Chapter 15
Wander the streets: 37%
After a moment’s indecision, Kestrel shrugged her shoulders, lit a cigarette, and started walking down the main street, sticking to the shade of the buildings to get some reprieve from the hot desert sun. There wasn’t any sense in wasting time covering ground once covered. The saloon was in Wanderer’s hooves, and the post office had been nearly fruitless yesterday. Sometimes, the best way to learn something was to just wait and listen. Ponies coming across old friends in the middle of the street tended to forget all about anypony who might be listening from the shadows.
And so it was for nearly two hours. Kestrel slowly worked her way up and down main street, watching, listening, waiting. The streets slowly grew busier between breakfast and lunch, with ponies stopping to chat here and there. The general store proved to be a great spot to eavesdrop, as it had the most traffic. It certainly didn’t hurt that they had a box of sugar cubes for sale that she could munch on while she waited.
It wasn’t all that long before Kestrel spotted something unusual. While most of the wagon traffic coming through the town was mundane enough, loaded with crops or other raw goods, she soon noticed one that was different. And it was hard to not notice, painted purple and gold as it was, with window panels covered in moons and stars. A single blue unicorn pulled it down the road, looking almost like a filly when compared to the size of the thing, the sweat from a long day’s journey beading across her forehead and running down her neck. When she finally brought the wagon to a stop just outside the post office, she panted and slumped forward in her harness, letting the weight of the wagon anchor her in place so she could take some weight off of her hooves, before finally undoing the harness and disappearing inside the wagon through a door in the back.
Kestrel could only raise an eyebrow in curiosity and confusion. A single mare wandering across the desert with a wagon as conspicuous as that thing? How she hadn’t been robbed or killed yet was beyond astounding. The mare was young, though, so maybe she hadn’t been doing it for that long. Then again, the flaking paint and dust-streaked body of the wagon seemed to say otherwise.
The wagon didn’t move for the longest time, and there wasn’t any sign of the mare who had dragged it there in the first place. But she had placed it almost right in front of the post office, and it certainly turned the heads of passersby. Out of curiosity, Kestrel finally flicked the butt of a cigarette aside and decided to investigate the wagon. After all, she figured, if this mare was going to get herself robbed driving around the desert like that, then she might as well get robbed by somepony who wouldn’t rape and kill her for it.
A mare’s muffled mutterings barely slipped through the gaps in the planks as Kestrel approached. “No, no, this will not do,” the voice said. “The Great and Powerful Trixie should have gotten her cape cleaned at the river before coming down here! Now she’ll look like a simple fool in front of all these simpler fools!”
Kestrel’s brow lowered. Was there somepony else in that wagon? She’d only seen the mare pulling it, but there easily could have been somepony inside. Though she wasn’t sure how comfortable that would have been; the windows on the wagon weren’t open, and the air inside would have become hot and stuffy in no time at all. Shrugging, Kestrel stepped up to the door on the back and knocked a few times.
The muttering inside suddenly stopped. A few seconds later, he heard the same mare’s voice call out from behind the door. “Who dares disturb the Great and Powerful Trixie? The show isn’t for another half hour; she’s very busy getting ready!”
Kestrel blinked. “Great and powerful who?”
She heard a groan of exasperation. “Stupid townfolk,” the mare grumbled, and hoofsteps thudded on the wooden floor. The upper half of the split door flew open in a burst of pink magic, and Kestrel took a few steps back as the same blue mare from before glowered at her. “The Great and Powerful Trixie!” the mare reiterated. “I’m astounded you haven’t ever heard of me! Offended, really! And above all else, sorry for you that you could be so… so uncultured!”
“Uncultured?” Kestrel chuckled at that. “You know, you’re right ‘bout that one. I’m ‘bout as uncultured as they get.”
“I can see that,” the mare, Trixie, said with a frown.
“Least I don’t talk about myself in the third person.”
That only sharpened the frown on Trixie’s face. “Have you ever heard of a stage persona?” she asked, forelegs crossed over the lower half of the door. “Oh, what am I saying? Of course you haven’t. What are you, a rancher’s wife? You certainly look the part.”
Kestrel shrugged. “I ain’t been lucky enough to be somepony’s wife. No, ma’am, I’m just a simple traveler. Been all ‘round the southwest.”
That put a thoughtful look in Trixie’s eye. “A traveler? Do you know how to use a gun?”
That made Kestrel chuckle again. “Better than most by half.”
“Good! One moment. Perhaps you can be useful to Trixie.” The blue mare turned around, rummaging through the contents of her wagon, before she returned with a single bullet. “Take this,” she said, tossing it to Kestrel.
Kestrel caught it in her wing and frowned. It looked like a bullet, but the weight was off. It was lighter, if only barely so. “A bullet?”
“Not just a bullet, a stage bullet.” Trixie once more frowned and crossed her forelegs over the back of the door. “It’s a foam cast I enchanted to look like a real bullet. You are going to volunteer to shoot it at me when I ask for an audience member to test my reflexes during my show. The gunpowder is real, but the bullet will just disintegrate when you shoot it. I need you to show it to the crowd before putting it in your gun and firing it so they think it’s real.”
“…But it’s not.” Kestrel said, spinning it between her feathers.
“My, Trixie was wrong about you. You certainly are a fast one.” The exaggerated roll of her eyes was impossible to miss.
“So you’re some kinda magician, then?” Kestrel asked, trying to peer past Trixie and into her wagon.
Trixie scoffed. “The Great and Powerful Trixie is not a mere magician, she is the most powerful and greatest unicorn to ever live!”
“So why couldn’t you just catch a real bullet then?”
The mare shrank back an inch before puffing out her chest and running a hoof through her mane in an almost bored look. “Well, obviously I could, but it’s much more exhausting. And dangerous. Sometimes the ponies I recruit to help with these shows don’t shoot when they’re supposed to, and I don’t want a live bullet flying at me before I am ready. Besides, the audience will never know the difference!”
“And… just what’s in it for me?” Kestrel asked, tucking the bullet away.
“The honor and glory of helping the Great and Powerful Trixie perform a show!” Trixie proudly boasted. “Not many ponies can say they’ve ever had a hoof in making history!”
Kestrel simply blinked at Trixie and raised an eyebrow.
The blue unicorn sighed and slumped forward. “Fine, and a cut of the day’s profits. All you have to do is stand in the crowd and shoot the fake bullet at me. That will probably be the easiest job you will ever have in your boring life. So, can Trixie count on your assistance? Or will I have to find another pony willing to write their name in history?”
1. Agree to participate in the show. Don’t see no harm in playin’ this fool’s game. She may not be as ‘Great and Powerful’ as she claims if she needs my help, but bits are bits.
2. Refuse to participate in the show. This is foal’s nonsense. I’m supposed to be out here findin’ money for the Gang, not playin’ along with some self-obsessed looney.
3. Agree to participate but use a real bullet. If she’s so great and powerful, then surely she could catch real lead as easily as she can a fake? It’ll be more entertainin’ either way, that’s for sure.
4. Rob her. She might have somethin’ good in that wagon besides fake bullets, and she looks like she can hardly put up a fight, despite her claims to the contrary.
(Confidence Required: 35 Votes)
Stats
Page generated in 0.051 seconds
Total duration
1,039 users online
1,995,133 hits today, 2,280,440 yesterday
FIMFiction
My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic Fanfiction
Designed and coded by knighty & Xaquseg - © 2011-2024
Follow & Support Us
Support us
SubStar
Chat!
Discord
Follow us
Twitter
MLP: Friendship is Magic® - © 2024 Hasbro Inc.®
Fimfiction is in no way affiliated with or endorsed by Hasbro Inc.®
God, if she uses a real bullet, and Trixie fails, she may or may not get done for murder. Wouldn't that spice things up.
Just go along with the loudmouth. It's easy money for no risk. More cash to help the gang get established.
That was an oddly adorable mental image.
Oh god, it's Trixie.
Participate, and use the fake bullet. As funny as it would be to shoot Trixie, it would also be kind of terrible and might lead to trouble in the town. Plus, might as well build local allies, Trixie might come in useful someday as hard as that is to believe.
Play in the show with the fake bullet and get some easy dosh. Might get some good cred and better jobs along the way (and more opportunity to use good cred to sneak off loot).
Let's humor her and use that fake bullet. And since she's not good at keeping quiet, she might have some useful information.
Ah what the hell, just rob her blind, clean her out
Get some easy cash and play along
Wait gotta roll for using a real bullet... (1d20, 10 or under for insanity)
...12...
Alright, go with the fake bullet