//------------------------------// // Chapter 4 // Story: Putting the Pieces Back Together // by Wheller //------------------------------// Chapter 4 “All righty, I think I’ve got it figured out,” the Doctor said as he entered the box, tossing his coat onto a coat hanger. Trixie was sitting reading a newspaper that she had found in a recycle bin, while Derpy came in behind the Doctor carrying a tray of muffins. “I may have some information as well,” Trixie said. Derpy offered her a muffin, which she gladly took. “Please, relay your information Doctor.” “I ran into three little fillies that were rushing out into the country side and asked them if they could explain what had been going on in town. Seems that the local bakery exploded and a couple ponies got hurt. ” Trixie nodded. “I figured that out by reading this,” she held up the paper into the Doctor’s view. “But it did not say who had been hurt. What else did these fillies say?” “Not much useful,” the Doctor said. “One of them with a red bow on her head said that her sister and her friends were living out of town recovering from their injuries, but then ran off yelling something about getting their cutie marks by being cross country runners before I could get anything else.” Derpy set the box of muffins down on the control console. “It’s Twilight Sparkle and her friends. My friends Lyra and Bon-Bon mentioned that they’d been hurt. We all saw how Twilight Sparkle was, she was broken... I can only imagine that her friends are just as bad.” The Doctor smiled at the mares. “Well then, I think we know what we have to do next. This town’s been broken by the hardship they faced,” be brought his friends close into a huddle. “This means it’s up to us to put the pieces back together.” -- Trixie couldn’t help but feel a knot forming in her throat as she stood in front of the Ponyville Public Library. The Doctor suggested that they could work faster by splitting up, and being more personal with each of the Ponies. Trixie’s first task was Twilight Sparkle. Twilight Sparkle had been nice enough to her previously when returning her hat and cape, which were her only possessions. They’d been given to her by her mother when she’d gotten her cutie mark, so many years ago. Trixie was getting distracted, now was not the time to be nostalgic. She had things that needed doing. She swallowed and knocked on the door. Twilight Sparkle opened the door, her mane was a horrible mess and she looked as if she hadn't slept in days. Twilight was surprised to find the azure unicorn at her door, but smiled as best she could. “Hello Trixie, won’t you come in?” Trixie nodded and entered the library; it was in pretty much the same state as Twilight herself. Books were strung all over the floor and every table. Quills and parchment littered every other square centimetre of space, In fact, the only thing in the library that was free and clear of any objects were the bookshelves themselves. “Sorry about the mess!” Twilight exclaimed as she clamoured to pick up books. “I don’t get visitors any more, all my friends don’t live in town anymore...” “It’s quite all right,” Trixie said. She used her magic to help pick up as many books as she could, alphabetising them and placing them back on the shelves where they belong. In only two minutes, the combined resources of the two unicorns had the library back together as it belonged. “Thank you!” Twilight said to Trixie for her help. “You didn’t have to do that...” Trixie gave the lavender unicorn a smile, and the two sat down. Twilight attempted to return the smile, but ultimately failed to make a convincing one. “What happened?” Trixie asked plainly. Twilight looked up at her. She knew what her fellow unicorn was referring to, but the last thing she wanted to do was talk about it. “I am not leaving until you tell me what happened,” Trixie reaffirmed. “I will sit here for the next year. Trust Trixie when she says that bottling one’s emotions can do nothing but harm. Now, speak.” Twilight didn’t have the energy or the will power to argue with her, she broke down into tears, burying her eyes in her hooves. “It’s all my fault! I should have seen the signs! I should have known! It would have been obvious to every other pony, but no, not stupid, naïve Twilight Sparkle.” Twilight told Trixie everything as if she was vomiting up the words; she had no control over it. She recounted the story of Overdrive, the manipulative alicorn who appeared in Ponyville’s time of need as a saviour, but turned out to be its ruin, and Montana Ulhan, the kindly earth pony who had killed himself on her watch. She blamed herself; her inexperience with the feelings of others lead her to not notice that anything was wrong when every sign pointed to it. She blamed herself for her friends getting hurt. The pain was too much for her, and she wanted it gone. She wanted to die, but she was far too afraid of what would be waiting for her if that happened. Trixie moved from her seat next to Twilight and put her hoof around her. “Trixie has a story to tell too. Trixie... I think it relates to how you feel,” she said. “When I was last here, you and your friends ran me out of town, showing me to be a fraud, that I couldn’t even handle myself against an Ursa Minor, despite my earlier boasting. I wandered alone for several hours, angry that I had been embarrassed, but worse still, I wondered what I was going to do next... Trixie’s caravan had been destroyed by the Ursa, everything I had was gone. Trixie’s parents died several years ago, and Trixie had no friends, and no home to go to... And then when Trixie doesn’t want to go on anymore what happens? A magic box appears in front of me! The ponies who were inside the box become my first real friends and I’ve been travelling with them for the last year.” Trixie had fudged the details a bit, but she was getting her point across. “Trixie did not originally want to go with them, but she got caught up in their adventure anyway. She could have asked at any time to be taken back, but taken back to what? These were my only friends. Why would I leave them?” Trixie smiled at Twilight. “I’ve been much happier that I have friends. They’ve taught me that I don’t have to do things alone, just like you don’t have to be alone, because I want to be your friend too... if you will allow it of course.” Twilight looked at Trixie with a smile, a tear was forming in her eye, but Trixie could tell that this tear was different than the others. Twilight was happy; she threw her hooves around Trixie and pulled her in for the biggest hug she had ever gotten. “Of course I would,” Twilight said. Trixie had succeeded. Twilight had been broken from being alone with her guilt. Her friends off recovering in other places had driven her to loneliness. Now she didn’t have to be alone anymore. Now, she was fixed.