//------------------------------// // 59 - Three-Day Promise - Part Two // Story: Letters From a Little Princess Monster // by Georg //------------------------------// Letters From a Little Princess Monster Three Day Promise - Part Two “And this is your office, Mayor Trixie.” The room was a little crowded with a dragon, nine adults and seven fillies… well, six fillies and a colt. It felt a little creepy-familiar, as the last time Trixie had been in the vicinity of all of the same ponies, Nightmare Moon had returned and blown the Town Hall into charred fragments, along with a minor but mouthy simulacrum of Trixie. Former Mayor Mare’s office had an expanding partition separating it from the nearby small conference room where the city council met, but even with the partition open, there was still too much shoulder-rubbing and flank-touching going on for Trixie’s comfort level. At least Princess Luna was being very quiet and had backed herself into a corner where she seemed to be trying to act as invisible as possible, while Filthy Rich and Zecora had taken positions on opposite sides of the small conference room table with their respective daughters. Ex-Mayor Mare finished her brief briefing of the brand-new office, along with a light rebuke implying that she would like it back in the same condition she was leaving it, before wending her way over to the office door. She called back over her shoulder before she left. “Don’t get comfortable, ‘mayor.’ The emergency vote is in a month, and I’m taking a few weeks off until the campaign season starts. I’ll send you a postcard from Las Pegasus.” Trixie rubbed her forehead once the door closed behind the mayor. “I leave town for two days and everything goes to the dogs.” Twilight raised one hoof. “This afternoon we’re supposed to search for gems again.” “No.” Trixie turned to the little alicorn with a frown. “You’re not going. Neither are you, Sweetie,” she added with a frown directed at the other little unindicted co-conspirator. “But school starts tomorrow,” said Twilight with just the smallest hint of panic leaking into her voice at the possibility of missing even a moment of the educational experience. “School starts now with a little lesson Trixie likes to call triage.” She took a breath and looked around her audience. “For starters, Trixie needs to know all of the problems we need to deal with other than Scootaloo and Diamond Tiara presently being in each other’s heads. Toss ‘em out here and we’ll make a list.” “Dragon’s egg,” said Sweetie Belle somewhat quietly. “Ignore it.” Trixie looked down at where Twilight was scribbling on a notebook and waited until she drew a line through the most recent entry. “Not important right now. It will settle itself out in due time. Next.” “But—” started Sweetie Belle. “Next!” snapped Trixie, although she paused immediately, floated the dragon’s egg over for an intense crack inspection, and floated it back afterwards. “As I was saying, next!” “There’s a bunch of zebras on top of Observation Hill,” said Rainbow Dash. “They said they’re here to bring back some weird named zebra to bring unity to their homeland, but I think they just came here to watch me practice, because they watch me all the time.” “They’re here for Twilight,” said Trixie. “Wonder why they’re here so early? Oh, well. Doesn’t matter. You don’t have to go back to Zebrica with them until you’re good and ready, Menace.” Twilight trembled. “What if they ask?” Trixie shrugged. “Say no. Give ‘em another decade or two and have them ask then.” “What if they need me really bad?” asked Twilight very quietly. “Say ‘no’ really loudly,” said Trixie. “Or let Luna say it for you. She can say it loud enough for anypony to listen. Next!” “Thpiderth,” said Twist. “They’re nithe and fuzzy, but they’re all over the library.” “Close the door, let them eat the beetles, and have Fluttershy take them all home afterwards.” Trixie shuddered. “All of them. I’ll sleep in the office here until then. Next.” “All of those books,” said Spike. “Where am I going to put them all?” “Index them, shelve the ones that will fit, and make some nice, neat stacks of the rest. They’re a reward for Menace once I get… I mean once we all get Diamond Tiara and Scootaloo put back where they belong.” Luna cleared her throat. Trixie fixed her with a flat stare. “Yes, I know they’re your books. I swear, alicorns are worse than dragons with their precious little hoards. Once Menace is done reading them, you can pick them back up and put them wherever you want. Until then, they’re in a nice, safe, dry, dragon-guarded library here. Next?” There was a long silence, eventually broken by Scootaloo and Diamond Tiara both looking down at the floor and shuffling forward next to Twilight. Trixie looked down at them, trying not to think about the many times she had been in roughly the same position with Princess Celestia. “Do you three trust me?” asked Trixie. All three of the little fillies nodded, Diamond Tiara a little more reluctantly than the others. “No,” said Trixie. “I mean do you really, really trust me, right down to the bottoms of your hooves and with every bit of your hearts. Because if we’re going to get you two put back in your proper bodies, I’ll need all of you to do exactly what I tell you to do, every day, without fail. Can I trust you for that?” All three nodded again, although Trixie was still not satisfied. She turned to Pinkie Pie and spoke one word. “Cupcakes.” “Got it!” said Pinkie, producing three iced cupcakes which Trixie floated over to each of the little ponies. “How did she—” started Twilight before being cut off by Trixie’s raised hoof. “Repeat after me.” Step by step, Trixie walked the little ponies through the arcane ritual of the Pinkie Promise until all three of them were sitting on the floor with icing around one eye. “Forever!” said Pinkie Pie afterwards, then looked back at everybody’s puzzled stares. “What? It’s expected.” “Anyway,” said Trixie, “here’s what we need to do.” She fixed each of the little ponies with her most serious stare and added, “We’re going to have to treat Scootaloo and Diamond Tiara’s bodies as if they’re never going to get their proper minds back.” “What?” The upset babbling of the adults and little ponies in the room slowed at Trixie’s upraised hoof, eventually dying into an uneasy silence as they waited patiently for her to clarify her statement. All except Twilight. “Why?” asked the little alicorn. “That’s what I love about you, kid,” said Trixie, ruffling her short purple mane. “You’re always asking questions. I can’t tell you.” “Why not?” “Never change,” said Trixie. “I can’t tell you or any of you now, but I’ll tell you all about it afterwards.” There was an uneasy silence in the office as adults and little ponies alike whispered to each other. Even Diamond Tiara exchanged a few terse words with her solemn father before standing next to Scootaloo, turning to Trixie and stating in a clear voice, “Okay.” “Good,” said Trixie. “This is where it gets fun.” ~ ~ ✶ ~ ~ “Welcome to charm school, Scootaloo.” Rarity held the door to the boutique open for the little earth pony and closed it behind her with a flip of the sign to ‘Closed.’ “School doesn’t start until tomorrow!” protested Scootaloo. “I’ve got a whole ‘nother day to crusade for cutie marks with my friends!” “A proper lady is always prepared for the world to see the beauty inside her, Scootaloo.” Rarity patted a short platform surrounded by tape measures and notepads. “If you want to make a good impression on your peers, you will need to learn how to make that inner sense of self shine out like a beacon. First, we will need exacting measurements of your form in order to create an entire wardrobe of new outfits for your school year.” “But Diamond Tiara already has a whole closet full of clothes,” whined Scootaloo as she faced the dreaded measuring tape, slowly undulating toward her in Rarity’s pale blue magic. “Tut, tut. Those are last year’s clothes,” said Rarity. “Once you are measured and I can start on your new outfits, Applejack will take over with a brisk morning of posture, poise, and enunciation before we all go over to the spa to get you properly trimmed and groomed.” “Applejack?” Scootaloo relaxed a little. “I suppose that won’t be too—” “Well, I do declare,” said a voice that only vaguely sounded like Applejack. The pony who came out of Rarity’s kitchen looked a little like her too, only Applejack had never worn a dress that covered in bows in her life, and certainly did not glide across the floor with her head held high and her shoulders thrown back, placing each hoof as if it were treading across Celestia’s private dance floor. “Good morning, Scootaloo. I’m looking forward to our time together over the next few days. We’ll have you acting like a proper lady before you even know it.” Rarity giggled, moving forward with the measuring tape. “Oh, this is going to be such fun!” ~ ~ ✶ ~ ~ “Hiya, Diamond Tiara. Twilight. Are you two ready to fly?” Rainbow Dash remained hovering in front of the little pegasus and the little alicorn with a happy smile. Behind her, Fluttershy held a clipboard in the crook of her foreleg, with a thick sheaf of papers attached. “That’s the problem,” said Diamond Tiara, extending her little wings. “These don’t work for me any better than Scootaloo.” “Now they don’t, but by the time I finish giving you the full Wonderbolt treatment like Trixie said, you’ll know just what it means to be a pegasus.” Rainbow Dash tousled Diamond Tiara’s short mane, which she had forlornly attempted to comb into some sort of order, earning her a fierce scowl in return. “Flap up. Flap down.” Diamond Tiara rolled her eyes. “Simple.” “Oh, no.” Rainbow Dash chuckled. “There’s a lot more than that. We’ve got cloud manipulation, precipitation analysis, and all kinds of weatherworks to do, and that’s just today.” She pointed to a couple of dark clouds nearby, which had been brought down to nearly ground level. “First, we need to get you familiar with the most important part of being a pegasus. These are clouds.” “Really?” said Diamond Tiara with as much sarcasm as she could cram into the word. “Oh, yeah,” said Rainbow Dash proudly as a low rumble of anticipatory thunder growled behind her. “But they’re not ordinary clouds. That’s for ordinary pegasi. These are special clouds I trimmed out of some really energetic thunderheads. By the end of today, I’ll have you two riding and wrangling these babies as if they were little bunny rabbits. It’ll be fun!” ~ ~ ✶ ~ ~ The mayor’s office was much more comfortable with only four ponies in it, but the temperature had a distinct chill to it as Filthy Rich slumped in one of the richly-upholstered guest chairs undoubtedly purchased with Trixie’s bits. “I don’t understand, Trixie. I mean ‘Mayor’ Trixie.” He abruptly got up and checked the door to make sure they were not being listened to before returning to his chair. “The only reason we agreed to your insane plan is because you’re the Princess’ student, and you’ve pulled off some really freaky stunts of late. You’ve got something hidden under your hat and I want to know what it is before I agree to treat Scootaloo as my daughter.” Trixie nodded. “So you don’t like Scootaloo?” “Of course I like her,” snorted Filthy Rich. “She’s a very good little pony.” “And you want her to remain grounded forever,” said Trixie. “Never to fly.” “No!” snapped Filthy Rich. “I just don’t want to treat her like my daughter.” “And I don’t want to treat that brat Diamond Tiara as my niece,” said Quick Fix. “Trust me,” said Trixie. After matching her gaze against both unhappy ponies, Trixie shrugged. “Okay, don’t trust me then. I think I’ve about used up all of the trust I have for several lifetimes. But you had better believe me, because I know what I’m talking about. Unless you listen, in about a week, that little spell of Twilight’s is going to be permanent. Your daughter—” Trixie poked a hoof in the direction of Filthy Rich “—is going to have wings, and your daughter—” Trixie poked a hoof at Quick Fix, paused, and corrected herself “—I mean niece will never be able to go to Cloudsdale with her parents, and do you know why?” There was a long pause, marked at the end by Filthy Rich’s frustrated sigh. “Do not sigh, just ask why,” said Zecora, who had remained completely silent and in the background. “Okay,” snapped Filthy Rich. “Why?” Trixie matched his scowl with a fierce snarl, lowering her head until her nose nearly bumped into his. “Because that’s just what they both want! Trixie can’t reverse the spell without their help now, not even Celestia could, because they don’t want to go back to their bodies. Scootaloo wants to stay with her friends here in Ponyville, and Diamond Tiara loves having wings. Filthy, if you had even watched her in the office when I floated the deal, you would have seen the way she was sneaking peeks at her wings in that mirror over there and the way Scootaloo was huddling up next to her friends. Your brat teases Scootaloo the worst because she’s jealous. She’s afraid of flying, but she loves the feathers, and plans on treating them just like another fashion accessory.” “Scootaloo loves flying,” said Quick Fix rather cautiously. “Are you saying she would rather stay in Ponyville—” “With her friends,” completed Trixie. “She’s getting torn in half⁽*⁾ between flying, friends, and family.” (*)Trixie was never very good with fractions. “Like you know anything about friendship,” growled Filthy Rich. Before Trixie could snap back, Zecora placed a hoof on her shoulder. “Large friendships may not be Trixie’s size but her words have been proven quite wise. Know that my trust in her has been truly earned, by the lessons with Flower she has both taught and learned. You must trust this pony of blinding hue, in order to cure those troublesome two.” Filthy Rich did not immediately respond, but Quick Fix raised a hoof as if she were in class. “So, how will treating Diamond Tiara as my niece fix the problem?” Trixie shook her head. “I told you I can’t tell you. But I can tell you what I told Rarity and Rainbow Dash. We’re going to make each one of those little fillies learn exactly what it means to be a weather pegasus and a wealthy socialite in the absolute worst way. Scootaloo is over at the boutique right now, getting personally tutored in proper dressing and behavior.” “Scootaloo hates wearing clothes,” said Quick Fix. “They pinch.” “Good,” said Trixie. “She’s getting just what she needs, while Diamond Tiara—” There was a sudden crack of lightning and long, low rumble of thunder in the distance. “—is getting the full Rainbow Dash School of Dramatic Weather Wrangling.” “You have my daughter playing with thunderclouds!” rumbled Filthy Rich, much like a thundercloud himself as he shoved the chair back and jumped to his hooves. “She could be hurt! I won’t stand for this, and I’m putting a stop to it right now!” Something deep inside of Trixie snapped and she lunged across the table, grabbing Filthy Rich’s tie in her magic and dragging him nose to nose with the furious unicorn. The memory of being in the same building where Trixie had almost died, and in some way had died, made the rage of Nightmare Moon far too real, and Trixie was grateful that the three of them were the only ponies in the building as she bellowed at the top of her lungs. “Nique ta mère!” Trixie glared incandescent fury at the shocked father. “You heard me! You don’t give a damn about anypony other than that spoiled brat! I know better than anypony what it is like to have your own head jammed so far up your plot you can see your own blackened heart! I thought there was a pony inside that expensive suit of yours, but all I see now is crap! I’m not telling you to do this just for Scootaloo. You need to do this for both of those little fillies. Or do you like the idea of your daughter living the rest of her life as a thief! You walk out of here right now and in twenty years, your ‘pegasus’ daughter will hate you for being such a coward! She, at least, has the tiniest bit of heart in her soul. She walked out of here, willing to do what some crazy unicorn told her to do, just to give Scootaloo her own body back, and I will be dammed if you set that tiny little bit of progress back and bring out the little bitch that she used to be again!” Still panting in rage, Trixie released the grip she had on Filthy Rich’s tie, although she remained partially over the table and trembling deep inside where it did not show. Quick Fix had retreated to the far side of the room and was staring at Trixie as if waiting for the fangs and claws to appear, which Trixie could sympathize with, as she was somewhat expecting them too. Filthy Rich did not move, other than to take irregular breaths out of his gaping-wide mouth, until he ever so slowly sat back down in his chair and loosened his tie. After several long moments, Trixie also slipped back into her chair and got out a pencil with her notebook. She tapped the outside of the notebook several times before setting the pencil back down and locking eyes with Filthy Rich. Finally, she cleared her throat and said, “I’m sorry I said that about your mother.” “Good,” growled Filthy Rich. He did not say another word, but he did not leave either, which Trixie considered to be at least promising. After tapping the top of the notebook several more times, Trixie turned to Quick Fix, who at least looked a little less as if she were about to bolt out of the door. “So,” she started, doodling on the paper, “can you think of anything else we can do to make Scootaloo uncomfortable with her role as a rich earth pony?” “She hates the idea of getting a perm,” suggested Quick Fix after a few moments. “And cold baths.” “Cold baths,” repeated Trixie while writing, finding the activity oddly calming. “Two a day. Three if possible. I think we can get a perm for her today too. How about you, Mister Rich?” “Can she at least get her tiara back?” asked Filthy Rich, still staring at the table. “I’ve had it repaired, but I didn’t have the opportunity yet.” Still bent over her writing, Trixie said, “For Scootaloo, yes. I’ll take it over to Rarity at the spa this afternoon. They should be mudpacking, waxing and hooftrimming her by then. Afterwards, I’ll need you over at Haute Cuisine for a dining etiquette lesson with Rarity. I’d eat first, though. The chef is a real believer in portion control. Then she has a strings concerto, and a return to the mansion for an early bedtime and pajama fitting.” Trixie paused to look at her notes. “Rarity and Applejack really outdid themselves. All Rainbow Dash said was ‘Flying practice’ for the whole day.” “So when will Diamond Tiara be back to my house?” asked Quick Fix rather cautiously. “Or is she staying the night with Rainbow Dash like Scootaloo kept telling me she wanted to do?” “Wonderful idea,” said Trixie, scribbling away. “That should help. Cloud house, way above the ground and away from home. Perfect.” “Won’t I get to see my daughter at all?” growled Filthy Rich. As she scribbled, Trixie spoke out of the corner of her mouth. “On occasion, in the distance and in passing. Make sure to walk close to Scootaloo, and see if you can pat her on the shoulder when she’s watching.” “That’ll tear her heart out.” Filthy Rich crossed his forelegs. “I won’t do it!” Trixie stopped writing and looked up, her face a perfect blank. “Then the daughter you raised, the one who looks so much like her mother, will forever be somepony else.” “This is blackmail!” Filthy Rich glared at Trixie. “You’re demanding that I hurt my daughter.” “No.” Trixie took a deep breath. “If I were demanding, I would send a letter to Canterlot with Spike and one or both of the Princesses would be here before you could blink. I’m asking for you to hurt your daughter in order to save her. After this works, you can cover her in kisses and diamond crowns for all I care.” Trixie’s expression softened and she glanced at Zecora, who was remaining uncharacteristically silent. “Diamond doesn’t know how good she has it. She has a father right here who loves her and will do anything for her. You say she’s a good pony. What will she think about herself twenty years from now when she looks back at her wings and how she stole them? You can keep her from having to live through that kind of lifelong guilt. She can be the good pony you think she is, if you can keep her from making this mistake.” For the longest time, Filthy Rich glared at the floor. Finally, he got up and walked over to the office door, turning around once he reached it. “Diamond’s tiara should be done being repaired at the jewelry store this morning. I’ll take it to the spa this afternoon and give it to Scootaloo myself.” He paused with one hoof on the doorknob. “Would it work better if it pinched? Because when she first got it, the ear pieces always rubbed her the wrong way.” The ghost of a smile floated onto Trixie’s face. “I think that would be perfect, Mister Rich.” “I’ll do it,” he said. “I’ll hate myself for doing it, and I’ll hate you, ‘Mayor’ Trixie. But I’ll do it. For her.” Then with a click of the latch, he was gone. Quick Fix waited for a while before getting up and using her magic to open the door. After peeking out, she slipped back to her chair and whispered to Trixie, “I don’t think Diamond Tiara would feel the least bit guilty about keeping Scootaloo’s wings.” It was a thought worthy of some consideration, but after thinking on it for a while, Trixie shook her head. “Maybe not now. Ponies change. A year ago, I never saw myself as married to a baron’s son or sitting in the mayor’s chair.” She paused again and looked at her own sides where a pair of pale blue wings could/should have rested, then looked back into her notebook to resume writing. “So, can you think of anything else to do to make Diamond Tiara’s life as a pegasus miserable?” The other unicorn shrugged. “If she’s going to be staying at Rainbow Dash’s house, I can’t do much. But I can pull the core on my water heater so if she sneaks home to take a bath, it’s going to be ice cold, and put the wool blanket on her bed to keep her from taking a nap. Scoots hates wool. Makes her itch.” “I gave Rainbow Dash some extra itching powder—” Trixie paused and shook her head. “Talk about sending coal to Neighcastle. Anyway, I’ve got a little bit left over to add to her blanket if it doesn’t itch enough. How about sticking a couple of walnuts under the mattress to keep her from going to sleep if she sneaks back?” “Oh, that’ll help.” Quick Fix paused with a seemingly casual glance out the window at the clear blue sky outside. “You know, if this works—” “When this works,” corrected Trixie. “When this works,” said Quick Fix, “how are you going to keep my sister from taking Scootaloo back to Cloudsdale?” “One disaster at a time.” Trixie closed her notebook and gave a sigh. “Trust in Harmony.”