Wha? “May he," he taps himself to better highlight. "borrow your rope for a moment, Mister Applejack?” “Ummm… sure?” ‘Mister’ Applejack answers in an unsure tone, though still hoofing over the lasso all the same. ~Twinkle twinkle twinkle~ Light magenta light shines brightly from the horn hidden underneath Trixster’s cap, as he levitates the brown tool into his own hooves. He judges the weight of the fibers for a moment… … before tossing his hat aside and gyrating the lasso with pure determination and drive; just as Applejack had. His movements are precise and purposeful, with not a single action wasted; his circles are perfect as well, with not a single hitch or lump present. The cord is switching it's hold between all four of his hooves within the blink of an eye... He's practically pirouetting... He's practically dancing. As the demonstration continues on, without a single word being uttered, it slowly becomes clear to see why Trixster had discarded his cap as he had. He had done so to prove that he was more than capable of copying Applejack's skills without the use of his unicorn magic... … No… wait... on a second observation…  … h-he’s capable of copying them better! Not only is Trixster swinging the line around with both tail, teeth, and hooves, but he’s creating shapes in the loops that transform with as little effort as a single crack of the wrist. Stars, squares, even random faces from the crowd! At one point he swirled the entire lasso into the shape of a pony... before proceeding to jump right freaking through it... and then repeating the feat with different poses. He even wrapped it around his unused horn at one point! The audience's deathly silence only grows as the unicorn, for his last trick, readies himself to perform the same apple grabbing technique as Applejack had. With little, practically microscopic, effort on Trixster's part; he managed to grip the fruit just as masterfully as AJ... but, with a little extra flair added in, he also managed to knock off two adjacent apples as well. With a bounce, all three orbs end up hurling their way towards the lasso wielder who drops the rope… only to then, without missing a beat, juggle the unbruised fruits as if they were balls he had casually relinquished from his cape. ‘Jaws on the ground’ isn’t an appropriate descriptor to properly articulate everycreature's stunned reaction right now. ‘Jaws have now been relocated to flipping Neighpon for their own protection’ is more accurate. The... t-the worst part? The part that's now shaking me to my very core? I could feel it in my scales while he was performing: There wasn't a single wisp of magic in the air. This display... this whole routine of his... was legit. Poor Applejack is completely and utterly shocked, and not a single pony here can blame him. “B-b,” the once confident stallion stutters out, equally not believing what he had witnessed. “B-b-but mah m-mama taught me that trick…” “And The Trixster is certain she was an excellent teacher,” the victor coos gently as he lifts back up the rope and floats it over to AJ’s prone form. “The Trixster is just equally as gifted as you, it seems.” “Oh don’t be so modest now, Trix!” adds in the assistant, as he exits the shadows and roughly yanks the spare cloak off of Applejack’s back. “Didn’t you use a lasso to tame the Minor? You're definitely more talented for sure!” Applejack cringes thanks to this claim. “Hmph... Of course The Trixster isn’t,” gruffly replies... ... The Trixster himself. Applejack blinks in surprise thanks to the other, less aggressive unicorn's claim. Lifting his head back up from his sulking, our honest stallion soon discovers Trixster now standing side-by side with himself. “It’s all in the swish,” Trixster speaks in a kind tone, as he uses his magic to levitate the cord into his once opponent's jaw. “Picture what you want, have the confidence that you can do it… and then…” He then whispers something into Applejack's ear. “... Really?” “Please… trust The Trixster,” is the magician’s last plea before he takes a single step back, and encourages the other to take center stage. "..." ... To the great surprise of us all... ... Applejack obeys. Now facing forward, the usually loud and boastful pony in his own right takes a deep breath, and begins to twirl his lasso once again. At first it’s a circle... ... but then it's the deliberately lumpy form of three whole apples. His cutie mark. The rope ceases it’s twirling the moment Applejack’s own jaw joins our own on the floor, unintentionally releasing his hold. As the bundle of fibers falls haphazardly over his form, the rest of us slowly turn, mouths agape, towards Trixster the Great and Powerful. The assistant giggles at this, and grins toothily at our shocked staring... ... Um... Is... i-is it my imagination... or are his persian blue eyes... ... now locked on Dusk and Dusk alone? “Soooo," the stranger grips our attention yet again, further agitating my fresh goosebumps. "Who here wants to challenge my best friend next~?” he finishes cockily with laugh now sounding like a mocking bark, and friendly aura completely and utterly shattered. This thankfully erases my perception of him being just an ordinary hired hoof. It, unfortunately, also erases my perception of this being just an ordinary episode. This doesn't feel like that at all anymore. This... is something else.