Hoodwink had the jitters. The crowd outside was huge, larger than any other crowd she had seen. The show was popular, more than it had ever been. Hoodwink looked back at her cutie mark. A wooden marionette pony hung from a paddle with strings. It was new. It had appeared a few shows ago.
The filly felt like she was about to have the hiccups. Or that an endless mass of butterflies would escape her from her tummy at any moment, flooding the wagon until she smothered in a writhing mass of fluttering butterflies.
“Hoodwink, are you almost ready?” a voice asked from just outside the door.
Hoodwink did not respond. Something felt off.
“Winkie, Trixie needs you. The ponies came to see a puppet show!”
“Coming mother…” Hoodwink mumbled. The roar of the crowd was deafening. She heard hooves stomping. She took a hesitant step toward the door. The wagon was small and cramped. There were narrow uncomfortable bunk beds for when it rained, otherwise, they slept outside. Cupboards packed every available space. A mirror was hung near the door, but not in a place where the door could strike it. A picture of Princess Twilight Sparkle hung on the wall. In an open drawer, there was an enormous stack of letters, all tied together in a bundle with a blue ribbon.
Hoodwink looked at herself in the mirror. She was her mother’s shade of blue. Her eyes were violet. And she sighed when she saw her mane. It had just been combed not that long ago. Her indigo purple-blue mane was her nemesis. It stood out in all directions, frizzy, poofy, a mass of chaos and tangles.
Her puppets were outside, waiting for her. Along with the crowd. Her mother loved crowds. Loved the attention. The adoration.
Hoodwink loved none of those things, but had very little say in the issue. They needed to eat. She sighed. Life wasn’t fair. Not at all.
Steeling her courage, she forced herself through the door.
Outside, the roar of the crowd was deafening. She mounted the stage, hearing the cheers, wishing that she was someplace else. The square was full of ponies. In the center of the square was a fountain, in the center of the fountain was a giant pony statue, taller than most of the buildings around the square.
The square was packed. There was barely any room left to stand.
She crossed the small stage that folded down from the side of the wagon, entering the small booth for the puppet show. Fireworks exploded overhead and fantastic illusions danced all around. The crowd was hungry for a show.
Inside the booth, the crowd could not see her. The filly shivered. She called up her magic, ready to animate the puppets. Nothing happened. Orange sparks spilled from her horn.
She scrunched up her muzzle and concentrated. This happened sometimes. She was nervous. She didn’t like crowds. She tried to imagine that she was all alone. She focused her will, taking deep breaths, and tried to let the magic flow.
Nothing happened. She felt the first sting of tears. Ponies wanted a puppet show. If she failed to deliverer, the crowd could get ugly. Trixie could tell a lot of stories about crowds turning ugly. Her eyes began to flood.
Trixie was becoming impatient. Hoodwink was in her booth, but nothing was happening. The puppets were not dancing. She felt a brief twinge of fear. She could hear the calls of the crowd. They wanted the whole show, not just fireworks and illusions. Word about Hoodwink’s talent with puppets had spread quickly since she acquired her cutie mark. It was her special talent, and she could put on quite a show, making them move with a beauty and grace that Trixie could not.
It was the perfect talent for a future showmare. Hoodwink was a little reluctant about being a showmare, but Trixie was certain that her filly would adjust. It was, after all, her filly. And Trixie was a great showmare. These things ran in the family. Right?
In her booth, Hoodwink strained to call forth her magic. Something was wrong. She could feel it now. Strong. Burning. But having trouble. Her brain felt like it was buzzing and vibrating, her skull full of bees. Her horn ached slightly and she felt feverish.
Trixie poked her head into the booth to check on Hoodwink. Something was wrong. Something felt very wrong. Trixie began to back away. The air crackled and was full of ozone.
The booth around Hoodwink exploded. It simply ceased to be. It was cheap and flimsy, covered in gaudy fake velveteen, nothing more than an easy to make stage prop. Hoodwink rose into the air, her eyes gone, turned white. Her body was limp as it dangled in the air. Orange bolts of energy crackled up and down her horn. Her mane, already frizzy, was now standing on end in all directions.
“Winkie?!” Trixie asked in alarm.
There was a flash of bright orange light followed by a thundercrack. Trixie cried out. The crowd began to scream. Fear and panic filled the square. Trixie heard a strange sound, a grinding sound. The sound of stone grating and grinding together. She turned her head slowly toward the sound, her bowels turning to water. A puddle appeared between her hindhooves.
The giant pony statue was moving.
Trixie’s screams joined the crowd. She looked at her filly, but dare not approach. She was surrounded by a fierce nimbus of bright orange magic. Heat radiated off of her in waves.
The giant stone pony was on its hooves now. It stomped. The ground shook, and several windows shattered in the buildings around the square. Ponies were trying to run away. There was a stampede.
Trixie decided then and there, she wasn’t leaving her filly. She stood on the stage and readied her magic.
The gargantuan stone pony stomped through the square, moving slowly. The fountain was crushed, with water flooding everywhere.
Pegasi began to circle overhead. Trixie heard a massive thud from up above in the sky.
A fireball descended from the heavens, falling toward an empty space in the square, soaring down with an alarming rumble and crackle.
The pegasi were armored. Trixie could see it glinting in the sun.
Celestia slammed into the cobblestones, her hooves causing them to crack and crumble. Long cracks spidered away from her. The sound of her impact was deafening. Her wings were flared, still extended.
She looked regal. Majestic. She stood there calmly, assessing the situation, taking it all in.
“Captain Sunflower, Cyclone!” She said with a noble shout, her voice easily rising over the anarchy in the square. “Get these ponies to safety. I cannot defeat this foe if I can’t use my magic at full force. Doing so would cost the lives of many innocent bystanders.”
Above her, two pegasi banked, barking orders.
The stone pony shook its head. It was big. Indescribably big. Several stories tall. It was difficult to believe that it was moving.
Trixie took all of this in. She watched Celestia on the other side of the square. She heard a thump behind her. She turned.
Hoodwink had fallen to the stage, the magic gone. She wasn’t moving. Trixie turned back toward Celestia, and looked up at the pegasi.
She swallowed. She was probably going to lose her wagon again. She lifted Hoodwink and ran away while the getting was good.
The square was clearing. Pegasi darted in and out in front of the stone pony, distracting it. Each of the giant stone pony’s steps crushed and crackled cobblestones. It flailed its head at the passing pegasi.
Celestia unloaded a test blast. Nothing major, just a bit of a test fire to see what the stone pony could take.
Her blast did nothing.
Celestia felt a twinge of panic. Something like this could destroy Canterlot. She quickly cast a spell which created a letter that was sent to Spike.
There was another sonic boom overhead. Luna was dropping in.
Luna did not land. She hovered near her sister, her jaw hanging open.
“Unholy horse apples!” Luna swore.
Luna took a test fire with her horn. She was rewarded with a shower of gravel from the stone pony.
“HUZZAH!” She shouted, slipping into her Royal Canterlot Voice. Several more windows shattered in the distance, the tinkling of glass heard only by alicorn ears over the pandemonium all around.
“How’d you do that?” Celestia asked.
“Disruption spell!” Luna shouted. Luna zoomed off to form an attack wing with a group of guards.
Celestia let fly another blast, this time she too was rewarded with a shower of gravel.
Wonderful. Both alicorns had managed to scratch the titanic stone pony. This was going to be a long day.
Celestia took to the air. Her horn flared. The square was almost empty, and the surrounding buildings were being emptied. Almost time for no more nice princess, she thought to herself.
The stony pony had given up on trying to headbutt passing pegasi and was now lumbering off toward the buildings at the edge of the square.
There was a sonic boom over head, quickly followed by another. The second one exploded into a massive rainbow coloured nova that could be seen all over Canterlot.
Twilight Sparkle swooped down, her horn glowing with lavender fire.
“You called?” She asked, getting a look at the stone pony.
“Twilight, what in the name of Pinkie Pie is that?!” Rainbow Dash shouted.
“Twilight, disruption spells damage it. I’m hoping that you can find another solution. We don’t need to damage it, we need it stopped. Right now. Before somepony gets killed or Canterlot is destroyed.” Celestia said in a stern voice.
Twilight’s horn flared.
Massive stone chunks exploded from the stone pony. Pony sized chunks of stone fell to the cobblestones.
“Show off,” Luna said, swooping past, “nice work.”
Rainbow Dash zoomed off, leaving behind her signature rainbow contrail. She flew toward the retreating herd.
Twilight and Luna worked together, aiming for the legs. They rolled through the air, coming as close as they dared, their magic much stronger close up.
Celestia was working on another plan. She had flown off, leaving Twilight and her sister to battle the monster. She flew over the town, her eyes sweeping back and forth, looking for something. Her sharp eyes found what she needed in an alley. She touched it with her magic, testing its weight. It was full. Perfect.
She lifted the grease dumpster with her telekinetic magic and headed back toward the square.
It wasn’t everyday you saw an alicorn flying overhead with a large green dumpster in tow.
Twilight and Luna had almost worn through a leg when Celestia returned. Celestia lifted the dumpster over the stone pony and turned it over, the grease spilling out and flooding the square beneath the stone pony’s legs.
It began to slip and slide, stone hooves scrambling for purchase, the greasy cobblestones offering no grip. It teetered, it tottered, and finally, it fell over with a deafening crash. It struggled to regain its legs.
Twilight and Luna doubled their efforts, with Celestia joining in.
It took a while to wear the stony giant down.
All that was left were chunks strewn over the square. Everything was a mess. Grease was everywhere. Part of the square was flooding, the fountain still trying to pump water. Buildings were badly damaged.
The three alicorns landed, surveying their work.
A job well done, all things considered. The city still stood.
“Please help Trixie, Trixie’s filly won't wake up.” Said a small voice.
Celestia turned and saw one of her former students. “Trixie Lulamoon,” she greeted, “What is wrong with your filly?”
“Her magic went wild. She caused this.” Trixie replied, her voice low, her eyes downcast.
“What?!” Celestia said in disbelief.
The three alicorns looked at the filly suspended in the air with magic.
“Winkie was just going to do a puppet show and then this happened.” Trixie said, now beginning to shake.
“Is Hoodwink OK?” Twilight asked, her voice wavering with concern.
“Trixie does not know!” Trixie replied, beginning to panic.
Celestia took the foal into her own magic, holding her close. Her eyes closed, she stood quietly, her horn glowing with golden light.
“She is going to be fine. Magical exhaustion. She’s channeled far too much energy and burned herself out.” Celestia smiled gently.
Trixie looked hopeful. “Trixie is sorry for all of the damage, honestly. Trixie no longer has a desire to cause trouble. Twilight has been a good friend and has helped Trixie find herself. Trixie is sorry that this happened. Please, don’t punish Hoodwink. Trixie doesn’t think she can pay for the damages. Trixie is nearly broke.” Trixie kneeled, her face pressed against the cobblestones.
“Hoodwink is all Trixie has and all that Trixie cares for. Trixie understands that somepony has to pay for this mess. Trixie asks for the blame to be placed on her, and not Hoodwink.”
“Get up.” Celestia said in a gentle soothing tone.
Trixie rose, her knees knocking and trembling.
“I’ll make you a deal Trixie. Allow Hoodwink to become my student. She has a great gift. All of this is forgiven, even if you say no. But I am asking you to consider this carefully. Hoodwink has an exceptional talent and it needs to be nurtured.”
“Hoodwink will become your student?”
“Yes, “ said Celestia, “my personal student. My protege. She has amazing potential, and I want to make sure it blossoms into something worthwhile.”
Trixie considered Celestia’s words. “Trixie can visit?”
“Of course.”
“Hoodwink can have a comfortable bed?”
“You did, when you attended the school.”
“Good food?”
“Probably the best school cafeteria in Canterlot.”
“Hoodwink will learn control, so this doesn’t happen again?”
“Definately.”
Trixie’s eyes darted back and forth. She finally looked up at Celestia.
“Will Hoodwink have friends?”
“I hope so.”
Trixie nodded her head in agreement. “Trixie will leave Hoodwink in your care.”
Celestia smiled down at her new student held in the grasp of her magic.