“And that’s how Equestria was made!” Pinkie Pie concluded her story and reached for another cupcake, to the astonishment of everypony else at the library reading table.
By all rights, no mare should be able to eat as much as Pinkie had so far without exploding, but that wasn’t even the most confusing thing.
“Huh?” Trixie blinked and looked over to Applejack. “Trixie thought we were talking about the Everfree Forest?”
“Yup…” Applejack kept her head propped up with the help of the table, forelegs, and a convenient encyclopedia. Apparently, her farm work didn’t magically get done just because a forest witch shrunk her down for half of the day. Or whatever actually happened to her. ”Don't mind it none. Point is, don’t go there.”
It wasn’t even that late in the evening, but apparently ‘early to bed, early to rise’ was an Apple family motto along with about two dozen similar ones regarding doing work the hard way. Trixie was sure of that.
As if summoned, Twilight looked up from the book she'd stuffed her snout into not one minute after Pinkie started her tale; a doorstopper of a tome that looked at least as ancient as the forest they were talking about.
“I still think Zecora proves the Everfree Forest can be explored,” Twilight said with a mad gleam in her eye. No doubt excited at the prospect of a doomed expedition to volunteer her friends for. “We just have to experiment and learn how to do so safely. Who knows what could be discovered? Herbs thought extinct. Species undocumented! Oh, perhaps entire lost civilizations with their own literature!”
“Maybe, or nothing good, Ah reckon,” Applejack stifled a yawn. “We were always told to stay outta there fer a reason.”
“Trixie can confirm.” It would have been nice if somepony had told her that before.
Trixie sighed and downed her drink, nervously glancing over at the door. She really wished Applejack had brought something more potent than juice, something to help her relax. At least this kept her mouth from feeling like sandpaper.
Where was that keg Applejack brought? The kitchen, perhaps.
“Right.” Spike nodded to Trixie and gave an apologetic look to Twilight. “I mean, so far all I’ve discovered is that none of us ever really needed to go in there, right?”
That was a surprisingly sharp remark from the little guy. Trixie cracked a smile despite herself. Not that it made up for his betrayal, but it was nice to see somepony else on the receiving end of his barbed, forked tongue. In hindsight, that probably should have tipped her off.
Twilight frowned. “What about when we had to stop Nightmare Moon? We needed to find the elements… which I guess were inside us all along… but we only realized that because of everything we faced on the way there!”
“And it was super fun!” Pinkie Pie added.
“This is fascinating and all,” Trixie said with as little sarcasm as she could manage before she stepped away from the table, “but all Trixie wants to find in there is her hat. Let her know if you think of something that’ll help with that.”
She left the little squabbling group to their own devices and made her way to the kitchen.
Given how on edge she’d been about Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy the past couple days, she actually felt relatively relaxed about the whole thing now. Sure, she hadn’t been able to eat a single bite all evening, but she wasn’t glued to a window awaiting their return either.
Maybe it was because, unlike before, she wasn’t entirely helpless this time. She’d truly done all she could to prepare Fluttershy; with Rarity’s assistance to boot. Granted, there was a limit to how much progress one could make with Fluttershy in a day, but The Great and Foresightful Trixie had been slowly introducing the overly timid girl to speaking her mind for over a week prior.
From there it was simple enough. A few exercises to have Fluttershy loudly repeat a few keyphrases, including the confession, of course. Along with a little probing and brainstorming to find which setting would give her the most courage and time.
Turned out she did better when she couldn’t be seen. Made sense, she liked to hide behind that pretty mane of hers. It was funny that while Fluttershy was such a scaredy pony, she did better in the dark.
As she entered the kitchen, Trixie felt a chill. How was it so much colder in here?
She quickly found the cause, somepony had left open a window and all the warmth had escaped into the night. Well, that wouldn’t do. She pulled it shut and locked it.
Let it never be said that she never did anything nice for Twilight.
Now, what was Trixie here for again? Ah, yes!
She only needed a brief glance around to find her prey, sitting atop the counter near the sink with a convenient tap hammered in near the bottom at a nice comfortable height for her.
Thinking about it now, maybe some consideration should have been given to making Rainbow Dash comfortable as well.
Nah.
Dashie would be fine.
While pouring herself a fresh mug of apple juice, Trixie heard the door creak open behind her.
“Hey…” Spike mumbled as he took a few steps inside, leaving the door slightly ajar.
It didn’t seem very likely he was ‘raised in a barn’ to borrow an earth pony phrase, so perhaps he left it open to ensure the others could hear if there was any yelling? As if she ever would.
“Hey,” Trixie replied with an even tone. “What do you want?”
Spike stood there quietly, holding a mug in one of his little foreclaws. Is that what they were called? Anyway, he ran the other one over his arm and kept looking anywhere but at her. “I, uh… I’m supposed to ‘keep an eye on you.’ Don’t tell Twilight that I told you. She’s just a little stressed.”
Awkward.
“Trixie can’t imagine what that’s like.” She rolled her eyes and glanced out the window, hoping to see any sign of the pegasi pair’s return. It was too dark; she only saw herself reflected back. “Seeing as Trixie is used to having ponies watch her every dazzling move, Trixie doesn’t care, but why tell Trixie you are spying on her? It’d be easier if you lied.”
Moreover, it was just a little insulting to be underestimated so heavily. As if a baby dragon was sufficient surveillance to keep The Shrewd and Guileful Trixie from doing anything she might have wanted.
Lucky for them, all she wanted was a drink.
Spike scuffed the floor with his foot, still not looking at her. “Because I want you to know I’m being honest with you. If you find out later that I lied about that, why would you believe the rest of this?”
“Believe the rest of what?” A white smudge appeared in Trixie’s reflection and then was gone again. Unless she was changing color herself, that must have been outside. She strained her eyes, trying to catch it once more.
“I didn’t mean to laugh at you. Well, no, I did, but I didn’t mean to hurt your feelings,” Spike said. “I’m sorry. I thought we were just… well, ya know… doing some friendly ribbing? You called me ‘a baby dragon with delusions of grandeur.’ You didn’t mean that either, right?”
“...Right.”
Oh, she’d definitely meant it, but still… Maybe he really hadn’t? Or perhaps this was some kind of trick to get something from her. It hardly mattered, she couldn’t trust him either way. It would take more than a half-hearted apology to mend this. It was her own fault, really, she’d chosen to extend a bit more trust toward him than she should’ve and shared her woes. It was foolish to have expected him to listen.
There was movement outside. It was hard to make out what exactly, but it wasn’t the same as before.
Come to think of it. What had Rarity and Fluttershy told Rainbow Dash to get her to go to the boutique? Trixie had never been quite clear on that part of the plan. It wasn’t the kind of place that Rainbow Dash would easily go… right?
“I guess you were already kinda upset and I just pushed you over the edge,” Spike continued. “After all, you’d been trying to talk to the others and they brushed you off cause they had their own thing going on, even though you were trying to be serious.”
On second thought, maybe Rainbow Dash was into fashion? That seemed almost impossible, but then again she also would not have expected the literal cloud palace that passed for a house.
She should ask about that when they got back. Probably after learning how the whole thing went with Fluttershy. Whatever the outcome was, she was confident she’d be able to make the best of it. That knowledge didn’t keep her from feeling at least a little nervous, though.
Spike spoke up. “I know how bad that feels.”
Apparently, he was still here.
“How so?” Trixie asked, affording him a sideways glance.
“Uhm, because you’re doing it right now?”
“What?” Trixie pulled away from the window to face him. For the first time since they’d started this conversation, now that she thought about it.
The little dragon was standing with his arms folded and a slight scowl as though he hadn't entirely decided whether to be annoyed, angry or hurt. He’d at some point set the mug aside on the counter, but she hadn’t noticed.
She glanced back at the window, then settled on Spike once more.
He wasn’t wrong. This was exactly what she’d been complaining about. Sure, maybe she had just a little bit of a better reason to be preoccupied, what with being on the edge of a life-changing event and all, but… the others had probably felt the same.
Come to think of it, the only way he’d know to call her out like this was if he had been listening to her rant, no, lament, wasn’t it?
Funny how it suddenly felt worse to get what she wanted.
“...Okay, point taken.” Trixie admitted with a sigh. “Maybe Trixie was a little hasty. She’s sorry too…”
“So, we’re good?” Spike smiled as she gave him a nod in return. He reached for the door. “I’m gonna head back then.”
“Not so fast.” Trixie called out, causing him to pause.
“What?”
Trixie scratched the back of her head awkwardly while avoiding his gaze. “Well, uhm… Trixie actually… ended up using some of your advice. So, thanks for that. Trixie supposes.”
Spike opened his mouth to comment, but nothing came out and he closed it again. After a brief moment of thought, he smiled. “It’s what friends do.”
“It won’t do for Trixie to be indebted like this so...” She magically lifted his mug off the counter and shook it with a cautious smile. “How about a refill?”
“That seems like a fair trade.” Spike smirked. “Thanks—Rarity?”
Trixie frowned slightly. Another slip of the tongue on her name? Well, if she forgave Sweetie Belle for it, she supposed she could extend the courtesy again.
“Really?” Trixie gave an overly exaggerated scowl. “Thinking about another mare?”
“No! Rarity!” He pointed toward the window.
To Trixie’s surprise, Rarity stood outside, fumbling with the lock on the window with a panicked look in her eyes.
“Don’t just stand there,” Rarity hissed under her breath just barely audible through the glass. She glanced left and right. “Let me in.”
From the living room, Applejack’s voice carried through the cracked door.
“Oh, hey, Dash! Where’d y’all go?”
Twilight perked up as Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy came in through the front door. When had they even left? Perhaps she had been too distracted with Pinkie and Trixie.
“Just getting some fresh air...” Rainbow Dash scanned the room for a moment. Seemingly satisfied, she pulled out a purple package with a blue ribbon from behind her back and held it up. “So, we’ve got it. Uhm, anypony got any idea where Rarity said to stash it?”
Right. It was a gift of some sort for Trixie, wasn’t it? They’d discussed it briefly the day before when Trixie was missing, but they had been secretive as to what it actually was.
She didn’t really understand it at the time either. Why was Trixie getting gifts now? She hadn’t, no, nopony else had gotten any since she came to Ponyville. At least, not that she knew about. She supposed it was one of Trixie’s talents, to draw attention to herself.
“Oh! Oh!” Pinkie Pie lifted up the table cloth and pointed under it about forty times in two seconds. “How about here?”
Strangely, it reminded her of the gift that Spike had gotten for Moon Dancer’s party, but that was months ago. Why did she think about it now? She never learned what that was either.
“Great idea, Pinkie!” Rainbow Dash took a seat along with Fluttershy, keeping the gift hidden between them and underneath the table. Of the two of them, Rainbow Dash had the hardest time keeping a straight face.
“Trixie ‘n Spike are off getting drinks.” Applejack tilted her hat back. “And… huh, Ah guess Rarity must be as well. That or powdering her nose or whatever she does.”
While everything felt normal enough, Rainbow Dash was obviously nervous, even as she chatted with the rest of her friends, she kept alternating between hastily looking around and staring off into space.
Trixie had been nervous as well, though she’d been better at hiding it. That was part of why she’d asked Spike to follow her in the first place. Perhaps there was some connection?
It was only right to investigate.
Twilight scooted a little closer and once the flow of conversation turned away from their corner of the table, she quietly cleared her throat and whispered, “Ahem, Rainbow Dash, is something wrong?”
“What? No, no it’s nothing.” Rainbow Dash waved her off.
“Are you sure? You look more troubled than you did about the weather station… Maybe I can help again?”
Rainbow Dash quietly bit her lip for a moment. She glanced over at Fluttershy who was happily discussing Gummy’s dental plan with Pinkie Pie. “Yeah… Maybe you could.”
So, something really was wrong.
Leaning in a little, Rainbow Dash kept her voice down. “I kinda got caught up in the moment and… now I’m worried how Trixie’ll react. Maybe she’ll be upset. Or, I dunno, I guess I’d at least know how to deal with that. I don’t have any idea what to do if she actually likes it. I’ve never done anything like this before.”
This wasn’t making much sense to her. “What? The gift? You’ve never given one?”
Rainbow Dash blinked and if she hadn’t known better she could swear there was a brief reddish glow on those otherwise blue cheeks. That couldn’t be right. “Uh, yeah. Sure. The gift.”
“Okay, well… I… haven’t actually done it before either.”
“Shocker.” Rainbow Dash chuckled to herself.
“I meant between friends!” She felt an indignant swell of heat in her own cheeks now. “I’ve done it plenty with my brother and my parents! Oh, and Celestia! I’m sure I can help.”
Every clarification only seemed to drive Rainbow Dash further into barely suppressed laughter. It wasn’t until she mentioned Celestia that Rainbow Dash suddenly regained her composure. “Sorry, sorry. It’s just… I don’t think this is gonna carry over very well.”
At least she seemed to be feeling a little better. That was worthwhile, even if it was at her expense.
“Mhm. You might have a point. I already knew all of them well, so I had a good idea of how they’d react,” Twilight mused while she glanced toward the kitchen. It was taking Trixie an awfully long time to get a drink, but she hadn’t heard Spike raise any alarms either. “You can’t really ask her and ruin the surprise, but… maybe you could talk to her and drop some subtle hints. You might learn something from how she reacts.”
“Subtle?” Rainbow Dash barely managed to form the word, as though it felt as alien on her tongue as ‘delegation’ had. “Mhm… actually, yeah… Yeah, I think I’ll give that a whirl. Thanks, Twilight.”
She’d barely finished her sentence when the kitchen door swung open.
Trixie must have sensed somepony was talking about her as she came trotting in with a big grin. Following shortly behind her were Spike and Rarity.
Oh, so that’s where Rarity was. Strange.
Spike briefly met her eyes as he came back to the table and then promptly rolled his own. They hadn’t exactly agreed on any set signals, but she surmised that he was trying to tell her she’d been concerned over nothing.
Trixie must have actually been thirsty then. In fact, she looked much more relaxed now. Before Twilight had even really noticed, Trixie had stolen the open seat beside a flustered Rainbow Dash.
With everypony once again present, the drone of conversation picked up again.
It was actually a little fun to see all her friends enjoying themselves.
Applejack and Rainbow Dash had quickly gotten into some kind hoof-wrestling competition with Trixie egging them on. It was slightly annoying to see Trixie more easily socialize with her friends than she did.
Spike was hanging on every word of whatever Rarity was saying. From the stray word or two she picked up, it had to be about her little sister. Spike didn’t seem to get the hint, of course.
Pinkie Pie was unsurprisingly in her element and didn’t seem to keep to a single seat longer than a few minutes to talk to each pony in turn with varying degrees of reception. This had to be where the term ‘social butterfly’ came from.
Twilight's ears flicked left and right as she honed in on one conversation for a few seconds, before switching to the next.
It was just too hard to keep up. It wasn't fair! Books she could go back and forth with no problem, but here; just missing a line could derail her entire understanding of what was being talked about. What if somepony asked her about something she wasn’t listening to? But, would it be weird if she was just listening in on a conversation?
Maybe she should talk too, however, interrupting something she wasn’t part of struck her as rude.
This was exactly why she didn’t go to parties before. It was just too much at once when she’d rather be enjoying a good book. She couldn’t do that now, however; Princess Celestia was counting on her to study every aspect of friendship, even the loud parts.
If only she had the time to study Pinkie Pie and work out how to replicate that ‘social butterfly’ effect. That would take too long to matter today, but speaking of butterflies… maybe what she needed to do was talk with somepony who was a little more her speed, like Fluttershy.
She turned toward Fluttershy with an inviting smile, only to see that Trixie had beaten her to the punch again. The two of them locked eyes behind Rainbow Dash’s back and were clearly about to start their own conversation.
Or not.
They each turned their attention back to the rest of the table. It didn’t make sense, they hadn’t even said a word to each other yet, but Trixie looked even more pleased than she had a moment ago. Fluttershy on the other hand was unchanged, just carrying the same placid smile she had before.
They must have signaled each other, but why? For what? How was Trixie always making her friends do these suspicious things? What was Fluttershy’s part in her scheme now?
Fluttershy caught her staring. “Twilight? Was there, uhm, can I help you?”
“Yes, actually...” Twilight glanced over at Trixie. She didn’t seem to be paying attention, but she couldn’t be sure. “How are you liking the party? Isn’t it too much? I noticed you were kind of out of it during the planning stage as well.”
“Oh, I’m sorry for bringing the mood down…” Fluttershy tilted her head down. After a moment of nothing happening, her eyes darted up to a hairpin that was keeping her mane out of her face.
“Do you want me to get that for you?”
“N-no, it’s okay.” Fluttershy briefly turned as if to look over to Rainbow Dash and Trixie, but she caught herself and abruptly focused on Twilight again. “But the, uhm, the party’s okay. I-I mean, it’s nice. I don’t usually get out much, but I’ve, uhm… gotten used to things being a little busier than usual. I-I think it helps. Maybe?”
“Right...” No matter how she looked at it, Fluttershy was definitely trying to hide something. Sadly, there was no way she could press her on this, not right here and now. Twilight leaned in a little and lowered her voice. “If you ever want to talk, about anything at all, I’m here for you.”
After a moment of confusion, Fluttershy gave a look of contemplation, but ultimately she shook her head and smiled. “It’s nothing, but thank you… I’ll remember that.”
That would have to do, for now. Fluttershy was the closest to Trixie, if Trixie was actually dangerous then Fluttershy would be most likely to know, but that also meant she’d be the most hesitant.
“Hey, Twilight!” Pinkie Pie popped up on her other side. “Having fun?”
“I’d like to think so. It’s a little challenging, but it’s better than that time you brought fifty strangers into my house.” She shuddered just thinking about it. At least she didn’t feel the need to hide away in her bedroom this time. “How do you do it?”
“Easy peasy! Everypony at the party was my friend.” Pinkie Pie smiled. “I guess that goes for both of us this time, huh?”
“Right…” Twilight glanced over at Trixie for a moment. “But I don’t feel like I have much to say.”
Pinkie Pie gasped. “Sure you do! You’re super smart!”
“But, what if I’m annoying?”
“I dunno. I’ve never thought about it.” Pinkie Pie shrugged it off with such ease. “Do you think I’m annoying?”
“What, no!” Her heart stood still. She hadn’t meant to make Pinkie Pie think that. She and her big mouth. “You’re my friend!”
“Aw, thanks Twilight. You’re my friend too! Cause that’s how that works!” ”Pinkie Pie’s smile had never left her face, but it grew even wider. She motioned toward the rest of the group. “And they are as well, right? So, don’t worry about it!”
“I… huh, that actually makes sense.” Twilight looked back out toward her group of friends and Trixie.
That’s right. They weren’t strangers she had to make a good impression on. They were friends, mostly.
A mention of Twilight’s name pulled her attention to another conversation.
“Twilight’s from Canterlot, so is that where you’re from too, Trixie?” Rainbow Dash asked. “I’m pretty sure it is not Cloudsdale.”
Twilight perked up her ears. This could prove interesting.
“Ya reckon, Dash?” Applejack chuckled. “Any other places ya wanna rule out, like Aquastria?”
“The city under the sea?” Pinkie Pie asked while she thoughtfully stroked her chin. “I don’t think she’d be from there, silly.”
“Actually, Trixie moved around a lot.” Trixie cut off Applejack before she could respond to Pinkie Pie. “So, she doesn’t have much attachment to any particular place.”
Twilight felt that should have sounded like a sad thing, but Trixie was so flippant about it. On the other hoof, it also felt like Trixie was attempting to dodge the question.
Twilight leaned in. “That’s alright, it’s just about the first place you’ve been. Where was that?”
“Then Hollow Shades but, erm...” Trixie gave Twilight a sideways glance as though she only just realized she had been listening. “...it wasn’t a very interesting place. Obviously, Trixie is the greatest thing to come out of that dust bowl in millennia.”
She remembered reading about the town, it was supposed to be practically abandoned, but that was all she could recall. That book had to be around the library somewhere, though. Maybe later.
Spike gave her a pleading look as if to keep her from running to the history section of the library then and there. His attention swiftly drifted back to Rarity once it became apparent she wasn’t going anywhere, yet.
“Ah’ll say. Granny says the place ain’t fit fer growing much despite it being an earth pony town.” Applejack added. “Don’t suppose ya ran into Great-uncle Gravenstein?”
Trixie gave a surprised gasp. “Yes, actually. How do you know that old coot?”
Applejack shrugged. “Ah, shucks. We got some distant kin over here ‘n there. Pretty much anywhere ya can plant an appletree ya’ll find an Apple, really.”
“Seriously, you’re related? Wait, to all of them?” Trixie stared in disbelief as Applejack nodded. “Trixie thought it was just a funny coincidence that every place she went had some apple farmers.”
Rarity showed a sly smile and winked. “Honestly, I’m surprised you didn’t just assume they all knew each other, Darling.”
“Very funny.” Trixie rolled her eyes and playfully jabbed Rarity in the shoulder. “Trixie’ll ask that next time she goes anywhere.”
Twilight felt a chill at the sight. Trixie was having such an easy time handling the spotlight and her influence was clearly spreading even further among her friends. Even Rarity, the one pony she thought the least likely to warm up to her after that disaster with her mane, was joking around with Trixie now.
“Oh, I bet you’ve never been to Rockville then! We don’t have any Apples where I’m from!” Pinkie Pie naturally found a way to be the odd one out. “You should come over!”
“The Great and Well-traveled Trixie doesn’t recall visiting any such place. She’s sure she’d have remembered such a solid name.” Trixie flipped her mane. Her tone straddled the line between sarcasm and humor. “However, maybe she’ll grace it with a visit some day.”
“That’d be great!” Pinkie Pie smiled widely. “My sister Maud goes crazy for magic shows!”
“You have a sister?” Spike asked with a bit of awe and apprehension in his voice. “Woah, I can’t image how wild things must get when both of you are in the same place.”
Pinkie Pie rubbed her hooves together ominously.
At the mention of doing a show, Trixie faltered a little and her ears tilted back for a moment. “Sure… Trixie’ll add it to her tour schedule then.”
Rainbow Dash tilted her head and silently stared at Trixie as she mentioned having a schedule. It was odd for her to be so wrapped up in her own thoughts without blurting them out.
“Uhm, Trixie?” Fluttershy softly poked her shoulder and received a hastily recovered smile for her efforts. Thus emboldened, she pressed on. “I was just wondering… What made you start traveling if that’s okay to ask?”
“Oh, of course!” Trixie struck a pose that she might have thought noble, closing her eyes and keeping her nose in the air as she rested a hoof on her chest. “Trixie had an awakening at a young age that it would be a crime to deny the rest of Equestria her presence! So, she—Gack! Dashie!”
“What?” Rainbow Dash grinned as she pulled her hoof back out of Trixie’s ribs. Heavy thoughts were no match for an opportunity to cause mischief. “You were rambling.”
Trixie glared at her for a moment then sighed. “If you want the boring version, fine, but Trixie really did start when she was a filly.”
Applejack pushed her hat back. “Must’ve been hard as a filly alone.”
“No, no. Trixie’s only been a solo act for about a year.” Trixie waved her off. “Actually, Mom had to travel a lot for work and brought Trixie along. Turned out that having a new audience so regularly was great practice for an aspiring magician.”
“Oh, I just adore childhood passions blooming into adulthood.” Rarity’s eyes briefly flicked over from Trixie to Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy. “It took a while… Ahem, for me to earn bits with it, I mean. How about you?”
“Well, Trixie’s performances were originally just for fun, but it turned out to be surprisingly easy for a filly to entertain adults with some sparks. After that, well, we just kept doing it and Trixie kept getting better until she became the shining example of grace be—Dashie!” Trixie squirmed away as she got tickled again. “You are the worst!”
“My bad.” Rainbow Dash didn’t look the least bit sorry. She leaned in a little closer as if to dare Trixie to do something about it.
Twilight made a note that perhaps she’d sorely overestimated Trixie’s actual control over her friends.