//------------------------------// // 2. Mail Activated Spell // Story: Magic Duel by Mail // by Lise //------------------------------// Work on the spell began at once. For them to succeed, they had to focus on their strengths and combine their efforts. Noonlight would compose the spell - she would jot down notes, describe the overall idea, and determine the type and placement of spell elements. She would then pass it to Trixie, whose job would be to write it neatly on a clean scroll. In theory, it sounded like the perfect plan, but in practice it didn’t go quite so well. Less than an hour later, it became obvious that changes had to be made. If they were to create the perfect mail duel spell, they were going to require more than just teamwork - they would need a process. Naturally, it was Trixie who came up with the idea. It was decided that process would be divided into three stages - conception, composition and completion. Conception was Noonlight's responsibility. She would think up the desired spell effect, as well as the best means to achieve it. Then, during composition, both would write down the spell outline. Questions would be answered, inconsistencies dealt with, until everything was laid out, down to the most insignificant spell element. When the last detail was ironed out, leaving no room for misunderstanding, Trixie would put the spell on paper, ready to be sent to Twilight. The spell chosen for the first challenge was given the name “Water Petals” - a combination of firework blossoms and water flames. The logic was simple - upon being read, a series of fireworks would burst all around the caster, in this case Twilight, and dart straight at her. Of course, not before the flames transformed into water. A frightening, but absolutely safe, experience. Both unicorns were certain it would have a profound effect on the Princess of Friendship. Composing the spell took far longer than Noonlight had hoped. Initially she believed they would be done that very same night and send the letter with in the morning mail. Unfortunately, between her illegible writing and Trixie's inability to think out of the box, four days were wasted on ironing out the details. Three more passed as Trixie attempted to cram a book's worth of symbols on a single scroll. Evening after evening Noonlight would ask Trixie whether she was done, and each time get the same growl of an answer. A week passed. Done with her classes, Noonlight gathered her books and quietly left for her dorm. As always, there was one thing on her mind - the duel spell. Usually, she would end up disappointed, but this time, things turned out differently. Upon entering her room, the unicorn found Trixie snoring on the desk. Next to her head, set carefully aside from all the other pieces of paper, was a neatly written scroll containing the most beautiful spell Noonlight had ever seen. "You have really outdone yourself, Trix," she whispered as she gently took the scroll. One cannot but admire the clarity with which the magic elements were written. Perfect spacing, impeccable penmanship, not a single spelling mistake to be seen. Trixie really had a gift for that sort of thing. A shame she couldn't come up with spells of her own. "Trixie," Noonlight shoved her friend gently. "Trixie..." "The Great and Powerful Trixie won't do any more shows tonight," the blue unicorn mumbled, half asleep. "Come back in the morning..." "Oh, Great and Powerful Trixie," Noonlight teased, "the Princesses are waiting." Trixie shot up like a popcorn kernel. "What? Where?" she looked around in panic. Only when she saw the chuckling Noonlight did she relax. "Ha, ha! Very funny, Noony..." "Like you never did anything of the sort," the other shoved her jokingly. "Send me to Tartarus, why don't you?" the blue unicorn grumbled. "The spell is beautiful! Absolutely beautiful!" "It should be," Trixie yawned. "I spent the entire night putting your insanity on paper. Only a crazy mare would come up with something like that." "Now there's only one thing left to do," Noonlight said expectantly. The hint was obvious - Trixie had to test the final product. With a sigh and a groan she went to the centre of the room. The scroll levitated towards her, stopping inches from her face. Then Trixie started reading. At first, nothing happened. The blue glow surrounding Trixie's horn grew brighter and brighter until it shone like a crystal beacon. A magic projection, in the form of a huge blue hourglass, appeared in the air and started rotating rhythmically. "Do you want me to defend myself?" Trixie asked as the hourglass changed from blue to an alarming red. "Sure," Noonlight replied, mesmerized by her creation. Trixie didn't waste any time. A protective bubble surrounded her, and not a moment too soon. On its fifth turn, the hourglass exploded. Scores of minuscule, glowing grains floated through the air, forming a spiral around the unicorn. For several seconds they remained hanging there innocently, like fireflies. The calm did not last. Without warning, the grains blossomed into flames. Fire petals transformed to water, splashing all over Trixie's magic bubble. Noonlight felt her heart would burst from excitement! It had worked! Her spell - the spell that couldn't be done - had performed magnificently, beyond her dreams even! "Weeeeell," Trixie started critically, as she stopped her protective spells. "The fireworks could use more work and the..." Noonlight's expression of uncontrollable joy made the blue unicorn stop. Only a heartless pony would nitpick at a time like this. "It's a great spell, Noon. Really really great." "Isn't it?" Noonlight could hardly contain herself. "My first spell. My first new spell! This..." Noonlight suddenly felt she couldn't breathe. A feeling of euphoria swept her, distorting the room and everything in it to shapes and colours. Darkness soon followed. When Noonlight woke up, she was tucked comfortably in her bed. Cautiously, she looked around. The room was dim, the only light coming from a candle on the desk. Had she been asleep that long? Slipping out of bed, Noonlight turned on the lights. Trixie was nowhere to be seen. Her ridiculous cape and hat were still there, along with an extremely large trunk. There was no way she could have left Canterlot. Most probably she off to do another performance somewhere. Still yawning, Noonlight went to extinguish the candle. A note was propped up beside it. You shouldn't party so hard, filly, the note read. I decided to let you sleep and mail the letter to Twilight in the morning. Until she writes back, no more all nighters! Have fun, fool around with Endless, and don't forget to eat and floss. - Trix Noonlight rolled her eyes. Trixie definitely needed to work on her sense of humour. On the bright side, she did say she was going to send the letter. Not only that, but she had cleaned the room while Noonlight was sleeping. All the books were neatly arranged on the shelves, the notes tidied away, and there wasn't a drop of water on the floor. Living alone in a performance wagon had definitely taught Trixie how to deal with life's lesser hardships. If only Noonlight could say the same. Fainting, just because her spell had worked? She could only cringe how stupid that sounded. Trixie had probably laughed her tail off at the sight. "Aww," Noonlight facehoofed. She was never going to live this down. "Well, what's done is done!" she said, in a feeble attempt to boost her confidence. The spell was tested, the scroll sent. All that remained now was to wait patiently, and give the matter no further thought. However, that turned out to be far more difficult than it sounded.