Friends, Forgiveness, and Magic
Inspiration
“Hear ye! Hear ye! Family Weekend is about to begin! Rise and shine, Nightie!” Discord sang as he rang a bell in the sleeping Nightmare Moon’s ears.
Nightmare grumbled and buried herself under her bed covers. “Go ‘way!”
“Come now Moony! It’s time to greet the morning!”
“I hate mornings because they hate me,” Nightmare grumbled again.
A sneaky grin formed on Discord’s face as he snapped his fingers. “Speaking of hatred…here boy! Come give Auntie Nightie a kiss!”
Polaris flew into the room and gave Nightmare a friendly lick. Any remaining sleepiness in her was chased away as she bolted out of bed and away from Polaris’ icy tongue. “Ack! What was that for?!”
“Good boy! Now get Smog!” On Discord’s command, the Windigo flew over to Smog’s bed to wake him up as well. His reaction was rather similar to Nightmare’s.
Smog grumbled as he climbed downstairs with an equally grumpy Nightmare and a cheerful Discord. “You’re evil, you know that?”
“Well! That’s rather rude, considering I was only trying to wake you two up in time for the celebration!” Discord said as he crossed his arms.
Nightmare rubbed her eyes. “No, no. We’re grateful for it, thank you Discord. But you know we’re not morning people, and having a Windigo kiss you good morning isn’t exactly pleasant.”
“Says who? I find it very pleasant myself! Well, compared to how we did things back home.”
Smog raised an eyebrow. “What do you mean?”
“I never told you? Oh, just some morning rituals my family and I had,” Discord explained. “Most mornings, we woke each other up with a bucket.”
Smog blinked. “A…bucket?”
“Oh sure. Bucket of ice water, bucket of turnips, bucket of melted strawberry ice cream…my sister was fond of waking me up by dumping a bucket of chocolate worms on me.”
Smog and Nightmare both grimaced. “That’s horrible!”
“Oh no, they were quite good. A little wriggly, but the early draconequus gets the juiciest, tastiest worm!”
Nightmare shuddered. “Did you really need to share that with us?”
Discord shrugged. “Perhaps not. Still, you’d better get ready for the day before your mom gets here.”
Nightmare’s eyes widened. “What?! She’s coming this early?”
“I dunno. Happy Family Weekend!” Discord sang as he disappeared with a snap of his fingers.
“Okay class, there’s just one more thing I wanted to go over with you before we leave,” Cheerilee said.
“Um, excuse me Miss Cheerilee? Where did Miss Zecora go?” Silver Spoon asked as she raised her hoof.
“I’m sorry but Miss Zecora was called away for something during recess. One of the doctors at the Peaceville Hospital called her in regards to one of their patients having a unique illness that she’s had experience with before,” Cheerilee explained. “In any case, school is letting out early today in honour of the Family Weekend! Now, can anyone tell me the history behind Family Weekend? Yes, Miss Tiara?”
Diamond Tiara lowered her hoof and smiled. “My dad told me that Family Weekend was once two separate events held her in Peaceville, before they were combined into one holiday as it began to spread across Everfree.”
“Correct. Family Weekend is a long weekend holiday for our kingdom. The first part of this holiday is the Boys and Girls Fair, formerly known as the Foal and Filly Fair. And the second part of the event was once called the Sisterhooves Social, before it was renamed as the Siblings Social,” Cheerilee explained.
“What’s with all the renaming?” Diamond asked.
“Well, as the events became more popular outside of Peaceville, they became more popular with other non-pony citizens of our kingdom. So the Foal and Filly Fair was changed to the Boys and Girls Fair. Likewise, Sisterhooves Social was renamed due to the fact that not all families have two sisters, even if siblings are present in that family.”
Silver blinked. “So wait, a bunch of festivals were changed just because the boys were feeling left out?”
“Hey!” Snips shouted.
“Snips, indoor voice please. And Miss Spoon, wouldn’t you feel left out if you couldn’t compete in the event because you had a brother but not a sister?” Cheerilee asked.
“Well I can’t really compete in the event anyway, but I guess I see what you’re saying,” Silver mumbled.
“What if I became your ‘honorary sister’ for the event?” Diamond suggested.
“No, that's okay. I'll just watch the race. Hey Apple Bloom, doesn't your grandma usually set that up?”
“Oh yeah!” Apple Bloom answered Silver excitedly. “Granny Smith always hosts the event! Golly, it’ll be great ta see her again! Feels like it’s been fir-EVER since Ah got her last letter!”
“So, what do you think Trixie?” Rarity asked.
“Very impressive,” Trixie said as she examined herself in the mirror. She was wearing a hat and cape with her trademark colours, except the hat and cape both had small gemstones sewn into them. “Flashy yet subtle. Absolutely wonderful!”
Rarity smiled. “I’m so glad you like it! Oh, this will be perfect for your performance at the Boys and Girls Fair. Do you have anything special planned?”
Trixie smirked. “Sorry. A magician never reveals her secrets.”
“Come now darling, not even for a friend and fellow performer?”
“Forgive me, but Trixie thought you were no longer acting as a magician, choosing instead to focus on your fashion designing career?”
Rarity waved a hoof. “Well of course my love for fashion is strong, but I appreciate art in all its forms! It’s simply that business has been good for my Carousel of Wonders, so I haven’t a strong need to put on any shows, in terms of money.”
The door opened and Sweetie Belle walked in. “Rarity! I’m home!”
Rarity glanced in the direction of the front door. “Sweetie Belle, I’m with a client at the moment!”
“No, no, it’s alright. This new hat and cape are perfect, just send the bill to Trixie’s Magical and Wonderful Emporium. I look forward to seeing you and Miss Belle at my show. But now, Trixie must complete her preparations!” With that, Trixie disappeared in a puff of smoke.
Sweetie walked into the room. “Hey Rarity, Family Weekend has officially started!” She smiled hopefully. “You remember that you promised to come with me to the Siblings Social, right?”
Rarity sighed. “Yes Sweetie Belle. For you, I am willing to get a little dirty to participate in the race and the subsequent events. Even if they aren’t very…clean.” Rarity shivered a little, but kept up a brave smile.
“Don’t worry sis, it’s not going to be that muddy. Hey, are you going to be contributing anything to the fair?” Sweetie asked.
“Perhaps next year. Trixie has stated that she wants to put in a little extra effort for her annual performance and I would hate to steal her spotlight. Besides, I missed the chance to spend Family Weekend with you last year due to my travels. This weekend is all about what you want, my dear sister.”
Sweetie Belle smiled as her big sister gave her a hug. “Thanks Rarity. Maybe we can see Trixie’s show together. I bet she has something really amazing prepared!”
“What was I thinking?! I don’t have anything amazing prepared!”
A rather nervous Trixie was in her home, flipping through her personal spell books and notes. So far her frantic searching was unsuccessful. “Oh blast! How could I have been so foolish as to put this off until the very last minute?” Trixie growled to herself. “Blast it!”
Trixie frowned as she heard the front door of her Emporium open, before she quickly teleported over to the entrance to greet her customer. “Please accept Trixie’s humble apologies, but we are closed at the moment.” She paused as she noticed that no one was there. Until…
“Happy Family Weekend!” Trixie jumped back as Pinkie Pie appeared in front of her with a huge burst of confetti.
Trixie frowned. “Pinkie Pie. To what does the Great and Powerful Trixie owe this surprise?”
Pinkie giggled and floated into the air as she flew around Trixie’s shop. “Oh, I just wanted to stop by and visit with you before I head back to the Crystal Empire. Ooh, what’s this do?!”
“Don’t touch that,” Trixie said. “So…”
“What’s this thing do?”
“Don’t touch that either. The Crystal Empire, you say?”
“You got it!” Pinkie grinned. “I entered me and Maud into the Siblings Social there. We’ll be going up against Princess Twilight Sparkle and Prince Shining Armor. Ooh, we’re going to have so much fun!” Pinkie leaned in closer to her. “So I heard you’re putting on a show for the fillies and colts for the fair. What a coinkydink! I’m putting on a show for the ponies in the Crystal Empire! Wanna see?” Before Trixie could answer, Pinkie snapped her fingers and conjured up a wooden puppet of herself. As Pinkie wiggled her fingers, the puppet began to sing and dance:
I've got no strings!
To hold me down
To make me fret, or make me frown.
I had strings
But now I'm free.
There are no strings on me!
Pinkie giggled as the puppet took a bow, before disappearing. “What do you think?”
Trixie raised an eyebrow. “Where do you find all these songs?”
Pinkie shrugged. “Places. So what about your show?”
Trixie groaned. “I’m afraid the Great and Powerful Trixie will have to settle for last years tricks. I had something incredible planned this year, but the spell I had in mind takes a lot more power than I previously thought it did.”
“Ooh. You’re not talking in third person as much. This must be serious,” Pinkie said with a smile that clearly showed she wasn’t taking the situation seriously. “What kind of trick were you planning?”
“Well I don’t want to reveal too much…but for my grand entrance I was planning on making the entire stage appear. But I just don’t enough magic to make an object of that size out of nothing but my own will.”
“Oh, I get it now! Why didn’t you just say so? I’m sure that I could snap my fingers and make a stage for you,” Pinkie offered.
Trixie rolled her eyes. “Trixie appreciates the gesture, but there’s a reason she never asked for Discord’s help during her previous shows. True, illusion relies heavily on harmless deception, but they are my deceptions. Trixie does not wish to rely on the abilities of her friends when the show is about how great and powerful Trixie is.”
Pinkie nodded. “You don’t want to take credit for their magic. Wow, that’s really nice of ya!” Pinkie tapped her chin for a few seconds before her face lit up again. “So what if you boost your own magic instead?”
Trixie snorted. “Trixie has already tried Sunset Shimmer’s crystals, but even enhancing my powers in that manner wasn’t enough.”
“What about a spell? I’m sure Moony has something stored away. Let’s go look!” Before Trixie could protest, Pinkie had snapped her fingers and teleported both of them to Nightmare Moon’s library. Pinkie floated over to the I section. “So you want something to improve your illusions, right? Ooh, how about this?!” Pinkie pulled out a book and threw it at Trixie.
Trixie levitated the book off her face and examined it. “Inspiration Manifestation: Instantly brings ideas to life. Hmm…I don’t know…”
Pinkie zipped over to her with a big grin. “Oh come on! It’s looks like it would be perfect!”
Trixie frowned. “It has spikes on it.”
“So does Smog.” Pinkie looked around the library. “Speaking of, do you think he’s here right now?”
Trixie was still staring at the book. “And it screams ‘cursed book of doom’.”
Pinkie gasped. “Trixie! Are you accusing me of trying to trick you? I thought we were friends?” Pinkie sniffled as her eyes started to water. With chocolate tears. “Why are you being such a big, mean, meanie pants?”
Trixie fidgeted awkwardly. “Please stop crying. Trixie was just saying that, um…this book does not seem to belong in this library and, uh…”
Pinkie immediately perked up again. “Oh, is that all? Well let’s just ask our local librarian!” She snapped her fingers and Smog appeared in front of them. Unfortunately, he had been a little busy at the time.
“HEY!” Smog said as he sunk deeper into the water of the bathtub that he had been taking a bath in. “Doesn’t anyone knock anymore?”
“Oopsie-daisy! Sorry Smog, old buddy. We didn’t mean to interrupt bath time. Can you just tell us more about this book?” Pinkie asked.
Smog grumbled as Trixie levitated the book over to him. “Um...I think that’s the Inspiration Manifestation. Yeah, King Sombra sent Nightmare that book a while ago. I figured that it was a new addition to the library, so I just sorted it into the I section.”
Trixie blinked. “You sorted this away? And it came from King Sombra?”
“Yep. It came with a letter too, but Nightmare didn’t say what was in it.” Smog paused. “If she’s even read it yet. You know, I can’t remember where I left that note…”
“Thanks for clearing that up Smog! We’ll let you get back to your bath!” Pinkie said as she tossed a rubber duck and a rubber alligator into the bath water, before she snapped her fingers and put the tub and Smog back where they were before. “Well, there you have it! Totally safe! Go on, try it!”
Trixie stared at Pinkie’s big grin for a few seconds before she opened up the book. “Trixie supposes it's worth a try. ‘From in the head to out in the world, every thought to action.’” As she spoke, green energy floated out of the book and into her horn. “‘Hold close this book and through its spell, you'll start a chain reaction. Projecting forth whatever beauty you see. Only when true words are spoken will you finally be set free.’”
Pinkie watched as Trixie’s magic went from magenta to emerald green. “…Did it work?”
“Well, there’s only one way to find out,” Trixie said as her eyes began to glow green.
The next morning, Nightmare, Smog, Sunset Shimmer, Discord, Big Macintosh, and Apple Bloom were all waiting at the train station. “You must be pretty excited to see your grandma if you’re waiting with all of us instead of playing around at the fair with your friends,” Sunset said to Apple Bloom.
“Well shoot, the fair’s going on all day. But ever since Granny Smith got that fancy-shmancy job at Apple Pie Incorporated, Ah haven’t seen her as much,” Apple Bloom said as she watched the tracks for any sign of a train.
“She was here last year,” Sunset pointed out.
“Yup. A whole year ago. Bloom’s missed her something fierce.” Big Macintosh glanced at Smog. “What about him? Ah reckon the young feller would rather be at the fair than waiting here.”
Smog shrugged. “Eh, I’m getting a little old for some of the games there. Besides, Captain Luna is going to be here soon.”
Nightmare nodded. “And mom always knows how to take something good and make it even better.” Her right wing unfolded and patted Smog on the back. “And if she doesn’t think she’s too old for the fair, than you really have no right to be making claims like that.”
Sunset looked at her. “I can’t help but ask…why doesn’t your mom just fly here? Or teleport?”
“Maybe it’s ‘cause it’s her day off an’ she don’t need to rush things?” Apple Bloom suggested.
“Okay. But what about your sister? What’s her excuse for taking something as normal as the train?” Sunset asked Discord.
Discord chuckled. “Considering it’s my dearest baby sister, you should know that the train won’t be normal by the time Eris is done with it.”
“Here they come!” Apple Bloom cheered as the train came down the tracks before stopping at the station. “Granny Smith! We’re over here!”
Smog raised an eyebrow. “The train just pulled in. Give her a minute.”
Sunset chuckled. “You and Nightmare are still new in town. You haven’t met their grandma before.”
“Is that mah granddaughter hollering? Pardon me fellas!” A voice called out as an elderly earth pony was the first one to exit the train. Her coat was lime green and her hair was a light gray. She wore an orange scarf dotted with apples and a pair of red glasses. But Nightmare spotted something else about Granny Smith that made her pause. All of Granny Smith’s legs were prosthetic.
Nightmare went over to Big Macintosh and whispered, “I don’t mean to sound rude, but…what happened to her legs?”
Big Macintosh looked a little uncomfortable with the question. “It all happened kinda quick. Granny Smith’s been working fir the Apple Pie company fir years now. When she first came to the Big Apple, she was in accident. Poor ol’ Granny’s legs weren’t as strong as they used to be an’ she lost all use of them. Thankfully some o’ Discord’s kin went an’ built her them fancy replacement legs.”
Smog looked at Discord. “Couldn’t you have just snapped her fingers and give her back her old legs?”
“Why are you looking at me? He said my ‘kin’.” Discord shrugged. “If I had to guess, I would say it was Uncle Discombobulate.”
Before anyone could ask who that was, Granny Smith walked up to them. “Howdy y’all! Big Mac, introduce yer friends for me, will ya?” Big Macintosh opened his mouth to begin introductions, before Granny Smith stopped him. “Wait a minute! Now Ah recognize y’all. Yer the Elements, ain’t ya?”
Sunset smiled. “Only half of them, actually. But yes, that’s Nightmare Moon, that’s Smog, that’s Discord, and I think we’ve met before…”
Granny Smith chuckled. “As if Ah could forget ya Sunny. Ya still running that underground farm?”
“Yes ma’am.”
“Well, best o’ luck to ya. Pardon me, but as much as Ah’d like to catch up with y’all, this little one here won’t stop shaking like a rattler until Ah meet her friends.”
“Come on Granny!” Apple Bloom smiled as she tugged on one of her grandmother’s prosthetic legs. “Ya gotta come meet Sweetie Belle, an’ Scootaloo, an’ Button Mash, an’ Diamond Tiara, an-”
“Hold yer horses Apple Bloom, Ah’m a coming!” Granny Smith chuckled as she followed Apple Bloom and Big MacIntosh back to Peaceville.
“Onii-chan!” a second voice shouted from the train. Discord, Smog, Sunset, and Nightmare turned around to see a long, silvery haired draconequus with a rather strong resemblance to her brother.
“Eris! There you are.” Discord teleported over to hug his sister. “A sight for sore eyes! How have you been?”
“Totally sugoi, arigato for asking onii-chan!” Eris giggled.
Nightmare spoke up, “Hello there. It’s nice to meet you Eris. My name is-”
Eris giggled again. “Oh I know who you are!” She bowed to each of them. “It’s an honour to meet you Moon-sama-chan! Shimmer-sama-chan! Smog-sama-kun!”
Nightmare stared at her in confusion again. “Why are you talking like that?”
“Moony? Is that you? Are you here to play with me?” a third voice called from the train.
Nightmare’s eyes widened. “By the night, is that…MOVE!” she ordered as she shoved past Discord and Eris to get to the source of the voice.
Standing there was Captain Luna, only significantly altered. Luna was the size of a small filly, her coat and hair was a much lighter blue, and her mane and tail weren’t flowing magically like they normally were. Instead of her guard uniform, she wore silver shoes and a small tiara. The filly Luna looked up at her and smiled, “Hello! I am Princess Woona, and I love warm hugs!”
Nightmare squeed with joy and hugged her mom. “I love you Woona!”
Sunset blinked in confusion even as she smiled at the adorable scene. “What’s that about?”
“It’s a Family Weekend tradition,” Smog explained. “Whenever the Boys and Girls Fair starts, Luna uses magic to make herself look a lot younger. Playing with ‘Princess Woona’ was Nightmare’s favourite part of the holiday, and Luna enjoys the chance to act like a kid and forget about her guard duties for a while.”
“Kawaii!” Eris sang as she saw Luna. “Can I hug her?”
“Seriously, why is she talking like that?” Smog asked.
“Trust me, it’s better than the last quirk she picked up,” Discord whispered to him.
Nightmare growled and levitated Luna away from Eris. “NO! It’s my Princess Woona, get your own!”
Woona frowned. “Moony, don’t be a meanie.”
But Eris didn’t seem too upset about it. “Well fine then, I didn’t want to play with her anyway! Onii-chan, care to continue our grand sibling rivalry?”
Discord chuckled. “Now Eris, don’t you think we’re a little old for such childish games?”
Eris stared at him. “Who are you and what have you done to Discord?”
“Why, isn’t it obvious?” Discord asked as he snapped his fingers and donned a red and purple superhero costume. “I am Captain Goodguy, defender of freedom!”
Eris dramatically gasped. “Le gasp! I knew you would return! But now the Great Dragon Queen has also returned!” She snapped her fingers and donned a red dragon costume. “And I shall defeat you!” she cried as she pointed a giant sword-shaped candy cane at him.
“Not if I defeat you first!” Discord declared as he pointed a large baguette at her. The two siblings began firing lightning bolts at each other before flying away.
“…Well that happened. Captain Luna, Nightmare, do either of you want to go see Trixie’s show?” Sunset asked.
“Rocket ship Moony!” Woona giggled as she leapt onto Nightmare’s back. Nightmare picked up Smog in her magic, then flapped her wings and flew off as they began to sing:
“Sun shines and Moon gleams
Owls awake!
Clap your hooves
And give your wings a little shake!”
Sunset rolled her eyes and walked back to Peaceville by herself. “I’m surrounded by lunatics.”
Rainbow Dash pushed the cloud she was carrying over to a good spot before sitting down on it. “Awesome! Perfect view for…whatever’s about to happen. Hey G over here!”
Gilda flew over and sat on the cloud too. “Good thinking, getting us a cloud so nobody’s blocking us. Can’t wait to see what Trixie’s got planned this year.”
Below them, several ponies on the ground where finding a seat on the ground to watch the show too. “Now Sweetie Belle do try to find a spot of nice clean grass, okay? Snips, Scootaloo, put that down please,” Rarity said.
The Apple family waved to the unicorn supervising the group of fillies and colts. “How ya doing Miss Rarity?” Big Macintosh said. “Here’s a spot Granny. Er, Apple Bloom, Miss Spoon, settle down now.”
Diamond’s Cutie Mark Destroyers and Apple Bloom and her friends, all sat down with the grown-ups. “Oh, I can’t wait! Trixie said she’s going to do something extra special this year!” Snails cheered
“I hope she’s alright. The last time I saw her, she was looking a little twitchy,” Diamond said.
“Diamond too? I’m glad I’m not the only one who noticed,” Chrysalis said as she and a few other changelings went over to join Rarity and her group.
“Ah, Chrysalis you’re just in time. And out of disguise too, I see. I recall you being quite shy when I tried my hoof at a similar performance when we first met,” Rarity said.
Chrysalis nervously smiled. “Well that particular performance ended in a Windigo attack. And Trixie was acting a little odd when I saw her this morning, so I felt it would be best if concentrated on her act instead of a disguise.”
Rarity stared at her with slight confusion and concern. “Odd? You don’t think something unfortunate is about to happen, do you?”
Chrysalis sighed. “I honestly don’t know, maybe I’m just being paranoid. I noticed that Trixie’s magic has turned green but I don’t think she’s been replaced by a changeling. I’m not sure what to expect from today.”
“Hey look it’s starting!” Snails cheered as Trixie teleported in front of the crowd in a flash of green.
“Welcome one and all! Prepare to have your minds blown as Trixie the Incredible performs feats of such magnificent magic, no unicorn could ever hope to match them!” Trixie declared. Her horn and eyes glowed bright green as a flash of light created an entire stage right in the middle of the grassy field.
The entire crowd gasped. “Oh my, I don’t think I’ve ever seen a magician conjure up such a beautiful stage from nothing!” Rarity exclaimed.
Trixie teleported onto the stage as she conjured up flowers and fireworks. “Witness my power Peaceville! Gaze upon an even Greater and Powerfuler Trixie!”
Granny Smith squinted as she tried to watch the show. “Ah reckon yer supposed to say more powerful instead of ‘powerfuler.’ Real flashy one, ain’t she?”
Trixie’s horn continued to glow as she conjured up candy, toys, dolls, books, and all sorts of fun stuff. She telekinetically flung them all into the crowd and into the excited hooves of young colts, fillies, and changeling nymphs. Smog grabbed a comic book out of the air and stared at the cover. “Holy smoke! Limited edition!”
“Holy smoke is right,” Nightmare said as she watched the show. “I’ve never seen Trixie use magic this powerful. How is she doing all this?”
“I think if we figured out the how it wouldn’t be as much fun,” Woona said as she brushed the mane of her newly acquired toy. “By the way, I’m naming this doll after you.”
Nightmare eyed the doll. “That looks nothing like me.”
“But it’s cute and cuddly just like you!” Woona said as she hugged the doll. Nightmare rolled her eyes and continued to watch Trixie’s increasingly wonderful performance.
After the show was over, several of Trixie’s friends went to congratulate her. Nightmare, Woona, Smog, Sunset, Gilda, Rainbow, Rarity, and Chrysalis waited as Sweetie, Snips, and Snails took turns knocking on Trixie’s backstage door. “Hey Trixie, open up!” Snails said as he knocked. “You were great out there, eh Snips?”
“You bet! The greatest and most powerful we’ve ever seen you, Great and Powerful Trixie!” Snips cheered.
At that moment, the door burst open and a huge pile of magician’s props, books, dresses, and other items spilled onto the floor. Trixie came out next, her eyes glowing with mad power. “Trixie’s friends! Oh, Trixie is so glad that you’re here! Come!”
They went inside to see the backstage completely swamped by all sorts of items that were still glowing from their recent conjuring. “Wow. Where did all of this come from?” Sunset asked. Trixie was unable to answer, as he face was twisted into a twitchy smile.
“Um, are you okay?” Chrysalis asked her.
Trixie grinned at them. “Trixie has never been better!” She levitated Smog over and hugged him. “Oh thank Smog so much for letting Trixie borrow that book from Nightmare Moon’s library, it’s amazing! Why, Trixie has been up all night long perfecting every single magic trick Trixie has ever and will ever dream up!”
Woona raised a hoof. “Is that why Moony and I couldn’t see your dreams last night?”
“And who is this adorable filly? Captain Luna? Oh, Trixie is honoured that Luna has come to Trixie’s show! And Luna is right, Nightmare Moon and Luna did not see Trixie because Trixie did not sleep at all! Sleep is overrated for the Supreme Trixie!”
Trixie’s friends stared at her. “Um, are you sure you don’t want to take a quick nap? You’re speaking in third person a lot more than usual,” Nightmare said.
“Bah! Why should Trixie sleep when Trixie could be making Trixie’s friends such wondrous gifts!” Her horn glowed as she summoned or conjured up gifts for all of them. “Books for Nightmare Moon, comics and gemstones for Smog, books and crystals for Sunset Shimmer, Shadowbolt paraphernalia for Gilda and Rainbow Dash, sparkly dresses for Rarity, bottles containing pure liquid love for Chrysalis…” She finally paused as she took a deep breath.
Rarity placed a comforting hoof on her. “Trixie darling, you’re beginning to scare us.”
“But Trixie does not wish to scare Rarity! Why, Rarity just needs to say the word and Trixie will create many sparkly dresses for Rarity! The next fifteen fashion show trophies can be all Rarity’s once the word is said!”
Nightmare pulled the blue unicorn with her magic and looked her in the eye. “Trixie, snap out of it! What did this to you? What library book were you talking about?”
“The Inspiration Manifestation of course!” Trixie answered.
Nightmare gasped. “Smog! You gave Trixie that book? Didn’t you read King Sombra’s letter about what it does to you?”
“What? No! I know I got a letter from King Sombra with the book but I didn’t read it because it was meant for you! I just thought it was a new library book.”
“Smog, that book is dangerous! Trixie, you need to give us that book right now!” Nightmare ordered.
Trixie growled as her eyes glowed even more. “Trixie sees what Nightmare Moon is doing. Trixie is happy to share these gifts with Trixie’s friends but Trixie will not let them steal the…” She paused as her magic brushed against one of her saddlebags. “The book! Where did it go?”
In another part of Peaceville, Apple Bloom was buying Diamond and Silver some milkshakes from the Chaos Corner. Silver glanced at the building’s jelly-like ceiling as she saw Discord and Eris chase each other with spaghetti-lassos. “Looks like they’re having a lot of fun.”
Apple Bloom chuckled. “Yup. Ol' Eris always was just as nutty as her brother.”
“Speaking of brothers, where’d yours go?” Diamond asked as she sipped her milkshake.
“He an’ Granny went ta set up the Sibling Social race an’ all them events. Scootaloo went with them ‘cause she was curious about Granny’s pros…pro…her replacement legs,” Apple Bloom said. She was just about to start drinking her own milkshake when the front door turned into a pile of pillows as it sensed that other customers were arriving. Sweetie, Snips, and Snails all ran into the Chaos Corner with big grins.
“Hey guys! You’ll never guess what we just got from Trixie!” Sweetie said as she held a book up in her magic.
“Yeah! We saw that this was a library book and figured Trixie wouldn’t mind if we borrowed it, eh?” Snails said.
“Yep! And we read the spell in it and I-I-I-I’ve never felt better!” Snips said. His horn glowed green as he conjured up a gem-encrusted game controller. “Here Diamond! I know you’ve been looking for a prettier Joy Boy to replace your old one.”
Silver raised an eyebrow. “You play video games Diamond?”
Diamond blushed. “Um, I…I only play them casually! Like, when there’s nothing better to do!”
Snails stared at her. “Really? What about that time you, me, Sweetie, and Button all got together and-” His question was interrupted as Diamond stuffed her hoof in his mouth.
“Shush!” She retrieved her hoof and quickly wiped it on the tablecloth. “So what’s this about a book?”
“It’s really cool! I feel so alive!” Snails cheered as his horn glowed.
“Why’s his magic green? Wasn’t it yellow before?” Silver whispered to Diamond.
“I know what you mean Snails. I’ve never felt better in my entire life!” Sweetie grinned as her horn glowed a much more vivid green than it usually did. “I feel like I can do anything! Like I could be a better artist than my sister! Like I could just keep creating, and creating, and creating!” Her eyes glowed as she stared at Diamond, Silver, and Apple Bloom. “And I know the perfect gift to create for you!”
Smog smiled. “Hey, what do ya know? If the book is gone, maybe Trixie isn’t under its spell anymore. Problem solved!”
Nightmare glared at him. “Smog, this is serious! What if someone else has it?”
“Let them keep it!” Trixie said as her eye glowed even brighter. “Trixie doesn’t need that book anymore! Trixie can feel its magic flowing within Trixie now!”
Gilda raised a talon. “Um, can you stop that? Your crazy, possessed third person talk is a lot more annoying than your usual third person talk.”
“Trixie cannot stop now! Trixie will not stop until all of Peaceville is showered in gifts! Then, the Big Apple! The Badlands! The Crystal Empire! Trixie will not stop until every inch of Everfree has been utterly transformed into a glorious Trixie-opolis! And all of Trixie’s subjects will bow before such creative GENIUS!” With a blinding flash of green light, the crazed mare teleported away.
“…Goodness. Was I like that when I had the Alicorn Amulet?” Rarity asked.
Gilda shrugged. “More or less.”
“Well if no one else will admit it, I will. That was scary. We need to stop her,” Smog said.
“Agreed.” Woona sighed as her horn glowed, reversing the spell she had cast on herself and growing back into her adult body. “A shame too, I was enjoying spending the day with you Moony,” Luna said.
“Me too. Let’s snap Trixie out of it, and maybe we’ll be able to enjoy tomorrow chaos-free,” Nightmare sighed. “I’ll go put on my armor.”
“Make it quick. Now then, Trixie could have teleported anywhere in Peaceville or even beyond. We’ll have to split up in order to find her.”
“Wait! We can’t split up, haven’t you ever read a horror novel?” Smog said.
“This isn’t a horror novel Smog. And since when does Nightmare let you read those?” Luna asked with a raised eyebrow.
“And I’m leaving before this conversation gets awkward,” Gilda said. “Dash, you fly west and I’ll fly east. The rest of you take north and south or something.”
Rainbow grinned. “Aw yeah! Let’s get going!”
“Ninjas!”
“Jewelry!”
“Robot Dinosaurs!”
“Sequins!”
“Superheroes!”
“Um…yeah! More of that!”
Half an hour later, Rainbow screeched to a halt and hovered in midair at the sound of arguing kids. She looked down to see dozens of green flashes go off all over the place. She touched down on the ground to see Sweetie, Snips, and Snails all glaring at each other. “Whoa, what happened to you guys?”
“Rainbow?” She glanced over her wing to see Sunset and Chrysalis catching up with her. “We checked everywhere else. Any sign of Trixie yet?” Sunset asked.
“No. And I think the trouble has just been quadrupled,” Rainbow said as she pointed at the green glow surrounding the three younger unicorns’ horns.
“Oh no.” Chrysalis buzzed over to them and picked up Sweetie, Snips, and Snails in her magic. “Kids, listen to me! You need to snap out of it!”
“I’ll snap them if they keep getting their robots and whatever into my fashion show!” Sweetie growled.
“Why don’t you get your girly frou-frou stuff out of our new action movie!” Snips shot back.
“I don’t know why we’re angry but I’m yelling also!” Snails announced.
“Sweetie, Snips, Snails, stop fighting! Have any of you seen Trixie or a book with a weird spell in it?” Sunset asked.
“The spell book’s over there,” Rainbow pointed out. Sunset grabbed the book in her levitation and floated it over.
“Hey! Keep your hooves off my book!” Sweetie cried.
“It’s not your book. Besides you don’t even need it to maintain whatever creative spell you’re under,” Chrysalis said.
Rainbow shot her a look. “Dude!”
“Well it’s not like that knowledge will make their condition any worse,” Chrysalis replied.
“Whatever. Sunset, do you see anything that might undo the spell? …Sunny?”
They all turned around to see that Sunset had disappeared.
“Found her!” Gilda shouted as she tackled Trixie and pinned her to the ground.
“Ah! Release Trixie at once Gilda!”
Gilda just wrapped her talons even tighter around Trixie’s legs. “Stop using my name in your third-person speak and I’ll think about it!”
“Good job Gilda!” Nightmare said as she, Luna, Smog, and Rarity caught up to them.
The crazed unicorn struggled. “No! Trixie will not be forced back into mediocrity! Trixie wants to create joy for the whole world and for the world to bask in Trixie’s generous glory!”
“You’re not mediocre Trixie. But you’re not yourself right now either. Calm down so we can figure this out, or I’ll have to ‘calm you down’ myself,” Nightmare threatened.
A green bolt of magic zapped Gilda off of Trixie. “Ha! Nothing's more powerful than the Inspiration Manifestation! And Nightmare Moon is no longer more powerful than the Great and Powerful Trixie! None can defeat Trixie!”
“Oh, I bet I could.” They turned around to see Sunset walking over to them. “Just so you know you guys know, Chrysalis and Rainbow are with Sweetie, Snips, and Snails. They fell under the spell too, might want to fix that.”
“Why aren’t you with them?” Rarity asked. Sunset didn’t answer and just stared at Trixie as her horn began to glow. “Um, Sunset…your magic isn’t normally green, is it?”
Sunset let out a dark giggle. “You got me.” Her horn flashed as she summoned and levitated the Inspiration Manifestation over to them. “I recommend either Smog or Gilda read that. The temptation is just too strong for unicorns.”
Nightmare glared at her. “Sunset! How could you?”
“Like I said, too tempting. But I haven’t completely lost it yet, so I figured while I’m filled with crazy power I might as well aim at something. You guys search for the cure while me and Trixie…sort this out.”
Trixie grinned. “Ah! Finally, a worthy challenge for the Great and Powerful Trixie!”
Sunset’s eyes glowed green. “Not gonna lie…this is going to be FUN!” Both unicorns immediately began blasting at each other with the full power given to them by the Inspiration Manifestation, fireworks exploded everywhere, and random weapons and junk were conjured up to get an advantage over the other.
Nightmare, Luna, and Rarity quickly raised a magic shield. “Dude, hurry up!” Gilda shouted over the battle as Smog read through the spell.
“Found it! ‘Only when true words are spoken will you finally be set free.’” Smog read out loud.
“True words? What, we just have to tell them the truth?” Gilda asked.
“‘True words’ could mean anything!” Nightmare argued.
“I think Gilda is right Moony,” Luna said. “Smog, even though you did not know what would happen, this is partly your fault for letting Trixie borrow the book.”
“I hear ya. Trixie, Sunset, stop!” Smog roared. The two crazed unicorns paused their duel to glare at him. “Guys…at first the stuff the spell helped you create was amazing, it really was. I know you don’t like the idea of being anything less than amazing, Trixie. I know you don’t like the idea of being weak, Sunset. But the spell has taken control of you two and it’s turned you both into something you’re not. It’s making you both…awful.”
At Smog’s words, the green glow flooded out of Trixie and Sunset before drifting away. Trixie rubbed her horn and groaned. “Ugh…did any of you see what ran me over?”
“Hey, she’s talking like a normal pony again,” Gilda pointed out.
Nightmare sighed. “It worked. Nice work team.”
Sunset shook her head. “Yeah, good job everyone. Now…let’s go fix the others.”
A flash of light went off as Eris and Discord appeared before them. “Guess who?!”
“Konnichiwa everyone! Did we miss anything?” Eris asked innocently.
“YES!” everyone else shouted.
The next day, the Elements, their friends, and several other Peaceville citizens were gathered outside of Sweet Apple Acres. Granny Smith tapped on the megaphone. “Is this thing on? Ah like these modern doohickeys just as much as the next gal but…oh, it’s on. Now listen up y’all! We got the Sibling Social race all ready fir ya. So y’all head on up to the start line, y’hear?”
Scootaloo grinned as she flew over to join the race. “Thank you so much for agreeing to be my honourary big sister Rainbow!”
Rainbow chuckled. “Anytime squirt. There’s no way I’d miss out on a race with you, even if we can’t use our wings.”
Rarity stood with her sister at the start line. “Now Sweetie Belle are you sure you’re up for this? You were possessed by a powerful spell yesterday and I don’t want you to hurt yourself.”
“Rarity I’m fine!” Sweetie groaned. “I promise,”
“Very well then. Let’s do our best today…and avoid getting muddy, if possible of course.”
“Good luck with getting second place,” Apple Bloom said to them as she and Big Macintosh lined up. “Me and Big Mac ain’t ever lost this race yet.”
“Aw, you’re so kawaii Bloom-chan. But I think you’ll find this year’s competition to be a bit more challenging,” Eris said as she slithered up to the start line with her brother.
Apple Bloom frowned. “Ya know y’all ain’t allowed to use magic or flight fir this race, right?”
“…Well we’re toast,” Discord said.
“I’m more of a rice and miso soup girl myself,” Eris mused.
Discord tapped his chin. “I prefer chocolate pancakes and milk, but I’m open to new ideas.”
“Do you two have to talk about food this early in the day?” Smog asked as he and Nightmare lined up at the start line.
“You signed up too?” Apple Bloom asked.
Nightmare smiled. “Of course. We might not be related by blood, but Smog is the closest thing I have to a brother. One that I am quite proud of.”
Diamond, Silver, Snips, Snails, and Chrysalis cheered on their friends as the race began. Gilda bragged to ponies and changelings in the crowd about her heroic actions the previous day. And Trixie and Sunset talked with Captain Luna as they watched the race.
“So what’s going to happen to the Inspiration Manifestation?” Sunset asked.
“We informed King Sombra of what happened and sent it back to him. He’s already working on how to alter the dark magic within it,” Luna said as she watched Nightmare and Smog.
“Alter? You mean he’s not locking a dangerous book like that up?” Trixie asked.
Luna smiled gently. “Not exactly. You see, the Inspiration Manifestation was created as a gift for struggling artists, performers, and writers. The book’s creator understood that it is difficult sometimes to create in real life what you have perfected in your head.”
“But if the spell was created as a blessing rather than a curse…what went wrong?” Sunset asked.
“For one thing, the ability to always keep creating is something a lot of creative individuals wish they could do and the spell reflects that. For another…the book was created with dark magic. Not evil magic, just…dark and occasionally unstable magic. As I said, King Sombra is working on it now.”
“Hmm. I wonder if he and the princess had a crazy Family Weekend like ours,” Trixie mused.
“Congratulations on winning the Social, Twily! You and Prince Shining deserve first place.”
Princess Twilight smiled. “Thank you Pinkie. And congratulations to you and Maud for coming in second.”
Pinkie giggled. “Aw, thank you! Well, I better get to that puppet show I planned for Rocky and his friends. Happy Family Weekend!” she sang as she snapped her fingers and teleported away.
Pinkie arrived at the far end of the Crystal Empire. Taking a brief moment for herself, she floated above the buildings and stared in the direction of Peaceville. She giggled as she snapped her fingers again, creating puppets of the Element bearers. She twirled them around in the air before focusing on the angry puppet Gilda and the fearful puppet Nightmare Moon. She smiled and softly sang to herself:
I had strings
But now, I'm free.
…There are no strings…on me…