MoonThief

"Day" 17, week 12, a few days later.

There were fucking posters all over the place. Apparently this was a big deal. Some hotshot magician was coming to town tonight and ALL of the little spoiled brat foals in lower Manehattan were going to take Mommy by the hand and go to see her. Luke kicked one mounted to a post. It was acts like that that made him sick. She would pretend to pull off feats of trickery while secretly resorting to magic. Kind of the opposite of the way things happen in the human world, but whatever; I'm breaking the fourth wall here. But with any luck, there would be lots of unguarded pockets ripe for harvest. So he bought a ticket, hoping the profit would outweigh the cost.

That night:

Luke was doing pretty well. He'd managed to nick $36, a wristwatch, and someone's bag of popcorn. He decided to sit and watch the show for a second. Immediately, he noticed something wasn't right. Her horn wasn't even glowing. Wut. Everypony's horn glowed when they did magic. Luke decided to investigate. He carefully watched her hands. There. He saw it. Nice. This mare actually knew what she was doing, unlike so many others. His brain started churning. These techniques could prove extremely useful, if only… He decided on a course of action.

Later, after the show:

Luke leaped out of the shadows, catching the mare completely off guard, filling her mouth with a rag, then quickly trapping her hooves to fully incapacitate her. Nice. Not bad for a rookie. He allowed himself a breath before staring into the fearful eyes. He dragged her into the dimly lit room and shut the door before removing her rag.

"What is your name?" Inquired Luke.

"I am the great and powerful Trixie! Behold my awesomeness, even in defeat!" She said loudly.

"Dafuq are you talkin bout nigga. You ass is mine. Now stop being so loud and I won't hafta smack a bitch."

"The great and powerful Trixie submits to the will of nopony!"

Luke shook his head to clear his thoughts. Apparently his tough black pony act wasn't working. He decided to try appealing to her better nature.

"Look girl. I just want to know how you managed to pull off all that sleight of hand and trickery without using magic. It was pretty impressive."

Trixie beamed, then looked unhappy, then smiled again.

"I know, it's sad. My magic doesn't work anymore. But the great and powerful Trixie lets no obstacle stop her on her path to greatness! Trixie will be the best travelling showpony in equestria!" She exclaimed.

"Keep it down"

"The great and powerful Trixie will 'keep it down' when she pleases!"

Clearly it was time to assert his authority in this situation again, things were getting out of hand. This mare didn't seem to realize that he was in control of this marenapping. Cautiously, he reached out and smacked her, immediately regretting the decision. It clearly hurt her beyond physical pain. Her pride was wounded, and a lot. He hated himself for doing this to her. She was confident, and that was something Luke respected, but it had no place in this current situation.

She sniffled.

"Sorry. I don't want to hurt you, but you need to understand that I'm in control here." He said.

"The great and powerful Trixie is sorry."

"Thank you. I apologize. But can you teach me some of your tricks?

"Sure. Can you release the great and powerful Trixie from her bonds?"

"Sure you won't run away?" Luke asked.

"Trixie promises."

She didn't run immediately. It was a good start. Over the next few hours in the dimly lit room, Luke did more than learn some tricks from Trixie. He befriended her too. She was horribly vain, but skilled and friendly. Luke released her, knowing she would tell no one, but hoping he would meet her again. She was going off to Baltimare the following morning for a show that night, but by her nature it wouldn't be long before she was back in town.