It wasn’t a big deal that they’d forgotten about it; she’d written it on the calendar, but her hoofwriting was neat and small. When Trixie had local shows, she’d usually use a big red marker that took up the whole square. When Starlight had to remember important school dates, she’d add little stars with her purple pen, so they’d stand out. Maud simply wrote in her usual black pen, because why waste ink on large print? The pen lasted longer that way.
Still, she told herself as she packed her satchel, she had hoped to get some last-minute reassurance from her fillyfriends over breakfast, even if she told herself she didn’t need any. She loaded up her wagon full of her favorite specimens, and took off for the market at a brisk trot, her small earth pony frame carrying the hundreds of pounds of rocks effortlessly.
Maud visited the market to buy some apples, in preparation for tomorrow’s breakfast. She knew she was prepared. She’d spent years working on this thesis, doing the research, writing the paper backwards and forwards, edits upon edits done over months with her advisor; this was a topic she knew intimately by now.
And yet, she was nervous as she strode towards the printing shop, where she’d had copies of her thesis notes printed into pamphlets for the audience. This wasn’t a big deal, she told herself; she already had one doctorate under her belt before she even moved to Ponyville.
And yet Maud felt her hooves dragging as she carried the heavy box of papers to the lecture hall. Ponyville didn’t have a university of its own, but her professors had agreed to meet here, since it was closest to her residence and her source of research. She’d have to get up in front of an audience made up of her peers and teachers, and after her long speech, she would be peppered with questions. Her entire degree hinged on this, and years of work could be for nothing if she foundered. Other students would come to ask questions pertinent to their own research - as well as to see a glimpse of their own futures.
She wished she had just one last moment with Trixie to discuss some kind of stage relaxation technique, or some kind of scholarly advice from Starlight; but this time, it looked like Maud Pie would be working on her own.
Maud was alone when she entered the hall, and began steadily working her way up and down the aisles, leaving a folded pamphlet on each seat. The ‘lecture hall’ was something like the local opera house, but today the stage only housed one wooden lectern, and a few wooden tables. After she finished papering the audience, Maud turned her attention to the stage, and began carefully carrying her specimens to the tables. Various rocks and their formations would be the focus of her thesis, and she knew the visual aids would help the - oh, this wasn’t working.
Maud Pie paused in the middle of the stage, took a deep breath, and placed the last rock in place. Wordlessly, she trotted to the back of the theater, and closed herself inside of the green room. The small dressing room was filled with mirrors and lights, but with a quiet click, the room plunged into darkness, and Maud sat on the floor in the very center.
Usually, tedium calmed her; losing herself in the mindless motions of placing pamphlets and minerals should have slowed her racing thoughts, but beneath her typical stoic expression, her heart beat as if it might jump out of her chest. She placed a hoof over her heart, and took another deep breath, trying to slow it. What would Trixie say? ‘Put on enough glitter, and no one will notice the rabbit under the table’? No, that didn’t seem to fit the situation, but Maud was too rattled to think clearly. Starlight would have wrapped her in a hug, and reminded her that no matter what happened, they would still love and support her. That brought her some comfort, and she focused on the memory of Starlight’s warm forelegs wrapped around her for a long time, until she stopped hearing her heart pounding in her ears.
Finally, Maud opened her eyes and rose to her hooves. ‘The show must go on,’ as Trixie would have said.
With another click! the room exploded in light once more, and Maud Pie placed her satchel in front of the mirror. She’d borrowed some of Trixie’s glitter powder, and with a light swirl of her fillyfriend’s brush, her face soon had a light shimmer to it. Nothing too fancy, but something to make her ‘pop’ on stage; Trixie had said that was important. Plus, she liked the way it shimmered; she felt like a particularly shiny rock as she considered her reflection. She offered herself a little smile as she turned her face back and forth, admiring the shimmer in the bright lights. Very rock-like indeed, she decided.
“Ma’am?” Lamplight the stagehand knocked lightly at the door. “The audience is in their seats, should I start the announcements?”
“Yes. Thank you.” Maud replied, and shook off the cold shudder that wanted to wash down her spine. No! She was going to be fine. And if she failed, well, she would still go home to her other doctorate, and two fillyfriends who would love her even without any degrees at all.
But she did still have her degree, for the record.
Maud walked herself to the wings, and looked over her note cards as she half-listened to Lamplight calling out the announcements - no eating, drinking, magic-casting, etc. The audience sounded much louder than she would have expected for a few professors and rock-studies grad students, but perhaps someone had come in hopes of free food afterwards, she supposed.
“Hey! You two! Ssh! Don’t make me separate you.”
That voice sounded familiar! While Lamplight droned on, Maud peeked out from behind the curtain, and was startled to see an audience - a full audience! Full of students! Not just any students, but students from the Friendship school - Starlight’s students! And there was Starlight, right in the middle, quieting down a pair of pegasi who were whispering to each other in the row in front of her. And there was Trixie, right next to her! There were so many hippogriffs there, Starlight must have brought the whole school fair along with her!
Something warm began to glow inside of Maud, like an ember from a fire, and when Lamplight introduced her, she realized she didn’t feel nervous anymore. She stepped on stage to wild applause, and she could hear a blue unicorn faintly shouting to her neighbors, “That’s my fillyfriend! That’s my fillyfriend up there!”
Maud strode confidently to the podium, and surveyed the audience as the applause died down. Every seat was filled, and while the professors sat in the front row, notepads at the ready, every row behind them was filled with students. And right in the middle, in the center of her line of sight, were Starlight Glimmer and Trixie. Her expression remained placid, seemingly impenetrable as always, but when she locked eyes with Starlight and Trixie, the pair waved, and she knew they felt the warm ember burning inside of them, too.
“Good afternoon, esteemed professors and peers.” Maud began, and her voice felt strong, powerful. In that moment, the audience faded away, and she felt as if she spoke only to her fillyfriends, as if it was just another evening practicing at home.
The speech flowed through her, to use an illustration from one of her poems, like a river flowed over a pebble. She felt herself guided, but not forced; the words came easily, grandly, and each time she felt the current fading, she caught Starlight’s knowing gaze, or Trixie would flash her an enthusiastic grin, and she felt herself buoyed by their affection once more.
Finally, her speech came to an end, and she placed her last sample back in its place on its table. “I will take questions now,” Maud said flatly, and considered the audience.
The professors busied themselves with their notebooks; the other graduate students glanced at one another and murmured amongst themselves. Maud was used to this; she had been told that her style of questioning could be called ‘brusque.’ Behind them, a scaled claw shot up into the air.
“Um, Miss Pie, is - is, um - the use of pumice in household spells, would you say is - underutil - under-useful -”
“Underutilized.” A quiet correction from Starlight Glimmer.
“- Underutilized, compared to other minerals?”
Maud Pie’s eyebrows shot up. That was one of her key points in her thesis! One she had hoped to highlight, but it had gotten relegated mostly to sidebars! How would the griffon child have known that? Her eyes drifted to Starlight Glimmer, who was giving the griffon an encouraging nod, and Trixie, who flashed her a grin. Her eyes darted over the aisle, and she saw other students holding notecards, waiting for their turn.
Maud Pie allowed herself the indulgence of a rare, small grin. “I would say that, yes. Pumice is an underutilized stone in household magic, ignored in favor of more flashy minerals like gemstones. Although pumice is often delegated to the less-glamorous task of descaling hard-water deposits, I think you will find that the evidence points to it having a far more powerful role than initially imagined. If you turn to page three of the pamphlet …”
[---]
“Maud, you were wonderful!”
If Maud Pie hadn’t been an earth pony from a rock farm, she might have buckled under the weight of her two fillyfriends launching themselves on her at once. Instead, she simply caught one in each foreleg, and held them close as they fawned over her.
“You were so great! Oh, you were so calm and collected up there, and your research was just impeccably supported, your citations were a thing of beauty, your MareLA formatting was effortless - you were perfect!” Starlight Glimmer gushed, pulling away to press an impetuous kiss against her grey cheek.
“Your performance was flawless! Is that my shimmer powder? Genius!” Trixie beamed, nuzzling against Maud’s other cheek. “I knew you had a show pony in you!”
“Did you see the students with the note cards? My idea!” Starlight Glimmer giggled, kicking her back hooves playfully where Maud held her a few inches off the ground. “I was so excited to help show off your thesis!”
“I made sure to tell the professors what a great speech that was before they left, too!” Trixie added, equally gleeful.
“I assumed you guys forgot about my defense today.” Maud said, in her usual flat tone, and the pair pulled away from their cuddle-session for a moment.
“What? No way!” Trixie gasped.
“Oh no, Maud! I’m sorry! I was in such a rush this morning - I completely forgot to wish you good luck!” Starlight Glimmer frowned, and reached forward to gently nuzzle Maud’s cheek. “I was so wrapped up in the school fair, and trying to coordinate the caterer and the reception, and organizing the students… I’m so sorry you felt forgotten, Em. I would never forget something so important to you, I promise. You two mean the world to me, much more than any school fair.”
“I forgot too!” Trixie gasped, this time guiltily, and she turned her sad gaze towards Maud. “Can you ever forgive Trixie?”
“Well, you didn’t really forget. I just felt a sense of loss at having my important day seemingly forgotten by the two fillies who mean the most to me. A classic case of miscommunication, remedied before any permanent damage was wrought.” Maud paused for a beat to consider the hot hors d'oeuvres table. “This reception is really nice, by the way.”
“Thank you. I wanted it to be the perfect surprise for you - Pinkie helped me find the caterer, and she volunteered to run the dessert table! She’s really proud of you, too.” Starlight beamed, and smoothed her hoof over Maud’s shoulder, admiring her. “We all are.”
“You must be starving by now! A good performance always works up an appetite for Trixie - I’m sure it’s the same for Trixie’s fillyfriend, the rock performer!” Trixie grinned at Maud, and took her hoof in her own. “Let’s go fill up a bunch of those teeny little snack plates, huh?”
“I’ll get us a table.” Starlight Glimmer laughed, and gave Maud a quick peck on her cheek. “Congratulations, Doctor Pie.”
“Thank you, Star.” Maud allowed one of her rare smiles to escape, warmed by the little glowing ember in her chest. “For everything.”
“That’s what your fillyfriends are for.” Starlight Glimmer murmured, and offered her a smile in return. “Will you get me a plate too?”
“No promifeff.” Trixie replied, her mouth already full of cheese danish.