Trixie's Redemption: From Cinders and Flame

Trixie spoke no further as her and Twilight trotted to the library, their soft hoof falls making deliberate, rhythmic clacks along the stone pathway leading from the Everfree Forest's single path to Ponyville. The cyan mare slowed as she looked to the sky. Her sigh was heard by Twilight, who matched Trixie's speed and slid closer."Trixie...you have to relax...we have so much time to find a permanent solution. You can't be so...hopeless about this..."

"I-I don't fear that, Twilight..." Trixie stopped completely, pointing to the sky.

"Huh, what are you...oh." Twilight gazed up, scrunching her muzzle as she watched Dash. She was on her back, snickering as the other Trixie twisted and soared next to her.

Trixie looked on, her breathing distant and heavy, as if holding back tears."I shouldn't be sad...it's not even my Dashie...but she knows....she knows everything my Dash did...does...is my world even real? What happened to my Dash...is she gone?"

Twilight sighed, waving Trixie to continue trotting home."From what I understand...your world was a splintered universe from which reality had been slightly altered. When you fixed everything, Dash's memories of you were erased. She's still your Dash...she just...didn't know it." She went silent as she looked back, ears drooped as they reached the Library."Get some rest...ok?" She cooed, trying to comfort the mare as best she could.

Trixie mindlessly made her way upstairs, slumping against Twilight' soft bed. Her face dug lightly into the pillow case, nuzzling it softly. It wasn't like a cloud, much more tangible, but stiffer. Her mane frayed softly as she rolled onto her back, hooves curled as she sniffed, looking out the window."I-I love you, Dashie..."

She blinked, waking up as a soft knocking came to the door downstairs. Trixie slid down from the covers, horn glowing as she cloaked herself with a weak invisibility spell. Her gaze came over Twilight as she went to answer the door, smiling softly, allowing Luna inside.

"Princess...I'm glad you came. I would have told you to come with us when we left the Forest, but I didn't realizing that she would have fallen asleep so quickly." Twilight gave a soft grin, which quickly morphed into the frown Luna had worn since her arrival."Please...sit."

Luna nodded, smiling faintly as she exposed a book to the violet Unicorn."It may be a stretch...when you sent me that note a mere hour after we separated from Zecora's...I was quite confused. I suppose, however, that any hope is worth trying. This is the book, yes?"

Twilight nodded, looking it over."Yes. Would you be willing to stay here and help me? If Trixie knew...well...then we may not many options." The mare looked quite grim as she looked towards the bedroom that Trixie was, unknowingly to them, watching. Silence fell as they began reading, giving Trixie no use but to withdraw to bed. What could she do, since nothing could help more than allowing them to research uninterrupted. Trixie knew she was too weak to do much other than sleep.

It was a deep, long sleep. The first she'd had in a long while. She wondered if she regretted giving this world's Trixie and Dash their memories. How could she, Dash was happy, that's all that mattered. She touched down within her dreams, looking much like the abyss she had been condemned to after reverting the world to normal. Her eyes squinted as she tried to take everything in, the light blinding her slightly as she slumped onto her flank.

"H-Hello?!" She cried out, trying to find something of substance to latch onto. Nothing...emptiness. She bit her lip, looking down at her hooves as she whimpered."I-I really am alone..."

"Trixie?" A soft, diluted voice echoed out behind the unicorn.

Her breath caught in her throat as she widened her eyes, spinning."D-Dash?" she whimpered, bursting forward and clutching the mare sitting behind her.

"Shh...it's okay." She whispered to the mare, petting along the back of Trixie'a neck as the unicorn sobbed weakly into Dash's chest. The showmare winced lightly as the Pegasus engulfed her in those soft wings."Come on...don't cry in front of your marefriend...you'll break my heart~"

Trixie sniffled, nodding weakly as she smiled through the tears."I wish we could really be together...but you...you think I'm somepony else."

Her hooves shook lightly as Dash gripped them, looking into Trixie's eyes with her own rose irises."Babe...I love you...and I'll know the real Trixie when I see her...hmm?" She hummed lightly, swinging the other's hooves softly as she smiled."Trixie...don't let me get away...wake up..."

"Wake...up?" She smirked, humming with Dash.

"Wake...up..." She pulled a hoof back, cocking it.

"D-Dashie?"

"Wake up!" She slung her hoof forward, socking Trixie in the nose. She jolted up in bed, swatting at the air as she screamed."DASHIE!" The cyan mare huffed, looking around nervously."Huh...wha?" she winced, gripping her nose as it bled.

Twilight roughly gripped the mare by the hoof, dragging her to the ground next to the bed as an explosion shook the library. Bits of tree and timber splintered at them as they flinched."T-Trixie...please...don't talk. I'm sorry, but we don't have time...there are thousands of them!" She whimpered, shivering as Luna tried to make her magic work. She shuttered, her teleportation spell backfiring and making her drop down and ram her head against the floor. She winced, spitting a bit of blood and rushing upstairs to the others.

"My magic isn't working...they must be jamming it somehow." She poked her head out the freshly cracked window. As Twilight and Trixie did the same, their hearts sunk. Hundreds, thousands of changelings destroying everything."W-We should have expected retaliation..." They pulled back as a heavy crash came at the front door.

The three winced, pressing their flanks to the far wall and watching as a changeling trotted in slowly, blinking as it glared at the three. Luna defensively lifted her front hooves, shaking lightly as they just looked at the creature. It got closer, then halted as it glanced at Luna. A vertical scar ran along the creature's face."I-It's the one I fought in Canterlot...I..." She gulped, worried it would hold a grudge after she had killed it's friend.

It hissed before backing up, slowly turning and leaving. They sat in the dark, god rays shining through the cracks and holes left from the initial attack. They tried to block out the scream and groans of ponies, knowing that two magically deprived unicorns and an alicorn couldn't possibly stand against the sheer numbers they had. It was an agonizing hour before everything fell silent. Luna could feel her magic returning to her as she lightly glanced outside. They were gone.

The three rushed outside, hastily trying to find their friends and neighbors. Twilight scampered to Sweet Apple Acres, smiling faintly as she heard the weak groan of a pink mare."Luna...you have wings, fly to Sweet Apple Acres and make sure Applejack is alright!" She huffed, using her magic to move a pylon that had pinned Pinkie's hind legs. She winced, gripping the earth pony's hoof and dragging her free from the rubble.

Trixie began racing towards Rarity's boutique, charging her head into the door and blasting the door in weakly. The side was completely collapsed, but for some reason, the side where Rarity's dresses sat were untouched. The unicorn rounded the corner, yelping and falling back as a burst of magic narrowly missed her head. Rarity was a mess, scratched all along her coat as she snarled, quickly softening as she noticed she was about to attack a pony."Trixie!?" She blinked, tapping a hoof on the ground and removing a force field around her dress station and fabric room.

"Rarity...how did you do that during the attack...Twilight and Luna didn't have any magic!"

She snickered lightly, tapping a necklace she wore around her neck."It stopped magic, darling, not enchantments. Twilight should have tried one of her backup rings...I made one for her a while back." She stomped hard on a panel next to the door, opening the latch and pulling Sweetie Belle to her hooves." You can go check on the others...I have to make sure my kin are alright, dear." She tussled her sister's mane, smiling hesitantly.

Luna skidded to the gate of Sweet Apple Acres, panting weakly as she opened the gate and galloped as hard as she could. Rows of the farm were aflame, broken branches sizzling with a green slime. The front porch was sunken and splintered hard next to a large burn mark that threatened to collapse the front wall. As she went to enter the home, she flinched as the door opened."Changeling!" She gasped, tensing up and bracing herself for an attack.

It stumbled out of the house, hooves shaking as it went to lift itself up. A short hiss was all it let out as a baseball bat roughly whacked it in the side of the head. Chipping a tooth, it sunk to the ground, Applejack heading out from behind and rolling it over."Little bugger is out cold...but alive. Ah reckon you'd wanna speak to it?" She smirked, clicking her tongue against the roof of her mouth as she looked over the front of her house."My kin are alright...Big Mac broke a hind leg when the porch collapsed, but we fixed'm up good."

"We will have a crew of unicorns to tend to the wounded within the hour. Please bring him once Canterlot comes to deal with the damage." The princess grinned lightly, jumping into the air and taking off towards town again.

The mane six, AJ, Shy, and Dash excluded, were near the center of town. Twilight had found a medical kit in the town center, which she was using to mend Pinkie's cuts and bruises. Twilight tried to keep a smile, but every time it faltered, Pinkie was there to lighten the mood."T-Twilight?" Pinkie let out weakly.

"Hmm?" Twilight let out as she covered Pinkie's left eyes with gauze.

"Do you think this makes me look like a funky pirate, or a sweet ninja!?" She grinned, wincing as she tried to flex.

"I think you look like a mare that's lucky to survive a building caving in on her!" Twilight tried to frown, but the in bashful smile Pinkie gave her made the unicorn and Trixie snicker.

The cyan unicorn hummed lightly, giving Sweetie Belle a bandage on her nose."Now, Sweetie Belle, don't go running into buildings with your sister, ok? Your magic is still developing!" She patted the mare's head as Sweetie nodded lightly, scrunching her muzzle to look at her 'battle scar' as she rushed to Scootaloo, who began rushing to Sweet Apple Acres in search for Applebloom.

Luna went to smile before a cry went off behind her."W-WHAT HAPPENED!" Rainbow Dash cried out, dropping her Trixie onto the ground next to Fluttershy, who was trotting along side Dash in the air. The Pegasus rushed to the center, looking at all the burning buildings and rubble, as well as the hundred or so ponies tending to their wounded.

"Rainbow..." Twilight let out, looking between the Trixies, then to Dash."The changelings..they attacked this morning. Where were you?"

"Fluttershy, Trixie, and I were at the cottage. Where's AJ?" She went to turn and look towards the farm when she winced. Two Trixies, who were now looking at each other."WHA...C-CHANGELING?!"

Luna approached the three, shaking her head."We have some things to speak of..."