A Great And Powerful Secret

by Drunk Luna

Chapter Three

Trixie’s first day of first grade had finally arrived. Celestia had agreed to accept the little blue filly into her school, trusting Luna’s judgment. Luna was beside herself with anxiety. Today, for the first time since Trixie was born, Luna would meet her daughter face to face in the waking world. The blue alicorn nervously shifted her weight between her front hooves as her eyes skimmed over the herd of first graders frolicking on the playground. Trixie had not yet arrived, and Luna was anxious about what the filly’s reaction to her would be. Surely she would recognize the pony who had mentored her in her dreams and even given her a pep talk the night before, but she had never seen Luna in her obsidian tiara and matching breastplate with her mane and tail flowing in all their ethereal glory.

Luna’s heart skipped a beat when she saw Trixie and a caretaker from the orphanage arrive through the school’s front gate. The little blue unicorn’s eyes went wide and her knees began to wobble nervously when she caught sight of the princesses. Luna felt herself relax as she walked up next to her sister and lowered her head to greet the foal.

“Hello, Trixie,” Luna said, maintaining her regal bearing even as every fiber of her being screamed at her to pull the foal into a hug. “My name is Princess Luna, and this is my sister, Princess Celestia. We are the rulers of Equestria and the principals of this school. I will also be your teacher this year. Why don’t you come with me? I’ll show you around.”

“You—you’re the pony from Trixie’s—“ the filly stammered, her purple eyes wide with disbelief.

“Dreams?” Luna finished Trixie’s sentence with a knowing smile. “Yes, little one, I am. I am the princess of the night, the protector of dreams. I raise the moon every evening and watch over everypony’s dreams so that you may sleep peacefully, just as Princess Celestia here raises the sun every morning and guards everypony during the day. Tia,” she continued, turning to her sister, “why don’t you let me get Trixie settled in? I’m sure you have lots of other things to do.” Celestia gave her sister a grateful smile and nodded.

“I’ll see you around, Trixie,” the white alicorn told the filly. “Princess Luna will take you to her classroom and show you your desk. You’re the first pony in your class to arrive, so you’ll have plenty of time to ask questions.” Trixie nodded, and Luna gave her a gentle, encouraging push towards the door with her wing. As they walked into the school, Trixie’s head whipped around in every direction, her purple eyes wide as she took everything in.

“Well, what do you think?” Luna asked. Trixie shook her head in wonder.

“It’s amazing!” the filly squealed. “Can Trixie practice her magic with you today, Princess Luna? Trixie has been practicing.” She was practically bouncing up and down with excitement. Luna smiled at the foal’s enthusiasm.

“Please, just call me Luna. I am glad to see that you are eager to continue your lessons, little one,” the princess said with a chuckle. “Yes, I have scheduled private lessons with you every day. I must tell you, however, that your studies with me in the waking world will be quite different from our lessons in the dream realm, though those lessons will continue as well. You read all ten of the books I assigned to you over the summer, did you not?”

“Cover to cover, three times each,” Trixie replied eagerly. Luna raised her eyebrows, surprised and impressed at the foal’s obvious dedication, then she steeled herself quickly and lifted her chin. Luna had decided early on that she would be a firm but fair teacher and act as the mother she had ached to be for six years; Trixie needed and craved both strict guidance and loving support, neither of which she was receiving at the orphanage. A staggering rise in maternal mortality had caused a recent influx of abandoned newborns; this had taken lots of the attention of the caretakers from the older foals, and though Trixie would have usually taken this lack of oversight and supervision as an opportunity to get into trouble, now she was channeling all of her energy into excelling at her studies.

“All right,” Luna said with a cunning smile, “then you must be ready for your first pop quiz of the year, which will be on the history of Equestria. As soon as everypony has arrived, we will begin.” Trixie’s eyes glinted with a combination of excitement and fear, and Luna stifled a laugh. As the rest of the foals trickled into the classroom, Luna took her place at the front of the room and began to take attendance. After taking attendance, Luna announced the pop quiz; her news was followed by a chorus of groans and the shuffle of papers. Luna knew that Trixie would ace this quiz, as she had drilled the filly endlessly on this material.

“Don’t worry, this will be quite easy if you read the required books. Question number one,” Luna began. “Who is known as Equestria’s father of magic?” She repeated the question two more times, then paused as the room was filled with the frantic scratches of pencils and squeaking of erasers. When everypony had finished writing and was looking up at her expectantly, Luna continued.

“Question number two: What are the most powerful sources of magic, and the most important means of defense, in Equestria?” The air was once again filled with the sound of fast writing and panicked gasps. Now, Luna was certain about who had read all of the books and who had not. Stifling a giggle, she continued on to the third question.

“Question number three: What dangerous artifact gives unknown powers to whatever
pony possesses it?” Again, the only sounds were nervous gasps and frantic scratching.

After she had asked all ten questions, Luna began to read off the answers. As the princess had expected, Trixie aced the quiz. Luna resisted the urge to beam with pride at the intelligent little filly as she lined her students up for recess.

At the end of the day, Luna kept Trixie behind for her first private lesson in the waking world. The alicorn intended for this lesson to be a bonding opportunity for both herself and Trixie, and she thought the filly had earned a fun, hooves-on learning experience. Luna led Trixie outside to the soccer field, where the princess had placed a large basket of apples.

“We’re going to work on aiming your horn and focusing your magic,” Luna explained. “How about a little target practice?” Trixie’s face broke into an eager smile.

“Here’s how this is going to work,” Luna explained. “I’m going to toss an apple up into the air, and you will try to hit it with your magic.”

“Okay!” Trixie squeaked, illuminating her horn before Luna could stop her. A huge bolt shot upward, and the filly fell a good five feet backward, tumbling as she screamed in fear. A rush of maternal instinct immediately flooded every fiber of Luna’s being, and she took off after Trixie, following the sound of the foal’s agitated cries. The foal had landed in a thorn bush, and she was covered in bloody scratches. Luna magically levitated Trixie and pulled her from the thorns, which tore at her sensitive skin and caused her to scream in pain and wail like a newborn. Luna felt her heart break at the sound of her daughter’s crying, and she pulled the sobbing filly to her chest.

“Ssshhhh, there, there, my sweet little baby,” the princess cooed. “You’re going to be all right. Let’s get you fixed up.” The filly looked up at Luna with tear-filled eyes and cried into her mother’s coat. Luna’s heart filled with a powerful rush of love that only a mother could have for her foal, and she nuzzled Trixie and licked her wounds clean as if the filly was a newborn. Then, Luna magically healed all of Trixie’s scrapes and scratches.

“There, now. All better,” Luna whispered, dropping a kiss on the foal’s forehead. Trixie sniffled and looked up at Luna.

“I—I’m sorry!” she sobbed. Luna nuzzled Trixie again.

“It was only a mistake, little one. What did you forget to do?” Luna gently asked the filly. Trixie thought for a moment.

“‘Firmly plant your hooves on the ground and distribute your body weight evenly among them. Keep your horn slightly angled, and make sure your chin is not too low nor too high. Relax your neck and shoulders. Keep your eyes on your target, silently recite the spell, and don’t overthink what you’re doing,’” Trixie recited robotically, following the instructions as she listed them. Luna chuckled.

“I think that last part is the most important,” the princess said. “You have to trust yourself, Trixie.” The filly nodded and fixed her eyes on the apple that Luna was levitating.

“Are you ready to try again?” Luna asked. Trixie nodded, and Luna flung the apple into the air. As the apple reached its peak, Trixie sent a burst of magic from her horn. The bolt hit the apple with an audible crack, instantly splitting the fruit in half. Trixie gasped and looked up at Luna, who smiled proudly.

“Well done,” the alicorn praised her student. “Now, try again.” Trixie repeated the action, again slicing the apple.

“All right, now I’m going to make it a little more difficult,” Luna said. “Think fast!” She threw the apple higher, farther, and to the left instead of straight. Trixie instinctively followed the apple with her magic, which again cut through the fruit as effortlessly as a knife through softened butter. The filly cheered, and Luna followed suit, her heart swelling with overwhelming love and pride as she gazed down at her little daughter, who was now dancing excitedly.

“I think that will be a good stopping point for today’s lesson,” the princess said with a laugh. “It’s getting late, and I know your caretakers are expecting you to get home soon.”

“Will you please come back into my dreams tonight, Luna?” Trixie begged. “I know you’re probably going to be super busy, and you already come into my dreams once a week, but can I see you again tonight? Please, Luna?” Luna pondered Trixie’s request for a moment. She regularly met with Scootaloo, Sweetie Belle, and Applebloom in their dreams, so she saw no reason not to make time for her own daughter’s.

“Yes,” Luna finally said. “I’ll see you tonight, little one.” The resulting smile on Trixie’s face reminded the princess so much of that first smile the filly had given Luna as a newborn that Luna had to look away to keep herself from crying. Luna knew she had to reveal the truth soon, Celestia’s actions be damned; even if Trixie would never be a true princess, the filly needed a home, and she needed her mother. It was time.