“Can I open my eyes yet?” I ask as I’m led by hoof through Appletini’s house. She woke me up earlier (which I don’t mind, seeing as I was having yet another nightmare), to tell me that she had a present for me in the living room. But she doesn’t want me to open my eyes until I get there, hence, she’s leading me through the house, very slowly.
“Almost there. Just a little bit more…” I round a corner, and slow to a stop as Appletini does. We must be there. What could she have possibly gotten me? I’m kind of excited, actually. Nopony’s ever got me a present before. Well, fans used to bring me flowers and refreshments after my shows, back before that stupid ursa minor incident ruined everything! But I had never gotten a real present before. “Okay, you can open your eyes now!”
I remove the blindfold almost immediately, and see… nothing in front of me. Maybe it’s to my left? My right? Nothing… I don’t get it. Where’s the present? “Appletini?”
She’s laughing at me… Not a mocking laughter, or one filled with malice. Just an innocent, light-hearted giggle, I’m sure of it… “What?”
“Try looking up.”
Up? What, at the ceiling? Is my present something that flies around, and attaches to walls and ceilings? If so, could she have gotten me a pet? I’ve never had a pet before. Taking care of myself was enough of chore as it is, I didn’t really have the resources to care for a pet as well.
I tilt my head up, but there’s nothing there. Nothing except for the living room lights, and I’m sure that’s not my present. Wait, I felt something just now… Something just fell off of my head. I turn around, to see what it was… and there on the floor, looking better than I could ever remember, is my hat. My purple, star-patterned hat, sparkling clean, and looking so good that you wouldn’t even be able to tell that it was damaged at all before!
“Appletini…” I’m not sure what else to say. This hat and my cape have seen me through some hard times, and in a way, they have become part of me. When I lost my original set, I had to make some new ones, and when I lost those, I had to make another, and another… Eventually, I just gave up, in favour of a black cloak that would hide my face from those around me.
But before leaving Ponyville for the second time, that white Unicorn, Charity, I think, gave me a brand-new hat and cape. I still don’t really understand why she did it, but I suspect it was just to get me out of there or something. Still, they fit quite snugly (which is strange, considering I never gave that mare my measurements), and have kept me warm through the coldest of days. This time, I swore to never let anypony get me down, and to never abandon my stage clothes… Well, at least I was able to do one of those things.
“Yup!” Appletini walks up to my hat lying on the floor, and picks it up for me. She gently places it on my head, and I can feel its warmth covering my horn once more. “Now you can go outside! Isn’t that great?”
“… Yeah… great…” Truthfully, I still don’t think that I’m ready. Whilst Appletini may be on my side, and Azure is on hers, that still leaves an entire Empire out there, and I have no idea where they stand! Unfortunately, I have to leave. Because I still have to fix Appletini’s vase, before she finds out that I broke it. “I-In fact, I think I’ll go take a stroll outside right now!”
“Are you sure?” She looks concerned. “I mean, I don’t doubt that you’ll keep your identity hidden, but… are you sure you’re ready to go out by yourself?”
“… I’m just going to take a look around, so that I know where things are. I’m not going out to socialise or anything.” I can’t let her come with me. I have to find somewhere to get her vase fixed without her knowing. “And, I’d rather not have you waste your time, leading me around.”
“I don’t mind. Today’s my day off, after all!”
I have to think of something! “Even worse! You can’t waste your precious time off for my sake! Really, I’ll be fine! No need to worry about me at all.” She stares at me for a few seconds, her face completely unreadable to me. Is she buying it? Is she suspicious? What should I do? How can I get her to-
“Okay.”
Maybe if I try telling her that-Wait, did she just say what I think she did. “O-Okay?”
“Yeah. If you say that you’ll be fine, then I’ll believe you. And it’s not like you’re a child or anything.” She turns around, and walks towards the kitchen. “The ponies here are nice, and I have faith that you’ll be just fine on your own! And if you want to go alone, then even better.” She turns back to me, with that reassuring smile on her face again. “Have fun, Trixie! … Oh, wait! Have you decided on an alias? That is, if you want to use one.”
“… Will-o-Wisp.” That’s what my name will be from now on. Trixie Lulamoon is dead now. Hopefully, Will-o-Wisp will have the break in life that I never got. But… “But, can you still call me Trixie, when we’re alone?” It’s sad to just let Trixie die, without anypony to remember her, or notice that she’s gone.
“Of course I can.” I can tell that she means it. She smiles at me, and I smile back. Who would have thought, that I’d ever be able to do such a thing ever again? “I suggest you stay away from the district borders for now. The Royal Guard is still looking for you, and they’ve increased security on the borders. Azure can protect you in the 47th district, but outside of that, you’ll be on your own.”
“That’s nothing new for me.” I only meant that as a joke, but I guess it wasn’t funny, from the frown on her face. “… I’ll stay well away from the borders. I’m not going to be alone again.”
“… Darn right you’re not!” She’s smiling again. That’s good. I hate seeing her sad, after all she’s done for me. And I certainly don’t want to be the cause of her sadness. “Well then, I guess I’ll go read my book! I started it one thousand years ago, maybe now I can finish it!” We share a quick laugh together. “Oh, and your cape is by the front door.”
I nod me head, and then make my way to the front door, whilst she walks into the kitchen. My cape is indeed hanging by the door, on a hook attached to the wall. My hat will draw enough attention as it is, but if I wear it on its own, it may look suspicious. I had better wear the entire costume, just to be safe.
The Crystal Empire truly is a beautiful place. After leaving Appletini’s house, I decide to start by heading left, past various other houses. After about ten minutes of walking, and making sure I don’t make eye contact with the ponies around me, I find myself in what appears to be a marketplace.
There are a lot of ponies here, buying and selling various goods. Crystal fruits, crystal vegetables, crystal drinks, flugelhorns… I’m not quite sure what a flugelhorn is, but from the way it looks, I’m guessing some kind of musical instrument.
“Hi there.” Another pony stops to greet me. I only respond with a wave, and tilt my hat down, to hide my face.
Some ponies must have recognised me from my little performance a few days ago. Azure assured me that he had convinced them that I was an ordinary Crystal Pony, but that doesn’t exactly stop them from looking at me, possibly judging my every action, just like everypony else does. It doesn’t stop them from talking about me under their breaths, probably mocking me, and planning how to humiliate me, and drive me out of their district. Or maybe even out of the Empire.
“Excuse me, miss.” And here it comes. I’d better prepare a spell, just to be on the safe side. My energy has recovered, so I can conjure up a quick smokescreen spell to run away. I can’t fight them; Appletini would surely side with them sooner than me if I did that.
“Yes?” I ask as I turn around. I see a stallion standing before me, wearing a white apron, and looking at me with a concerned look on his face.
“Are you okay? You look rather dull…”
Dull? What does that mean? Is he telling me that I’m boring? Sorry pal, but I’ve heard much worse than that. You’ll have to try harder to break my spirits. “Is that so?”
“Yeah… I don’t know what’s wrong, but cheer up!” Cheer up? Wait, isn’t he… Why is he asking me to cheer up, when he’s trying to mock me? “Ah! You’re getting duller!”
What is he on about? I’m getting duller? And why is he looking over my body? What’s… Oh. My coat. That’s right, Appletini mentioned something about Crystal Ponies react to their emotions by becoming ‘dull’ when they’re depressed, and ‘bright’ when they’re happy. Apparently, the Crystal Heart’s influence is affecting my body, making it copy this aspect of the Crystal Ponies.
“Miss, are you alright?” I turn to my left to see a mare standing beside me, also with a concerned look on her face. “Would you like to come and talk to me? I’m on my break right now.”
“T-Talk to you? About what?” What is with these ponies?
“About your problems, of course! Wait… you’re that new pony, aren’t you?” I nod. “Well, here in the 47th district, we don’t like to see dull coats walking around! That’s why, if you’re ever feeling depressed, you can always count on those around you to lend an ear, and offer some advice.”
‘Advice?’ Is she saying that she wants to help me? Like Appletini? Should I trust her? I got lucky with Appletini, but I doubt I’ll find two trustworthy ponies, so close to each other. “I’m fine, really.”
“You’re a performer, if I recall correctly, aren’t you?” the stallion asks. I turn back to him and nod. “Why don’t you put on a show for us? Business has been slow today, what with everypony exhausted from cleaning up after the fair, and it maybe it’ll cheer you up!”
“… You… want me to perform?” The stallion and mare both nod, and a few ponies around them that just happened to overhear the conversation seemed to be interested in the idea of me putting on a show. I can’t believe it… For the past two years, ponies have been doing all that they can to make sure I don’t perform, but now, here I am, surrounded by ponies I’ve never met before, and they are not only giving me permission, but requesting me to put on a show!
I haven’t performed in such a long time… I miss it. I miss standing up on that stage, displaying my wonderful magic to my admiring fans, sharing my stories of awe and wonder with my enthusiastic audience, and basking in their praise every time I performed one of my tricks.
But, what if they just want me up onstage so that they can humiliate me during my performance? What if this is all just a front, and they’re just trying to make me lower my guard? I wouldn’t put it past them. Even if I don’t know them, they are ponies, and that’s reason enough to doubt them.
Even so, the idea of being able to perform again is just too appealing, and I would like to cast a little magic, after spending two days recovering from a fever… “I guess… I can spare some time…”
“Awesome!” The stallion turns around and waves to a group of ponies behind him. “Hey guys, take five! Miss…”
… Oh, he’s waiting for my name. “Tr-Will-o-Wisp.”
“… Miss Will-o-Wisp is gonna put on a show for us!”
Suddenly, ponies from all over the marketplace begin to gather around. To me, it looks just like the angry mobs that would gather around in towns that didn’t want me… Well, minus the smiles. But smiles are easy to fake. I had better be careful.
“Here,” the mare from earlier says as she places something beside me. “You’ll need a stage to perform on, right?”
“R-Right…” I climb onto the small box to my right. This feels like when I did my first performance, back when I was just a little filly… I was probably just as nervous back then as I am right now. Although back then, it was through lack of confidence in my ability. This time, I’m just keeping my eyes on everypony around me, waiting for ever the slightest hint of malice from any of them.
“Well?” the stallion asks, looking at me expectantly.
I should start off with something simple. Save the best tricks for last. But I don’t want to bore them, so I have to try and put some glamour behind it. “W-Well then… to start, may I have a volunteer from the audience?” Having a volunteer by my side will ensure they won’t start throwing things at me all of a sudden. To my surprise, a lot of ponies raise their hooves. I’ll just pick that stallion at the front, the one with the white apron.
He climbs onto my stage, and I ask him to introduce himself. His name is Merch, and he is the head of the 47th district’s branch of the Merchant’s Guild. What that means exactly, I’m not sure. Maybe I’ll ask Appletini later. But for now… I charge some magic into my horn, and quickly remember what Azure had said yesterday. I cast another spell to make my hooves glow with a purple aura, and then perform my main trick. Before me, a bouquet of flowers appear seemingly out of nowhere, earning a round of applause from my audience.
“And now, watch as I make these lovely flowers disappear…” I throw the bouquet in the air, and as the audience watch it fly up into the air, I cast my next spell. The bouquet disappears, and the ponies to gasp collectively. “… And then reappear in my lovely assistant’s apron pocket!” I’m starting to get into this. I’d better not let down my guard.
Merch checks his apron pocket, and pulls out the same bouquet as before. “Amazing! How did you-”
My body acts on instinct at the question that I know is coming. “A magician does not reveal their secrets,” I answer, and then dismiss the stallion as the audience applauds. I then turn back to them. I’m feeling a little more confident now… but I’m still not going to give them the chance to humiliate me. “For my next trick…”
I don’t understand. What happened? I performed trick after trick after trick, and the audience loved it. They praised me, they cheered for me, and they requested more. And not once, during the entire show, did anypony ever demand that I stop, or tell me that I was terrible, or anything of the sorts.
Why did they do that? Why did they accept me? What makes them different from the ponies in Equestria? Is it the Crystal Heart? Or is it something else? I don’t know what it is, but when I was up there, performing to my heart’s content, I could feel their love for my show flowing into me, warming my very soul.
Earlier, my coat was so dull that I stood out easily in this bright, sparkling city. Now, my coat is every bit as bright as the ponies around me, and I can’t get this big, goofy smile off of my face! Stop it! I’m showing weakness! Ponies will attack me if I don’t seem tough enough to defend myself! Stop… smiling!
“That truly was a great performance, Will-o-Wisp.” And why did I agree to walk home with this mare – Aurora – anyway?
“Thanks… not many ponies think so.”
“Really? How could they not? It’s nice to be able to unwind every now and then, and ponies like you are just what we need to do that. Work is tough, and with all that needs to be done to recover from King Sombra’s reign, what we really need right now is entertainment.”
“But what about the jousting tournaments, and all the fun events that go on at the Crystal Fairs?”
“Well, yes, those help. But I mean in everyday life. Your magic is phenomenal, and I was practically on the edge of my seat watching all of your ticks up there! Wondering what you would do next, and trying to figure out just how you pulled off all of your other tricks… Though, I can’t help but feel that you were lacking in spirit up there. Like you weren’t too sure of your own abilities…”
“That’s not true…” It really wasn’t. It’s the ponies here I lack faith in… They act nothing like ponies! They act like… like something out of a fairytale! They actually accepted me up there. They actually loved my performance. Or if they didn’t, they at least had the courtesy not to vocalise it!
… Oh! Oh no! I had been enjoying finally being able to perform again, I completely forgot why I had come out here! “Excuse me, but do you know anypony that knows how to repair vases?”
“Repair vases?” I nod. “Hmmm… If you’re looking for somepony like that, I would suggest you pay a visit to Crafts Fare. He knows all of the ponies in this district whose special talents involve handicrafts and the like, so he should be able to point you in the right direction. His address is… Oh, here, let me write it down for you…”
She pulls out a piece of paper and a quill from her saddlebag, and writes something down for me. She hands me the paper. It’s an address… I don’t understand it, but I guess, if I ask around, I could probably find it no problem. “Thank you.”
“It’s quite alright, deary.” She stops in front of a house, and tells me that this is where she lives. She waves goodbye to me, and I wave back… that smile still on my face.
I’d better take a moment to wipe this thing off. I can’t be caught wearing such an expression on my face. It’d be an open invitation for somepony to kick me down while I’m actually happy.
…
Alright, smile’s gone! Now to get back home, gather up the broken vase, and find this ‘Crafts Fare’ pony, before Appletini notices anything at all!
I walk through the front door of Appletini’s house. I’d better call out to her, to make certain of where she is. “Appletini?” I receive no answer. “Hello?” Nothing. I guess she must be out. Excellent! Now is an opportune moment to gather the fragments of the broken vase, and sneak them out of the house, before she notices them!
I’ll just walk on over to this closet here, open it up, and… Where are they? Where are the vase fragments that I hide in here? I’m sure I hid them right here. Where could they have gone?!
…
Oh, no. Oh, no no no no NO! “Apple-” It’s as I feared. Sitting in the living, on the table in the centre, are the fragments of the broken vase. And, sitting beside the broken fragments, is Appletini. She is moving some of the fragments around, seemingly trying to fit them together again. And there are tears falling out of her eyes.
She turns around and looks at me. “Trixie…” No… Don’t look at me like that. Please… Please smile, Appletini. “Trixie, what happened to my vase?” Please, don’t look at me with those sad eyes! I don’t… want to see you so sad. “It’s in pieces…” It’s just a regular old vase, right? Even if it was expensive, I’m sure you can always just buy a new one. I’ll even help you! I’ll find a job, and raise the money for you to buy a new vase, so- “My grandfather’s favourite vase… it’s ruined…”
… No way. There’s… There’s no way that this can be happening to me. Just when I had finally found it. The place where I can feel safe. The place where I am actually wanted… I can’t… I can’t just lose it, so soon after finding it!
“Appletini, I-”
“This was my grandfather’s favourite vase! This meant more to him than his life, and now it’s in pieces!” She’s… She’s screaming at me. The usually calm, happy Appletini… I guess… I guess that that’s it, then. “How? How could this…” Those tears are my fault. There’s no way I can stay here anymore…
“I’m sorry.” That’s all I can offer her. Just those two simple words, followed by me bolting out of that door, destined to never return, ever again.
I’m sorry, Appletini. And thank you… Thank you for everything. I know I couldn’t stay with you forever, but I do wish I could have stayed a little longer… Still, I guess I’ve already overstayed my welcome, huh?
… There’s a familiar feeling. My tears, flowing down my face. My vision becoming blurry as a result of my crying. My chest feeling heavy as I choke back my sobs, and legs slowing down to a stop, so that I can wipe away my tears.
I know I have no right to be crying right now. After all, I broke something so important to Appletini. After all that she’s done for me, all I’ve been able to do return is make her cry. Maybe… Maybe I do deserve to just live on my own, away from all forms of society…
“Are you okay?”
W-Who’s that?! I quickly turn around, and see a tall, shadowy figure approaching me.
“Are you crying? Please, tell me what is wrong.”
The figure approaches me, and I can make out the colour pink on their coat… and the wings sticking out of their side… Wait, wings? But, Crystal Ponies don’t have wings.
“I hate to see one of my subjects in pain.”
She has a horn, too! W-Who is this pony? Could she be… Princess Mi Amore Cadenza? Then, that means…
“There’s no need to be afraid. I’m not going to harm you.”
An Equestrian… An Equestrian is walking towards me! “G-Get away from me!” That doesn’t seem to work. I-I’ve got to run. I’ve got to run away, now!”
“Please, tell me what is bothering you, my little pony.”
“NO! GET BACK!” I try to turn around and run, but it’s no use. My body is frozen with fear. I can’t move at all! She’s getting closer, and closer! She’ll find out who I am, and she’ll force me back to Equestria! And then, I’ll be forced to deal with the hate-filled glares of the ponies there! Their mocking laughter, their taunting echoes! And then, I’ll be forced to sleep all on my own, out in the cold rain, or in a dark forest, with nothing but wild animals to keep me company!
“You need not fear me. I only wish to help you.”
This is it. It’s over. She’s right in front of me, and she’s looking down, right into my eyes! She’s extending her wings, and moving in to finish me off! It’s over! It’s all over!