//------------------------------// // Chapter Two // Story: The New Student // by TheTwelfthDoctor //------------------------------// Chapter Two Trixie happily clipped through the streets of Canterlot on her way to school the next morning, munching on some freshly-baked eclairs she had stolen from the palace kitchen. She never knew Celestia had her own personal pastry chef before then, but it figured, given the princess’ insatiable appetite for all things sugar. “WHAT DO YOU MEAN MY ECLAIRS HAVE ‘GONE MISSING,’ GUSTAV?! ARGH!” the Royal Canterlot Voice had emanated from the palace only moments after she had departed. Rounding the last corner, the marble towers that made up the School soon came into view. She crammed the remaining eclairs down her throat, licked the fudge off of her hooves, and pushed past some of the other unicorns waiting outside for the late bell in order to enter--early. Trixie trotted down the corridors and trudged up the stairs, worn flat from the stomping of countless hooves. She finally arrived at her locker and opened it. As always, a cascade of toys, an abacus, crumpled papers, broken quills, inkwells, and a few dusty old books greeted her, spilling out onto the floor and causing a passing-by professor to glare at her. Picking up a book on basic theory (she still needed to refer to it in secret at times during classes, despite the fact that students at her level were supposed to have already memorized its contents by heart), a few dull quills, and one of the half-empty bottles of ink, Trixie went off to her first class of the day, which also happened to be her favorite--Exercise Session. She entered the large room and plunked her things down on a bench that ran along the wall. A few other students were play-fighting in the corner, but otherwise the cavernous space was empty. The room was where most students had to come first thing every morning to “warm up” their magic so that they wouldn’t hurt themselves during later classes. Trixie went over to a pony who was hiding behind a magical punching bag and tapped him on the shoulder. The frightened tan colt turned around. “Wanna duel?” Trixie asked menacingly. “No! Leave me alone!” the colt screamed, rushing out a back entrance. ‘Oh, well,’ Trixie thought. ‘Guess I’m gonna have to practice by myself.’ She fired a beam at the punching bag. It was enchanted to automatically absorb all spells that were cast at it, no matter what the strength. After about half an hour, Trixie’s horn was burning up, which was when she was supposed to stop. She got a drink of water from a fountain next to the entrance, and sat on the bench, waiting for the bell to ring for the next class. At exactly three o’clock, Trixie burst from the school and made straight for the palace, not stopping off at the corner bakery for a cupcake like she usually did. She was excited to meet the new filly, Twilight. Reaching the gilded door to Celestia’s chambers, Trixie made to enter, but the guards barred her way. “Her Highness is very busy at the moment with her new student,” one of them said. “She requested no interruptions.” “Don’t you know who I am?” Trixie cried resentfully. “Yes, Trixie. Her Highness specifically instructed us to turn away even you.” From behind the door, the muffled sound of Celestia’s and the pony who Trixie presumed to be Twilight's voices wafted out into the hallway. “You can teleport across the room already? How fast do you learn, Twilight Sparkle?” “It’s not hard, Your Highness. I just read a lot.” She could hear Celestia giggle. Trixie gnashed her teeth. She could barely teleport three feet, and it had taken years of practice. Now this filly, who was four years her junior, was showing her up in front of her teacher. And said teacher was eating it all up! ‘It’s not fair!’ Trixie screamed mentally, taking a seat on the floor a few feet away from the guards. About an hour later, the door opened, and Celestia walked out with a small lavender filly with wide violet eyes, an indigo-magenta-and-purple-streaked mane and tail, and a magenta amethyst star surrounded by five smaller white stars for a cutie mark. “That was fun, Your Highness!” the filly exclaimed. “Oh, Twilight, my faithful student, you don’t need to use the title. How many times do I have to tell you?” Celestia replied in a motherly tone. “It’s a trap! I’d be violating court procedure if I did that, and then you’d throw me in the dungeon with a big guard named Bruiser who’d rip me to pieces! My brother knows him!” she stated matter-of-factly. Celestia again giggled as the two passed by Trixie. Celestia didn’t seem to notice her until Twilight pointed her out, waving a hoof. “Hi there!” Twilight called to Trixie. “Who are you?” “Nopony,” Trixie grumbled, burying her face in her hooves. ‘IT’S. NOT. FAIR!’ Without a word from Celestia, she and Twilight continued on and disappeared down the stairs at the end of the hall. ‘She’s always needed a lesson in humility,’ Celestia thought, who had in fact noticed Trixie’s muted reaction to her and Twilight’s emergence. ‘Maybe this’ll be enough.’ Trixie had skipped dinner--she just wasn’t feeling too good--and made her way directly to her bedroom at only half-past seven--three hours earlier than normal. As the reached the top of the long, spiraling stairs that led to her tower, she saw a sight that made her heart stop cold. Celestia and Twilight were ransacking her room. The princess was hard at work levitating up all of Trixie’s messy belongings and floating them into boxes, while Twilight, on the other hoof, was unpacking some other boxes and, just like Celestia, floating out all of her belongings, neatly arranging them just so. All that she could manage was a startled squwak. “Oh, hi there!” Twilight looked up, again waving her hoof. “Wha--what are you two doing?” Trixie cried, racing over to one of the boxes that held some of her things. Pointing at Twilight, she continued. “Why does she get my room? Are you disowning me, ‘Tia?” “What did you just call Princess Celestia?” Twilight exclaimed. “I’m sorry, Your Highness, I’m sure she didn’t--” “It’s alright, my faithful student. Trixie, since the tower has a better view of the night sky, and Twilight will be studying astronomy, I thought that she could make better use of it. I know you’ve never looked out a telescope before in your life.” Celestia chuckled at the last bit. Twilight, meanwhile, was floored at the news. “You’ve never looked out of a telescope? It’s so much fun! Want me to give you some beginner lessons on astronomy?” “No,” Trixie grumbled. “Well, Twilight, I think I’m going to go show my other student to her new accommodations. See you at breakfast,” Celestia said, lifting the three boxes that held Trixie’s effects. “Good night, Your Highness!” Twilight called after the two, placing a raggedy doll that looked kind of like a donkey on her pillow. “How do you like the new room, Smartypants?” she could be heard cooing through the now-closed door. After a long walk, Celestia and Trixie arrived at the latter’s new room among the palace’s guest suites. Celestia opened the door and showed the disgruntled filly in. It was much smaller than the tower, and had only a small window that afforded a dismal view of the palace garbage dump. Celestia dropped the boxes onto the floor and left. “I’ll leave you to get settled,” she said, closing the door. Trixie flopped onto the bed and glared up at the cinder-block, cobweb-covered ceiling. She allowed the events of the day, one which had started out perfectly with some pilfered eclairs, and had ended terribly with a pilfered room, to collect and swim through her head all at once. Tears began to well up in Trixie’s eyes at the self-perceived injustices she had suffered. Her mind made up, Trixie rolled off of the bed, stormed out of her room, and ran as fast as she could up to Twilight’s tower. Making sure the coast was clear, she bucked open the door and stormed over to where the lavender filly was sitting, gazing up at the stars alongside the ugly doll she called ‘Smartypants.’ “And that’s the ponyshoe nebula, there, Smartypants,” Twilight told the doll sweetly, pointing a hoof at a cloud of colored gases in the sky. “Alright, who do you think you are?” Trixie shouted, tackling Twilight to the ground. She screamed and teleported out from underneath Trixie’s grasp. “W-What do you want?” Twilight asked, shaking. “Let me get this straight: I’m Trixie, and I’m number one around here, while you’re number two. Second. Less important. Subordinate. I was here first. So don’t start to think you’re better than me or anything! Got it?!” “Oh-okay...” “Good.” With a hmph, Trixie abruptly turned about-face and marched out of the room. Twilight slumped over. She hadn’t wanted to let the pony--apparently her name was Trixie--see her break down. With that problem out of the way, she didn't feel much like stargazing anymore. She lethargically climbed in bed and soon cried herself to sleep. She decided not to tell Princess Celestia. Trixie was probably just a bit jealous at her arrival. Maybe she’d come around in the long run. Twilight was never one to judge a book by its cover. Trixie arrived back in her room a few minutes later. She was initially ecstatic at her being able to put Twilight back in her place so easily, but soon realized that the twerp would probably rat her out to Celestia. ‘Stupid. Could things get any worse?’ On that sour note, Trixie slipped between the scratchy sheets of her new bed and also cried herself to sleep that night.