Darkness had fallen on the northern province of Maneitoba, and Winter Night, a purple unicorn with an cloud-obscured crescent moon for a cutie mark, had settled in to his isolated cabin for the evening. The cold wind blew harshly against his sturdy abode, but inside he was safe and warm. He loved it there in the wilderness, so far away from everything and everypony. It was a chance for him to perfect his magic, to fulfill his lifelong dream of one day becoming as great as that magical mare Trixie.
Yes, Trixie… He thought back to that night ten years earlier, when he was a young homeless pony on the streets of Baltimare. Things were definitely different then. He didn’t miss those times. Now, he didn’t have to sleep outside in the freezing cold, and he no longer had to know what it was like to go a day without food. Those times were certainly dark, but he also viewed them as necessary in his life. It was in those times that he found his life’s goal, his ultimate dream.
Let’s start at the beginning of that story. It was ten years early, and he was a young colt of 18. He wasn’t like many other colts his age though. He had grown up traveling all over Equestria, alone. He went from town to town, just trying to find work and food for a little bit before traveling on to the next place. He certainly could have found charity with many kind ponies, but he didn’t wish to take a hoofout. He was proud to a fault, and it often caused him to go shelterless and hungry. He would do a few oddjobs in each town, earning a few bits here and there, and then he would pack up and move on, quickly forgotten by everypony.
However, in Baltimare, something different happened. When he was scavenging the alleys, mainly looking for loose bits or some table scraps, he found a flyer. This flyer read “One-time engagement featuring The Great and Powerful Trixie! Wednesday at 9pm at Stiffshoe’s Tavern”. On this flyer was the most beautiful mare he had ever seen. He knew that he had to meet her. It was Monday. Surely he could scrounge up the bits to afford a ticket! Just a glimpse of this mare in person would make his life seem so much better, if only for a moment.
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Over the next two days, he tirelessly to raise the extra bits. He scrounged through the trash by day and through most of the freezing night. He found loose coins here and there, and he found a few odds and ends that he might be able to sell. He wanted to use some of the money to buy a meal, but he knew that if he did so, he might not have enough to see Trixie! So on he worked, until at last he had enough, and with hardly time to spare! He cleaned himself off in the icy pond at the edge of town, and headed to Stiffshoe’s Tavern. He was going to see Trixie.
He arrived at Stiffshoe’s, and the place was bustling with activity. Stiffshoe’s wasn’t a very big place, so it seemed odd to host such an important guest. “Certainly Trixie deserves a better place than this…” thought Winter. He shrugged it off, payed his bits, and quietly slipped in to Stiffshoe’s, wanting to get in there before it completely filled up.
Surprisingly, he was able to find a place to stand near the front. He didn’t have money for a glass of cider or anything, so he had no reason to try to get a spot near the bar. When the place was about three-quarters full, the doors were shut, and all lights, except for a few candles on the walls, were snuffed out. It was time for the show to begin!
Trixie gracefully trotted onto the stage, a smirk on her face. “Welcome, everypony. I am the Great and Powerful Trixie, the most powerful unicorn in ALL of Ponyville! I’m sure that you have heard of me; I mean, how can you not have? I’m the only pony known to have fought an Ursa Major and survived! But not only did I survive, I won. Quite easily I may add. How? With my magic!”
With that last exclamation, Trixie stood on her hind-legs and threw her front hooves in the air as she conjured up some magical pyrotechnics. Blue and yellow sparks radiated around her. Outward they went, spinning around, creating an ever-glowing circle of light. Her laughter increased as did the radius of her circle of magic. Suddenly, it collapsed in on her and she disappeared. She had vanished!
Everypony gasped! Where did she go? Winter looked around and saw that a new pony had sat down next to him. Wait, it was Trixie! “She’s over here!” he exclaimed.
Trixie chuckled, and stood up on her seat. “Alas, I have been spotted!” She leapt from her seat, and used her magic to float back to the small stage. “And now, on with the show!”
The show continued with Trixie displaying various feats of impressive magic, such as conjuring images, levitating objects, and even creating a faux Ursa Major on the stage so she could “vanquish” it. She was quite the showpony, and everypony in the tavern loved her. All to quickly for Winter, who had been captivated the entire time, the show ended.
Winter trotted back into the cold streets, and realized it was time to find a place to sleep that night. The air seemed especially cold that evening. “I better find some place extra warm…” he thought. “Also, I should have probably already headed south… This cold is getting dangerous. I guess I’ll leave tomorrow…”
He wandered the streets of Baltimare looking for a place to hunker down for the night. He passed benches and alleys, abandoned boxes and piles of rubble. Stiffshoe’s Tavern was in one of the poorer districts of town, but at least that meant more opportunities to find some cheap shelter. He eventually came upon an alley that had a pile of scrap fabric. That would have to do for the evening.
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Winter lay in the alley, shivering, when he heard a drunk filly stumble down the alley. He was burrowed in his pile of fabric, so she didn’t spot him, but he spotted her. She was a filly about his age, with a bright blue coat and a light blue mane. She was also wearing Trixie’s signature star cloak and hat. “Wait, that IS Trixie!” he thought.
He slowly poked his head out of his little nest, and spoke up. “T-Trixie?”
She turned around, not seeing him. “Huh? Uh… Who’s there?”
Winter pulled himself out of the scraps. “Just me… I s-saw your show tonight… I really enjoyed it!”
Trixie smiled. “Well of course you enjoyed it! I’m am the Green and Powerful Trixie, ya know!” she exclaimed with a wink.
“I believe you mean Great and Powerful,” Winter corrected.
Trixie smirked. “That’s what I said… I think… I’m a little drunk…”
“I can see that.”
“So, what are you doing here? It’s cold out! Why would you just hide in piles of fabric? That like your hobby or something? Do you just wait for a helpless drunk filly to walk in the alley and then you pop out? Are you a rapist? You look like a rapist…”
“I’m not a rapist… I’m a little offended you would think that! I’m… I’m just homeless…”
“Homeless?” asked Trixie.
“I mean I don’t have a place to live… I just kinda wander the streets, sleeping wherever I can.”
Trixie, still being a young magician, had obviously never met anyone homeless before. “Oh wow…. That’s so sad! But why don’t you just live with your parents?”
“I don’t have parents…”
“Now that’s just silly. Everypony has parents! How can you not have parents?”
“No, I mean… My parents aren’t alive anymore. They died when I was young… Got sick, you know? We were traveling from our house in Maneitoba to vacation in Canterlot… It was the first time I had ever left my hometown, and I was really excited. Mom and Dad had already started to get sick before we left, but at that age, I didn’t pay any attention to it. I was really excited to visit Canterlot, and well, I guess they realized it.
“As we started off, they got really sick, and we had to stop and make a small camp… It really wasn’t a great place, honestly. We had to set up a makeshift shelter, and our small tent couldn’t keep out the winter winds. Mom and Dad, they just continued to get worse, and there was nothing I could do… They eventually died there… I remember digging their graves… At least I gave them a proper burial…”
Trixie had tears in her eyes. She couldn’t even imagine having to go through something as horrifying as that. “Oh wow… What did you do after that? You know, like you were in the middle of nowhere!”
“Well, there was still some food left, so I grabbed that, and I just headed south, in the direction we were originally going. I eventually came across the town of Maredison, and there I found shelter for a few days. I gathered up scraps and garbage, and just traveled from town to town since then, doing odd jobs for food and money, and scavenging garbage for any valuables. Sometimes I even make enough to afford a night’s lodging, and I stay in an actual building. Those nights are really nice… Whenever the weather turns, though, I move on to the next town. In fact, I’m leaving here tomorrow…”
“You… That’s awful! How can somepony just sleep on the streets his whole life? That’s not a good way to live!”
Winter shifted nervously, feeling a little bad that he had upset Trixie by showing her the darker part of life. He faked a chuckle. “I’ll admit it’s not that great, but I have seen a lot of places in Equestria. It’s not all bad, when you think about it!”
“If you say so… Still… You’re a really brave colt… I really admire you…” She moved closer to Winter, gazing lovingly at him.
Winter blushed. “Heh… Thanks…”
Trixie moved even closer, and put her hoof next to his. “No, I mean it… I’ve never met a colt like you anywhere I’ve traveled….”
Winter couldn’t believe it! Was The Great and Powerful Trixie actually coming on to him? This had to be a dream, but the piercing cold air told him otherwise.
“What I’m saying, Winter, is that I think you’re awesome… And you’re cute…”
This was probably the alcohol talking, as Winter looked like a mess, but… He really wanted this to be something real…
Trixie looked into Winter’s eyes, and suddenly threw herself on him, and they both collapsed back into the pile of fabric. “Take me, Winter!” she exclaimed.
“This is most definitely the alcohol…” he muttered to himself. “I can’t do this…”
“Not now Trixie, you barely know me!” He pushed her away a bit, trying to resist not only her, but also his own urges.
She forced herself closer again, and again, he pushed her away. After a few attempts, she quickly gave up, growing bored. “Awww… Winter, you’re no fun… No fun at all!” she pouted.
Winter lay there with Trixie pouting for a while. He could tell that she was growing tired, as was he. “You look tired, Trixie, perhaps you should sleep… We can talk about all this in the morning…” he said, knowing she probably wouldn’t remember any of this.
Trixie tried to protest. “No, trust me Trixie… I promise it will be better in the morning…”
“Okay Winter, if you say so…” She nestled into the pile of fabric, and quickly passed out. Winter made sure she was well covered so she would stay warm, and he sat up all night to ensure that she stayed safe.
“Winter, you idiot…”
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Trixie finally awoke, a little confused at where she was at, but after she thought about it, and Winter helped to fill in the details, everything made sense.
“This… This isn’t good… For The Great and Powerful Trixie… I just hope no one saw me…” she said, ashamed.
Winter reassured her. “It will be okay. No one came down the alley all night.”
She smiled at him. “You stayed up all night for me?”
“Yeah… I just wanted to make sure you were safe…”
“Thanks… That means a lot to me…” she said, looking down at the ground. She wasn’t used to thanking people.
“Don’t worry about it. It was the least I could do for you.”
She continued to keep her head down. “So, I suppose I should be going… I have to head for Manehattan next…”
“Yeah… And I have to go also… I’m headed south, perhaps to Canterlot, where it’s a little warmer, and then I’ll see where I go from there….”
“Well, you take care of yourself, Winter…”
“Yeah, you too, Trixie…”
They both started to walk away, heading different directions. When he was just about to turn the corner on Second Street, Trixie ran after him.
“Wait! Winter!”
He turned around, and saw Trixie standing there before him.
“Before you go, take my cloak. It’s the least I can do, after what you did last night… You are a true gentlepony, and that should be rewarded.”
He gasped. “You’re cloak? Are you sure?”
She nodded. “I’m sure. I want you to have it.” She gave him a hug. “Just don’t tell anypony that I just gave it to you… Not good for my image, ya know?” She giggled, and started walking away. “Bye Winter… May you find good fortune in Canterlot!”
He smiled. “Thanks Trixie!” He threw on her cloak, and walked south, off to continue searching for a better life. “I’ll become as great as Trixie someday…”
