//------------------------------// // 2 Welcome to Ponyville // Story: The Great and Powerful Trixieverse // by Lord King Cocoon //------------------------------// Awareness was beginning to return to Ocellus’s mind. She cracked her eyes open to see both Trixie and the interloper talking with each other. Before she could attempt to hide from the mystery mare while she was distracted, the gray mare spoke up, causing Ocellus to freeze up once again, “She’s awake.” Trixie looked towards the youngling to see that she was, in fact, awake. The relieved smile on her face was comforting, “Are you feeling okay now?” Trixie asked. Ocellus’s only reaction was to shift her eyes quickly to the gray mare. “Ocellus, breathe,” Trixie said, putting a hoof on her back to calm her down, “It’s okay, she’s a friend, and she understands. But if you don’t breathe, you’ll pass out again.” Ocellus took in a shaky breath before transforming back into her pony form. Despite knowing that it doesn’t make a difference, she still feels more comfortable in her pony form while others are around. It’s more for her own comfort than anything else. “Her name is Maud Pie, and she’s good at keeping secr-” Trixie stopped herself when she realized that her choice of words was inaccurate, “Maud is the type who doesn’t volunteer information unless directly asked about it. And because other Ponies likely wouldn’t have a reason to ask her about you being a Changeling, she’ll have no reason to reveal your secret.” “It’s not keeping a secret if nopony brings up the topic,” Maud elaborated. Ocellus looked up at Maud with confused curiosity, “So, your name is Maud?” Ocellus asked after a moment of hesitation. “My name is Maudalina Daisy Pie.” Maud explained in a monotone voice. Ocellus waited, feeling like there should be more to that statement, “So… why did Trixie just call you Maud?” Ocellus asked, “Is that what your friends call you for short?” “Yes.” There was another pause before Ocellus spoke up, “Mom wasn’t kidding when she said you don’t volunteer information,” Ocellus commented, “So, how did you start using that nickname?” “My friend, Rarity, gave it to me,” Maud said, “And when my sisters heard it, it stuck.” “You told me that you’re going to Ponyville to meet a friend,” Trixie said, “Is Rarity the friend you’re going to meet?” “Yes.” Trixie took out a list from her saddlebag and looked through it, “Aha! I knew I saw that name somewhere!” Trixie exclaimed, “Rarity is in charge of decorations for the Summer Sun Celebration. Is it alright if, after we get off the train, we follow you to see Rarity and check on how things are going on her end? It’ll make a convenient first stop.” “Yes.” “You said that your friends call you Maud, right?” Ocellus asked, “Since mom has been calling you Maud, does that mean you and Trixie are friends now?” Maud looked up to Trixie, then back down to Ocellus, the emotionless expression never leaving her face, “I guess it does.” The train pulled into Ponyville Station. Trixie and Ocellus, led by Maud, went to meet up with Rarity. Ocellus was overly excited to see this new environment, constantly pointing out places that she would like to see before they had to head back to Canterlot. Trixie smiled at the glee on the youngling’s face and made sure to mark each sightseeing location on a map of Ponyville she got for navigation. Seeing how filled this map was getting, she wrote a note in the corner: “Get new map” The trio of visitors was led to a large building that resembled a carousel. Trixie specifically took note of the fact that it appeared to be a shop of some sort. Maud knocked on the door. Trixie was a little confused as to why she’d knock on the door of a shop. Then she remembered that in many small towns like this one, business owners sometimes reside at the business they own. The door opened, revealing a white Unicorn mare with a stylized purple mane, “Welcome to Carousel Jewelers, where-” the white mare paused when she saw who was at the door. Her practiced smile grew into a much more genuine smile, “Maud! It’s so good to see you!” The mare hugged Maud in a greeting. Maud just stood there and accepted it. “It’s good to see you too, Rarity,” Maud replied after the hug was released. The mare, now identified as Rarity, saw the other two visitors, “Oh, and who are these two?” “This here is Ocellus,” Trixie said, motioning to the faux filly, “And you can call me the Grrreat and Powerful Trrrixie!” There was silence as Rarity just stared, unsure how to react. Trixie then toned it down with a bashful expression, “That is to say, my name is Trixie Lulamoon,” Trixie elaborated, “I’m here from Canterlot, sent by the Princess herself, to oversee the Summer Sun Celebration. Am I correct in assuming you are Rarity, the one in charge of decorations?” “Canterlot, you say?” Rarity asked, intrigued, “And sent by the Princess herself? Where are my manners? Please, come in.” The group walked into the shop to see lots of jewelry on display. Necklaces, bracelets, horn rings, earrings, rings for other piercings, crowns and tiaras, buttons, brooches, and plenty of other jewelry. Each of these items had several different gems of different colors, sizes, shapes, values, etcetera. Trixie gave a whistle at the sight of the jewelry, “Impressive. Making jewelry must be a real passion of yours,” Trixie complimented, “Where do you get so many gems from?” “My special talent is in finding gems. It just comes naturally to me,” Rarity explained as she showed off her cutie mark of three gems, a ruby, a sapphire, and an emerald, “And beauty is my passion. Jewelry is just how I express both my passion and my talent. Even before I earned my cutie mark, I knew I had a passion for fashion. But it wasn’t until I met Maud that I realized that costume design wasn’t my forte. Maud and her family helped to inspire a passion for precious gems thanks to their expertise in rocks and minerals. And despite how different we are, I do consider them like a second family.” “I’d love to hear more about that later,” Trixie said, “But do you have your designs ready for the Summer Sun Celebration?” “Of course. The decorations are ready to be put up, but that can wait until tomorrow,” Rarity said, “I assume you’ll be here to see them tomorrow when they’re up. But I do have the sketches drawn up.” Rarity levitated a cup of tea with her sketchbook over to Trixie to look over. Meanwhile, Ocellus chose to look at the jewelry in amazement. It was a good thing that she was there instead of Spike. If that dragon were to see all this jewelry, Rarity would lose a lot of money after he would’ve eaten everything there. “Hi!” Ocellus nearly jumped out of her fur at the sudden voice behind her. She turned around to see a white Unicorn filly with a pastel purple and pink mane and a large smile on her face. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you,” the filly said apologetically, “I’ve never seen you in Ponyville before. Are you visiting for the Summer Sun Celebration?” Ocellus recomposed herself, “Yeah, Princess Celly sent my mom specifically to oversee the celebration,” Ocellus explained, “My name’s Ocellus. What’s yours?” Ocellus held out her hoof. “I’m Sweetie Belle,” the filly said, taking the hoof and shaking it, “My big sister, Rarity, owns this shop. And she makes the best jewelry in Equestria!” “It’s the best jewelry I’ve ever seen,” Ocellus agreed, “How does she make so much jewelry?” “It’s related to her special talent,” Sweetie Belle said, “She has a special talent for finding gems. And she has an eye for beauty. You wanna try some of it on?” Ocellus’ muzzle spread into a gleeful, and perhaps slightly mischievous grin. Trixie took another sip of tea as she looked over another page of sketches. They were decent sketches for somepony whose special talent isn’t drawing related, “You do have an eye for aesthetics, don’t you?” Trixie asked rhetorically as she flipped through the pages. “But of course!” Rarity confirmed, “This is the Summer Sun Celebration, after all. That means that we are playing as hosts for the Princess herself. And this is the Millennial Summer Sun Celebration, which makes it extra special! So, of course, I would spare no expense for the event.” “I probably should come again tomorrow to see the final result,” Trixie agreed, “But if it looks anything like your sketches, I can only see these designs as receiving approval.” “Thank you. I do appreciate your opinion on the matter,” Rarity said, “If I may change the subject, I must ask you where you got that brooch on your cloak. It’s simply fabulous! Is that a moonstone?” “As a matter of fact, it is,” Trixie replied, “The brooch came with the cloak. I got it as a gift from one of my teachers at Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns. It’s a long story that involves how I got my cutie mark. And it’s more complicated than just being a gift. If you’re available after the Summer Sun Celebration, I’ll come by and tell you the story then. But right now, I-” “Mom, do I look pretty?” the voice of Ocellus called. The two adults looked to see Ocellus and Sweetie Belle both covered in jewelry that, if a dragon had seen them, would make them in serious danger of being eaten. “Sweetie Belle, what do you think you’re doing?” Rarity scolded, though her failure at hiding her smile betrayed her tone of voice, “You know better than to play with the inventory.” Trixie didn’t even try to hide the smile on her face. The fact was that it was a cute image, and the glee on Ocellus’ face only enhanced the experience. Ocellus ran up to Trixie, the massive amount of jewelry making her sound like a large sack of bits, “I made a new friend!” “Is that so?” Trixie asked rhetorically. She then looked towards the filly that clearly was related to Rarity. She then started taking off the horde Ocellus was wearing, “It looks like this trip has already been worth it for you. But I’m surprised that all of this jewelry isn’t weighing you down.” Trixie then thought of something as she whispered to the bedazzled beetle, “You didn’t ‘change’ in front of her, did you?” SHINK SHINK SHINK Even shaking her head no was like the sound of a silverware drawer. “How many times do I need to tell you that fashion is about quality, not quantity?” Rarity said as she had taken most of the jewelry off of Sweetie Belle, leaving only a couple of pieces on that truly did make her look fashionable. She then looked over to Trixie, “Although, I’m surprised to hear her call you ‘mom’. You seem young to be a mother.” “It’s complicated. But it’s more accurate to say I’m her surrogate mother,” Trixie explained, “We aren’t biologically related.” “Well, I suppose it’s not too different from Ponyville’s mail carrier,” Rarity said, “She and her little sister are orphans. But she takes care of the filly as a mother would. And her little sister was so young when they lost their parents that she refers to her older sister as her mother as well. Ditzy just doesn’t have it in her heart to correct her.” “How hard is it for those who know her to keep that secret?” Trixie asked, “And if the secret gets out, will her little sister take it well?” “It’s not as hard as you may think,” Rarity said, “Most of Ponyville doesn’t even know the truth. I only know because a friend of mine who does know let it slip during our weekly spa trip. Aside from the mail carrier herself, there are only seven ponies currently in Ponyville who knows the truth about them. And before you two came, it was only five. Myself, Sweetie Belle, and Maud know after all, and now you two. The last two know because they help out as much as they can. I believe they are in charge of music for the Millennial Summer Sun Celebration.” Trixie had taken everything off of the faux filly but held up an item that caught her attention, showing it to Rarity, “How much for this?” Trixie and Ocellus were on their way to their next destination. Ocellus was especially joyful as she was showing off a new necklace she was wearing. It was a steel necklace with an eye-shaped malachite stone embedded in it and a flower motif over the malachite. Trixie sighed at how much lighter her bit pouch felt. Five hundred bits lighter, to be specific. Rarity had offered a generous discount. But Trixie refused the discount because of just how much Rarity had spent on the Summer Sun Celebration. Rarity didn’t outright say it, but Trixie assumed Rarity’s business was in the red. So it helped out Rarity financially and made Ocellus happy. As much as Trixie would prefer to rely on herself financially, she was currently happy that she was the Princess’s student, a mentor who would gladly help out. The next thing on the list for today was music, provided by Octavia Melody and Vinyl Scratch*. The two of them are an odd couple. They were very different, despite being sisters. And their home reflects that difference. It looked like two houses were cut in half, and the two halves were then stitched together to make one. That split also extended to the lawn. The left half looked like a fancy traditional house with a flower garden in the yard. The right half looked like a more modern design with solar panels on the roof. The yard appeared to have a stage built with wood and a mesh frame for vines to grow on, including a disco ball of flowers. There was no denying how creative that structure was. The name ‘Octavia Melody’ was commonplace in Canterlot. She often had offers to play there because of her classical style and high-class demeanor. Vinyl Scratch on the other hand was an unknown. It was then that Trixie noticed an asterisk. She checked the notes to find the asterisk notes: *Vinyl Scratch is better known by her stage name, “DJ Pon3” DJ Pon3 is certainly a name that Trixie recognized as well. Though she’s not exactly popular in Canterlot because of her new-age style, she is still well known. But why would Ocavia and DJ Pon3 work together with music? Their styles are like the difference between day and night. But Trixie just assumed that they were sharing time so that there would be music that could appeal to multiple generations of ponies. Trixie knocked on the door and waited for a response. They waited momentarily before the door opened to reveal a gray Earth Pony filly with a white, braided mane and a pair of red-rimmed glasses. It was evident from the glasses that the filly’s eyesight was very bad without them, “Hello?” “Hello,” Trixie replied, “Is Octavia Melody and Vinyl Scratch home?” “My mom is away at the moment,” the filly said, “But aunt Vinyl is here. May I ask what you want them for?” “I’ve been sent by Princess Celestia to oversee the Summer Sun Celebration,” Trixie explained, “And it says here that Ocavia and Vinyl are in charge of the music.” The filly smiled, “My aunt is in the living room. She just got done practicing her music,” the filly led Trixie and Ocellus inside, “My name is Silver Spoon.” “I am the Princess’s personal protege, Trixie Lulamoon,” Trixie introduced herself to the filly, “And this is my daughter, Ocellus.” Ocellus just rolled her eyes at Trixie’s introduction. It was amusing nonetheless. As they headed inside, they were led into the room where they saw a white Unicorn with a messy electric blue mane and a cutie mark of a vinyl record with a couple of 8th notes, “Hey, aunt Vinyl, we have guest sent from Canterlot!” The filly called out. When the white mare turned to face the visitors, what caught Trixie’s attention was a burn scar on her neck, which was soon covered with a choker. But it wasn’t until she spoke that she realized that there was more to the choker than just covering the scar. “From Canterlot, huh?” the mare said, her voice sounding like it was coming through a radio speaker, “Are you the uptight snooty type of Canterlosian, or are you actually cool?” “Actually cool…I think,” Trixie said, unsure of her answer, and a little off-put by the radio speaker voice, “If it means anything, I’m originally from Las Pegasus before I was accepted into Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns, and as Celestia’s personal student.” “Las Pegasus is cool. I just hope Canterlot didn’t rub off on you too much,” the mare said with a chuckle, “The name’s Vinyl Scratch. But you likely know me better by my stage name, DJ Pon3. And just to answer the questions I know are on your mind, I was struck by lightning during the Rainbow Storm, hitting my throat and damaging my vocal cords. This choker is a magical speaker that allows me to speak. Without it, I’m mute.” “Is there a specific reason why you told me this without asking?” Trixie asked. “It’s simple. It’s a question that’s always on everypony’s mind when they see the choker, see the scar, or hear my voice coming out of a speaker,” Vinyl Scratch explained, “And almost everypony asks about it. And even if the question isn’t asked, I know it’s on their minds. So I got into the habit of explaining the situation to ponies before being asked. Not only does it explain it upfront, but it saves ponies from feeling awkward about asking about it or eyeing it if they haven’t asked.” “So you get straight to the point. I like that,” Trixie said, “As I told your niece, I was sent by Princess Celestia to oversee the Summer Sun Celebration. You and Octavia Melody are listed as in charge of the music.” “Yep,” Vinyl said simply, “I assume you’ve already checked on Rarity’s designs.” “How did-” “The necklace,” Vinyl said, cutting Trixie’s question off and motioning to Ocellus’ neck, “Rarity’s jewelry is clearly recognizable. I remember seeing that necklace, and that it was one of the more expensive items.” A thought came to Trixie’s mind, “Did Rarity make that choker for you?” “Yeah, she did. She preferred to make something more ‘Canterlot worthy’, but it ain't my syle,” Vinyl answered, “The enchantment that allows me to speak was done separately since Rarity doesn’t know the spell. We should wait until Octy gets back to talk about music since she’s part of it too. She’ll be back in about an hour.” “I suppose we have time to spend,” Trixie said, sitting down and engaging in idle conversation.