The Great and Powerful Trixie Needs a Date

by EileenSaysHi

Dance Magic(ian)

"This is real, right?"

"You're right, if I were the Great and Powerful Trrrrixie's date to the Fall Formal, that's what I'd be saying too!"

Sunset snorted and punched Trixie in the shoulder. "That's not what I meant!"

The two were walking down the sidewalk toward the Canterlot High courtyard, having met up just outside Sunset's flat. It had been an exhaustive (and exhausting) several days of campaigning, with Sunset and Trixie promoting the latter's Princess campaign during everything from Fencing Club tryouts to the CHS football team's big game. (Though their efforts to stage an appearance in the library had been met with a very hostile reception.) Now it was the night of the Formal itself, and Sunset was dressed in one of Rarity's finest this-old-thing dresses, a fiery red ensemble with splashes of green. Trixie, meanwhile, had surprised Sunset by trading out her blue dress from previous formals for a tuxedo, asserting that it would go far better with the crown.

Trixie rubbed her shoulder a bit from the punch. "Well, what's so weird about it? You're Sunset Shimmer, I'm surprised you haven't been on more dates!"

"Well... I don't really know why, honestly. I mean Flash and I went on a few dates, but those were pretty fake on my end and he knew it. I ended up apologizing for them. But otherwise... I've gone on coffee dates with a few people, but those were always meant to be pretty casual, so it wasn't a failure if we didn't click. So this is... new territory, for me."

"Well, that's the fun part!" Trixie replied. "Forget expectations! It's our date and we can make it special however we want!"

Sunset smiled. "Well, when you put it that way..."

Trixie cheered as they turned toward the Canterlot High steps. "Look out, Fall Formal! The Royal Couple has arrived!"

They found the Rainbooms waiting for them at the top of the stairs. Soon the two of them were surrounded as Sunset's friends gushed compliments over the couple while her cheeks flushed bright red.

"I knew that was the right dress for you, and here's the proof!" Rarity proclaimed. "And it goes so well with Trixie's bold choice!"

"We all voted for you," Applejack noted, "but now I really hope ya win. Don't see too many Princesses of the Fall Formal wearing a suit!"

"Conventions were made to be broken," Trixie replied, grinning, "and who better to break them than moi?"

"Well, I'm sure it'll look great in the picture," Fluttershy commented.

"Picture?" Sunset asked blankly, before it hit her. "Oh, right! Are you all getting your picture first?"

"That's the plan," Applejack responded. "Wanna come with?"

"Ummm..." Sunset pondered for a moment. She looked over at Trixie. "Actually, we were going to hit the dance floor first, I think. But we'll see you around!"

"Well, good luck out there," Applejack replied. "We'll meet up with you when Celestia brings out the crown."

"Have fun, lovebiiiiirds!" Rainbow Dash called out as the couple headed inside.

Trixie looked oddly at Sunset as they walked down the hallway. "You didn't want to go get pictures with your friends?"

"Well... I just thought it'd make more sense if we did at least some stuff tonight by ourselves. I didn't want you to feel like an eighth wheel."

"Now aren't you being the romantic, Miss I've-Never-Been-On-a-Real-Date-Before!" Trixie laughed as Sunset rolled her eyes and giggled. "Well, lucky for you, Trixie's greatness and powerfulness extends to the magic of dance as well!"

"Glad that's true for you," Sunset commented as they stepped into the gym, once again converted into a ballroom. "Sometimes I still feel like I have four left hooves. Er, feet. Two left feet."

Indeed, Sunset proved somewhat inept when it came to partner dance, at least at the start. A bit too used to just dancing solo, she ended up tripping over herself and stepping on Trixie's feet more than once. After a few botches, however, she soon learned to watch and follow the magician's movements, initially carefully and methodically, but soon adding more verve and energy as she got a handle on things.

Sunset was very grateful for Trixie's fashion choice for the evening, as the lack of a dress made it much easier to mimic her footsteps. It occurred to Sunset that she'd mentioned her lack of dancing knowledge to Trixie earlier, during their campaign; perhaps Trixie's fashion choice wasn't a coincidence. If so, she certainly appreciated the gesture.

After about five songs, though, Sunset was ready for a break. Especially when the next song on the evening's setlist was "True Original".

"Hey, do you wanna take a breather?" Sunset asked. "I'm kinda really sick of this song."

"Weren't you onstage with PostCrush like a month ago?"

"It's... a long, long story."

"Whatever, I could use a moment. You weren't kidding about being a bad dancer."

"Only at partner dance! I mean, I grew up in a body that's not really capable of gripping or holding anyone."

"You should stop reminding me this is technically some kind of interspecies date, it's weirding me out."

"Sorry," Sunset laughed as they walked toward the exit by the bleachers. Before they could reach it, Sunset heard Rainbow Dash's voice, loud enough to hear over the music.

"Sunset! Where are you going?"

"Rainbow?" Sunset asked as she and Trixie stopped. "We were just stepping outside for a--"

"No time for that!" Rainbow replied as she and Fluttershy caught up to them. "I just ran into Celestia and Luna and they said they're about to announce the winner!"

"Oh?" Sunset looked over at Trixie, who had a giddy grin on her face. "Well I guess we'd better go up toward the--"

She was interrupted when Rainbow seized the two of them by the arms and yanked them across the room in an instant, where Twilight, Pinkie, Rarity and Applejack were waiting.

"--stage."

Rainbow disappeared momentarily to pull Fluttershy over while Trixie rested a hand on her forehead. "The Great and Powerful Trixie is feeling a little woozy..."

"Whoops, sorry, first time's a little rough on everyone," Rainbow noted.

"I still don't understand how that doesn't rip our arms off," Sunset remarked.

"I mean it is magic..." Rainbow replied.

As the song came to an end, Celestia took the stage, with the noise of the crowd dying down as the suspense built. "Thanks to all of our amazing students this year for helping put on a great Fall Formal," her voice boomed over the gym. "I know this dance has gotten a reputation for being, well, hectic sometimes, but I'm pleased to announce tonight's has already been one of the best I've ever had the privilege to participate in. And now, without further ado, I'd like to announce the winner of this year's Fall Formal crown!"

As Luna walked across to Celestia with the crown and the envelope naming the winner, Sunset could see the excitement grow on Trixie's face. The magician had a gleeful smile and was trembling with anticipation.

Celestia took the envelope. "The Princess of this year's Fall Formal is..." She pulled out the slip. "Diamond Tiara!"

As the crowd applauded, Sunset looked back at Trixie again. She was still trembling, but now with muted fury.

"That... that posh little twerp... beat me?" Trixie growled, grinding her teeth. "Beat the Great and Powerful TRIXIE?"

Sunset stepped over to face Trixie, putting her hands on the other girl's shoulders. "It's okay, Trix. It's just a silly little crown."

"It's not fair, though! We did everything right..." The anger drained from her face, and she looked grim. "Didn't we?"

Sunset was a little alarmed. She'd expected Trixie to be annoyed or angry if she lost. She hadn't expected her to look genuinely hurt. "Trixie...did it really mean that much to you?"

The other Rainbooms gathered around as they noticed Trixie's discomfort, with Fluttershy laying a hand on the magician's shoulder.

"Not just the crown... I just really wanted to be on that stage, you know? With all those people watching, cheering me. To really feel great and powerful. Especially if you were there with me."

"You'd have wanted me up there?" Sunset asked, surprised.

Trixie nodded. "I mean you said you felt like your crown from before was a cheat... I figured, since we campaigned together, that maybe I could share it with you."

Sunset smiled brightly. "That's really sweet of you, Trix. Even if I can't imagine anyone at this school being excited to see me wearing a crown."

A quiet laugh escaped from Trixie. "Maybe. But... I just wanted a really special moment for us."

Sunset thought for a moment, then walked right up to Trixie and laid a hand on her shoulder as Fluttershy, uncertain what was happening, withdrew hers from the other. "You know," Sunset noted, "it still could be, if you want."

"Huh?" Trixie looked blankly at her for a moment before it clicked. "Oh! Well, um..."

And she leaned forward and kissed Sunset right on the lips, wrapping her arms tightly around the redhead. Sunset reciprocated immediately, and the Rainbooms let out a collective gasp.

It appeared that gasp was audible from the stage, since, as Celestia was placing the crown on Diamond Tiara's head, she visibly glanced over in their direction. A good number of eyes from the crowd followed hers, and soon everyone who could see the two of them was looking. Rarity, observing this, projected a shield in front of the couple, which Rainbow Dash indignantly strode in front of.

"Hey! Keep your eyes onstage, people!" the star athlete of Canterlot High declared to the crowd. "There's nothing you need to be staring at!"

Onstage, Diamond Tiara was looking infuriated at having her thunder stolen, while behind the shield, Sunset and Trixie had broken their kiss, blushing furiously as they realized what had happened. "Well..." Sunset said as she struggled for words.

"That was certainly... attention-grabbing," Trixie mumbled. "Not sure about the kind of attention..." As Sunset felt her cheeks flush once again, Trixie clarified. "The moment, I mean, not the kiss. You're a way better kisser than dancer."

Now Sunset's whole face was crimson. "T-thanks? I think?"

The onstage ceremonies came to an end and the music began to pipe back in, and Rarity dropped the shield. There was still a good number of people looking in their direction, however. "I'm sorry, I should've known people would be watching me like a hawk at this dance. Since I, y'know, tend to make a scene... do we just wanna get out of here?" Sunset asked.

"Maybe... but we never got our photo!" Trixie exclaimed.

"Is it worth it?"

"Absolutely, dears." Rarity interjected. "You couldn't possibly end such a momentous evening for the two of you without professional photography!"

"Don't worry, we got your back!" Applejack added. "Ain't no one gonna get in your way while we're around!"

"Yeah!" Rainbow Dash shouted. "Or I could just zip you over-"

"No," Trixie and Sunset stated in unison.

"T-that's fair," Rainbow replied sheepishly.

"Besides," Trixie declared, the confidence and ego returning to her face, "as much as your assistance is appreciated, it won't be necessary."

Sunset tilted her head. "It won't?"

Her date smirked. "Please. Anyone can be embarrassed for a moment. But it's gonna take more than a few prying eyes to keep Trixie down for long."

Swiveling around, Trixie began to march forward, Sunset trailing along behind. "Behold!" Trixie shouted to the onlookers. "Witness the glory of the Great and Powerful Trixie and her nearly-as-phenomenal date Sunset Shimmer! Bask in our joint magnificence! Bask!"

Sunset fought the urge to cringe at Trixie's bravado, but she was glad the magician seemed to have recovered strong. It wouldn't be Trixie without that amazing ego of hers, after all. And as much as it went against her instincts regarding being judged by the student body, she knew it was better to embrace this moment than shrink from it.

Especially when the moment had felt so good.

Soon they'd crossed the room and gotten in line for their picture. Photo Finish was clearly making the most of her final year handling photography duties, nearly rendering Lyra and Bon Bon blind with constant camera flashes. After getting Sunset's assurances that the two of them would be fine, most of the Rainbooms dispersed to head back to the dance floor, but Twilight still stood across from them in line.

"Sorry Timber couldn't make it," Sunset commented.

"I never really expected him to, his campus is just too far away," Twilight replied. "He sends his regards, though. Guess I'll have to tell him about this later..."

"Oh geez," Sunset laughed a bit. "I guess that's three Fall Formals now where I've made myself the center of attention... and I probably felt less exposed in the crater."

"So people saw you kiss, big deal. It'll be gossip for a few days and then people will move on. And then you can just, well, be a couple!"

It occurred to Sunset that the ramifications of the kiss itself, outside of the public reaction to it, still hadn't quite sunk in. "A couple? I guess we're a couple? I think?"

She looked at Trixie, who noted "I'm pretty sure we're a couple now whether we want to be or not."

"And... you want to, right?"

Trixie leaned over and planted a kiss on Sunset's cheek. "Does that answer your question?"

A grin exploded across Sunset's face. "I guess that makes me the greatest and powerfullest girlfriend."

Trixie laughed. "Powerfullest isn't a word, Sunset."

"Oh, don't you try to throw that in my face-"

Too late, Sunset noticed Twilight trying to signal a warning; she and Trixie had reached the end of the line, and suddenly Photo Finish was physically shoving them in front of the camera, twisting them into poses like figurines. Before either of them could comprehend what was happening, she'd taken at least 27 shots and shunted them off before moving to the next couple.

"I think... I think we're done for the evening," Sunset declared dizzily as she slumped forward onto her knees, Trixie and Twilight running to help her up.

---

Sunset and Trixie were back in front of Sunset's flat, embraced in a tight hug.

"I don't know what I really expected tonight to be, Trix, but I'm glad that was it."

"Agreed."

"And I can't wait for next time."

"Agreed again." She leaned forward and gave a goodbye kiss, which Sunset happily accepted. "But for now, I must bid you adieu with... a magician's exit!" And with that, she backed a short ways down the pavement before dropping a smoke bomb.

When the haze cleared, Trixie had only made it a few feet away. "Errrrrrgh... one day I'll get that trick right again!"

"Are you telling me you had that with you this whole time?" Sunset shouted. "And you never thought it might have been a good idea to use it earlier?!"

"Trixie's outta here!" And she ran off into the distance as Sunset began to giggle stupidly, wondering just what she had gotten herself into.

Comments

[KwirkyJ]

Seeing those promotional events -- and our heroines interacting with them -- seems like valuable opportunities lost, even if they're a little outside of your chosen scope... Lots of talking points here in the formal probably really belong there, alas.

I have no problem with the formal itself. The conclusion feels a bit rushed or forced to me. Going from "am I humoring, am I bi-curious, or what" to "we're an item now!" deserves more. I also missed the six opportunities where a smoke bomb would have been useful, if they were written in.

The impeccable voicing and Trixie's ostentatious presence made this worth reading. Thanks for writing!

[Orange_Peel]

"Only at partner dance! I mean, I grew up in a body that's not really capable of gripping or holding anyone."

"You should stop reminding me this is technically some kind of interspecies date, it's weirding me out."

"Eh, it could be always be worse."

"How so?"

"Well, let's just say Flash Sentry has been banned from AJ's farm for the last three years."

[xbox432]

This was a sweet little story. I really enjoyed getting to see this rare pairing having fun at a dance!

[Eddy13]

An enjoyable story, but I agree with KwirkyJ, the story could've been a bit longer. I get that you're trying to get this in in time for that contest, but any chance afterwards, you can post an expanded version of it?

[nlinzer]

Nice story. Though unfair to Dimiond. I'm not sure if she's mean in this universe and it's just not cool to have your special moment taken. Still I liked the story.

[Reactception]

That was a cute story and I really appreciated such a fun entry!

[LoveHeart]

Now I wish for more

[Posh]

(Though their efforts to stage an appearance in the library had been met with a very hostile reception.)

Any reception is a hostile reception if Trixie attends.

As an aside, you’ve got a long paragraph here that’s dense with info, with a double-whammy of parenthetical asides in there too. Kinda feels like it’s bursting at the seams, like Trixie’s ego.

"Well, that's the fun part!" Trixie replied. "Forget expectations!

If you’re going out with Trixie, you’ve given up on a lot of things, expectations chief among them.

"Conventions were made to be broken," Trixie replied, grinning, "and who better to break them than moi?"

Trixie finished by flinging white phosphorus into Applejack’s face.

Celestia took the envelope. "The Princess of this year's Fall Formal is..." She pulled out the slip. "Diamond Tiara!"

As the crowd applauded, Sunset looked back at Trixie again. She was still trembling, but now with muted fury.

"That... that posh little twerp... beat me?" Trixie growled, grinding her teeth. "Beat the Great and Powerful TRIXIE?"

Sunset stepped over to face Trixie, putting her hands on the other girl's shoulders. "It's okay, Trix. It's just a silly little crown."

“And the thing they put on your head isn’t all that important either!”

As Celestia was placing the crown on Diamond Tiara's head, she heard the noise from just offstage, glancing over. A good number of eyes from the crowd followed hers, and soon everyone who could see the two of them was looking. Rarity, observing this, projected a shield in front of the couple, which Rainbow Dash indignantly strode in front of.

"Hey! Keep your eyes onstage, people!" the star athlete of Canterlot High declared to the crowd. "There's nothing you need to be staring at!"

I generally think that this story is cute, and a decent cross-section of high school life, but I question this moment. It’s a high school dance; a couple of girls making out with each other during the crowing ceremony might draw a little bit of attention, but not, like. THIS much. It’s a bit of contrived teen movie logic. You gotta figure they’re not the only ones smooching during the ceremony, either.

I guess you could argue that it’s because Sunset is the one making out, but still.

"Sorry Timber couldn't make it," Sunset commented.

This is also unrealistic, as nobody would ever be sorry for Tim Spruance’s absence.

All told, I thought this was a decent piece of SunTrix fluff. If I’m judging it as a narrative, it’s got some flaws. I can’t help feeling like Trixie makes a bigger deal out of campaigning for princess than the story, itself, does. On a related note, despite being shown up at the end (and having attention specifically drawn to her being shown up), Diamond Tiara is a non-factor for the whole story. It feels like there’s something there suggesting some kind of comeuppance that she... doesn’t really earn, I think?

Her big storytelling crime is winning a thing that Trixie wanted. Trixie has many things as is. Y’know?

And I guess I’d knock you on a little bit too much of the old talking head back-and-forth. There were more than a few places where the lack of dialogue tags made it hard to follow who was talking in ongoing conversations. I had to double back once or twice.

It’s fine on the whole. It’s a nice bit of fluff, like I said. I could see SunTrix working out pretty much the way you write it, too.

[ScisetShimmerEvan]

The two were walking down the sidewalk toward the Canterlot High courtyard, having met up just outside Sunset's flat. It had been an exhaustive (and exhausting) several days of campaigning, with Sunset and Trixie promoting the latter's Princess campaign during everything from Fencing Club tryouts to the CHS football team's big game. (Though their efforts to stage an appearance in the library had been met with a very hostile reception.) Now it was the night of the Formal itself, and Sunset was dressed in one of Rarity's finest this-old-thing dresses, a fiery red ensemble with splashes of green. Trixie, meanwhile, had surprised Sunset by trading out her blue dress from previous formals for a tuxedo, asserting that it would go far better with the crown.

Huh, wasn't expecting Trixie to be in a suit. And I'm also curious as to what the dress Sunset is wearing looks like.

"It's not fair, though! We did everything right ..." The anger drained from her face, and she looked grim. "Didn't we?"

You can't always get what you want in life Trixie, take it or leave it.

And she leaned forward and kissed Sunset right on the lips, wrapping her arms tightly around the redhead. Sunset reciprocated immediately, and the Rainbooms let out a collective gasp.

https://m.

Trixie laughed. "Powerfullest isn't a word, Sunset."

Took you this long to realize that.

"Trixie's outta here!" And she ran off into the distance as Sunset began to giggle stupidly, wondering just what she had gotten herself into.

Only you can answer that Sunset.

[Revel Montaro]

Finally got around to this. It was cute and i felt the characters spot on.

[FanOfMostEverything]

Outstanding work, especially Trixie helping Sunset get a way to feed her ego in a more socially acceptable manner. Thank you for an unexpected but delightful shipfic. I’m glad I finally got to it.