//------------------------------// // Chapter 10 // Story: I Woke Up In My Favorite TV Show, But Before I Could Do Anything, I Was Recruited By The Villainess! // by Leafdoggy //------------------------------// “Well,” Starlight said, “let’s get going then.” “Wh- Just like that?” I asked. “Don’t you need to, like, get ready?” “Nah, I don’t really need any of this stuff. I’ve got it all memorized by now anyway.” She stood up and made her way to the door, then turned around and gave us an impatient look. “Well? There’s no reason to stick around here, is there?” “I guess not…” I looked at Trixie, but she just shrugged. “Well, at least bring the staff,” I said, pointing to where she’d dropped it on the ground. “Oh, don’t worry about that,” Starlight said. “It’s just a branch I found.” “No, it’s definitely some kind of magical artifact,” I told her. “I promised Twilight I’d bring it back to her. It was in one of her books.” “Really?” Starlight grabbed the staff with her magic and floated it over to herself, eyeing it carefully. “Well, if that’s true, I’m not about to just hand it over to some random pony I’ve never met. I found it, after all.” “But… Twilight’s not going to be happy if I’m not able to get it to her,” I said. “Tough,” Starlight replied. “It wasn’t yours to promise away in the first place.” Testing the staff, she spun it around in the air a couple times before slamming it dramatically on the floor. “Besides, I kinda like it. If it’s actually magic, I could get used to using a staff.” “She kind of has a point,” Trixie said. “She did find it. Twilight’s just being greedy if she thinks she’s owed it.” “But…” I sighed. “Yeah, I guess you’re right. Twilight will understand. Hopefully.” “Good. Now, shall we?” Starlight gestured for us to follow, and led us out of her house and into town. “You’ve got a wagon up on top of the hill, yes? I hope it has room for three.” “Aww,” Trixie groaned, “does that mean you won’t be able to just teleport us back?” Starlight scoffed. “Seriously? Teleport three ponies and a wagon? I could get us a few paces, maybe, but nopony is that strong. You’re a unicorn, you should know that!” “I do!” Trixie huffed, offended at the implication that she was lacking in knowledge. “Of course I do, it’s just that Starfall hyped you up so much, I doubted my common sense!” “I mean, I still feel like she could if she had an Element,” I argued. “Or maybe that staff can power her up enough to do it. Who knows?” Starlight rolled her eyes. “That’s just naive.” “Wait, hang on,” I said, interrupting the conversation. We’d made it to the edge of town, and I stopped the group. “Starlight, don’t you wanna go say goodbye to your friends?” Starlight gave me a questioning look. “What friends? I don’t have any friends.” “Uhh… Yeah, you do,” I told her. “Everypony in town here is your friend.” “They barely know me,” Starlight argued. “Most of them probably don’t even know my name.” “Starlight,” Trixie cut in, “they locked us in a house to protect you. They totally care about you.” “You don’t know what you’re talking about,” Starlight told us. “I don’t have friends.” I sighed. “Look, friends or not, they’re gonna worry if you run off without saying goodbye, right? You can’t just disappear from a town this small without being noticed. So, go put their minds at ease, at least. Please?” Starlight groaned. “I’m just gonna annoy them if I barge into their spaces and start acting like somepony they care about.” “Please?” I repeated. “For me?” “Ughhh, fine!” Starlight huffed and turned around. “I’ll meet you up at the wagon, then.” With that, she stomped away towards the nearest house. Trixie and I watched her for a second, then turned and continued on to the cart. We waited quietly, neither of us having anything to talk about, and a few minutes later Starlight appeared before us with a pop and a burst of purple magic. “Gah!” Trixie jumped in surprise. “Geez, do you have to scare us like that?” “Starfall didn’t seem scared,” Starlight said. “She just doesn’t show it!” Trixie argued. I shook my head. “No, I was just expecting her to show up like that. Really, I don’t get why you—” “Shut up!” Trixie cut me off. “You were scared! Trixie could see it in your eyes!” I rolled my eyes. “Sure, whatever you say.” Then, I turned to Starlight, and gestured towards her staff. “So, did you wanna try and see if you can teleport us further with that thing?” “I have been studying this staff for weeks,” Starlight said, “and seen no indication of magical power within it. If it’s truly some manner of artifact, it’s going to take much more research to determine what it does, how powerful it is, how to activate it, or really anything at all about it!” “Can I try it?” Trixie asked. Starlight chuckled under her breath. “You’re welcome to try,” she said as she passed it over. Trixie grabbed it with her magic and turned it around slowly in front of herself. “Hmm… Mmhmm… Yeah, so…” She mumbled to herself as she examined it. “Really, I don’t know what she hoped to find,” Starlight said to me. “It’s not as if there’s some button on the base to press that turns it on. I’ve tried everything, that staff is dormant at best, and really, I would assume it’s lost all power it ever had! If it ever even had any to—” BOOM Starlight was cut off by a massive noise and a flash of blinding light as a blast of power shot out of the staff and into the sky. The shining blue beam rocketed upwards and pierced through the cloud cover above, leaving a massive, swirling hole where it passed through that showed the clear sky beyond. “W-W-W-W—” Starlight stammered, struggling for words. “WHAT? That’s impossible! There’s no way somepony else could find power in that staff when I couldn’t! Th-that must have been the Element! Yes, that’s right, your Element empowered your magic, and you’re just trying to trick me! Well, I don’t appreciate it, not one bit!” Trixie was stunned by the blast, momentarily too shaken to respond, until finally she shook her head and turned to Starlight. “Uh… No, that was definitely the staff…” “HOW?” Starlight snatched the staff back from Trixie and started frantically looking all over it. “How could you figure it out when I couldn’t? It’s impossible!” Trixie shrugged. “I’m a magician,” she explained. “Magic tricks and gadgets are my job.” “Gadgets?” Starlight stared at her. “A magical artifact is not a gadget!” Trixie huffed. “Well, if you’re so sure of yourself, then clearly Trixie doesn’t need to explain how she got it to work! You can figure it out all on your own, right?” “Wh-” Starlight glared at her. “Oh, come on! You must see why I’m so surprised. I mean, it’s… It’s inconceivable! Seriously, what did you do? It makes no sense!” “Nope.” Trixie stuck her tongue out at Starlight. “Not telling.” “Grrr….” Starlight growled at Trixie. “You cocky little…” “Hey, hey, hey!” I cut in and moved to stand between the two. “Come on, we’re supposed to be friends! We can’t be fighting like this. Trixie, don’t gloat, and Starlight, don’t insult your friends! I mean, come on!” “I insulted nopony!” Starlight scowled. “I merely pointed out the fact that I’m smarter than her!” “Hah!” Trixie forced out a laugh, but she was clearly livid. “Smarter? A ditzy unicorn who can’t even figure out how to use a magic staff? Trixie has never heard anything so absurd!” “D-Ditzy?? How dare you! Why, I’m—” “Okay, time out!” I shouted over their bickering. “Look, I don’t want to sit here arguing all day, okay? So, both of you just apologize, and Trixie, tell her how to use the staff. Otherwise, we’re walking all the way back home, remember?” “So? That’s hardly Trixie’s problem,” Trixie said. She stuck her nose in the air, walked over to her wagon, and strapped herself into the reigns. “Trixie can walk home just fine,” she said as she began to turn the cart around and head back down the path we showed up from. “She certainly doesn’t need the help of some uppity unicorn who can’t even see The Great and Powerful Trixie’s genius.” “Oh, please,” Starlight replied. She hurried down the path so she was beside Trixie and could properly glare at her. “Great and Powerful? Don’t make me laugh. More like gimmicky and insecure!” “Oh, Trixie is immature, is she? Well, she isn’t the pony who resorts to base insults the moment somepony outshines her! Unlike some unicorns she knows.” “Again, I did not insult anypony! It isn’t my fault you can’t handle hearing the truth! Anypony who looks at us could see—” Trying my best to tune out the shouting match, I groaned loudly, hung my head, and slowly trodded along after the two of them. It was going to be a long trek home.