//------------------------------// // The Past of an Unlucky Unicorn // Story: Northern Lights // by MysteriousStranger //------------------------------// “I said I was sorry, mom!” Aurora shouted through her tears. “Saying sorry isn’t enough, Aurora! I told you not to enter any caves, but you disobeyed me!” Twilight was furious, she was yelling like she never did before. They were alone in Aurora and Spike’s room. Fluttershy couldn’t stand the yelling, so she went downstairs with the company of Spike and Angel Bunny. They'd arrived home half an hour ago. “I… I thought I could handle it, since Spike…” “Spike is a baby dragon! I literally looked after him since the day he was born. He’s used to being around ponies. But that was a wild dragon that was born away from ponies-- it's not the same!” Aurora sobbed, but didn’t say anything. “Dragons don’t like when somepony enters their cave and tries to take their belongings. They're very greedy about gems!” “I didn’t know!” The filly suddenly exclaimed, covering her mouth with her hooves. Twilight glared at her, but she then sighed. “I suppose that it’s my fault, too… I should've told you before…” The lavender Unicorn said calmly before turning and trotting to the door. After opening it, she spoke without looking back at her daughter. “You’re grounded for three weeks.” “What!? That’s not fair!” “You’re right.” Twilight glanced back at Aurora with an emotionless expression. “I should be grounding you for two months.” Aurora gulped before replying sheepishly. “Three weeks doesn’t sounds so bad.” “I thought so. You're also forbidden from leaving your room until dinner. You have a lot to think about, little girl.” Twilight turned again and she left the room, ignoring her daughter's crying as she closed the door behind her.A lone tear escaped from one of Twiligh's eyes, but she removed it with a hoof. It was hard for her to do this, but Aurora had to learn that there was a punishment for disobeying. She slowly walked downstairs and went to the living room where her wife was sitting on the couch by herself. The Pegasus glanced up when she heard somepony coming. “You… weren’t too hash on her, were you…?” Fluttershy asked softly. “She has to learn, honey… I tried not to, but she put her friends in danger. I should've told her more about wild dragons before…” Twilight sat on the couch right next to her wife, with her hooves on her own lap. Her eyes were focused on them and her shoulders were hunched. Fluttershy put one of her hooves on Twilight's. “It’s as much your fault as it is mine. We should have seen it coming. We never told her anything, and because of that, she thought that all dragons were like Spike…” Fluttershy waited for Twilight to say something but she didn't say anything. She only moved when she breathed. Fluttershy moved closer and hugged her. “The important thing is that everypony's okay.” Fluttershy said before kissed her head. Twilight returned her embrace. “We're lucky that Trixie was there to help them.” “Yes… She said she would be stopping by soon.” Twilight, then moved her head so her sight was trained on the extinguished fireplace. “I’m in debt with that pony… First, she saved you, and now she saved our daughter… I don’t know how to repay her…” “You’ll find a way, love, but you did a lot for her, too. You introduced her to Zecora so her magic could improve, she’s successful now and most importantly, you gave her your friendship. We all did.” The Pegasus used one of her hooves to move Twilight's head so she was looking at her. Fluttershy kissed her on her lips, then her cheek and finally her neck before resting her head on the Unicorn's mane in a hug. Twilight returned it, but she was still depressed. They were holding each other for around ten minutes before there was a knock on the door. “I’ll get it.” The timid pony said as she went to the door and opened it. “Oh, Trixie! Come in, I’ll make some tea.” Twilight stood up and went to greet their visitor. “Thanks, Fluttershy. I could use something to drink.” Trixie commented as she entered the cottage. “Hello, Twilight.” "Trixie... I--" The blue Unicorn interrupted her friend by raising a hoof in front of her, already knowing what Twilight was going to say. “Please, I have already said that it wasn’t a problem. I couldn’t leave fillies alone with a dragon.” Trixie took off her coat and bag and she put them on a chair before continuing speaking again. “We have much to discuss, but first… How is she?” “Grounded, three weeks. She won’t be joining us today; she’s forbidden from leaving her room until dinner.” “Poor girl, but it’s only fair… She can’t escape from her punishment…” Trixie said, concerned. Fluttershy came from the kitchen seconds later. “It’s the only way she'll learn from her mistakes…” The Pegasus put three tea cups with tea sacks in them on the table. The three mares took a seat. “Oh, honey, where are Spike, Angel and Owlowiscious?” Twilight inquired as soon as she realized that they weren’t there. “They couldn’t stand the yelling, so they went into town…” Fluttershy answered with a sad expression, but she then smiled and looked at the blue Unicorn. “So, how’s your career going, Trixie?” “It’s wonderful. I brought you presents from Fillydelphia.” Trixie magically took three boxes from her bag. “This is for you, Twilight, and this is for you, Fluttershy. I have one for Aurora, too… I wanted to give it to her personally, but…” “You can give it to her if you stay for dinner, Trixie.” Twilight suggested as she took Aurora’s gift, which was a big one, and put it inside a drawer. “I would love to, but I want to visit the rest of the ponies. I got presents for them too, now that I can afford them, and then I’m going back to Zecora’s to sleep.” Twilight sighed. “I understand… maybe another time.” In that moment, they could hear a whistle coming from the kitchen. “The tea is ready!” The Pegasus said as she went to the kitchen. She returned moments later with the teapot. She served the guest first, then her wife, and herself last. The mares sipped their drinks before continuing talking. “So, is Pinkie’s husband back?” Trixie asked with interest. “He got back a few months ago, but he left after two weeks… It’s not easy being a royal guard, believe me, my brother was their captain before he went with Princess Cadence to the Crystal Empire…” Twilight replied. “I’m sure it isn’t. Poor Pinkie Pie and Cutie... I think I’m going to visit them next. I’m sure they will like their gifts! Speaking of which, open yours! I want to see if you like them!” Twilight and Fluttershy opened their presents. Their eyes widened and a smile appeared on their faces when they saw the gifts. They both had a small figure of themselves made of wood. They were standing on a pedestal with a plaque that read: Thank You. The couple looked at their friend, smiling. “We're the ones who should be thanking you, Trixie…” Fluttershy happily said. “I’m glad that you like them.” The blue Unicorn grinned and took another sip of her tea. “This is delicious, Fluttershy!” “Thank you.” The timid pony looked away sheepishly, then took another sip herself. “So, how did you happen to appear just in time to save the girls?” She asked after putting her tea cup back on the table. “It was just a coincidence, really. I was walking down the road and I thought I saw somepony walking in the cave, then I saw the rest of the fillies entering as well. I tried to get inside to stop them, but I heard a roar and saw all of them getting out. As soon as they got out, I blocked the entrance to make sure the dragon couldn't escape. If you hadn't shown up, the barrier would have been broken...” Trixie told her story, staring at her tea. She, then, looked back at her friends when she finished. “We also heard the roar.” Twilight spoke after several moments of silence had passed. “All of Ponyville did. There was no doubt that it came from a dragon. When the whole town trotted to their homes for safety, we and our friends followed the roar, knowing that our fillies were still out there. We couldn’t just leave them alone... We were so relieved when we found you there, Trixie. If it weren’t for you…” “Twilight, I did what anypony would have done. I’m just glad that I arrived on time.” The magician ponny said with a warm smile. The mares finished their tea soon after. “Oh, finished already? Sorry girls, but I have to go visit the rest of our friends. I’ll talk to you tomorrow!” Trixie put her coat and saddlebag on and headed to the door. “Trixie, wait!” Twilight called her friend when she had opened the door with her magic. The lavender Unicorn opened the drawer in which she put Aurora’s gift and took it out with her magic. She headed to where Trixie was. “Go upstairs and give it to Aurora…” Trixie took the gift with her magic, surprised. “And tell her… that she can come down…” “I will.” Trixie said, recovering her smile as she headed upstairs. She knocked on the door before entering the bedroom. Aurora looked at her and jumped in surprise when she saw her visitor. “Auntie Trixie! I thought I heard you… But, I’m not allowed to leave my room.” The blue unicorn glanced at the filly. Taking a full look at her appearance. She didn’t seem to be fine. She'd obviously been crying for a long time. In fact, there were still tears coming from her eyes. Aurora wiped them and looked away from her guest; she was too sad to smile. “Listen, Aurora, I…” “I’m the worst pony in Equestria!” Aurora suddenly exclaimed, bursting into tears again. Trixie rushed to her side and embraced her. “No, you’re not. Curiosity is normal for a pony of your age, especially with your past trapped between walls… We all did something stupid at least once--it’s called experience. Now that you did it, you won’t do it again, right?” “No… I won’t put my friends at risk again, or make my moms worried… I wish I had listened to my friends, to my mom… Now they're mad at me and I lost my friends…” Aurora sobbed and Trixie held her tighter. “Fluttershy and Twilight did what they did because they love and care about you. Aurora, you’re lucky to have two ponies who love you… I wasn’t as lucky as you…” The blue filly looked up at the older mare, distracted from her own sorrow. “You… Didn’t…?” Trixie shook her head. “I had parents, but they never cared much about me… So, I ran away as soon as I was able to. I travelled from city to city doing magic tricks to impress other ponies. I'd only get enough bits to get by, but that didn't matter much back then. It wasn’t easy, and I adopted my father's attitude when I talked to anypony. I never had friends and I didn’t think I would need them… Not until I met your mother. Although at first we didn’t get along and I did something horrible in our second meeting , circumstances made us meet once again, but this time she taught me about friendship. I couldn’t believe what I'd been missing. Only now am I finally able to smile, truly smile, and I suddenly find myself surrounded by ponies that care about me--surrounded by friends.” Trixie smiled and a tear rolled down her face. “Auntie… Why are you crying?” The blue Unicorn wiped the away. “I remembered something. Some time after befriending your mother, Pinkie Pie made a party especially for me… I was remembering those happy memories… I envy you, Aurora. You have everything I wished for right now, and I've only just gotten it a couple of years ago. You’re the luckiest pony in Equestria…” Aurora was able to stop crying during Trixie's speech. She hugged the older mare even tighter. “Thank you, Auntie… I feel a lot better now!” Trixie returned the hug. When she pulled away, she remembered the reason she'd come into the filly's room. “I have something for you!” She levitated the gift toward the filly, who eagerly took it. “I wonder what it is…!” Aurora said as she opened it. Inside, there was a framed photograph of herself and Trixie, which was taken when they first met. In it, Trixie was smiling at the camera and Aurora had a shy smile on her face; she was always shy around new ponies. “I love it! Thank you so much, Auntie Trixie!” The filly Unicorn hugged the older mare once again. “You’re welcome, Aurora.” Trixie said as she returned the hug. “Now, I have more good news for you!” She moved slightly so she could see the filly's expression. “You're allowed to leave your room. Your mom told me that you can come downstairs.” “Really? I want to go now!” The blue filly excitedly said as she bounced. “Alright, but, where are you going to put the photo?” Aurora levitated her gift to the table. “I’ll ask my mom to put it on the wall later so I see it every time I come here!” Trixie giggled before finding herself being dragged by the young Unicorn outside the bedroom and downstairs. Aurora let her go before entering the living room, nervously. “H-Hi… Mom, Mommy…” Both Twilight and Fluttershy turned when they heard their daughter’s voice. The Pegasus hurried to hug the little Unicorn. Aurora put her hooves around her, but her eyes were focused on Twilight’s. The lavender Unicorn slowly moved closer to them and hugged her alongside Fluttershy. “You’re still grounded for three weeks, you know?” Twilight said, not breaking the hug. “I know… ” Aurora replied, hugging her mothers tighter. “I love you… both of you…” “We love you too, dear…” Fluttershy kissed the filly’s forehead. “I would love to stay, watching this beautiful view, but, unfortunately, I must leave.” Trixie said as she took her coat and bag and headed to the door. She turned before opening it to see the family still hugging as if they hadn’t noticed that their visitor was about to leave. “Goodbye, I’ll see you tomorrow!” The magician pony tried once more. Twilight waved her hoof in the air, not turning nor breaking the family hug. “See you tomorrow, Trixie.” Trixie smiled before opening the door and slowly closing it behind her. She didn't want to interrupt the family's happy moment.