> The Cold Streets of Baltimare
>  by DemonBrightSpirit
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> Cold and Alone
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

I trudged through the grey, dismal streets of Baltimare. The cold rain ruined my coiffure, sending my mane slick across my back and shoulders. I paused in front of a rather large puddle, peering at my distorted reflection in the rippling water. The rain marred my makeup even worse than my mane. On top of everything else, my once perfect, beautiful dress not only clung to me from the rain, it was in absolute tatters. Threads frayed out from a menagerie of holes, and straps and accessories hung lifelessly, dripping water.
 
It was the perfect end to a perfect disaster. I came here for a fashion expo. I had brought along my newest line to premier at the event, but the hotel hosting the event just so happened to have been suffering from an infestation of horrific proportions. I barely settled down in my room when the screams started. That’s when I saw them. Thousands of them, maybe millions. Moths! They devoured my entire line, even the dress that now did little to shield me from the icy rain. Worst of all, the infestation closed the entire hotel. They wouldn’t even allow me back in to retrieve what’s left of my things. Now I’m stuck here in Baltimare with no bits, no place to stay, and no place to go.
 
A shiver tore through me, and I swore I saw a puff of fog as I exhaled a ragged breath. I looked up, hoping to find a café or some other shelter from the freezing rain. The only break from the onslaught was in a nearby alley. At first I considered walking further until something more… dignified came along, but another involuntary shiver forced me to reconsider. This dreadful rain was so terrible that it actually forced me to walk into some dingy alley. 
 
The relief from the rain was quite short-lived. As soon as I sat down, a horrific scent assaulted my delicate nose. I looked up, seeing an open dumpster, and my stomach turned. This would not do at all! As I got up, I heard a terrible ripping sound and I felt a large portion of my dress fall off. Looking down, I found my hoof atop a section of my dress. 
 
“Just perfect!” I shouted. Not bothering to try to salvage what remained of my once brilliant creation, I ripped the rest of the dress off and tossed it all into the dumpster. 
 
My anger quickly evaporated as a chill wind ran through me. I barely suppressed a sob as I sat back down as far from the dumpster as I could while still avoiding the rain. With the hotel closed, I couldn’t get to any of my bits or gems. How could I afford a train ride home? 
 
“What am I supposed to do now?”
 
“Find another alley!”
 
I shot to my hooves at the hostile voice. Peering further down the alley, all I could make out was what appeared to be a large group of boxes with a blanket draped over them. Cautiously, I stepped further into the cold, dark alley. “Um, hello?”
 
Suddenly, the blanket drew aside as a cyan mare stormed out. “This is my place. I won’t have any squatters crowding in here!” she barked at me.
 
I blinked, hardly believing my eyes. This Unicorn might’ve been quite the sight with her mane and hide ruffled and unwashed, but I would certainly recognize her anywhere. “Trixie?”
 
“Who wants to know?” she replied, glaring at me.
 
“I don’t suppose you would remember me,” I said, pressing a hoof to my chest. I immediately regretted it as I felt my hoof squish into my coat. Looking down, I noticed that I had just gotten mud on my chest from my hoof. Still, I had to keep up appearances. I struggled to maintain my cordial smile. “I’m Rarity, from Ponyville.” 
 
Trixie’s expression of scorn deepened into absolute rancor at the word “Ponyville.” “What? Have you come for revenge?” she said, her voice dripping with venom. She thrust a hoof at the pile of boxes. “You’ve wasted your time! I don’t have anything left to lose!” She stormed back into the shack, her aura snapping the blanket back into position.
 
“Trixie, I didn’t…” Sighing, I walked over to the pile of junk. I raised a hoof to knock on the frame, but stopped myself. I pressed my hoof against the blanket-covered structure only to feel it flex under the pressure. It was cardboard. This “structure” was nothing more than a few cardboard boxes with a rather large, ratty sheet of fabric draped over them. 
 
I backed up a few paces and sat down on the cold stone. I could hardly believe that anypony would live in such abject filth. I sighed, my gaze fixating on the spot where Trixie vanished mere moments ago. “Trixie?” I called out, trying to sound as reassuring as I could. “I didn’t come here for you. It’s just… you cannot tell me that this squalid alley is where you live!”
 
No reply.
 
My ears subtly twitched, carefully listening for any sort of sound from within the shack. The only things they heard were the steady tattoo of rain and my own labored breathing. As I began to hear my own heartbeat, I called out to her again. “Trixie, I cannot say that I am at all fond of you or what you did to the good ponies of Ponyville, but nopony—and I mean nopony—deserves to live like this!”
 
Still, nothing.
 
“Trixie?” I said, desperation seeping into my voice.
 
Finally, Trixie tentatively stuck her head out from behind the curtain, though she refused to so much as look at me. She didn’t say anything. She just stood there, staring at the ground. 
 
Where was the confident showmare that thought she was the greatest pony that ever existed? All that pride, confidence, bravado… It wasn’t there. Not even a trace.
 
“What… happened to you?” I asked as soon as I found my voice. Trixie didn’t respond. “Talk to me.”
 
Slowly, Trixie stepped out, sitting down in front of her “house.” She finally gazed up at me, a glint of anger still in her eye. “What do you want from me?”
 
My ears folded back as I looked down. “Uh… I just…” Gathering my thoughts together, I cleared my throat before standing up and stamping a hoof. “It is absolutely deplorable that you are living like this. I cannot fathom why you, or anypony for that matter, would choose to live in—in a box!”
 
Trixie shot to her hooves in the blink of an eye. “Choose?” she yelled. “You think I chose to be here?” I backpedaled as this enraged mare stomped towards me. “I am here because all of Equestria hates me! My first trip to Ponyville turned me into a laughing stock. The second made me a monster!” 
 
I cringed as my flank met something cold and solid. I glanced behind me to find that I had backed myself into a wall. Looking back, Trixie showed no signs of slowing down. 
 
She kept marching until her face was all but pressed against my own. That didn’t stop her tirade. “I live here because nopony notices just another face in an alley! Here, I don’t have to worry about being chased away by angry mobs!”
 
Trixie’s chest heaved as she stepped back. After a few deep breaths, she spun around and marched back into the pile of boxes. “Just leave me alone!” she shouted back at me as she pulled the curtain, sealing herself in. “All I want is to be left alone! Is that too much to ask?”
 
Shaking, I breathed a sigh of relief. There for a moment, I feared she might do something… unseemly. Once my heart had calmed and my breath steadied, I called out to her once more. “If to be alone is what you truly desire, then…” I sighed. “I wish you the best.” 
 
I started to plod back to the main street, but my curiosity got the better of me. I stood still, my ears swiveling towards that ghastly shack. Nothing. I shook my head a bit before bracing myself against the rain as I stepped back onto the cold streets of Baltimare.
 



 
By the time I’d made it to the train station, I had once again managed to saturate each and every follicle with that frigid rain. To add insult to injury, there was nary an awning to shield anypony at the train station from this dreadful weather. Walking up to the ticket booth, I found a tawny Earth Pony safe and warm under the only cover on the entire platform. “Excuse me,” I said, stirring him from a half-asleep daze. “Could you tell me when the next train to Ponyville leaves?”
 
The clerk slowly opened his eyes before half-heartedly glancing over at a colorful chart and opening a pocket watch. “We’ve got a train headed to Vanhoover. It’ll make a stop at Ponyville. It leaves in… twenty-three minutes. After that, one leaves tomorrow morning,” he said, never so much as glancing at me. “A ticket is fifteen bits if you’re getting off at Ponyville.” 
 
“About that…” I said, putting on my most pathetic “woe is me” look. “I’m afraid I lost all my bits on my trip here. Is it possible for me to make a payment once I get back to Ponyville?”
 
Finally, he looked at me. He didn’t even blink at the sight of me and my ruined mane and makeup. “No ticket, no ride. No bits, no ticket.”
 
“Please! I have nowhere to stay. The hotel I was at is infested with moths, and they’re not letting anypony in,” I said, clopping my forehooves up on the counter. “You cannot possibly just leave a poor filly alone on the streets!”
 
“Tough luck,” he replied, once again leaning on an interior wall as his head drooped.
 
With a “Hmph!” I turned my back to the booth, holding my nose up high. “I have never seen such a boorish pony!” Sitting down near the booth, I shivered in the rain as I waited for somepony, anypony to come by.
 
Luckily, I didn’t have to wait too long. A lanky, orange stallion with a yellow mane trotted up to the counter. I carefully took measure of him as I tried to come up with most amiable approach. Unfortunately, the bitter cold kept me from focusing much at all. By the time he had purchased his ticket and started to leave, I still hadn’t come up with anything. For lack of another plan, I was forced to gamble on the first approach that came to mind.
 
I got up, stepping in the stallion’s way. I put on my best smile. “Excuse me. Care to help a desperate lady in her hour of need?” I asked, batting my eyelashes at him. 
 
He took one look at me and recoiled. “Uh… Sorry, Miss. I gotta go.” He quickly stepped around me, heading towards the boarding platform.
 
For a moment, I felt more jilted than I ever had. Then, I realized just how terrible I must’ve looked. I had to have been soaked and shivering, my mane a sopping mess, and my makeup long-since washed away. 
 
Just as I began to despair, I turned back to see a pair of ponies at the ticket booth. And more ponies were starting to show up, too! Surely at least one of them would have enough kindness to help me in my darkest hour.




 
The piercing whine of the train’s whistle announced its departure. I watched, completely despondent, as it started to chug away. Dozens of ponies had come, bought their tickets, and boarded. Not a single one of them had the heart to help a damsel in distress. What was this world coming to?
 
A terrible shiver ran through me as I stumbled on heavy hooves. I just stood there, my limbs too cold and numb to do much of anything. I watched several of my breaths meet the cold, rainy air to form wisps of fog. Summoning what was left of my frayed nerves, I finally willed my legs to move. I needed to find a way out of this dreadful weather before I froze to death.

> Cast Out
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Leaving the train station behind, I marched through the streets of Baltimare with no real destination in mind. My teeth chattered, and each step I took seemed to leech what little energy I had left from me bit by bit. How could I find a place to stay in this dreary city? I didn’t know a soul here that I could impose upon, and if I had any bits to my name at all I’d already be on a nice, warm train home. 
 
The evening streets were devoid of anypony but me.  I didn’t know if that was a blessing or a curse. I would simply be aghast for anypony to see me in such a disheveled state, but on the other hoof, I may very well freeze to death if I don’t find somepony generous enough to take me in off the street. 
 
My eyes flitted to the many windows adorning the bland, grey houses. How nice it must’ve been, to be inside next to a toasty fire, sipping a cup of hot tea… 
 
I stumbled, my numbing legs faltering. Mortifyingly, I landed right in an icy puddle. If this cold served any purpose at all, it was to make my humiliating tumble all but painless. I suppose there was some small solace that my coat and mane couldn’t possibly look any worse than they had before my ungraceful fall. Summoning what was left of my strength and dignity, I pulled myself up. As I did, a flicker of light caught my eye. 
 
It was a small fire, glinting up out of a small, shallow barrel.
 
The allure of warmth was far too much for me to resist. My hooves started carrying me into an alley before I could even fully comprehend it. I barely noticed the wind and rain stop as I entered the shelter of the alleyway. All I wanted to do was sit before that fire and feel its warmth. 
 
I ungraciously flopped down in front of the flames, extending my forehooves in an attempt to catch more of the heat. At first, the icy chill in my coat prevented me from feeling the warmth. I just sat there, shivering in a most unseemly manner. I watched the yellow-orange flames leap from sticks and boards in an attempt to ignore the sight of my fetlocks, muddy and dripping wet. Although I felt disgusted at their unkempt state, I felt even worse at what the rest of me must’ve looked like.
 
Just as the warmth of the fire started to pierce my soaked hide, an indignant voice disdainfully greeted me. “You again? I thought I told you to leave me alone.”
 
I looked over to see Trixie stepping out of her makeshift home. How had I not noticed that this was the same alley? An involuntary shiver ran through my entire body, reminding me of just how cold I still was. “M-may I s-sit here a while? P-p-please,” I said, my voice raw and desperate.
 
Trixie sighed as she sat next to me. “How stupid do you have to be to stay out in this weather like that?” she replied, turning her head away from me with her nose high in the air.
 
I shook my head a bit, my gaze focused on the flames. “I d-don’t have anywhere to go. I couldn’t afford the train.”
 
Trixie’s horn glowed with a soft, pink aura. Her magic wrapped around a nearby pallet. A few of the planks pried away before floating into the fire, sending up a few embers. “So you came back here?” Trixie let out a sharp laugh. “What was it about nopony living like this?”
 
Staring at the rolling flames, I replied, “I’m sorry. I-I-I just…” I sighed. “I cannot believe any of this is happening! I came here for a fashion show. How did I end up here?”
 
“Poor thing,” Trixie mockingly said as she got up and headed to the pile of boxes. As she drew back the curtain, she looked over her shoulder at me. “Don’t even think about coming inside until you are dry.” A moment later and she reappeared with a small, brown lump in her aura. She sat next to me again as she broke the lump in half and floated one half over to me.
 
When I took it in my hoof, I found it to be half a muffin—a stale, misshapen muffin. Tentatively taking a bite, I found it to be as bland and lumpy as it appeared.  Only after swallowing that first bite did I realize just how famished I was. I devoured the rest in just a couple of ravenous, unladylike bites. 
 
Trixie had only taken a small bite of hers. “You are lucky,” she said, staring at the fire. “You get to go back to your old life when you get home, do you not?”
 
I nodded. “I would imagine so.” I chanced a glance over at Trixie, the orange glow of the fire illuminating her face. As far as I knew, Trixie was a traveling showpony. Was this her hometown? “You… don’t get that luxury, do you?”
 
“I never really had a home to, well, go home to,” Trixie said. She took another bite before continuing. “But I will go back to my old life. I’m going to go across the sea. They say there are exotic and uncharted settlements there. My reputation will not follow me that far.”
 
“Thank you. For all your kindness, I mean,” I said. I started to reach out a hoof, but hesitated when I realized it was still more than a little damp. The flames may have warmed me up a bit, but I was still a sopping mess. Replacing my hoof on the ground, I shook my head a bit. “I never imagined somepony like you would—“
 
“Somepony like me?” Trixie said, glaring at me.
 
“N-No! I mean, i-it’s just that, well…” I sighed before looking back at the fire. “The last time I saw you, you had enslaved all of Ponyville and forced us to do horrid, demeaning things. And before that, you turned my mane an awful shade of green and even lured an ursa minor to town.”
 
Trixie gave a loud, throaty grunt as she devoured what remained of her muffin. “It was those two foalish colts that brought the ursa!” She forcefully ripped more boards from the pallet, tossing them into the fire with enough force to send up an eruption of embers. “All I ever wanted was to be adored by an audience,” she said, her words passing through grit teeth. Suddenly getting up, she turned around, kicking at the ground. “So what if I wasn’t really all that great? So what if I was a fraud! I enjoyed the attention, and ponies enjoyed my show! Wasn’t that all that really mattered!”
 
I slowly got up. “Trixie…” I said, as I walked over to the upset Unicorn. Just as I was about to place a hoof on her shoulder, she stormed away again. 
 
Trixie’s aura enveloped what remained of the pallet, slinging it across the alley where it shattered against the far wall. “It was that stupid amulet! I just wanted its power! I didn’t even care about Twilight anymore. But when I started using that wretched thing, I-I just… I couldn’t stop myself.” Breathing heavily, she hung her head as she grit her teeth. “I did this,” she said as tears spilled down her cheeks. “I did this.”
 
I looked away from her, my mind grasping desperately at intangible words of comfort. My eyes swept from the meager fire to the filthy assortment of boxes Trixie called home. How long had she been living here, mere feet away from a fetid dumpster in some dank little alley, all alone? 
 
“It doesn’t matter.” I shook my head. “Even somepony that enslaved a whole town… Nopony deserves this.” Trixie stood by the fire, its orange tint illuminating her form. Slowly, I plodded around the flickering flames to stand next to Trixie. I draped a foreleg over Trixie’s withers. “You don’t deserve this.”
 
Trixie pulled away, sitting in front of the fire. “Don’t I?” she asked as she stared into the flickering light. “You were there. You saw what I did.”
 
“Yes, and it was terrible,” I said, sitting next to Trixie. “But wasn’t it the Alicorn Amulet that made you so… cruel?”
 
“I knew it was dark magic. I knew it was dangerous.” Trixie shook her head, her gaze falling to the rough pavement betwixt her hooves. “I didn’t care. I just… I wanted so desperately for things to go back to normal. And now? Now it will never be normal again.”
 
I sighed as I placed a hoof on Trixie’s shoulder. I held it there until Trixie looked up at me with those eyes so filled with regret. “There’s always hope, Trixie.”
 
“No,” Trixie said, her gaze tracing back to the flames. “Not for me. I will start over an ocean away, but I will never be able to go back and perform for all those ponies again. That bridge has long since burned.”
 
Licking my lips, I struggled to find some comforting words to say. There were none. “You’ve… made up your mind, haven’t you?”
 
Trixie nodded. “I’ve been saving up. I’ll be able to afford a one-way trip there soon enough.”
 
“You’re really just going to leave everything behind? Everything you’ve ever known for some strange, faraway land?” 
 
“I already told you that I’ve burned all my bridges here. I’m an outcast. Any time I show my face I’m either chased out of town or thrown in jail.” Trixie shook her head. “I’m not leaving a single thing behind.”
 
I sighed as I looked down. The fact that my legs were now dry barely registered. “You would miss Equestria, I’m sure.”
 
“Another month, maybe two, then I get to start over. I’ll travel to some exotic place and… and it’ll all be better.”
 
“And if it’s not?”
 
Trixie grabbed some of the splintered planks with her magic, floating them into the fire. “Did you know how I got my cutie mark?”
 
I tilted my head a bit. “No.” 
 
“For as long as I can remember, I’ve always travelled,” Trixie said, her gaze never leaving the flickering flames. “My parents were salesponies. Scam artists.” She snorted, shaking her head. “You know, I always thought that, in some small way, I was better than them. Sure, I lied. I tricked ponies for their bits. But they enjoyed it. When I returned to the same town months later, they couldn’t wait for more. I thought… I was making them happy, not just s-stealing from them like my parents.”
 
Trixie sighed. “My parents would always try to rope in new marks. That’s what they called the ponies they were tricking, ‘marks.’ Of course, I always tried to help. I had just started to learn magic, and all I could really do was make my horn spark. In my fervent attempts to make our stand shine, I put all my focus into my horn. I managed to send off fireworks, not just sparks. It was spectacular. I danced and posed as I shot off spell after spell. I loved it.” The smallest of smiles graced Trixie’s lips as she stared into the fire. “The flashing lights, the booming sounds, and the steady roar of applause. They loved it. It felt like they loved me. I was so distracted that I didn’t even realize I had gotten my cutie mark until after it was over.”
 
Trixie closed her eyes for a long moment before turning and looking me. With a small groan, she got up. “You’re plenty dry now, and it’s getting dark,” she said, walking towards her makeshift shack. “Come on.”
 
“You didn’t answer the question,” I said as I got up. “What if things aren’t any better for you over there?”
 
“Performing up on stage, being the center of attention, the adoration, the applause… It’s my destiny—the very essence of my cutie mark. If I can’t get that life back, then there’s no point. As far as I’m concerned, there’s not a bit of difference between living as a hollow, hopeless shell and not living at all.” Trixie drew the blanket back with a hoof, ducking inside. “Watch your head.”
 
“Trixie, y-you cannot possibly think like that!” I said, poking my head in to find abject blackness and a musty, unpleasant odor. After recovering and placing a hoof over my snout, I focused and a soft, blue glow illuminated the interior. It was just as small and filthy on the inside. I was forced to step over Trixie’s legs to get in. Lying against the far wall, my legs ended up tangled with Trixie’s as I lay down. “Trixie…”
 
“Like you care,” Trixie muttered, closing her eyes as she lowered her head to the blanket-covered cardboard separating her from the cold ground.
 
“I do care!”
 
Trixie scoffed, a single eye opening to glare at me. “Liar. You were perfectly content to leave me to rot earlier.”
 
I opened my mouth to retort, but the words wouldn’t come. Breathing in a breath, I let it out through my nose. “You wanted to be left alone. You were so bullheaded about it I figured you would be just fine pulling yourself up.”
 
Her eye closed as she snorted. “I will be.”
 
“You’re betting everything that the grass will be greener on the other side. Odds are it won’t be.”
 
“That’s my problem,” she replied, not moving a muscle other than her muzzle.
 
I tried to think of something to say to convince her otherwise. My mind raced round and round, but nothing came. With a small sigh, I let my horn’s glow fade, ushering in a complete blackness. I lowered my head onto the stiff, crusty blanket. 
 
Honestly, I had no place sticking my nose in Trixie’s business. It was her life, and she had every right to make her own decisions. Still, those decisions seemed to be burying her. With a long history of bad decisions, she was clearly about to make another one, perhaps even as bad as her decision to wear the Alicorn Amulet in the first place. Wouldn’t any good and decent pony stop her? 
 
I shivered as the warmth of fire left me for the cold of night. “It’s cold,” I said in little more than a whisper.
 
“Our body heat will warm this place up in no time,” Trixie replied from the darkness.
 
“I can’t imagine that I have any body heat left,” I said. I heard a groan from Trixie as I felt the other Unicorn’s legs shuffle and move. The next thing I knew, a large, warm lump pressed up against me. 
 
“Happy?” Trixie asked as she squirmed, trying to get comfortable while she rested against me.
 
I repositioned myself, allowing Trixie to huddle up against me. “Thank you.” The warmth from Trixie’s body quickly seeped into me, banishing the cold. “I don’t know how you can stand this dreadful weather.”
 
“I was hoping to be on my way across the sea before winter set in, but it looks like it may take me another month or two to save up enough.”
 
My eyes shot open at Trixie’s words, despite the blackness. If she was saving up, that meant she had bits. “Trixie, would you happen to have enough bits for the fare to Ponyville?”
 
“I told you, those bits are for me to get across the ocean.”
 
“I know but… but how about this: come with me to Ponyville. When we get there I can repay you,” I suggested. “I could even give you enough bits to get you wherever you want to go.”
 
I felt her ear flick against my neck. “No,” she replied.
 
Frowning, I nudged her. “Don’t be ridiculous. This is no time to be prideful. Just think of it as a fair exchange—a business deal, if you will. You help me to return to my nice, warm home sooner, and in exchange I’ll help you get where you’re going sooner.”
 
“Hmph. And what guarantee do I have that you won’t abandon me as soon as you’re safely on your way home?” Trixie replied. She shifted a bit, pulling away from me, leaving a cold spot on my side. “No deal.”
 
I sighed, mulling over my other options. It didn’t take long to realize I had none. “You are right,” I said. “You don’t have any assurance other than my word, and I have no way to give you any other sort of collateral, either. Please, Trixie, all I can do is hope that you can trust my word.”
 
“Why should I? What have you ever done for me to make me believe in you?” Trixie said, a hint of accusation in her voice.
 
I bit my tongue. In a most practiced manner, I laced my voice with sugar. “But what have I done to make you wary? We’ve never even properly met before today.”
 
Trixie snorted. “By that measure, we’re strangers. Would you trust somepony you just met with all that you own?”
 
I shuffled about uncomfortably. One should never bargain from a position of weakness, and Trixie had me dead to rights. She held all the power in this negotiation and she knew it. That left me with but one option, and it was a detestable one. For leverage, I must use another’s assets as my own.
 
I cleared my throat. “You of all ponies should know that I just so happen to be one of Princess Twilight Sparkle’s closest friends. You may not be able to trust me, but surely you can believe in a princess, can you not? Besides that, don’t you owe her for—“
 
“Owe her!” Trixie shouted. A pink glow illuminated the interior of the tiny shack, revealing Trixie’s form. Anger exuded from every mote of her being as she got right in my face. “I would still be putting on my shows, happily living out my dream if only I had never met that mare!”
 
The next thing I knew, a pair of hooves roughly pulled me up and pushed me out of the tiny shelter. Stumbling back into the alley, the remaining light of the fire illuminated Trixie’s snarling face as she charged out after me. Her shoulders heaved as she huffed, standing over me. Without another word, she spun around and disappeared again into her makeshift home.
 
I just stood there in the cold, dim alley. I struggled to comprehend what had just transpired. One moment, I was cozying up to Trixie, the next she’d thrown me out—literally. The only thing I’d mentioned was Twilight’s name and Trixie flew off into an unmitigated rage. 
 
An icy breeze swept through me, making me shiver. I didn’t fully understand Trixie’s flying off the handle like that, but I had little choice other than to stumble through my missteps and set this misunderstanding right. I had just begun to get warm. Not to mention Trixie just so happened to be the only pony here I knew. If I wanted to get home, I needed to get her to warm up to me. 
 
“T-Trixie?” I called out to her. My ears drooped flush against my head as I utilized my sweetest of tones. “Trixie, please. I did not mean to offend you.”
 
“Leave!” Trixie’s harsh voice snapped back at me from within the small shack.

Although Trixie’s tone left little room for argument, it wasn’t as though I had any place to go. Deciding it best to let Trixie cool her temper, I plodded over next to the fire barrel and sat down. The lingering flames still provided a shield against the cold, but they weakened by the moment. 

Utilizing my horn, I levitated over some of the splintered wood left from the pallet and sunk them into the barrel. In just a few moments they lit up, better illuminating the alley and purging the remnants of cold from my body. I peered out as far as my vision would allow. All I could see was dank, dingy cement and the towering walls. Not a single trace of wood stuck out.

I peered again into the flames. The fiery glow slowly devoured the planks. I licked my lips as I realized my folly. When these boards vanished, there would be nothing in this empty alley to replace them. A shiver ran through me just thinking about it.

Inexorably, my eyes were drawn to the only shelter. How could I assuage Trixie's anger? I still didn't entirely understand why she reacted so vehemently. And even if I sweet talked my way back into the relative warmth of that little shack, that would still leave me stranded here on the cold streets of Baltimare. 

Shuffling closer to the fire, I couldn’t help but to feel trapped. No bars or chains confined me, but this dying fire held what remained of my hope for surviving this night with even the smallest of comforts. 


> Ticket Home
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

To say it had been a rough night would be a vast understatement. I couldn’t recall a longer, colder, or more miserable night in my entire life. By the time that the sun rose high enough to bring morning with it, even the fire’s embers had long since frozen over. 

Staying here simply wasn’t an option. Whatever rapport I garnered with Trixie evaporated last night—I still didn't entirely know why. The only way I could find my way back to Ponyville would be to get up and move, but my body refused. My cold, numb legs used what little energy they had left shivering in vain. I dared not even roll to one side or the other, lest I allow the last mote of heat to escape from underneath me.

“What’re you, a dog?”

I raised my head at the derisive voice to find Trixie stepping out from her shelter. Catching in my throat, my voice refused to be heard. Instead, I just rested my head again on my forelegs.

“Don’t think that begging on my stoop and looking pathetic will tug at my heartstrings,” Trixie said. My ear twitched, following the sounds of her hoofsteps on stone. “I see you used the last of my wood, too.” This time, her voice was further away. The echoing of her steps drew quieter until they could no longer be heard.

For some reason, the silence made me lonely. I suppose that, for whatever it was worth, Trixie was the only pony I knew here. Without her, I found myself once more completely alone. Without her, I didn’t know how to get home.

I breathed out a long sigh as I raised my head. My numb forelegs barely obeyed my will, stumbling underneath me. They shook and buckled, sending me back to the ground before I’d even managed to sit up. 

It was no use. What little strength saw me through the night was gone. Huddling myself up, I shivered there on the ground. It was then that I noticed it. Outside of the relative shelter of this alleyway, a thick blanket of snow covered the streets. 

I’m in trouble. At this rate I’ll end up in the hospital, or worse…

Again, I pulled my legs underneath myself, shivering and shaking like a leaf in a storm. This time I managed to lock my knees and sit up. I felt what little heat I’d managed to keep seep away in the icy air. 

I can do this.

I leaned forward, pushing myself up. My legs slipped away from me, and I crashed back down to the hard, filthy ground. That was it. That was all I had, and I couldn’t even get up, let alone get myself out of this horrible situation.

This fiasco spiraled so far out of control that now the only real solution was to get to a hospital before I turned into a ponysicle. No matter how angry she might have been at me, surely Trixie would at least get me to a hospital or call for a cart, right? Sweeping my head, I looked as far down either side of the alley as I could. Just where did Trixie go, anyway?

I shivered on the filthy ground for several minutes before Trixie finally returned, a pair of wooden pallets floating in her aura. She sat the pallets against a wall before breaking some planks off of one, placing them into the barrel. Utilizing her horn, she sent a shower of sparks into the barrel, igniting the wood and starting a fire. 

“There,” Trixie said, stepping back. Then, she turned to look at me. “You don’t have a single bit of common sense, do you?” When I didn’t reply, she shook her head, rolling her eyes. “Any place would be better to bed down for the night than right out in the middle of the alley.”

“Th-thank—thank you,” I managed to choke out. The heat of the fire failed to really banish the cold, but it did usher in a tingly sort of feeling in my side. Though, any feeling at all outside of numbness and cold was a decidedly fantastic improvement.

“I-I think I may n-n-need to go to th-the hospital,” I said, my voice leading a puff of fog. 

Trixie just stared back at me. “What? Is your tail frostbitten?” she said, her voice laced with disdain.

I shook my head. “I can’t… I can’t get up.”

I could almost hear Trixie’s eyes roll. “If you think I’m going to carry your pampered flank all the way to the emergency room, you’ve got another thing coming,” Trixie said. 

“P-please,” I choked out, my voice raw and desperate. 

Instead of replying, Trixie just marched off into her disgusting, little hovel. She exited a moment later, a small bag trailing behind her in a pink aura. She set the bag in between my forelegs before sitting near the fire.

Curiosity getting the better of me, I nudged the bag open and my nose filled with a stale scent of sweetened bread. There, at the bottom of the bag, were just a few muffins, exactly the same as the one I ate last night. I looked back up at Trixie, and seeing her by the fire brought my attention to the fact that I was actually starting to warm up. “T-Trixie... I, I don’t…”

Trixie never looked away from the entrancing dance of the flames. “I’m not going to carry you, so get your strength up.”

I looked into the bag and barely resisted the desperate urge to gorge myself. “What about you?”

“I’m fine,” was Trixie’s simple reply. After a moment, the distinct sound of her churning stomach echoed over the crackle of the fire. She didn't so much as flinch. “I’m used to being hungry.”

That wouldn’t do at all. I reached into the bag with my magic, wrapping a muffin in a soft, blue glow. Despite being only a muffin, it felt heavier than a bowling ball. I barely managed to pull the brown lump from the bag when a blue hoof swatted it right back in. Looking up, I found Trixie glowering down at me.

“Eat,” she said to me with little room in her voice for argument. “I’d much rather go hungry than have to drag your sorry flank halfway across Baltimare because you don't have what it takes to last a single night on your own.”

I glared up at her, though, given my absolutely dreadful state, I couldn’t imagine it impacted Trixie in the slightest. With little other choice, I dipped my muzzle into the sack. Taking a hardened muffin between my teeth, I lost complete control of myself. They may have been days-old muffins, improperly baked and unevenly cooked, but to my starving pallet, they tasted as decadent as any truffle. 

The next thing I knew, the only thing left before me was the paper bag, damp with oil from the muffins and my own saliva. I dared not look up at Trixie. How could I act so unladylike in front of another pony? I felt beyond mortified. 

Trixie didn’t say anything. Instead, she went back over to the barrel, feeding more splintery wood to the ravenous flames. Again I pulled my legs beneath me, though, this time, the chilly numbness was replaced with a stinging, rubbery pain. At least I could actually manage to stand, if only just. 

Walking proved to be a nearly insurmountable task. A few shuffling steps were all I could manage before collapsing on my flank next to Trixie. Although I managed to at least somewhat confront her, I found myself at a loss of what to say. Surely my debt to her only continued to increase, but at the same time the way she kept treating me felt nothing less than an insult. 

“T-Trixie, I—”

“I’ve reconsidered,” Trixie interrupted me, her gaze never leaving the enthralling flicker of the fire. 

I shook my head. “I-I’m sorry. I don’t think I quite understand you, darling.”

Trixie breathed a long breath in, letting it out with a sigh. “You said that if I paid your way back to Ponyville, then you would give me enough bits to leave this nightmare. I’ll do it.”

My heart faltered. “Really?” The word escaped my lips without a thought. 

“I’m fed up, living like this. I need a change before…” Trixie shook her head. “I need a change.”

I placed my hoof on hers. “You can trust me,” I said, doing my best to try to catch her eyes. 

She pulled her hoof away, never making eye contact with me. “I don’t. I just don't have any other choice than to play along.”

I withdrew my hoof. “Trixie, I’m not going to betray you.”

Getting to her hooves, she scoffed. “You’d be the first.” 

As I stared at the flames searching for words, sounds of her hooves on the stone echoed in my ears. Surely she was simply being hyperbolic, right? I heard the distinct sound of her pulling the drape away from her hovel.

A rush of icy wind accompanied a flying object arcing over my shoulder. I flinched away, only to calm down as I realized it was just a cardboard box, folded and crushed, being tossed into the fire. 

I blinked, slowly realizing just what it was Trixie had thrown in the fire. 

Turning around, I discovered Trixie standing where her hovel used to be. The tarp that once covered the box now adorned Trixie's body as a gauche cloak. Hideous didn’t even begin to describe the affront to fashion draped over Trixie. 

I pointed a hoof at her. “Please tell me you don't actually intend to wear that.”

Utilizing a length of twine, Trixie secured Equestria’s ugliest cloak around her shoulders. “You got a better way for me to get around without being recognized?” With a flick of pink magic, the hood fell over her head.

I shook my head. “No. I simply cannot abide you wearing something so… so…”

“Awful.” Trixie filled in the word I dared not speak. “It’s not like I have anything else to wear.”

“Well, you certainly can’t wear that.”

Trixie stepped over, again sitting by the fire. “I don’t have a choice.”

Forcing myself to take a breath to calm down, I lamented the fact that my strength had yet to recover enough for me to do at least something with that dreary drapery. The only recourse left to me was to try to convince her to remove it. “Trixie, I understand that you don’t want to be recognized, but surely there is something less… drastic that you can do.”

“What would you have me do? Wear that paper sack over my head?” she asked me, pointing to the discarded bag that once held the misshapen muffins.

I paused a moment. “Well…”

“You’re not supposed to consider it! I was being facetious.” Trixie’s aura snatched up the offending sack, feeding it to the flames. “I’m wearing this. Deal with it.”

I huffed. If only I had the strength, I might have been able to use my magic to do something with that affront to refined tastes everywhere. Alas, like much of the rest of my situation, this wasn’t something I could do anything about. “Rest assured, just as soon as we get back to the boutique, we’ll remedy this… situation,” I said, motioning towards that ratty garb.

“Speaking of getting you home,” Trixie said, as she rose to her hooves. “We need to make sure we make it to that train on time.”

My gaze cast out to the snow-covered streets, only then starting to receive the morning sun’s first kiss. “Surely a few more moments by the fire couldn’t hurt,” I politely suggested.

“I’m not waiting.” Trixie nosed my flank, urging me to get up. “Come on.”

I gave a sigh as Trixie started down the alley, in the opposite direction of the street. All I have to do is get on that train, I reminded myself. Once I’ve made it that far, I’ll practically be home and finally free of this frozen desolation. “All right, all right. I’m coming,” I relented, stumbling after Trixie on weak and weary legs.

“Keep up the pace,” Trixie admonished as she looked over her shoulder at me. “It’ll help keep you warm.”

Instead of walking through the avenues lined with homes and storefronts, Trixie led me through a series of alleys, only rarely passing by the main street. Not that I was complaining. The tall buildings gathered all the snow, leaving these alleys fairly dry. If only they weren’t lined with garbage and the occasional shanty. 

It made my stomach turn just seeing these hovels and the dirty, desperate ponies living in them. I had come to present my newest creations to add just a bit of flair to the regal and pomp fashion adorning those shops out on the pristine avenues. Even the tattered and torn dress I threw away last night would be an improvement here. 

Licking my lips, I found my throat surprisingly dry. “Why are there so many ponies out here living like… like this?”

“It’s not that many,” Trixie replied, making another seemingly random turn to lead us down yet another blind alley. “A few dozen at most.”

“Okay then,” I said, a bit of ire lacing my voice, “why are these ‘few dozen’ ponies living out here?”

“They don’t have any other place to go. Why else would they live out in the cold?” Trixie stopped, pulling her hood back. She put her nose in the air, sniffing. “Do you smell that?”

I sampled the air and wished I hadn’t. The only scents to grace my nose were those of rotting garbage and a caustic smell of squalor. My hoof covered my nose as I shook my head.

Before I could respond properly, Trixie took off. I struggled to keep up with her, even though she moved at little more than a trot. As we turned down a couple of alleys, something finally did reach my nose above the repugnant odors permeating the alleyways: the undeniable scent of fresh-baked dough. Even though I’d just eaten, my mouth watered at the intoxicating aroma. 

Turning another corner, Trixie stopped in her tracks and flung her hood up. “Looks like we’re too late for breakfast,” she said disdainfully.

Walking up alongside her, I saw several ponies gathered around a dumpster sitting just outside the back door to a bakery. A Pegasus even hovered above the receptacle, rooting around in the filth. My stomach soured as a horrific realization washed over me. “Please tell me this isn’t where those muffins came from.”

“No, the muffin fairy brought them to me,” Trixie sardonically said as she lowered her head. “Let’s just get to that train.”

I heard her stomach protest again as we trudged by the bickering ponies. Just then, a rather sizable portion of a loaf of bread flew free from the horde at the dumpster, landing right at my hooves. My instinct was to recoil and give the fetid portion a wide berth, however, a glance up at Trixie made me reconsider. I couldn’t offer her much in return for what she’s done for me thus far, but this…

Swallowing my doubts, I wrapped the hunk of bread in my aura. “Trixie, look,” I said, sweeping the morsel in front of her.

Instead of taking the bread, she swept around and glared at me from under her hood. “Don’t use my name!” she hissed.

I looked over to find many of the ponies looking over at us instead of rustling through the refuse. Trixie’s aura pushed mine away as she grabbed the bread and swung it towards the small crowd. “Here,” she said, tossing it at the crowd. They quickly turned their attention to the food.

The distraction allowed Trixie and me to slink away. Just as soon as the dumpster was out of sight, I hurried to make amends. “Tri—er…” I cleared my throat. “Darling, don’t you think that you may be overreacting just a bit?”

Trixie scoffed. “Like you would know.”

I opened my mouth to retort, but managed to keep myself from making another disastrous misstep. With a sigh, I resigned. “I’m sorry. I-I wasn’t thinking.”

She didn’t acknowledge my apology. Instead, her march continued as the endless alleyways finally opened up to a large, bustling square. The morning sun stung my eyes as I exited the dingy alleys and stepped into the fresh, cold snow. Out here, the wind blew cold, even colder than the shadows of the alleyway. I shivered as I felt a strong desire for so much as a scarf, let alone boots to protect my delicate hooves from the snow.

“The train’s arriving,” Trixie said, trotting towards the familiar platform of the train station. Sure enough, the locomotive creeped into the station, letting out a hiss as it came to a full stop. 

I almost couldn’t believe it. I was finally going home. A smile graced my lips as I followed after Trixie. Slipping and nearly falling, I raced up the steps and alongside Trixie as she approached the ticketmaster. My smile left me as I found the same pony from before lazily running the booth. 

“Two tickets to Ponyville,” Trixie said, producing a stack of bits from underneath that hideous cloak. 

The stallion never looked up. He swept the bits from the counter and placed two tickets in their place. The tickets glowed pink, and one went into Trixie’s cloak while the other floated before me, a shining beacon of hope. This was literally my ticket home.

With too little fanfare, I took the ticket in my own aura. “I-I can’t thank you enough for this.” Despite the filthy garment covering her, I just had to wrap Trixie up in a hug. “You really saved me.”

“I don’t need your thanks,” Trixie said, pushing me away and stepping toward the train. “I need your bits.”

Even Trixie’s dour attitude couldn’t spoil my elation. “Believe me, I’ll not be forgetting this anytime soon.”

> Warming Up
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Had it not been so warm and comfy, I may have cared that I looked like a drunken harlot, sprawled out on the seat. But I just couldn’t bring myself to move, lest I spoil the decadent comfort. The warm air in the train, the plush cushions beneath me… compared to that cold, hard alley, this might as well have been a suite at a five star hotel. Maybe better, given that the steady oscillations of the wheels over the rails made for a half-decent massage.

“Move over.”

My ears folded back as I groaned. Reluctantly, I sat up and scooted over next to the window. “I was halfway asleep, you know,” I said, giving out a yawn. Trixie sat down and rolled her eyes as she levitated a steaming cup of tea over in front of me. An identical teacup hovered in front of Trixie. “Thank you,” I muttered, taking the cup in my aura.

A rather sizable tray of small sandwiches floated down to rest between us. “They had a courtesy bar a couple of cars down,” Trixie said. She took not one, but two sandwiches in her aura. She devoured the first in just a couple of bites, before taking a single bite of the second one. “You should enjoy this kind of treatment while it lasts. It’s a waste to sleep through it.”

I took a long sip of my tea as I contemplated just how to tell Trixie that this sort of treatment was just about every day for me. As I thought about it, I couldn’t help but to remember those raggedy ponies scrounging for food in a dumpster and those living in the cold, dreary shacks. This basic courtesy was decadent to them. Hay, it was decadent to me and I’d only had live like that for a single night.

Replacing the cup on its saucer, I looked over at Trixie as she ate what had to be her fourth sandwich. Even before her fall from grace, she lived out of a cart. She carried it around wherever she went and it served as her home, her stage… it was everything she had, and the ursa smashed it. Just how long had she been forced to live like that? How many more ponies still lived like that?

I’ve never experienced anything like it. Surely such despair cannot be found in Ponyville… right? How many trips have I made to Canterlot or Manehattan? I can’t remember ever seeing anything like those frozen alleys. Were they not there, or did I just not look closely at what I didn’t want to see? Would I have seen them in Baltimare if not for those horrid moths?

A sandwich floated up in front of me. I looked over to see a pair of violet eyes peering out from the darkness of the hood. “They’re pretty good. Try one.”

I gave my head a little shake as my gaze retreated to the window. Whether the scenery was painfully bland or breathtaking beautiful, I couldn’t tell. My mind was far removed from such things. “I’m afraid I don’t have much of an appetite just now.”

I heard Trixie scoff. “It’s free food. How can you not want to eat it?”

“The cost is covered by the tickets,” I found myself saying without even thinking about it.

“In that case, I should get seconds,” I heard Trixie say as I felt the weight on the booth shift. 

A glance back confirmed that Trixie had left. Even the tray was gone. Looking out, all I could see were ponies sitting and chatting, happy and oblivious. It reminded me of myself on my way to Baltimare, now… now my mood seemed to be locked into something far more dour. Truth be told, my attitude resembled Trixie’s. I breathed out a heavy sigh. Even Trixie seemed to be warming up, but the bitter cold in me still lingered.

A bit of movement caught my eye as the door to the next cart opened. Sure enough, a filthy, cloaked figure walked in floating a tray of sandwiches with her. Trixie kept her head down and gave the other passengers a wide berth. I couldn’t help but to notice that I was the only one to notice her. Everypony else seemed to actually try to not take notice of her. Given that Trixie wore that awful thing, I couldn’t much blame them.

A thought struck me as Trixie’s voice echoed in my ears. Don’t use my name! Was she really all that paranoid, or are the ponies around here truly that hostile to somepony who never actually did anything to them? Was that why she ceased that annoying habit of referring to herself in such a pompous manner?

Mere hours ago, I found myself absolutely certain that Trixie’s self-inflicted exile was an overreaction on her part. Now, I wondered if she actually downplayed her suffering and pain. I still couldn’t imagine the ponies in Ponyville behaving so barbarously, but I found myself ever more ignorant of the attitudes of ponies elsewhere.

I scooched over closer to the wall as Trixie approached. After she sat down, I spoke up, “I’ve been thinking, and I think I owe you a proper apology.”

“Well, you have been a big pain in my flank since I met you,” Trixie replied as she set the tray down. 

I frowned. “That’s not what I meant. I meant that… that I may have held some misperceptions about you and your situation. I should’ve—should’ve, I don’t know, done something.”

“You’re not making a lick of sense,” Trixie said, taking a bite of a fresh sandwich. 

Shaking my head, I sighed. “I suppose not.”

“You sure you don’t want some?” Trixie asked, floating her half-eaten sandwich in front of me.

I couldn’t help but to recoil a bit. “Uh, no. Thank you.”

Trixie took back her sandwich, finishing it off with a single bite. Ungraciously, she drew her leg across her muzzle. “So how long’s the ride to Ponyville?”

“Shouldn’t be too much longer. Less than an hour, I’d say.” 

Stretching a bit, Trixie leaned back. “Maybe there’s time for a nap after all.”

“Trix—ahem—darling, I’ve been thinking, and I believe that I may have a better understanding of your… situation.” I reached over, putting a hoof on Trixie’s. “That being said, I still think you are making a mistake. Don’t abandon Equestria, even if it seems like Equestria’s abandoned you.”

Trixie lurched forward, glaring at me. “Hey, we had a deal. Don’t you dare try to back out!”

I sighed internally as I kept my expression as reassuring as possible. “Make no mistake, regardless of what you decide to do, I will give you all the bits I’ve promised you. I just… I want you to make the right decision. I know from experience that ponies can be very kind and welcoming and forgiving. Especially the ponies of Ponyville.”

“What do you know, living your pampered life in Ponyville? I’ve been all over Equestria, and I can tell you that ponies are just that way because you’re part of the upper class,” Trixie replied, leaning back against the seat. “Of course you get treated like a freaking princess.”

Failing to suppress a frown, I leaned forward in a futile attempt to look Trixie in the eye. “I’ll have you know I worked very hard to get where I am now.”

“And I guarantee you that I’ve worked just as hard as you to end up where I am now.”

Trixie’s words left me without any. It’s not that I didn’t believe her, I truly did. But how could it be that I got to live out my life’s dreams while Trixie was left, alone and unwanted, far from anything that could be considered home? I’d often heard the phrase that life isn’t always fair. I suppose I just never realized how true that can really be.

Could it be that she might really be better off starting over? Surely she can only improve from her current situation. 

No. Whatever may wait across the ocean, it would be no Equestria. For all its flaws, hidden as they may have been, Equestria was still a utopia. There could be no better place to start over.

“I will concede that, perhaps, I am not nearly as well-travelled as I once thought, but I can definitely assure you that the ponies of Ponyville are of a very forgiving sort,” I said, doing my best to sound reassuring. “You could start over there. Make a name for yourself. A proper name.”

Trixie let out a sharp laugh. “Like I could even show my face in that town! Have you already forgotten how I wrecked the whole place?”

“Pfft, like you’re the only one to do that,” I replied.

Trixie leaned in again, though this time she didn’t yell. “Seriously?”

“Oh, please.” I dismissed the notion with a wave of my hoof. “The construction ponies always joke that they’ll never be out of a job in Ponyville. Just about everypony’s had a hoof in causing mayhem at one point or another.”

I could just make out Trixie’s eyebrow lurching upward through the shadow of her cloak. “Like who?”

“Who hasn’t? Pinkie Pie and that cursed pond, my little Spikey-wikey once turned into a fifty-foot tall dragon and rampaged through the town, Celestia knows that Discord causes problems every time he gets a chance, Twilight’s been known to cause a bit of trouble now and again, and hay, even Fluttershy once invited those dreadful parasprites into town.”

Trixie sat back, crossing her forelegs over her chest. “And I’m supposed to believe all this happened in Ponyville over the past few years?”

“Years? Try the past few months,” I retorted. A small smile formed on my lips. “You can rest assured, Ponyville is a very lively little town. It could be a great place for you to get a new start.”

“Hmph.” Trixie snapped her head to look away. “Well, it’s not like anypony used dark magic to terrorize everypony.”

I winced, rubbing the back of my neck. “Actually…”

A blue hoof thrusted in my direction. "Now I know you're pulling my leg."

“I most certainly am not,” I asserted. “Granted, I had no idea that the spell involved dark magic, but honestly, I didn’t much care at the time.”

Trixie withdrew her hoof. “You… really got mixed up in dark magic?”

Nodding lightly, I gave Trixie a reassuring smile. “It’s quite frightening, isn’t it? The whole time I never even realized that what I was doing was hurting everypony.” I gave a bitter chuckle. “I actually thought I was helping. If it weren’t for Spike, I don’t know that I would’ve stopped, and I’m quite certain that I would never have realized that what I was doing was wrong.”

She shuddered. Though hiding under her cloak, I could see the pain and fear in her eyes. “I-it’s like you’re somepony else entirely, and you don’t even realize you’d ever have changed at all until after it’s over.”

“Eloquently put.” I closed my eyes, doing my best to purge the memories from my mind and the fear and doubt from my heart. “The terrifying thing is knowing that it could very well happen again, and I still cannot think of a single thing I could do about it.”

“Yeah,” was Trixie’s simple reply as she hung her head.

“I try not to think about it too much.” I leaned in, trying to make eye contact with her. “After all, I know, even if something like that were to happen again, I would be saved.”

“Tch,” Trixie scoffed. “What makes you so sure?”

Pressing a hoof to my chest, I gave Trixie a warm smile. “I know in my heart that my friends would do whatever it takes to stop me.”

With a snort, Trixie got up. “Good for you,” she spat. Crossing the aisle, she laid down on the bench opposite me, deliberately facing away. 

My ears drooped down as I sighed. How is it that I always seemed to make missteps when trying to get her to open up to me? If I wanted her to change her mind and stay here, I needed her to find a reason to stay. Trixie needed to know kindness. Friendship. Surely if she could experience all the wonderful things Ponyville had to offer, she just might change that stubborn mind of hers.

 Of course, that would be easier said than done.



> Coming Home
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

As much as I loathed that drab thing Trixie wore, some part of me—a very small part—longed for my own cloak. After all, it was beyond mortifying trudging through Ponyville with a ruined coiffure and with my makeup long gone. Even my fake eyelashes had been lost on the arduous journey home. If there was any solace to be had at all, it was that the boutique was strategically placed near the train station, so I didn't have to go far to get home. 

I couldn’t wait to fling the door open and step inside. “I don’t think I’ve ever been so happy to be home!”

Trixie came in behind me, shutting the door behind her with a sweep of magic. “Good for you. Now, about my bits…”

I took pause, taking a moment to ponder how to tread this veritable minefield. It’s not like I didn’t have the bits or wasn’t going to keep up my end of the bargain, but I closed up shop before going to Baltimare. I didn’t have a single bit in the boutique. Of course, any reasonable pony would understand that, right?

“About that... you see, I just need—”

“Hey, you promised to repay me! Enough bits to get back to Baltimare plus enough to get me across the ocean.” Trixie stomped up to me, poking a hoof in my chest. “Don’t think that I’ll let you weasel out of it!”

Swatting the hood away, I set a hard stare on Trixie. “If you would be so kind as to allow me to finish,” I said, my voice devoid of sugar. I brushed a hoof across my coat where she had so rudely invaded my personal space. “What bits I didn’t take with me to Baltimare, I deposited into the bank. I will repay you, I just need to go to the bank first. And you are out of your pretty little head if you think I’m going to go out looking like this!” 

I could practically hear Trixie’s teeth grinding as her jaw slid back and forth. 

Suddenly feeling the need to clear the air, I sighed. My magic wrapped around that hideous cloak as I pulled it off her. “Now,” I said before she could protest, “here is what we are going to do. First, this is going in the trash.” Not willing to allow it to stay under my roof, I opened my door and dumped the rags into the garbage can before setting the can by the curb.

“Next, you are going to make yourself at home while I go take a bath and freshen up. Then, while I go out to the bank, you can get a bath of your own.” Grabbing parchment and a quill from a nearby shelf, I set them down on my work table. “While you wait, why don’t you make a list of anything you would like for me to pick up while I’m out.”

Trixie stomped a hoof. “Just how long are you expecting me to stay?”

“Listen, darling, I’m going to sew you a new cloak. While something like that won’t take too long, I’m afraid you will be staying here for the night.” I just couldn’t help but to smile a bit. “Unless, of course, you’re prepared to face the public at large without a cloak?”

Balking, Trixie stepped back. “Like hay I’m staying!” She rushed over to the door and flung it open, only to slam it shut in the very next instant.

“Easy!” I scolded.

“The garbage pony is here. She took my cloak!” Ducking under the window, she peeked over the sill out at the street.

How serendipitous. Now she would have to stay, giving me the chance to get it through that thick skull of hers that there was a place in Equestria for her. Of course, seeing that for herself would be even better, should she muster the courage. “They don’t bite, you know. Why don’t you try to go out and make some friends?” I put a hoof to muzzle, clearing my throat. “After you’ve had a bath, of course.”

Turning back towards me, Trixie sent me a venomous glare. “This isn’t a game! Do you have any idea what happened the last time somepony recognized me?”

I didn’t back down. “No, I cannot say that I do. However, I do have a very good idea of what would happen if you were to be recognized here. The ponies may demand an apology, but I can assure you with absolute certainty that they would never do something unseemly.”

“Hmph.” She forcibly turned her head away. “And I am supposed to just believe you?” 

That was it. I stomped over, taking her chin in my hoof and turning her head to face me. “That is quite enough of this dire attitude. I won’t have it.” I felt her jaw muscles tense up as she met my stare, defiant as ever. “I have been nothing but kind and honest with you. The least you can do is try to appreciate what I’m doing for you instead of constantly questioning my intentions.”

Swatting my hoof away, Trixie walked by me. She didn’t say anything, she just sat there in the middle of the floor. Her ears fell flat against her skull as she hung her head. “Whatever.”

Breathing deep, I let out a long sigh. I wouldn’t make any friends this way. My eye caught my work desk and I realized that I should play to my strengths. As much as I needed a nice, long, warm, luxurious… as much as I need a bath, it would simply have to wait.

Walking by Trixie, I pulled a few sheets of fabric from the shelf and donned my red-rimmed work glasses. A pair of scissors, sewing needles, and a few appropriately-colored threads floated from my drawers and coalesced in front of me at my work station. Taking a look over my shoulder, I quickly ascertained that Trixie’s stature was that of a normal pony’s, if a tad on the waifish side. It may have been better to get her actual measurements, but with a cloak, an approximation could be permitted.

It wasn’t difficult remembering the color of her cape and hat, though the patterns eluded my mind just a bit. They were celestial symbols of the night, right? I would simply have to make do. Oh! I could use some gemstones for the stars. That would really make it stand out. 

A glance over my shoulder revealed Trixie still moping there in the middle of my parlor. Doubts bubbled up as I turned back to the fabric. Trixie didn’t want to be noticed. A gorgeous, eye-catching design would be the last thing she wanted. A sad sigh, and I shook my head, casting away my brilliant ideas. This job called for a more subdued hoof. I couldn’t use her old design, either. I needed something new, restrained, yet still elegant.

Violet would do for the base material. That much would have to be conserved. It just worked so well with her eyes. A silver trim could add some flair without being too bold. But that would still leave the bulk of the material woefully empty. What might reflect Trixie without drawing too much attention?

I looked back at her again, and this time my eyes settled on her horn. Of course! Trixie’s signature spell was fireworks, just as loud and fiery as her personality. I could embroider a firework pattern centered on each shoulder, spraying trails of color across the back of the cloak. Oh, it would be perfect!

I cleared my throat, making sure to get Trixie’s attention. “Darling, this may take a bit. Why don’t you go ahead and get a bath?” I pointed a hoof at the stairs. “You can find the bathroom up the stairs on the left. Second door.”

Barely hearing Trixie’s hooves on my stairs, I pulled a mannequin close, rushing to complete the cloak before my brilliant vision slipped away.






Stepping back, I observed the cloak draped over the mannequin. It. Was. Perfect! Oh, the greens and reds of the fireworks design streaking across the deep violet actually gave the presence of fireworks against a late evening sky. Trixie would be sure to love it. 

Speaking of my ornery guest, she’d been up there for quite some time. I perked my ears up, but failed to hear the familiar sound of running water. Surely she had enough time to bathe. Walking over to the base of the stairs, I called up, “Trixie? Is everything all right up there?”

No response.

Doubt and fear bubbled up, urging my hooves to the stairs. After reaching the second floor, I went straight to the bathroom. The door was shut, and the light inside shone from underneath. Stopping at the door, I raised a hoof and gave it a gentle rap. “Trixie?” 

Again, no response.

My heart skipped a beat as I opened the door and stepped inside. There, I found Trixie, soaking in the water with her head leaned back over the lip of the tub. From her lips, she breathed a light snore.

A petite groan escaped my lips as I facehoofed. “Trixie…” I muttered, dipping a hoof into the water. Just as I suspected, the water was barely tepid. She must’ve fallen asleep quite some time ago. 

Reaching out, I gently smacked her face. “Get up, sleepyhead.” Trixie lurched forward, sending water everywhere. I jumped back. “Easy!” 

“Wh-what? Where am I?” Trixie glanced about. 

“You’re in my bathtub,” I said, doing little to hide the exasperation in my tone. “Would it be too much of an imposition to ask that you finish up? I would very much like the opportunity to take a bath myself.”

Trixie slunk beneath the water, leaving little more than her red cheeks and eyes staring up at me. Raising her head up just enough for her mouth to breach the surface, she spoke, “Do you mind?”

I rolled my eyes. Strolling over to the door. “Just let me know when you’ve finished up.” After turning the handle, I spoke up, “You really shouldn’t fall asleep in the tub. It’s dangerous.”

“Get out!”

Sighing, I exited the bathroom and headed to the stairs. I couldn’t blame her too much. It happens to the best of ponies, especially after a hard day. And Trixie’s had far more than a single day of hardship. Maybe that was why she’s become so very angry and despondent. Though it would seem it will take more than a bath to turn that pony’s attitude around.

Perhaps a nice, brand new cloak would put a smile on that muzzle.

> Sinking Feeling
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Trixie took her sweet time finishing up. When she finally trotted down the stairs, she looked a mare transformed. Not only did her mane shine anew, a touch of makeup accented her features. She actually looked like the confident—if not a touch pompous—showmare that came to Ponyville a year ago. 

“Much better,” I said as she approached, her head held high. 

Clearing her throat, Trixie replied, “I guess I should be thanking you. It’s been a long time since—”

“A-tut-tut! I’ll hear none of it,” I said, cutting her off. “It was my pleasure.” Stepping over, I stopped next to the mannequin with Trixie’s new cloak. I had thrown a sheet over it in anticipation of the big reveal. “More importantly,” I said, a melodious tone in my voice as I failed to suppress an expectant smile, “I would absolutely adore your opinion on this!” 

A flick of magic removed the sheet, leaving the completed cloak in full view. Trixie’s eyes went wide at the sight of it as her mouth opened ever so slightly. Her breathlessness sent chills down my spine. But then her expression changed. She snapped her head to the side. “Yeah, I’m sure whatever pompous pony you made it for will love it,” Trixie said, turning her back to me and the cloak. 

At first I found myself aghast, but I quickly realized that Trixie thought that the cloak wasn’t for her. Taking the garment in my aura, I draped it over Trixie’s shoulders as I dragged a full-length mirror in front of her. “I would very much appreciate to hear it from that pompous pony’s mouth.” To drive home the point, I tied the cloak on her, forming an elegant bow of purple that hung from her collarbone. 

Furrowing her brow, Trixie stared into the mirror a long moment before she blinked and shook her head. “J-just… what?” She got up, spinning around to face me again.

I smiled at her. “I told you before, darling, that I would fix that nasty old cloak of yours. Of course, the only thing that could possibly be done for that travesty was a hasty trip to the dump. So I replaced it with this one. Do you like it?”

Trixie just stared at me, wide-eyed before whipping back to face the mirror. Turning one side, she took it in before stepping around and observing herself from that angle. Finally, after striking several poses, she looked to me. “This… I don’t understand. Why would you do something like this for me?”

I gave a warm laugh, my smile never leaving my lips. “I promised you I would. Besides, there’s nothing more I adore than that magical moment when a pony finds that perfect outfit.”

Trixie’s response caught me off-guard as she wrapped her hooves around me. “Thank you,” she whispered in my ear, her words heavy with emotion.

“Happy to help, darling,” I said, pushing her back oh-so gently. “While I do appreciate the hug, we wouldn’t want to mar your nice, new cloak, now would we?” I stepped back, trying in vain to swipe some of the grime from my coat. “I’m afraid that I am in desperate need of a bath of my own. I trust you can make yourself at home while I get cleaned up?”

Trixie nodded, her gaze enthralled by the nearby mirror.

“Good. Then, if you’ll excuse me, I’ll be back down just as soon as I’m once again presentable.”

Hastily retreating to my bathroom, I drew a nice bubble bath. As much as a relief it was to be home, it couldn’t hold a candle to the prospect of banishing the filth marring my once-pristine coat. Slipping into the hot, soapy water felt nearly as rapturous as giving Trixie that cloak. 

Of course, the pleasant relaxation quickly gave way as my thoughts wandered away from me. The hot water did little to banish the memories of those frozen, desperate streets. While I soaked in my nice, warm bath, all those ponies were still out there. The very thought turned my stomach sour. 

I began to think these feelings would never leave me. Surely my empathy betrayed me. Or perhaps it was the fact that I had been so ignorant for so long that plagued me so. The only conclusion that I could come to was that if I didn’t do something to assuage my guilt, these thoughts would not allow me to rest.

As I tossed ideas around, an errant thought took hold. Didn’t Fancy Pants hold a charity fashion event every year? I knew there was definitely one in Canterlot every year; I would always attend. Though, I couldn’t recall at all just what the charity supported. I always took part for the fashion and the opportunity to put myself out there.

I sighed, still unable to let it go. Surely something would have to be done to set this right. Perhaps I could hold a similar event. Put together a charity event in Baltimare to help those ponies living on those cold streets. It’s not like I haven’t organized events before, though, decorating and such is much more my forte. 

Maybe I could ask Fancy Pants or Pinkie Pie to help me. They would certainly be much better regarding those aspects. Of course! Pinkie could handle much of the organizing, and Fancy Pants could help me reach out to all the biggest players in the fashion industry. I could even recreate the line those moths ruined; I still have my designs here. 

“Yes!” I exclaimed, shooting straight up and sending a wave of soapy water onto the floor.

After finishing up my bath, applying my makeup, and finally restoring my mane and tail to their former glory, I finally headed back downstairs. There I found Trixie, still admiring herself in the mirror, though her cloak dangled from a nearby screen with a half-dozen other outfits. One of my large trunks sat open with dresses and accessories spilling out. Trixie herself sported a rather embarrassing ensemble. She’d managed to find the old trunk where I stored the… well, the disasters that my friends requested I make for them for the gala last year. Currently, Trixie was twirling about in Twilight’s gown, complete with those ridiculous stars swaying all about.

To announce my presence, I raised a hoof to my mouth and cleared my throat. 

Trixie nearly jumped out of her skin. Whirling around with wide eyes, she came face-to-face with me. “O-oh, I uh… I didn’t hear you there,” she said, a band of red coalescing on her cheeks.

“Well, while I can certainly understand your desire to dress up, you should probably avoid that closet,” I said, pointing to what I dubbed the rejection closet, its door still open from Trixie’s incursion. 

An eyebrow raised on Trixie’s face. “What’s wrong with this outfit? I kind of like it,” she said, taking another look at the mirror. 

“Oh-ho-ho, trust me, that outfit is not only an eyesore, it is one you would find absolutely abhorrent,” I said, grabbing up the other garbs and floating them into the trunk.

“I don’t find anything wrong with it.”

“I made that dress for Twilight Sparkle, and I’ll have you know that she practically designed the entire thing herself.”

Woosh!

Slam!

It happened so quickly, my mind barely registered it. Trixie managed to slip out of the outfit, toss it in the trunk, and slam it shut all in the blink of an eye. Shaking her hide, she wiped at her coat. “Why didn’t you say so earlier!”

I just managed to stifle my laughter in my throat. “I tried to warn you.” I pulled the trunk into my aura before dragging it over to the rejection closet. “In the business of fashion, there are many an outfit that just don’t turn out anything like your original vision. There are also cases where you get ridiculous orders and even times when the outfits come out perfectly, but the customers just don’t take to them. When these situations arise, you’re left with all these outfits that just linger and never really sell.”

Trixie joined me in the walk in closet. “Are you telling me that all these are full of clothes?” she asked, motioning to the dozens of trunks occupying the rejection closet.

Putting the trunk back into its spot, I took a brief survey of all the trunks. “I suppose so. Every now and again I may come in here and use a few of them to fill up blank spaces in the shop, but most of the time I can barely keep up. My muses often keep me quite busy.”

“Then why do you keep them?”

I took pause. I’d never really considered it. A thought struck me, eliciting a gasp. Why not rid myself of them? I could take them all to bolster the selection at the charity event, after I get it set up, of course.

“What a marvellous idea!” I exclaimed, wrapping Trixie up in a hug.

A bit too quickly, Trixie slipped out from between my hooves. “What in the wide world of Equestria are you talking about?”

A heat swelled in my cheeks. “Ah, yes... well, you just gave me a wonderful idea. That’s all.”

I escorted Trixie back into the parlor, shutting up the rejection closet as we exited. “Anywho, I’m just off to the bank. Did you finish your list of things for me to pick up?”

Trixie looked away from me, fixating on the table where I left the parchment and quill. She rubbed her neck. “Uh…” 

I facehoofed. With a petite groan, I regained my composure. “Well, why don’t you accompany me, then?” Grabbing the cloak with a flick of magic, I floated it over to rest on Trixie’s shoulders. “We could make a day of it. There's shopping, and we could go out to a nice restaurant, and…” My optimistic expression fell away. “And you’re not leaving the boutique, are you?”

Trixie, quite unamused, pointed to her own nose. 

Frowning, I stepped around to confront her face-to-face. “I want you to give me one good reason why you won't go out.” Trixie opened her mouth to retort, but I preempted her. “And getting recognized isn’t a good reason.”

She gave me a hard stare. “Why not.”

“Well, for one” – I pulled her hood down over head – “you’ve got this to keep you hidden, if you don’t want to be seen.” I tugged at the hood, pulling it away from her face. “And for two, even if you were discovered, I can promise you that, at worst, some ponies may ask for an apology. Nothing more.”

“Humph!” Trixie snapped her head away.  “And I’m just supposed to take your word for it?”

“Yes!” I stamped a hoof, garnering her full attention. “I can understand you not trusting me before, but what have I done to make you wary? Have I deceived you at all since we met? Have I lied to you even once?”

Trixie’s ears folded down and she pawed at the floor. “Well… no.”

“Then why can’t you trust me?” I asked, pressing a hoof into my chest.

She never looked up at me. “I just… I-I can’t,” she said, her voice wavering as she absentmindedly clutched at her cloak.

Her sincerity took me aback. For so long she’s been obstinate and, at times, outright combative. But now she opened up, showing me a vulnerable side I’d yet to see. She was actually being honest with me.

I stepped forward, putting my forelegs around her. “I believe you,” I said gently. 

She leaned into the hug, for once not pulling away. I barely heard it, but I’m sure it was spoken. 

“Sorry.”


> Trust
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Although I regretted my inability to coax Trixie into accompanying me, I also found it rather relaxing to be out and about again. It may have been chilly out, but with a scarf and boots to shield me, I could appreciate the clear, blue skies and smiling faces around me. Baltimare certainly could use a weatherpony like Rainbow Dash around. 

“Oh my gosh! Rarity!” 

I looked up at the chipper voice to find Pinkie bounding toward me. Bracing myself, I just barely managed to stay on my hooves as she threw herself on me, wrapping her hooves around my neck. “H-hello, Pinkie. I was just stepping out to do a bit of shopping.”

“I thought you weren’t supposed to be back from Baltimore for another two days. Now I’m going to have to reschedule your surprise welcome home party!” She said as she released me and stepped back. Her eyes went wide. She leaned in, holding up a hoof to direct her whisper at me, “Which you didn’t hear about from me.”

Laughing, I nodded my head. “Of course.” I swear, she behaved this way just to get a smile out of me.

“So how was your trip to Baltimare? Did you win the fashion extravaganza there?” Pinkie asked, all but hopping up and down in anticipation.

My smile left me. Clearing my throat, I chose my words as carefully as possible and measured my tone. “The event was cancelled, I’m afraid. A terrible infestation of moths devoured everypony’s fashion lines.”

“That’s awful! You must feel terrible.”

I gave Pinkie what I hoped was a reassuring smile. “It’s fine,” I said, absentmindedly primping my mane, “I’m just… I’m eager for things to return to normal.”

“So, like, right now, or do you want something scary to attack Ponyville?”

I leaned over, hugging Pinkie. “Right now’s just perfect, darling.”

She patted my head. “Glad to be of service!”

After I pulled back, Pinkie turned away. “I’ve got, uh, things to reschedule,” she called over her shoulder at me. “I’ll see you around.”

Smiling, I waved back at her. After watching her disappear into the crowd, haunting words echoed in my ears.

You are lucky. You get to go back to your old life when you get home, do you not?

I turned back toward the bank with a grimace. It didn’t matter that things were again normal for me. That much was a given from the start. Trixie was the one who needed to find normalcy. Not me.





Getting my bits from the bank and stowing them in my fashionable saddlebags, I stepped out with the intent of doing a bit of shopping. Even if Trixie didn’t give me a list, I still felt obliged to try to find a way to make her feel at home—if that was even a feeling Trixie might be familiar with.

Above me, a multicolored streak raced across the sky. Although Rainbow Dash could be doing any number of things at those speeds, I hoped it didn’t involve snowfall. I’ve had quite enough snow for one season, and winter’s barely even started. Quickening my pace, I headed for the market.

The first thing I needed to cover were the essentials. That is, enough food to host a decadent meal. As I gathered up what I needed, I came across another familiar face. “Why, hello Applejack,” I greeted as I strolled up to her cart. As always, apples of every sort were on display alongside a bevy of apple treats. 

“Howdy, Rare,” she said, tipping her hat in my direction. “I heard you were back in town early. Somethin’ about moths?”

“Ugh, don’t get me started.” I dismissed it with a wave of a hoof. 

Applejack rubbed her neck. “Well, did yah at least enjoy your trip?” I stared back at her, completely unamused. “I, uh, I’ll take that as a ‘no,’” she said, giving a nervous laugh.

Sighing, I wrapped my aura around a particularly enticing apple pie. “It was… quite the experience.” A few bits floated from my bags, nestling themselves in Applejack’s apron as the pie rested on my back. 

Again tipping her hat, Applejack gave me a small nod. “Thanks, sugarcube. And, hey, I’ve got an ear to lend if’n yah want to talk about it.”

A thin smile spread over my lips. “I’ll keep that in mind.”

Just as I began to walk away, I heard Applejack’s voice from behind me, “Hey, keep yer chin up!”

Straightening my posture just a bit, I looked over my shoulder at Applejack. “Of course.”

Given that Rainbow Dash didn’t seem to be amassing clouds over Ponyville just yet, I opted to do a bit of pleasure shopping before heading back to the boutique. While providing Trixie with a nice homemade meal would certainly help her warm up to me, she might enjoy a little something else to feel at home. But what?

I could easily craft her an outfit or two. Though, given her affection for the rejection closet, I could also just give her some of the outfits from there. What else could she need? Just as the thought struck me, I paused before a rather large cart. “Of course!”

Several ponies’ stares found me, and I couldn’t help but to feel dreadfully embarrassed. I picked up my pace as I allowed my thoughts to travel back to my eureka moment. The thing that Trixie needed to feel at home, was a home.

Though she did tell me that she never really had a home, that cart of hers had to come close. Granted, I couldn’t hope to build something like that, but I knew Applejack could. Now, decorating it, that I could do. The only problem with that idea was the fact that a project of that scale couldn’t be completed in a single afternoon. I needed to find a way to have Trixie extend her stay in Ponyville, if just a bit.

Ironically, the best way I could think to do that, was to make her feel at home here. So, what else could I do for her? My eyes swept over the various stalls, storefronts, and carts in search of an idea. Flowers? I didn’t even know if Trixie liked flowers. If Trixie could be so inclined, I could treat her to dessert at Sugarcube corner or a luxurious trip to the spa, but I doubted my ability to convince her to leave the confines of the boutique.

A sinking feeling crept up within me as my folly slowly revealed itself. I’d only known Trixie—the real Trixie—a single day. How could anypony get to know somepony in that amount of time? My trot slowed to a standstill as I took inventory of the sum of my knowledge about my cantankerous guest. 

She took care of me when I needed it, so she had a good heart.

She blames herself even for things beyond her control, so she doesn’t shy away from responsibility.

She doesn’t trust easily, so she’s been spurned in the past.

She likes to take charge and call the shots, but she doesn’t mind being friendly so long as she’s enjoying herself. That being said, when I took charge, she was resentful and obstinate. So, despite all that’s happened, she’s still so full of pride, even if it was buried beneath her fears and guilt.

What could I infer from all that? Well, aside from the fact that Trixie was a broken mess that desperately needed fixing, she needed confidence. She needed to know that what she’d done was forgiven, at least here in Ponyville. Nothing in this market could do that.

So then, what could? 

Why, a friend, of course. 

With a small smile, I turned and headed for home.





“Surprise!”

I nearly jumped out of my skin. As soon as I walked in my door, the lights turned on a burst of confetti washed over me. Gasping for breath and trying to steady my heart, I looked over the expectant faces of my friends. “Goodness, a little warning might be nice.”

Laughing, Pinkie bounded up to me. “Well, I told you that I had to reschedule your party, silly filly!”

“Yes, well, I certainly didn’t expect you to get things together quite this quickly.” A comforting, blue glow escorted my scarf, boots, and groceries to their rightful places. 

Fluttershy stepped forward, though her eyes swept across the room. “I brought Opal with me, but I don’t think she liked the party cannons.”

“That’s fine,” I said, waving a hoof. “I’m sure she’s around here… somewhere…” My eyes looked past the party favors and treats to rest on the full-length mirror, still standing in the corner. Next to it, another trunk sat open, dresses and accessories spilling out. I stepped past Pinkie and Fluttershy, looking around.

My field of vision filled with purple. “Is something wrong?” Twilight asked.

I stepped back, though my gaze locked on the rejection closet, the door cracked open. “Was there… somepony here when you girls came in?”

My friends shared glances with each other before giving me a synchronized shake of their heads. Twilight held up a hoof. “Was there supposed to be?”

A breathed a long breath in and out. “Yes,” I said, making a snap decision. “A friend. If it weren’t for her, I would still be stuck in Baltimare.” I proceeded forward past Twilight.

“Oh no,” Fluttershy said. “Do you think something might have happened to her?”

I shook my head. “I think I might know where she is. I’ll be just a moment.” I headed straight for the rejection closet.

As soon as I was inside the closet, I closed the door behind me. A not-so-subtle way of letting my friends know to give me a bit of space. Though I did run into a problem. I didn’t see Trixie anywhere. 

“Trixie?” I called out in a hushed tone.

One of the chests opened, startling me. Trixie’s head popped out, obscured by her cloak. “Are they gone?”

Regaining my composure, I gave a firm shake of my head. “They’re throwing me a welcome home party. They’ll be here for some time.”

“Let me know when they’re gone,” Trixie replied, slipping back into the trunk.

I caught the lid in my aura, flinging it open. “I should think not.”

I felt the heat of her anger as Trixie sent me a chilling glare. “What.”

Letting the animosity roll off my back, I stepped over. “Come on, now. Let’s get you out of that musty old trunk. You don’t want to smell like mothballs now, do you?”

Trixie let me help her out of the trunk. She stretched her legs before swiping at her coat and mane. “Okay, so then what’s your plan for sneaking me by all of them?”

Smiling, I pointed to the door. “I was thinking of leading you out of here and introducing you to everypony.”

“Are you insane!” Trixie hissed.

“Trixie, these are my closest, dearest friends. I can assure you, beyond any spectre of doubt, that they won’t be unkind to you,” I said, heaping as much confidence and sugar into my voice as I could muster. “Trust me.”

Looking down, Trixie’s eyes swept from side-to-side. After a moment, she looked up again, fixing me with a hard stare. “No.” She moved toward the trunk, but I stepped in her way.

“You can go out there with your head held high, or hide in here with your tail between your legs,” I said, giving her a glare every bit as vicious as the one she gave me. “I didn’t think the great and powerful Trixie was so cowardly.”

My head snapped painfully to the side as the taste of copper touched my tongue. I raised a hoof to my aching cheek as I looked back at Trixie. Though I may have deserved that, I just couldn’t suppress the surge of anger that swept over me. 

“Girls! Come in here!”

> Dilemma
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The door behind me burst open as my friends rushed in. Trixie recoiled, cowering into the far corner as she tugged on her hood, trying her best to keep her face hidden. My anger evaporated at the sight of her, cowering like a frightened little filly. 

“What’s going on?” Rainbow Dash asked, flying above me. “Everything okay?”

The girls gathered around me, and I don’t think I could’ve felt worse. It was almost as if we were all ganging up on her. “N-no. It’s fine,” I managed to mutter, rubbing my cheek. Scrambling to salvage the situation, I walked next to Trixie, motioning towards her as I turned to face my friends. “I just… wanted you girls to meet my friend. This is the mare that helped me back in Baltimare.”

Trixie shoved me away. Keeping a hoof on her hood, she pushed her way past my friends and out of the closet. I chased after her, barely managing to wrap my magic around the door, keeping her inside. Whipping around, she backed into the door, scanning the room back and forth. I watched her fixate on the large bay window, and quickly decided that having her jump through my window was far from what anypony wanted. 

Spying my saddlebags by the door, I flipped them open, grabbing my bag of bits from the bank. I floated them in front of Trixie, successfully getting her to hesitate. “I owe you this much, at least.”

She swatted it away, sending bits sprawling across the floor. Before I could say anything, Rainbow Dash flew up. “Hey! What’s your problem?”

Trixie turned, galloping towards the window. As she did, her hood flew up, not that it mattered with her back to me and my friends. But then a familiar popping sound echoed from behind me. I gasped as a big, purple ball of magic formed in front of Trixie. It dissipated to reveal Twilight standing in Trixie’s way.

Twilight raised an eyebrow. “Trixie?”

Trixie backpedalled away from Twilight, turning to face the rest of us. Her mouth agape, she looked at me with wide eyes. I could feel the fear and betrayal in her through that look. “T-Trixie…”

A yellow blur shoved by me and rushed out the door, but to my surprise, Trixie didn’t take the opportunity to flee with Fluttershy. She just hung her head and stood there. “Go on,” she said, the effort in her voice to keep a steady tone painfully apparent. “I deserve it.”

“What’re you doing back in Ponyville?” Rainbow Dash demanded, flying over to confront her face-to-face.

In a flash, Pinkie joined her and Twilight. “Yeah! Didn’t you learn your lesson the last time?”

“Girls!” Twilight harshly said before taking a step toward Trixie. “Don’t listen to them. I’m actually glad you came back.”

“What!” a collective voice sounded.

Twilight just smiled as Trixie looked up at her. “You left in a hurry the last time we met, and we never really got a chance to… well, to make amends.”

“Amends?” Applejack stepped forward, pointing a hoof at Trixie. “Why the hay are you makin’ it sound like we owe her an apology. Did yah forget how she showed up and threw yah outta town and took over?”

“Hey!” I stamped a hoof. “That wasn’t Trixie’s fault.”

“Yeah!” Pinkie chimed in. “You’re thinking of a totally different pony that enslaved the whole town and made us completely and totally miserable. Oh, no. Wait. It was totally her!” A pink hoof was thrusted at Trixie.

“Girls!” Twilight shouted. “Look at her.”

The shouting came to a dead stop as everypony finally took in more than the fact that Trixie was standing there. Her head still hung low, and her ears were flattened against her skull. More than that, she was trembling so terribly that it was painfully obvious, even under her cloak. The poor thing looked positively terrified.

One by one, my friends quickly deflated, the reality of the situation sinking in. Even Rainbow Dash flew down to the floor, quite abashed. 

Pinkie rubbed her neck. “Sooo, you’re not here to cause a bunch of trouble?” Turning to me, she held up a hoof to direct her whisper toward me. “Bad news on the whole villain coming to cause problems front.”

I paid her little mind. “Trixie,” I said, stepping forward, “I-I made a mistake. I shouldn’t have—”

“Stop taunting me!” Trixie shouted, though she didn’t so much as raise her head. “Just… just get it over with.”

Twilight scratched her head, looking to me for answers. In turn, I gave my head a little shake. I certainly couldn’t explain this whole situation in a few sentences, and I sure as hay wasn’t about to get into another argument with my friends when Trixie… I needed to do something drastic to diffuse the situation.

That’s when it struck me. I couldn’t help but to smile a bit as I moved next to Trixie. “If you insist, darling.” Leaning in, I wrapped my hooves around Trixie and pulled her into a hug. Trixie’s trembling reverberated through me, and in turn, it lessened.

Thankfully, Twilight has always been exceedingly quick. Joining me, she too hugged Trixie. That triggered an exaggerated gasp, and some small part of me wished I could let go to cover my ears.

“Group hug!” Pinkie shouted, nearly bowling us over in her enthusiasm. 

Even Rainbow Dash and Applejack joined in. Of course, the group hug didn’t last long before Trixie pulled away from us, her flank hitting the wall. “J-just what do you think you’re doing?” Trixie stammered out, finally looking up.

“What?” Pinkie asked, holding up a hoof. “You’ve never been part of a group hug before?”

“Well…” Trixie hesitated, her eyes darting back and forth, “no.”

“Oh my gosh! That’s so sad.” Pinkie, nearly crying, hugged Trixie again. “This mare needs more hugs. Stat!”

Trixie strained to pull away, but she couldn’t escape the vice-like grip of an enthusiastic Pinkie Pie. It fell upon Applejack to rescue Trixie. “Come on now, sugarcube,” she said, prying Pinkie away. “I think we need to have some words with this one.”

And, just like that, the tension returned. Instead of focusing on Applejack or Twilight, Trixie’s glare fell squarely on me. “Why are you doing this!” Her voice cracked as she shouted at me. “Just get it over with already!”

Twilight stepped forward, meeting Trixie’s desperation with a calm, yet firm, reply, “Get what over with? What’s got you so riled up?”

“Aren’t you going to run me out of town? Or throw me in a dungeon? Exact your revenge with your own hooves?” Trixie shook her head, sending a few stray tears crashing to the floor. 

Everypony’s eyes slowly turned to me. Sighing, I moved next to Trixie, putting a hoof over her shoulders. She flinched at first, but then she stiffened up. “I told you before, nopony here would even dream of doing something so drastic.”

“Yeah,” Applejack said, idly kicking at the floor. “I’d, uh, I’d just settle for an apology.”

Pinkie openly sobbed, even though Trixie had already regained her composure. “An apology?” Pinkie jumped over, using both of her hooves to smoosh Trixie’s face. “Just look at this face. Isn’t that enough?”

Trixie shoved Pinkie away again, swiping at her shoulder. “Quit your blubbering. You’re getting snot on my cloak.”

“I reckon I can let it pass,” Applejack muttered.

“Yeah,” Rainbow Dash said, pointing a hoof at Trixie, “but what makes you think we’d do all that stuff to you? We’re not you, you know.”

A purple leg impacted Dash’s ribs. Twilight glared at Dash. “That was the Alicorn amulet’s fault.”

Rubbing her ribs, Dash scoffed. “Whatever.”

Twilight rolled her eyes. “However,” Twilight said with a sigh, “RD does bring up a good point. Why would you even think that we might do those horrible things?”

“Everypony else has,” Trixie bluntly replied, her head drifting to the side as her ears drooped down.

“What? Why?” Twilight asked, taking a step closer to Trixie. She reached a hoof under Trixie’s chin, guiding Trixie’s gaze back to her.

Trixie glared at Twilight. “Because of you.”

Recoiling, Twilight pressed a hoof to her own chest. “Because of me?”

“Word spread far and wide, and time only made it worse,” Trixie said, her eyes never leaving Twilight. “Trixie assaulted Princess Twilight. Trixie tried to steal Princess Twilight’s crown. Trixie attempted to overthrow Equestria by taking over Ponyville and ousting Princess Twilight!”

“Wh-what?” Twilight shook her head. “None of that happened. I wasn’t even a princess back then.”

Scoffing, Trixie hung her head. “Like that ever mattered.”

“You should have come back here sooner,” Twilight said. “I could’ve set things right. I could’ve—”

Trixie stomped a hoof. “I don’t need your help!”

Twilight’s eyes darted side-to-side before fixing on me. I could almost hear her begging me for help, but I just couldn’t think of what to say or do. Trixie did need her help. But I couldn’t fathom why she would refuse Twilight’s help. She’d accepted most everything I’ve done to try to help her.

Was it possible that Trixie actually trusted me, even just a little?

I glanced back at Trixie, and seeing her stern expression drove away that little thought. That only left open the possibility that Trixie bore a hostility against Twilight Sparkle. I suspected that Trixie’s pride may begrudge Twilight’s princesshood, but after that rant, I was left to wonder if Trixie blamed Twilight for all of her hardship. Either way, the biggest obstacle just so happened to be Twilight. 

In fact, the very thing making this situation so tense was the fact that everypony crowded around Trixie. Anypony would feel trapped like that. Even if everypony already professed their intentions, Trixie must’ve been unnerved by the whole situation. 

Stepping over, I threw a hoof around Twilight’s shoulders and spun her away from Trixie. “Maybe it might be nice for us to just… enjoy the party,” I said, pointing to the banner reading “Welcome Home Rarity!”

“But… Trixie.” Twilight pointed over her shoulder as she tried to turn back to Trixie.

“Ah! What a wonderful idea!” I said, steering Twilight away from Trixie. “I may be just returning, but this will be Trixie’s first proper visit to Ponyville. Why don’t we let her have this party? We could all mingle and get to know one another.”

“Brilliant!” Pinkie exclaimed. In a flash, she removed my banner, replacing it with one that simply read: “Welcome Trixie!” How Pinkie Pie obtained such a banner in the span of a couple of seconds baffled me, but I tried not to fixate on it.

Pulling Twilight close to me, I whispered to her, “We’re not going to get anywhere with Trixie like this. Perhaps it would be best for all of us to try to just get to know her first. You know, one-on-one. I don’t think she’ll open up otherwise.”

Nodding, Twilight pulled away. Together we did our best to wordlessly pass on the sentiment to the rest of the girls. Once we got that across, I spoke up, “Now, I can’t be attending a party without an attire that is positively stunning.” I turned directly to Trixie on my way to the stairs. “Trixie, be a dear, and make sure everything goes smoothly while I get changed.” 

Trixie gave me a puzzled stare as she pointed a hoof at herself.

I started to trot up the stairs, confident that, while Trixie may not be a social butterfly, she wouldn’t so easily back down from a challenge. “Come now, aren’t you a professional entertainer?”


> Doubt
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

As I looked myself over in the mirror to make sure that everything looked absolutely flawless, I couldn’t help but to worry about Trixie. After all, there was nothing keeping her in the boutique. Even if the party had been changed to be in her honor, she could very easily decide to simply leave—especially if one of the girls makes a misstep in dealing with her. After all, that is a mistake that is all-too-easy to make.

Taking one last look at myself, I hurried out of my bedroom and downstairs to the soiree. I breathed a sigh of relief when I espied Trixie hanging out in the corner with Pinkie Pie. Of course, it might be considered rude to just insert myself into the conversation there, but I couldn’t go without figuring out just what those two were talking about, either.

First stop: the punchbowl. That would easily cover half the distance. I grabbed a cup and ladle in my aura as I traversed my parlor. I had the cup filled and ladle replaced before I even made it to the bowl. 

“Rarity, you look amazing,” Twilight said, trotting over to meet me at the punchbowl. 

“Oh, this old thing?” I modestly dismissed the compliment. Honestly, I had decided on a more subtle outfit of various blues. It wasn’t a long flowing gown, instead resembling more of a cocktail dress, barely covering my flank. I had to be careful not to steal the spotlight. Showing up Trixie in any manner would only end in disaster. 

Grabbing my cup in my aura, I raised it to my lips. Of course, the burst of fruity flavor with just a nibble of sour was nothing short of exquisite. After all, only Pinkie Pie knew how to make my favorite punch. “Have things been going… well?” I asked in a hushed tone.

Twilight chanced a glance over at Pinkie and Trixie. “To be honest, Trixie hasn’t exactly been enjoying herself. She tried to a few tricks, but that went… well, we managed to keep her from leaving, at least. Pinkie’s been the only one to get more than a hostile retort out of her since.”

A bitter chuckle escaped my throat. “I’m glad you found a way to keep her here. I know you might think her to be full of herself,” I said, setting down the cup, “but don’t let that fool you. She can be really nice, too—in her own sort of way.”

“You said that she saved you?”

I nodded. “Yes, I found myself stranded in Baltimare after an infestation of moths closed the hotel hosting the event. I didn’t have any bits to get home, and no place to stay either.” Looking back over at Trixie in the corner, I sighed. “She took care of me in my darkest hour, and even paid for my train ride home. I just… I want to do the same for her.”

Twilight pointed back toward the door. “Is that why you were offering her those bits? I put them back in your bag, by the way.”

“Yes, and thank you, darling,” I said. “But it’s more than just the bits. I fear she may be making another horrible mistake.”

Twilight raised an eyebrow. “Another mistake?”

“She wants to leave Equestria. To cross the ocean and start over.”

Scratching her head, she tilted it just a bit. “And… that’s a mistake?”

I scoffed. “Well of course it is. She’s throwing away everything she’s ever known for some faraway place that nopony knows.”

“That’s usually what happens when you start over,” Twilight said. “It might’ve initially just been for a couple of days, but my coming to Ponyville was something of a ‘starting over’ for me. The same goes for Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie.” Reaching out, Twilight put a hoof on my shoulder. “We all found our new homes to be greater than the ones we left behind. And that doesn’t mean we’ve severed our ties to our old homes, either.” 

“B-but she can find those things without leaving Equestria,” I retorted. “And if she goes back to doing things the way she did before, then things will end just as badly. Maybe worse.”

Twilight’s knowing smile never left her lips. “I like to think that, after all that’s happened, Trixie has learned from her mistakes.”

My head shook. “No. No, the mistake is letting her leave Equestria. It can only end badly. I just…” I looked over to Trixie again. “I know it.”

Wait. Trixie stood alone. Where did—

“Hey! You look great, Rarity!” Pinkie all but yelled at me, her nose practically touching mine.

A placed a hoof to my chest, trying to calm my racing heart. “Wh-why thank you, Pinkie.” My eyes darted over to Trixie for but a moment before turning back to Pinkie. “Say, what were you talking to Trixie about?”

“Oh, that…” Pinkie ears drooped down. “I gotta find a way to make things up to her.”

My eyes widened. “Why? What happened?”

Pinkie listlessly kicked at the floor. “Well, apparently Trixie got along really well with my family. Especially Maud and Limestone. But after I told them about what happened here after the whole Alicorn amulet fiasco, they sort of… didn’t like her anymore.” Letting out a long sigh, Pinkie shook her head. “She seems really sad about it.”

I turned to Twilight. “See? Trixie needs to stay in Ponyville. We can help her heal.”

“Maybe,” Twilight said, looking between Pinkie and me. “I did want a chance to make amends. And after hearing about some of what she’s been through, I can’t help but to wonder if I should’ve tried harder to make things right sooner.”

“You should have,” I replied, the words leaving my mouth before I could think them through. Twilight didn't say anything in turn, but she didn't need to. Those words applied to myself every bit as much as they did to her.

“I'm going to go talk to her.” Brushing past Twilight, I headed straight for Trixie.

As I approached Trixie, she offered no greeting. She remained silent, even when I stood next to her in the corner. Clearing my throat, I broke the ice. “Trixie, why don’t you go out and mingle? You should know by now that nopony here is going to be hostile with you.”

Trixie snapped her head away. “Hmph! Like I have anything to say to them. They all resent me. The only reason they’re being nice to me is you.”

“You flatter me.” I deflected the, perhaps unintentional, compliment. “But I think Twilight might have more sway in this situation than me.” I put a hoof on her shoulder, which she hastily shrugged off. “More importantly, I know for a fact that Twilight doesn’t dislike you. She genuinely seems to want to right the wrongs that have occurred between you two. And Pinkie Pie seems rather upset for her part in everything, as well.”

“Like anypony cares about me.”

Just as I was about to try to convince her otherwise, a familiar chime flicked my ear. I glanced over to see, of all ponies, Fluttershy coming in. She hovered off of the ground, clutching a small object with her forelegs. After scanning the room, she fixated on Trixie and I, and headed straight over.

“Oh, thank goodness,” she said breathlessly as she landed in front of us. Or rather, in front of Trixie, given that she paid me little mind. “I was worried I might not make it back in time before you left again.” She held out the object toward Trixie.

Trixie’s pink aura wrapped around the object, bringing it closer. I could see that it was a framed photograph, though a crack splintered through the glass pane. The picture depicted a filly wearing a cape. Sparks flew from her horn while she reared up, kicking her forelegs. Barely visible in the background were two slightly out of focus Unicorns.

“I found this when we were cleaning up after the ursa minor attacked. They were going to throw it out with the rest of the debris, but I thought that it might have been important to you,” Fluttershy explained. “I kept it at my cottage in case you came back, but I didn’t have a chance to give it to you last time. Because, um… well…”

Trixie smiled. She actually, genuinely smiled. Giving a bitter chuckle, she shook her head. “I always hated this picture.”

Fluttershy’s ears drooped. “I’m… sorry?”

Trixie ran a hoof over the cracked glass. “It’s a reminder: that there is nopony I can rely on but me.”

“What in Equestria would make you think that?” I asked.

“While I was getting this picture developed, my parents left without me.” Sighing, she stowed the picture under her cloak. “Apparently my talents outshone theirs so much, that it interfered with their business.” Scoffing, Trixie shook her head. “I… never needed them anyway.”

Again, I placed a hoof on Trixie’s shoulder. “Trixie…”

Trixie swatted my hoof away. “And I don’t need you!” Marching away, she offered Fluttershy a subtle “thanks” before making a beeline for the door. 

Hurrying after her, I caught her at the door. “Just where are you going?”

“I’m done with this farce,” she retorted. “Give me my bits. I’m leaving.”

My eyes darted to my bags as my mind groped desperately for something to say or do to keep her here. “J-just wait here a moment.” Turning back, I found all of my friends staring at us. I sent them a pleading look as I headed for the stairs.

“Trixie, you’re not thinking of leaving already, are you?” Twilight asked, stepping in as I headed up the stairs. As much as I would’ve liked to stay and help coax Trixie into staying, I needed to hurry, lest she leave without so much as enough bits to get back to Baltimare. 

I rushed into my room and flung open my closet. Inside, my attention focused on my saddlebag shelf. There, I met a half-dozen bags, each with its own unique design. None of them would perfectly match the cloak I made for Trixie. That left me with a single, detestable option. I grabbed the standard, old-fashioned leather saddlebags. They might’ve been trite, and certainly nothing special, but they went with everything. In a crass, generic sort of way, anyway.

Though the saddlebags vexed me, they were a means to an end. Nothing special in and of themselves. If I couldn’t keep her here, I had to at the very least do everything I could to ensure her ready for whatever her trip may entail. And, if the gesture was enough to get that stubborn mare to change her mind and stay, then all the better.

With the bag in my magic, I headed over to my design desk and dumped the few gems there into the bag. Serendipitously, there also lay a spool of silver thread, perfectly matching the trim on Trixie’s cloak. I added it and a few needles to the bag as well. I just hoped that Trixie would know how to work a thread if anything happened to her cloak. Rifling through the various swatches, I managed to find a couple of deep violet that could easily match Trixie’s cloak. 

Stowing those away, I scanned the shelves. No. Not there. Where did I put them? I pulled open a drawer, and another, and another. “Ah!” Wrapping them in my aura, I pulled free a small stack of postcards. I’d picked them up in Manehattan when I thought I’d be working there for the musical theater. They would serve much better as an excuse for Trixie to stay in touch—provided I don’t find a way to get her to stay, that is.

Speaking of getting her to stay, I had to hurry if I wanted to intercept her before she got a mind to take off. That hardheaded mare would take off without a bit to her name should the desire strike her. Best I could figure, that desire struck about ten minutes ago.

I rushed to the stairs as I stuffed the postcards into the satchel. Starting down the stairs, I slowed to a stop. Only five of my friends stood there waiting for me.

“Sorry, Rarity,” Twilight apologized as she stepped to the fore. “We tried to keep her from leaving.”

“What we?” Rainbow Dash objected. “You gave her a bagful of bits.” She pointed at Twilight for emphasis. Then, she pointed at herself. “I said we lock the door and keep her here.”

Twilight rolled her eyes at Dash before turning back to me. “I tried to get her to say where she was going, but she refused.”

Throwing the saddlebags on and tightening the strap, I stepped toward the door. “I have a pretty good idea where.”

“Do you need us to come with you?” Twilight offered just as I got the door open.

I gave my head a good shake. “I have to do this myself. I imagine she would be more willing to listen if I went alone.” Without further ado, I took off, the encouraging words from my friends at my back. 



> Cave
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Breathlessly, I climbed the stairs up the platform. The train station. It was the only place that made sense for Trixie to go to. Unless she decided to hoof it back to those cold streets of Baltimare. I’d never find her if that’s the route she took. 

My head scanned the platform back and forth in the waning light of the setting sun. Many ponies gathered, but none of them wore a fashionable cloak. Did she really plan on walking all the way back in this frigid weather? Just the thought sent a chill down my spine. 

I turned my attention to the ticket booth. Unlike the lazy boor in Baltimare, the ticketmaster met me with a smile. “Hello, Rarity!” he called out as I approached. “Taking another trip already?”

I shook my head. “No, not today,” I told him. “I was just…” I paused, taking a moment to think of a tactful way to broach the subject. However, the time it took me to try to think of a good way brought forth an uncomfortable silence, leaving me with little other option than to be blunt. “Could you possibly tell me if a mare in a stylish cloak bought a ticket for Baltimare a bit ago?”

He put a hoof to his chin. “Well, there was a mare a few minutes ago, but she got pretty upset when I told her that the soonest train headed that way wouldn’t leave here until tomorrow evening. I suggested taking the train up to Manehattan. They’ve got a much bigger station, you see. Thought maybe she could find a sooner train there.”

“So she went to Manehattan?” 

He shrugged. “She bought a ticket, but the train isn’t scheduled to be here for another…” Pausing, he drew up a pocketwatch. “...twenty-three minutes.”

“Thank you so much,” I said. I barely heard some generic reply from him as I turned to search the station again. If Trixie bought a ticket, then she would surely stick around to take the train. But where could she be? Over by the loading platform, ponies stood next to their luggage and occupied the few benches there. 

Trixie wouldn’t be there. Not in a crowd. She would find a place nearby where she wouldn’t draw any attention to herself. Turning away from the swathes of warm light, I looked closer at the long, dark shadows. It took several minutes, but I finally found her on the edge of the platform behind the souvenir stand. 

Somehow, she’d managed to find the one secluded spot not shrouded in shadows. The red light of dusk illuminated what little I could see of her face as she watched the sun set. Try as I may, I couldn’t gauge her expression with her eyes hidden behind the cloak. 

I decided to play it as gently as I could. There were twenty minutes or so still left to win her over, but if I pushed too hard she wouldn’t hear anything I have to say until well after the train left. Plodding over, I sat next to her and set my own gaze out over the serene view of Ponyville. 

“It’s absolutely beautiful, isn’t it?” I chanced a glance over to find Trixie’s gaze locked on the town before us. 

“I guess,” she simply replied. 

Her lackluster response wasn’t exactly encouraging, but at least she didn’t ignore me or lash out. “Do you not like sunsets?” I asked, again keeping the conversation completely benign. 

“Not really.”

“Are you waiting for Luna to bring the night, then?”

Trixie scoffed. “I hate the night.”

I shuffled a bit, the saddlebags weighing heavier on my back than they should have. “Why wouldn’t you like the night? The stars and moon are always so dazzling. Perhaps even more gorgeous than the most colorful of sunsets.”

Trixie sighed. Then, she finally looked over at me. In the dwindling light, I could just catch the shine of her eyes behind the hood. “Nights are lonely,” she said. “It's when all my fans go home to their friends and families. When the sound of applause is nothing more than a memory.” She sighed again, turning away from me. “A distant memory.”

Tentatively, I reached out, placing my hoof on Trixie’s. “You don't have to be alone anymore. You have a friend right here. There’s no need for you to go gallivanting all over the planet looking for a place to call home.”

Ripping her hoof away from mine, Trixie scootched away from me. “No. You’re wrong.”

“Trixie, I am your friend,” I nearly shouted as I pressed a hoof to my chest. Tempering my voice and tone I added, “Even if you don't see me that way.”

“That’s not—” Trixie sighed. “I’m not looking for a home. The endless road beneath the wide open skies is my home. It’s the home I was born into—the only home I know.” She turned her head away from me. “I don’t need a home. I need my old life back.”

I turned my gaze to the setting sun. It’s blinding light a mere shadow of the warmth it emanated previously. “Have you forgotten already how the fire burns?” I asked. “I suppose it’s something easy, in these dark, cold days.”

“What the hay are you talking about?”

“Have you really forgotten your folly that landed you in that frigid, filthy alley in Baltimare? And here you are, chomping at the bit to do it all over again!” I took a deep breath, doing my best to temper my emotions. “Why are you so eager to go back to the same life that already ended so terribly for you once?”

A throaty chuckle left Trixie’s lips. Then she laughed. She was laughing! “What’s so funny?” I demanded. 

Shaking her head, Trixie stifled her laughter. “Once, you said. Did you really think that I’ve only been burned once? I know every bit as well as you do that I’ll probably end up getting hurt again. Maybe it won’t be as bad next time. Maybe it’ll be worse.”

“I don’t… please help me to understand why you’re so eager to leave safety and security for what you know will end badly?” I asked, almost begging for some insight into that thick skull of her’s.

“There isn’t anything for me here. There never will be.”

“I’m here,” I reminded her. “Granted, I may have made a couple of… stumblings since we met, but surely you don’t hate me?”

She glanced over, giving me a glimpse into her cool, violet eyes. “No. And I don’t want to give that a chance to change, either.” Casting her gaze away from me, she met the horizon just as the sun dipped below it. In but a moment, the light of the moon overthrew the last light of day.

“Don’t tell me that you’re afraid of growing closer to somepony, or are you thinking…?”

“I won’t give you another chance to betray me,” Trixie coolly replied. 

The fresh memory of me calling my friends in and exposing Trixie against her will flashed through my mind. “Is there really nothing I can say to make you change your mind? You’re just going to get hurt again. You know that.”

“I’ll get hurt here or there.” Sighing, Trixie turned her gaze to the stars above, inadvertently allowing her hood to fall back across her shoulders. I could finally see her expression. It was something akin to blazing anger. No, not anger. Determination. That same look Rainbow Dash had when she flew down to save me from falling to my doom. “The only difference is that over there, I have a chance to reclaim my old life. I have to go for it, no matter how slim the odds. I won’t give up on my dreams so easily.”

It was hard coming up with a retort to that. It’s not as though I didn’t want her to pursue her dreams. I just wanted her to find them without having to suffer so much again. And, I suppose, there was a small, selfish part of me that simply didn’t wish to see her go. “But why do you have to go so far to chase them? Why not start over a little closer to home?”

Turning back to me, Trixie raised an eyebrow. “Did you ever even pay attention to what it is I do?”

“You… uh, you do tricks. On stage,” I said, pointing at her.

“I deceive ponies,” Trixie replied. “I make myself look good with smoke and mirrors and little tricks. I lie to them and make myself seem beyond amazing.” She let out a bitter chuckle. “The same things Twilight did to save me from the Alicorn amulet.”

“I suppose that’s quite the… dire way to look at it,” I replied. “But what does that have to do with you leaving Equestria?”

“Tch.” Trixie scoffed. “And here I thought you were smarter than that. A lie only works if the audience is unaware of the truth.” Her gaze fell to the wood beneath her hooves as she sighed. “There isn’t anypony in Equestria that doesn’t know the truth about me.”

“Is there really nothing I can say to make you change your mind?” I blurted out the thought plaguing my mind. 

Trixie shook her head. “I’m going to go and live my life on my terms, and I’m not about to let anypony stop me. And I’m certainly not about to give you any more chances to throw me to the wolves.”

Her words tore at my conscience. “I-I know that I shouldn’t have pushed so hard. I truly am sorry that I exposed you to my friends against your will like that. It was… a mistake.”

“No. It wasn’t.” I was about to argue with her that it was, but Trixie kept talking. “A mistake is a fluke. Something that wasn’t supposed to happen. Something that shouldn’t happen again.”

I sighed, filling the silence as I organized my thoughts. “I will admit that, perhaps, my judgement then was rather poor. But I—”

“Will do it again. So, I’m going to leave before you get the chance,” Trixie said, cutting me off. A slight lean forward, and Trixie stood. A deft sweep of magic pulled her hood up over her head. “I plan on leaving with the memory of a cantankerous, yet generous, mare, rather than another knife in my back.”

I let the cantankerous comment roll off my back with no small amount of effort. The thing I couldn’t let slide was that she truly thought that, after all of this, that I would still try to, somehow, take advantage of her. “Now you wait just a moment,” I said, stepping in her way and refusing to allow her to pass. “How can you possibly think that after all that has happened, that I would somehow betray you?”

Trixie met me with an icy stare. “You already did.”

Finding my lips suddenly dry, I tried to find words to ameliorate my hasty actions taken in anger. “I… Trixie…”

“I trusted you,” Trixie said as she brushed by me. The sound of a distant whistle caught my ear as I spun around after Trixie. She still hung back away from the crowd as they mulled their way to the edge of the platform. I stepped up next to her, and she must’ve sensed my presence. “I should’ve known better,” she said, her gaze blindly staring out at the platform. 

“No, I should’ve been a better friend. And I can be, if you’ll just let me,” I said, not bothering to hide the begging tone in my voice. “Just give it a few days. I promise if you stay you’ll see.”

“I’ve seen where that road goes,” Trixie replied. She shook her head. “I’m not going down it again. I’m moving forward. Moving on.” Turning, she set her steely violet eyes on me from beneath the hood. “And there’s no way I’m letting anypony stop me. The only place I’m going to achieve my dreams and be who I’m meant to be is beyond the ocean. You can bet all your shiny clothes and bits that I’ll get there, or die trying.”

Circles. Our conversations just kept landing us in the same place time after time. Trixie truly believed that her only hope for happiness was someplace far, far away that surely only existed in her mind. Why was she so blind to what was right in front of her? I could see it. How her eyes shone as she saw the cloak for the first time. The way she smiled as she tried on all the different, horrible, outfits. She could be so happy, right here in Ponyville. Instead, she could only see some utopia in her imagination that lured her astray like a siren’s song. 

She would end up smashed upon the rocks, tattered and torn. I just knew it.

As the train appeared on the horizon, chugging toward the station, I spoke plainly, “Is there really nothing I can say to sway you? Nothing I can do to even make you consider something else?” 

Her silence as she watched the train approach was all the answer I needed. Breathing out a bitter sigh of resignation, I reached out with my magic to find the buckles securing the saddlebags to my back. Setting them free, I floated them over to Trixie, placing them on her back.

Trixie turned back to look at the saddlebags. “What are you…?”

“A lady is always prepared,” I said, pressing a hoof to my chest. “I feared that I may not be able to change that stubborn mind of yours, so I prepared this.” A flick of magic, and I secured the saddlebags on Trixie’s back, tight enough to stay in place, but not so tight that they might ruffle her cloak. “Now, I don’t know if you’re proficient with a needle or not, but I’ve prepared just about everything you might need to repair your cloak, should anything unseemly happen to it. I even included some gemstones in case you decide that you want to add a touch of flair to it.”

“I… you’ve already done more than enough to repay your debt,” Trixie replied, turning her gaze back to the train as it slowed to a stop. A hiss sounded, and the doors opened with a mechanical thunk. 

I shook my head. “This was never about any debts. I would have helped you back in Baltimare, had I the means there.” Reaching out, I placed my hoof on her shoulder. “I want you to succeed. I want you to be happy. And that… that’s why I don’t want you to go. I just—there’s this terrible feeling deep inside me that’s just screaming that this is a mistake. You going is a mistake.”

Trixie shuffled a bit, adjusting the saddlebags. “It’s a choice, not a mistake.”

“Then it’s the wrong choice,” I quickly replied. 

Sighing, Trixie shrugged my hoof off and stepped away. “It’s the only choice I have.” She took a step toward the train. Then another, and another.

A panic welled up in me as Trixie began to walk away. This was it. If she got on that train, there would be no stopping her. The sense of dread in my chest redoubled as the thought that I may never see her again flitted through my mind. “No, it’s not. You could stay!” I shouted over the growing din of the throng of passengers getting on and off the train.

She stopped, but she didn’t turn back toward me. “I won’t.” 

“Why! Because of me?”

Trixie’s form vanished into the crowd. The cacophonous chatter muted any reply Trixie may have made, but I swear I heard one word above the rest. Trixie’s voice echoed on the wind, “Yes.”

It was but a simple word, but it still cut me to my core. I just stood there, unable to will my hooves to go after Trixie or turn around and leave. My legs stood statue-still until well after the conductor made the last call and the doors closed.

One mistake. Is that all it really took to derail a budding friendship? Is that all it took to send a stubborn, yet goodhearted, mare off to an assured ruin? By Trixie’s standard, it wasn’t even a mistake. It was just a bad decision. A stupid, selfish decision made in the heat of the moment. 

It dawned on me. That really is all it takes. A single, misguided action. Something so insignificant somehow possessed the power to do so much harm. After all, isn’t that what Trixie did with the Alicorn amulet? What I did with that dark magic Spike brought me? And now, my snap decision threatened to throw Trixie’s life into ruin again. It pushed her away and compelled her to make another bad decision of her own. 

A piercing whistle, and the train began to lumber down the tracks.

And now… it was too late to stop her. 

Just as I hung my head in defeat, I felt a hoof softly press against my shoulder. My heart skipped a beat. Hoping that Trixie had changed her mind at the last moment, I turned with an expectant smile. Instead of Trixie, I found Twilight giving me a sad smile. Again, my hopes crashed down around me. Only, this time, I didn’t bother putting on a brave face. I let my emotions overflow as my breath caught in my throat.

“I couldn’t stop her!” I cried, throwing myself into Twilight’s embrace. 

To her credit, Twilight was quick to wrap her hooves around and rub my back. “Don’t take it so hard, Rarity,” she softly said. “I know that you wanted her stay, but I’m sure she’ll be just fine carving out a new life for herself.”

As the wave of emotions ebbed away, I struggled to choke back my unseemly sobs. “I just… I-I have this terrible feeling that she’s going to wind up even worse off.” I shook my head, staining Twilight’s shoulder with my mascara-laced tears. “And it’s all my fault.”

A tugging pulled me back and I found myself face-to-face with a rather stern Twilight. “This was Trixie’s decision, not yours. She knows full-well what she is doing and it is her choice to make. In fact, I’m sure she made her mind long before she even met you what she wanted to do with her life.”

Sniffling, I tugged at the corners of my eyes. “But it’s the wrong choice! And I tried so very hard to get her to realize that.. and just-just one misstep on my part completely ruined the whole thing,” I said, hanging my head.

“Hey,” Twilight said, her hoof slipping under my chin and coaxing my gaze to meet hers, “you should know better than anypony how hardheaded Trixie can be. I don’t know that there was anything anypony could’ve done to change her mind after it’s been made up.”

My eyes flitted to the side, shying away from Twilight’s intense stare. “I suppose…”

“And how can you think Trixie won’t do well? Weren’t you just telling us how earnest and kind she was deep down inside? I’m sure she’ll use the lessons we’ve taught her here to finally find her place in the world.”

“Yes, and without me in it,” I said, getting up just to turn my back to Twilight and sit back down.

For a moment, I thought perhaps I had put an end to Twilight’s efforts to mollify my mistake, but then I heard her hooves knock on the wooden platform as she came over and sat by me. “Is that what this is about?” She asked, placing a wing over my shoulders.

“I… I failed in every way imaginable,” I confessed. “I couldn’t make her see that she was making a mistake. I couldn’t make her see that she could be happy right here. And I couldn’t even make her my friend.”

“Rarity…”

“What’s wrong with me!” I snapped back at Twilight, finally looking up at her. “Why couldn’t I make her my friend? Pinkie and Dash made amends with Gilda. You went back and made up with Moondancer. Then Applejack rekindled her old friendship with Coloratura. Fluttershy and Discord… even Starlight and her fillyhood friend…” I grit my teeth as I closed my eyes, sending a pair of hot tears down my cheeks. “Why couldn’t I do the same? Even when it really mattered, I couldn’t make her my friend. Just because of one, stupid decision…”

Again, I felt Twilight pull me into a hug. “Maybe, just maybe, you missed your chance this time, but that doesn’t mean that you won’t get another. If you really made all that effort to get through to her, then I’m certain that, when she finds her way back to Equestria, she’ll find you.”

“And if she decides to never return to Equestria?” 

“W-well, then maybe you’ll take a trip one day and find her yourself,” Twilight replied. “The point is that, when it comes to friendship, it’s never too late.”

I couldn’t keep on going with this song and dance. Twilight just wasn’t getting it that this was the only opportunity I had to get through to Trixie. That, even though I considered Trixie my friend, there was too much doubt in her heart to even consider the idea of a friend. 

I didn’t dare speak of how desperate Trixie sounded or the conviction in her voice as she asserted that a life short of the one she had before coming to Ponyville wasn’t worth having. That she would succeed or die trying. And either of those would keep her from gracing Ponyville ever again. The only hope I had of ever even hearing from her again were the postcards I left in those saddlebags.

And not one of them ever came.