Excelsi Regis

by Muramasa

V

TRIXIE

---

I packed. I looked through my stuff. I took it all out and then I packed it all again, with a few new additions.

I decided to stop there. Nothing would ever be enough.

I've traveled all around Equestria. I'd carted my wagon to Los Pegasus, I'd slept on the streets of Baltimare, and I'd attracted thousands--hundreds--tens of ponies in Fillydelphia. It was tough being away from home all the time, but I did it for a few reasons. I did it to prove I was the best magician in the world (I wasn't). I did it to show everyone who ever doubted me what I could become (I doubt they even remember my name).

But most of all, I do what I do because I love it. Because I'd go to every magic show that came to town when I grew up. Because I'd sit with my legs crossed, staring in awe with every trick and every slight of hand. Because whenever I did a show, I wanted to make a kid's eyes light up just like mine.

And you know what? I did. But for whatever reason, I didn't care.

That one part of me that wanted to prove how superior I really was overtook everything. I always try and remember when that happened. I'll lie awake at night for hours trying to figure it out, and I never do.

It's what I was doing now. And just like always, I couldn't find an answer.

I looked at the clock on the wall. 4 a.m.

I was thirsty.

I grabbed my water cup with my magic and began to make my way downstairs to the common area. I had quietly let Blaze and Lotus know that I was a night owl, and they assured me that it was fine to go downstairs and do anything I needed to, including just hanging around the common area. I wasn't going to do that, though; I'd probably just stare at the wall for another hour before Luna finally took me.

As I got to the bottom of the stairs, my glass still in tow, I rounded the corner to get to the kitchen before gently setting the cup down. I took a look at the water pitcher, but quickly decided against it Instead, I closed the fridge and looked over at the red wine sitting on the counter. I figured that getting tipsy would make it easier to sleep, but I made a mental note not to drink too much to make myself regret it in the morning. Right as I was about to grab the bottle, my ears perked as I heard a sound.

It was music. A guitar, by the sound of it, emanating from the front porch. It was very faint, so I couldn't particularly tell what the song was or how good the playing was, so I quickly poured the wine and began to make my way to the front door. As I got closer and closer, the melody got clearer, and it wasn't until I opened the door that I discovered the noise's source.

It was Sunset Shimmer, sitting alone on the porch. In her hooves was an acoustic guitar that, despite the darkness, I could tell was exquisitely made, the lacquer shining off the moonlight and the wood grain evident even in the night. The guitar was beautiful, but I was far more mesmerized by her playing.

Put simply, it was unbelievable. She was playing the blues, that was for sure, but in a way I hadn't ever heard. She had the melody line perfectly in time with the thumping bass notes, and the tapping of her hooves created the beat the music followed. Her leads were soaring, the notes coming into place perfectly, and she could clearly feel the rhythm coursing through her body as she moved along the fretboard. After playing what appeared to be a quick interlude, she began to sing, her melodic and soft voice blending perfectly with the breeze.

Cause, nobody knows you
When you're down and out
In your pocket, not one penny
And as for friends, well, you don't have any
And when you get back on your feet again
Everybody wants to be your long-lost friend
Said it's strange, without any doubt
Nobody knows you when you're down and out

I just watched her play. I can't remember how long the song went from there, and I don't even know if she heard the door open, but eventually, she hit her last note and let it ring through the night. As it died, down, she turned to me and smiled, indicating that she must have known the moment I came through the door.

"Hello, Trixie," she said. "Can't sleep either?" I realized I had my jaw open, and I quickly brought it up before speaking.

"Nope... Sunset, that was incredible," I said. Surprisingly, Sunset quickly turned her head to the side, and I saw a bit of a blush begin to form on her cheeks.

"It's something I've been working on," she began. "That's some high praise, coming from the Great and Powerful Trixie." At those words, I gave the devious smirk I know Sunset was looking for.

"And that's saying something," I joked, causing her to laugh. I sat down in the chair next to her as she gently rested the guitar against the wall to her left.

"Sunset, where did you learn to play like that? And sing... I had no idea." Sunset merely sat back in her chair and looked out to the Cydonian sky.

"You know playing guitar is the exact same here as it is in the human world? Even though ponies don't have fingers, it just works. I never thought about that when I started playing before I went through the mirror, but after a while, you know, it clicked. I still don't get it, because it should be way different from fingers to hooves, but I've always loved playing. It's been my release from so many things. Anger, sadness, and in this case, because I'm insanely strung out. Pun intended." She went over to levitate the guitar back in her hooves before playing a few licks.

"Twilight bought this for me today. That's what that whole thing was about, if you heard," she said, a sheepish grin appearing to match her scarlet cheeks. "I'm sure you could probably guess, but after being born into a noble family and then becoming a princess--"

"--She's got some bits lying around, huh?" I asked, a smile on my face. "That's super cool of her to do that for you. I... I know what it's like starting over again." I didn't really mean to say that last part, but it slipped out before I could regret it. Sunset's face moved down only slightly, the glow of sadness evident even in the dark, but it quickly disappeared as she looked up at me.

"Trixie, can I tell you a story?" she asked me. I could feel my face twist ever so slightly in confusion, but nonetheless, I quickly nodded, and Sunset sat back in her chair, looked at the stars, and began her tale.

"So in this human world, we have this thing called social media. And it's this wide, massive network, essentially, where people can share their pictures, events they are going to, how they're feeling, really anything. It's all through this digital medium, and I don't expect you to understand how that all works, but do you kind of get the concept?" I slowly nodded. I didn't actually, but I had a feeling I could pick it up as I went along.

"Well, essentially, there was this mysterious person named "Anon-a-Miss"--very clever, I know--and she was spreading around these pictures and rumors about people she was discovering, essentially to cause chaos and disorder. Due to the fact that I had a bad reputation--"

"--people thought it was you," I finished. She nodded, with barely a hint of a smirk traceable in her face.

"Yeah, they did. And I mean, can you really blame them? After what I did to the school, to the people... I mean, if I were them, I'd blame me, too. And so I knew that I needed to prove it wasn't me so I could clear my name and not be Public Enemy Number One again. As I'm sure you know, it... doesn't feel good."

I nodded and found myself sighing, because it certainly didn't feel good. I'd made a thousand dumb decisions in my life, and more often than not, it resulted in trouble, and that's not just counting the Ursa Major and the Alicorn Amulet. Sunset understood, too, I knew, and that's why her next words bit so much harder than they probably should have.

"So, I ran into your human counterpart in the hallway. And I was just so mad, and so fed up with this situation, and you can't begin to understand how much I wanted it to be over--"

"You accused me," I interrupted. It came out far harsher than I meant it to, because I wasn't mad at Sunset; in fact, like she had said only moments earlier, I totally understood. I didn't know what I was like in the human world, or the things that had happened to me there, but based on how Sunset was speaking, I could tell it was more of the old me than me I had worked so hard to become.

"I did," she said. "I mean, I didn't even really think it was you--her--and yet, I did. And she looked at me with this sneer, and she assured me that she was not Anon-A-Miss, but that she wished she was." Sunset looked back up again. She was doing that a lot lately, it seemed, and every time I seemed to glance at her she was looking at the stars.

"And that made me so mad," she began. "I was already having a horrible day. I wasn't thinking straight, and I'd lashed out, and I got more anger back, and so I just had this sort of thing set in stone that I just didn't like you." Sunset looked over to me, where I was pouring a glass of wine, and pulled out a glass of her own from seemingly nowhere.

"Mind if I have some?" she asked. I chuckled a bit before pouring her a glass, and we both took a sip at the same time. Sunset looked at the bottle with an almost longing stare before inspecting her glass as if it held some great secret.

"The griffons really do it right, don't they?" she asked. I laughed again, taking a sip to stop myself before answering.

"They do. It hits harder, too," I replied, which got another chuckle from Sunset. I was glad to be making her laugh, as I could really tell there was something weighing down on her on top of the fact that she, Starlight and were all nervous as hell to be making this trip tomorrow. Gulping down another sip, Sunset turned back to me.

"I just want to say I'm sorry," she began. "And I know it wasn't even the you that you are here, and you're different over there, but... I had a preconception of you from my time there. One I shouldn't have carried over to Equestria." Sunset used her magic to raise her glass to about halfway between us, letting it hang in the air.

"Friends?" she asked. Chuckling a little bit, I took my glass and clinked it before we both drained the last of our glasses.

"Friends," I assured her, giving her a smile. "I was a bitch. I'm trying not to be anymore, but I assure you, it ain't easy." Sunset burst into laughter at that, and it infected me to the point where I had to laugh along. I don't know how long it went on, but eventually, the wind carried it away. I looked at the house across from us, a quaint and nice little place that looked a lot like the South Wind.

"Are you ready for tomorrow?" I asked. Sunset snorted a bit with laughter, though I could tell it was more of a nervous feeling.

"Tartarus no," she answered. "But we're gonna do it. I just hope Twilight is okay. I know she can handle herself, but these Griffons really don't mess around. How 'bout you? How are you feeling?" I shrugged and looked down at my wine glass I'd just refilled, moving it a bit to watch the ripples. I looked back at Sunset, who was eagerly awaiting an answer.

"I'm scared out of my mind," I said with a smile. "So let's finish the bottle so I forget about it."

Comments

[badninja]

It does make me wonder if these two could make a cute couple. Still I get the feeling that they are going to be giving this insane griffin king a good thrashing.

[Muramasa]

8797016
I felt like a friendship between Sunset and Trixie isn't explored a lot, so I thought I'd do something cool with it!

[Csquared08]

Oh, Anon-a-Miss makes a showing. Huh.

Yeah, these past two chapters have been a huge step forward. I'm much more actively looking forward to the rest of the story now.

8797629
And then Forgotten Friendship happened.

[Csquared08]

9466608
If these past two chapters were any indication, I'm really looking forward to when you do get around to working on this story again.

[blargg]

only those with a true desire to wield the blade could do so

I imagine you were going for something more along the lines of "Can only be wielded in the service of others" and not "You can pick it up, but only if you want to use it" - literally what the current wording means.
Do not use "desire" as a qualification for anything.
Here: King who scours the land searching for it VS smith who made it for another. No prize for guessing who has the desire to use it (hint: It's not the smith)

[DanaO]

9959497
Alternatively, it could really mean exactly what it says, and the lesson for the griffons is that the desire of a king who wants one great spectacular campaign to recapture a national treasure and show off to his subjects how great a king he is needs to be measured against the desire of a smith who just wants to eat and is willing to live alone in the mountains spending every day among predators and prey. And thus who will be using that axe every single day for the killing, butchering and dominance displays it was made for instead of mounting it on a wall somewhere. The king didn't need it as badly - or was just lacking in bloodlust, story's still a little ambiguous there.

And of course, it's a story. You could very well be right about what the actual hex on the axe is. But up until someone's actually in a position to claim custody of it, the important thing about the axe is what the griffons believe it represents, not the reality.