> Home > by RarityEQM > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- > And Heart > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Trixie trudged through the rain. Thick, icy sheets of the stuff that showered down around her while the occasional arc of lightning bit through the sky. Still, she pressed on, forcing her drenched hooves to find purchase in the cold mud. In tow, she dragged the remains of her beautiful wagon, her livelihood, her life, her soul, all of it clattering and rattling around behind her. Periodically, the burden grew ever so slightly lighter when a chunk of splintered wood fell crashing into the muck, and Trixie would have to turn around to retrieve it. She did not relish those periods of time. Every moment she spent collecting pieces of debris was a second longer she was out in the sludge and rain and every second she was there saw her misery grow and flourish. She had tried to hold out as long as she could on the road, but the storm had driven her into movement. The wind smashed against her home, and the rain sundered it mercilessly. Somehow, her tiny little wagon had made Mother Nature angry, and it lashed at her sad little life with a great and terrible power. Still, she forced herself forward. One hoof after the next, fighting for each soggy step. If she let herself stop, she wouldn't be able to start again. The gleaming drops of silver were heavy, and each one that disappeared into her mane brought with it a weight she didn't know was possible for rain. At some point on her journey, she'd started to cry. There was no particular reason for this, nor was there anything she could do about it. The tears came of their own accord and vanished just as quickly into the angry downpour. Even if she couldn't see, she kept walking. She knew the way by heart. She'd walked the hollow trails of her soul for years now; she knew where this path was taking her. The sadness of the sky knew no comfort, keeping time with her steps as if a companion accompanying her on some long adventure. From the towering skyscrapers in Manehatten to the golden plains of Appleloosa, the rain simply would not let up. Minor pockets of sunlight gave no warmth and only lasted for a few scant hours. Like the sky were starving for every last shred of sunshine it could find and gobbled it up before Trixie could reach it. It didn't take very long until the misery started to pour out of her. The wet fabric of her cape had long since stopped protecting her from the deluge and now clung to her shivering frame. Her hat was a distant memory, taken from her by greedy wind indifferent to her pleas for mercy. She tugged her tattered, sodden cape around her shoulders, and tightened the makeshift knot she'd made after her jeweled clasp had been stolen in the last town. The thunder banged in her ears, and the rain trickled down her neck, searching to cozy right up into her bones. She gave a wheezing cough and drew in a heavy sigh. Pneumonia. Of course, she was getting pneumonia, it was just what she needed to end her trip. It was all so horribly, perfectly miserable, she threw her head back and let out a boisterous cackle. It was the only thing she could do to keep from breaking down into tears completely. It didn't help. And yet, even through the flood of tears and the battering assault of the heavy rain overhead, she spotted a glimpse of salvation. A radiant light ahead of her that was deep purple in color. Raven colored hair, and violet eyes that pierced through her storm of misery right into her. A unicorn, standing in the rain, scouring the drenched landscape with a small black umbrella hovering over her. Twilight Sparkle. When they spotted each other, she did not move. Nor did Trixie. They simply stared in silence before Trixie found herself pitched forward. Her legs were moving on their own. She didn't even realize she'd unhitched herself from her wagon until she was lost in a feverish gallop as if trying to outrun the horror of her life behind her. She crashed into her hope. Her salvation. The dawn to her darkness. Her Twilight. She crashed into her and held tightly, soaking the other pony to the bone. The cold, soggy embrace of Twilight's forelegs was the warmest thing Trixie had felt all day and that warmth sank right into her soul. They stood there for several minutes, while Trixie cried into Twilight's neck. "Bad day?" The purple pony whispered quietly, eyeing the ravaged wagon. She wondered what had happened, but figured Trixie would tell her eventually. Instead, she simply hugged the girl, tugging an errant lock of silver from Trixie's face. The show mare sniffled softly and reached a hoof up to tap at Twilight's cheek, making sure she was real before she shook her head and buried her face back into Twilight's warmth. "Getting better," Trixie whispered in return, choking back a sob. Twilight pecked her on the nose, smiled her quaint, lovely little smile and flaunted a magic that didn't come from her horn. The kind of magic that instantly destroyed every cold memory, and dark thought that swirled around Trixie and filled her to the brim with light. She'd cast a spell consisting of only three little words. "I love you," Twilight purred softly. Fresh tears soaked Trixie's cheeks, and the Twilight pulled from her warm embrace, and pointed her head towards Ponyville, and more importantly, the Library. "Let's go home," she said. Words that Trixie would never get used to hearing. Words that Trixie never wanted to be without. A soaked smile twisted itself across her features. She couldn't help it. She couldn't stop it. It clung there, forced into place by the warmth bursting from her heart and spreading all over her body. Teary-eyed but happy, Trixie sheepishly nodded her head. It was like a dream. A dream that came true. Her dream. Her Twilight. She was home.