Fictional

by Meteorite Shower

Chapter 16

The following morning was surprisingly peaceful, as far as the four farm workers were concerned. Ponyville in the distance had a worryingly unnatural storm cloud hovering above it, but there wasn't any imminent sign of Trixie herself nearby. Meteorite couldn't decide if this was a good thing or not.

The peace didn't last long into the afternoon however, as Meteorite and Steel heard the sound of a cracking whip off the beaten path by what remained of the orchard inside the dome. Trixie's commanding voice soon followed.

Peering past the trees, Meteorite soon spotted what looked like a large wooden chariot, with Trixie perched atop, with a mean-looking whip in her magical grasp. Struggling to pull the chariot were Snips and Snails, the colts that had formerly admired Trixie. They were slowly passing by, in the direction of the dome perimeter.

Meteorite silently watched, feelings of uncertainty and dutifulness bubbling up inside her. She really didn't want to get involved, especially with the reckless use of power Trixie had displayed the day before. But… could she really just stand by and let this happen? Twilight was their main line of defense, but was quickly written out off-screen, as it were. And given the absurdity of the situation… was she expected to step up and win the battle? The… story?

She swallowed painfully, her throat dry. What could she even do against someone like Trixie? She had no fighting capabilities, not even good enough dexterity to handle most things. The best she could do was talk at her, maybe.

…Talk.

It… feasibly could work, yeah? Hell, the whole show prides itself on talking things out, right? Maybe, Meteorite considered, taking a step forward, maybe I could remind Trixie of who she was, an-

"Ow!"

A sudden but quick pain shot through her dock as she tried to take further steps. Whipping her head around, she saw Steel pinning her tail to the ground with his hoof, while attempting to simultaneously pin her with a disapproving frown.

"Oi, Steel! What do you think you're doing?"

"I should be asking you the same question, Miss Meteorite," Steel responded firmly, releasing Meteorite's tail and allowing her to face him fully. "Might I ask why you stopped working?"

Meteorite's voice was caught in her throat as she awkwardly looked away, unable to come up with a suitable lie. Steel didn't need an answer however, as he continued.

"It doesn't take much to recognise you were lost in your thoughts, especially when this Trixie was nearby. You were planning something, correct?"

"Ma'be…" Meteorite mumbled shamefully, before frowning at herself and facing Steel eye-to-eye. "I don't know, okay! I'm not sure if I have a plan, I… I just-"

Just as quickly as her bravado came, it fled, her shoulders sagging in defeat.

"...I don't even know what I was gonna do… I thought… maybe I could, I'unno, talk to her or something…"

Steel took a moment to consider this before quietly responding. "Do you truly believe that would work?"

"I don't know…" Meteorite briefly muttered into her chest, "...no… not really, I guess. But…" She tutted, frustrated with the situation. "What else can we do? Are- Are we supposed to just… roll over and let all this happen?! Because," —she affected a mocking tone— "'Oh, no, we mustn't get involved!' Is-Isn't just letting this happen worse?!"

Steel lifted his gaze and frowned thoughtfully at the space where Trixie had last been. After a few moments, he sat down with resignation.

"I understand your frustrations, Miss Meteorite…"

"Yeah I bet you do," Meteorite muttered sotto voce. Steel ignored her muttering and continued.

"...but as much as we all here under this prison would like this situation to be over with, we simply cannot charge recklessly at the issue without a plan." Steel eyed Meteorite carefully. "What would you do should Trixie not be convinced to stand down?"

Meteorite glanced away shamefully, giving a half-hearted shrug at the same time. "I'unno… was… kinda banking on it working."

Steel frowned, but nodded slightly. "I was afraid that was the case. That kind of hope comes from an abundant amount of confidence… or stupidity. Forgive me, but I'm not sensing much confidence from you."

Meteorite bit her lip, as Steel's words stung her. He was right, she was acting stupid, based on the belief that the story would just… work out, if she was just in the right spot. She had allowed herself, her other self, to get the better of her.

"Wh- What do I do?" Meteorite asked in a small voice, tears threatening to form under her eyes. Steel took note and spoke softly.

"We should follow Miss Applejack's instructions, and stay out of the way. For now, at least."

Meteorite nodded dumbly, staring at the ground. Closing her eyes, she then whispered, "I hate this…"

"As do I, Miss Meteorite."

Despite everything, Meteorite found herself weakly smiling at Steel's agreement. Glancing up at him, still sat beneath the canopy of trees around them, she drew in a calming breath as she stepped on over, and turned to sit beside him. Steel gave her a quizzical look.

"Thanks…" she eventually uttered. "For stopping me, I mean. I… I guess I'm not as savvy as I thought I was."

"Quite alright. It has been very stressful for all involved, I'd imagine."

"Heh, yeah…" Meteorite admitted quietly.

A sudden whip crack in the distance alerted the two to the return of Trixie, still sat in her chariot, but now the chariot had become a larger, more extravagant, golden version, adorned with velvet curtains and throw pillows. It was now that Meteorite noticed there were no wheels attached, causing Snips and Snails to clearly have far greater difficulty in pulling the chariot than before. Meteorite watched in frustration, not even daring to breathe.

"Maybe we can have her done for child labour," Meteorite muttered quietly once Trixie was out of earshot.

"Not while she's still in charge," Steel pointed out as he stood, dusting himself off. He turned to face Meteorite, and nodded back to the part of the orchard still to be covered. "Come on, we've had enough of a break, wouldn't you say?"

Reluctantly, Meteorite nodded and got up to follow.

---

Coming back home to the cottage was a less cheerful event for the four. Flo tried being upbeat when greeting Meteorite, but all she got in return was a weary nod as Silverfire, the last one inside, shut the front door behind them.

No sooner than the four workers had turned to make their way to their rooms, a hasty knocking came at the door. Everyone turned around, puzzled and confused, as Steel stepped forward to answer the door.

"Ah, howdy y'all!" Applejack greeted warmly as the door swung open, nudging her stetson up slightly. "Good t'see y'all still in one piece."

"Miss Applejack, good to see you are well as well," Steel greeted back. "Is everything alright?"

Applejack tapped her chin with her hoof thoughtfully. "Actually, might be! Checkin' to see if ya don't happen to have any paint stored here."

"Paint?" Steel repeated, confused. Meteorite and Flo were equally dumbfounded by the request, but Silverfire spoke up eagerly, if a little hesitant.

"Uh, actually, I think we do! I remember seeing a few cans of paint off in the corner of the basement."

"Don't suppose ya know the colors?" Applejack asked. When Silverfire shook his head, Applejack stepped inside and over to the basement, with the other four ponies following her close behind. Crowded around the top of the stairs, they watched as Applejack grabbed a nearby paint scraper with her mouth and pried off the lids of the cans. Inspecting the paint within, Applejack held out her foreleg and frowned as she studied it in the basement light. She gave the paint a swirl with the scraper, stirring up the paint colour into a more vibrant appearance, and made further comparisons.

"E'yup," she said suddenly, stealing her brother's catchphrase, "reckon this'll do!"

"What's going on?" Meteorite called from slightly behind Silverfire, as Applejack began gathering the desired paints. Applejack turned to face the group and smiled.

"Think we might have a way to stop that good-fer-nothin' Trixie."

"What? How?" Flo asked, taking a few steps back to allow Applejack back up, who winked as she passed by.

"Let's just say, we're gonna beat her at her own game."

---

"I'm still confused. How does the paint help, again?"

Walking with her family, Applejack turned to look back at Flo and the rest of her workers, following her to Ponyville. Meteorite and Silverfire held spare cans of paint by the handles in their mouths, with Meteorite having a continuously disgusted look on her face that put her in mind of her friend Rarity, should she be in a similar situation.

"As Ah were sayin' before," Applejack replied, taking her can and handing it off to Big Mac, "Trixie has this amulet on her that's giving her all this evil magic. So, Twilight's got a plan to get her to swap amulets with her, but we need t' trick her into doing it herself. So, we just need to make Trixie think Twilight's got the more powerful amulet."

"That's where we come in, right?" Applebloom piped up excitedly. Applejack smiled at her and ruffled her mane slightly.

"Sure is! We're gonna paint all us up t' look the same-"

"And hop in and out as Miss Twilight covers fer us!" Applebloom excitedly interjected, bounding from one side of Applejack to the other.

"I see… stage magic," Steel mused thoughtfully. "Is there anything we may do to help, then?"

Applejack quietly considered the offer, studying the four behind her. "Well… Ah don't exactly like the idea of anypony being in harm's way…" she gave an aside glance to her family, "But… Trixie is a showoff blowhard at heart. The bigger a crowd she has, the less Ah reckon she'll notice a few of us gone missin' behind the scenes."

Meteorite frowned silently, tightening her grip on her handle. The taste of old paint grew in intensity, which she ignored. Applejack continued, fixing each of her workers with a stare.

"But that means stayin' a good ways away, ya hear? Ah don't want any of ya gettin' tangled up in this any more than we already are."

---

As the Apple family and several others prepared in secrecy, Meteorite and the others found themselves quietly keeping a low profile while in Ponyville, waiting for things to kick off. Meteorite found herself taking in the new landscape of the town, hating every new aspect she spotted. The darkened skies caused by the perpetual storm clouds above, the dozens of propaganda posters and banners plastered across every feasible surface, each one featuring Trixie's silhouette, the fucking actual golden cage in the center of town with Mayor Mare trapped inside…

This… This was still My Little Pony, right? Why was she making things dark and edgy?

"This is horrible…" she muttered under her breath, getting a murmur of agreement in response.

"I hope it'll be over soon…" Flo shivered. Silverfire stepped on over and sat next to her, trying to smile comfortingly.

"AJ said they've got a plan though, right? So we just hafta wait and see if it works, yeah?"

"For how long?"

As if on cue, the sky pinged as the dome surrounding the town burst and vanished. Steel took note of the clouds remaining and straightened his posture. "Quite soon, I'd say. Stay vigilant everypony, and remember to keep your distance should you see Trixie." He made sure to lock eyes with Meteorite, who nodded ever so slightly in response.

---

"By the way Trixie," Twilight said smugly, putting a foreleg around a now confused and defeated Trixie, and tapping the shiny green amulet Trixie had just stolen from her, "the amulet around your neck? It's one of Zecora's doorstops." Said doorstop began to crumble and drop to the ground.

"But-" Trixie spluttered in disbelief. "How did you do those spells? Nopony can do those spells!"

As Twilight began to explain the magic of friendship to Trixie, the crowd of ponies began to cheer and close in on the pair, emboldened by Twilight's victory. Steel and the others stayed by a local storefront where they watched the duel go down. Meteorite had opted to use a few crates in front of the store as cover. Just in case. Flo turned to her, and smiled while extending a hoof.

"It's over! They've won!" she cheered lightly.

Meteorite nodded while still fixated on the two unicorns, but allowed herself to be encouraged out into the open, as the dark storm clouds overhead began being pushed away by several pegasi, allowing the sun to shine on the town once more. "Yeah, I guess so…"

Her eyes flitted to the safebox Zecora had, which now housed Trixie's old amulet within, and then back to Trixie herself. She was awkwardly backing away slowly as more and more ponies closed in on Twilight to cheer her on. Nopony was paying her any heed though, and once Trixie was a good amount of distance away from the crowd, she turned tail and bolted down the street and around the corner.

Meteorite felt…

Hrm.

Meteorite didn't really know how she felt. On one hand, she was relieved Trixie's reign of terror was dealt with, but also…

It didn't feel right. Trixie having a reign of terror. Even having just experienced it, it still felt like… like…

Like there was something more to it. It just… didn't fit. She didn't have all the puzzle pieces, and that was upsetting her.

No… she had all the pieces; this was a wholly new piece. That's what was upsetting her. Yes.

…

Or maybe she was just upset that one of her favourite ponies had turned out like this.

She drew in a deep sigh as more and more ponies came out of hiding to celebrate. Eventually, one pony shouted above the clamour, a hint of indignation in her voice, "Hey! Anypony see where that Trixie ran off to? Got a thing or two to teach her for everything she's done!"

Though there was a general agreement of wanting to find Trixie, nopony seemed to know where she went. Steel quietly stepped up beside Meteorite, who was still staring at the alleyway Trixie disappeared down. He carefully considered the situation.

"Would… you have happened to see where, Miss Meteorite?"

Meteorite frowned in thought before turning away, walking back to the others.

"Nope, must've missed her."

Steel glanced down the street at where Meteorite was looking, and nodded to himself before turning around to follow Meteorite.

"As I thought. Shame."

---

The townsfolk came together and spent the rest of the day in celebration, removing the Trixie propaganda spread across town, a few ponies laughing and stomping on them as personal retribution. Flo and Silverfire had stayed in town to help, however unbeknownst to them, Meteorite had already left, walking home alone.

Alone that is, until a steady set of hoofclops on the path alerted her to somepony coming up behind her. Turning her head, she visibly sighed as she saw Steel.

"If you're coming to tell me to help clean up town," she uttered frankly once Steel had pulled up to her side, "it is literally not part of my job description."

"No, I suppose it isn't," Steel remarked calmly, continuing to walk with Meteorite for a few lengths. Curiosity getting the better of her, Meteorite glanced sideways at Steel.

"So… what are you-"

"'Why am I here?'" Steel put forth, to which Meteorite nodded. "I came to check up on you."

Meteorite scoffed. "Why?"

"Miss Meteorite, I am not as blind to your feelings as you may think sometimes."

"I never said tha-" Meteorite began to protest, but Steel cut her off with a hoof.

"It's obvious you care deeply about… Miss Trixie, was it? The stage magician before all this nasty business happened?"

Meteorite blushed, glancing away. "I wouldn't say 'deeply'…"

Steel nodded in acknowledgement. "However you want to rationalize it then. The fact remains that what Miss Trixie has done these past couple days has clearly shaken you. I want to make sure you are alright."

Those words hit Meteorite like a brick, and her pace came to a standstill. Not realising how much she was bottling up, her lip trembled and she bit it in a futile attempt to not let the floodgates open.

"I… I still can't believe it all happened…" she said quietly. "What more, I can't believe it's over."

"What do you mean?" Steel asked gently.

"I- I mean…!" Meteorite looked Steel in the eyes with hope, but it quickly turned to frustration, and she stomped the ground. "Ohhh! You wouldn't get it…"

Steel raised an eyebrow. "With all due respect, Miss Meteorite…"

Meteorite tutted in annoyance at herself and waved a hoof dismissively. "No, no, I'm not saying you- ngh! I mean, I'm not even sure I know how to explain it!"

"Calm down, Miss Meteorite. Take a few deep breaths."

Meteorite looked at Steel wearily. "I'm fine, I'm just-"

"No," Steel shook his head. "I mean it. Take a few breaths, take your time, and collect your thoughts."

Meteorite gave him an initial skeptical look but deciding it was worth a shot, shrugged and took a slow, calming breath, closing her eyes and sitting down in the process. Steel decided to follow suit, and sat down also.

After a few minutes, with naught but the sound of the wind as it explored its previously off-limit airspace, Meteorite slowly opened her eyes. She turned to look at Ponyville.

"This shouldn't have happened…" she told Steel quietly. "None of this. Trixie… She shouldn't have been the way she was, and yet she was. I mean, okay yeah, she was arrogant, egoistic, self-centred…" She paused long enough to turn and notice the deadpan stare Steel was giving her. Meteorite swallowed, considering her next words.

"But… she wasn't evil. She'd never actively wish harm on anypony. She just… wanted to entertain with her stage tricks, ya get me?"

Steel mulled it over, before nodding. "I believe so, yes."

Meteorite turned back to Ponyville, her head drooping slightly. "It just… felt like I was the only one that could see that something was wrong." She cleared her throat. "Y'know, besides the whole evil takeover thing."

"Quite."

Meteorite continued, her voice cracking slightly. "So… I thought… y'know, I had to do something about it since… I was the only one that noticed any of this." She threw her hooves up slightly. "But, well, y-you know! Right? I had no idea what to do! There was nothing I could d- I couldn't do anything! And in the end, it all got resolved anyway! So I'm just like…"

Meteorite became silent for a while, staring into empty space. When she next spoke, her voice was small and timid.

"How am I supposed to know when to act? How do I know when I'm meant to do the thing that needs to be done that no-one else can do?"

Steel breathed in slowly. To say this was slightly above the level of complexity he was comfortable dealing with would've been a grand understatement. Nevertheless, he felt it only fair to try and help to the best of his expertise.

"I'm… afraid there's no easy answer to that sort of question."

Meteorite nodded sadly. "I'll take a hard answer…"

Steel considered one.

"Well…" he began, not really knowing the end, "I suppose you don't. When the time comes, you just know." Steel paused, reflecting on what he just said. "Actually, maybe not even then. Sometimes, a pony just has to do what feels right in the moment, and hope it was the right outcome."

Meteorite blinked blankly for a few seconds, taking it in. "...shit, was afraid of that."

Steel was understandably taken aback, raising an eyebrow in the process. "Language, Miss Meteorite."

"Yeah I know sorry, sorry, I didn't mean to…" Meteorite replied almost immediately, nearly cutting Steel off. Her cheeks reddened at her idiocy of letting herself slip like that. Steel studied her curiously for a moment, before deciding to not pursue it.

"Very well. You have been under quite a bit of stress."

The two sat in silence as the sun began to set in the distance. The air between them was getting awkward as Steel wondered what to do next, and Meteorite continued to stare out at Ponyville. Eventually, after much deliberation, Steel raised a hoof to come down to a rest on Meteorite's shoulder, causing her to jerk and spin around at the sudden contact, her wide-eyed confused stare torn between Steel and his hoof, now returning to his side.

"S- Steel?"

Steel cleared his throat, looking and feeling awkward at his actions. "My apologies, Miss Meteorite. I… thought to try and be comforting."

"By… tapping me on the shoulder?" Meteorite asked with a raised eyebrow, her stress slowly ebbing away. To her bemusement, Steel looked to be embarrassed, as he mumbled into his chest.

"I… do not know how to be comforting in this situation," Steel quietly admitted. Meteorite felt her heart melt in the moment, as a smile found its way to her lips. With all her worries temporarily pushed to one side, Meteorite warmly inched closer to Steel.

"Come on," she indicated with a gesture, "do what you were doing, but put your foreleg around me or something."

"Ah…?" Steel hesitated, a faint blush crossing his face. "Are you sure, M-Miss Meteorite?"

"Yeah yeah," Meteorite began, initially dismissive then changed tact and looked him directly in the eye, "I mean, don't get any ideas or anything, just so you know."

"Ah, yes, of course not, I would never," Steel nodded firmly, beginning to awkwardly do as he was instructed, when Meteorite half-glared at him suddenly.

"And what do you mean by that?"

Steel froze, suddenly realizing how out-of-depth he was, and began to frantically search for the right thing to say. Luckily, Meteorite's expression became jovial, if slightly guilty-looking, as she playfully swiped at him.

"I'm sorry," she grinned. "I just… wanted to do that at least once, and I saw the opportunity." Steel breathed a sigh of relief, and looked down at her with mild disapproval.

"Yes, I'm beginning to see what Miss Flora meant by your… unique sense of humor."

Meteorite snorted derisively and rolled her eyes but, with no further interruptions, allowed herself to be nestled in the crook of Steel's foreleg. It was a nice feeling she realised, being held, as she began to slowly refocus on why she was being comforted in the first place. Steel took note of the sombre look on her face as she stared out at the town perimeter.

"For what it's worth Miss Meteorite," Steel began carefully after some time, "I think it was very admirable that you wanted to help somepony nopony else did."

Meteorite glanced up at him, inquiringly. "Even if said somepony was trying to take over the world?"

Steel glanced down at Meteorite, with the subtlest hint of a smirk about him. "I said admirable, not smart."

Meteorite gave a small, sharp snort and began to smile genuinely as she went back to looking at Ponyville in the light of the sunset.

"I'll take that."

Comments

[hmaf43]

I though Meteorite going to go all 'human vindicate' and push for them to takeaway trixie's magic. She's already half-way toward being the green anon with her liberal use of profanity and third wall breaking anyway.