The Cold Streets of Baltimare

by DemonBrightSpirit

Cast Out

Leaving the train station behind, I marched through the streets of Baltimare with no real destination in mind. My teeth chattered, and each step I took seemed to leech what little energy I had left from me bit by bit. How could I find a place to stay in this dreary city? I didn’t know a soul here that I could impose upon, and if I had any bits to my name at all I’d already be on a nice, warm train home.

The evening streets were devoid of anypony but me. I didn’t know if that was a blessing or a curse. I would simply be aghast for anypony to see me in such a disheveled state, but on the other hoof, I may very well freeze to death if I don’t find somepony generous enough to take me in off the street.

My eyes flitted to the many windows adorning the bland, grey houses. How nice it must’ve been, to be inside next to a toasty fire, sipping a cup of hot tea…

I stumbled, my numbing legs faltering. Mortifyingly, I landed right in an icy puddle. If this cold served any purpose at all, it was to make my humiliating tumble all but painless. I suppose there was some small solace that my coat and mane couldn’t possibly look any worse than they had before my ungraceful fall. Summoning what was left of my strength and dignity, I pulled myself up. As I did, a flicker of light caught my eye.

It was a small fire, glinting up out of a small, shallow barrel.

The allure of warmth was far too much for me to resist. My hooves started carrying me into an alley before I could even fully comprehend it. I barely noticed the wind and rain stop as I entered the shelter of the alleyway. All I wanted to do was sit before that fire and feel its warmth.

I ungraciously flopped down in front of the flames, extending my forehooves in an attempt to catch more of the heat. At first, the icy chill in my coat prevented me from feeling the warmth. I just sat there, shivering in a most unseemly manner. I watched the yellow-orange flames leap from sticks and boards in an attempt to ignore the sight of my fetlocks, muddy and dripping wet. Although I felt disgusted at their unkempt state, I felt even worse at what the rest of me must’ve looked like.

Just as the warmth of the fire started to pierce my soaked hide, an indignant voice disdainfully greeted me. “You again? I thought I told you to leave me alone.”

I looked over to see Trixie stepping out of her makeshift home. How had I not noticed that this was the same alley? An involuntary shiver ran through my entire body, reminding me of just how cold I still was. “M-may I s-sit here a while? P-p-please,” I said, my voice raw and desperate.

Trixie sighed as she sat next to me. “How stupid do you have to be to stay out in this weather like that?” she replied, turning her head away from me with her nose high in the air.

I shook my head a bit, my gaze focused on the flames. “I d-don’t have anywhere to go. I couldn’t afford the train.”

Trixie’s horn glowed with a soft, pink aura. Her magic wrapped around a nearby pallet. A few of the planks pried away before floating into the fire, sending up a few embers. “So you came back here?” Trixie let out a sharp laugh. “What was it about nopony living like this?”

Staring at the rolling flames, I replied, “I’m sorry. I-I-I just…” I sighed. “I cannot believe any of this is happening! I came here for a fashion show. How did I end up here?”

“Poor thing,” Trixie mockingly said as she got up and headed to the pile of boxes. As she drew back the curtain, she looked over her shoulder at me. “Don’t even think about coming inside until you are dry.” A moment later and she reappeared with a small, brown lump in her aura. She sat next to me again as she broke the lump in half and floated one half over to me.

When I took it in my hoof, I found it to be half a muffin—a stale, misshapen muffin. Tentatively taking a bite, I found it to be as bland and lumpy as it appeared. Only after swallowing that first bite did I realize just how famished I was. I devoured the rest in just a couple of ravenous, unladylike bites.

Trixie had only taken a small bite of hers. “You are lucky,” she said, staring at the fire. “You get to go back to your old life when you get home, do you not?”

I nodded. “I would imagine so.” I chanced a glance over at Trixie, the orange glow of the fire illuminating her face. As far as I knew, Trixie was a traveling showpony. Was this her hometown? “You… don’t get that luxury, do you?”

“I never really had a home to, well, go home to,” Trixie said. She took another bite before continuing. “But I will go back to my old life. I’m going to go across the sea. They say there are exotic and uncharted settlements there. My reputation will not follow me that far.”

“Thank you. For all your kindness, I mean,” I said. I started to reach out a hoof, but hesitated when I realized it was still more than a little damp. The flames may have warmed me up a bit, but I was still a sopping mess. Replacing my hoof on the ground, I shook my head a bit. “I never imagined somepony like you would—“

“Somepony like me?” Trixie said, glaring at me.

“N-No! I mean, i-it’s just that, well…” I sighed before looking back at the fire. “The last time I saw you, you had enslaved all of Ponyville and forced us to do horrid, demeaning things. And before that, you turned my mane an awful shade of green and even lured an ursa minor to town.”

Trixie gave a loud, throaty grunt as she devoured what remained of her muffin. “It was those two foalish colts that brought the ursa!” She forcefully ripped more boards from the pallet, tossing them into the fire with enough force to send up an eruption of embers. “All I ever wanted was to be adored by an audience,” she said, her words passing through grit teeth. Suddenly getting up, she turned around, kicking at the ground. “So what if I wasn’t really all that great? So what if I was a fraud! I enjoyed the attention, and ponies enjoyed my show! Wasn’t that all that really mattered!”

I slowly got up. “Trixie…” I said, as I walked over to the upset Unicorn. Just as I was about to place a hoof on her shoulder, she stormed away again.

Trixie’s aura enveloped what remained of the pallet, slinging it across the alley where it shattered against the far wall. “It was that stupid amulet! I just wanted its power! I didn’t even care about Twilight anymore. But when I started using that wretched thing, I-I just… I couldn’t stop myself.” Breathing heavily, she hung her head as she grit her teeth. “I did this,” she said as tears spilled down her cheeks. “I did this.”

I looked away from her, my mind grasping desperately at intangible words of comfort. My eyes swept from the meager fire to the filthy assortment of boxes Trixie called home. How long had she been living here, mere feet away from a fetid dumpster in some dank little alley, all alone?

“It doesn’t matter.” I shook my head. “Even somepony that enslaved a whole town… Nopony deserves this.” Trixie stood by the fire, its orange tint illuminating her form. Slowly, I plodded around the flickering flames to stand next to Trixie. I draped a foreleg over Trixie’s withers. “You don’t deserve this.”

Trixie pulled away, sitting in front of the fire. “Don’t I?” she asked as she stared into the flickering light. “You were there. You saw what I did.”

“Yes, and it was terrible,” I said, sitting next to Trixie. “But wasn’t it the Alicorn Amulet that made you so… cruel?”

“I knew it was dark magic. I knew it was dangerous.” Trixie shook her head, her gaze falling to the rough pavement betwixt her hooves. “I didn’t care. I just… I wanted so desperately for things to go back to normal. And now? Now it will never be normal again.”

I sighed as I placed a hoof on Trixie’s shoulder. I held it there until Trixie looked up at me with those eyes so filled with regret. “There’s always hope, Trixie.”

“No,” Trixie said, her gaze tracing back to the flames. “Not for me. I will start over an ocean away, but I will never be able to go back and perform for all those ponies again. That bridge has long since burned.”

Licking my lips, I struggled to find some comforting words to say. There were none. “You’ve… made up your mind, haven’t you?”

Trixie nodded. “I’ve been saving up. I’ll be able to afford a one-way trip there soon enough.”

“You’re really just going to leave everything behind? Everything you’ve ever known for some strange, faraway land?”

“I already told you that I’ve burned all my bridges here. I’m an outcast. Any time I show my face I’m either chased out of town or thrown in jail.” Trixie shook her head. “I’m not leaving a single thing behind.”

I sighed as I looked down. The fact that my legs were now dry barely registered. “You would miss Equestria, I’m sure.”

“Another month, maybe two, then I get to start over. I’ll travel to some exotic place and… and it’ll all be better.”

“And if it’s not?”

Trixie grabbed some of the splintered planks with her magic, floating them into the fire. “Did you know how I got my cutie mark?”

I tilted my head a bit. “No.”

“For as long as I can remember, I’ve always travelled,” Trixie said, her gaze never leaving the flickering flames. “My parents were salesponies. Scam artists.” She snorted, shaking her head. “You know, I always thought that, in some small way, I was better than them. Sure, I lied. I tricked ponies for their bits. But they enjoyed it. When I returned to the same town months later, they couldn’t wait for more. I thought… I was making them happy, not just s-stealing from them like my parents.”

Trixie sighed. “My parents would always try to rope in new marks. That’s what they called the ponies they were tricking, ‘marks.’ Of course, I always tried to help. I had just started to learn magic, and all I could really do was make my horn spark. In my fervent attempts to make our stand shine, I put all my focus into my horn. I managed to send off fireworks, not just sparks. It was spectacular. I danced and posed as I shot off spell after spell. I loved it.” The smallest of smiles graced Trixie’s lips as she stared into the fire. “The flashing lights, the booming sounds, and the steady roar of applause. They loved it. It felt like they loved me. I was so distracted that I didn’t even realize I had gotten my cutie mark until after it was over.”

Trixie closed her eyes for a long moment before turning and looking me. With a small groan, she got up. “You’re plenty dry now, and it’s getting dark,” she said, walking towards her makeshift shack. “Come on.”

“You didn’t answer the question,” I said as I got up. “What if things aren’t any better for you over there?”

“Performing up on stage, being the center of attention, the adoration, the applause… It’s my destiny—the very essence of my cutie mark. If I can’t get that life back, then there’s no point. As far as I’m concerned, there’s not a bit of difference between living as a hollow, hopeless shell and not living at all.” Trixie drew the blanket back with a hoof, ducking inside. “Watch your head.”

“Trixie, y-you cannot possibly think like that!” I said, poking my head in to find abject blackness and a musty, unpleasant odor. After recovering and placing a hoof over my snout, I focused and a soft, blue glow illuminated the interior. It was just as small and filthy on the inside. I was forced to step over Trixie’s legs to get in. Lying against the far wall, my legs ended up tangled with Trixie’s as I lay down. “Trixie…”

“Like you care,” Trixie muttered, closing her eyes as she lowered her head to the blanket-covered cardboard separating her from the cold ground.

“I do care!”

Trixie scoffed, a single eye opening to glare at me. “Liar. You were perfectly content to leave me to rot earlier.”

I opened my mouth to retort, but the words wouldn’t come. Breathing in a breath, I let it out through my nose. “You wanted to be left alone. You were so bullheaded about it I figured you would be just fine pulling yourself up.”

Her eye closed as she snorted. “I will be.”

“You’re betting everything that the grass will be greener on the other side. Odds are it won’t be.”

“That’s my problem,” she replied, not moving a muscle other than her muzzle.

I tried to think of something to say to convince her otherwise. My mind raced round and round, but nothing came. With a small sigh, I let my horn’s glow fade, ushering in a complete blackness. I lowered my head onto the stiff, crusty blanket.

Honestly, I had no place sticking my nose in Trixie’s business. It was her life, and she had every right to make her own decisions. Still, those decisions seemed to be burying her. With a long history of bad decisions, she was clearly about to make another one, perhaps even as bad as her decision to wear the Alicorn Amulet in the first place. Wouldn’t any good and decent pony stop her?

I shivered as the warmth of fire left me for the cold of night. “It’s cold,” I said in little more than a whisper.

“Our body heat will warm this place up in no time,” Trixie replied from the darkness.

“I can’t imagine that I have any body heat left,” I said. I heard a groan from Trixie as I felt the other Unicorn’s legs shuffle and move. The next thing I knew, a large, warm lump pressed up against me.

“Happy?” Trixie asked as she squirmed, trying to get comfortable while she rested against me.

I repositioned myself, allowing Trixie to huddle up against me. “Thank you.” The warmth from Trixie’s body quickly seeped into me, banishing the cold. “I don’t know how you can stand this dreadful weather.”

“I was hoping to be on my way across the sea before winter set in, but it looks like it may take me another month or two to save up enough.”

My eyes shot open at Trixie’s words, despite the blackness. If she was saving up, that meant she had bits. “Trixie, would you happen to have enough bits for the fare to Ponyville?”

“I told you, those bits are for me to get across the ocean.”

“I know but… but how about this: come with me to Ponyville. When we get there I can repay you,” I suggested. “I could even give you enough bits to get you wherever you want to go.”

I felt her ear flick against my neck. “No,” she replied.

Frowning, I nudged her. “Don’t be ridiculous. This is no time to be prideful. Just think of it as a fair exchange—a business deal, if you will. You help me to return to my nice, warm home sooner, and in exchange I’ll help you get where you’re going sooner.”

“Hmph. And what guarantee do I have that you won’t abandon me as soon as you’re safely on your way home?” Trixie replied. She shifted a bit, pulling away from me, leaving a cold spot on my side. “No deal.”

I sighed, mulling over my other options. It didn’t take long to realize I had none. “You are right,” I said. “You don’t have any assurance other than my word, and I have no way to give you any other sort of collateral, either. Please, Trixie, all I can do is hope that you can trust my word.”

“Why should I? What have you ever done for me to make me believe in you?” Trixie said, a hint of accusation in her voice.

I bit my tongue. In a most practiced manner, I laced my voice with sugar. “But what have I done to make you wary? We’ve never even properly met before today.”

Trixie snorted. “By that measure, we’re strangers. Would you trust somepony you just met with all that you own?”

I shuffled about uncomfortably. One should never bargain from a position of weakness, and Trixie had me dead to rights. She held all the power in this negotiation and she knew it. That left me with but one option, and it was a detestable one. For leverage, I must use another’s assets as my own.

I cleared my throat. “You of all ponies should know that I just so happen to be one of Princess Twilight Sparkle’s closest friends. You may not be able to trust me, but surely you can believe in a princess, can you not? Besides that, don’t you owe her for—“

“Owe her!” Trixie shouted. A pink glow illuminated the interior of the tiny shack, revealing Trixie’s form. Anger exuded from every mote of her being as she got right in my face. “I would still be putting on my shows, happily living out my dream if only I had never met that mare!”

The next thing I knew, a pair of hooves roughly pulled me up and pushed me out of the tiny shelter. Stumbling back into the alley, the remaining light of the fire illuminated Trixie’s snarling face as she charged out after me. Her shoulders heaved as she huffed, standing over me. Without another word, she spun around and disappeared again into her makeshift home.

I just stood there in the cold, dim alley. I struggled to comprehend what had just transpired. One moment, I was cozying up to Trixie, the next she’d thrown me out—literally. The only thing I’d mentioned was Twilight’s name and Trixie flew off into an unmitigated rage.

An icy breeze swept through me, making me shiver. I didn’t fully understand Trixie’s flying off the handle like that, but I had little choice other than to stumble through my missteps and set this misunderstanding right. I had just begun to get warm. Not to mention Trixie just so happened to be the only pony here I knew. If I wanted to get home, I needed to get her to warm up to me.

“T-Trixie?” I called out to her. My ears drooped flush against my head as I utilized my sweetest of tones. “Trixie, please. I did not mean to offend you.”

“Leave!” Trixie’s harsh voice snapped back at me from within the small shack.

Although Trixie’s tone left little room for argument, it wasn’t as though I had any place to go. Deciding it best to let Trixie cool her temper, I plodded over next to the fire barrel and sat down. The lingering flames still provided a shield against the cold, but they weakened by the moment.

Utilizing my horn, I levitated over some of the splintered wood left from the pallet and sunk them into the barrel. In just a few moments they lit up, better illuminating the alley and purging the remnants of cold from my body. I peered out as far as my vision would allow. All I could see was dank, dingy cement and the towering walls. Not a single trace of wood stuck out.

I peered again into the flames. The fiery glow slowly devoured the planks. I licked my lips as I realized my folly. When these boards vanished, there would be nothing in this empty alley to replace them. A shiver ran through me just thinking about it.

Inexorably, my eyes were drawn to the only shelter. How could I assuage Trixie's anger? I still didn't entirely understand why she reacted so vehemently. And even if I sweet talked my way back into the relative warmth of that little shack, that would still leave me stranded here on the cold streets of Baltimare.

Shuffling closer to the fire, I couldn’t help but to feel trapped. No bars or chains confined me, but this dying fire held what remained of my hope for surviving this night with even the smallest of comforts.

Comments

[Dustchu]

Man oh man, I feel bad for both of them, man Dx
Poor Trixie and Rarity... ugh.

Nice chapter well done.

[BudCharles]

Friggin feels :c

[Emperor]

Aw, poor Rares. It's not until a pony's really down hard on her luck that her basest traits come out. Rarity's always shown to be a generous pony behind the selfishness, and it sometimes comes back to bite her in the plot, but she's never let it change her. But now she's going to have to convince Trixie to be generous as well, from her own low point.

[Diamond Sparkle]

Never speak well of Twilight to Trixie.

[Nikkori]

From a female whose username is literally Rarity Is Mah Favorite, this has to be my new favorite Rarity story.......

I haven't caught up yet, and you deserve a cupcake and favorite.

[Texus]

While she has some good intentions, it looks to me like Rarity still needs to figure out that she....
Well I can't say that Twilight was evil, but while Rarity seems already to consider, that Trixie hasn't done everything or anything wrong, she is still somehow not aware of Trixies problems with the whole matter and with Twilight.

Okay I stop for tonight, I'm way to sleepy.