Moving the Stars

by FluttersIsAwesome

Rating: everyone
Tags: Romance, Slice of Life
Length: 22354

Trixie's mentor attempts to help her build confidence by teaching her difficult spells. Little do they know that danger is about to come knocking at their door.

Trixie always dreamed of being powerful. She could never wait for the day where her hard work would one day take her to the level she wanted to be at, so she turned to cheating trinkets and showboating. Now that her mentor has decided to turn to spells created by Starswirl the Bearded himself, she begins to build more confidence in herself, as well as develop the power she had always wished for. And she must, as a strange new unicorn makes his appearance, it's up to Astro and Trixie to stand up to him before he destroys all of Canterlot.
Story 2 of the Virtue series

Published 1970-01-01 00:00:00 UTC
Last updated 2013-09-05 03:29:03 UTC

Chapter One: Another Chance

Moving the Stars

Story 2

Chapter 1: Another Chance

By: WriteAnything

It was late; the moon was out and the sky was dark. Despite the beauty of the starlit sky, my knees were shaking as I opened the gates to my mentor’s manor. Each step along the stone walkway to the door was long and slow as I wanted to delay the inevitable as much as I could. Eventually though, I’d have to face him. Images of what my punishment might be ran through my head as I opened the door into the foyer. Oddly, no lights were on, but I knew both my mentor and my way around the manor well enough to know that he had probably ascended the left of the two staircases that greeted visitors when they came in. Using a simply illumination spell, I lit up the interior and made my way up the expensive marble steps. My instructor had way too much money.

Of course, my hunch was correct. He had done just as I’d thought: he’d gone up the stairs on the left, past the first right turn, and onto the balcony outside his massive library. There was no mistaking that ginger mane and green coat. He was leaning on the railings as I made my way to him, looking out at the lake nearby the manor. I just stood there for a moment, somewhat fearful of a pony so powerful, yet so gentle. Astro Stellaris, a record setter. He pushed his name into the history books by becoming the youngest unicorn powerful enough to create his own constellation. He would tell me over and over about all the years he spent practicing and reading and training himself to obtain that power, and as a reward, Princess Celestia gave him a teaching position for instructing gifted unicorns. Of course, he wasn’t good enough to have students like Twilight Sparkle, that little wench.

Quickly pushing the hostile thoughts out of my head, I slowly approached Astro and joined him on the balcony. He spoke calmly, but his Sirish accent still came out quite clearly.

“So, the Alicorn Amulet? Trixie, I’ve warned you about how dangerous an artifact that is, and yet you still chose to use it. And to enslave a town, nonetheless!” The stallion turned to me, a displeased, but not angry expression on his face. Astro didn’t get angry very often, but his disappointment more than made up for this, and the times he did get mad were very frightening. He tapped his hoof impatiently, raising his brow at me. “Well?”

He began to pace around me in circles, and I was still speechless, unable to defend myself or justify my actions. “First this whole ordeal with ‘The Great and Powerful Trixie’, and now this business with the Alicorn Amulet. Trixie, I’m trying to teach you the best I can, but how can I be expected to instruct you when you continually disobey me and go about your own ways?” The green aura of his magic surrounded my starry cape and hat as they were lifted off my body and shredded into pieces. I could do nothing but watch as my mentor and friend turned his back to me. The whole time he had been speaking, I’d been trying to think of something to say. Slowly opening my mouth, I said the only thing I could manage.

“Astro… I’m sorry.” My head hung down, and my ears fell flat. I stared at the scraps of cloth that had made up my performance costume, wondering if this last mistake would truly be my last. Looking up to Astro, I saw that he was facing me again. In fact, he had come closer to me, reaching out and gently patting my shoulder.

“Trixie, I know you want to be powerful, but there’s a reason I keep reminding you of all the trouble I went through to get where I am. I’ve told you before, you’re not too different from that unicorn Celestia herself mentors, but that’s just raw power. Without proper training, you can’t use it, and by lowering yourself to a mere showpony, you are really handicapping yourself.” He made his way around me, drawing my attention to my cutie mark. “You see this? This isn’t something that signifies a simple magician. This cutie mark symbolizes a pony that will become a great spell caster one day.”

Eventually, my gaze fell upon Astro’s mark. The golden crescent moon and three stars stood out like a sore thumb on the green fur. “I know what I’ve done was wrong. It’s just… I couldn’t help it. Please forgive me, I really want to be powerful like you. Powerful like… her.”

For being only a few years older than me, he was surprisingly mature and understanding. The stallion moved up beside, sitting down and making sure I was looking him in the eyes. “Don’t compare yourself to Twilight, lass. The princess has something planned for her, but that doesn’t mean she’s the only unicorn allowed to have strong magic. It will take some time, but I promise that one day you’ll be able to cast spells that you can only dream of right now.” After seeing my rather hopeless expression, he looked up to the starry sky. The constellation he had created was coincidentally right above us, and I stared at it too.

“Tell me something: what did you tell me when I asked you why you wanted to be my student?”

He’d asked me this many times before, but his response to my answer was always different. Looking back to him, I let out a sigh before responding. “I want to be somepony. I want to have the power to do something with my life, and help others. I want to learn all I can about magic and be a splendid unicorn.”

To my surprise, his lips turned up into a small smile as he set one foreleg around my shoulder. “Trixie, you’re more than just my student, you’re my friend. Let’s make a deal, alright? If you can promise to follow my lessons from now on, I’ll start again from the beginning, and up the pace to match what I believe you can handle, deal?”

After a moment of thought, I gave him a quick nod. I had truly expected a hard lecture and a bit of yelling, so this small talking to gave me tremendous relief, as did his offer of another chance. “I promise I will. Besides, it’s not like I can parade around anymore, my stage outfit is kind of… scrapped.”

Astro let out a small chuckle, standing up and nudging me back inside. “Go get some sleep. Tomorrow morning, after breakfast, meet me back in the garden and we’ll begin again.”

I did as he instructed, making my way through the library and to the door on the right. As I made my way to my bed, I found myself thinking about how much this place felt more like a cottage than a manor. I really couldn’t complain, though, as I honestly preferred Astro’s little country mansion as opposed to a big, fancy, fifty-acre fortress. Nestling beneath the starry blanket of my queen-size, I stared through the circular skylight above the pillow. The narwhal of stars was easy to spot among the stars, and my thoughts drifted back to Twilight Sparkle. “One day, I’ll have my own constellation. Then we’ll see who’s more powerful.”

I peeked my head into Trixie’s room after about an hour, making sure she was asleep before I made my way to my study. Deciding the best way to determine exactly how to plan her lessons was to give her a little test, I grabbed a quill, inkwell, and parchment and began to write questions. Trixie was nothing like Celestia’s protégé, and I hated seeing her compare herself to a mare with such inborn talent. She never really excelled when it came to mathematics or science, but when confronted with written or practical applications of magic, I honestly don’t think Trixie realized how above average she truly was.

Each question I wrote was less about academics and more about the mare herself. I made sure to write “Answer each question honestly, I will know if you’re not being sincere” in bold letters at the top, as only completely honest answers would do. Before long, I had half a scroll of questions, and after reading through them decided the answers to these would give me plenty of information to work off of. However, I decided to add a little note at the end. I finished it by cutting the empty area of the scroll off and writing a note to stick on the inside of Trixie’s door. When the note had been planted, I wrote a second to Sapphire, my draconic assistant who, despite being very young, always woke up before Trixie and normally had breakfast ready. Her note was simply to make Trixie a special breakfast for the morning and to give her the test afterward.

It probably wasn’t a good idea not to be there when Trixie woke up, but I had rather urgent business to attend to now, and I know she wouldn’t betoo upset at me.

-*-*-*-

A loud knocking woke me up as I heard the baby dragon through the door.

“Trixie, wake up! I’ve got a special treat for you this morning, and I think you’ll like it!”

Sapphire was always so sweet and upbeat, and hearing her certainly made getting up a lot easier. Of course she knew that I had a morning routine before I came to breakfast, so I proceeded to fix my bed up, brush my mane, and open the curtains for both windows. After I was finished, I approached my door and read through the note stuck to it.

“Dear Trixie, I had to step out for a few hours, so I’ve given you a test to complete while I am gone. Don’t worry, you won’t be graded, I simply want to read through the answers so I can make a suitable lesson plan for you. I’ve instructed Sapphire to make you a special breakfast, so enjoy it.

-Astro”

I let out a small sigh, only imagining what kind of test Astro had made up to punish me with. He always did know what kind of questions to put down to trip me up, and while failing his tests was very rare for me, it did happen, and I was sure this was his way of punishing me for what I had done. However, I was looking forward to the breakfast as I made my way downstairs and behind the staircase into the kitchen. The amazing aroma of Sapphire’s culinary genius made my mouth water, and it only got worse when she brought the plate to the circular dining table next to the window I liked to sit at.

It was a clear morning, and there was plenty of natural light coming in to show off the young dragon’s blue scales and pink spines. She was always a pleasant sight, especially with food. My stomach just couldn’t keep from growling as she set multiple plates before me and uncovered them, naming each dish as she did.

“I thought of the best breakfast I could on such short notice, and I hope you enjoy! Wheatgrass bacon, biscuits battered in butter and baked soft and fluffy, hash browns with sprinkles of pepper like you like, and of course, salted hay fries.” The little dragon gave me a soft smile, sitting in the chair next to me and uncovering her own plate. “And for me, a big stack of ruby and turquoise pancakes. Yummy!” I could help but chuckle as Sapphire dove into her treat, ravenously chomping the gems in her pancakes like they were just as soft as the pancakes themselves.

Luckily, she didn’t make too much of each dish, as it probably would have been too much for me to finish. However, I did finish everything, and enjoyed every single bit of it. After a soft belch, I covered my mouth and a small blush crossed my face. “Heh heh, excuse me. So, Sapphire, where’s this test Astro made up for me?”

The little dragon hopped out of her chair, walking over to the larger dining table in the center of the room and returning with what seemed to be half a scroll, ink, and a quill. “It’s right here! Astro said not to worry, the questions aren’t hard. And he also knew you wouldn’t really believe you weren’t being graded, but once you see the questions, you will.”

As she handed the paper to me, I couldn’t help but roll my eyes. My mentor was known for saying things to try and get me to lower my guard when it came to papers, and I was sure this was no different. That is, until I read his notice. “Answer each question honestly, I’ll know if you weren’t being sincere. Oh, who does he think I am? I may have been conceded and disobedient, but I’m no liar!” Actually, after a moment of thought, I realized that I may have had the smallest habit of fibbing.

Shaking off these thoughts, I went through each question curiously. They weren’t really about things I had learned, but more so things about me, such as what kind of magic I liked, where I wanted to be in ten years, why I wanted Astro to teach me, and things like that. Most of the questions weren’t too terribly difficult to give an honest answer to, until I came down to the last one. I had to read the question twice just to make sure it was really on there. “Are you satisfied with who you are? If not, who would you like to resemble more?” It took a great deal of thought, and swallowing of pride, to write down an honest answer. I even had to say it out loud just so I could write it. “No, I’m not. As much as I hate to admit it, I want to be more like Princess Celestia’s student, Twilight Sparkle. I want the kind of power she has, I want the kind of knowledge she has.” There was also one more thing I thought of before I ended the sentence as well, and as I wrote it, it stung deep down in my heart. “I want the kind of friendship she has.” Before I rolled it up and gave it back to Sapphire, I noticed that there was another section underneath the last question, and I thought I was going to cry as I read it.

“Trixie, I’m giving you this test so I can know you better. I promise you that I’ll do my best to teach you all I know, so that one day you might truly be ‘The Great and Powerful Trixie’. But what I want you to know is that you don’t have to compare yourself to anypony. You are special, just as you are, and I am proud to have you as both a student and friend.”

Normally I’m good at keeping a handle on my emotions, but I couldn’t help but let a few tears fall as I finished reading. Astro’s words really sunk in, and while I began to feel as if I just wasn’t good enough, I also felt a small warmth inside. My teacher was proud of me, even despite my mistakes. I decided to grab my own scroll, and ask advice from the one pony I knew would know just what to say.

“Dear Princess Celestia,

This is Trixie, the pony you had assigned Astro Stellaris to tutor. Right now, I am in urgent need of encouragement. I’ve just completed a test my mentor made for me, and I’ve realized that I simply don’t feel like I’m good enough. That’s why I parade around acting as if I’m something great, because deep down I feel the exact opposite. Those feelings only worsened when I met your student. Witnessing her amazing skill with magic only served to make me envy her, not in just magic, but in her friendships as well. I’m sending this letter to you because I am constantly comparing myself to Twilight Sparkle, and I could truly use a few words of wisdom.

Thank you for your time,

Trixie”

I rolled up the scroll, calling Sapphire back to me and handing it to her. “Sapphire, do you think you could send this to the princess?”

She gave me a quick nod, take the scroll and breathing her magic fire onto it, which sent it straight to Canterlot Castle. “So, did you finish the test?”

It was my turn to nod as I gave it to her, heading back to my room. “Just give it to him when he returns. I will be in my room if either of you need me.” My mind was a mess of emotions, and I couldn’t even pick one out as the most prevalent. I simply nestled down on my bed, pulling out from under it an old teddy bear my mother gave me. The toy was my last memory of her before she disappeared, and it was the only thing I had to comfort me without my teacher being here and Sapphire probably busy with chores. I didn’t want to cry, and I didn’t want to scream in anger. All I wanted to do was close my eyes and try to calm down. However, my pseudo trance was interrupted by a loud belch outside my door as the little dragon opened my door with a scroll in her claw.

“It’s from the princess.”

Taking the scroll, I politely asked Sapphire for some privacy, only opening it after she had left the room and closed the door.

“My dear Trixie,

Every pony in Equestria has their own specific talents, and that’s part of what makes us who we are. If you truly don’t feel as if you are good enough as you are, you don’t need to dream of being somepony else. All it takes to make yourself better is a little hard work and hope. I know more about you than you may realize, and that’s why I chose Astro to be your instructor. Do not think for even a moment that who you are isn’t good enough, and always do your best to make yourself better. I know waiting is difficult, and we all want to see change happen immediately, but things like that take time. I promise you that if you trust in your teacher, and in yourself, and put forth all the effort you can, you will be your own brand of great. I believe in you, and while my faithful student has not been pleased with some of the things you’ve done, she, too, thinks you have a lot of promise.

Always here to help,

Princess Celestia”

So that makes two times today somepony’s words nearly brought me to tears. However, my sentimental moment was interrupted by the gentle, Sirish voice in my doorway.

“Do you get it now, lass?”

I peeked up at him from behind the scroll, setting it down after a moment and making my way over to hug him. I couldn’t help it, I just had to do something, and it was the only think I could think of. “I do get it, and I’m ready to start learning.”

My teacher gave me a small smile, teasingly ruffling my mane. “Good, everything went just as I planned.”

Pushing myself off of him, I raised a brow and stared at him. “Wait, plan?”

He gave me a nod, walking up to one of my windows and looking out at the garden through it. “Yes indeed. I set up everything in order to make you see where your problem actually was. In fact, the reason I was gone is because I went to the castle to pick up a few books from the princess’s personal library, and to speak with her about you. Just as our conversation came to a close, in popped your letter.”

Now I was torn between wanting to hug him again and wanting to kick him. I settled for the former, deciding that what he’d done did cause more good than harm. As I did, he raised a book from out of his saddlebags, holding it before me. Scanning the title, my eyes widened when I realized what it was. “This is… Starswirl the Bearded’s personal spell book! Astro, how did you possibly convince either princess to let you have it?”

The handsome stallion gave a sly grin, looking to the book and then back to me. “Trixie, say hello to your new lesson plan. Everything I’m going to teach you is going to come from these pages.”

My mouth fell open, gaping at his words as I stared at the book. “Are you serious? Do you really think you can teach me any of those spells?”

He gave me a nod, the grin still on his face. “Do you think you have what it takes to learn them?”

It finally dawned on me. Looking up at my teacher, a smile formed on my face as I finally released him from my embrace. “When do we start?”

Chapter Two: That's How It's Done

Moving the Stars

Story 2

Chapter 2: That’s How it’s Done.

By: WriteAnything

The unicorn let out a hardy laugh, setting the book back in his bag. “Now that’s what I like to hear! Meet me out in the garden in an hour, I’ll have everything ready for your first lesson.”

Honestly, this kind of upset me. Of course I was excited to take lessons out of this personal log of one of the greatest unicorns to have ever lived, but what was I supposed to do for an hour? With a sigh and a rolling of the eyes, I trotted past Astro and made my way outside. The more I thought about what was to come, the more I thought about Twilight. I guess Astro couldn’t completely accomplish his goal of getting her out of my head, but this time I was thinking less about my jealousy and more about my lackluster apology.

Ponyville wasn’t too far away from Sireland seeing as how it was closer to the little town than the actual city of Canterlot, and was about a twenty or so minute walk. It was for the best; if I wanted to get over this inferiority complex, I had to first bury my grudge against her. After a heavy sigh, I started on my way to the little town. It was time to finally swallow the fake pride that had welled up in my throat for so long, and I was about to do something that would force me to do just that.

I did a lot of thinking as I made my way. Between trying to think of what to say to Twilight when I arrived and wondering what Astro had planned for me, I actually didn’t realize I was beginning to wander off of the road until a stagecoach passed by me. After I regained my bearings, a chill ran up my spine as I approached the little town of Ponyville. I knew most ponies here still resented me, so if I couldn’t avoid being seen, I did my best to avoid looking at the angry glares and closed my ears to the hateful grumbles. It didn’t take long to find the massive tree library she resided in, and all I could was hope she was home as I knocked on the door.

Sadly, it was her little dragon that answered the door, not her, and he immediately slammed the door in my face when he saw me. It took all I had to remain calm and avoid breaking through the door as I knocked again. “Little dragon? Is Twilight home, I really need to talk to her.”

Rather than being met with an open door, the window on the second floor opened, and the dragon poked his head out, sporting a menacing glare. “You must be really brave or really crazy to show your face around here! As if we’re going to let you in after last time!”

Despite the angry shouts, I still picked up on the nauseatingly sweet voice coming from inside the tree. “Spike? Is someone at the door?”

The dragon turned around and opened his mouth to respond, but was pulled inside before he could speak. The lavender face and tri colored mane replaced him, but the only reaction I could see was a surprised but soft gasp.

“Trixie? What are you doing here? Do you have any idea what some of these ponies will do if they see you?” Oddly, she sound more worried than anything, and the door before me swung open. “Please come in before the wrong pony sees and starts panicking.”

I did as she asked, and it was only a few moments before Twilight descended the stairs to meet me. I couldn’t even manage to look her in the eyes, keeping them focused on the floor as she approached me. “Twilight… I need to talk to you.”

The mare tilted her head curiously, attempting to look me in the eyes. “Is something wrong? You don’t look or sound like you’re doing too well.”

After an audible gulp and a deep breath, I closed my eyes and opened my mouth, hoping something would come out. “I’m sorry for all the trouble I caused. My apology yesterday was… poor, to say the least, and lately I’ve been coming to terms with some things that I tried to pretend weren’t true. Swallowing my pride and coming here to apologize is just one step to doing that, so, again, I’m sorry.”

With a soft smile, she reached her hoof out to me. “Apology accepted.” I stared at the hoof in front of me for a moment before taking it in my own. It felt like a tremendous weight was lifted off my shoulders as we shook, and the relief washed over me like a tidal wave. Except… more calm. “You should be proud, Trixie, I can only imagine how hard this must’ve been for you.”

She took the words right out of my mouth. I’m surprised the words came to me so fluently since I was sure my apology would be slurred and stuttering. “Oh, you have no idea.”

The perky unicorn let out a small chuckle, looking out her window for a moment before turning back to me. “I’m curious, now. Trixie… do you mind if I ask what you mean by things you’re coming to terms with?”

It took a moment of thought, but eventually I figured that it couldn’t hurt to confide in somepony other than Astro or the princess. Right now, Twilight was a kind heart among a sea of hostility, making her the closest thing I had to a friend in this town. I still had to think about how exactly to explain myself, so after everything was sorted out and I cleared my throat, I told her all I could think of.

“Well, ever since I met you – no – even before I met you, I had never felt that I was up to snuff for those around me. I’m not sure if you know, but Celestia saw fit to appoint Astro Stellaris as my personal tutor, and while he’s tried to teach me and help me reach my potential, I never truly believed I had a decent potential to reach. So I tried to hide it and pretend like this wasn’t a problem. I turned to my showboating and petty tricks to make myself seem bigger than I was, and when that eventually fell apart, I looked for ways to become stronger without any kind of wait. And you know how that turned out as well. My issues weren’t limited just to magic, though. Everywhere I went, I found strong friendships, happy marriages, and things of that nature. Twilight, since I’m pretty much pouring my heart out, I might as well also admit that Astro is my only real friend, and my envy for you only grew when I saw all the friends you had. So I-“

Suddenly a lavender hoof came up to my face, which I assumed was a very poor attempt to hit my or a successful attempt to interrupt me. The deep purple eyes looking back at me seemed filled with a mix of happiness and sadness, but the gifted unicorn’s smile returned to her lips. “No, Trixie, Astro isn’t your only friend. You have me, too, and as far as I’m concerned you’re welcome to return to Ponyville whenever you like.”

As the hoof was lowered, I began to respond, but she made it quite clear she wasn’t finished. “There’s a lot about me you don’t know. Next time you compare yourself to me when it comes to magical ability, think of this: I almost failed the initiation test required to even get in Canterlot’s gifted academy. I had to hatch a baby dragon from an egg, and I was this close to giving up.” As she spoke, she sat back and held her front hooves close together, indication how “close” she was. “And when thinking about friendship, I used to think that friends were a waste of time, and only recently did I have more friends than my older brother and my old foalsitter.”

This time I was speechless, but even if I did have something to say, I wouldn’t have gotten a chance to get it out. “Trixie, you are who you are, and you should never feel as if you can’t do something. I’ve seen my friend Fluttershy stand up to a giant dragon. Rainbow Dash managed to pull off a Sonic Rainboom twice since I’ve met her. A recent friend of mine learned to use magic without a horn! I’m sure that with enough hard work and confidence, you could even learn to master some of Starswirl the Bearded’s techniques. You just have to believe in yourself.”

The mention of the legendary unicorn brought me back to reality. I looked at the clock and jumped up when I saw that the combined time of the trip here, the slight difficulty getting in, and the storytelling added up to over fifty minutes. “Oh my gosh, I’m late!” Making a beeline for the door, I turned to Twilight on my way out. “Sorry, but I’m supposed to meet Astro in ten minutes! Thanks for the kind words, Twilight. I won’t forget them!” Closing the door behind me, I hurried back up the road to Astro’s manor.

* * *

Panicking with each step I took, I made my way through the manor and out the back door behind the kitchen. There was no time to admire the beauty of the garden like usual, which was unfortunate given the wide variety of flora Astro kept in it. Following the circular stepping stones, passed through the first “hourglass” of the setup. The garden, when seen from above, took the shape of hourglasses stacked vertically on top of each other, with all the different flowers planted in one continuous flowerbed making the shape. At the end, a gate opened up into a wide field where my teacher had a greenhouse for growing alchemy ingredients, various, well-cut topiaries lining the perimeter, and small-scale farms where he grew wheat, carrots, and lettuce. I froze when I saw him sitting at the picnic table underneath the large pavilion in the center, and did my best to avoid being spotted.

“Apologies go a long way, don’t they, lass?” I should’ve known that he already knew I was there. I took a seat beside him, and he turned his attention from the book to me. “That took quite some time for a simple ‘I’m sorry’.” He snickered when he saw the expression on my face, giving me a pat on the shoulder. “I had Sapphire follow you to make sure you stayed safe. With the recent problems Equestria’s been having, you can never be too careful.”

He flipped back a couple pages, setting the book in front of me. “If you’re ready to begin, then your first lesson will be simple. We’re going to start with one of his easier spells: teleportation. If we start off small, you can build up and be ready for the harder stuff. Are you ready?”

“I guess there’s no point in explaining myself. How do we start?”

My mentor teasingly lifted the book up into my face, moving it back and forth. “You see where his notes on the spell are? Read through those. I can explain how the spell works better than the written guide, but the tips Starswirl wrote down will certainly be of help. Call me when you’re ready, I’ll be getting a few things set up.”

As he left, I turned my attention to the journal. Despite Astro’s advice, I read through the written explanation before the tips. I didn’t see what the big deal was about, as it was basically telling the reader basic things like how heavy the magic concentration needed to be, where the magic needed to be focused, and how to make this magic move your body. Apparently the requirements were different depending on if one was moving through the same setting, or going from, for example, the garden to the inside of the manor.

I didn’t have time to read through everything, though. Hearing Astro returning to me, I skipped over to the notes, reading through each of them. “One: As one might imagine, the farther away one is taking themselves, the more magic this spell will require. Two: It is good to be as specific as you can when determining your destination. One might consider picking out a specific object to appear next to. If one is planning to travel, a photograph may be useful, as the spell requires a mental image of the area the unicorn will be taken to. Three: Have a snack! This magic is affected by concentration, as stated, and trying to concentrate on an empty stomach is not an easy task. In addition, this spell is made more difficult if the user is sick, hungry, or fatigued. Four: Be ready. Teleportation generates a great deal of heat. While this means nothing during practice or a test where one will know they need it, if faced with a situation and a sudden teleportation is needed, it can singe the mane and coat.”

“You all set now?” The sudden voice right behind me made me jump, causing my tutor to let out a loud laugh. “Sorry, Trixie, didn’t mean to startle you. If you’re ready, follow me.” He took me up to the walkway back to the manor where wooden posts had been set up along the path. Each post was farther away from the one before, and after my reading, I had a pretty good idea of what Astro wanted me to do. He walked up to the gate, his gaze fixed on the first post. “It’s pretty obvious, but what you’re going to do is teleport from one post to the next until you eventually take yourself indoors.”

The green horn began to glow, and in a flash, my mentor vanished and reappeared next to the first post. He returned to me and motioned his hoof down the line. “Alright Trixie, in order to pull off this spell, you need to have complete focus, just as the notes said. What teleportation involves is mainly you moving manifested magic to another location. The second part is you being in that magic. I want you to start with only step one, okay?” His horn began to glow again, and a large sphere of magical energy took form beside him. Turning back to the post, the sphere disappeared and popped back up next to the post, the dissipated. “Think you can do that?”

“Well, we won’t know until I try.” Manifesting magic was easy enough. I created my own sphere, putting all of my focus on the closest post. When I felt I was ready, I sent it rushing towards the post and stopped it right before it hit. It was fast, but it certainly was a teleport. “Um… do over?”

After a nod from my teacher, I tried it again, but still got the same results. After three more attempts, Astro stopped me, scratching his chin. “Trixie, are you trying to move the sphere?”

It was my turn to nod, my eyes still fixed on the piece of wood. “Yeah… I guess so. Am I supposed to do something else?”

He paused for a moment, looking from me to the post. “Try doing what I do. Instead of trying to send the sphere there, keep your focus on the post and try to create another sphere there without letting the magic escape your horn. That should relocate the current sphere to produce the same effect.”

I said manifesting magic was easy. Suppressing it is not so easy. Regardless, I wasn’t going to learn anything if I didn’t try to cast the spells. After creating my sixth magic sphere, I focused once gain on my objective and did as instructed. It took tremendous effort to keep the magic inside of me, to the point where I could feel the sweat forming on my brow. However, after enough time, pseudo casting, and a flash of light, the sphere was gone, and reappeared next to the first post.

There were plenty of ways to react right now, but I couldn’t really think of which course of action to take as I heard the loud, satisfied claps behind me. “Now that’s my girl! See what happens when put in a little effort?” Before I knew it, his forelegs were around me and we both were laughing. It didn’t last long though, as my mentor released me and cleared his throat moments after. “Now then, trying it a few more times. Once you’ve got it down, we’ll try actually getting you to move.”

After two failed and three more successful attempts, Astro stopped me, a wide smile on his face. “Lass, you’re doing great. I think you’re ready to attempt the second step. It’s the same as the first, but you need to encase yourself in the sphere. You ready to try?”

Given the effort I had to put forth to pull off what I had already done, it took me by surprise when I noticed that I didn’t really feel all that weak. Sure, I was a little tired from exerting myself, but I still felt like I had plenty of magic left. Repeating the same process as before, I directed the solidified magic around my body, making sure that all my concentration was directed at my destination. After another flash of light, the magic was moved. I however, was not.

“What happened? Astro, what is it this time?”

He didn’t need to think about it this time around. Clearing his throat, he formed his own sphere around me and held it there. “Your magic focus wasn’t heavy enough; you passed right through it. Can you feel the pressure from mine? Try and mimic it, and that should be enough to make you move as well.”

Now things were getting difficult. If what my mentor told me was true, then I needed to push enough magic out to keep the sphere from passing through me. That would take a lot of magic, and then having to hold back my magic to make the sphere move would drain a lot of energy. I had my doubts, but I thought back to Astro’s test, Celestia’s words, and my conversation with Twilight. Doubts wouldn’t get me anywhere, and if I was going to make anything of myself, I had to try.

I repeated the process again, this time keeping the magic flowing until I felt a pressure similar to what Astro had demonstrated. Now I had to hold back the magic required to create another as I attempted to cast another orb. Again the efforts ended in a flash, but this time it was in my eyes, forcing me to close them.

“Open your eyes, lass, you need those to see.”

I had no idea why I didn’t open them after the light faded, but after I had I was left speechless. Right beside my left hoof was a wooden post. However, when I looked back to Astro, to my amazement, there was another post between him and I. “Congratulations, Trixie. You managed to bring yourself twice as far on your first successful attempt than I expected.”

My eyes widened as I stared at the stallion. A flood of emotions hit me, and I was once again faced with a situation where multiple reactions would be fitting. Without realizing it, a soft chuckle escaped my lips, and continued until it became a full blown laugh. “I did it, Astro! I did it! I really, really did it!”

He flashed me that patented sly grin, pulling the first post up and tossing it aside. “No, Trixie. You didn’t just do it, you exceeded it. You’ve always been so worried about not being good enough, will now that right there was more than enough. Now, before we start celebrating, see if you can return to me with it.”

Pulling off the spell again was no trouble at all with the state I was in. My laughter started up again, and my teacher pulled me into another hug and laughed himself. “Now we can laugh and hug! Trixie, you have no idea how proud of you I am right now! Hell, you should be proud of yourself, lass, you just pulled off a spell created by Starswirl the Bearded himself!”

In that moment, the reality of it hit me. I had just successfully performed a spell that had been developed by one of the greatest unicorns in Equestrian history. As happy as it made me, the only thing on my mind was learning more. After we had both finished out laughing fits, Astro kept me in his embrace. It was warm and comforting, and I really felt accomplished. Sadly, all good things must come to an end, and this was no exception.

The tutor looked down at me, a proud smile stretching across his face. “Do you think you could do it a few more times? If you really want to master this, you have to get used to it and be able to pull off the process quickly. I won’t make you right now if you don’t feel up to it, but would you like to try?”

After an excited nod, he released me. Now that I had the process down, it was time to see how quickly I could apply it. I repeated it again twice, both times with little change. Before the third attempt, however, I focused just on channeling my magic. Every time I had put enough magic into the orb, I got rid of it, trying to send it out faster and faster each time. Eventually I looked over at my mentor, who was giving me a rather satisfied grin, accompanied by a nod.

Finally I felt ready and tried it again. This time, I was able to cast the spell in half the time that it took me the first few tries. My desire to continue drove me to turn to the post and try again, I was grabbed and pulled backward. “No, Trixie, that’s enough for right now. Don’t overdo it, alright?”

I let out a sigh, somewhat disappointed I couldn’t keep going. “Alright then, what’s the plan then?”

He began scratching his chin again. After a few moments, he let go of me and flashed a bright smile. “How about we head up to the city and have some lunch? My treat.”

Had it not been for a loud grumbling from my stomach, I would have declined. “Heh… there’s your answer.”

The stallion let out a loud laugh, standing up and heading towards the manor. “Let’s get moving, lass! The sooner we eat, the sooner we can continue your practice.”

Now that was motivation. With a new attitude and a smile, I trotted up beside him, eager to not only continue my new lessons, but also spend some time with Astro as less of a student, and more as a friend.

Chapter Three: Plans

Moving the Stars

Story 2

Chapter 3: Plans

By: WriteAnything

As we made our way toward Canterlot, I tried to make sense of what had just happened. While the spell was by no means impossible, her first successful attempt should have completely wiped Trixie out. Not that I was complaining, mind you. If my student could manage to pull off as many teleports as she did and still have the energy to do more, then teaching her the other spells I had planned would be much easier than I had anticipated. It was gratifying to see my girl happy and looking forward to her lessons, and as a result, it made me happy too.

We still had a small ways to go, and a few thoughts crossed my mind. Trixie didn’t know it, but my “test” was more than just fluff between her and my message to her. I had actually looked at it, and her answers made me a bit curious. The true purpose of the questions was to help me choose which spells from Starswirl’s journal I would teach her. While the teleportation spell was useful for pretty much any path a budding unicorn chose to take, not all the spells he had documented were helpful to all kinds of magic users. For example, you wouldn’t teach combat magic to an alchemist, or divination spells to a seamstress. If I was going to bring this up to Trixie, now was the best time.

Unfortunately, we entered into Canterlot City as I opened my mouth to speak, but instead of my mouth speak, my stomach chose to. My student gave me a nudge, giggling quietly. “Looks like I’m not the only one that’s hungry.”

I gave her a simple shrug, acting like it was no big deal. In all honesty, speaking to the mare about her magic over lunch was better than doing it on the way to lunch. Actually, it was less “on the way to lunch” and more “finding a place to eat”. The city had many nice restaurants, but most of the good ones didn’t open until the evening. Eventually we agreed on the Hay Hut, a local favorite. It was a gorgeous day out, so we decided take one of the outdoor tables. I made an attempt to speak to Trixie again, but this time, instead of my stomach, a waitress interrupted me.

As she spoke, I had to hide my face behind the menu; she had a Sirish accent as well, and Sirish ponies were more common as visitors in Canterlot proper, not employees. “Thank you for choosing the Hay Hut! My name is Amber Grain, and I’ll be your waitress today. If you’re ready, shall I get you started on drinks?”

I waved to Trixie as a gesture to let her choose first. She looked through the list for a moment before turning back to Amber with a smile. I have to admit, it felt really good to see her happy for a change. After she had ordered her root beer, I scanned the menu and decided to give this lass a little test. “I’ll take the Sirish Lifeblood.”

The results couldn’t have been better. “Oh ha ha, you’re so funny. One root beer and one fire cider coming up!” Amber Grain remained upbeat and perky, obviously understanding that it was an inside joke rather than an insult.

As the waitress trotted away to get out drinks, Trixie gave me a curious stare, complete with the raised brow. “Fire cider? Sirish Lifeblood? What was that about, is she a friend of yours?”

“Nah, fire cider is just a really sweet, strong cider that was first sold in Sirish markets. It’s really strong, and one swig would make most pony’s heads spin, but many say the Sirish live on it.”

The young mare rolled her eyes, chuckling at my joke. I had learned my lesson about trying to speak when expecting something, so I waited until Amber returned with our drinks. Both of us scanned through the menu, but Trixie beat me to the punch. “I’ll have the soy burger with hay fries, please.”

I was still perusing my options when the waitress was done writing, my mind still focused on how to confront my student. After a while, I just gave up and handed her my menu. “I’ll have the same.”

The mare nodded, wrote down my order, and went on her way. A second time, Trixie gave me that confused look. “Astro, is something wrong? You look like something’s on your mind.”

It took about three minutes and a heavy sigh for me to finally say something. “I’m just going to come out and say it. I did read through the answers on that test, and you’ve made me curious.” I set one hoof on my chin and waited for a reaction, but all she did was stare.

Eventually she began circling her hooves in front of her. “Okay? What about the test?”

“I’m pretty sure I told you I used the answers to determine what I was going to teach you, but you made that job quite difficult.” I actually had the test with me, so I opened it up and pointed to the questions I was focused on. “Here I asked why you wanted to learn more about magic, and you said-“

Trixie herself stopped me to read her answer, and something told me that would become a running gimmick in this conversation. “So I can be great.”

“Here it says ‘What kind of magic do you want to learn?’”

“Whatever is best for me.”

“What will you do with the magic you learn?”

“I didn’t answer that one.”

“I know.” I rolled the scroll back up and put it back where it was, scooting my chair up next to hers. “Do you see what I’m saying, Trixie? I can teach you anything I feel like, but I want you to learn spells that you will actually use. I realize that you’ve already dabbled in magic tricks, and I have no problem teaching you some pretty amazing ones. Starswirl the Bearded was quite the entertainer. And whether you believe me or not, you’re a lot like Twilight in the sense that you are not limited in what kinds of magic you can use. Your special talent is magic, so you are in charge of your own destiny.”

Trixie’s gaze shifted downward. I could only imagine what was going through her head right now. She began rubbing her front hooves together, and I set one of mine on them. “Tell you what, let’s eat first.”

Amber’s timing couldn’t have been better. She set our food on the table, the bright smile still plastered on her face. “Hope you enjoy!” At this point, I was sure all the optimism was fake as Amber skipped away. Before I could even turn back to Trixie, a large chunk of her burger was gone. My eyes widened a bit, and she stopped chewing when she saw my face.

“What? I’m hungry.” The young unicorn swallowed what she already had and began work on her fries. “Astro, you bringing up Twilight was either the best or worst possible thing you could have done.”

Talking wasn’t very easy when you were in the middle of a swig of cider, and I had a bad habit of taking huge swigs when I drank the stuff. After wiping my mouth and down a few fries, it was time to address her. “I’m assuming that means you either have an idea, or are about to tell me you want to end your enrollment.”

She nodded through another bite of the burger. Taking a bite of my own, I had to let out a loud “mmm”, this restaurant was better than I remembered. “You said I’m not that different from Twilight. Well if that’s the case, then I choose to learn what I want. That way, I don’t have to make a decision as to what to do with my life now. If I learn all kinds of magic, I’ll be prepared to do whatever I want.”

Hay fries don’t stay in your mouth too long after your jaw drops. “Trixie… that’s pretty profound coming out of you. If you don’t stop blowing my mind, I won’t have one left to teach you with!” I gave her a few proud pats on the back, accidentally causing her to spit up some of the root beer she was drinking. “Heh… sorry Trixie. I do have an idea though. If that’s really the route you want to go, I’ll let you look through that book and choose the spells you want to learn.” Before she could open her mouth, I teasingly poked a few more of her fries in it. “However, in order for me to be comfortable teaching you some of these spells, you must promise me that you won’t go showing them off.”

My words were met with a rolling of the eyes and a scoff. “Astro, do you realize who you’re speaking to? As much as I want to joke and say ‘The Great and Powerful Trixie’, I’ve learned my lesson about showboating… and cheating. You can trust me with using these powers responsibly.”

While my friend was not Sirish herself, she had been with me long enough to know our customs. A hoofshake was not just a friendly gesture, it was a sealing of a contract. Trixie knew there would be serious repercussions if she broke her promise now. “Alright then, I trust you. Once you get this teleportation spell down pat, I’ll let you begin choosing your lessons, agreed?”

She gave an assertive nod, finishing what was left of her burger before responding. “Agreed.”

I gave her a soft smile, finishing up my food as well. “Now, this will be tricky without preparation. Trixie, you’ve got tremendous endurance, and a massive well of magic. It would take a normal unicorn several steps to even begin trying some of these spells, but I think all you will need is more practice. With enough time and effort, the energy and magic these spells require will feel like nothing to you.”

Her eyes lit up at my words. She immediately hopped up from her seat, turning back towards the entrance to the city before I grabbed her. “Astro! Come on, I really want to get started again!”

“We can’t, lass.”

“Why not?”

“We have to pay for the food first.”

Trixie let out a nervous chuckle, returning to her seat. “Oh, right. I completely forgot about that.”

We weren’t going to leave until I said so, so I took the opportunity to mention something else as well. “Trixie, you really had no reason to feel the way you did. So, you failed a few of my tests, you screwed up a few spells, and things like that, but you should feel proud of yourself. You’re a quick study, as well, and I feel that you could learn this magic in a day or two if you tried.”

The eyes once again drifted down. Her voice was low and quiet, and the excitement on her face was erased. “Astro… I… we’ll need to talk about that later. It’s something personal that I don’t want to speak of out in public.”

I gave her a small nod, rising from my seat. “I understand, Trixie. We’ll talk about it tonight; for now let’s not waste any time.” We made our way inside to pay for the food, an air of tension between the two of us. Trixie never really told me much beyond what she would tell anypony else, and I wanted to change that. I assigned myself not only to being her teacher, but her friend, and had a strong desire to gain more of her trust. There was a lot about Trixie I didn’t know, but what little I did pointed to a rough foalhood. Tonight was the night I made it known that I was not only here to teach her, but to help her.

Seeing as how our stomachs were full again, I decided to give her a bit more practice. “Hey Trixie, if you want, you can try teleporting along the road. You need as much practice as you can get, and the more you work on this spell, the sooner we can move on to another.”

A bright grin stretched across her face as she did just that. The fact that she had already made my process into one seamless technique was amazing; and I found myself getting just as excited as her about beginning more lessons.

After about three teleports, she turned to me, looking as if she had stolen my trademark grin right off my face. “Hey Astro, how about a race back to the manor?”

Normally my silence was a way to say no, but this time I simply wanted to keep her in suspense. I waited for a few moments before popping up right in front of her with my own grin. “Loser cooks dinner!” With that, I gave her little time to react as I teleported a decent ways down the road and began running. Getting to the manor in the blink of an eyes would’ve been a cinch, but how fair would that have been.

Before I knew it, though, the promising mare was right on my tail. Honestly, though, I was more proud of her astounding progress than worried by her quick gap closing.  Eventually it became a battle of who could teleport the farthest in the quickest amount of time, but it made no difference. By the time we arrived at the manor, there was still no clear winner, and we were both out of breath.

I had to speak between pants as I tried to catch my breath. “You know what… I’ll cook tonight.” As the both of us made our way inside, we fell to the floor in an attempt to cool off. There was still more I wanted to say to her, but I was far too winded right now.

It took about a minute before either of us to get to the point where we could speak coherently. “That was amazing, lass. Looks like you’ve already gotten that spell down, which makes me comfortable teaching you something new right now!”

Having her stand up before me was mildly embarrassing, but I wasn’t too far behind. Though it didn’t matter, as I was on the ground again with a pair of soft, forelegs around my neck. “Oh, thank you, Astro! I just can’t wait! This is going to be just wonderful!”

Pushing her off, regardless of how little force I used, felt kind of rude, but her hugging was starting to hurt. “I’m glad to hear that, girl. I’ll grab the book, and you can flip through it while I put together a new lesson plan, alright?”

She gave me an excited nod, taking off towards the garden, allowing me to make my way back to my study.

It went without saying that I was in a hurry to get to the garden. Even after all the running and casting, I was still able to run at a decent pace. However, I noticed something strange when I retrieved Starswirl’s journal. I made a mental note to ask Astro about it, as I was positive crepe myrtles had blooming flowers this time of year. Unfortunately he was still in his study when I returned, so I decided to start looking at the spells while I waited.

There were all kinds of spells from healing spells, to combat magic, and even some magic made to change natural settings. I grabbed a quill and began to mark the ones I wanted, but after some thought I removed the ink. After all, it wasn’t Astro’s book, and we’d have to return it at some point. Instead I had Sapphire fetch me a scroll so I could write down all the ones I wanted. Pretty soon I was nearing the back of the book, and one spell in particular caught my eye. Out of all the ones I had written down, this would definitely be the most difficult to pull off. Heck, there was no guarantee Astro would even let me learn it.

Since Sapphire was still here, I decided to write a quick letter to the princess. Above all else, I did not want Astro to find out, so I made sure to request that she not reply until I sent a follow up. After it was sent, I began reading through Starswirl’s guide, and the great unicorn himself admitted to much trial and error when developing and perfecting this technique. It was an extremely complex skill, and in addition to regular lessons would probably take months to attempt. Not having Astro to help would only make it worse, but I made it my goal to learn this on my own.

Secrecy was essential, so I had the perky little dragon bring me a second scroll. This time I rewarded her with an emerald, which she scarfed down in less than a minute. With the new scroll and Sapphire’s satisfied sigh, I started jotting down notes. There was no doubt that Starswirl was an incredibly wise unicorn, but reading through his guide on this magic seriously made me doubt he believed in simplification.

“That’s quite the list you’ve got there.”

The book was closed and both scrolls were rolled up before I even realized what happened. After a few moments of heavy breathing, I turned to my mentor with the straightest face possible. “Do you have to do that every time I’m not paying attention?”

I was met with closed eyes, a satisfied smile, and a nod. “Until you learn never to let your guard down, yes I do.”

“Point taken. So what’s the new plan you cooked up?”

Given the amount of time he was gone, I expected some long, detailed schedule detailing his intentions, so the simple calendar het set down took me by surprise. “It’s simple, really. You choose the spell you want to learn, and I’ll mark it on this calendar with a specific symbol. I’ll continue to mark the days with that image until you’ve completely mastered it, and then I repeat this with a different symbol for every spell you learn. Once I’ve added three different sets of markings, I’ll test you to see how well you can transition between spells and how cleverly you combine them to produce a desire effect. How does that sound?”

Astro didn’t respond to my high-hooves very often, but it always felt good when he did. “Oh, I forgot to mention something. Have you been taking care of the crepe myrtles? The leaves are falling off.”

He raised his brow at me, turning in the direction of the garden. “That’s odd… I water them every morning. I’m sure it’s nothing I can’t take care of tomorrow and I’m sure you can’t wait to get started.”

I was eager, but not enough to tire myself any more that I already was. Instead, Astro and I spent a few hours doing other things. We checked out the bushes and mixed up a new batch of plant food for them, had another teleport race that ended in a loss for me, and we ended the day by playing a game of chess. I lost of course, and I don’t think it was possible to wipe the smirk off Astro’s face as he knocked down my king.

With an audible sigh, I rolled my eyes as it fell. “I don’t know why I keep agreeing to play you; you never lose!”

He let out a chuckle as he put the board and pieces away. “That’s because you keep me sharp.”

Even though I had just lost my 574th game of chess to Astro, I couldn’t help but smile at him. “You know, this is nice just spending time together.”

I couldn’t see his face from where he was in the kitchen, but I’m sure he was smiling too. “It really is. You know, if you want, I can give you weekends off so we can do this more.”

If things like this kept happening, then my smile would never go away. As I made my way to the dining room, I was presented with a delicious looking daffodil and daisy Panini. Of course I wanted to wait for Astro but he waved me off. “Go ahead and eat, lass.”

Who knew a day of fun could make you so hungry? The entire sandwich was gone before Astro even brought his over, and he let out another light laugh when he saw. “So, you promised you would tell me a certain something tonight, and it’s tonight.” He swallowed the chunk of his sandwich that was missing before he continued. “You know you can tell me anything.”

It took a deep breath and a few moments of confidence gathering before I could speak. “Alright Astro, I trust you. When I was just a filly, my father just up and left my mother and I. Of course my mother did her best to do right by me, and when I was old enough we moved to Canterlot and she enrolled me in a public magic school. I tried really hard, but I always ended up falling short, barely passing classes and moving up by the skin of my teeth.”

You knew you had Astro’s attention when there was unfinished food in front of him. “But one day, when I was 15 and just about to finish my third to last year, my mother died of an illness the doctors couldn’t diagnose in time. I was torn, and ran away from the school, ran away from Canterlot. I knew I had to get by somehow, so I became a traveling magician, going from town to town and doing small shows for petty change. After a year of that, I had built up a little bit of money and decided to try and finish schooling. Sadly, they didn’t let me back in.”

He let Sapphire finish his meal, a forlorn expression on his face. “And that’s when you did all you could to get into Celestia’s private school, and when she assigned me to teach you two years ago.” Scooting his chair over to me, he set both of his hooves on mine, trying to get me to raise my head. “Look at you now. You’re a beautiful, talented young mare with an entire life ahead of her. Trixie, you’re 19 now, and it’s time to leave the past behind you.”

Tears were forming in my eyes again. My forelegs were around him before I knew it, and his were around me. “Maybe, but those continued failure’s always made me feel like nothing. Astro, for the first time in a long time I feel like I can actually make something of myself, and I don’t want to go back. I don’t ever want to go back again.”

There was no holding back this time, but with Astro holding me, I no longer felt the need to. Besides, I’m sure Astro didn’t mind having a wet shoulder for a bit. “Believe me, Trixie, you won’t ever go back, I can promise you that.”

My crying first started because of the memories from my past, but as Astro spoke, and I realized exactly what he meant to me, my sadness was turned to relief. “Thank you, Astro. Thank you.”

He kept me close, really not seeming to mind that I was soaking his pretty green coat. “I’m going to do everything I can to make you a great and powerful unicorn. And no matter what, even after you graduate, I’ll always be here.”

Chapter Four: Secrets

Moving the Stars

Story 2

Chapter 4: Secrets

By: WriteAnything

It felt good to hold Trixie like this.  I felt like I was actually able to be more than a teacher, like she actually had someone to confide in, and a shoulder to cry on. Heck, I was probably the first shoulder she’s had in years. “Trixie, I’m more than just your teacher. I want you to know that I’m here to give you more than just magic lessons, and you can ask me for anything, okay?”

I’m positive the shade of red my cheeks became as she headed towards her room wasn’t even on the color wheel. There was no doubt in my mind that her face was just as red as mine, and I honestly don’t she was thinking when did it. I raised a hoof to my cheek slowly, thinking about what just happened and trying to figure out if it had actually happened or now. Regardless, the thing that mattered is that she went to bed with a smile, and that told me I had done something right without needing a kiss.

* * *

Trixie’s choice of spells was pretty well rounded, and her lessons began flawlessly. It only took her two days to master the first spell she wanted, and given the difficulty of her choices, I was quite proud to be her teacher. Day by day, she learned and practiced her new spells, and I would bet my bottom bit that Starswirl the Bearded himself was smiling down on her. Within a week, it was already time for her first test.

I had to get creative with how to design her course, given the diversity of her choices. I chose to give her a track to run through with a flag at the end that she had to grab in a certain amount of time. A massive boulder blocked her way through, about midway through stood a gate that would only open when three switches were pressed simultaneously, and the flag itself was surrounded by a tall circle of oscillating spikes. If she only know what I had to do to make this course; creation magic of that magnitude is not easy.

If talent was a light, Trixie would’ve been blinding. The rock had been reduced to pebbles, the gate was opened, and Trixie had hold of the flag in under two minutes! I ran over to her with the biggest smile on my face as the course disappeared. The two Trixies beside her disappeared before we shared a quick embrace and a laugh. “Trixie, I told you I’d make you a great unicorn, and you make that promise seem easier to keep each and every day.”

The change was astounding; this mare, who had once been so lonely and sad, was now smiling and laughing like she was the happiest pony in Equestria. Honestly, seeing her like this made me feel like the happiest pony in Equestria. That wasn’t the end of it, either. Trixie kept pushing and pushing, and eventually she was learning three spells in as many days. After about two weeks, I decide to surprise her with a little pop test: a course that would need to be conquered through spells of my choosing.

I set up a similar course as the first one, but with much more obstacles: another large boulder, a gate with fives switches, a gap sporting a wall of fire for her to put out, a brick wall for her to phase through, a series of clouds she’d have to walk on to get to Sapphire, who generously volunteered to be hung from a rope and held over a bucket full of gems, which Trixie had to make appear unappetizing to the hungry dragon, and then keep the baby with her as she grabbed the flag and brought it back to me.

She demolished it. There was one little goof up with her water shield, but she quickly corrected it and even got Sapphire to say no to the gems. As she brought the flag to me, there came an audible, excited clapping coming from the entrance to the garden.

I swear Trixie’s jaw went to the land down under when she saw her former “rival” clapping for her as she finished my course. “Trixie, that was amazing! You’ve really come a long way!”

Her expression wasn’t sadness or anger, but if you asked me what it was, I wouldn’t have been able to tell you. “What’s she doing here?” There wasn’t any anger in her tone either, so I had to assume Trixie, at the very least, no longer hated the young mare.

Patting her on the back, I turned my attention to Celestia’s pupil, who was making her way over her with a bright smile. “I invited Twilight here to see your progress. She’s right, too, you have come a long way. Hell, Trixie, I didn’t even test half the spells you’ve learned in that last test.”

The red on her face and the fallen ears was an absolutely adorable combination. Sadly, the expression didn’t stay long enough as another small, scaly creature made his appearance from behind Twilight. “You’ve learned lots of magic, Trixie! Hey, I bet you could pull off some growth magic, huh?”

The little dragon’s friend scoffed, turning to him with a glare. “Spike, we’ve talked about this before. No more mustache!”

He hung his head, but the bucket of gems my own dragon placed before him turned that frown upside down in no time. “Hey, thanks!” They both dove in and started chowing down, leaving the unicorns with some room to talk.

I brought them both inside so they could do just that, looking through the pantry for some lunch.

Trixie’s tone was a touch apologetic, but I can’t imagine what she still felt sorry about. “Thanks for coming. It… means a lot to me now that we’re friends.”

If it weren’t for Trixie, I’d have said Twilight’s giggle was the cutest thing I’d ever heard. This day was just all around cute, so far. “You don’t need to thank me. Like I said, we’re friends, and a true friend is always there for her friends.”

Both stomachs growled at the sight of the sandwiches I set before them, but the sounds they made after the first bite were even more satisfying. “So, how was the trip, lassie? Sireland certainly isn’t too far away from Ponyville, but you’ve got to admit, strange things have been happening.”

Twilight nodded, a worried expression crossing her face. “That’s actually another reason I wanted to come here. Strange… things have been wandering around Ponyville. They’re not hurting anything, but I can’t seem to find anything about them in my books.”

Trixie and I both raised our brow. It was scary how alike we were becoming, but it was funny in a way, as well. “Strange things? Like, what kinds of things, lass? I’m sure I could find something in my too-much-money archives of knowledge.”

She had to finish a chuckle before answering me. Trixie always told me I had too much money, but hey, being a private tutor for Celestia’s Academy for Talented and Gifted Unicorns paid pretty dang well. “They were just cubes. Pink, gooey cubes of what looked like jelly. There were these little imp things that looked like they came straight out of a Nightmare Night decoration store, and these furry creatures that looked like crosses between coyotes and yellow foxes. Neither Fluttershy nor Nova has any idea what they are either.”

I recognized the descriptions immediately, teleporting to my library and returning in the blink of an eye with the book I thought would be of the most help.

“A Spiral Knight’s Guide to Outside Equestria?” Apparently tilting your head makes your voice sound silly. It didn’t matter though, I already said this day was cute, and Trixie wasn’t helping the matter with all the silly stuff she was doing.

As I was about to go into my explanation, a lavender hoof placed itself on the book, focused on “Spiral Knight’s”. “Spiral Knights are a special sect of the Princess’s Royal Guard. They’re trained to recognize and fight against monsters and beings that don’t come from Equestria. If anypony would know about these creatures, it would be one of them.”

My student let out an interested “ooooh” as I opened the book, but we didn’t even get to look at the table of contents before our dragons were tripping over each other on their way to us.

“Astro!”

“Twilight!”

I only dabble in violin playing, but these two had great harmony. “A letter from Princess Celestia!” Listening to them speak in unison was rather entertaining; it was like they combined their letters to make it seem like it was one addressed to both Twilight and myself.

“My dear friend and faithful student,

Trouble has come up in Canterlot, and I request your presence. Threats are being made against the city, and the unicorn issuing them has brought with him an army. This is a matter of utmost importance, so the sooner you arrive in the city square, the better. I would like Astro to bring Trixie, of course, and if you two are together, as I believe you are, bring your dragons as well. Search for the colt in yellow, fur armor, and he shall detail you on the situation.

Please Hurry,

Princess Celestia”

Nopony even bothered with words, we just booked it as fast as we could to Canterlot.

* * *

A massive crowed was gathered around the fountain in the city square. Sapphire and Spike sat atop mine and Twilight’s backs, but that still didn’t help our situation getting around. The three of us tried to stay together, but we eventually were forced to split up until Trixie found the unicorn in question.

He was dressed in what I recall to be the Recon issued Wolver armor of the Spiral Knights; his ensemble was mainly comprised of mail and leather with light plate painted yellow over top. The fur around his collar and boots made it look very hot, especially this time of year. The uniform sported a red and grey undershirt that gave him more movement, but it was surely hiding chainmail underneath. His dark red horn protruded out of a perfectly shaped-hole in the rather beast-like helmet. Honestly, in full armor, this pony looked more like some kind of mechanical wolf.

His voice had a gruff rasp to it, but there kindness to it, as if he didn’t like the intimidating voice he was given. “Astro Stellaris? Twilight Sparkle? Trixie Lulamoon?” After a nod from all three of us, he politely bowed to us, remaining in the stance as he spoke. “My name is Cutlass. I’m sure you have already received your letters, so I don’t need to tell you why you’re here.”

Apparently the Princess left that part out. “Well, you kind of do, actually. Celestia told us we needed to come here as fast as we could, but never told us why.”

As I finished speaking, a booted hoof pointed straight forward, guiding our eyes to another new pony. The face was somewhat obscured by the shadow the hood of his black cloak cast over it, but the straight, squared muzzle was enough to clue us in on his gender. What parts of his body were not covered by the cloak were pure white, and the tip of a coal black tail poked out from beneath the garment. The stranger stepped up onto the edge of the fountain, discarding the cloak and revealing piercing green eyes and a solid white body. His horn came to an unusual point, and on his flank was stamped the black king. Either this unicorn really liked chess, or he had done something to qualify as a genius.

His voice had projection, but there was a calmness about it. There was no sign of any kind of nervousness despite the attention he commanded, and each word had a sinister undertone. “I’d like to commend all the new faces I see before me for the courage it must’ve taken to come here. Now that it looks like I’ve gotten all the listeners I possibly can, allow me to introduce myself.”

After a clearing of the throat, he jumped to the top of the fountain, gazing at all the citizens before him. “I am Checkmate, and I am here for one purpose only: to find an opponent worthy of my wit and power!” The thunder would have been more intimidating if it wasn’t perfectly sunny outside. “I’d like to issue a challenge to you all: you have two weeks to defeat me in a one-on-one duel. Should I be defeated, I will happily go on my way. Should I remain victorious, I will have my army march on your fair city and raze it to the ground!”

With one wave of his hoof, he directed all eyes to the east, where a large group of creatures similar to what Twilight had described were standing at the borders of the city. While it was intimidating, something about it just seemed… odd. I wasn’t given much time to ponder it, though, as this “Checkmate” resumed his self-glorifying declaration.

“Of course, just like with any challenge, there are rules,” he jumped down to the ground, walking along the circle that surrounded him, “number one: the royal sisters cannot help. Number two: the duels are purely one on one, if you receive any kind of help, it’s an automatic loss. Number three: if any moves are made on my army before the two weeks are up, they will attack without mercy. If any of these rules are broken, then that will end the two week grace period, and regardless if you have eight minutes, or eight days left, we will attack the city. Now, I will be accepting challengers 24/7 throughout these weeks, so if you’re feeling lucky, don’t be shy. In fact, I’m accepting opponents as early as now.”

A sly grin formed on his face as he scanned the crowd, egging them all on to try and challenge him. Eventually his taunts and bragging got him the attention he wanted. The once perky, cheerful voice turned annoyed and angry as the golden mane shimmered in the sunlight. “I’ll take you on, you nagging prick! Let’s see how strong you really are!”

If Spike or Sapphire were to start choking on a meal, that’s the sound I’d compare to what came out of Checkmate, because that definitely was not a laugh. “A little waitress? How cute. Very well then, you shall serve as a demonstration of my awesome power! However, I am not so rude as to not give you a chance.” He bowed towards Amber, grinning as he did so. “You may make the first move.”

I have to admit, I was mildly impressed. The bushels of wheat that rose up around Checkmate were strong and healthy, a cultivation spell I don’t think anypony would’ve expected from a simple waitress. The satisfied mare flashed a smile with closed eyes. “Your turn.”

He let out that dying cat laugh again as his horn began to glow with an ugly black aura. In the blink of an eye, the pretty wheat was at the mercy of the tree underneath it. That wasn’t the end though, not only had Checkmate given rise to the massive tree, he had summoned birds into it as well, which made a beeline for Amber and furiously began to peck at her.

The whole crowd began to panic, save for the four of us. Though I’m sure they could still hear the villainous voice echoing from among the frightened whispers and chattering. “Prepare yourselves, unicorns of Canterlot, for mere pawns do not stand a chance against me.

Trixie’s elbow really hurt when it was dug into your ribcage. “Come on, Astro, all three of us are strong enough to take him on!”

She made a move toward him, but it was hard to walk with another pony’s foreleg in front of you. “No, Trixie. Something’s not right here. All of you, while he’s busy gloating, let’s get out of here.”

Weaving our way through the crowd without being spotted wasn’t as hard as I thought it was going to be, nor did it take as long as I thought. We didn’t stop, even after we were safely out of the city. Cutlass came along too, which was good; he would no doubt prove helpful in confirming my suspicions.

“Something about this doesn’t add up. Twilight, you said there were monsters like the ones Checkmate is commanding around Ponyville, right?”

She nodded, but her brow remained raised. “Yes, but they weren’t hurting anyone. They were just kind of walking around.”

Scratching my chin was an indication of “deep focus mode”. There was something fishy about this whole situation, and I explained to everyone what I wanted them to do. Twilight and Cutlass headed off to Ponyville, while Trixie and I went back home.

Astro decided to give me the rest of the day off while he did some planning. Since he was holed up in his study, I went ahead and looked through the notes I had taken on his surprise. I had written down a lot of shortcuts and simplifications that were safe to incorporate into the technique, and both Princess Celestia and Princess Luna gave me permission to go through with it. Most of my nights since making the decision involved my playing cartographer with the sky, and finally I decided what could go where to match my sketch.

It was finally time to begin. With all the spells I had mastered, focusing my magic in great quantities was easier than apologizing to Twilight, which, in hindsight, wasn’t that hard… I guess. When I believed I was finished, I nearly tripped on my own hooves to get to Astro’s observatory at the top floor of the manor. There he kept all of his maps, charts, and graphs of everything from constellations to weather patterns. My goal, however, was the high-bit telescope he owned. Again, my mentor had too much money.

As I began to think about him, my pace slowed. I still didn’t think Astro realized what I had done that night was on purpose, and I’ve been wanting to get a chance to tell him. Apparently is possible to physically shake thoughts out of your head, thought I don’t know why I thought it would. Resuming my trip to the telescope, I almost squealed when I looked through it and saw I had succeeded. Just a few more nights of this and Astro would have the surprise of his life.

With nothing else to occupy them, my thoughts returned to the tutor, and my own emotions. My rump hit the floor and almost froze. Astro really needed to have some kind of heated tiles or something. The floor in my room was a much better place to think, and my bed was even better. I was sure Astro had some knowledge of my feelings, but I was far too afraid to actually say something. The first two years we had spent together were kind of rocky, but no matter how severe my mistakes were, my mentor always managed to forgive me, and during those days recently that we spent just having fun and being together, my feelings were solidified. I loved Astro, but I just didn’t know what to do.

I stared up at the stars through my skylight, but Astro’s narwhal wasn’t in view at the moment. I needed to say something to somepony, anypony, but I just didn’t know who. In the end, I took a shot in the dark and called Sapphire, writing a letter to my new friend. “Sapphire, are you able to send letters to other dragons, or do they have to go through the princess?”

The little claw rubbed the light blue chin gently before she spoke. “Sorry, Trixie, but I think they have to go through the princess.”

That threw a wrench into the gears. Well, a small wrench. I sent a short letter to Princess Celestia requesting her to send my next letter to Twilight immediately, and then began work on my fellow unicorn’s letter.

“Dear Twilight Sparkle

I haven’t told this to anyone yet, but I’ve come to terms with the fact that I’m in love with Astro. I’m not really sure how you can help, I just needed to tell somepony. I also want to thank you for forgiving me so easily; thanks to you I feel like a new pony. You and Astro both have done so much for me, and I don’t think there’s any way I can express my thanks enough.

Your friend,

Trixie Lulamoon.”

The baby dragon lit it on fire, and off it went. During the wait, I decided to attempt a continuation of my process, but even with all my training, the strain proved too great. I was left panting and lying in the grass as Sapphire ran up to me with Twilight’s reply. That pony wrote fast.

I was surprised by how much indirect experience Twilight had with situations like this. First the wedding between Princess Mi Amore Cadenza and the Captain of the Royal Guard, Shining Armor, but also two of her close friends just hooked up as well. Honestly, it was reassuring to know I wasn’t the only one who felt this way.

After reading the letter, I decided to confront Astro once and for all. I made my way up to his study, but sadly, I never got the chance to speak. The saddle was on, and his bags were packed.

He made his way towards the door, turning to me with a determined expression. “Trixie, I know things today have been kind of sudden, but I have to leave for a few days. I’m giving you the rest of this week off to do what you like, alright?”

“Wait, where are you going?” Too late, the door was already closed. Now I was even less confident about talking to him than I was before. He was right though, events today had been quite sudden, even down to my thought patterns. His sudden departure scared me; despite the secrets I had been keeping from him, I couldn’t help but think that he was hiding something from me as well.

Regardless, I now had four days all to myself. That was plenty of time to get both my confidence, and my little surprise, together and ready to present. I trusted Twilight, and I didn’t want to be here with just Sapphire every single day, so I thought I’d send another letter to her detailing my plans, and asked if she could help for a day. That squeal I had been holding in finally came out when I got her reply.

Aside from Astro just bolting out of the manor, things were going so well, and it felt so good to be in this situation. Even with my hidden feelings, I still felt good. As I skimmed through my notes again and double checked for more tricks to make this spell easier, I began to tell myself that Astro was coming up with a plan for dealing with Checkmate. He never could tell me about a plan until he had everything thought out just the way he wanted, so I convinced myself that that was why he left.

* * *

Morning came, and still no Astro. Without any lessons, I decided to make up a schedule for myself for what to do that day. My morning was spent practicing some of my more difficult spells I had trouble with, and the afternoon consisted of me relaxing with a warm bubble bath. Despite Astro’s pay, neither he nor I really lived lavishly. In fact, most of the rooms in the manor were for educational purposes.

Twilight never came. We hadn’t really spent enough time together for me to know if that was a habit, but I couldn’t help but feel as if shewas keeping something from me too. As the sun began to set, it was time for me to prepare to continue my work. After dinner and a few deep breaths, I repeated my new nightly process of casting my magic and checking the telescope. Right now, this was the only thing that gave me hope, and I was making significant progress. With the absence of my friend and the last of the goals I had set for the day accomplished, there was nothing left to do but go to bed. I had to cling to my teddy again, as I couldn’t shake the feelings I was beginning to have.

The more I thought about it, the more scared I became. Astro suddenly leaving, Twilight not visiting, both these things in my mind pointed to them getting together. My friend promised me I’d never feel alone again, but as my emotions began to take hold, I came to the realization that while I didn’t feel useless, I was starting to feel alone again. I felt lied to, and while I didn’t cry, I hurt. Everything happened so suddenly, and it was as if the world just dropped me here.

All I could do was close my eyes and hope that this was all either a bad dream, or my inner defeatist taking hold of me again and making me overreact.

Chapter Five: Loose Ends

Moving the Stars

Story 2

Chapter 5: Loose Ends

By: WriteAnything

I really didn’t want to get up that morning. However, something in me told me to, and I knew hiding wouldn’t get me anywhere. After the hectic and strange last two days, all I really wanted to do was relax. I decided to forgo my usual mane brushing in lieu of a warm, relaxing bubble bath like my one yesterday, but they felt so much better in the morning. I told Sapphire to hold off on breakfast, and she and I talked while I soaked.

“Sapphire, let me ask you something. Does Astro ever… talk about me?”

I prepared to repeat myself, as rubies were rather loud when being chomped. She did give me an answer before I could, though. “A lot, actually. Don’t tell him I said anything, but he often talks about how seeing you happy makes him happier than seeing you master spells. Trixie, he really cares about you.”

There weren’t any mirrors around, but my now hot face eliminated the need for one. “Do you… do you think he, you know?”

Two blue claws met each other, dragging themselves across the baby dragon’s lips. “I already told you more than I said I would, I’m not about to spill everything Astro tells me to you. Sorry, Trixie, but you’ll have to find out for yourself.”

How sinking lower into the water helped me relax, I don’t know, but it did. Though my “moment didn’t last long, as there came a loud knocking from the door. I could hear a voice from behind it, but it was too muffled for me to make out who it was. Two more knocks came after I was dried off and halfway down the stairs, but my jaw dropped when I opened the door.

Had they not been open for the world to see, it would’ve taken me a moment to notice them, but when you have a unicorn that suddenly appears to you with wings, eventually you’d notice. “Twilight, you’re an alicorn!”

Her ears were down, with a forlorn expression on her face to match. “I’m so sorry I couldn’t come to see you yesterday. I wanted to, believe me I did, but I guess you can see I was… preoccupied. I came as fast as I could today to apologize.”

I was still too busy marveling at the fact that she was an alicorn now to even care that she didn’t visit. “Twilight, how did this happen.”

Sapphire cooked us up a nice breakfast while Twilight told her tale. Her story was amazing, like something out of a fantasy novel. Cutie marks changing, Twilight being able to change them back, my friend becoming a princess, all in one day. Even after she was finished, I still had a hard time taking it in. “And you say I have nothing to be jealous of.”

I found myself wondering if Twilight’s face heated up when she blushed like mine did. “I’m still not anything to envy. Trixie, think about what you’re doing. Can you imagine how Astro is going to react when he sees what you’ve done?”

Looking away from her, I bit my lip when she brought him up. Twiddling my front hooves was an old habit, and just as I thought I had broken it, it came back again. “That reminds me, have you seen Astro lately? A few days ago, he just up and left without any reason.”

She closed her eyes and gave me a reassuring nod. “He’s been in Canterlot, watching Checkmate’s duels. I’m not sure what he’s thinking, but I’m sure he has a plan.”

So, that was all of last night’s worries swept away in just a few minutes. However, with that came a new set of worries, most of them centered on Astro. “Well if he’s there, we have to do something. Come on, we might not have much time.”

Apparently I forgot that Twilight still had magic, and running into doors hurt. “I’m not sure that’s a very good idea, Trixie. I mean, I’m worried too, but maybe there’s a reason he hasn’t told us anything. Why don’t we wait a bit? If you want, I can help you work on that spell some more.”

My friend had a point. Of course, I was worried sick about Astro, but he could take care of himself. I did make her promise that if he didn’t come by tomorrow afternoon, we were going up there. In the meantime, I showed her the notes I had been taking, and the sketch I had drawn. “What do you think?”

She pursed her lips, looking at my sketch and the map I had drawn. After a moment of thinking, she smiled up at me with a twinkle in her eye. “You know, Trixie, you told me about your issues confessing to Astro, and I think I might have an idea.”

If she didn’t have my attention before, she most certainly did now. “Oh, do tell.”

So far all the duels had ended with Checkmate as the victor. Hell, hardly any of the challengers even came close to beating him. It seemed like he would just take whatever was thrown at him and give it back a hundredfold. His abilities didn’t seem limited to any specific kind of magic either, brute force, growth, summoning, he knew it all.

It was time again for him to begin his taunting, once again circling around the somewhat thinned out crowd of unicorns. “Come now, little pawns! Who else wants to challenge the king? You still have one week left, and that means there’s still an itty bitty chance you might beat me!”

Time and time again he was challenged and victorious. Although most of the ponies that had been challenging him were specialists who could only perform one certain kind of magic, the fact that he demonstrated the ability to cast such a wide variety of spells at such high magnitudes was enough of a testament to his strength.

After about twenty-two matches, I had seen enough. I still had my suspicions about him, but it was time to take a look at his “army”. Sure, in large numbers, these creatures could probably destroy a city like Canterlot with ease, but when he first presented them, it only looked like he had two hundred or so monsters with him. As the sun began to set, I snuck out of the city again and made my way to where the creatures were holed up.

I couldn’t afford to get caught, but if I wanted a precise number, it was a risk I had to take. They were amazingly resilient, having apparently gone the past three days without food or sleep. It took all the stealth abilities I had to get close to them, but once I was, it was a simple matter of casting a perimeter scan, and immediately I found out how many there were; and two hundred twenty was nowhere near enough strength to attempt an assault on Canterlot. With my suspicions confirmed, I finally began the journey back home. I was sure Trixie was worried about me.

Cutlass was already on his way there, as he had been with me for most of the day. As soon as I got there I would have to send a letter to Twilight and have her come over as well. Since she was the only one of us four who actually lived in Ponyville, she would know better than even myself what Checkmate was after.

I loved it. Twilight and I both agreed that we needed to keep the progress gradual so Astro wouldn't notice, but it was the perfect way to confess to him. My friend offered to stay over for the night, but I didn't want to keep her from her friends. We said our good nights, but instead of a gorgeous night sky, the beastly, armored figure of our good knight greeted her at the door.

You’d have thought Twilight was flying with how high she jumped. “Cutlass! You could really freak somebody out doing stuff like that.”

I was sure there was some kind of apologetic face beneath that helmet, but I couldn’t really see much facial motion with only the rectangular holes for his eyes to look through. “Forgive me, Twilight, but we must hurry. Astro is on his way, and I think he’s gathered all the information he needs to get rid of Checkmate.”

Twilight and I were thinking the same thing, but I managed to get my words out first. “What’s going on there, anyway? Things outside the city have seemed pretty calm.”

The knight turned his head towards one of the windows in the dining room; it was the only one that you could see Canterlot through without something obstructing it. “So far, Checkmate hasn’t been causing any collateral damage, but every unicorn that’s challenged him was taken down with ease. As a Spiral Knight, I’m only really familiar with combat magic, but even I know that spells of his magnitude are not easy to pull off. I’m sure, with the aid of his monsters, he could easily level the city before the sisters got to him.”

Again, my friend and I were thinking along the same lines, but the moment I took to raise my hoof to my chin gave Twilight the chance to speak. “So, if he’s that powerful, why doesn’t he just do it? Why give us two weeks to try and beat him?”

“Because he’s searching for something.” I knew Cutlass wouldn’t, and I had expected it, so that left poor Twilight as the only one to jump at my mentor’s interruption. “And I think what he wants is in Ponyville.”

He joined us at the dining table, reviewing what he had learned with us. “Checkmate had shown a massive pool of magic that he can cast spells from, and he’s used many different kinds of magic. Really, you could feel the power emanating from him whenever he made his moves. However, it’s still not strong enough to take out Canterlot. Twilight, you said some of his monsters were hanging around Ponyville, right? Well that, coupled with his two week ultimatum, leads me to believe he’s simply stalling and attempting to frighten everypony with his power.”

The lavender hoof met the table with a thud as the mare it belonged to rose up. “He must be after the Elements of Harmony! I put them all back in my library after the chaos yesterday, and the door is unlocked! He could easily get to them.”

It was Astro’s turn to raise a hoof to his chin. “You could be right, but I don’t think that’s the case. Even if he got hold of the Elements, he couldn’t use them. Plus, even if Checkmate doesn’t have the Elements to oppose him, he still will have to deal with Luna and Celestia. He’s after something to increase his own power.”

Now it was my turn to slam hooves on the table. “The Alicorn Amulet! It’s still with that Zebra in the Everfree Forest!”

Astro’s satisfied grin sent a tiny shiver up my spine. “Precisely. That’s what I think he’s after, but that’s not all. He’s hiding something else, too. I was able to get a precise count of his army, and it’s only two hundred and twenty strong.”

All of us were silent for a moment, and after accepting that we didn’t have any input, my mentor continued. “Cutlass, I want you to report back to Princess Celestia and await my response to act.”

“Yes, sir!” With a quick salute, he was gone. I didn’t even see the door open… if it did. Astro then turned his attention to the newly formed alicorn, giving her a nod. “Go get the Amulet, but make sure you aren’t seen. We still have the advantage if Checkmate doesn’t know where it is yet.”

She gave a funny little salute as well, taking off out the door and back towards her home. Now it was just Astro and myself, and despite the intensity of the situation, I was relieved just to see him.

Normally I didn’t interrupt him, even if he was just beginning to speak, but it was something I had to say. “I was worried about you.” Reaching out, I wrapped my forelegs around him in a tight hug, just happy to have him there. “Don’t ever do that to me again, or I’ll dye your mane brown.”

The stallion gave a soft chuckle, patting my back as we hugged. “I have my reasons for not telling you much. No telling how far Checkmate’s eyes and ears reach, and I’m only comfortable being vocal about a plan now because it’s almost time to act. I’m not going anywhere, Trixie, I told you that.”

It was impossible to keep from smiling as I released him from my embrace. “I’m going to hold you to that. Do I have a part in this?”

A quick nod is all I was met with. “I want you to lead any unicorn still able to walk and cast spells in an offensive against Checkmate’s outside army. He’s been quiet and fair so far, but there’s no telling when he’s going to get angry and start a rampage. However, if he’s done what I think he’s done, we can’t make any moves until Cutlass gets his job done. Trixie, I want you to get some sleep. I have some history to look up.”

I shot him a somewhat saddened expression. It was his turn to interrupt me before I got to speak, though. “No, Trixie, you need to rest, alright? If you won’t go willingly, I will make it an order.”

Hanging my head a bit, I turned and made my way to my room. Of course my friend wouldn’t let me go to bed sad, which was indicated by the foreleg that was soon around my shoulders. “Sleep well, alright?”

The smile returned to my face, and I gave him a nod. “I will.”

About three hours after Trixie had gone to sleep, I had finally found the documents I needed. These building plans confirmed the last of my suspicions, and I made preparations to send my letter to the princess telling Cutlass to ready the Spiral Knights. I have to admit, Checkmate was very clever to do this, but I also felt only and idiot wouldn’t at least think of something like this. Luckily, I didn’t need Sapphire to send my letters, and I actually preferred using my own magic to do so. It probably would have been a good idea for me to sleep as well, but even when I made an effort to sleep, the anticipation kept me awake.

Eventually I settled for the creepier option: watching Trixie sleep. Well, I watched for a little bit. She looked so peaceful, and it was an image that I was eager to recreate with Checkmate’s termination. Looking through the window, I could still see flashes, small lightning bolts, and the occasional fireball from the duels that still went on into the night. There was a lot at stake if we failed, but I had faith in my friends.

I also made a mental note to shut off my nerves; after Twilight’s coronation – which I’m sure was going to be held maybe a day or two after Checkmate was gone – I was going to tell her how I felt about her. Of course, as long as that unicorn was still here, there was going to be no coronation, and as a result, no chance to confess.

Wanting to get their earlier than the others, I sent Twilight a letter detailing my plan and telling her to meet Trixie at the manor. I also made it a point for the alicorn to tell her why I was gone instead of leaving her in the dark like last time.

* * *

The sun was just beginning to rise as I came up to the city. Things were looking slightly better, though; from what the others were telling me when I asked, some stronger unicorns have been making their stands, and while they still lost, they were able to last a lot longer than five minutes.

I still had to wait on Twilight and Trixie, but I had already received word that Cutlass and his team were already in the caves and doing their part. With them down there, that took care of the biggest threat Checkmate posed to the city.

The mares’ timing couldn’t have been better. Just as they called out to me from the city walls, the pony Checkmate had been dueling flew past my head and into a building. “Well, looks like I’ve gotten rid of the pawns, and you’re finally starting to throw out your stronger forces. Come on, I need more! As long as you have time left, you still have a chance. Come! Come and face the might of the Great and Powerful Checkmate!”

I’m pretty sure Trixie was the only one that didn’t laugh. “Twilight, was I reallylike that at one point?”

Through her laughter, she wiped her eyes and nodded. “Thankfully not anymore. I’ve got the Amulet, Astro.” Indeed she had. She held up the cursed artifact to me, but I pushed it back.

“Take it to the princess, I’ll go keep his attention. Trixie, gather up as many unicorns as you can and take out those monsters.”

After an obedient nod from the both of them, they took off. Something made Trixie faster than me, whether it was her size or the fact that I hadn’t slept in two days. Checkmate caught sight of her, but before he could actually react, I called him out.

“Let’s go you loudmouthed knob jockey! I’ve had just about enough of your gloating, and while you may think you’re powerful, I guarantee I’ll give you a run for your money.”

I was met with a smirk and raised brow. Apparently my proclamation peaked his interest as he cracked his neck and took a few steps towards me. “Very well then. Let’s see what you’ve got, you obnoxious mick.”

Now that was uncalled for. As per usual, though, I gave him a calm, patient retort in the form of a song. I enjoyed playing violin, and most Sirish songs were centered on the instrument. After a while, I began practicing a spell that allowed me to play songs I had remembered by channeling magic through the particles in the air, producing the same vibrations that the instrument made to create certain notes. I played the entire first verse of one of my favorites, “A Pair of Brown Eyes”, which got an enthusiastic clap from Checkmate.

“Impressive, friend, but you’ll have to do better than that.”

This guy knew his culture. My music was countered with the first verse of “Foggy Dew”, and I decided to get a bit rougher. The circle of flames at his hooves roared to life, surrounding him as I poured magic into them to keep them ablaze. It wasn’t enough to keep him down, though, as my flames were soon turned against me and hurled my way in a massive ball, which a quick shield spell was barely able to deflect.

Checkmate’s grin widened as he eyed me. “Well, looks like the enemy has finally brought out their king. I’m going to enjoy this!” He froze just as he was about to make his move, turning towards the faint sounds of the fight that just erupted below us.

Trixie was doing it! I had been so wrapped up in the duel that I hadn’t even noticed that most of the unicorns around us were now gone and now aiding my girl to fight against Checkmate’s monsters. This only served to widen his grin even more, though, as he stamped his hoof on the ground. “You don’t win the game by cheating! What did I say? No attacking my troops until the end of the second week! You just screwed up, so say goodbye to your precious city!”

There was a long, still silence. Checkmate stomped his hoof again, and this time I could actually see the shockwaves he was sending through the ground, prompting me to laugh. “Check.”

The wide, menacing grin on my enemies face soon contorted into a furious scowl as he glared at me. “Excuse me?”

“The Spiral Knights, if not finished already, are taking out what remains of your little secret forces. I knew you were hiding something when I saw how small your army was!” I took a few steps towards him, causing the disgruntled unicorn to take a few steps back. “You didn’t think anyone was aware of the old caves beneath Canterlot Castle, so you hid the bulk of your forces inside of them! They’d be behind the walls and tearing both the city and the castle asunder before anypony could react, and given the fact that those caves haven’t been used in centuries, they were perfect hiding spot.”

His eyes were wide, and his mouth agape. Something told me he wasn’t used to being outsmarted. “H-How did you know?”

It took all I had to keep from putting on the smuggest grin I could manage. “It was the obvious move.”

The sinister unicorn raised a hoof to his chest, his expression changing from surprise to what seemed to be a fake sadness. “Ouch, that hurts. Well regardless, you still have me to contend with, and the Alicorn Amulet is on its way.”

Okay, now the smug grin was impossible. “Sorry, lad, I already took care of it. It’s in the possession of Princess Celestia, and you know you won’t be getting your hooves on it now!”

I was slammed against the wall before I knew it, even before I heard the frustrated yell. “This can’t be! You’re not smarter than me! I’m a genius, and all powerful! I refuse to be bested by some schoolteacher!”

After a groan and a bit of struggling, I was back on my hooves, still smiling. “Too bad, you just were.” This time I was able to get out of the way of his blast before it hit me, slamming him with one of my own. He rose just as easily, hurling a menagerie of elemental attacks at me, each of which I was able to counter with a shield of its opposite.

Suddenly he froze and began to laugh. Not only that, but it actually sounded like a laugh this time. “Just kidding, I have one little ace in the hole.”

“And that would be?”

He didn’t even need to answer me. All at once, one of his little furry things ran past me, carrying it in his mouth, and Twilight was rushing toward me, waving another around in her magic grasp. “Astro! It’s a fake! He planted a fake amulet!”

Chatper Six: End Game

Moving the Stars

Story 2

Chapter 6: End Game

By: SleeplessScribe

There was no time to stop him before he had hold of it. Despite being a loudmouthed narcissist, he wasted no time putting them Amulet on, letting out a loud, drawn out laugh as a black cloud enveloped him, then discharged as a powerful blast of magic, knocking both Twilight and myself back.

He must’ve caught sight of the sisters coming to our aid, as the first thing he did was trap them in a cage of dark magic. His full attention was now on me as I was lifted into the air, the mere magnitude of his new power slightly crushing me. “You played well, but you never claim victory until the game is over.”

It took all I had to break free from his grasp, pelting him with ice spears as soon as I hit the ground. The fortunate part is that he wasn’t too strong for my magic not to affect him, but it was definitely doing a lot less than it was moments before. The unfortunate part is that this was apparently a massive mathematical equation, with the difference between the effectiveness of my spells then and now adding to the power of his own. Not even Celestia and Luna were able to break free of this prison Checkmate had trapped them in. Cracks were starting to form in their cage, but it would take far too much time for them to free themselves; Checkmate would have the whole city reduced to rubble before they got out.

Looking around, I did see one last ray of hope: Twilight was gone. I could only hope that she was running to get the Elements of Harmony, as they were the only thing that could stop Checkmate now. Not only that, but there was only one thing that stood between him and stopping Twilight.

Me.

I was pretty well versed in combat magic, but not knowledgeable enough to have a massive repertoire of spells to use. It came down to me using repeats spells in clever ways to try and catch him off guard, but he effortlessly broke through everything I threw at him. Finally, I took a leap of faith, or a leap of stupidity, whichever you would say it was.

Many ponies told me I was hardheaded, and Checkmate must’ve though so too. The speed spell I had cast on myself only made the impact hit harder, and I honestly wasn’t sure if the fact that I barely felt anything was something to be proud of. The sinister unicorn staggered backwards, his eyes rolling around in his head. Keeping him disorientated like this was my best bet, and I’m sure the massive sonic blast not only pushed him back even farther, but probably deafened him temporarily.

Unfortunately, the Amulet was not only amplifying his magic, but also his resilience. Checkmate seemed to easily reel back from everything I threw at him, and even if I never gave him a chance to retaliate I’d get exhausted if this continued. I was already feeling winded from the amount of spells I’d been casting one after another, and my temporary pause was just long enough for my opponent to beat me down with a powerful combo of spells, all ending with me under a massive stone claw jutting out of the ground.

The boastful unicorn made his way over to me, his front hooves coming together in a mocking clap. “Bravo, bravo, friend. You were, by far, the most challenging opponent I’ve faced. But I regret to inform you that the game is over, and the king is about to fall.”

It happened faster than I could process. Before I knew it, Checkmate was on the ground with thick, thorny brambles holding him down against the hard stone. A familiar voice spoke out, make my eyes the size of dinner plates. “Never move your king up while your opponent’s queen is still on the board, Checkmate. I’d have thought a pony such as yourself would’ve known better.”

My student shattered the rock on top of me, but I was currently too weak to get up. After expending so much magic and taking such a beating, I was surprised I was still conscious. I tried to speak, but nothing came out, leaving Trixie with no warning and no advice for caution as she approached the immobilized colt. She readied another magic blast, but was sent spiraling backwards as ripped apart the vines that restrained him.

“Kids should not involve themselves in grown-up affairs.” With the way his scowl was, it looked like his mouth was about to fall off his face. Honestly, it made taking him seriously pretty difficult.

Trixie brushed herself off as she stood, shooting one of those “are you serious” looks to our adversary. “Kid? I’m only a year younger than Astro!”

Technically a year and six months, but my current situation didn’t allow for smart-aleck comments. She didn’t give Checkmate a chance to respond, though, for within seconds there were ten Trixie’s surrounding him, all sending fireballs his way. Of course, nothing like this is ever that easy. With one quick spin, every one of the flames were hurled back at her, destroying her doppelgangers and dying off in the real Trixie’s water barrier at the very last minute.

Checkmate disappeared into a cloud of smoke that quickly made its way above Trixie, returning to the ground in the form of huge icicles. She barely managed to get out of the way, but the villain was already sending bolts of lightning her way that hit her before she even hit the ground. In a display of agility I didn’t even know she had, Trixie still managed to land on her hooves, lifting up a large amount of stones from the road beneath her and beaming them at Checkmate.

Either they were just too fast, or he was caught off guard by Trixie’s landing, as two of the stones smacked him in the face, resulting in a bloody lip and nose. The colt was left with little time to react as my gifted student hit him with a taste of his own medicine, the giant stone claw pressing him against the ground with all the force Trixie could give it. The mare took a leap of faith; taking just a moment to send as much magic as she could muster without letting up on her current trap to the princesses’ prison, her power combining with theirs and breaking their bonds.

Without a word, the sisters approached the twisted unicorn, their horns glowing bright. Surprisingly, Checkmate ceased his struggling and simply watched. “I suppose the game is over.” As the alicorns removed the amulet from his neck, his attention turned to me as he flashed a sinister grin. With the combined powers of Celestia and Luna, they slowly purged all the power from him, which ended up causing his body do disappear, but not before he got out his final words.

“You played well, Astro Stellaris, but rest assured, I will return for a rematch.”

By now, my strength had returned, at least enough to allow me to stand. All heads turned as the sound of multiple hooves got louder and louder, stopping as Twilight, accompanied by who I assumed to be the keepers of the other five Elements, came sliding to a halt after running all the way here. “Wait… Checkmate is gone?”

The pink, poufy one turned her head in every direction on the modern compass, even doing full-body three sixties. “Nope! No Mister Meanie Pants here!”

The temptation was too great, and she deserved a reward after saving my rear. Making my way over to her, I put my hoof around her neck and shouted as loudly as I possibly could, which, at that point, was my normal speaking tone. “Behold! The Great and Powerful Trixie has defeated the evil powers of the Alicorn Amulet and saved Equestria!”

Everypony, including Trixie, was in tears within moments. Even our monarchs couldn’t keep from laughing a tad bit.

A rainbow-maned Pegasus flew up to my student, getting up in her face rather aggressively. “You mean to tell me that a loudmouth faker like you defeated somepony with the Alicorn Amulet? PSSSH, yeah right! I’ll believe that when I see it!”

Before anyone else could respond, the elder sister gently pushed the Pegasus to the ground, her smile as bright as the sun she ruled over. “Believe it, dear Rainbow Dash. Trixie here not only saved Astro’s life, but held her own for long enough to aid in Luna and I’s escape. Were it not for her, Checkmate may have destroyed the city before you and your friend’s arrived.”

In unison, all of the ponies I did not recognize shook their heads and let out a loud, “Say what?”, earning a nod from the rest of us.

I’m sure there were more words that wanted to be said, but a large, white wing set itself in the middle of all of us, commanding our silence. “Come now, my little ponies, there’s much work to be done now. Checkmate has caused quite a bit of damage to the city, and we’ll all need to work together if we want to restore in time for Twilight’s coronation.”

Her words with met with numerous whispers and excited chatter, but after another raising of her wing, all was quiet. “I would also like to ask that Astro and Trixie attend, as well.”

The both of us bowed courteously to her, but I managed to get my words out before my student. “We’d be honored, your highness.”

* * *

We all chose to make our first goal aiding those that Checkmate had defeated, and after they were taken care of, we moved to actual rebuilding. Trixie asked that she be allowed to return home, and though I was going to deny her, both princesses, as well as the princess-to-be, allowed her to.

It took about three days to completely restore the buildings and roads that were damaged, and a few more hours to clean up the debris. About the middle of the second day, an orange Pegasus with a fiery mane and tail came to help us as well. I didn’t question it when Celestia requested that we stay in the castle for those days, though I did find it odd.

Finally, it came time for the coronation. With the time we had spent together, I learned a decent bit about all of Twilight’s friends, and found out that the unicorn named Rarity owned her own fashion boutique and had designed formal outfits for all of us, including Trixie and myself, to wear for the ceremony. Seeing as how we had nothing to do with Twilight earning her new form, Trixie and I decided to stand on the sidelines rather than join everyone on the balcony.

As with anything this big, all current royalty was in attendance, and that included the newly married Princess Cadence and her husband, Shining Armor, whom I later found out was Twilight’s older brother. Twilight’s speech was very well done given the fact that it was on-the-spot and unprepared, and the crown really suited her. However, when it seemed like the ceremony was over, and ponies began to leave, Celestia called for all to remain.

“As I’m sure you are all aware, our fair city of Canterlot was recently antagonized by a powerful villain. While the efforts of many contributed to his downfall, I would like to recognize the two individuals responsible for his downfall.”

As she spoke, a guard escorted the both of us towards the balcony, and before we could even ask questions, we were there, with all the royalty, and all the Elements of Harmony there with us. “Astro Stellaris and Trixie Lulamoon, your bravery and quick thinking kept Checkmate from destroying this beautiful city, and it is at this time I would like to reward you.”

Neither of us dared protest; when a princess rewarded you, you took it without question. However, her “reward” brought out many a gasp from the crowd below. Held in the sun princess’s magical grasp was the Alicorn Amulet, but with the combined powers of Luna and Cadence, and a bright flash of light, the amulet went from a pitch black to shimmering gold, and the red jewel embedded in it was now a golden yellow that resembled a crescent moon.

The shining alicorn approached me, but needed not to speak as I raised my chin, allowing her to place the cleansed amulet around my neck. When the click of the clamp was heard, loud roars and cheers echoed from above, but all I was focused on was an empty-hooved Trixie.

“Princess Celestia, this needs to go to Trixie, not me. She was the one who defeated Checkmate.”

Both her and her sister shook their heads, but it was Luna’s turn to speak now. “You are the one who has earned this, Astro Stellaris. Not only did your wisdom and quick wit tear down Checkmate’s plans, but your wisdom has shone through Trixie, who has displayed incredible power only possible through your teaching. In addition, nopony has said anything about dear Trixie not receiving a reward.”

After she had said this, I noticed Twilight giving her a wink, prompting me to raise a brow. “I would like to ask that you and your student return here tonight, and you shall see just how strongly your wisdom, and your heart, has impacted young Miss Lulamoon.”

* * *

With the coronation now over, Trixie and I home, and Sapphire out on a playdate with Spike, I began looking for a good place to display the necklace. Finally settling on the center of the indoor balcony between the double staircases, I hung it up. It was strange though; looking at it, I’d say it resembled an Element of Harmony. I assumed that the combined power of all three princesses attributed to the change, though. I mean, Princess Celestia did create the Elements of Harmony.

Trixie herself had asked for some time alone, stating that she wanted to put the finishing touches on a personal project of hers. Her timing couldn’t have been better, either. As she finished and came inside, I considered it late enough to return to the castle.

The trip there was quiet, but not for lack of anything to say. Trixie kept herself close to me for the whole trip, and I think she felt the same way that I did with not wanting to break what I felt to be a sentimental silence. Princess Luna was already waiting for us at the balcony, a bright smile on her face.

Honestly, my opinion was probably due to the fact that all I truly knew her as was Nightmare Moon since I had never really seen her after her change, but I thought the smile looked very out of place on her face, though it was still beautiful. Without a word, she raised her hoof to the sky, and my eyes got even bigger than when Trixie had saved my life.

Right above our heads was an image whose meaning need not be explained. A wand with a five pointed star on the end stood diagonally with the star at the top left. The wand itself looked as if it was being “held” in place by the crescent moon the shaft was going through; Trixie had created a constellation of the two of our cutie marks put into one.

There was only one thing I could think of to do, and as Luna made herself scarce, I’m sure she realized what that was. Bringing Trixie close, I wrapped one foreleg around her shoulders and turned her face to mine. “Consider this my confession, and your graduation.”

As I leaned forward, so did she, and our lips met in a sweet and gentle kiss. We held it for what seemed like forever, though it couldn’t have been but a few seconds. “Trixie, I love you.”

“I love you too, Astro.”

My new marefriend leaned herself against my chest, and I felt the warmth of a roar fire inside me. I could have never dreamed that my confession would be this easy, nor could I have ever imagined that my once broken and hurt student would become not only my marefriend, but a unicorn so great that she could move the stars as I did.

She was great and powerful. And she was mine. Neither of us could have been happier than we were in that moment, and we stayed happy all the way home, and as Trixie relocated herself to my room for a warm snuggle as we stayed together through the night.

We were happy, and all was well.