Blood Boil

The day outside was a glorious one. The sun was shining, splashing the lush, green flowing hills with sunlight and warmth. The air was cool, clear and refreshing, and the clouds were puffy white and dancing in the sky. It was a paradise of relaxation and tranquility. The perfect place for any pony to relax, and get away from it all under normal circumstances. Unfortunately for Twilight, the circumstances were anything but normal.

She’d awoken in a bed with soft downy blankets and cushy comforting pillows surrounding her. The window was open, and a fresh breeze drifted through the room. A bedroom. An unfamiliar, but very a quaint little bedroom. There was a vanity mirror and a dresser, a book shelf and a desk. Nothing outstanding or surprising. Nothing sinister or devilish. It was just a cozy little bedroom, with a very confused occupant who only grew more confused when the door to the bed room swung open, and Trixie herself cheerfully trotted in.

“Oh! You’re awake! Good morning Twilight! Did you sleep well? I have breakfast cooking in the kitchen, and it won’t be long at all. Just a minute or two!” Trixie explained with a glittering smile. Twilight stared. This could not be happening.

“Trixie?” she asked. Her voice was oddly hoarse. Trixie tipped her head towards Twilight and nodded.

“Yes? Is there anything I can get for you? Water? Some apple juice? Oh, no, wait. I bet you’re an orange juice kinda mare? I have that too!” Trixie exclaimed before happily scampering off into the kitchen, leaving Twilight alone with her thoughts. Very, very confused thoughts.

A few scant minutes had drifted by before Twilight summoned the courage and mental resolve to figure out what was actually going on. She couldn’t for the life of her explain the situation—and Trixie was the only pony that was capable of doing so.

Just like the bedroom, the entire cottage was quaint and cozy. There was a tiny stove, a tiny table, a tiny bookshelf and a tiny everything. It was so perfectly picturesque, Twilight wondered if she’d somehow gotten transported into a painting. And there in the midst of it all was Trixie, humming a happy little tune (smile smile smile) swaying her hind quarters back and forth, and cooking something that smelled absolutely utterly fantastic.

The blue filly turned, and regarded Twilight with a loving smile, and gestured, quietly towards the table, where Twilight found herself slowly taking a seat. This was very, very odd. Very, very, VERY odd, but Twilight had to admit, there were worse ways to wake up after being kidnapped. She didn’t sense any immediate danger. No specific threats or harm that would befall her here. It almost seemed like everything was set up to be as calming as possible, and Twilight had to admit- it was working.

Finally, Trixie turned towards Twilight and presented breakfast. Eggs (scrambled) with a fresh batch of hash browns, cinnamon apples, freshly picked fruit, and French toast, all surrounded by juicy looking berries, and a frosty glass of orange juice next to it. Twilight looked astonished, while Trixie blushed violently and sat down across from the other unicorn, offering the plate of scrumptious smelling food towards the mare.

“Yes, Trixie is WELL aware that cooking is probably not the first of her many talents that you think of when you see her…but every pony needs a hobby, right?” She chuckled impishly, but for all that Twilight could detect the other pony was truly showing genuine humility. The day was only getting weirder. And Twilight, whom had been holding back all of her questions, found she could hold them back for a few moments longer, with the delicious plate of food in front of her. For some reason she was absolutely famished, and her eyes lit up like stars when she gave in to the craving for a bite. It could have been poisoned, or laced with magic or some other such atrocity, but that didn’t make any sense. Why would Trixie go through all the trouble to kidnap her, just to poison her somewhere else?

No no no, it wasn’t a trap of any sort, but after Twilight had taken that first bite, she knew she’d made a mistake. The food was amazingly, impossibly, indescribably MAGNIFICENT! It made her tremble where she sat, and her tongue break out into song. It was the most marvelous thing she’d ever tasted and the moment it touched her lips she couldn’t put her fork down until it was finished. All the while Trixie watched with eager eyes and a shy smile twisting about her features.

“…Trixie has never cooked for others before….Um…” she stammered, but Twilight cut her off the moment she realized what she was getting at.

“It’s AMAZING. I-It’s the most amazing thing I have EVER tasted! You should be a chef instead of a magician!“ Twilight found herself stammering. The praise just couldn’t be helped. It was VERY well deserved and she smiled softly at Trixie’s renewed blush.

“Well, Trixie was always taught to be a very inviting house guest…so …anyway. I wanted to talk, Twilight. Um, away from all of the other ponies, just us to just, put everything into perspective and get it all out in the open. Clear everything up. “ Trixie explained quietly. Now this was a shock—another one that Twilight didn’t expect and something that had garnered her full attention. Was THAT what this was all about? Something that happened months ago?! And suddenly, Twilight was utterly and horribly furious.

“What?! Clear the AIR?! Are you talking about that stupid Ursa Minor thing?! Is THAT what this is about?! Something that happened MONTHS ago? Are you seri- Are you completely and totally insane?! Really? Did you honestly hold a grudge this long?! You know there are BETTER ways to talk about your little problems than to kidnap somepony in the middle of the night!” Twilight snarled. Trixie simply nodded her head, not reacting in the slightest to Twilight’s outburst.

“Yes. Actually. It was too important to risk this on you denying an audience. You see, Twilight, Trixie comes from a small family. Moderate and modest. Two brothers, twins, Hocus and Pocus, and a sister, Jinxx. We weren’t rich, but, my parents owned a little magic shop that was doing alright for itself and we were happy. So one night, the family is discussing Princess Celestia’s school for gifted unicorns. Trixie is sure you’ve heard of it. Nice school if you can get in but very expensive. We had no money for tuition of course, but there were always the rumors of Princess Celestia looking for a personal student to tutor. One shot. One chance. One pony. You show the judges what you can do, and they look at your scores. High marks, get a nod for a chance at a scholarship next year, the highest marks get taken directly to the princess herself. I promised my family I would win, Twilight. I promised I would be the first in our family to go to this school, and graduate, and be the most amazing magician the world had ever seen! And do you know what? Trixie passed with flying colors. They were speechless—stunned by Trixie’s power! So stunned that Trixie’s parents received a personal visit from Princess Celestia herself! Raw, magical talent that had the potential to be something wonderful, is what Princess Celestia said. Trixie was sure this was going to be the beginning of a new and better life for everypony in her family! I was a shoe-in for the win, at least I would have been…should have been. One of the last ponies to take the exam that day, there were only two left. And one of them was you,” Trixie hissed darkly, slowly drawing herself to her hooves to walk around the table, while Twilight sat, listening with her mouth agape.

“You know what happened next. The rainbow. The egg. Princess Celestia forgetting all about Trixie and her family. There was only room for one in her heart, and you shoved your way right in, didn’t you, Twilight?” Trixie snarled. “So…Trixie lost her spot in the school. You…took Trixie’s spot in the school. Her heart was shattered and her family was crushed; hopes and dreams all popped like a bubble. But Trixie promised. She would be the shining star of her family. She promised her mother, and her father, and her siblings. She. PROMISED. So Trixie left. I grabbed my things- a pocketful of magic tricks, and I hit the road. Eventually, after years and years of perfecting Trixie’s magic show, she returned to Ponyville and guess, who, she, found," Trixie snarled, her voice turning raw and savage.

“Do you have ANY idea how hard Trixie had to work to get that wagon?! Those tricks, those props?! Every penny Trixie didn’t send to her family was spent on Trixie’s magic show! First step, enter town, and let ‘em know who’s boss! You secure your audience, and you pump yourself up, Twilight. And if there are any neigh-sayers in the audience, you shoot them down! And once everypony knows you’re the real deal, you sell what you can and then move on to the next town. That’s how show business WORKS Twilight. That is how you make money for your family. That is how Trixie used to conduct business, but she lost everything when you and your stupid friends ruined my life. AGAIN.“ The blue unicorn snapped.

It was all different than Twilight had expected. Everything she was telling her, everything from Trixie’s side of the story seemed so sad and bleak…and regardless of what little she did- Twilight couldn’t help but feel a tinge of responsibility.

“Trixie I-" she began, but Trixie held up a hoof, smiling the way she had done before. Something had changed, however. Her smile was icy and cold.

“No. No. Trixie does not want your pity. Trixie just wants your understanding," the blue mare explained, and Twilight nodded her head. It wasn’t anger in her heart she felt anymore. Not towards Trixie. It was all just an unfortunate misunderstanding. She was almost happy that Trixie had offered her this chance to talk now. To straighten things out and try and make amends. They could very well be friends if she played her cards right!

Trixie smiled softly, and reached an arm out, gently wrapping it around Twilight’s shoulders, sending the poor unicorn further into dizzying confusion, further complimented by Trixie’s horn, that brushed gently, and ever so slightly against Twilights. It was an incredibly intimate act for unicorns to do such, and Twilight felt her cheeks immediately spark to life with a flush of crimson at the contact.

“W, wha?” She stammered, but Trixie lifted a hoof to silence her, and shook her head. As cheerful as the atmosphere was, and the cottage and breakfast had been, Twilight was suddenly feeling uncomfortable.

“Well, now that our little talk is out of the way, Trixie is going to let you in on a little secret, Twilight. You’re not as powerful as you think you are. Everything special about you came out of a book. I brought you here to fix you, Twilight Sparkle. To teach you some humility, take my rightful place at Princess Celestia’s side and most of all…listen to you scream,” Trixie whispered, delighted as Twilight’s eyes went wide.