Trixie Goes Purple

Chapters

Part One: Reunion
Part Two: The First Atonement
Part Three: New Magic
Part Four: Reading, Repairing, and Reading Some More
Part Five: Painting the Town Red
Part Six: Surviving It
Part Seven: The First Date

Part One: Reunion

Trixie Goes Purple

Reunion

Timeline Entry: Directly after Twilight becomes Princess of Friendship

Within Twilight’s treehouse where she and Spike stood in the lobby, Twilight magically held a note. Spike didn’t look too happy or excited about it at all, but the mare kept pacing the floor while she read aloud, mimicking the voice of the pony who wrote it with an odd amount of enthusiasm.

“And so, Trixie will be arriving in Ponyville by this afternoon. Trixie hopes everypony can get along together. Sincerely, Trixie.” Twilight lowered the parchment, her wings slightly raised due to slim nervousness, and asked, “Isn’t this cool? She’s coming here, to Ponyville!”

Spike rubbed his arm, a concerned look on his face, and asked, “Are you sure this is a good idea? I mean, the last time she was here, she nearly took over the town completely, and would’ve moved on to Canterlot shortly there after.”

“Which is why I’ll be looking after her,” Twilight voiced as though nothing could go wrong so long as she did this. “I mean, everypony deserves a second chance, Spike.”

Famous last words, for Trixie was a trouble magnet. She had this unnatural thing about her that simply attracted mishaps and dislikable situations wherever she roamed. Though Spike told Twilight what he honestly thought about her, the princess was still willing to go through with it.

“She should be here any minute,” Twilight said, looking over at the clock.

“It’s just turning twelve, Twilight,” Spike said, placing his fisted claws on his waist. “She said this afternoon. That means she’ll be her at, like, three or something.”

Just then, the door knocked. Twilight snickered. “Oh, really?”

The door magically opened with the top splitting down the middle. Spike’s head turned to the side as he beheld the spectacle, mouth slightly agape. As would be expected, a very familiar mare stood on the threshold of the door. “BEHOLD!” she shouted, the rays of light coming from behind Trixie dimming along with her horn. “The Grrrreat and Powerrrful Trrrrixie has arrived!”

She boasted left and right, trotted in and walked passed the two residents as though she owned the place. Then, she stopped, backing away with an embarrassed smile. “What’s the matter, Trixie?” Twilight asked.

“Oh, I didn’t mean to barge in screaming. Sorry about that…”

Twilight shook her head, chuckling, “She’s still working out that new apology habit… Yes! Trixie, please, come inside! Say hi to Spike!”

“Say bye to Spike!” Without so much as trying to greet Trixie properly, that dragon was on his way up the stairs. Unfortunately for him, Trixie was a unicorn. Up, into the air and over the floor he went, straight to Trixie. “Ah! Help!”

“Trixie remembers you, how mad at her you were. Well, she’s sorry! And now, we can all be friends, like Twilight promised!”

“She promised what?”

Twilight simply smiled sheepishly, watching Trixie smother Spike with forced magic and awkward tuggings. “Ehehe, I’m not the best letter writer when it comes to past enemies. You should’ve seen the one with Discord!”

Spike broke himself free, Trixie trying to kiss his head, and said, “Don’t wanna know.”

In a sudden burst of speed that surprised even him, Spike darted up the stairs narrowly avoiding a chaotically unstable flash of pink aura. Trixie frowned once her quarry escaped. Turning to Twilight, she smiled cheekily with closed eyes. “Too strong-coming…?”

Twilight managed to stifle a quick laugh. “Yeah, a little. Don’t worry about him. He’ll warm up to you soon enough.” Twilight made a motion to the kitchen, “Care for some tea, or something to eat? You must be hungry from the ride here.”

“Oh, you have no idea. The food on the carts were horrible,” Trixie went on, talking about her trip on the train.

“You haven’t had my cooking yet. Trust me.”

“Trixie is not big on tea, so you’d better have coffee instead.” A small grimace crossed her face. “I mean, could I ask for coffee instead?”

Despite Trixie’s shrewd comments, Twilight liked her more apologetic ways much more than the harsh ones. “Coffee? I think I’ve got some,” Twilight said while opening a kitchen drawer. “So, how have you gotten along, Trixie? It’s been awhile since your last stay in Ponyville.”

Trixie wandered into the kitchen, her eyes warily taking in the scenery. “You know, Twilight? Trixie has never been inside your house before this!” Trixie helped herself to an apple sitting in the bowl. As she began eating it, she asked, “Why does this taste so funny?”

Twilight said, “Because it’s fake.”

After spitting the green, papery gunk out, she spoke again. “But other than that, you wanted to know how Trixie’s been, correct?”

Twilight clicked a button to start up the brewing, and then looked back to sarcastically say, “Please, tell me of your days away from this enchanted place.”

“Trixie has been slowly regaining her audience. Why, just last week, I had an excellent show in a small town not too far off from Baltimare.” She couldn’t help herself at this point and puffed out her chest. Twilight looked over her shoulder expectantly.

“Oh, really?” Twilight asked, staring more smugly at Trixie than Trixie did her.

“Yes! Trixie has been telling tales of historical figures, too!” She lowered her head and added, “Mostly about you, though…”

“What was that last part?” Her attention back on the coffee pot. “I didn’t catch that.”

Trixie looked about in a panic. “NOTHING! I mean, nothing.”

Twilight turned to Trixie with a questioning glare, but then smiled. “Anyways, what was it you wanted to do first? Would you care to rest up, or…?”

Sitting down in front of the bleak, wooden table, Trixie pondered her alternatives. “We could go out to eat, or see a movie, or spend some time snuggling in bed, or-”

Twilight cut her off. “Wait, what?”

Trixie placed a hoof on her chin. “Well, actually, Trixie isn’t that tired just yet.” Twilight’s eyebrow twitched. “I suppose… No!”

Twilight turned her head around from the pot, fearing Trixie might’ve left something important behind back home or on the train. “What?”

“I want to go shopping!”

Twilight’s frame went limp for a second, but caught itself from falling to the floor. “Well, that’s Trixie for you…”

“Preferably something to do with hoof shoe,” Trixie muttered.

A light bulb popped out of nowhere above Twilight’s head, bringing the alicorn to clap her hooves together in fervent joy, catching Trixie’s attention by surprise. “I know then! Rarity’s been wanting me to come on over to the Carousel Boutique. She’s gotten some new clothes and materials recently. Why don’t you come along?”

Trixie stared at the overly excited alicorn for a moment or two. Breaking into a smile, she began to nod, agreeing to the idea. “Great! Well? What’re we waiting for? Come on!” Only finding enough strength to pause for a short minute and turn off the coffee pot, Twilight call to Spike so he’d know where the two were going. Unsurprisingly enough, Twilight found herself being dragged out the door by Trixie, literally.

Part Two: The First Atonement

Trixie Goes Purple

The First Atonement

“Trixie... Trixie! Triiiiixiiiieeee!” Twilight yelled, causing her friend to turn around with a still slightly distracted face. Casting the usual look back, the show mare beheld poor Twilight completely entangled by pink aura, her hooves poking through and fighting to merely touch the ground, her wings wide open to help slow her down. A small part of Trixie’s mind informed her that this might just be the reason behind feeling more heated and weighed down than normal.

Blinking a few times, Trixie calmed herself down enough to return Twilight to land, who in turn dusted herself off. “Um.” Was all the unicorn could muster.

“While I’m happy that you’re excited, I gotta ask…” Twilight fixed her with a bemused look and an eyebrow raised. “Do you even know where we’re headed?”

“Why, yes! The Chariot Bubble-waggon!”

“I figured as much. Don’t worry, just follow me. And… Let’s take our time, ok?” Trotting a little ahead of Trixie, Twilight motioned for her to follow.

Passing through the town, Trixie and Twilight began to see more ponies as they approached the marketplace proper. Slowly, more and more strangers began to recognize the blue coated show mare. Thy reacted in many ways towards her presence. Most of them, however, were quite unfavorable. Tilting her head down, Trixie began to walk slower to try and avoid the gazes of those judging her.

“Twilight, they’re staring at me…”

Twilight looked to the left, and then the right. While she whispered to Trixie, she also turned down a more secluded street, guiding Trixie along. “Relax, this is what you’re here for, to apologize to everypony. To forgive and forget.”

The nearer they came to the end of the road, the more tempted Trixie was to give up then and there, and go back to performing for random ponies in random towns. The only thing that kept her from doing so was them reaching the lighter end of their path. the Carousel Boutique stood right across the way.

Now, it was Trixie snatching up the lead, and once again dragging Twilight along. “Aha! See?” Trixie asked. “I knew where it was!” Twilight, bouncing along behind her, could only roll her eyes.

Entering the shop, the Jingle of the overhead bell signaled the stop of a tell-tale sewing machine. From the back of the establishment, A sing-song voice announced, “Coming!” It’s owner soon began emerging from the back room. Quickly, Twilight took the front, nonchalantly blocking the sight from Rarity.

“First, I need to talk to you about something,” Twilight said,

While they talked, Trixie wandered warily in circles around the store, gliding a hoof along seemingly every dress, shoe, or random fabric roll. Eventually, her eyes fell upon a silver plate of armor crafted just for mares. It was the same type princesses wear. With a twinkle in her eyes, she put it on one of the tables while saying, “Oooh, shiny!”

Considering Trixie was busy analyzing the armor, Twilight was able to try and figure out a way to keep Rarity from exploding. Through the loose crack, Rarity gasped at who she saw looking around at her establishment. It was possibly the second most undesirable pony she’d ever had the discomfort of merely talking with. Blueblood held first place in that competition.

“Wh-wh-why?! Twilight, do you not remember what she put me through? I mean, us?”

Twilight calmed her friend to the best of her abilities. “Look, Rarity, she’s changed! She’s not that cold hearted mistress you dealt with last time around, and she’s hardly the mane wrecker from the time before that.”

With a sudden, resounding crash echoing through the front sections of the store, Rarity could only fix Twilight with a disapproving glance matched only by Celestia at very rare times. “Changed, huh?” Without a second thought, or a moment to let Twilight speak, Rarity marched out the door.

“How dare you come into this store and start vandalizing my wears! Get-” She saw Trixie standing by a priceless looking vase. Nothing was broken, no windows missing, the roof hadn’t caved in. “Out?” She took a step back and searched, but found no damages inflicted anywhere. “Then… what was that noise?”

“Nothing!” Trixie said, her muzzle scrunching immediately after her lips allowed the word to leave. Though she could’ve gotten away with it, Trixie still felt guilty. That’s one emotion she always thought to be mere rumors spread around. Thanks to recent events, though, she began to comprehend its origins.

Just before Rarity was able to try and excuse her rude outburst, starting with, “Oh, how could I be so foolish,” Trixie sighed, stopping Rarity from saying much of anything else.

“Wait…” Rarity looked back up. “I broke your vase, and then used magic to repair it before you came out.” She looked at Rarity with these big, pearly, sorrowful eyes, and said, “Sorry for lying.”

If one were to look upon Rarity’s face, they would have seen the pure rage on it. With a sudden exhale of breath, Rarity closed her eyes, brought her hooves up to massage her temple, and sighed. “Mmmr, very well. At least you came clean about it.” Donning a polite smile, Rarity looked to her guests. “So, why come here first? What could somepony like me help you with?”

“Well,” Twilight began, “You see, we-”

“Trixie and Twilight wish to go shopping!”

Rarity let out a girlish squeal of delight. “Ah, something about that… Any feminine mare can enjoy it.”

Twilight cheekily smirked. “Then I found something you two like?”

“No,” Rarity said. “And do you know why? Because I don’t go shopping with vase breakers, mane ruiners, city enslavers, and farm girl ticklers!”

Rarity turned around, headed for the back door with Twilight following. Once the door was shut with Trixie alone yet again to think about what the fashionista had said, Rarity and Twilight on the other end of the wall talked. Well, it was more like an argument, if anything.

“You bring her to my shop, she breaks my vase-”

“That vase is perfectly fine, Rarity! It doesn’t have a scratch on it! You make it sound like I’m gonna walk out there and see everything destroyed.”

Rarity rolled her eyes, claiming, “I’ll tell you what. If she just apologized to me for all that she’s done, not just the vase, then I’ll try being more friendly towards her. How’s that sound?”

“A compromise?” Twilight asked. “Alright, if she doesn’t by the end of the day, then you don’t have to deal with her ever again. Sound good to you?”

Rarity shuffled her hooves, and confidently said, “Very well, then.”

Twilight gave a small sigh. At least it was a small victory. Upon the two walking out, Rarity quickly started eyeing Trixie who stood staring at the sheet of armor on the counter, it reflecting her wobbly lips.

The very second those two locked eyes, Trixie bursted into tears, much like a scolded foal. “Trixie is sorrrrrryyyyyyy! Trixie just wants to make friends! Please don’t hate her!” She began throwing herself around Rarity in a tight hug, sobbing into that pristine, white coat of Rarity's.

Twilight, for the most part, was trying not to laugh at the face that Rarity was showing. A mixture of horror and glee, complete with a twitch from her eyebrow. “W-well, at… at least you… Apologized…?” She managed through gritted teeth.

Twilight simply watched, finally releasing a few chortles she’d been holding in. “Need some help?” she teased.

Ignoring Twilight, Rarity raised her hooves to try and remove the clingy unicorn from herself before she ruined her perfectly maintained coat. “I think I can let it slide, darling. I must say… It does clash on occasion with the rest of my shop.”

“No,” Trixie cried after standing straight. “I mean everything!” A tear slid down. “What I did to your mane, making you make me dresses day and night; I’m sorry about all that stuff…”

Twilight walked up next to Rarity, giving her this look that said, “Haha, now you’ve gotta be friends with her.” In reality, she was actually saying, “If I’m willing to forgive her after everything she’s put me through, surely you can do the same.”

Rarity bowed her head in defeat. “Oh, fine… Just don’t call me Surely!” She looked up, gave a quick huff, and began, “Trixie, I forg-”

Before the words could barely get out of Rarity’s mouth, Trixie threw herself at the unicorn, chanting, “Thank you, thank you, thank you!”

“Mmh, quite,” Rarity said with a bit lip. “Would you ladies care for some tea? I was already needing a break.”

Trixie shook her head. “What’s with everypony and tea?” She caught Twilight snickering. “I mean, coffee’s way better!”

While Rarity and Twilight had tea, at Trixie’s insistence, Trixie enjoyed a magically brewed cup of what she enjoyed most. A delightful blend of Saddle Ground’s richest with a hint of coconut. “Mmm… This, this is the best you could ever find.”

Rarity sat on the other side of the counter, rubbing her horn and mumbling to herself, “You’d better enjoy it, too.”

After another sip of her tea, Twilight asked Trixie, “So, what new spells have you learned?”

“Oh, basic things like cosmetics and bright, fancy lights,” Trixie replied with a short shrug.

Rarity looked to Trixie with a curious look. “Oh, ho? Cosmetics? Would you be talking about makeup and hair styling spells?”

“Well, I know one or two…”

“Oh my dear! You simply must learn some! I have to say, when Twilight showed me that book of her’s about that… Why, my morning routine was cut right in half, and I’ve never looked better, too! Just don't actually try grow your hair. The results are disastrous!”

Rarity had a point. Trixie’s time spent washing, shampooing, conditioning, combing, and so much more would be greatly reduced with the aid that came from magic. “Actually, I’ve been working on one in particular. It’s supposed to change your mane and coat to a new color.”

Rarity nodded. “I know that one! If you don’t like it, it’ll simply cancel out by midnight and changing it back. If you want to keep it, do the spell again, and it’ll stay that way until you do the spell yet again.”

Trixie continued, “And, I’ve added my personal touch to it. My favorite colors in the world will be the focus, the perfect tint.”

Twilight intervened. “Whoa, whoa, wait a minute here. You’ve been tampering with previously made magic? Even Rarity knows that can have dangerous consequences.”

“Hey,” Rarity uttered, a bit insulted by Twilight’s remark.

Trixie blushed, and predictably said, “Sorry…”

“Anyways,” Rarity offered, “tell you two what. I’ve got some new inventory for Twilight to see. While I do that, why don’t you go back to the treehouse and wait? We won’t be gone long. You see, my new stock is kind of private. When Twilight and I get back, we can all go get something to eat.”

Twilight turned to Rarity. “Are you sure it’s a good idea to leave her alone?”

Rarity chortled. “She’s a big girl, Twilight! Your house isn’t too far away, and besides, don’t you want to see what you’ll potentially be wearing?”

Twilight gave a small gasp. “Oh, Rarity, you did get my dress, right?”

With a sudden, shocked, though overly dramatic gasp, Rarity stood. “That’s right!” She grabbed Twilight by the hooves and pulled her up jokingly. “Come with me!”

Before Twilight could even cope with what was happening, she was yanked into the back room. The door opened, her jumping out and clinging to the knob, saying, “We’ll be right back!”

With that, she was slung back into the other room, leaving Trixie with nothing more but a few final sip of her drink. Enjoying that, she waited patiently with fresh thoughts still looming around in her head. Meanwhile, Twilight came upstairs to see a dress blazoned with nearly glowing colors, gems aligning the neck, and all around tacky accessories.

“See, Twilight!” Rarity pouted. “This is what happens when you let those unartistic Canterlot unicorns try and do MY job.”

Twilight circled it, looking up and down. “Oh, jeeze. Third world waist leather, chest tucking wire… Rarity, this is a disaster waiting for me to wear it!”

“Then you’ll do it?” Rarity asked, behaving like if Twilight didn’t do it, the world would end.

“Kneel,” Twilight said. Rarity did so. “As princess, I hereby give you all rights and privileges to destroy this tacky attempt at modern day fashion, and make me a new tacky attempt at modern day fashion, but in the good way,” she said with a laugh.

Rarity could’ve died at that moment with absolute joy, immediately jumping into the air, wanting to let Twilight know all about what she could do and how she planned on doing it. Of course, Twilight would need to model it, but that wasn’t much of an issue. After all, to be able to create a dress for royalty? It was a dressmaker’s dream. Then, a cough from behind sounded.

Twilight and Rarity turned to the source of the noise, seeing Trixie looking at them pointedly. A small huff escaped from Twilight’s mouth. “Trixie! I’m so sorry… But, this is kind of how Rarity gets. Why don’t you head back to the Library and look at those spells? I truly think they’ll be helpful if you’re going to go meddling with your magic. You’ll find them on the back wall, under vanity spells next to transmogrification spells.”

Trixie looked slightly hurt, but quickly shook it away. “Very well, Twilight Sparkle. Trixie will go and look at these spells, although she’d much rather watch you get dressed. Eh, don’t think I won’t hold you two to lunch!”

And with that, Trixie walked to the door, looked back hastily to wave goodbye, and left the two to their work. Rarity and Twilight could only stare her way even after she politely closed the door.

After bidding Trixie farewell, they shook their heads in amusement and resumed the task of correcting this horrible fashion mistake.

Part Three: New Magic

Trixie Goes Purple

New Magic

Before Rarity could do her thing, she and Twilight had a few papers to fill out, and then those would be sent to Celestia and Cadence over at the empire. Twilight would let Rarity get to it while she caught up with Trixie who was already looking over the books, picking out the right one.

Up above Twilight’s bookshelf within the tree house, there stood one shelf in particular. On top of the shelf containing spell books not normally found on display, there laid the thickest, greyest, oldest looking book Trixie had ever seen. “That’s not it.”

These were the spells that Twilight herself considered powerful, dangerous, or otherwise intense reads. Who knew what that monster of a book up there contained within it. For the moment, however, Trixie was still wondering where exactly that cosmetic spell was at. “Cosipulate, cosmeceutical, Cosmetic Magic! There it is! Funny, Trixie thought it’d be a lot more heavier.”

She sat in front of one such shelf, her pink aura wrapped about the paperback, skimming each piece of paper for the desired spell.

“No, no, no,” Trixie began chant at every turn of the page. “Nope, nada, not it… Here we go!” Her hoof landed on the picture with a mare magically brushing her mane. “Think of the color you desire your mane and coat to be, and presto! Now then, Trixie’s personal touch…”

With her horn twinkling at the tip, and some strange, black light circling in the back, Trixie’s entire being began to alter in pigmentation. It started from the tip of her horn, the normal blue taking on a distortion of red and green hues, and began to spread from there.

As the phenomena hit her middle portion, her hair began to darken from her original light blue color, becoming a much deeper shade that usual. One could almost call it… “Twilight?”

Trixie turned to see the princess walking through the front door, holding onto the knob. Trixie and Twilight locked eyes, and an ever so slight spark lit up between them. In the span of a second that lasted an eternity, they were unable to look away from each other, a power unlike what they could imagine surging between them.

At the end of that second, a resounding bang could be heard from outside the library. Twilight collapsed, but Trixie floated before her. Purple smoke loomed out of the cracks of the window. The fog was dense, but through it all, Twilight couldn’t see Trixie’s changes clearly. If anything, she looked like the cloud that hung around them.

Coughing, Twilight got to her hooves, her heart pumping fast, and a little weak as well. “Oooh, my head…”

Trixie landed, and stood as though nothing was wrong. She walked out of the fog, and pulled Twilight out as well. Eventually, the smoke subsided, and Twilight woke up a few minutes later on the couch, her head slightly stinging in the very front. On the other side of the room was Trixie. Though, something about her seemed different.

“Twilight…” The alicorn looked up, blinking several times before finally focusing, and then seeing the mare before her. “I… Well, I look like…”

“Me?” Twilight asked, getting down to the floor, eyes wide. The very coloring of Trixie’s mane and coat had changed from normal to lavender, Twilight’s color. The similarities were amazing. Everything but the cutie mark and mane cut looked identical to Twilight.

Coming nearer to Trixie in a low, cautious way, Twilight observed the exact coloring while Trixie asked, “This is Trixie’s favorite color? No, that’s not right!”

“Not right is right,” Twilight said. “I must’ve interrupted the spell, and you accidentally stole my look!”

Trixie sighed, not really concerned with it that much. “Trixie looks good, though.” Twilight blinked a few times. Of all things… She was concerned with THAT? Twilight watched as Trixie brought the closest mirror flying to her and struck a pose. The thing fell to the floor, broken with Trixie letting out a scream suddenly.

“Hey! That was expensive!”

“Twilight, my aura!” Twilight stared at Trixie’s horn, it glowing deep purple. It resembled her Highness's quite well. Slowly, Twilight’s horn shined, and she brought it close to Trixie’s for the two to compare.

“You’re right… It’s the same color as mine.” Getting a bit carried away, the tips touched, sending small sparkles shooting in all different directions. Twilight backed away while Trixie raised one of her hooves nervously. “That’s not supposed to happen!”

Twilight nodded. “Where’s the book you were reading?”

It hovered into Twilight’s grasp, pages turning and flipping back and forth. The book was positively filled with brushing techniques, eyeliner assistance, and finally, mane care. “There we go,” Twilight said. “Hmm… Says here your aura shouldn’t have changed unless you…”

Trixie sat down and crossed her hooves, scolding, “Tampered with it…”

Twilight’s eyes went wide, but not with anger as Trixie expected, but with glee. “Trixie! This is amazing! Do you know what you just did?” Trixie simply raised an eyebrow. “You just made new magic! Very few ever actually pull that off!”

Momentarily stunned, Trixie couldn’t contain herself. With a wide grin, she ask in a high pitched voice, “Trixie made new wh-”

Her horn shined brighter than ever before, and shot a ray of fireballs at the entrance of the treehouse, opening a new window for Twilight. Rubble upon burnt branches laid on Twilight’s destroyed lawn. Inside, Twilight stood with her mouth wide open, and not with glee, but shock. Trixie took a step back, her face contorting to hold back a cry of pure panic.

“T-Trixie…”

“I didn’t do it!”

“Your new magic…”

“Twilight, please forgive me!”

“You copied my alicorn p-powers.”

Trixie latched herself to Twilight’s legs, pleading for forgiveness. Twilight simply stared, mouth slowly closing, her eyes refusing to blink. The smell of ash entered her nose. That was just from a quick little spur of happiness. Celestia only knows how devastating Trixie’s copied abilities could be when she’s unstable.

Twilight turned her head to Trixie suddenly, and lifted her up. She attempted to scan her for a minute. While Trixie hung there limply, a scared expression on her face, Twilight took a deep breath, and then lowered the mare to the cracked floor once her test was completed.

Her head lowered. “Every spell… Every ounce of knowledge, and every year of practicing, training, and even mastering my own magic has been duplicated by you. That includes my alicorn experience as well.” She walked in circles, letting Trixie watch her. “But, you’re not me. You don’t know how to control yourself!”

Trixie scratched the back of her neck, and asked, “Then, I shouldn’t use magic?”

Twilight nodded again, and then said, “I need to do some research on this immediately. Give me that book you were using again, and get me the big, grey deadweight up there.” Trixie shivered, glanced to the wreckage outside, and the looked up at the slot containing the book Twilight asked for.

“Sorry, Twilight...”

The alicorn simply gave her a glance and started reading more into what happened exactly.

Part Four: Reading, Repairing, and Reading Some More

Trixie Goes Purple

Reading, Repairing, and Reading Some More

Over on Twilight’s couch, Trixie rested with her hind legs held up on the cushy armrests, and her head on the tasseled couch pillows. Every few seconds, she’d blink a few times, almost falling asleep. Eventually, she lifted her head yet again to check up on Twilight. “It’s been an hour, Twilight! I would like to get some food sometime in the future.”

“I’m… close…”

The Princess refused to turn and speak correctly. Her eyes were glued to the words, not even bothering to make a glow of her horn for the damaged front of her house before starting this rigorous task. Trixie huffed an exasperated sigh, rolling onto her back. “I’m bored! You promised you’d take Trixie out to lunch, Twilight Sparkle. I’m hungry, and…” Twilight lipped the contents of her book as Trixie said, “Oh, Twilight, I’m sorry. I just get so restless when… well, resting!”

Twilight simply ignored Trixie, not even hearing a word she said. Not even the growl of Trixie’s stomach caught her attention. “Yes, that’s nice…”

The more Trixie laid there, the more slumber was beckoning her. With her eyes barely open, her horn started glowing a dim shine. Soon, a book flew by Twilight’s head. Another one brushed her ear. “What the…?”

Twilight glanced above her to see multiple entries of magical research swirling around in the air in a strange dance. One flew dangerously close to the fire, bringing Twilight to plead, “Trixie, stop! You’re gonna destroy my books! If you do that, I’ll never forgive you!”

Trixie snapped out of her dream with a small yelp, getting to her hooves. The books all fell down in a hard clutter. “Y-you’ll never what?” Trixie asked, unbalanced.

“If you destroy my books, I’ll banish you.”

Trixie let out a small, nervous laugh. “Y-you’re kidding, right?” Twilight didn't reply. “I-I mean you couldn’t possibly do something like that, right?” Twilight only scowled, her eyes locked like steel. “I mean, y-you are a Princess, but still…” Twilight remained silent. Trixie zipped her lips. Only the still air made a sound.

Knocking came from the front door, just in time. Amongst the rubble and ruin, the door still stayed. It opened through the top middle to show Rarity poking through, concern showing clearly upon her face. “Hello, dearies… Err, this isn’t a bad time, is it?”

Two set of eyes turned toward her, one scared, one stern. Rarity needed no hint that something was severely wrong. That, and the fact that there seemed to be TWO Twilights, one with no wings, and a different hair style. A completely different Cutie Mark helped in telling them apart, too. Of course, this didn’t exactly inform Rarity of what really happened.

Not only was Twilight’s home punched out, and ruined. It was also messy with books littering the floor, and one big book laying in front of the fireplace. Twilight sighed, bringing her hooves up to massage her temple. “Don’t worry, Rarity, you’re fine. Just stay still for a second.”

Suddenly, with little sweat, Twilight repaired the house, restored the broken branches and cleared the air of residual dust or ashy smells. Then, she made a simple beam of light shine in the air, bringing her books to shelf themselves all correctly. Just like that, everything was back to normal, but that’s only because of Twilight’s newer powers. As a unicorn, all that would've been impossible, not without a whole day’s time.

With the door opening, and Rarity walking in, she giggled, “Nicely done! Now, what happened? Why is Trixie purple, much like yourself Twilight, and why was the front of your house obliterated, and-”

Twilight shushed Rarity, explaining everything. As Rarity listened to what Twilight had to say, her eyes went wider and wider. At the end of it all, she was left almost speechless. “Wha-- Bu-- You mean…” Twilight nodded slowly while Trixie’s downcast look worsened. “She copied you? Right down to the magic?” Twilight, again, nodded with an annoyed look aimed at Trixie. “But, how is that even possible?”

Rarity stood up quickly, staggering around like she was drunk, earning an eye roll from Twilight. She knew full well what was coming. “This is… This is… This is the. Worst. Possible. THING!” And with that, collapsed on a very familiar red couch.

“Trixie!” Twilight cried.

“Sorry,” Trixie said after summoning the furniture for Rarity. “It just seemed like it’d be needed.”

“Don’t encourage her, please.” Twilight cleared her throat, grabbed Rarity and brought her to the book. “I’ve been researching into the matter.”

Rarity shuffled away haphazardly, chanting, “No, no, no,” at the book. “I hate the study of tampered magic!”

Twilight wrapped a hoof around her, saying, “You got me and Trixie into this, Rarity. From what I can tell, the cosmetic spell has a cancel timer that’s triggered at midnight. Trixie’s alterations to the spell, and new magical properties has a ninety eight percent chance of that cancel timer acting severely different from its original function.”

Rarity shook her head. “I won’t read it!”

Twilight pushed her forth. “You will, and you’re gonna help me find out what happens at midnight!”

“No!”

“Yes!”

While the two fidgeted with one another, Twilight winning in the end, Trixie wandered off into the city. The door was wide open, they’d take all night, and Trixie was hungry. So, into the city she went. Having a new coat color, after all, can make one’s reputation change suddenly.

Almost like being a new mare, Trixie had hardly any problems with passersby. The stallions tipped their hats, and the mares said hello. Soon, Trixie arrived at a local food shop, the first of many more disasters to come, for nopony like Trixie could possibly control their powers very well without proper training.

Meanwhile, back at Golden Oak’s Library, Rarity and Twilight were still going at it. They had reached the point in which they were muzzle to muzzle in a fit of rage. Finally having enough, Twilight let out a mix between a scream and a grunt and threw her fore-hooves into the air. “AGH. This is getting us nowhere!”

The sudden end to the argument caused Rarity to step back. “Hmph. You’re quite right. If someone didn’t insist she was right, we’d probably have it figured out by now.”

Twilight looked upon her friend with dismay. Shaking her head, she fixed Rarity with a glare. “Look, let’s just try and cooperate so we can figure out what happened. Now... What do we know?”

“Well… It changed her hair color.”

“Right. And it also changed her coat color.”

“It gave her the means to destroy the world.”

“Ignoring that,” Twilight grumbled, “This spell had a time limit… Time, it’s the essence of the body… Body, which page is that?”

Rarity flipped to it quickly. “Here!”

“Page sixty four… Six, it’s the contents of alteration. Alteration can mean physically, too. Then that means we need to go to page five!” They arrived at page five, a blank page. Twilight and Rarity stared at it blankly. “This isn’t working…”

Rarity looked at Twilight, and said, “This is making me fall asleep…”

Twilight looked up. “Sleep, midnight, at twelve.” She turned to page twelve. Really, she didn’t know what she was doing by then. “Here we go!” Twilight said, reading line after line… And then, her smile turned into a frown. “She only has until midnight, true… but not for the spell to cancel. In this case, she’ll stay that way, mane color, powers and everything!”

A vision flashed inside Twilight’s head. “Twilight? Rarity asked, looking over at her.

Twilight saw Trixie wearing her element crown within her mind. “AH!” Twilight yipped. “We’ve gotta find the cure! Read!”

Right about that time, Trixie was getting her meal...

Part Five: Painting the Town Red

Trixie Goes Purple

Painting the Town Red

“Trixie will have the flower salad, please.”

Just up the street, not a few steps away from Twilight’s house, Trixie sat at a counter ordering something to eat.

“All alone, are we?” asked the french accented stallion.

“Well, my date couldn’t make it.”

“Ah,” sighed the waiter. “It’s a sad thing, all these young colts running around with young mares like you, but not necessarily a charming mare such as yourself.”

Trixie rolled her eyes. “She’s a girl, and she’s caught up in her studies with Rarity, another good friend of Trixie’s.”

“Oh,” said the waiter, his eyebrows raised slightly. “Then you’re…”

“Her good friend, yes.”

He stared at her, his muzzle scrunched up respectfully, and said, “But, not a moment ago, you called her your date. Yes?”

“Friend, date, what’s the difference?” Trixie asked, her mane taking a swipe at the tip of his nose as she turned.

“The difference is a date is… ” The waiter went on to compare the different aspects of a ‘friend’ and a ‘date’, but Trixie didn’t give him the benefit of her full attention.

Trixie simply offered a rather bored look, and though he didn’t know it, his mane color suddenly switched from jet black to a sleek and almost shining white hue. She stared for a moment before suddenly gasping, “Err, my food! Where’s my food?”

Then, he gasped as well, and was off. Trixie slouched a little in her seat and noticed her horn was dimly glowing. It wasn’t bright enough for the waiter to notice, but that didn’t excuse her to be so lax. Imagine that, Trixie being careful. Such an absurd thought. Needless to say, it would only be a few minutes before her salad showed up.

Smiling brightly, Trixie started to feast upon her salad, taking a minor note that the waiter’s hair had changed from white to a near-neon green. Slowing her chewing ever so slightly, the waiter noticed the blank stare on her face.

“Ma’am? Is everything in order for you…?” Getting no response, he waved a hoof before her face in a vain attempt to catch her attention. “Ma’am?”

Trixie snapped out of her stupor and smiled sheepishly. She figured that if he had yet to notice what had happened, then there was no need to inform him. “Oh! Uh, Trix– I am enjoying this! Deliver my compliments to the chef.” A satisfied look crossed the waiters face, and he departed from the table shortly after.

Glancing about, Trixie took note of almost everyone in the restaurant. Somehow, that small, trance-like snicker was powerful enough to change the whole scenery around her. Ponies with hearts for cutie marks had those swapped with their dates. It wasn’t just her waiter that had awkward hair now, but every employee there that night had a full head of either glistening yellow, green, red or blue neon hair, even if they were bald.

She panicked and tried to stand up, but was immediately shot back to the wall opposite of where she faced by her horn. In the blink of an eye, the whole establishment was dry painted a pretty, red color along with everypony there. A wide radius of thirty feet around her was suddenly blotched out in the finest taste of red. Not even the corners were spared.

By now, Twilight could barely hear the screaming from within her deep studies, and all that yelling going on wasn’t helping Trixie settle down at all.

With her left ear poking up and pointing towards the door, Twilight stopped reading while Rarity kept researching. At least, that’s what Twilight thought she was doing. “Trixie?” Twilight asked. “Must’ve came from upstairs…”

Rarity woke back up, picking her head up from her book lazily. ”And, uh, that’s how crystal theory developed rock candy!”

Twilight gave her a look. “Dreaming about sugar history again?”

“Again?” Rarity asked. “When di– Oh, wait, the sleepover with Applejack. I remember now. Hmm, no wonder she’s always calling me a marshmallow.”

Twilight stood up suddenly, alert of the room around her. She and Rarity were accounted for, but... “Where’s Trixie?” Twilight demanded, looking at the door.

Rarity stretched out her hooves, and yawned before saying, “I don’t know Twilight, but it’s getting awfully late. I need to get my beauty sleep, dearie.”

Twilight turned back to her with a slight frown. “Keep reading while I go retrieve my little copy.”

Rarity winced. “Oh, b-but Twilight! I hate reading!”

Twilight left without another word. There was nothing else she needed to say, really. Rarity knew the importance of this mission she was assigned to. Failure could result in countless numbers of arising problems. She’d seen the lighter side of Trixie’s powers. There yet remained a darker side.

Twilight made her way around the library, poking her head inside each room during her search for Trixie. She found herself in the guest bedroom, and began to entertain the rather frightening thought of Trixie not actually being in the house. After two more sweeps top to bottom, Twilight finally decided to acknowledge the fact that Trixie was, indeed, missing from the library. Dread crept into her system.

Twilight frantically ran into the room where she and Rarity were using to research for a cure. The sudden bang of the door startled Rarity awake, her head jerking up while a book stuck to her face. “I AM NOT A MARSHMALLOW!”

“Rarity, she’s– Marshmallow…?” Twilight shook her head, trying hard not to concentrate on the odd exclamation, and instead, she plowed forth with the issue currently keeping Rarity from gaining any actual sleep. “She’s gone! Trixie is gone!”

Rarity blinked a few times, mostly to get the newly formed crumbs from out of her eyes. “Whu…?”

“I looked everywhere for her! She’s not in the house at all!”

“Bu– ?”

“So, I’m going out to find her! We cannot let her get startled!”

“Well that’s– ”

“I need you to stay here and keep looking for that cure!”

“Wait, what?” Rarity stood, her eyes swelling with tears. She was never going to get any sleep at this rate. It was time to pull out the puppy eyes. “But, Twiiiii– ”

*Poof!*

“Enough!” Twilight yelled, her gaze staring sharply at the now secretary-outfitted Rarity. “Find the cure. That’s all you’ve gotta do. A focusing spell and some pay attention enchantments aren’t gonna hurt you… Actually, it might just make you a bit better off in life if I leave them going.”

She turned towards the door, but was stopped right at the doorknob. “Twilight? Would you like the cure in paper written format or announced?”

Twilight nodded, and said, “Announced is fine… and, I think I overdid it, but at this point, whatever.”

Rarity looked at her, clearly unamused. “You can say that again, dearie. A simple ascot would have been more than enough.”

“Oh, come now, Rarity,” Twilight laughed. “Surely you just love your new mane, and the dress makes you look absolutely professional.”

“It’s horribly itchy!”

“Of course,” Twilight simply giggled, and walked out.

As she did, she almost immediately caught onto the blazing trail of chaotic mishaps consisting of mystical magic beyond even unicorn comprehension. It started with the red sector. That’s what Twilight dubbed it to be, because almost half of the nighttime town was painted red by Trixie. And of course, leave it all up to Twilight to clean up the mess. Just perfect.

She quickly jolted to the waiter who turned around, and gave her a scare. The neon hair wasn’t the only thing left behind. His face seemed plastic, almost distorted. He didn’t say anything for a minute, seemingly smiling at Twilight. Yet somehow, he looked familiar.

“Twilight?!” Pinkie asked, scaring Twilight right into hovering over the ground.

“Pinkie, what’s going on? Why do all these ponies have weird faces?” Twilight kept looking around while Pinkie shuffled her hooves.

“Twilight! They’ve stole my secret ability to morph my face into Old Kingdom looks, AND enhanced it with funny hair!”

Twilight watched as Pinkie swirled her hooves around in quick circles in front of her face, lowered them and showed Twilight she wasn’t joking. She now looked just as quirky as the others, but without a funny, glowing mane. Bounding back in fright, Twilight asked, “Who did this?”

“Gosh, Twilight! Trixie’s been here the whole day and you haven’t seen her? Are you sure your eyes are working correctly?”

Twilight growled, “Where did she go?”

With the threat of Twilight’s alicorn wrath presented, Pinkie stopped playing games if only so briefly, and pointed towards Fluttershy’s cottage.

With a hop, skip, and quick teleport, Twilight dashed off toward the cottage just as Trixie herself arrived. Shaking off the red mist that clung to her, she glanced about to try and figure out where she was. Noticing Fluttershy, she set off toward her. “Excuse me!” She called, “Can you help Trixie out?”

Of course, with Fluttershy being otherwise occupied with a squirrel, Trixie’s call did what was expected: she got scared and dove headlong into the squirrel's nest. Trixie could only look upon the scene with a mix of astonishment and questioning. After all, a tree with a pink tail wasn’t an everyday sight.

“Oh dear, and she was doing so much better at that, too…” A silky voice spoke right next to Trixie’s ear. Snapping her head to the side, Trixie beheld the serpentine figure with shock, and launched herself into the very same tree Fluttershy now occupied.

A hearty laugh boomed from Discord. “Oh, heavens! You ponies are just too easy!”

Trixie’s head poked through. She observed the terror of a being. “What… are you?”

Discord yanked Fluttershy by her tail, gave another quick tug, and set her loose. She settled to the ground while gasping for air, and said upon landing, “Oh, Trixie… H-heard of you.”

Trixie nodded. “Yes, we’ve met before… Buttersky, right?”

“Flutt… shy…”

Trixie leaned in. “I’m sorry, what was that?

“I’m… Fluh… Mmh…”

Trixie simply lowered her head in aggravation. Then, Discord choked up, “Oh, she’s Fluttershy! Honestly, don’t you have someplace other than here to occupy? I mean, look at me! I’m standing!” Discord make a leap, but fell right to the hard ground face first.

“But, you have wings, don’t you?” Trixie asked.

Discord scraped his face off of the pavement, looked at her while elevating his chin with a paw, and said, “You’ve got some pretty unstable, and untamed magic building up inside of you. It’s almost cute, how you painted that portion of town red. Literally. Brings back memories, though my first painting of everything in sight consisted of pink and purple with a splash of blue.”

Trixie shook her head vigorously. “What do you mean untamed? I can– ”

The wind bristled her shoulder, and Discord asked, “Start up a tornado?”

Trixie looked up at him. “How’d you know?”

He chuckled, “Haha, my dear, sweet filly. I’ve got magic that would amaze you. Power that can’t possibly be controlled, but fortunately for all of you, is... I am Discord, the spirit of chaos, and you’ve got half of my power stuck within you. Duplicated magic, too. Twice as potent, believe it or not.”

Fluttershy looked up at the fiend to ask timidly, “What are you talking about, Discord?”

He smiled with his single fang showing, and patted Fluttershy on the back. “Mind if Trixie and I have a… small, private talk?” She didn’t have much choice as he already had begun sliding her along, into the house. With the door closing and Discord stepping down, and over the small stream, Trixie followed behind with hesitence.

“Well? What’s this talk you’re going on about? Trixie hasn’t got all day!”

He silenced her with a claw touching her lips, and said, “Shh… Notice that? Balance. The two shades are united once again. With their momentary reunion comes momentary respite. I can’t use magic, and your magic can’t escape your horn. Unfortunately, this is only temporary.”

“Unless…?” Trixie walked in front of him, and sat, a serious look on her purple face.

“Unless, I use a spell that’ll nullify your magic for about an hour and a half. All you have to do is promise you’ll never tell Twilight mine and Princess Celestia’s secret, and you’ll have some much needed peace for a bit.”

Trixie shook her head in bafflement. “Why can’t I tell Twilight?”

With a sinister grin, he said, “Because later on in life – your life, Trixie – you’ll find out about Twilight’s feelings.”

He’d said it so quietly, Trixie could hardly hear him, but did. “Her feeling? For who? Me?”

“Bah, I’ve spoiled enough! Do you want in on the totally awesome, super cool, can’t-live-without-it secret or don’t you?”

It didn’t take Trixie that long to nod solemnly. “What has Trixie got to lose?”

He snickered, pausing before beginning to speak. “Princess Celestia knew Twilight was beyond ready to lead Equestria as another fellow alicorn, but the only way to grant Twilight her princesshood was to allow me my powers back. You see, alicorn magic is a much more utilized thing, something only somepony such as Twilight Sparkle could handle.”

Trixie looked out at the fireflies floating right over the stream. “So, you gave her some of your own magic.”

He corrected her, “I gave her settled magic. Giving Twilight my ungodly gifts would be like letting a filly drive a waggon through and ice cream store! That’s the deal with Fluttershy back there, and why we’re buddy-buddy.”

Trixie nodded in understanding. “You calmed the chaos, and re… Err – re – something…”

Discord crossed his arms, allowing her a moment to try and guess the word. The longer she stayed near him, the less destruction came to the town, after all. She gave up with a heavy huff, and he answered, “Reformed it. I was reformed so that Twilight could harness my powers and become an alicorn. Though, by the sounds of things, she has done an excellent job so far. She might’ve even been able to harness it without my powers being touched at all!”

“Trixie can probably use this to her advantage,” she said with a toothy grin.

Discord jumped up quickly, saying, “Well, not only that, but you’ve got another hour before this spell wears off. I’d use that time wisely if I were you.”

Trixie stood and looked at him, a bit surprised. “Wait, I thought you said another thirty minutes with that hour.”

He simply shrugged. “I lied about how you being near me stops your magic, actually. I placed this spell on you the moment you arrived.”

“What?!” Trixie stared at him, completely caught off guard by his methods. He then snapped his fingers, and just like that, he was gone with the breeze. Trixie stood all alone, her purple mane being blown by the wind. “Trickster!” she yelled. Soon taking off, galloping towards where she thought was town, she wondered how Twilight was doing, and hoped she’d run into her Highness within the hour granted to her. Unfortunately, Trixie was just as bad with navigation as she was with magic. Instead, her path was leading her to Sweet Apple Acres.

Part Six: Surviving It

At this time in the evening of Ponyville, Trixie wandered right along the apple trees. Over and over again, her mind wandered back to what Discord had said to her, but eventually, Trixie would start thinking about the reason she had come to Ponyville in the first place. Everything just happened so fast, she had practically forgotten.

"Twilight is Trixie's friend now, and Trixie came back not only to let her know that Trixie has accepted this, and that nopony has anything further to worry about... but also..."

She came up to a bucket filled with rainwater. Looking at her own reflection, Trixie murmured to the purple ripples before her, "Trixie guesses it doesn't matter... She never should've wandered off in the first place, but she was so... hungry... The worst part is, Trixie never even got her meal!"

She began sighing, and fought back tears caused by hunger. She soon got herself together, although her stomach continued to growl at her. In response, she answered it with a slight attitude. "I already know the food back there smelled amazing!" She shuffled her hooves, and groaned, "Oh, listen to me, now. I can't even speak the way I usually do because I'm so rattled by all of this."

Trixie did her best to shake off the bad vibes that were running through her body, but something was about to startle her more than when she recently turned the train station into a night club. That something was Twilight who had come looking for her. At first, Trixie had expected Twilight to lash out at her for running off, and causing havoc amongst the Ponyville citizens. Instead, however, Twilight came running up to her on sight, shouting, "Trixie! There you are."

She came up to give Trixie a powerful hug, and as a response, Trixie hiccuped, " Y-you're not mad at Trixie?"

While Twilight gripped Trixie, she held off on answering. When she let go of Trixie, however, she said, "Oh, I'm a little bit upset that you ran off, and... well, you know, but for the most part, I'm just happy you're okay."

Trixie just stood there, amazed at how lenient Twilight was about all of this. She whispered, "After everything Trixie's put you through... Twilight?"

"Hmm? Yeah?"

"You're... an amazing friend. You know that?"

Twilight blushed, and said, "Thanks, but let's not waste much time. We need to hurry back so that we can get you cured!"

Trixie began walking with Twilight, and asked, "You found out how it works?"

Twilight shook her head, and answered, "Nope! Not yet, at least. I left Rarity to that while I went off in search for you."

Trixie frowned, and said, "Trixie's worried she'll stay like this forever. How will Trixie learn to control herself?"

That's when Twilight added, "A better question would be... how exactly are you controlling yourself right now?"

As the two walked along, back to the library, Trixie explained about how she met Discord. However, she left out the part about how he had given Twilight some of his own chaotic power so that she might become an alicorn. Once they got back to Twilight's home, Trixie would be finishing up by saying, "So, Trixie agrees that we should all just hurry this along, and change her back to her normal, blue self."

Twilight opened the door for Trixie, and as the two came in, Rarity turned around to greet the two. "Ah, there you are! It's only thirty minutes to midnight! Luckily... I've got the fix. Best part is, it's an easy one."

After all that energy was released, Rarity yawned powerfully from being kept awake for all of this. Her bed time was hours ago, and it showed by the bags underneath her eyes. As for Trixie, she just sighed, and forwardly asked, "So? What do we do?"

Twilight even agreed, "Yeah. What do we do, Rarity?"

The mare standing before them suddenly frowned, and confessed, "You're not going to like it."

Twilight rolled her eyes with a smile, and confidently stated, "I doubt it's that bad." She even chuckled, and asked Rarity, "Come on, tell us."

"Okay," Rarity said, breathing in deeply. "You two... must kiss."

That statement was the last thing the two of them thought would be the solution. Twilight just stood there gawking at Rarity while Trixie took on a more entertained persona, but even that wouldn't be enough to catch Twilight's eyes. The Princess just shook her head, and asked, "Excuse me? Rarity! We don't have time for your-"

"Here!" Rarity stammered, "I f-finished it!"

She was giving Twilight the book that they had been using, and turned it to a certain page. She then cross referenced it was another spell book. Twilight just blinked at the findings a few times, but found them all to be consistent. She looked at Trixie, who gulped, and claimed, "Looks like it'll work, actually."

Trixie smiled, and curiously tilted her head wondering if Twilight was going to actually go through with this or not. Twilight, on the other hoof, was just thinking of what she wanted to say. She came up to Trixie, and stood before her, although she was looking away. Even when she talked, Twilight didn't bother to look at Trixie.

"Look, Trixie... I'm only doing this because I have to."

Trixie just frowned, and felt a chill on her shoulders. "What?"

Twilight sighed, and continued. She still looked the other way, though blushing intensely. "I just want to make sure that it's perfectly clear... I'm... n-not into you, okay?"

Trixie didn't answer. She just stood there with an open mouth, listening to this. Rarity, however, attempted to make a comment by saying, "Uh, Twilight... Trixie's-"

She was cut off, though, by Twilight saying, "Not now, Rarity. You can go to bed, by the way." Although, how could she? Considering what was happening, she was surprised she wasn't eating popcorn. "Trixie," Twilight said, "I like you as a friend, but... don't get the wrong idea about all of this. This is just to save Equestria, so..."

She finally looked at Trixie's disgruntled face, and quickly got the kiss over with. That description of the kiss isn't to be taken lightly, either. Trixie had envisioned her first kiss with Twilight to be somewhat magical. This was anything but magical.

Well, that's not to say it didn't work. It did work, and flawlessly. Trixie quickly turned back to her original, blue self, but the kiss was just bland. Twilight observed Trixie, finally, and had the gall to ask, "What's wrong? Look! You're all better."

Trixie coughed, and answered, "Oh, yeah! That's great... Err, nothing's wrong, Twilight! Nothing... at all." She whispered, "Trixie just feels as if her heart's been broken."

Twilight still managed to hear that, however, and she then looked over to Rarity, and Spike who had come wandering down from the upstairs bedroom. He just looked down at her while Rarity asked, "Twilight? Did you really not pick up on the fact that Trixie might... Umm... How do I put this?"

Twilight then looked back at Trixie, only to see the mare biting her bottom lip in frustration. "Trixie? You...?" Twilight then understood. "You feel that way towards me?"

Trixie nodded solemnly, and said, "Trixie thinks... you're cute, and funny, and so, so smart...! And... A-and also an idiot!"

She grabbed a few books from Twilight's favorite shelves with her magic, and began tossing them at her. "Ah! Trixie, stop," Twilight pleaded.

"Do you even know why Trixie came back, Twilight Sparkle?" She asked this while throwing more books, upsetting Twilight even more. Her Highness was now trying to collect them all in a hurried, magical jumble.

At the same time, Twilight questioned Trixie, "Wh-why did you come back?" Trixie breathed hard, and then forced the whole collection off in one go before telling Twilight why she had come back at all. Books sat on the floor, and Twilight would have to redo them all over again. "Why?"

Trixie blushed, and said, "Because... Trixie wanted to tell you how she felt about you. How she really feels about you. She thought... maybe, if we go out on a date, or something... Trixie might have the time to somehow talk to you about it. Instead, all this happened... Trixie had the capability of unintentionally destroying the world, she's starving, and then you tell her that you're not even into her!"

The air fell quiet after she said that, and Twilight's eyes just stayed as wide as they could be, but she also couldn't stop blushing. Time slowed down for her, though, once Trixie began heading for the door, tears following her trail. Twilight knew she was supposed to stop her, but she couldn't. Her entire frame was paralyzed by current events. The books she was holding fell, too, as Trixie left in a fit of sobs.

Just like that, Trixie was gone from the Ponyville library. Twilight could only stare at the door for a second or two longer before turning to Spike. He just shook his head in disagreement with what she'd done to Trixie, and said, "Nice, Twilight. Real smooth of you."

"Well, how was I supposed to know?"

Rarity pointed out, "She had given plenty of hints. I mean, really! You should've picked up on it early on."

Spike then defended Twilight with, "To be honest, I didn't see that coming at all. I think I'm just gonna go back to my room and finish up the comic that I was so rudely interrupted from."

Rarity rolled her eyes, and said to Twilight with a raised brow, "We can't very well have this be the ending to the story, now can we?"

Part Seven: The First Date

There are a few things that Twilight had never expected to happen in her life. Becoming a national hero was one of them. To become an alicorn princess is another good example. However, she was slowly finding out that Trixie having a crush on her was much more difficult to take in than anything else. She at first could only stare blankly at the door that Trixie had just recently used, and blushed. After a second or two of silence, she turned slowly, blinked, and asked Rarity, "She... had a crush on me? As in... She wouldn't have minded at all that we were kissing?"

Rarity didn't respond. She just stood next to the stairs looking tired.

"As in..."

"Yes, darling," Rarity finally forced out. "As in, you probably shouldn't have said those things to her."

Twilight nodded, and gulped while thinking this over. "But," she said. "Trixie... She hated me at one point. It almost doesn't make sense."

Rarity offered, "She's not the same pony anymore."

Twilight could only stare at her friend for a second. She then took in a deep breath, and began looking around the room. "To be honest... Well, let me put it this way... Do you remember the day she first arrived here in Ponyville? How... against I was to confront her?"

Rarity nodded, and asked, "Yes, but what about it?"

Twilight started to glance at her unorganized books scattered about the floor, and said, "I wasn't fully aware of my surroundings at first, but I knew Trixie could've been a great influence on my life back then. I was attracted to her emotionally, too. I mean, she was willing to put herself out there even though she had no real idea what in the world she was doing. Because of that... Because of my fear towards just how much of an influence she could've been in my life, I tried to avoid her at first. That backfired, and when it did..."

She looked back at Rarity, who nodded while holding the hoof that had been poked. "Everypony in town payed a price."

Twilight's expression was bleak. "What I'm getting at is... I'm starting to realize more and more that she and I should't be apart. Perhaps, we really are meant for each other. I was just being too stubborn to realize it."

Rarity looked away. She seemed serious, but after a moment, she yawned abruptly before saying, "Uh-huh! Sounds like you've got it all figured out. Now, what will you actually be doing to make up for all the harsh things you said to her?"

At first, Twilight's head just lowered itself. She wasn't all that sure, actually, but she wasn't about to admit this so hastily. There had to be something she could do for Trixie. That's when Twilight's eyes fell on a picture of herself in the hot air balloon. She was surrounded by all of her friends. It took her a second to figure out what she wanted to do, but once it came to her, she'd smile, and say to Rarity. "I'll take her on a date. That's what she's been wanting all along. Also, I'll pack some food for her, too."

Rarity agreed by stating, "Quite the idea you've got there, assuming I understand what you're getting at. You plan on taking her for a joyride on Pinkie's balloon, aren't you?"

Twilight simply asked, "With it being this late, do you think Pinkie will mind if I wake her up?"

Rarity answered, "I doubt she'll be all that upset, especially considering it's for a friend."

Meanwhile, Trixie sat all by herself. She had just finished lighting a campfire outside her wagon, and was still shaken by everything that had happened. Nervously, she brought forth some food that was hidden within her wagon, and began nibbling on some cinnamon nuts. In between her chewing, she mumbled, "Trixie didn't deserve such harsh words from Twilight Sparkle... What does she know?" She stopped for just a second, and reasoned, "Actually, she knows a lot. So, how could she be this dense? Ugh!"

She began chewing her last nut all too fast, and looked into her now empty sack. It was tossed to the floor, and Trixie just sighed after gulping the last nut down. She then looked around with pursed lips, and a growling stomach.

"Trixie might as well go to sleep," she finally said.

That's when just over the horizon, she could see something floating downwards, headed her way. It was a hot air balloon, purple in color, and massive in size. Twilight could just barely be seen sitting inside, waving for Trixie to notice her. The unicorn was stopped where she was, stunned by what Twilight was doing.

"Wh-what in the world... are you doing?" she asked.

Twilight just kept floating closer and closer, and shouted to Trixie, "I thought you wanted that date! So... here I am." Trixie breathed for a few seconds, still taking in the slowly approaching sight. Soon, Twilight would be justly above her, waiting for an answer. "So, uh... Trixie?"

"Yes, T-Twilight?"

"Do you... want to go out with me?"

Trixie scoffed in a shy manner. "Trixie thought you didn't like Trixie."

Twilight begged, "Look, I went through a lot of trouble for this." For another moment or two, Twilight simply stood there, waiting. Once Trixie started shuffling her hooves backwards, Twilight would mention, "You know, I also brought along some delicious food...!"

Needless to say, Trixie couldn't resist. She was slow to reply, but when she did, Twilight would see a slight smile on Trixie's face. "Did you say... food?"

Twilight helped her with getting on board, and they took off shortly following that. Through the skies they soared together, side by side, both enjoying the breeze. Twilight opened up the picnic basket she had brought along. She didn't wait hardly at all to give Trixie something to eat. While she ate, Trixie commented, "It's... been practically forever! Thanks, Twilight."

The Princess simply nodded while enjoying her own meal. Once they finished, Twilight put everything away again, and they just stood next to one another for a while, enjoying the view of the land stretching far and wide before them. Twilight turned to Trixie, and stated quite boldly, "Trixie, back at the library... I didn't give you much of a kiss, now did I?"

Trixie just stared at Twilight blankly.

"So, if you want to," Twilight continued, "I wouldn't mind trying it again."

Trixie could only stand there for a second, glaring at Twilight. She managed to mumble, "Y-y-you really mean that?"

Twilight nodded, and she was also blushing rather noticeably. "I, umm... I wouldn't have offered if I didn't mean it, Trixie."

Gulping, Trixie came up close to Twilight, and sighed. "Well, alright..."

She closed in, and Trixie could feel herself become lightheaded. It wasn't from being way up high, either. This time, Twilight really meant it. As it ended, Twilight noticed that she could also hear and feel the thumping of Trixie's heart next to her own. Soon, the balloon slowly came back down to the ground, and Twilight offered to Trixie that she come stay with her for the evening, and of course, Trixie agreed.

That night, however, after an hour or two of sleeping on the downstairs couch, Trixie would pack up her things and leave. In her place, Trixie planted a note for Twilight to find. It depicted her as being both thankful and regretful towards Twilight for the night before, and that next time Twilight saw her, that Trixie would be greatly appreciative if she refrained from showing such attraction.

The next these two would cross paths would actually turn out to be with a pony named Starlight Glimmer.