//------------------------------//
// Chapter 114 - Reanimate 
// Story: Trixie's Forest Retreat 
// by crowscrowcrow 
//------------------------------//



There were many possible things Trixie expected to be asked about, but it surprised her when Fluttershy's first question was about what she had actually done the previous night.

As with all great tales, Trixie knew it was best to start at the beginning. Her first task was to catch Fluttershy up to speed on recent events. Specifically, a brief summary of her discussion about the half illusionary book with Twilight, which had led to Trixie finding out she only had a single day to get it back. She also mentioned the pink pony's delivery of the black cat suit, and the letter that had come with her books which alerted her to Twilight's discovery of her spell book in the first place. 

It was a good thing Fluttershy had a comfy couch, as neither of them were going anywhere for a while if Trixie had to tell the whole story. On the plus side, retreading old ground like this had helped steady her nerves. One simply couldn’t keep a good show pony down.

She told Fluttershy about when she slipped out of bed, but skipped over the nightmare, and scene she made when Angel had the gall to stare down at her. Fortunately that meant Trixie had the time to spend a little more of the story on her plotting and the flawless execution of a bold midnight burglary. A story that might have included one or two more laser-triggered alarm systems than Trixie had actually dealt with. Which left only the sleepless night until Twilight's arrival. 

“So then Trixie opened the door, and well, you know the rest. If anything you just heard was actually news to you to begin with, seeing as you somehow found the book Twilight was searching for.     How did you even know about Trixie's book? For that matter, when did you have time to hide it? Trixie watched you all night! Erm, what Trixie meant to say is—She was awake all night."


"Oh. Uhm. I...I didn't actually... " Fluttershy fidgeted with her hooves.

Trixie slowly cocked her head while she tried to make sense of that reply. “You didn’t move it?”

Fluttershy shook her head. “No, and, uhm, I didn’t know anything about the book either. O-or that you were gone. W-well, I mean, not until you told me all of this. After you fell asleep, I fed my animal friends, and I found this black bundle behind one of the feed bags.”

“Trixie’s book was wrapped in it. Yes?”

“Yes. It was strange, but I didn’t think much of it. N-not that it was unremarkable. I just didn’t think it was so important. Once I was done with the chores and breakfast, I thought It would be pleasant to     just read something until you woke up.”

“So you picked a horror book?” Trixie quirked a brow.

Blushing, Fluttershy nodded meekly. “I-I thought it was about a doctor.” 

“Well, that’s technically true.” Trixie smirked, then flipped open her spell book and flipped through the pages, some fragments of it already familiar to Fluttershy. “The rest is easy enough for Trixie to piece together. You started reading it, but parts of some pages were from a completely different book, right? That’s how you knew something was up with it.”

Fluttershy nodded. “That, and you looked really shaken up when you saw that I had it, so I thought I’d ask you if there was anything you had to say about it.”

“And Trixie just went ahead and told you everything. Yes. However, that still does not explain why the book was not where Trixie left it.” Trixie folded her hooves across her chest. “Mhm. Perhaps Trixie moved it before she went upstairs? Trixie does sometimes do clever things she does not remember.” Even by Trixie’s standards, that was going a little further than usual. This wasn’t like the time she must have subconsciously moved the frying pan off the fire by reflex before leaving.

Could it have been the pink one? If it really was… what was her name? Pinkie Pie? Yes, Trixie thinks so. How did she get in? The door was locked. Why would she move it? What else did she do besides move the book? How long had she been inside? Trixie didn’t even hear her.

Trixie shuddered at the thought that some weird pony had broken in and snuck around her house doing Luna knows what. Even if it had turned out for the better, the fact that it happened didn’t sit well with her at all. 

Just wait till Trixie sees her again. She scowled. The nerve of some ponies.

“Uhm, Trixie? Is it okay if I ask you the next question now?”

Trixie snapped to attention. “What? Ah, yes. Yes, of course.” 

“Did you write these?”

Trixie chuckled. “Hah, no. Trixie wishes she was that good. Ah, don’t read too much into that, Trixie will be that good someday, but these spells belong to perhaps the greatest wizard to ever live. A unicorn who rivaled even alicorns in power thanks to his methods. He moved magical theory forward thousands of years all on his own. Too bad it drove him insane though. Fortunately, before his untimely passing, he was diligent with recording his findings.” Trixie tapped the book in between them. “Tomes like these. Trixie does not know exactly how many survived, but most of them were destroyed along with him. Trixie can only assume copies were made of the surviving journals over the years, but we still only have a fraction of the knowledge today that he had. Anything else?”

Shaking her head, Fluttershy remained quiet for a minute while Trixie allowed her time to get her thoughts in order. Finally, pointing at the book, Fluttershy asked, “Why did you take it? I understand that it would be bad if anypony knew that you know the spells, but… nopony would have known, right? You could have just claimed you had no idea it was anything but a storybook. I-I think?”

Nodding, Trixie smiled at Fluttershy before responding. A small part of her wondered if the fact that she enjoyed monologueing her intentions so much was a sign that she was evil after all. “Ah. You’re right, Fluttershy. There is a good reason why Trixie risked life and limb to retrieve it. Well… Two reasons to be honest. The first is pretty simple: scrying spells. It is high level magic that allows the caster to look into the past, but it is not all that precise. Usually it requires an item for the spell to anchor to, or you’d just see random flashes of the past of your current location. Ponies that can use it are rare, but if anypony has the resources to have one performed it is Princess Celestia. Trixie could not take that risk.”

Fluttershy’s face held that familiar, adorable little look of concentration. Her eyebrows held a small frown, and she looked contemplative. “I see… aren’t you worried that somepony might use one of those spells to see what happened in the library?”

“No. Because of the nature of the spell it is nearly impossible to direct it without a proper anchor. The only exception is major magical events. Like for example the legendary battle between Princess Celestia and Nightmare Moon. Which, now that Trixie thinks about it, might just be history at this point instead of legend… Anyway. You can think of big events like that as bookmarks; the spell will draw you to the page that the major event took place on, but you’ll be on a random sentence of the page and it will still require multiple tries to get to the exact moment you wish.” As she spoke, she used her own book to provide an illustration, using a stray yellow feather as a bookmark. “As Great and Powerful as Trixie obviously is, she still probably would not qualify as a major magical event.” She finished with a grin.

Giggling, Fluttershy shook her head. “If you say so, Trixie. That doesn’t sound like very useful magic then, if it can’t even be used to see you.”

Trixie’s ears perked up. Was Fluttershy flirting with her? That was a first. A seductive smile adored Trixie’s face as she leaned in closer. “It’s a good thing then that you’ll never have need of it. Trixie will be right here.” She lingered just a small nudge away from Fluttershy’s face. Trixie could have mentioned that other spells of the scrying type allowed for real time surveillance, but she had the good sense to shut up.

With how stunningly accurate an impression of a tomato Fluttershy was managing, it was a small wonder that she could still talk. “S-so, uhm, the s-second reason?”

“Ah, sorry, yes.” Trixie backed away, silently cursing herself for clearly moving a little too aggressively again. Fluttershy was so easily startled back into her shell, but at least Trixie felt like she was getting better at it. “The second reason… Well, it’s twofold. First of all, Trixie has decided she is the keeper of these spells now. Some of the spells in there are too dangerous to let anypony else learn them, so she keeps the spell book safe and hidden.” 

By the look on Fluttershy’s face, she wasn’t convinced. Her wings pressed into her sides, a sign that she was nervous. “S-so… you say that if anypony finds the book, you will be arrested and taken away?” Trixie nodded, then Fluttershy continued. “And that those spells are too dangerous to know?” Another nod. “so… why haven’t you destroyed the book?”

Trixie bit her lip, as she considered how to approach this. “Trixie admits that is a good question… and it is something that Trixie has thought about before. It isn’t as though it would be hard. It’s not like it must be thrown into a volcano, or anything. Even leaving it out in the rain would make most of it illegible. Actually, Trixie hoped that it had been destroyed along with her wagon.”

Fluttershy stayed quiet, recognizing Trixie was grappling with the question herself.

“Trixie wants to say it is because she believes it is wrong to destroy knowledge, no matter how vile. That there are good uses for bad things, that this book can help others to create a defense against those evil enough to use this kind of magic… Those are probably all true, but it’s not why. These spells are incredibly complicated, and messing up the slightest part of them could be disastrous. Trixie doesn’t use them anymore, but that means she needs the book to study the spells, or she’ll forget how to cast them properly.”

“You said it would be bad if somepony else learned them, but why is it okay if you do?”

“Easy, because Trixie might need it.” She shrugged callously. 

“I’m not sure that’s right, Trixie… Why would you want be able to cast them, if you know it’s dangerous? I-I think maybe… you should destroy it?”

“Oh, Fluttershy.” With a smirk, Trixie shook her head and sat up straight. “Trixie can see why you might think that. After all, Trixie has been playing up how even using them would make good ponies go bad and all that… But, Trixie left out a small detail. Why does the magic do that to them?”

“W-why does the magic do that to them..?”

Trixie gave Fluttershy a grin. "Personally? Trixie thinks it’s a product of the time these ponies lived in, among other flaws. When was the last pony to actually go against an alicorn, a thousand years ago? Two thousand? Those ponies are now nothing more than ancient myths and stories. But some of the best stories are ones that really happened you know. Especially when it comes to the history of free magic."

Fluttershy stared uncomprehendingly. "W-what?"

Now in lecturing mode, Trixie continued. “Arrogance, pride, a belief that they can do whatever they want. Feeling that their new power somehow made them invincible. It was a time of new magic and poor schooling systems after all. Their ambition eventually led them from their true goal. They became big-headed fools that let the magic control them instead of using it for what they originally hoped to accomplish with it.”

"N-not to sound mean or anything...but...d-don't you think you also...u-um.."

Chuckling, Trixie nodded, giving Fluttershy a gentle pat to let her know it was okay. "True, but Trixie has one thing they didn't. History classes. She's read dozens of times about ponies using these magics and then being beaten by the Princesses, or other ‘Heroes of Equestria’. Trixie knows what would happen if she began thinking herself too far above everypony else, so she tempers it. It's why she has managed to use these spells for years, and not become like them."

“B-but, didn’t you say before you couldn’t tell if the magic was changing you?”

Trixie brushed it off with a gesture. “That's only one theory, and one Trixie brings up when she is ... well, scared. Don’t listen to scared Trixie, that filly’s a fool. Trixie thought you knew this, you've seen her more than anypony else has after all.”

“R-right…” Fluttershy fixed Trixie with a silent stare while Trixie stared back confidently. After a moment she backed off, averting her eyes down to her hooves. “Uhm, next question, if that’s okay?”

“Of course.”

“Actually, it’s uhm, still the last question… I’m sorry. You only said you might need to know it, but not why. Nopony else needs to. I mean.”

“Oh. Did Trixie skip over that?” she asked, genuinely surprised with herself as a brief nod from Fluttershy confirmed it. “Sorry, it’s just that… Trixie wasn’t always a show mare, you know? Well, she was at heart, obviously.” Trixie grinned widely, but she didn’t get any reaction out of Fluttershy. “Right, well, Trixie is going somewhere with this. Before now, Trixie used to do, uhm, odd jobs, things ponies needed and no simple regular pony could do. Of course, Trixie was absolutely fantastic at it! But it required that Trixie had access to those spells. Trixie does not ever wish to go back to those days, but… Trixie is realistic, and—Wipe that smirk of your face.” 

“I, I wasn’t.”        

“Trixie could see you were thinking it!” She said in mock annoyance. “As Trixie was saying, Trixie is realistic and knows to prepare for the worst. If everything falls through for Trixie, then she can at least return to that life. As long as she still has those spells, Trixie knows she will be able to get by without resorting to escort work or, Luna forbid, a rock farm. Frankly, Trixie doubts she would even be able to land those jobs now with the way her infamy is growing.” She chuckled awkwardly.

Despite how much Trixie tried to make light of the entire thing, Fluttershy looked worried, and more than a little confused. "Trixie... I... I don't think...you will—what if I promise that I'll hire you? Then you won't need it, r-right?" Her eyes drifted to the book in between them.

Trixie followed Fluttershy's gaze to the weathered cover of her spell book. A cold feeling spread through her gut. "N-no. Trixie is not destroying it. Trixie needs it."

"Why?"

Without even realizing it, Trixie slowly pulled the book to her chest, wrapping her forelegs around it protectively. "It's insurance... Just... just drop it, okay?"

"But..." Fluttershy trailed off as her eyes met Trixie's "...Okay. I, uhm, I think maybe we shouldn't talk about this anymore; today, I mean. I didn't want to make you upset, Trixie, I'm sorry."

Although Trixie was not thrilled to know Fluttershy intended to bring it up again, she nodded. It had been her own fault after all, Fluttershy was only worried because of what she’d told her. “Thanks. Maybe Trixie wi—What in the name of Meadowbrook do you think you’re doing!?”

Glaring past the frozen-stiff Fluttershy, Trixie watched as the last little rodent she wanted to see scurried across the floor, dragging the black cat suit with him. He stopped in place, then glared back at her before kicking the black clothing piece across the floor toward her. He just stood there as though taunting her to do anything.

While still glaring at the little white furball, Trixie climbed off the couch. She groaned a bit, having to stretch her legs out, just how long had her and Fluttershy been talking anyways? If they didn't leave soon, there were going to be late to Applejack's for sure. 

She then pulled her cat suit off the ground, and folded it over the back of the couch before facing Angel again. She briefly considered how odd it was that she felt insulted that he was dragging it across the floor, considering it wasn’t really hers. “You impudent rat. What were you planning to do with that?”

Angel rolled his eyes, then tapped his foot impatiently while crossing his forelegs over his chest.

“Uhm, Trixie? I think, maybe, he’s returning it? Isn’t that right Angel?” Fluttershy asked while she gave a cautiously optimistic smile. Angel nodded, then scowled at Trixie while his foot drummed against the ground again. “Uhm, Trixie, I think he is waiting for a ‘thank you’?”

“What?” Trixie rubbed her ear as though she expected that it had been malfunctioning. “For what? He’s done nothing but get in Trixie’s way, and now he’s messing with her clothes! Wait a minute! Did you steal Trixie’s cloak too? You pathetic thief!” Before he could get away, she plucked the tiny tyrant off the ground with her magical grasp. “Got you!”

Fluttershy covered her mouth with her hooves as Angel thrashed about uselessly. “W-wait, Trixie. Don’t you think that, uhm…” She turned her attention to Angel. “Did you hide Trixie’s things, Angel?” Upon hearing the question, he stopped resisting and nodded to Fluttershy, then shot Trixie another glare that could curdle milk. “T-that, that’s good, right? Trixie?”

“Oh please.” Trixie rolled her eyes in the same manner Angel had done a second ago. A satisfied smirk curled her lips as she noticed his face darken a little at the copied gesture. “Trixie bets he only did it so Trixie would panic in the morning! It’s just dumb luck that it turned out to help Trixie this time! Trixie is not apologizing just because circumstance conspired to turn prank into fortune. Besides, Trixie’s finally got the little rat right where she wants him. Oh don’t worry, she won’t hurt him, but how would you like bright pink fur?” She laughed.

“Trixie.” Fluttershy’s voice held a gentle tone of reprimand that	 made Trixie stifle her laughter. 

“What? Come on, it won’t even tickle.” Trixie protested while she considered whether she could even make good on her threat in her current state. A bit of a headache was probably worth it anyway.

Fluttershy shook her head. “That’s not it. I-I just think you’re not being fair. He wouldn’t have brought anything back if he was hiding it, right?”

“Huh…” Trixie blinked slowly as she stared at the defiant rabbit, floating right in front of her. “But he…” She trailed off, then slumped back against the couch cushions. 

It wasn’t fair, she finally had the little bastard, and he’d done something decent right in the nick of time. Even if it was by total accident, she couldn’t very well punish him now. 

Trixie let out a long low groan. “Gaaah, fine! Thank you, Angel.”

Trixie could never be said to have much of an understanding of animals, but she learned something new that day. Out of all animals Trixie had ever encountered, it was clear to her that rabbits could give the biggest, dirtiest, smuggest grins on the entire planet!

"...Screw it." Trixie's horn started to glow.

"T-Trixie! NO!"





"O-oh dear..."

Trixie merely grunted from her new home on the floor. She ignored the little kicks she felt against her side from the newly minted pink rabbit. Really, she was ignoring everything past the raging pain in her head.

"W-worth it."