The air around Ditzy felt warm and comfortable, but something inside of her felt icy and painful. A cold sweat drenched the gray pegasus as she squirmed under a heavy sleep. Ditzy frowned and murmured incoherently as memories from her youth came back.
High up on one of the finely crafted cloud-school's of Cloudsdale, young pegasi flapped their tiny wings mercilessly, trying to generate enough lift to fly. An adult pegasus with a whistle around his neck walked past each of the young ones, whispering encouragement to those with frowns on their faces. The coach's light hearted attitude sank when he approached a gray filly with no cutie mark. She was curled on the cloud's floor, her head buried in the fluffy material. The coach grunted in annoyance before approaching her, “What is the problem this time Ditzy?”
Silence.
The coach puffed up his chest and flapped his wings once. “I don't have time for this again Ditzy. If you do not get up this instant you and I will have a long talk with your parents.”
“No...not that..” The young pegasus flinched and reluctantly stood up. Her body shook slightly with every breath and sniffles were taking over. Ditzy stared at the floor. “I-I..”
The coach rolled his eyes.“Spit it out child. I don't have time to deal with another one of you fits. And for Celestia's sake, raise you head and look at me when I'm talking.”
Raising her head ever so slowly, the coach gasped at the sight of Ditzy's puffy, purple eye. It was the same eye the young filly had trouble focusing with. The coach narrowed his eyes accusingly. “Who did you fight this time Ditzy? For your sake you better hope their not hurt.” All that Ditzy could do to not burst into tears was stare at her hooves. The coach suddenly yanked her by the neck.“We're going to see the principle right now.”
Every other filly on the cloud stopped their exercises and stared at Ditzy. Their eyes were full of mock and laughter. Hiding in the crowd, a sooth-colored pegasus snicker as Ditzy and the coach walked past him. He tapped one of his eye with a hoof and put the other on his lips in a hushing manner. Right after, somepony screamed on top of his lungs, “Derpy! Derpy! The funny looking Derpy!” Soon, the whole yard joined in the chanting. “Derpy! Derpy! The funny looking Derpy!”
Young Ditzy looked down and let the tears fall as the infernal chanting continued.
“Derpy! Derpy! The funny looking Derpy!”
Crash!
Ditzy's eyes shot open only to be met with soft hay in her face. She was in what appeared to be a nest but quickly dismissed that idea. The wooden walls, stacks of barrels and farm equipment obviously didn't belong to a bird.“Why would a bird make a nest inside a barn anyway?” Another crash – this one closer – left the pegasus breathless. Hoof steps slowly made their way towards her in a manner familiar to Ditzy: annoyed.
Before Ditzy could react, the barrels in front of her were shrouded by a blue glow and yanked away. In their place, Trixie stood slouched and frowning. Her voice sounded quite irritated. “Took you long enough to wake up. C'mon, Chase wants to talk to you.”
Ditzy fumbled on her way up but managed to catch up to the unicorn.“Who'd want to talk to me?” Ditzy frowned, “Umm..Who..”
“Ask him when we get there.” Trixie cut in, walking further into the barn. “He's the master here.”
Ditzy gulped and kept her head lowered for a few moments. “I hope it wasn't anything I said. I really don't want her to get any angrier.” Ditzy sniffed and was pleasantly surprised to noticed the sweet smell of ripe apples. The scent increased with every step, probably due to the apple barrels scattered in every direction with more than one smashed open. Ditzy tried but could not keep quite. “Were these barrels the things making those noises?”
Trixie flinched but otherwise remained silent. The two soon arrived at a cleared, circular space with a single, intact barrel in the center. On it, a lit candle provided the only source of light. Trixie scrunched her eyes. “She's here.”
“Umm... Okay?” Ditzy waited for some sort of direction but received none. Filled with confusion, the pegasus was about to take a step forward when the candle went out. A heartbeat later, the candle reignited itself with a purple flame, drenching the room in more light than should be possible.
Suddenly, Trixie's shadow walked free of its owner towards the center of the clearing. Ditzy blinked her eyes furiously. “What?” Trixie's shadow finally reached the center of the clearing and in the same motion a pony would do to get up from the floor, the shadow picked itself onto all fours. The candle flickered and the shadow smiled.
Ditzy gasped in total shock. “But...that's not possible. Shadows can't do that!” The pegasus stood transfixed.
With a swish of her tail, Trixie blinked nonchalantly. “Was there any need for an entrance?”
Ignoring her question, the featureless shadow bowed towards Ditzy. A calm singsong voice came from all directions. “Hello Miss Ditzy Doo. My name is Chase and I hope you can forgive my apprentice. She's having a bit of trouble with her training.”
Trixie narrowed her eyes and shot her hoof through the shadow. “I am not having trouble. Your manner of teaching simply sucks.”
Chase chuckled and leaned forward. “Does it?”
Trixie leaned in until she was nose to nose with the shadow. Her eyes were fierce. “Well let me ask you a question master. What kind of training is lifting barrels?”
Ditzy put a hoof on her forehead. She could feel a headache start to kick against the back of her skull. “Umm...Excuse m...”
Before the pegasus could finish her sentence, the shadow melted into a thin cloud and surrounded the barrel in the middle of the clearing. “Like I mentioned before little one, this exercise is geared towards collecting information. I need to know at what level your magic is.” The barrel proceeded to swirl and glide around Trixie in circles, figure eights and other complicated maneuvers. “Lifting barrels can tell us the focus, patience, accuracy, and mental strength you posses.”
Trixie narrowed her eyes further. “I still think it's a waste of time.”
The barrel set itself gently on the floor and more chuckling resonated throughout the barn. “Be sure to keep that enthusiasm little one. Things won't be this simply for long.” A moment of silence gave Ditzy little time to digest the exchange she had just witnessed. “Trixie is taking lessons from her own shadow? That can't be right, but then that would mean the shadow's alive. Unless Chase is a wizard. But the only wizards that turn into shadows are bad guys. Right?” Ditzy was on the verge of speaking but Chase's voice returned. “Start from the beginning.”
Trixie stepped forward and mumbled something under her breath that made Ditzy's cheeks turn red. The unicorn set her sights on the barrel and visibly focused. Surrounding the object with a blue aura, Trixie levitated the barrel a few inches off the ground. The routine started with simple movements: left, right, up and down. However, after the twirling arches and spinning figure eights, the strain on the unicorn became obvious. The way Trixie's legs shook when the barrel spun too fast or arched too wide did not look healthy. Still, Trixie kept enough control over the barrel to add a bit of flair to the way the barrel zoomed around the clearing. Ditzy felt as amazed as she did concerned, “I hope she doesn't hurt herself.”
“She's safe I assure you.” The voice came from Ditzy's left. It was Trixie's shadow, or was it Chase? Ditzy wasn't sure, but what she did know was that the shadow had appeared out of nowhere. Granted, it wasn't too difficult to sneak up on the pegasus but the way the shadow seemed to be everywhere left Ditzy a bit nervous. Even stranger, Ditzy felt no urge to yell or so much as gasp in fear. Something about the shadow next to her left her feeling calm, almost numb.
Ditzy tilted her head. “You're not a really a pony, right?” Her voice came out louder, a lot bolder, than she meant. Ditzy quickly put a hoof on her mouth and looked towards Trixie. “I hope I didn't distract her.”
The shadow poked the space in front of it with a hoof. “Don't worry Ditzy Doo, you can talk as loud as you want. I've placed a sound barrier between us and Trixie so our conversation won't distract her.”
The pegasus stared into the shadow in a mixture of amazement and uncertainty. “You can read my mind?”
The shadow chuckled. “Your emotions are simple to read is all.”
Ditzy chuckled as well.“Well I guess that's good.”
Tilting its head the way Ditzy had previously, the shadow's tone lowered. “I suppose I could enter your thoughts, though. Still, I have no desire to go through something like that again. The mind is a scary place Ditzy Doo. It shouldn't be messed with.”
Feeling like a filly in the middle of a lecture, Ditzy nodded.
The joyful tone returned. “As for who I am, that's a complicated answer. How about you ask me something else in the meantime.” The shadow leaned in and whispered slyly, “Between you and me, Trixie hasn't been as curious as she should be.”
Ditzy could not see any features on the shadow but she could feel the playful smirk in the voice. Deciding to play along, Ditzy asked, “Is the sound barrier thingy the reason the animals haven't woken up?”
The shadow nodded. “Very perceptive.”
Ditzy flapped her wings. “This is kind of fun. Strange but fun.” Ditzy wasted no time and fired another question. “Why are we inside Applejack's barn?”
The shadow tilted its head again. “Applejack is the owner of this barn?”
Ditzy's eyes sparkled at the chance to answer a question herself. “That's right. Applejack is part of a large family that lives all around Equestria. The Apples have been in charge of this specific farm since Ponyville was founded. They're important ponies.”
“And here I was under the impression that Applejack was the name of the barn.” The shadow shook its head lightly. “Anyway, Trixie needed a place to train and you needed a place to rest. From what I understand, Trixie is not too welcomed by the ponies of this town, so what better place to stay safe and secluded than a barn? Besides, a little discomfort will do Trixie good.” A single chuckle emanated from the shadow that filled Ditzy with a bit of warmth. She couldn't remember the last time anyone had bothered to strike up a casual conversation with her.
The two continued to chat for many minutes, with Ditzy listening more often than talking. It was during a brief mention about the blizzard outside that memories of last night slowly made their way into Ditzy's mind. “So that means that you and Trixie brought me here” Ditzy's eyes lit up in realization. “You two saved me!”
The shadow nodded but remained quiet. Ditzy was about to question the lack of response but thought better of it. Was there any real need for a response? “I can't thank you enough but why is Trixie traveling around with a shadow monster?” Ditzy visibly winced. The moment the words left her mouth she wished they hadn't. “Oh no. I'm so sorry. I...”
“It's okay Ditzy Doo.” Ditzy could feel the smirk again but something was off. It felt a little forced. “That's something I came into terms with a long time ago.” The shadow paused for a long moment. “Trixie needs a teacher. She made that pretty clear on our first meeting so I agreed. As for what compelled me to do it, Maker knows.”
Ditzy lowered her head. That had been a lot more than she expected the shadow to answer after being insulted. “Maybe I should just be quiet.”
The shadow pony raised a hoof towards Ditzy. A gentle forced pushed Ditzy's head back up. “You know, maybe the reason why I agreed to teach Trixie was because I felt a similarity between the two of us. The same similarity I feel when I look at you. Don't feel worthless Ditzy Doo. You are important and amazing beyond anything you could imagine. Trust me, I've had experience with these things.”
Ditzy was at a loss for words. When was the last time anyone had said something like that to her? “Not even mom and dad said anything like that.” When Ditzy finally calmed her beating heart and misty eyes, she looked straight into the shadow. “So you're not really a pony, right?”
The shadow shook its head. “Let's call Trixie over. She'll wish to know this as well.” A purple glass wall blinked into existence between the pair and Trixie, but dissolved into the ground in another blink. “You can stop now Trixie. There's something we need to talk about.”
Trixie's barrel went hurling into the depths of the barn, smashing loudly against a wall. Fanning herself with her hat, Trixie trotted towards the shadow. Her whispers became audible as she neared. “Thank Celestia.” Her eyes shifted nervously as she noticed what she had just said. “Don't take me wrong, it's not like this exercise was hard or anything. I'm just glad I don't have to do something so tedious anymore.”
The shadow nodded and trotted towards the smashed barrel. Breathing a faint wisp of smoke into the debris, the shadow returned with a floating apple at its side. The apple, now purple, made its way towards Trixie. “Levitate this apple until I tell you to stop.”
Trixie laughed loudly and bowed mockingly, “Of course master.” Surrounding the apple with her magic, the piece of fruit shivered in the air. Trixie frowned and crunched her teeth. The apple fell to the floor. Trixie covered her eyes with a hoof and moaned in between her teeth, “What's wrong with this thing?”
The shadow snickered. “It's been enchanted to gradually dispel your telekinetic spell.” The shadow turned towards Ditzy but quickly turned back to Trixie. “That shouldn't be too hard for a pony with high caliber.”
The unicorn locked eyes with the shadow. “You're evil.”
The shadow seemed to smirk. “Regardless, Ditzy Doo asked me a very good question and I want you to know the answer to it as well.”
“Why?” Trixie asked as she focused her attention on the purple apple.
The shadow melted into the floor and returned to its proper place by Trixie. Chase's voice came from all directions once more. “Because it's about who I am.”
Trixie narrowed her eyes and dropped the apple. “I thought you didn't want to talk about yourself.”
“Keep that apple floating.” The joy drained from the voice. “I don't but there's something you need to know if we really are to make our relationship work.” There was a heartbeat to think. “I don't want what happened in the past to happen to you.”
Trixie's facial expression was ignored as a small cloud made from the barn's darkness accumulated into a bipedal shape similar to a minatour's, except with a thin chest and longer legs. The figure was unlike anything Ditzy had seen before. Roughly two times her size, the new, cloaked shadow faced Ditzy. “You see Ditzy Doo, I'm not a pony and neither am I alive.”
Ditzy's head was swimming with questions. “But, how can that be true if you're right here? I mean, your a shadow or were but..but.. I'm really confused.”
A single tender voice came from the shadow. “It's okay.”
With a gentle swing of its right arm, the shadows on one of the walls slid onto the clearing and molded into a circle. Like a pool full of ripples, images began to come into focus. “It all started in a place called Earth...”