//------------------------------// // 1.3 - Magic of the Show // Story: Magic and Confetti // by MrAlterad //------------------------------// On a road less traveled, a hooded figure stood, perplexed. The trail was scorched. With a look of intrigue, she continued following the muddy tracks beyond, easily seeing that whatever caused the fire, it happened after her quarry passed this scene. She halted, a bird demanding her attention. It chirped out everything it had, giving her a completely detailed recount of the events. It was especially sure to recount the evils of the blue mare, and her noisy, scary fireworks. As the chirping died down, the figure nodded. “Thank you little critter,” she replied, getting a happy chirp from the bird. “Sadly, I don't speak twitter.” The bird had a surprised look in its eyes, before letting out a disappointed tweet, flying off. Continuing on, she came upon a metal box, the imprint of a surprised mare bent into one of its faces. Her mouth fell open in shock, eyes noting the set of fresher wagon tracks with more interest as she took in new evidence. Discarded ropes and chains. Fragments of brightly painted wood. Tracks of a tall stallion, and a mare. She then let out a sigh. Her quarry had switched hooves, and if the colored wood was any indication, Reina was with the gaudy wagon she passed on her way here. “Seems I've come across a fortunate bungle,” she said, frowning as she glanced back the way she came, “But now I must return to the concrete jungle.” With haste, she pocketed the wooden fragments, and started galloping back the way she came, hoping her little charge's new host was less villainous. And foolish. ~~~~~~~~~~ Trixie's ears felt hot, making her glance around for a moment in confusion. She then dismissed the sensation, returning her attention to the dire matter at hoof. “That'll be three hundred bits for damages,” she said, her tone leaving no room for debate, making the blood drain from the taxi stallion's face. “Th-That is not worth three hundred bits!” he exclaimed, pointing that the garish scratches his negligent driving had caused to Trixie's wagon. “I'm not paying!” Trixie stepped close, making him slink back. “Trixie will now take this moment to point out that this wagon was crafted and sanctioned by Princess Luna,” she said, a scowl on her face as she indicated a magical seal of authenticity branded on it. He took it in, his eyes widening, managing to look even more pale. “However, Trixie will admit to some fault, and cut you some slack.” She then nodded to herself, “Fifty bits, and you have to tell everypony you see about Trixie's show tonight.” “F-Fine...” the stallion replied, his head held low. After an exchange of bits and details, he scurried off, his damaged taxi carriage pulled along. “Why do you keep telling everypony about this 'show'?” Reina asked as Trixie pocketed the bits. “The more ponies that know, the more there will be to witness the Great and Powerful Trixie~!” With that, she fixed her carriage with a brief flare of magic, before continuing on through the city. Reina tilted her head at Trixie's reply, still unsure of what a show was. However, with a small shrug, it wasn't long before her attention returned to their surroundings. Being a city, it was a matter of course, there were ponies. Everywhere. All types, all colors, ages, and sizes, trotting from building to building with purpose, and those were the ones on the ground. Pegasi flew between the buildings, moving faster than those below, being just as driven. And the buildings! They were taller than any hill the young lamia had ever climbed, each sporting their own unique look. Four story buildings made of brick and stone, forty story spires of colored metal, and in the sky, there were even a few buildings made of clouds. The crowded sidewalks were lined with bushes and trees, adding an ever-present touch of nature to the concrete jungle. And it wasn't just her bespectacled eyes getting a taste of this biome. The air smelled of, well, a lot of things. The city's inhabitants. Food from countless venues. Critters that called the greenery home. Curious, she gave the air a lick of her forked tongue shortly after entering Vanhoover. She was overwhelmed with sensory data, making her decide to keep her serpentine sense in her mouth, where it was safe. Honestly, she was a little surprised she could even hear herself think, let alone what Trixie was saying. The drone and buzzing of walking, talking ponies melded together into an odd cacophony, reminding Reina of bugs buzzing on a cool desert night. Only magnified by twenty. Suffice to say, she was completely enamored. If what she saw wasn't distracting her, it was some new smell, or some oddity in the buzzing around them. Easily, her eyes were taking up the most of her attention, making her point off towards the next spark of wonder. “Tiko, lookie there!” she let out excitedly, her eyes soaking in a building further down the street. It stood like a pillar to the sky, walled with blue glass halfway up. The lower half was easily taller than all the buildings around it. The upper half was white, made of clouds, and it climbed further into the skies. Reina had a good feeling, that, was the tallest building. Anywhere. “Oh, that's the Cloud-Ri-La Hotel,” Trixie pointed out, “One of the tallest buildings in Equestria.” “Wait, there are even taller buildings?” Reina replied, unable to fathom it. “C-Can we go inside it!?” she asked wide-eyed. “Not today,” Trixie said, before quickly adding, “But tomorrow...” her brow then furrowed as she glanced over her shoulder, looking to the filly. “Well ... don't you want to find your mother?” “I, that is,” she replied, her ears falling. “Well, we shall see what happens,” Trixie stated, eyeing the building, wonder in her eyes too, “Trixie wants to see Equestria from the top,” she admitted, giving Reina a small smile, which she mirrored. Trixie then distracted herself by talking to a pony running a wagon none too different from hers, only it was made to cook carrot dogs. “If you wanna see it, then you should go see,” Tiko muttered, getting a considering look from the young lamia. “Hungry?” Trixie asked as she levitated a dog over to the filly, getting a considering look from Reina as she took the carrot nestled meal in her hooves. “Th-Thanks,” Reina replied, looking at her food with a confused look, eyeing Trixie as the mare started eating hers. Giving it a skeptical sniff, her curiosity was rewarded with a disgusted look. Taking a hesitant breath, she opened her mouth, exposing a pair of sharp fangs, which she sunk right into the carrot. Her whole body flinched, eyes starting to water. With a hard jerk that almost made her fall back, she liberated her sensitive teeth from the hard veggie. When Trixie was distracted, the filly discreetly discarded the detestable delicacy. Which was promptly snatched up by a crow. She wiped her eyes with her tail, before letting out a bothered sigh. She wasn't hungry anyway. As Trixie continued leading them through the city, Reina started to notice a few things about the path she took. With Cloud-Ri-La as a landmark, she found that they were traveling in a large circle, as if Trixie was avoiding the city's center. She also caught on that Trixie was mostly conversing with ponies that had wagons like her own. Ponies whose livelihood came with wheels. “Trixie, haven't you told enough ponies about the show?” “Trixie's told more than enough,” the mare admitted, before looking to the lamia with a curious look, “Why do you ask?” “She's wasting time!” Tiko chimed in, getting an agreeing nod from Reina, which got a scoff from the mare. “Trixie, is working!” “You're just chitty chatting,” the plush salamander insisted, “like mom does with uncle Ren!” “Look, if Trixie wants to make a healthy amount of bits from her show, she needs sponsors.” Yep, that got a blank look from the filly. “Look, Trixie's show will gather a lot of ponies into one place, and that'll happen around dinner. Those ponies will want snacks and drinks, so Trixie convinces a few vendors to go there and set up shop, and Trixie gets a small cut of the profit,” she explained, getting an intrigued look from the filly. “...What if somepony you didn't talk to 'sets up shop'?” Reina asked, making Trixie blink at her for a moment. “Well, aren't you a sharp one,” she replied with a sly smile, “Trixie will deal with those the same way she dealt with that taxi-pony.” “Talk them out of their bits?” “W-What?” Trixie replied wide eyed, “No, Trixie will make them regret it.” She then nodded to herself, “It's really simple. She'll just tell them that she'll remember this in her next Vanhoover performance. Tonight will be Trixie's first show here, and when it's a smashing hit,” she stated, her voice ringing with a captivating sense of certainty, “Trixie will work with the mayor for any future performances.” She then adopted a devious grin, “And any opportunists that feel like slighting Trixie today will come to regret it when the encore plays!” “Well, isn't that mature of-“ Tiko began, being cut off when the carriage rounded a corner, revealing a vista that bled out into the western sea. “Aww~,” Trixie let out, adopting a pleasant smile as a salty breeze blew past her mane. “The cities may be different, but this right here feels just like Manehattan,” she added, Reina's mouth falling open as she took in the blue horizon. Trixie noticed her awe, keeping a chuckle to herself as she led the wagon to a nearby beach, as populated as anywhere else in the city. “The docks are on the southern end of town, so this is where everypony goes to rest and relax,” she explained, bringing a hoof to her mouth as she yawned. “And Trixie could use some R&R right now.” Reina nodded absently, her eyes on the coast, the foaming waves drawing her attention. The filly then glanced to the side. “Trixie ... you're gonna help me, right?” she asked, giving the mare a timid look. “That's what Trixie's gonna do,” she replied without hesitation, “But there's not much we can do right now. If we exhaust ourselves too much, we'll be easy pickings,” she then adopted a bothered look. “And Trixie doesn't want to give those two goons the satisfaction of getting one over on her.” “Psst, Reina,” Tiko began, making Reina glance to the doll at her side, “We should have fun while we're outside.” Reina frowned at that, considering the notion for a minute before looking to the spires, then the beach. “Trixie agrees with Tiko,” the mare added, giving Reina an amused look, “Listen well, assistant. You should always make time to take a breather. Whether you're working, having fun, or doing something very important, it's all the same.” “Why?” Reina asked, trying to raise a single eyebrow like Trixie had on several occasions, failing on her first try. “Because being too focused on one thing can be stressful, and you're more likely to screw up when you're stressed out.” “Sounds like an excuse to be lazy,” Tiko chided, making Trixie roll her eyes as Reina appraised them. “...How do you, relax, at the ocean?” she asked, getting a wide smile from Trixie as she parked the carriage. Ten minutes later, Trixie was sprawled out on a beach towel under a parasol, a short distance from the waves. Reina was laying on the sand, a pleasant smile on her face as she let the sun bake her back. The tip of her tail was waggling side to side slowly, which brought a small smile to Trixie. The ponies around gave them a wide birth, just as unsure on how to act around the young lamia as everypony else that's noticed her. Trixie and Reina were oblivious to the curious stares. Trixie was used to attention. Reina didn't care. She was in her own little world, playing with the sand. “Trixie suggests staying close,” she began, levitating out a wind up alarm clock from her beach basket. “We'll stay for a little over two hours, then it's back to work, okay?” “~Kay,” Reina replied, eyeing Trixie as she closed her eyes, the clock set beside her. “The dum-dum is going to sleep!” Tiko let out, “She wants us to be foal-napped!” Trixie let out a sigh, shaking her head. “Don't wander off and you'll be fine. There's too many ponies around for Slick and Sid to try anything,” she added, pointing off to a lifeguard station nearby. Reina looked to Tiko, who fell silent, getting a small nod from the filly, as Trixie fell asleep. ~~~ With a magical click, the terrible, roaring bells of the alarm came to a thankful end, making Trixie stretch out, a blissful, shameless sigh of pleasure escaping her lips, before she opened her eyes. She then rubbed them, doing a double-take at the new addition to her surroundings. There were four sand sculptures ahead of her sleeping spot. Three were finished. The shortest came up to her shoulder, the second was taller than she was, the third being higher than her standing on her back hooves. They were sandy replica's of some of the more distinguished buildings of the city. The shortest of the four had Tiko poised on it, the building looking as if a giant salamander had climbed up its side, destroying parts of the building in the process. They were made very close to each other, and the reason for the height became apparent immediately. Reina was working on the fourth, modeled after the Cloud-Ri-La, and she was 'standing' on the other buildings for support. The sculptures had drawn a small number of observers. Reina continued away, using her tail to sculpt out details such as window lines and inlaid balconies. She was so into the task that she didn't notice the ring of Trixie's alarm. She worked quickly, her posture shifting constantly to reach all around her creation. The fact that she was using the other building as support clued Trixie into their integrity, causing the mare's mouth to fall open in wonder. She was impressed. Letting Reina continue sculpting, Trixie started packing her things away. As she finished, she gave the filly an appraising look. Reina's sculpting came to a stop, at a loss on how to proceed. She'd finished the 'metallic' part of the tower, but Trixie could see her eyes darting from her model to the real one, spotting the cloudy half. “Hah,” Trixie let out, making the filly aware of her presence, “Not bad. If Trixie was inclined, she could do it too. Well, with her magic anyway,” she added, giving the filly a smile. Reina wasn't sure how to react, her face flushing a little, before she climbed down her spired miniatures. “Aww, leaving already?” one of the onlookers asked, making Reina glance from them, to Trixie. “We have a place to be, so sadly, it is so,” Trixie said in an apologetic tone, her horn starting to glow. Reina then watched, wide-eyed, as the second half of her miniature Cloud-Ri-La formed before everypony's eyes. After a few seconds, the tower was now complete, with a sandy base, and cloudy top. “In our absence we leave this tribute. Vanhoover is proving to be a wonderful place, and you all should be proud to call it home.” With that, Trixie started to leave, catching Reina off guard, who scooped up Tiko from his dominant perch and started following. “You're not gonna tell them about the show?” Reina asked as she slithered to Trixie's side. “Maybe next time,” she said with a smile, “That was your performance, not Trixie's,” she explained, making Reina's eyes widen in realization. The filly then glanced back at her work, seeing several more ponies coming to appreciate it. There was even an artist there, starting to paint a rendition of her sandy city. “Is that what a show is?” “Close, my talented little assistant,” Trixie replied in a teasing tone as they reached the carriage, before continuing on their way. ~~~~~~~~~~ Trixie was frantic. Thanks to their little detour, she was behind schedule. Traffic didn't help. She was in a completely frazzled state as she reached the park, an amused look on Reina's face. “You look stressed,” Tiko chimed in, his tone being far too happy, “You could use some R&R—“ he was suddenly knocked into the carriage with a telekinetic push, making Reina look at Trixie wide-eyed. “Now's not the best time to mock Trixie,” she said in a dangerous tone. “S-Sorry,” Reina replied, her ears falling as Trixie continued, the mare giving her full attention to what came next. With a snap, the carriage's false wall gave way. Reina blinked in surprise, being inside the wagon when it lurched. Crawling out through the window, onto the roof, she could see the false wall, having been laid out to form a stage, the wall's removal showing a line of purplish-blue curtains. Trixie fiddled with the stage for several minutes, adjusting things only she could see, before nodding to herself. She then levitated out her cape and hat, Reina's eyes following them as the show-pony donned them on. She then hopped onto the stage, giving it a solid tap of her hooves. As Trixie looked from the stage to where the audience was gathering, Reina let out a sigh. It was amusing to see her put the stage together, but the filly was starting to feel a little left out. “Just stay put and watch,” Trixie replied, “Trixie doesn't have the time to show you what to do. That, and this is your first time seeing Trixie perform.” She then gave Reina a smug grin, “You won't want to miss a minute.” “...Should I hide?” “You're fine up there,” she assured, before tilting her head, “On second thought...” Reina let out a little yelp, which made her blush, as Trixie's magic hoisted her from the roof, placing her on the stage, near the curtains. “Stay right behind the curtains. You'll be fine, and, you'll get the best seat in the field!” Trixie then cleared her throat, priming herself up as she gave Reina a little wink, before turning to the gathering spectators. “Fillies and Gentlecolts! The Great and Powerful Trixie is here! To astound. To amaze!” she decreed, her voice projecting over the crowd, getting their attention as a small stream of fireworks went off on both sides of the stage. “And tonight, Trixie will begin with a tale! A story of a princess, her kingdom, and the jealous father that wanted it all for himself!” She then leaned towards the audience, a sly grin on her face, “And though there are those that would say Trixie's tale is taller than your spires to the sky, Trixie can assure you, it is quite true.” She then coughed into her hoof before glancing to the side, adopting a small blush. “Well, mostly true,” she added, getting a few chuckles from the audience as she began. The story started off with puppets made of loose cloth. Basic doll heads with fabric bodies that moved to Trixie's narration. It was simple. Despite that, the audience was drawn in as she spun her tale. A fairy princess, looking to protect her mother and kingdom from a looming war on the horizon against the sprites. A vile, warmongering father. A loyal guard. Trusted friends. And an odd sprite prisoner. Trixie gave each of them a voice of their own, the mare seeming to disappear from the stage as the puppets took the show for themselves. Reina was in awe, and so was the audience, drawn in by the magic of Trixie's delivery. And then, the princess, along with her friends, fled the castle, now free of her father's clutches. The puppets walked through a veil of light, their simple forms disappearing, being replaced by fairies and sprites that matched the picture the puppets had painted. The fairy princess, her best friend and the sprite traveled across dangerous lands on their journey to the kingdom of the sprites. But, the way wasn't easy. A terrible storm, opened eyes, new friendships, and loss greeted them on their journey. Trixie narrated her story with flare, playing up the high emotions, and the low, directing her story toward the spectators, while acting as part of the audience; drawing them in. And before Reina realized it, the story had reached the climax. She was holding the curtain tightly as the final battle was presented to all. A roar of fireworks went off as the victory was secured. The audience let out a hearty cheer, and Reina had to resist joining them in their triumphant cry. “...And so, the fairies and the sprites found peace, and our newly crowned queen, a friendship that would last through the ages,” Trixie said, appearing on the stage as the illusions turned to the audience, bowing. “And they lived happily ever after.” The entire story only took about half an hour, but Trixie looked ready to give more to her audience. Reina watched eagerly as the mare started to get more involved with the ponies. She talked to them, asking what amazing feats of magic they'd like to see. Sometimes, she'd give exactly what was asked, other times, she'd give something unexpected, causing a riot of laughter, usually at her own expense. And through it all, Reina and the audience were enamored with the mare's show. Reina blinked, her eyes moving from Trixie to the crowd. It had tripled in size since Trixie had started. Too many for the young filly to count. There were just as many adults as there were colts and fillies. Many of them were smiling. Some had a glow of awe in their eyes. And every single one of them were focused on the blue mare. She had their attention, and they were enjoying her use of it. Reina then looked to Trixie. Being so close, she could see that the mare was sweating. She was giving the performance her everything, and she was loving every moment of it. The eyes on her, the smiles she spawned, the feeling of accomplishment at a successful show, they drove Trixie. Reina wanted that. She liked seeing the ponies appreciate her sand-towers. She liked being a source of attention. Why? Was it because she'd grown up with just her mother? She didn't know; she didn't understand it all. That bothered her a little, but it didn't change how she felt. She wanted to be where Trixie stood. She saw all those smiles, and she wanted to be their source. The filly blinked again, looking at her hooves and tail, before glancing to the star of the show. Could she be like Trixie? She blinked again, before feeling her glasses with her tail. Her ears fell, the slight tingle in her eyes reminding her of the trouble they caused. She then flinched when something booped her nose. Tiko was floating in front of her, carried by Trixie's magic. Reina looked to the mare, who gave her a small smile. Reina grabbed Tiko, hesitating a moment, before giving Trixie a smile in turn. “Tiko, do you think we can be like her?” “Be a dum-dum?” the doll asked, making Reina simply shake her head, as she continued watching Trixie's performance. Her gaze shifted from Trixie, to the stage she stood on, making Reina hug the doll close, as fire was burned in her eyes.