Deuces Wild

Chapters

Chapter 1: Running from Yourself
Chapter 2: Two Days Back In Time...
Chapter 3: The Show Must Go On
Chapter 4: The Things We Can't See
Chapter 5: Train Ride to Nowhere

Chapter 1: Running from Yourself

ATTENTION:
Note from Iron Hooves
Hey Every Pony! This is my first fanfic and I'd really love feedback that can help me grow as a writer and artist. All the images that I will use in this story will be ones that I have personally drawn and I will add music links from YouTube (right click and open into a new tab) to help create a more in depth mood and atmosphere for the piece as a whole. I hope you all enjoy it.

Deuces Wild: Chapter 1
Running from Yourself

“You may have vanquished an Ursa Minor, but you will never have the amazing, show-stopping ability of the Great and Powerful Trixie!” In an expulsion of smoke, Trixie ran from Ponyville as fast as she could. All she could hear in her mind was the laughing. The relentless mocking and cackling emanated from twisted crowd of ponies became to resemble beasts from the Everfree Forest. The echo from them left a hollow and empty feeling in her chest, which made her accelerated heart beat reverberate throughout her meek frame. Her lungs began to burn and felt as if they were screaming for air, but she didn't stop running. How could she? She had lost everything that she'd ever owned when that Ursa Minor destroyed her trailer without even batting an eye. “There was nothing left for me to do but run,” she thought to herself, as if trying to justify the reason to some other pony in some type of internal monologue as she replayed the previous hour in her head.

As Trixie continued to run as fast as she could, the brush she passed through began to nick the flesh on her forehoofs and face. Her salty tears traced from her tightly shut eyes down her face and into the newly open wounds and Trixie began to feel the acidic burn, making her gallop with reckless abandon and shake her head, now sobbing out loud. She tried to open her eyes after she realized that she was still in mid-sprint, but her haste, Trixie tripped over a tree root and started to tumble, crashing into the brush. She laid on the ground for a second, regaining her senses. She examined her forehoof; 'it wasn't broken...' she thought to herself. She tried to apply pressure, but her weight was too much for it and she immediately winced at the pain. 'This is not good....I must have sprained it...'

Trixie began to limp for a few steps before she stopped again. Her vision blurred with more tears, but this was the first time that she had acknowledged them.

“Stop this at once....The Great and Powerful Trixie does not cry! She's better than that....she....”
Her thoughts raced back to the day's events....
"BOO!"
“Show off!”
“Hack!”
“Fraud!”
“Liar!”

Her mind raced with the memories of the past hour and exactly how she ended up into this situation. The sheer embarrassment of not only being upstaged by some nopony in such a simple town, but the public ostracization and crowd openly mocking her abilities had utterly destroyed her confidence. Especially after the fact that her magic did nothing to even remotely affect the Ursa Minor except to successfully upset it.

Suddenly, she heard a snap of a branch from behind her. She quickly looked over her shoulder.

"Hello? Is anypony there?" Trixie's voice cracked. The leaves of the bush crunched and rustled and out emerged a grim towering figure. At first, Trixie thought that her eyes had played tricks on her and that the tree itself had moved from behind her. The thick texture of the figure was rustic, and as she looked further up the creature, she saw the jagged edges of sharp fangs glistening from the moonlight and deep orbs for eyes that had an unnatural glow to them which struck fear deep inside her.

Trixie tried to get to her feet, but stumbled and a sharp pain shot up her injured leg. She let out a yelp and the creature howled. Trixie's vision may have been impaired for the moment, but she knew exactly what creature made that sound and for what reason: a timber wolf alerting the pack of fresh prey.

Trixie looked around her and one by one, each timber wolf slowly and surely emerged from the brush, each with the same glowing eyes and teeth that could easily pierce straight through her like butter. She tried to dart between the pack, but was immediately rejected and swatted to the ground. She tried to stand up and failed.

Trixie lost all feeling in her body, and her brain just completely shut off. Her legs began to shake and gave out under her weight and she fell into a fetal position.
With nowhere left to turn or run, Trixie did something that she hadn't done since she was a filly. She doubted herself.

A glare from a pair of reflected light emitted from high in the canopy of the forest and watched as the timber wolves surrounded Trixie. It studied the gathering shapes intently, never taking its eyes off of the wounded unicorn. The alpha approached the cowering mare and flashed its toothy grin. The pack was barking to intimidate its helpless prey, but when the alpha let out an eerie howl into the crisp night air, the rest fell silent knowing their place. Icy chills ran down Trixie’s spine and tears ran freely down her face.

Suddenly from the distance, a fierce roar penetrated through the growls of the pack and the wolves' ears perked back at the sound. The pack became hesitant, but the alpha remained stronger and unfalteringly continued to stand above Trixie, jaws agape hovering inches from her exposed neck. Trixie cringed as she felt his hot breath and saliva dripping onto her coat. As if the creature was coming closer at an exponential speed, a second roar echoed through the night, this time with more aggression came from behind them. The pack began to whimper and retreated to the woods, while the alpha growled at Trixie before joining them.

Trixie curled herself into a tighter ball, at this point she was too scared to cry anymore, it was as if her tears had all but dried up and her heart was pounding faster than before. She wasn't sure what was going on, but her imagination ran wild with the thought of a timber wolf pack fighting a manticore fighting over her ragged and mangled corpse. She closed her eyes and anticipated the sweet release of death, her last thought being of her mother and just wishing to return home to simpler times.

Chapter 2: Two Days Back In Time...

Note from Iron Hooves: All the images that I will use in this story will be ones that I have personally drawn and I will add music links from YouTube (middle click the link or open into a new tab) to help create a more in depth mood and atmosphere for the piece as a whole. I hope you all enjoy it.

Chapter 2: Two Days Back In Time; For All The Chance You’ll Change Your Mind

“When you decide not to be lame anymore, give me a call.” Gilda stormed off from the Sugar Cube Corner, humiliated and disgusted by the way that her long time friend had treated her. Gilda propelled herself off the ground and darted into the air, putting as much distance between herself and Ponyville.

"I can't believe her! After all we've been through together! She just abandoned me for all those dweeby phony ponies!” She still couldn’t fathom that Dash would turn on her like this. She landed atop the highest cloud that she could find and affixed her gaze on the town below, specifically on the Sugar Cube Corner. Her brow drooped and her pupils dilated as she took in the sight with great contempt.

Gilda spent hours observing the confectionery boutique and its occupants and each passing minute antagonized her more. They continued to celebrate despite the lack of its ‘supposed’ honored guest present. What irked her most was that fact that she could see that Dash was actually enjoying herself at the party without her as well.

She scoffed and flapped her right wing with enough power to rotate the cloud at a full 180 degree turn and her view changed to the Everfree Forest and beyond the vast reaches of Equestria. The land’s immense beauty was only exceeded by its ability to extend farther than the eye could see.

“I’ll give her another day to change her mind. She’ll come running back, you’ll see.” Gilda reassured herself out loud. She felt like she had to. “Dash may have changed since the last time that I saw her, but she’s always been loyal to her real friends.” Gilda watched the colors of Celestia’s setting sun bleed and permeate through the clouds’ cover, illuminating the sky with the full light spectrum before darkness casted its shadow over Equestria.

Regardless of the position she tossed into or the cloud she lay in, Gilda just couldn't fall asleep. Her mind couldn’t stop thinking about Dash and the true way that she felt for her. She had known for a while that she had feelings different for Dashie than anypony else. She believed that both time and distance would help alleviate them, but it only amplified it, creating a sense of longing for the multi-colored maned pegasus. That was initially the reason that she had come to Ponyville in the first place. Gilda thought to herself that maybe she could convince Dash that she should move away back to Cloudsdale together and start a new life, just the two of them. Sleep eluded her throughout the course of the night.

The next morning Gilda was jolted awake by the sound of explosions. It startled her so much that she actually fell off her make-shift cloud bed and began to plummet towards the ground. Quickly assessing her predicament and out of instinct, she furiously began to flap her wings to catch herself. Once she was finally able to regain her bearings, she found another nearby cloud and glided to it. Her vision darted around to try and locate the perpetrator that disturbed her slumber (or lack thereof) and found the source emitting from a blue mare with a cape and hat leading a fireworks display near the center of Ponyville. With the deficiency of sleep, Gilda's brain was not corresponding to what was actually taking place in the present, nor the past day's events. She just blankly stared until she was able to distinctly make out in the crowd of ponies the object of her affection. She wasn’t close even to clearly hear what was going on, but based on the posture of the two mares, the pleasantries were lacking between the two. Suddenly, Rainbow Dash took soaring into the air towards the town’s grain windmill sending the blades spinning into a torrent of speed. She was about to use the momentum to launch herself directly up into the stratosphere, passing Gilda by approximately a meter away from her perch.

Gilda watched intently and stricken with awe as Rainbow Dash demonstrated her raw power and speed to the encapsulated crowd below. Gilda’s heart skipped a beat and she could feel the burning within her cheeks as she inadvertently smiled. At that moment, she had remembered why she had fallen in love with Dash. It wasn't merely just for her athleticism or her appearance; it was for her confidence. To Gilda, Rainbow Dash was everything that she wished she could be... and so much more. As Rainbow Dash's display of power ended, the crowd cheered loudly and Gilda basked in the feeling that her crush had always left her in: complete infatuation.

Gilda continued to watch as Trixie made a complete foal out of Rainbow Dash and it took every ounce of self restraint to keep her from swooping down to lift the smug little unicorn high into the air and seeing exactly how “Great and Powerful” she truly was during an 800 foot free fall from Cloudsdale. Gilda clenched her talon into a fist and felt a large rumble followed by fatigue. She looked down as her stomach protested and realized that she never actually got to eat a thing aside from the novelty spicy vanilla lemon drops at her ‘faux party’. Gilda tightened her fist harder at the thought of the overly perky pink pony. She shook it off and decided that it wasn’t worth the hassle to get worked up about it again, at least before breakfast.

Gilda began to look around at the landscape and saw an isolated lake just at the end of Ponyville Park. She glided from her perch down towards Ponyville Lake and landed at the edge of it. She looked at her reflection in the water and she could see the toll that the lack of sleep had on her. The purple shading around her eyes was two shades darker than normal and had bags beneath them. She splashed a talon full of fresh water to her face and preened her feathers to make her appearance more suitable. Once she was happy with the way that she had fixed herself up, she began to watch the ripples form around her reflection. The ripples slightly distorted her image as she watched intently. With her eyes never leaving the ripples, Gilda shot her talon directly into the water with her claw drawn. She held it straight as an arrow and squeezed her talon together with all her might and lifted a fish directly out of the water. Her claws began to apply more pressure to the fish’s body and slowly it began to stop flailing, taking it last gasps of air before quietly dying. Gilda looked at the fish, it was not as sizable as she had hoped but it would get her through the day. She picked through its scale and used her beak to go straight to the bone, leaving no trace of meat left. Sighing contently, Gilda tossed the remaining fish skeleton back into the lake and returned to her perch upon her makeshift cloud bed. Collapsing backwards onto its soft and fluffy surface made Gilda inadvertently close her eyes and she resumed to ponder about exactly how she’s going to say everything she’s always wish she could tell to Dash.

As it does when you need more of it, time seemed to have flown by and the day escaped Gilda went she finally opened her eyes again. The crimson sky held high and still as Gilda looked down to see the once energetic town plaza had calmed to just a few ponies setting up shop from the evening and a love struck pegasi couple walking with their wings draped over one another. She glanced over to Ponyville Tower and the clock read at it was already past seven thirty. Gilda rubbed her eyes and decided that it was now or never if she was to ever tell Dash how she felt. She dove from her resting spot and headed to Dash's home.

Gilda landed on Rainbow Dash’s front door step and took a deep breath. She closed her eyes and extended her talon to the front door and froze.

‘Argh! Why is this so hard? Just tell her how you feel and get it over with!’ Gilda told herself while shaking her head and continuing to stare at the door. She swallowed her pride and swiftly knocked twice. She waited anxiously, holding onto her tail and stroking it protectively. She looked around and focused her eyes on everything except the front door in nervous anticipation and her mind went completely blank. Her entire speech that she had been working on for the months prior that she had planned to confess to Dash had utterly dropped out of her mind and off the face of Equestria.

Seconds became minutes and each passing one felt like hours. Gilda’s apprehension consumed her to the point where she decided that it wasn’t worth torturing herself and would try again later before she left Ponyville for good.

‘Heh, that’s an awesome thought…never having to see this pathetic town ever again… the sooner, the better…’ She smirked at the thought that she’d never have to see the crappy town and its inhabitants ever again. Her smug look began to falter as thoughts of Rainbow Dash filled her head and the realization that this also meant that she’d most likely never see her again either. Her original intent for even coming to visit her long time crush had failed miserably. Gilda gazed longingly at Dash’s cloud manor in hopes to see if she had returned yet, but the lights from within were still off. She could feel her eyes begin to water and she shook it off in an attempt to maintain her façade.

“Heh….So long, RD… I hope you found what you were looking for….” A hint of resent masked as sarcasm seeped through her voice as she spoke out loud. She spread out her wings to their full width and used all of her strength to lift off. She began to circle the town once more before heading towards the Everfree Forest. With a heavy heart, Gilda looked at Ponyville one last time.

Nightfall hit by the time she reached the dead center of the Everfree Forest. She darted between the canopy, but she found that the farther into the forest she flew, the thicker the canopy cover became. She decided that it'd be easier to get her bearing if she landed and took a look around on the forest floor. Suddenly, Gilda heard a loud boom coming from Ponyville. The force of it shook through Gilda's being and she looked back towards the direction she just came in annoyance.

“How many times a week do they need to throw those lame parties? What a bunch of losers….” She brushed it off and continued to walk along the forest floor. A second loud crash came from behind her once more, only this time was followed by the sound of something approaching her. She flew up and hid among the upper canopy and observed a blue blur careening through the brush. It wasn't until the mare tripped and stumbled that Gilda was able to make out that it was the unicorn that she saw earlier that morning.

'What could she possibly be doing out here? She seems out of her element...' Gilda thought to herself. She continued to watch with a curious vigor as the unicorn stumbled to her hooves. Suddenly, she heard a haunting howl bellow from underneath her. She began to panic when she saw that there was not just one timber wolf, but a pack of them enclosing the injured mare. Gilda frantically scanned the area as if her surroundings had a solution to her problem.

‘I can’t fight a full pack of timber wolves and flying in will just get us both killed.’ Gilda instinctively let out a loud roar and immediately covered her mouth and closed her eyes. When she slowly opened them again, she watched as the timber wolves scattered from their would-be prey. As they retreated into the distance, Gilda glided down from her perch and landed next to Trixie who was still in a fetal position on the forest floor.

“Um...are you okay?” Trixie did not move other than the occasional involuntary spasm that her body let off from fear. After Trixie didn't respond, Gilda reached out her talon and gently placed it on the mare's shoulder in an attempt to calm her down. This prompted Trixie to merely close her eyes tighter and her horn radiated and sent an electrical shock throughout her body and straight through Gilda. While it wasn't a strong current, the amplitude was still large enough to send Gilda falling back, more from the surprise of it than the pain.

“Hey! What the hell?! Is that how you thank someone who just saved your life?” Gilda stood up and dusted the dirt from her body. Trixie finally opened her eyes, she saw the griffin stand before her.

Trixie tried to stand on her own, but struggled before Gilda came to her aid by allowing her to lean her body against hers to help Trixie redistribute the weight off of her bad leg.

“Trixie never asked for your assistance.” She spat out acrimoniously.

“Oh, get off your high horse, will ya? You can barely stand up.” Gilda rolled her eyes and adjusted her feathers in an attempt to roll off Trixie’s ungratefulness. Trixie looked up at Gilda and she tried to straighten herself to match the griffin’s height and stature.

“You…..you’re right. The Great and….Trixie is humbled by your actions. Thank you…..”

“The name’s Gilda.” The two briefly made eye contact, but Trixie looked down and tried to avoid staring into Gilda’s eyes.

“Trixie was exiled by the simpletons that reside in Ponyville. They just…didn’t understand.” Gilda’s eyes widened at the unicorn as she looked at the ground. ”I lost everything. My stage and show equipment…my home….and now my reputation….I can’t even defend myself against a timber wolf let alone an Ursa Minor!” She noticed pools of freshly dampened soil forming from where Trixie’s eyes were focused. Using her good forehoof, Trixie wiped her eyes and cleared her throat in an effort to regain her composure. Gilda placed her front talon on Trixie’s shoulder and sighed.

“I lost all of that a long time ago. I actually came here to try and regain something I thought I was missing, but it didn’t work out the way I had hoped.” Gilda was honestly surprised for allowing herself to open up to this stranger. Maybe she thought that she needed to vent to somepony, or to try and alleviate the burden that Trixie must have felt after being robbed of her livelihood. Trixie finally was able to look up at Gilda and she sniffled, wiping her muzzle.

“Where are you headed, Gilda?” Trixie was surprised that her tone was out of legitimate curiosity.

“Heh….that’s a good question. I never really thought about what to do if my original plans fell through. I just always assumed that she’d….” Gilda stopped herself before divulging too much personal information.

“What about you? Didn’t you say you lost your home?...What now?”

Trixie stood silently reflecting on the stark reality of her situation. After a few moments, she looked at Gilda and smiled.

“Trixie will start again from scratch. She’ll get a bigger trailer with a stage twice the size as before! Before you know it, The Great and Powerful Trixie will be back on her hooves again!” Trixie bucked up on her hind legs in her overzealous presentation and landed with all of her weight on her injured hoof and winced in pain. Gilda used her wing to support the mare as she stabilized herself. Trixie took a deep breath and looked at Gilda.

“Seeing as you have some....favorable attributes, maybe we could make a deal... How would you like to accompany The Great and Powerful Trixie as her body guard...? At least until Trixie is back on her hooves, so to speak. Trixie will offer you twenty percent of her earnings until she earns enough to recompense her trailer and equipment. The Great and Powerful Trixie will not take 'no' as an answer! She demands that you accompany her to …..”

“Fifty percent. No less.” Gilda had her by the tail. Trixie wouldn't last three days with her help and Gilda knew it. 'How bad could she be? Besides, it'll be the easiest bits that I've ever made.'

Trixie stuttered, but upon seeing Gilda's serious expression, there was nothing that she could do except agree to the terms.

“Deal.” Trixie held out her good forehoof to seal the agreement with a hoofshake. Gilda responded to this by making a fist with her talon and bumping it forcefully against the tip of Trixie's hoof. Trixie shot Gilda a cock-eyed look, but Gilda was so far gone mentally in a world of her own that she didn't notice. Gilda didn’t fully understand why she agreed to help her. She knew that it wasn't about the bits. The difference between the pathetic pleading pony in front of her now and the charismatic showmareship of the unicorn she saw earlier this afternoon were night and day.

The duo began to notice more droplets cascade from the sky as they began to walk together. Thunder crashed in the distance and with each passing moment, the drizzle became an onslaught of rain pouring from above. Gilda outstretched her free wing over both herself and Trixie to guard from the torrent of water while looking around in desperation and found a small talus cave they could take cover in.

“Come on, shelter isn’t that far from here.” Gilda said and began to take lead of the quagmire the two were facing. Trixie limped and tried to keep pace with Gilda, occasionally losing balance and using Gilda as a support. Trixie felt utterly dejected with her lack of ability to help other than emitting just enough magic from her horn to light the path in front of them.

“What do we do now?” Trixie asked.

“Well, I’m crashing for the night. I don’t care what you do. It’s not like you’re in any condition to be going anywhere in this storm. We’ll figure out where we’re going from here in the morning.” Gilda turned her body to face the opposite wall of their crude safe haven and curled herself into her wings to keep herself warm.

“Oh…Trixie agrees with you. Trixie requires her much needed beauty rest if we are to travel tomor….."

“ZZZzzzzzzz…..” Gilda grinned as she embellished her snoring. Trixie simply scoffed and turned her back towards Gilda.

The two laid in silence and endured the brunt of the storm as the untamed nature of the Everfree Forest enveloped the outside world. As Gilda's eye lids grew heavy with slumber while between Equestria and the sweet other-world of dreams, she swore that she heard a celestial voice lulling her to the security of sleep, the first since she had arrived in Ponyville.

Chapter 3: The Show Must Go On

**DISCLAIMER: Don't make the fireworks. Just don't. It's dangerous and I'm not responsible for someone getting hurt if they decide that they want to follow directions from a fictional story.

Chapter 3: The Show Must Go On

As dawn broke, the morning's light delicately kissed Trixie's cheek. The warmth of Celestia's rising sun upon her face delicately awoke her from her slumber, refreshed and renewed. She stretched her legs and accidentally touched something that was soft and warm, which caused her to instinctively pull her hooves to her chest and open her eyes. Next to her, Gilda was laying comfortably on her back, snoring loudly. In the moments that it took Trixie to fully comprehend where she was, the memories of the last 24 hours came flooding back to her.

….Ponyville....

...The Ursa Minor.....

….Twilight Sparkle.....

Just thinking about that lavender mare made Trixie's stomach turn. Her throat burned and her empty stomach growled, making her realize that she hadn't eaten since after her show in Ponyville. Trixie inspected her body for any of the injuries that she inflicted upon herself during her attack.

“No open wounds....that's a good sign.” Trixie slowly put her weight onto her forehoof, and shut her eyes, anticipating the pain. When she realized that she was able to stand up straight, she opened one of her eyes and looked down, flexing her hoof a bit. The pain had disappeared and she was able to walk normally. A slight smile returned to her as she peered outside and the sounds and warmth of nature's alluring disposition draw her to it. Trixie exited from their temporary shelter and took in the view that she had missed during the storm. The transcendent beauty reflected from the puddles that had formed on the ground and she carefully avoided dirtying her hooves again. It had taken her a good hour or two to remove the mud and dirt from her escape the night before. The mountains that surrounded the Everfree Forest continued into the horizon and well past Canterlot. She stared at the royal city with longing in her eyes and with a reassuring nod, she knew their next destination.

Trixie meandered through the dew on the edge of the blades of grass and its cool caress felt like heaven against her legs and belly. She began to cut various wildflowers and several lilies about the size of tea cups and bundled them together. As she made her way back to the cavern, Trixie started to drag an aura of magic behind her and began to collect the dew from the areas around her until she encapsulated a large bubble of the water. The rays of light began to shine through, emitting a dark purple glow across its shadow. She levitated the freshly picked herbs and merged them carefully with the sphere of water, infusing the two together. The magical sphere started to rotate quickly while its contents remained stationary. The friction between the motion of one against the other made the light reflecting through it change into an array of vivid colors that seemed to gently danced upon the morning dew. Gradually, the water began to steam and eventually boil. Using her magic, Trixie poured the mixture into two separate tea cup lilies and the steam warmed the cavern.

Gilda stretched herself out and slowly began to open her eyes. The fragrant scent of wildflowers wafted through her nostrils and she smacked her lips together, inadvertently smiling. As her vision cleared, she saw Trixie placing a bundle of freshly picked flora on the rock between them. Gilda yawned as Trixie began to sip her tea and prepare some of the wildflowers to eat.

“Good morning, Gilda. Trixie has gathered some breakfast.” Trixie smiled slightly at the griffin.

“Is that all there is? Where's the muffins or the bacon??” Gilda protested. Trixie was appalled that all of her best efforts to be nice had been in vain.

“How ungrateful! The Great and Powerful Trixie would never stoop to such a barbaric practice.... that's almost cannibalism!”

“Dude, believe me. You have not lived until you've eaten fresh bacon in the morning. It's enough to make any vegetarian drool. Trust me.” Gilda smugly retorted to Trixie's snippy comment.

“If you do not appreciate the bountiful meal that Trixie has so graciously offered and provided, then you can fetch your own breakfast.” Trixie huffed and sat down, expelling a small dust cloud from the ground below her. She bit into a bundle of buttercup daisies and began to chew so loudly and with enough force in an attempt to try and drown Gilda out.

Gilda watch intently behind Trixie as she finished her over-dramatic performance that, in her opinion, could have merited a nomination for an award. The griffin pounced, prompting Trixie to dive for cover. When the dust settled, Gilda had captured a small field mouse and dangled it by its tail.

"Now, this is what I'm talking about." Gilda exclaimed.

The sound of Gilda crunching into the mouse's bones made Trixie physically ill to the point where she had to stop herself from expelling her breakfast.

“That is truly one of the most vile displays that Trixie has ever seen!” Trixie was careful as she spoke, she was trying under the best of her ability not to dry heave. Gilda sucked her fingers one by one in an attempt to savor the flavor of her breakfast as Trixie walked quickly out of the cavern without looking back.

“Are you coming or not?” The agitation in Trixie's voice was quite evident.

“Yeah yeah.....I'm coming.” Gilda shook off the latent dirt from her wings and followed Trixie.
The griffin began to flap her wings and took off in front of Trixie to meet her eye to eye.

“So....where are we headed?” Gilda looked inquisitively at Trixie.

“Well, if we start walking now, we can make it to Canterlot by midday.” The unicorn looked at Gilda, who was now directly hovering a few feet above her.

“Sweet! I'll see you there!” Gilda began to push off into the air with tremendous force, but suddenly felt herself bring held in place by a tingling pressure around her entire body. She looked and saw that she was glowing with a light purple aura surrounding her. Trixie looked at her sternly.

“If you don't stay with Trixie, you do not receive payment.” Trixie cocked a sly grin as she released Gilda from her magical hold, and the griffin sighed loudly. She landed next to Trixie and rolled her eyes in submissive defeat.

“Fine. Just hurry up then, I don't want to be walking all day.” Gilda replied in an extremely frustrated manner, fluffing her wings until they were securely tucked at her sides. Trixie watched as she did and was intrigued by their graceful form. She wondered how could someone so brash possess something so elegant and the jealously slowly ate at her.

“You know, we would be able to get there much faster if you would allow Trixie to ride on your back and fly... ” Trixie started her argument but was immediately shot down by Gilda's condescending laughter.

“Ah-ha.... Ah-ha.... No. That is not happening.” Gilda flexed and readjusted her wings as she brushed off the idea.

Without saying anything further for what seemed like an eternity, the pair began to walk toward the royal city in awkward silence. The two really didn't know what to say to one another and small talk was neither of their strong points.

“So...how long have you been doing this gig?” Gilda asked to try and break the tension.

“This 'gig' is Trixie's life. She has been performing since she was a filly.” Trixie became irritated.

“So, what? Do you do like birthday parties for foals too? Gilda chuckled to herself but was instantly interrupted.

“How dare you cheapen The Great and Powerful Trixie's magical abilities to such a philistinistic profession! Her show is one that expands the mind and puts the thrill of magic into a young filly's heart!” Trixie began to poke Gilda's chest with her hoof defensively, prompting Gilda to swat it down.

“Okay, okay! I'm sorry! Just don't touch me like that again, if you know what's good for you...” Gilda retorted, her pupils shrink as she focused on Trixie's eyes. It was the first time that Gilda ever truly looked at them. They had a deep purple radiance to them that reminded her of Dash's magenta, if she could even compare the two together. To Gilda's surprise, Trixie didn't back down her stare either. This was a complete contrast to the mare that she had seen both last night and this morning as well. Gilda enjoyed pushing buttons, but she knew when to back down from a fight. By the looks of this, Trixie's magic act must have been her everything, so she just left it at that. They both broke the gaze and looked around for anything else to focus on. The two continued to walk and reached the edge of Canterlot mountain, however the silence became an awkward moroseness instead as they began to climb the steep base.

“What brought you to Ponyville anyways?” Trixie finally spoke after a few minutes of tension. Gilda outwardly appearance was resemblance of stone, but inside she tried not to break down right there and then. She didn't reply for a a couple of moments as she gathered her thoughts.

“I was visiting a friend.” Her attention remained straight on the road ahead of them, and her answer was brief. 'Was Dash still even my friend? I mean back when we were in Junior Speedster Flight Camp together, nothing could separate us...at least that's what I thought. She changed.' Gilda's expression and pace became lethargic.

“Oh, that's nice. How were they doing? Trixie hopes that your friend is nothing like the pathetic lot that Trixie had to deal with yesterday.” Trixie smiled softly and asked. Gilda stopped dead in her tracks and close her eyes. She took a deep breath and turned around to look at Trixie.

“She was doing fine until those lame ass losers 'new friends' got a hold of her...and then you went and made a fool of her yesterday!” Gilda thought to herself. She was about to tell Trixie off for humiliating Rainbow Dash, but just decided that it'd be easier to just continue walking. She hadn't had nearly enough to eat from the mouse she'd had for breakfast and the past few days events barely had given her enough energy to deal with arguing with Trixie.

“She's fine.” Gilda said bluntly without looking back at Trixie. Trixie looked at Gilda, then looked to the ground as if she had done or said something wrong.

“Oh, Trixie sees. How long have you two been friends?” Trixie had never been good with small talk, but the idea of having actual friends was something that she had dreamt of for some time. As a traveling show-mare, she never stay in one place for very long. Even if she did, the relationships that she had maintained were quite superficial. Trixie told herself that it was easier to keep everypony at a distance because it was easier to live a nomadic life of a magician then saying goodbye to somepony you truly care about.

“Listen, this isn't twenty questions, okay? If it was, I'd be asking about why you were alone and crying in the woods when I found you, or for that matter, why do you speak about yourself in third person? Nobody is that self absorbed about themselves. In fact, 'Gilda' thinks that 'Trixie' should just learn to keep her mouth shut.” Gilda retorted, a bit more viciously than she had originally intended it to be. Gilda glanced at Trixie and could feel the raw anger from the unicorn. Gilda had read that unicorns generally have tendencies to wear their emotions openly due to their magic, but this was the first time she had experienced it for herself. Trixie's horn was glowing a slight maroon sheen and Gilda could feel as if a magnetic force was pushing her away from the mare.

“Hey, look...I'm sorry...I didn't mean to...” Before Gilda could finish, she felt the magnetic force pulsate against her with stronger pressure and she struggled to retain her footing. Trixie neither replied nor looked back at Gilda. Gilda slowed down her pacing and began to walk behind Trixie. She focused on the ground as they walked, occasionally sneaking a peek to the unicorn to make sure that she was still in front of her. All Gilda could see was Trixie's tail swishing back and forth across her flank. The rhythm of Trixie's tail coinciding with the movement from her hips were almost hypnotizing. Gilda blushed slightly and averted her eyes when she realized that she had been staring and the two continued to walk in complete silence.

“We're here.” Trixie snapped Gilda out of her daze. Gilda looked up and saw that they were standing in front of the gated archway that protected the city borders of Canterlot. Trixie continued to walk into town, avoiding all eye contact with the griffin.

The royal city of Canterlot maintained an atmosphere of majestic prominence to it. The architecture of the castle stemmed from a more antediluvian time of Equestrian history, but the infrastructure of the buildings in the city itself showed how distinctive each proceeding generation influence became within it. As they walked, Gilda instantly noticed how pretentious the demeanor of the ponies that they passed made themselves out to be. A majority that she observed had seen the pair together and immediately either tilted their heads towards the sky or had began to whisper to one another. Gilda began to feel quite out of place when she saw a pegasi couple with a small filly and the father shielded his daughter by covering her with his wing away from the griffin. This distracted her from seeing that Trixie had stopped walking and she bumped into the unicorn.

“Hey, watch where you are going!” The unicorn huffed.

Gilda flashed back to her behavior concerning a timid and meek pegasi in Ponyville. She was about to say something to Trixie, but Dash's voice haunted her memory. 'You sure didn't need any help making a fool of yourself. You know, this is not how I thought my old friends would treat my new friends. If being cool is all you care about, maybe you should go find some new cool friends someplace else.' The words still pierced Gilda immensely. She took a deep breath and decided to approach it differently this time around.

“Sorry...” Gilda grumbled quietly.

“We have arrived.” Trixie waved her hoof at a shop called 'Rich's Barnyard Bargains'.

“Trixie must pick up some fliers for her show tonight, as well as buy new supplies now that she has nothing...at least she still has some of the earnings from yesterday...” Trixie trailed off on her sentence as she swapped her hoof over her head in an attempt to grab her hat and felt nothing but air. Until this point, she had been so preoccupied that she had completely forgot that she had left her hat in her now destroyed trailer during last night's attack and to this point, completely forgot that every bit to her name was in a small pouch stowed within her hat. Her eyes became wide at the realization that she really had nothing left.

"How much do you need?" Gilda said while rolling her eyes and removing a small coin purse that she kept tucked securely between her secondary covert feathers of her wing. Trixie blinked as Gilda's question had reactivated her cognitive portion of her brain.

"Well...Trixie has already put down the deposit for the auditorium, however all of her supplies were stored in her trailer before and you should just really think of it as a no-risk long term investment...” Trixie spoke slowly as she thought out what she actually needed to repurchase.

“How much?” Gilda didn't feel like playing games at this point, she was never really one for beating around the bush.

“75 bits?” Trixie maintained an innocent smile as she said it to Gilda, whom merely scowled at her.

“Well, there's a corner over there that you can work on.” Gilda pointed to the street corner in front of them and smirked.

“The Great and Powerful Trixie is a show-mare, not some cheap streetwalker that begs for bits as ponies pass her!” The disdain dripped from Trixie's voice. “Trixie promises you that your bits will be reimbursed by the end of the night, along with your cut from the show's admission. She just needs to procure her grand finale to ensure it is the best show that she can have!” Trixie's eyes gleamed as they filled with a sense of pride in the unicorn as she continued to speak.

“Fine. I want it back by tonight. You promised.” Gilda sighed and rolled her eyes as emptied all the currency to her namesake, save for four bits, to which she saved. Trixie grabbed the bits with her magic and noticed Gilda holding her talon straight out horizontally. “Well?” Gilda said impatiently.

“Well what? Is there something wrong with your arm?” Trixie examined Gilda's arm inquisitively as if the griffin had injured it.

"You promised. Bump it so its official." Gilda replied. Trixie looked upon Gilda in jest, but Gilda's expression of stern sincerity made her realize that she was not kidding.

"Very well. Trixie promises." She extended her hoof and was met with a hardy push from the griffin. The momentum was stronger than Trixie had expected and she had to retain her balance. Trixie forced herself to smile, but to her it seemed to feel faker than usual.

The duo entered the shop and the welcoming jingle from a small bell followed. The store had several aisles which ranged variety of food and supplies. Despite its size, it had a humble quaintness about it. To the right of the register stood a light brown stallion whom was busy taking inventory and behind the counter was a light burgundy colored mare with an off white mane. She flashed a smile and waved in the pair.

"Hello and welcome in! My name is Charity and this is my husband, Bit. Is there anything that we can help you both with?" Charity spoke with a profoundly upbeat tone that Gilda wasn't accustom to without some type of underlining sarcasm behind it.

“Greetings Charity, The Great and Powerful Trixie has placed an order prior to her arrival for fifty fliers regarding her
show tonight. She was told that they would be ready for pick up this morning.” Trixie continued walking towards the counter as Gilda found herself distracted by the various types of trinkets on the shelves.

“Yes, I have them right here!” Charity lifted a sack of fliers from behind the counter and placed a small box of nails on top. Trixie picked up the first copy from the pile and she began to inspect it thoroughly for any inconsistencies. She stared at the image of herself that adorned the paper and it took her a second to associate herself with it. Trixie felt nothing like the photo of the proud unicorn that was in front of her.

"You are great. You are powerful.....You are the one and only Trixie.” She closed her eyes and smiled softly for allowing herself to be that stupid. Trixie looked up at Charity and nodded.

“These are perfect. Thank you.” Trixie levitated the sack of fliers and turned towards Gilda.

“Gilda, Trixie would appreciate it if you would help her by posting these fliers around Canterlot. It would help her out a bit while she prepares her other supplies. When you are finished, meet Trixie at the auditorium.” Before Gilda could answer, Trixie shoved the magical floating pile of fliers into the griffin's chest, which made Gilda have to balance on her hind legs as she caught it.

Gilda shot Trixie a look of defiance and began to open her mouth, but quickly decided against it.

“Right away, boss.”Gilda emphasized her last word and it resonated throughout the store. Without saying another word, Gilda walked out the door and the chime followed once more. Charity waved at Gilda as she departed, but the griffin never looked back to see her do so.

“Now, is there anything else that we can help you with?” Charity brought her attention back to Trixie.

“Trixie also needs 5 pounds of ground charcoal, 3 pounds of granular potassium perchlorate, about half a pound each of strontium, copper, barium, sodium, calcium and gold particles, as well as a bucket of wheat paste, 5 meters of string, a bottle of rubbing alcohol and cardboard tubes please.” The store fell quiet as both Bit and Charity stopped and just stared at Trixie in shock. Bit approached Trixie with a curt expression.

“That all sounds mighty dangerous and complicated for a young mare like yourself.” Bit said in a condescending matter. Charity darted her eyes at her husband and after their fifteen years together, he recognized the look of scorn that he was being given.

“Bit, why don't you go and pack up the new shipment that just came in and mark up the inventory while I help Ms. Trixie out? Those big boxes are much too heavy for a young mare to lift herself.” Charity's tone remained outwardly pleasant, however, Bit was reduced to a quiet and reserved state and merely nodded. He walked to the back of the counter and avoided eye contact with his wife as he disappeared into the back storage room. Once Bit was out of ear shot, the two continued their conversation.

“Trixie, we have the ingredients you need in stock, but it sounds like you're making a bomb, sweetie... I can't...”

“Pyrotechnics are a trade that Trixie as developed to coincide with her 'special talent'. She has been making fireworks
for years. Normally, she would have enough supplies saved up, unfortunately, due to recent.....events... Trixie lost everything to her name, including her home.” Trixie paused for a second as she heard herself speak the words, but she hadn't truly let the words sink in until now. She was homeless. Her entire life was in her trailer and now it was gone. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath to try and stopped herself from breaking down. She continued to speak with her eyes closed. “Trixie can make them quickly from scratch before the show tonight, but she would require the ingredients now.”

“Oh sweetie, I am so sorry for your loss. If you need anything at all, even a place to stay for the night. Don't hesitate to ask, because we're inviting you both as guests.” Charity said full of empathy. Bit peered up at his wife from his work and began to open his mouth, but she immediately shot him back a look that could have burned a hole straight through him and the wall behind him. He quickly averted his and went back to work.

“Thank you for your hospitality, but Trixie is resilient. The show must go on and Trixie must continue her schedule of
….” Trixie stopped and realized that she no longer had a mode of transportation. Before, she would just be able to convince fans that she had gained along the way to volunteer to pull her from town to town. Even in times of desperation, she'd been able to use a 'come to life' spell on her trailer to cover ground between shows, but now? It was either walk with Gilda across Equestria or take the train.

“Trixie has the red-eye train tonight to make it to her next show on time.” Trixie replied quickly, thinking about Gilda. The last thing that she needed was extended periods of down time with the griffin and more of their riveting small talk.

“Okay, but our offer still stands for both you and your friend.” Charity smiled softly as Trixie nodded.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Gilda walked along the streets of Canterlot, murmuring to herself while her hands were full of fliers.

“Who the hell does she think she is? 'Trixie would appreciate it if you would help her by posting these fliers around Canterlot...' How stuck up can one pony be?” Gilda found a large tree near the edge of the block and decided that she had gone far enough out of sight from the shop and proceeded to take the entire stack and nail them all to the tree with a loose rock that she had grabbed from the road.

“There! Done!” Gilda dropped the rock and dusted off her hands. She smirked at the pathetic attempt at her job, out of spite for Trixie and chuckled quietly to herself. Just then, a loud growl came out of nowhere and Gilda felt a sharp hunger pain in her stomach.

“I guess I should have eaten some of that breakfast this morning....” Gilda held her abdomen and allowed her sense of smell to prevail over her others. She sniffed at the air and her tail perked up in the direction that she caught a whiff of somepony making a fresh, homemade meal. She promptly began to follow the scent.

~~~~~~~~~~

"Trixie also requires a blanket."

"No problem, check aisle 8. I'll get your other items from the stock room." Charity said with a smile.

As Charity began to look through the back inventory for the corresponding items, Trixie wandered down the aisles until she found a sign that said 'Aisle 8: Bedding & Linens'.

Trixie browsed through a bin full of fleece blankets until she found a lavender blanket. She levitated the blanket and examined them for a moment before tying two of the corners around her neck and looked at herself in a near-by mirror.

'Don't kid yourself, Trixie. You'll never be great and powerful. Just give up this lost dream...' Trixie stared at her reflection straight in the eyes and forced herself not to shed a tear of pity for the pathetic display in front of her.

"The blanket is on the house. We want you to take these as well." Charity approached Trixie slowly and pulled out two saddlebags: one with purple felt and a pale cream ribbon border and a clasp shaped like a star, and the other a light brown with yellow, which sported a sun clasp. Trixie looked at Charity inquisitively and wondered exactly how much she saw.

"Honey, you've been through hell and back from the looks of it, and so has your friend. Sometimes, when things seem their bleakest, a bit of kindness is what we need the most. It reminds us that there is still good left in the world." Charity put a reassuring hoof on Trixie's shoulder and smiled. Trixie looked into Charity's eyes and felt a warm assurance that everything would turn out for the best. Before she could even thank her for the generosity, she felt Charity embrace her tightly. At first, she tried to withdraw from it, never truly being accustom to such forward displays of affection, but allowed herself to remove her guards and accepted the hug. Once Charity let go, Trixie was still unsure about what just happened.

“What was that for?” Trixie asked.

“You just looked like you needed it.” Charity smiled and for the first time in the longest that she could remember, Trixie smiled back. Not one of those 'faux put it on for the crowd smiles', but a genuine smile. Her gaze returned to her reflection and she straightened her posture, regaining some of her confidence.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Gilda was able to track the smell's location: a small chic bistro towards the center of town. She approached an open window where she had pinpointed the fragrance of onions intermingling with roasted garlic and fresh bell peppers. She inhaled their intoxicating scent and for a moment thought that she was dreaming. The aromatic essence of the kitchen made Gilda's stomach protest at the meager contents it had hastily consumed earlier, which snapped her out of her day dream.

Gilda walked up to the host, whom was dressed in a tailored lapel jacket and bore the cutie mark of a sterling serving plate.

“Name?”

“Who's asking?” Gilda said defensively. The host looked up from his podium and looked at Gilda while raising his eyebrow.

“Who is your reservation under? Your name?”

“Oh, I just wanted to sit at that empty table over there.” Gilda pointed at a single unoccupied table near the corner of the patio.

“This is an extremely affluent establishment. Reservations are taken months in advance...” He looked at Gilda and smirked before continuing. “...And by the looks of it, you will most likely need to wait another three months before you would be able to afford one of our appetizers.”

Gilda's jaw dropped as her mind tried to comprehend the unwarranted insult she was just given. As she stood there, a unicorn couple approached the host's podium. Silver Platter's expression immediately changed from one of disdain to a genuine exhilaration as a rather dapper white stallion with a cerulean wavy mane and matching mustache, followed by a slender, dazzling young unicorn mare with a light rose colored mane greeted him.

"Ah, Monsieur Fancypants! Madam Fleur de Lis, vous sont magnifiques comme toujours!" Silver Platter extended the mare's hoof and tenderly kissed it. Gilda became disgusted with the display in front of her and just walked away from the situation.

“Excuse me, miss! My gazpacho is too cold, tell the chef to warm it for me.” A stout older unicorn socialite waved to Gilda as she stormed away from the bistro. Gilda ignored her and continued to walk past the outdoor patio and the unicorn began to become offended by the blatant brush off. “Excuse me!” The unicorn used her magic to grab the tip of Gilda's tail, prompting her to yelp in surprise. Gilda turned around and slammed her fists on the table, causing the soup to spill onto the table.

“I'm not the damn busboy!” Gilda's pupils dilated and she stared directly into the unicorn's eyes. The mare began to stammer as Silver Platter came rushing over to see what the commotion was about and Fancypants followed suit.

“What is the meaning of this?” Fancypants exclaimed as he readjusted his monocle.

“This 'griff' has been giving me problems, but it is nothing that I can not handle.” Silver Platter looked at Gilda cockeyed as the unicorn nonchalantly uttered the derogatory slur. Both Gilda and Fancypant's jaws dropped in shock and disgust at the comment.

“Fuck you! You don't even know me! I've had it with all you snobby, self-entitled morons! ” Gilda quickly said in her defense while puffing her chest and extending her wings in an attempt to make herself appear larger.

“I know your kind though, and you're all alike. A brute and savage lot, uncouth and simple minded. Just by the way that you articulate, you have already proven yourself to be an inferior species to the more regal and refined Equidae.” Silver Platter spat his words through his mouth with such vindictiveness that it seemed to have pierced Fancypants himself.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"How do you work an ignition system for setting them off?" Charity asked as she watched Trixie bind the tubing together with the wheat paste, leaving the alcohol soaked string hanging out and rolled a mixture of the granules to the width of a pencil carefully.

"With magic, of course!" Trixie levitated the small firecracker outside of the window and with a magical spark, almost as if a flint had set it, the fuse lit and began to burn brightly. Within a second, a loud pop and an explosion of emerald light filled the air. The sound was large enough to surprise Bit, making him drop the stack of boxes that he was carrying. The two mares tried to mask their giggling, but failed miserably.

“Sorry, Bit-O-Honey!” Charity yelled from behind the corner to her husband, grinning like a Cheshire Cat. Bit muttered under his breath as he cleaned up the spilled contents and inspected them to make sure nothing was broken. His anger quickly subsided though, just as it always did whenever Charity addressed him by his pet name.

Trixie worked her magic and set rows of each element followed by the charcoal and quickly rolled them at the same time. She lathered them with the wheat paste and rolled them once again, this time however, she mimicked the spell that she had cast earlier in the morning that helped her heat the tea. The friction from the heat allowed the glue to dry at a much faster rate. She checked the binding on the fireworks to make sure the glue had dried. Once she had confirmed it, she carefully laid them out of the counter to admire her work.

“Finished! Trixie has done it again!” Trixie wiped the sweat that had formed on her forehead and sighed contently. Charity began to load the fireworks into the brown saddlebag as Trixie began to count out currency for payment. Bit emerged from the back room holding a plate of four sandwiches, two had been wrapped tightly in cloth and tied together with twine. He placed the plate on the counter and put the two packaged meals inside of the purple bag.

“I made some lunch, Charity! I also made lunch for you and your friend, just in case you get hungry later.” Bit said in an amicable manner as he smiled. Charity embraced Bit and kissed him on the cheek, making the stallion blush like a young school colt.

“Our offer still stands for a place to stay to night for the both of you.” Charity spoke with a warmth that radiated across the room to Trixie. She simply smiled and nodded as she placed the remaining payment on the counter. Charity helped Trixie secure both saddlebags to her back over her substitute cape and Trixie looked at the mare with a new perspective. She felt a odd sense of nostalgia as her memory drifted for a moment of her mother preparing her for the first day of school. Trixie snapped out of it when she felt Charity give her a hug.

“Thank you both for everything.” The unicorn waved goodbye and exited the store.

“Trixie is ready to show them how great and powerful she can truly be.” She quietly told herself. Just by saying it aloud to herself, Trixie felt more of her confidence that she's lost coming back to her.

With both saddle bags in tow, Trixie set out for the auditorium. As she walked, she made her way from the more modernized part of the city to its ancient epicenter. Though the buildings almost seamlessly aged before her, the structural integrity looked as if they had survived over millennia of assaults to its façade and seemed as it could within another thousand years. Canterlot had not seen the face of war since the original Nightmare Moon incident and the royal city had been perceived as the keystone of tranquilly and prosperity under the Sun Goddess’ rule.

When Trixie finally reached the auditorium, she was met by a royal unicorn guard posted at the entrance. His iron-clad armor glistened in the midday sun and he stood at full attention. He watched the mare approach, but said nothing.

"Good afternoon, sir. The Great and Powerful Trixie has reserved this hall for her show tonight. She has arrived." Trixie bowed her head slightly towards the guard. He pulled out a scroll from his saddlebag with his magic and searched for her name. Once he located it, he nodded at allowed her to pass.

"If you need any assistance, please do not hesitate to ask." The guard replied sternly.

"Actually, she could use your help...Trixie needs assistance with collecting admission for tonight. What is your name?"

"Shining Armor, First Lieutenant." He saluted Trixie over zealously, which made her slightly uncomfortable. Trixie smiled awkwardly and nodding while she extended her hoof. Trixie handed Shining Armor the purple saddlebag instead of shaking his hoof as a makeshift cash box for the night's admission and she walked towards the stage to set up her pyrotechnic display.

"Trixie is sure the pleasure is all hers...now she must prepare for tonight. Just mind the sandwiches when you put the bits in the bag, please. Also, if you happen to see a griffin, let her through.” She said casually. The stallion just stood there, with the newly acquired saddlebag in hoof and trying to comprehend what just happened.

"Uhh....okay. Well, if you need any other help...I'll be here." By the time Shining Armor finished, Trixie had already stopped paying attention and was hard at work. He returned to his post, with his now temporarily acquired pack and waited patiently.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Now see here! How dare you judge this individual with such an unbridled bigotry. You are disgraceful to call yourself a stallion of class. Furthermore, how did you expect her to respond after an assault on the integrity of her character?” Fancypants' face began to turn red with the heat of anger and he furrowed his brow. He continued to walk towards Silver Platter and the host began to recoil.

“Today, Miss....I beg your pardon, but I was not able to catch your name before.” Fancypants' look of animosity became one of apologetic sincerity. The moment had finally caught up to them that he realized that they had never given proper introductions. Gilda was at a momentary loss of words at the abrupt change in tone of dialogue. “Please, Miss....”

“Hensworth.” Gilda said reluctantly. She didn't like the feeling of being put on the spot so quickly after being publicly humiliated.

“Ms. Hensworth, please forgive his brash attitude. I would like to offer you my most humble apologies and invite you as a guest at some other establishment. I will see that any accommodations you require for lunch will be covered.” Even though Fancypants earnest attempts of reconciliation to Gilda were genuine, she just walked away.

“Thanks, but I don't need handouts. Besides, I've lost my appetite...” As Gilda crouched down to prepare herself for take off, she looked over her shoulder and back at Fancypants.

“Seriously though.....thanks.” With a strong flap of her wings, she took off into the air like a bullet.

“Well, good riddance to bad blood.” Silver Platter scorned as he returned his glaze to an absolutely livid Fancypants.

“How dare you! I will make sure that you never work here again!” Fancypant gritted furiously through his teeth.

“And how, pray tell, would you do that?” Silver Platter called out Fancypant's statement as an empty threat. Fancypants levitated a check book out of his jacket pocket, and began to scribble down a payment. When he finished, he torn the stub from the booklet and shoved it in the host's face.

“I'm about to buy this bistro. You're fired.” Fancypants expression stayed subtle, but there was an overpowering gleam in his eyes. Silver Platter began to stutter in disbelief, but Fancypants merely pointed his hoof towards the street. The defeated unicorn hung his head in shame as he slinked away past the patrons that had been watching the entirety of the events unfold. Fancypants did not allow his sight to deviate from Silver Platter until he was out of sight. Once he was gone, Fancypants returned his attention to the unicorn at the table. He lifted a napkin and began to wipe the spilt gazpacho.

“I'm quite sorry about the mess, madam. I will get you another soup right away!” Fancypants rushed off to the kitchen to prepare his new staff, while Fleur de Lis had already situated herself into the hostess' position and had begun to seat new customers.

Gilda began to fly back towards the auditorium and as she got closer, she was able to hear a crowd cheering and the beginning of explosions detonating. She saw a line of various sorts of ponies waiting to get in and from the looks of it, Trixie had a full house to tend to. Gilda landed at the main entrance. She was greeted by Shining Armor, whom was busy counting bits. When he saw Gilda, he waved her through and continued to collect admission. Gilda entered the auditorium and across the crowd, she could barely see the stage.

“Move out of the way, I'm trying to see here!” She began to push her way through the the sea of ponies, nudging and pushing them aside. Several of the offended audience members shot the griffin denigrating stares.

“Welcome, one and all to see the greatest performance in Equestria! The Great and Powerful Trixie!” In a puff of smoke and a flash of light, Trixie appeared on the stage. The crowd gasped and clopped their hooves against the floor. The sound echoed throughout the auditorium as Trixie's horn began to glow. She enshroud a row of fireworks in magic, lighting each in systematic order and set them off into the air. The fireworks flew up and Trixie manipulated their trajectories, creating trails of light that streaked around the entire room. At first each scattered out, their courses independent of one another and their individual colors illuminating the stage and across the room. Just as the projectiles reached the furthest ends of the auditorium, Trixie lassoed them back with a familiar purple aura. She began twisting and contorting them and the colors began to bleed together in a waterfall of saturated spectral light. The allure of the display entranced the captive audience and Gilda sat in awe of the monumental power that Trixie had.

Trixie began to dance onstage as the luminosity revolve around her. The fire, as if it had a life of its own appeared to form to its own accord, becoming a breathing and cognitive being, autarchic in its existence. To Gilda, time began to blur together and the room disappeared as she stared at Trixie and the chromatism of the rainbow merged with the unicorn creating an illusion that only reinforced her hypnotic state. As far as she was concerned, the only things in the room were Trixie, herself, and the empty space between them. The embers around her began to subside and fade with a subtle hint of magic still ample in the glow of the atmosphere and the fireworks disappeared. The dazzling spectacle concluded with a pop and a thunderous applause, Gilda was fixated on Trixie's eyes. There was something about them that kept her heart racing at the mere thought of them. In her daze, she cracked a smile of admiration.

“And now for her next incredible feat....” Trixie began, but was quickly interrupted.

“Trixie is a phony pony!” A voice hollered from the crowd. Trixie stopped talking and her eyes widened as everypony focused on the accusation being made.

“Yeah! I heard that she couldn't even stop on Ursa Minor!” A second voice called out. Trixie's head was swimming in thought and she froze on stage. She began to stammer, but her voice became drown out by the crowds' murmurs.

Gilda looked up to Trixie and saw the unicorn, whom once stood proudly on stage break and lose her confidence once more. She thought to herself and decided that trying to 'persuade' the hecklers was out of the question because she was outnumbered by both the audience and the royal guards that surrounded the perimeter of the auditorium. Gilda looked at Trixie, who was now on the verge of tears, and decided to go for broke.

“You can do it, Trixie!” Gilda screamed from the top of her lungs. The crowd fell silent and redirected their attention to
the more than out of place griffin. Gilda seemed as if she had shrunk a foot in her stature and her cheeks began to burn from embarrassment.

Trixie peered out and her heart skipped. Without hesitation, her smile returned along with her confidence. In her mind, she quickly formulated an impromptu act and pointed her hoof directly at Gilda.

“You there! Griffin!” The sheer force of Trixie's voice penetrated the awkwardness that seeped through the crowd, causing Gilda to blush harder at the immediate attention that was brought to her. Trixie waved her hoof to invite the griffin onstage, but Gilda dismissed her. Suddenly, Gilda felt herself being levitated a few inches off the ground and let out a startled squeak.

“Jeez! Okay! I'm coming!” Gilda's body twitched in an attempt to free herself from her magical constraints and began to slowly fly towards the stage. She watched as the judgmental eyes of the crowd glared at her and she landed next to Trixie onstage.

“The Great and Powerful Trixie has never met you before, is this correct...”. Trixie waved her hoof at Gilda, indicating for her to play along.

“Um....no....?” Gilda stuttered into the microphone, which gave slight feedback that made her and the audience flinch in pain at the piercing sound. Trixie just continued to smile.

“Well, since you seem to be the only one here who appreciates talent when they see it, maybe you would like to help Trixie with her next act?” Trixie asserted her voice, reclaiming her stage presence.

“Uhhh....sure?” Gilda wasn't prepared to answer Trixie, let alone aid her in her performance. 'In for a bit, in for a pound, I guess.' Gilda contemplated to herself before Trixie began speaking again.

“Please step back and The Great and Powerful Trixie will show you all what true power really is!” Using her magic, she clasped and levitated the blanket from her back. She leaned in inches from Gilda's ear and whispered softly to her. “Whatever you do, just don't freak out....okay?” Gilda could feel Trixie's warm breath on her neck and she felt an electric shiver run down her spine. It took Gilda a moment to snap back to reality and comprehend Trixie's words. By the time she could object, Trixie's cape was already draped over her. Gilda held her breath and closed her eyes out of curious anticipation, wondering just exactly she had gotten herself into.

“Now watch and be amazed at The Great and Powerful Trixie!” Trixie's horn began to glow and a flash of light filled the air as Trixie pulled the cape off of Gilda with her teeth, revealing that there was nothing underneath. The crowd gasped and became completely awe-struck. Gilda continued to stand as still as she could. She peeked with one eye to see the crowd staring directly at her with their jaws ajar. A thunderous roar of cheering and the distinct sound of hooves clopping filled the auditorium.

“Thank you! Thank you!” Trixie proclaim victoriously. Gilda looked at Trixie, who's smug smile had returned to its rightful owner. Confused as hell, Gilda raised her talon up to scratch her cheek. She noticed that something was missing...despite the fact that she was moving her arm, she couldn't see it. She frantically inspected her body and realized that she couldn't see herself. Her arm, her wings, her tail... everything about her had disappeared visually, but she was still there. Gilda's breathing became restricted and she began to panic. Gilda began to back up away from the front of the stage and tripped over the pyrotechnic display that Trixie had set up for her ground finale. The impact of the collision set off the fireworks throughout the auditorium. Streams of smoke, lights and fire flew past Gilda and the sheer volume of the explosion made her flee off the stage. Looking for a way out, the first thing that she saw was the the light coming from the setting sun outside of the auditorium's main entrance. She propelled herself above the crowd and straight for the door.

Trixie redirected the fireworks to conform to the shape of a phoenix. In all its blazing glory, the embers seemed as it had sprung to life and began to glide around the room briefly before bursting into flames. The crowd roared and Trixie grinned. She looked across the auditorium and noticed that a very subtle trail left by her distinctive magical aura streaked for the door. This trail was completely independent of the ones that she had left from the manipulation of the fireworks' trajectory and she immediately felt her heart skip a beat in sheer panic. She began to frantically look around the stage and began to emit a low level wave of magic into short bursts to see if it reflected off any solid object invisible to the naked eye. Trixie's fears were confirmed when the aura did not indicate that anything other than air was on stage with her.

“Uhhh.....Thank you, one and all! That concludes The Great and Powerful Trixie's show for tonight!” Trixie looked nervously at the audience as they began to mutter and talk between themselves. “There will be no refunds!”

With a flash of light and a puff of smoke, Trixie darted off stage, using her magic to quickly grab the saddlebags and bolted through the back exit behind the stage. Before the audience could fully comprehend what was happening, the auditorium's lights were turned back on and there was no remaining trace of the unicorn. The exit door slammed open and the setting sun hung low in the sky.

"Trixie, that show was amazing!" Shining Armor said ecstatically as he approached her. His eyes gleamed a childish sparkle that he hadn't felt in a long time.

"Thank you, but Trixie really must be going. Are these the bits from the show?" Trixie said anxiously.

"Every single one! You made off like a bandit tonight!" Shining Armor smiled when he suddenly felt the saddlebag being magically lifted off his back and secured it to her own.

"Well, once again, you have Trixie's thanks, but she really must be going...long road ahead and such...okay bye!" Trixie shot off like a bullet away from the auditorium while continuing to emit small pulses of magic as a radar to find Gilda.

Shining Armor was left in the dust, perplexed by the mare's quick escape. It was quite short lived however, because all of the audience began to exit the auditorium, grumbling and feeling short changed by the brief performance. The crowd closed in on Shining Armor, berating him for being short changed and demanding refunds.

"Well, would you look at the time, it looks like I'm off duty. Goodbye!" Amid all the yelling, Shining Armor teleported from the auditorium back to his house and sighed in exhaustion.

"I really don't get paid enough for this..." Shining Armor muttered and began removed his gear when he heard a noise in the hallway.

“Shining, is that you?” A young alicorn emerged from the other room to see that her fiancé had returned from work. She embraced the stallion and planted a deep kiss on his muzzle. “How was your day, honey?”

“Let's just say that it's good to be home, Cadance.” Shining Armor sighed once more as the two collapsed on the couch.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Gilda! Are you okay?” Trixie began to hyperventilate when she failed to receive a reply. “Okay, Trixie just needs to concentrate.”

Trixie took several deep breaths to refrain from becoming more distraught and closed her eyes gently. She concentrated her magic to the tip of her horn and began to emit a series of pulses outwards. Trixie felt as if she had become connected with all that was around her. She scanned the area for any creatures that had traces of lingering magical auras and was promptly able to locate a presence near the palace labyrinth. Without saying a word, she opened her eyes and started to gallop towards it.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Gilda didn't really know where she was flying to, but her instincts told her that she should just keep on doing it. She felt safe in the air, despite her current predicament, the wind caressing her wings. It was the familiarity of the patterns of subtle complexities and changes within the wind currents that normally brought piece of mind in times of distress. This time, however, merely gave Gilda a sense of dejection. The feeling overwhelmed her to her bones, and her wings became weak. She surveyed the area for a place nearby to land and noticed a fountain outside the royal gardens. In the center of the fountain was a statue crafted from solid marble in the shape of a pegasus, complete with iron-clad armor and standing at arms. She descend on top the the edge of the fountain and sighed. Gilda felt as if her oxygen had been completely removed from her lungs while she landed and she forced herself to calm down. She took her talon to scoop some water from the fountain and splashed it in her face. It felt temporarily refreshing, but as she opened her eyes to look at herself in the pond of water, she recoiled at what she saw, or the lack there of. The only thing that she could see were the water droplets cascading from the invisible curvature of her body, dripping back into the fountain and leaving ripples on the surface.

At this point, she was not even able to distinguish her own tears from the water itself. Gilda began to pace back and forth on the ledge of the fountain impatiently, occasionally trying to capture a glimpse of her own reflection as if it were to reappear as mystically as it was taken from her. The essential core of her identity was stolen from her and spirit began to sink at the weight of the past few days events. Gilda no longer had anything left to reminder her who she truly was; Dash, whom was her only true friend, was gone and probably never wanted to see her again, she had broken her lease to sold her loft when she left to be with her, and now this. She was trapped alone in a city full of ponies with self-entitlement issues and now no one could even see her. Gilda had never felt more isolated in her entire life than she did at this moment. She slouched at the edge of the fountain and just stared blankly at the statue.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Trixie ran past the east wing of the royal hall and straight to the gardens. The entrance was lined with ancient statues, to which she ignored. The old kingdom and its secrets had always had a profound interest to her, but now was not the time to indulge it. The proximity of Gilda was getting stronger as she made her way past the garden entrance and she stopped dead in her tracks when she came across the fountain and her muffled sobbing. She walked towards the fountain and felt a pulsating presence, it was the distinctive energy of her own magic. Trixie illuminated Gilda with an aura, allowing her to at least see an outline of the griffin. Gilda jumped at the sudden warmth that surrounded her and her wings flared slightly at the sensation. Her eyes darted at Trixie, who was quietly sitting besides her.

“What the hell is your problem? What did you do to me??” Gilda shouted at Trixie. Trixie was taken aback by the hostility in Gilda's tone.

“What is Trixie's problem?? What is your problem?? Trixie told you not to freak out, and what do you do? You go running straight for the door and leave Trixie without being able to finish the trick!” Trixie defended herself in an affront manner.

“You could have told me what you had planned instead of springing it on me at the last minute!” Gilda gave Trixie a little shove, but she held her ground.

“Trixie panicked! She had to abandon her show to make sure that you were okay!” Trixie hollered at the top of her lungs and the sound reverberated around them. The two sat in silence, avoiding eye contact with one another.

“You were worried about me?” Gilda finally broke the lull looking up at the unicorn. Trixie continued to stare at the ground and nodded.

“Not many have stood up for Trixie like you have...it means a lot to her. She apologizes for forcing you into this situation. ” Trixie finally looked up to the aura that surrounded Gilda and the griffin stared into the unicorn's eyes. Gilda adjusted her stance and ruffled her wings slightly.

“Trixie....I shouldn't have freaked out earlier...” Gilda began to speak, but Trixie interrupted her before she could finish.

“Let's just fix this....it's been too long of a day. Trixie just wants to eat some dinner and get her beauty rest.”

“You know, that's probably the smartest idea that I've heard all day!” Gilda's tone became relaxed now that she knew the everything would soon be back to normal.

Trixie closed her eyes and her magic engulfed Gilda. As the aura began to swirl around her, Gilda noticed that the light being expelled from Trixie's horn became less systematic and more erratic with each passing second. The light began to flicker and fade, Trixie opened her eyes and began to pant. The spell had used more energy than Trixie had initially excepted. She caught her breath and looked to where Gilda was standing and saw nothing but the lingering aura that she had encompassed Gilda to begin with. Gilda looked into Trixie's eyes and saw unbridled fear in her eyes. Trixie promptly shut her eyes again and her horn began to glow bright and more sporadic. Sweat began to drip down Trixie's face and her face showed of look of intense concentration. Again, Trixie lost control of the spell, causing it to fizzle once more.

“Oh no....no no no.....” Trixie muttered to herself in sheer terror. Gilda went from feeling confused to utter trepidation when she looked for her reflection in the fountain, and much like her previous attempts, the results were fruitless efforts.

“Trixie....what's going on...?” The fear in Gilda's voice was quite evident. Trixie stood aghast and her eyes fixated on Gilda.

“The spell isn't working.”

Chapter 4: The Things We Can't See

Note from Iron Hooves: All the images that I will use in this story will be ones that I have personally drawn and I will add reference links and music links from YouTube (middle click the link or open into a new tab) to help create a more in depth mood and atmosphere for the piece as a whole. I hope you all enjoy it.

Chapter 4: The Things We Can't See

"What do you mean 'It's not working'??" Gilda's eyes widen and her voice cracked. "You have done this spell before...right?"

"Of course, Trixie has done it before! She's done the spell many times before.....just...” Trixie's speech became incoherent and quiet as she realized that she never cast the cloaking spell on anything as complex as a full-grown griffin, or any living being for that matter.

“Well??” Gilda's cry was one octave short of screaming at Trixie.

"Trixie has cast it upon smaller objects, like rocks or coins." She began to have a small panic attack to herself and she felt as if something had sucked the wind from her lungs. Gilda quickly saw Trixie start to gasp and flail her arms in an attempt to get more air and she began to lose balance on the fountain’s ledge. Gilda reached out and caught her before she was about to fall into the water.

“Okay....the first thing you need to do is calm down and breathe.” Gilda grabbed Trixie shoulders and grasped them tightly. Trixie closed her eyes and went from hyperventilating to longer, but still sporadic gasping of air until finally she was able to catch her breath. Gilda looked down into the fountain as the moonlight shined on a coin that was inside of it.

“Try the spell with this bit.” Gilda reached to the bottom of the fountain and pulled out a single bit from it. She flipped it with her thumb and Trixie caught it mid-air with her magic. The unicorn stared at the bit and began to concentrate. The aura surrounding the bit illuminated with a searing incandescent blaze until it burst into a flash of light before disappearing from sight. Trixie opened her eyes and released the coin, only to hear a splash from the water. The two looked into the fountain and saw ripples left in its wake as the ghostly coin hit the bottom. Trixie forced the coin back up from the water with her magic and within an instant she was able to revert the concealed coin back to its original state. Gilda seized the coin away from Trixie and examined it thoroughly.

“Not bad! Now try it with that statue...” Gilda took the bit and chucked it at the pegasi statue in the center of the fountain. The impact of the coin reverberated against the iron with a deep clank that echoed in the evening air. Trixie focused on the figure and closed her eyes again. The luminosity of her magic enveloped it and began to flicker with diminutive bolts of electricity coursing throughout the sculpture. With a blinding flash, the statue disappeared from sight, only leaving a lingering radiance from Trixie's magic. The colors intermingled with the ever growing dusk and the light from it seemed to brighten the immediate area, if only for a second. Trixie panted and smiled slightly at the feat she just accomplished, she knew that this was the largest object that she had ever cast the cloaking spell upon. Gilda cleared her throat, breaking Trixie from her moment of achievement. Trixie began to concentrate once more and with a little more applied effort, she surrounded the statue with the glow of her magic. Within seconds, the statue reappeared before them. The two let out a collective sigh at the sight of it.

“Okay... are you ready?” Gilda broke the moment with a hesitant but reassuring tone. Trixie nodded and closed her eyes, feeling her muscles strain as she focused her magic and concentrated solely on Gilda. Her horn began to emit irregular sparks of light and the light started to fade. She began to pant and felt her temples throb. After a few moments, she allowed herself to regain her composure and tried again. Her spell was interrupted when the Canterlot Castle's bell tower began to resonate seven times to indicate that dusk had arrived. The initial ring of the first 'dong' struck a chord deep into the pair with ominous agitation, startling them both. Trixie and Gilda stared at the castle as the torches surrounding its perimeter began to mystically burn as if they had been fueled by eternal flames.

"Maybe The Great and Powerful Trixie should ask for help from somepony greater and more powerful than she is." Gilda said with an earnest attempt to hide her sarcasm.

As the last bell rung, Trixie looked up to the balcony atop the castle and saw Princess Luna standing from it, studying her night sky intently.

“Trixie will correct this! She shall return!” In a flash, Trixie began to gallop towards the castle, leaving a trail of dust behind her. Gilda coughed as the dust filled her lungs and she watched Trixie vanish in the distance.

“Okay...I guess I'll just wait here...” Gilda stared at the castle before she turned back to the night sky.

'It's not like I have a choice...'

Luna was entranced in deep concentration as she began to individually embellish each star. Her magic cradled each as if they were her own children, delicately shifting their set constellations. As Luna's magic began to fade as she opened her eyes, she scanned the sky for any imperfections that she wished to fix and smiled when she couldn't find any. Celestia stood behind Luna and watched in humble admiration of her sister's work for the evening. Luna's moon gleamed with a immense transcendental luster that the Goddess of the Sun couldn't mimic in the slightest.

“Sister, your craft of painting the night sky is unparalleled to any that I have created in your absence.” Celestia's eyes maintained on admiring her work.

“We have yearned to feel the evening breeze through our mane once again. How we've missed it so....” Luna wiped her forehead free of sweat and sighed. “We do not remember the night being so untamed.”

“You never made it look easy, Luna.” Celestia approached Luna carefully and gently nuzzled her neck with her own. Luna reflexively withdrew from her sister's touch, prompting Celestia to frown.

“Sister, do not patronize us. We are not a little filly anymore.” Luna began to shift her shoulders away from her sister and moved to the other end of the balcony.

“Luna, I was being sincere... We need to....we have to get past what happened..... please, my dear sister.” Celestia turned to her sister and tried to reach out to her, but Luna turned her back towards her sister.

“We do not wish to speak of it.” Luna was stern and brief as she spoke.

“Luna....please.” Celestia pleaded with Luna to no avail. The crepuscule sky began to blacken with an acherontic darkness that matched the turnoil within the Princess of the Night.

“Or what, dear sister? You will banish us once more?” Luna's voice was dripping with spite for what Celestia had done and she knew that her words cut deep within her sister's regal veneer.

“They were to have you killed! I didn't have any other options to save you!” Celestia pleaded to her sister in desperation.

“Maybe you should have killed us yourself!” Luna shouted in the Royal Canterlot voice and it seemed as if the whole of Equestria fell silent at its sheer volume.

Celestia tried to think of something to say to comfort her sister but felt as if her eternal spirit had been ripped from her core. She said nothing and without reserve tears ran down her cheek. Luna walked past her sister from the balcony without a second glance.

“Perhaps a walk around the castle will help us clear our thoughts...we still need more time alone.” Luna avoided her sister's eyes as she slowly headed for the door. “One thousand years was not enough penance for our sins...” Luna used her magic to quietly close the door behind her and Celestia helplessly stared as she left. Celestia was alone again as she was before, still half excepting Luna to return as she did for the last one thousand years.

With a heavy heart, Celestia sighed and turned to the night sky. It's tranquilly gave her little solace as she pondered how long it would take her sister to truly return to her; for them to return to as it was before the Nightmare.

The entrance to the castle was heavily guarded as the consulates concluded business and retired for the evening. Trixie hid behind some brush near the doors and waited for an opportune moment to sneak in. She was only able to hear conversations of the departing bureaucolts.

“How did your meeting with Celestia go?”

“We accomplished nothing in the permit or zoning discussions. She spent the entire time staring out the window.”

“Is it just me or has she not been herself lately?”

“She's been acting odd since her sister's returned.”

“Well, she better get herself together before the diplomatic talks with the chancellor of Gryphondor. Celestia knows that the peace talks are crucial at this point.”

“Honestly, I question her ability to rule effectively now that we've returned to a diarchy...”

“You shouldn't speak ill of her....she might banish you to the moon!”

The bureaucolts' began to laugh, their voices faded as they continued to walked away from the grounds of the castle. Trixie saw it as the perfect opportunity to sneak into through the open door, however she found that it was being kept under surveillance by two members of the royal guard. She looked further down and found a window that was slightly ajar. Trixie thought quickly, and found a small pebble near her feet and launched it with her magic in the opposite direction. The guards' ears perked back at the intrusive sound and after nodding with each other, they went to investigate the noise.

Trixie ran along the perimeter of the castle until she reached the window and struggled to climb in. She was able to use her magic to give herself an extra boost and fell into the castle. Trixie picked herself up and smiled slightly.

'Heh....piece of cake...' Trixie thought to herself while dusting off her back legs. She turned around and was immediately met with the piercing eyes of a large unicorn stallion dressed in royal armor.

“Halt! This is a restricted area!” The royal guard promptly stomped his hoof on the tiled floor to assert his authority.

“She didn't know....she's sorry...” Trixie's voice stammered as she was accosted by the unicorn guard. As he approached Trixie, she saw his Prussian blue coat and his midnight black mane beneath his golden-clad helmet. His cutie mark was covered by a chain-mail armor over his haunches that glistened from the moon light.

“No excuses! By Equestrian law, I place you under arrest for trespassing within the royal halls without prior consent.” The guard spoke with unbridled authority.

Trixie's legs locked up as she felt the wall make contact with her back as she tried to slowly cower into the corner to avoid the guard. She closed her eyes and heard the voice of a mare with a stern assertive tone.

“Nightshade, that's enough!”

The voice echoed through the halls and the two unicorns immediately turned to see where the sound originated from. The corridor that led to the end of the hall was cast in shadows, only small flickering candles lit the figure as it approached them. Luna emerged from her cover of darkness.

“...Your Highness!” Nightshade bowed and looked up to the Princess.

“This unicorn was trespassing within the royal halls. I was able to stop her and was just about to take her into the stockades.” Nightshade explained to Luna. The alicorn looked at Trixie and saw unrestrained fear across the mare's face. Luna looked down and saw her cutie mark adorned with the crescent moon across the night sky.

'A sign, perchance?' Deep within herself, Luna felt as if this unicorn may had been sent to her, as were the stars that assisted with her liberation from her prison. Maybe this mare was sent to help her with her problem.

“We shall take her from here. We wish to speak with the young mare alone. If you wish to be of service to me, please check on my sister....” Luna stopped herself from explaining the intimate issues between her and her sister in the presence of Trixie.

Nightshade's initial thought was to protest this course of action in regards to the Princesses' safety, but decided against it. He saluted Luna and walked towards Celestia's chambers.

"Princess Luna..." Trixie froze as she comprehended what just happened. She began to bow, however the alicorn dismissed her actions by ruffling her wings and holding up her fore hoof.

"What is thy name, child?" Luna asked in a comforting tone, trying to set the unicorn at ease.

"Trixie Lulamoon. She has come requesting assistance from your royal highness..." Trixie began but was immediately interrupted.

"Please, call us Luna." Luna replied as Trixie swallowed and tried to calm herself down before speaking again.

"Trixie needs your help, Luna." Trixie paused as she internally debated with herself on how to admit defeat. 'Should I lie and just say I'm looking for new tricks for my shows? No...she's the princess...she'd see straight through it...I'd probably get banished for lying....'

"What may we assist you with, daughter of Lulamoon?" Luna spoke with a firm tone that broke Trixie from her thoughts.

"Trixie cast a cloaking spell on her friend and now....she can't fix it." As the words formed from her mind into speech, two things abruptly hit her.

The first was that she could admit that she was helpless to correct this problem she created on her own. That really didn't bother her as much as the second one: She had called Gilda her friend. Trixie had selfishly risk her only real friend's well being to promote herself.

The feeling itself was on the tart end of bittersweet.

"Come, Trixie. We know of such a book that may hold answers to your problem." When Luna spoke, it had broken Trixie from her thoughts and she nodded in compliance.

Luna led Trixie through the halls of the east wing of Canterlot Castle. The royal guards stood at attention nervously as the princess passed each one, though Luna paid no mind to their displays of obedience. Trixie did notice however, that once the two had walked past each guard, they immediately sighed and returned to a more relaxed posture.

"Much has changed in these halls since we were here last... we suppose the more contemporary facade were not of our sister's designs. This material leaves a bit to be desired." Luna stopped in front of a large door and scratched her hoof against the red tapestry that extended the length of the hall. The fabric was thin and gave way to the alicorn's touch and the sound of it ripping echoed throughout the halls. Several members of the royal staff immediately came galloping up and gasped in horror at the sight.

“Do away with this atrocity.” Luna pointed her hoof at the torn tapestry and the staff looked at each other hesitantly.

“...But....your highness... it was a gift from Sir Gallant over seven hundred years ago to the Princess...” The help began to stammer as Luna stood over them.

“Are we not your Princess as well? Does our opinion not matter?” Luna's eyes glazed over with a silky white sheen as she spoke in a thunderous voice that rung in the hallway. Each of the staff felt as if an apple had been lodged in their throats.

“...Yes....your highness...” The words were barely audible over the lingering echo of Luna's voice.

“Mend it, then you may return it to our sister.” Luna peered deep into their eyes and the nodded repeatedly. Trixie stood back and watched as the staff frantically ran with the tapestry in hoof down the hall and disappeared into a side room. Luna returned her sight back to the now bare stone wall and ran her hoof over it, sighing contently. It may have been a small change, but it reminded her of the way the castle use to be.

“Come Trixie, let us proceed.” Luna did not look back at the unicorn before continuing to walk, but Trixie shook herself out of shock and back into reality and followed the alicorn once more.

Gilda impatiently twitched her feathers and tapped her claw against the outer rim of the marble fountain as she waited for Trixie to return. As she watched the tower for any remote sign of movement, a small light caught her attention out of the corner of her eye. It was a firefly, sporadic and inconsistent in its flight pattern. Gilda followed it intently as it began to run into her side time and time again until she grabbed it in her talons. She held it carefully in an attempt not to hurt it, and she marveled as it began to illuminate through her translucent hand with a flickering luminosity. She felt a strange heat build inside of the outer edges of her palm and she let go of the insect when the heat got unbearable. The firefly flew out of her talons and began to fly directly into Gilda once more before drifting off into the distance. Gilda stared as it seemingly started to blend into the night sky when the realization hit her like a ton of bricks.

She was invisible.

She was now the ultimate predator.

'Well, at least prey can't see me now... or any of those snotty unicorns...' She chuckled at the thought and a smile began to slowly creep to her face until it extended to a wide grin.

She darted into the sky with great velocity until she was high above Canterlot and began to watch for any 'prey' she could find. She was surprised at how alive the city was for the evening, there were numerous unicorns, pegasi and earth ponies about and enjoying the summer night in great merriment.

Gazing over her vast territory, she scanned for her target. She peered over to the 'Barnyard Bargains', there she saw Bit putting away the last of boxes into his shop and wiping the sweat from his brow. She continued and found the bistro she had the 'luxury' of visiting prior to Trixie's performance and saw a line that extended pass the restaurant and well across to the other side of the street. Gilda grinned as she saw Fancypants preoccupied with the influx of customers, levitating multiple trays of food at once and simultaneously serving an entire section of patrons as Fleur de Lis switched between seating new guests and quickly scribbling down new orders.

Gilda continued to scan the streets around Canterlot until her ears caught on to the incessant grumbling of a sterling unicorn. Her eyes focused and locked onto the stallion and a sizable smile swept across the griffin's face when she identified her target to be Silver Platter.

“Bingo.”

Nightshade walked past Celestia's room and overheard muffled sounds emulating from it. He cautiously approached and knocked with a tentative hoof. The sound echoed through the chamber and the sounds from inside ceased.

As Celestia heard the knock, she quietly composed herself and closed her eyes.

"Who is it?" Celestia had a hint of anticipation that Luna had returned.

"It's Captain Lulamoon. I thought I had heard something." Nightshade called from behind the doors. Celestia sighed, annoyance saturating her every fiber.

"Enter." The alicorn retained a somber tone as she called out. Nightshade opened her chamber doors slowly and peered inside.

"Pardon my intrusion, but is everything alright?” Nightshade approached cautiously as the alicorn levitated her hair brush from her dresser and began to groom her flowing mane.

"Yes, Nightshade. Thank you for your concern. I was just deep in thought. Anything to report?" Celestia forced herself to sustain eye contact with Nightshade.

“We found some unicorn sneaking into the palace, however Princess Luna is now seeing to the situation. There was...something familiar about her... I can't put my hoof on it though...” As Nightshade spoke to her, he noticed Celestia begin to stopped brushing her mane at the mention of her sister's name. She lost focus of her simple task and sighed.

“Princess.... are you alright?” Nightshade could easily tell when Celestia's mind was distracted, having had been under her service for a majority of his stallion hood.

“Nightshade, please forgive me. My thoughts have been strained lately... I've just been worried about Luna.” Celestia returned her brush to her dresser and began to walk back to the balcony. She looked at the sky once more and savor the masterpiece that the alicorn's sister had created.

“For a millennia, I waited for my sister to return to me and I still yearn for her arrival….She may be here in body, but her spirit was lost one thousand years ago.” Celestia surveyed Ponyville and could see a faint light of the tree house library which she had entrusted to her faithful student. Her thoughts drifted back to the night that Twilight and her friends had emancipated her sister from the imprisonment of the Nightmare.

“Though I wish with all my heart for her to return to me, I will wait another eternity for us to be as we were before. The Elements may have freed her from the prison of her mind, but I must mend the wounds inflicted long ago...” Celestia felt herself begin to tear up, but fought the urge to do so and turned to looked at her captain with a new order.

“Nightshade, I must speak with Luna. Please, could you send for her?” Celestia spoke in a reserved manner.

“I shall retrieve her myself, your highness.” With a steady bow, he exited the room and Celestia nodded. She returned her gaze upon the moon and cursed the prison that held her sister captive for so long.

The musky scent of the archives filled Trixie's nostrils and she inadvertently smiled at the comforting feeling she had associated with the stories and knowledge the library contained.

"The spells you seek should be upon this shelf, unless these too have been reorganized in our absence." As Luna spoke, the spite within her voice bit down hard and the echo seemed to carry more than it was possible. Trixie's ears fell back and she hesitated to move forward at first. As Luna continued to scan the titles of the extensive catalogs, Trixie searched the shelves against the furthest wall, a majority of the texts were old hoof written manuscripts or tomes stacked on top of one another.

"When Trixie was a young filly, her mother use to read bed time stories to her of the legend of your curse. Trixie never could imagine it was true." Trixie watched as Luna's expression became somber. Luna turned to an oil painting that adorned the wall of the wing's original proprietor: Starswirl the Bearded.

“You know your history, my child. By chance, have you also heard of the dark time that led to the Nightmare?” Luna leaned close to Trixie as she spoke, which in turn made the unicorn involuntarily flinch.

“...No.... Trixie always believed that it was merely an old mare's tale.” Trixie spoke slowly as she was unsure of what her answer might entail. She was surprised when her response was met with an aphotic chuckle.

“Heh.... we suppose that we should be thankful to our sister for that only the eternal remember such darkness.” Luna continued to stare at the portrait and she traced her hoof along the frame of the canvas before swiftly turning to Trixie.

“Before the dark time, there was a renaissance of knowledge throughout Equestria, with its epicenter stemming from Canterlot and all of the kingdoms that surrounded it were at peace with one another. It was not until we discovered the Elements of Harmony deep within the Canterlot mines that everything changed. They contain an ancient magic as old as time itself....Starswirl the Bearded suggested that we might be able to utilize them to lead all of Equestria into a new age of prosperity. Little did we know of the balance of the Elements; With order came chaos and with harmony came dissonance. We never truly knew the full power that we unearthed that day, however its consequences seem to have lingered to this day. The kingdoms were tore asunder by Discord's manipulation...” Luna paused as Trixie gasped at the mention of his name.

“You mean Discord really existed?” Trixie was shocked to hear that the story she had associated as a lecture when she had done something wrong as a filly was not some fictitious fable.

“That Draconequus more than existed...” Luna's eyes began to glow in a fury of blinding ivory inferno that blazed into Trixie's soul. She felt herself cower slightly as Luna continued.

“Discord almost destroyed the foundation of Equestria. He worked with the shadows and in pure malice. When he spoke to us, he filled our thoughts with unconstrained jealousy and apprehension for our sister. He spoke of the division of night and day as disharmonious and unbalanced... and we foolishly allowed his poisonous words to infect our mind. Discord fed off our emotions and that is what led him to power. Though we were able to dispel his wrath from harming our subjects from his tyranny with our sister, his words still resided within us. It fed and manifested into the Nightmare. We remember....we were not in control when it fully consumed us...we saw what we did though...” Luna's eyes began to water as images of the devastation her actions caused across Equestria.

"We tell ourselves that we differ in our minds from that of how others perceive us. They are the facades that we allow ourselves to hide behind. It protects us from presenting our true selves to others and justifies our own behaviors." Luna spoke of her regret of how she maintained herself at the time and it began to sink in.

“If we had talked about our concerns with our sister instead of letting it build internally, the outcome may have been different....Trust is something that is easy to lose, but difficult to rebuild once broken...if you find one you can trust, do not let go of them.” Luna looked at Trixie and the unicorn could feel the heartache and sincerity from the Princess and Trixie could only nod.

Without saying another word, the two began to look for the book once more, pulling book after book from the shelves with their magic. Finally, Luna levitated a large book and she held it with her magic in front of her face, blowing away the dust from its cover. The book was simple in design, it had no real identifying marks on it and the binding looked as if it had seen better days. Luna floated the book towards Trixie and held it in place until the unicorn grasped it.

“This dissertation should have the information that you seek. You may borrow it, if you desire.” Luna looked at Trixie as she nodded and turned to glance at the portrait one last time before walking towards the window.

Trixie stared at the book for a moment before carefully opening it. The dust that had settled within its pages mingled with the air and the dim streaks of crepuscular moonlight that filtered through the room emulated the specks as they floated above her.

'Let's see....Fundamentals of Magick by Starswirl the Bearded...Binding Spells...ah...Cloaking Spells.'

'During my tenure as the head of the counsel of Magick, Commander Hurricane approached me in hopes of finding a spell that would allow troops to sneak into enemy territory without been detected, and in such cases of espionage, being able to blend in as one of their own. Though both Clover the Clever and I never condoned its use for applications in warfare, its cost was much less of a toll than the loss of life.

After years of researching the species known as the Changeling, we discovered...'

'Ahem.'

Trixie's reading was the interrupted by the sound of Nightshade clearing his throat. Her eyes darted to him in sheer surprise.

“Excuse me, Princess...your presence was requested by your sister.” Nightshade stood at the open library door and bowed to Luna. Both Trixie and Luna glanced at the stallion whom humbly kneeled before them. The princess nodded and returned her focus to Trixie.

“We trust you can help yourself to the exit once you have finished? Are we correct on assuming such?” Luna asked.

“Yes, she can. Thank you for your help, Princess.” Trixie nodded with a faint smile. Nightshade remained in his submissive position until Luna had passed him out in the hall, then he followed her, ignoring Trixie completely. She closed the book and smiled as she placed it inside of her saddlebag. She exited and returned to the hallway that Luna had just went down.

“We sincerely thank thee, Captain.” Trixie heard Luna say as they continued to walk in the distance.

Trixie began to walk down the ancient halls of the castle and she noticed that the air had a certain distingué pretension to it. She saw that the hallway led towards two large doors, one of which was slightly ajar. With her curiosity peaked, she looked around for any guards and entered the room.

"Stupid grif! This is all her fault..." Silver Platter muttered angrily to himself as he fumbled to aline his key to the lock on the front door of his town house. Before he could successfully unlock the door, Gilda darted down with her wings tucked in tightly and with one quick swoop, she grabbed Silver Platter with her talons and wrapped them securely around his upper torso. With one quick beat of her wings, the two were high in the air before the pretentious unicorn could comprehend what was happening and that he was no longer earthbound.

“AHHH!!! What's happening??” Silver Platter began to scream and Gilda laughed loud enough for the unicorn to hear her.

“Who are you?? Are you the ghost of Heart Warming Eve's past?” Silver Platter began to flail his limbs erratically, causing Gilda to compensate her flight pattern to stabilize herself from the shift in weight. It wasn't hard to correct her flying, but it didn't help that she was trying not to bust up laughing at the pathetic display the unicorn was giving her.

“Oh no....am I....dead...? Are you 'The Pale Horse'??” Silver Platter gasped at the horrifying revelation. An idea sparked in Gilda's head as she grinned maliciously.

“Yes.....I am Death. I am here to guide you to the Great Beyond.” Gilda masked her voice by speaking with a deep raspy inflection, still trying to stifle her giggles.

“Guide me to The Elysium Fields?” Silver Platter's tone had become one of unsettled distress as Gilda paused to allow his nerves to get the best of him.

“....No.....Tartarus is where your judgment lies...” Gilda smile widened as she could feel the unicorn's heart rate increase and Silver Platter's coat went from a sterling sheen to a sickly pale white.

“Oh no.....no no no!” Silver Platter stuttered in fear. Gilda remained silent as she flew less than a foot above the canopy line and allowed the tips of the trees to smack the unicorn in the face. She stifled her giggles as he began to spit out mouthfuls of pine needles to the ground below.

"I can't die now! I'll never even get to meet my son!" Tears began to flow freely down Silver Platter's face and Gilda felt as if somepony had shoved a knife in her gut.

'Damn it....' Gilda thought to herself, immediately regretting her actions. 'I can't mess with him now...damn conscience.'

She slowed her speed and began to hover over one of the pine trees. She carefully lowered him to the top of the tree, to which he promptly grabbed ahold of as she landed on the tree top next to him. Silver Platter continued to hyperventilate as he peered down what seemed like hundreds of feet to the soil below and immediately shot his head back up, shutting his eyes.

"You have a kid?" Gilda let out an annoyed sigh while still trying to maintain her gruff voice.

"....Yes...or will be.... My wife is expecting... We just found of the gender about two weeks ago..." Silver Platter forced himself to speak through the sobbing and Gilda felt another ping of pain fill her heart. She sat there silently and allowed Silver Platter to calm down a little bit.

“I shall reconsider your life under one condition...” Gilda finally spoke again, recapturing Silver Platter's attention from the ground.

“Don't let your personal views of bigotry to be passed to your kid.” Gilda spoke as she began to reminisce of her own childhood. It had been a while she truly thought about her roots, she had tried to put it behind her.

“...Yes!...Please, I'll do anything you wish!” Silver Platter began to nod furiously and the tree he had latched himself upon began to sway, causing him to hold on even tighter. “I just want to go home!”

“As you wish.” Without saying another word, Gilda slowly started to flap her wings and picked up the unicorn from the tree and she glided with Silver Platter until they were back at his front door.

“Remember your promise.....remember....” Gilda called back to him, trying to withhold all the spite she felt for him in her voice.

Once Silver Platter's hooves were back on solid ground, he began to profusely kiss it as if it were a long lost lover from his youth. Gilda rolled her eyes as she started to fly back to the fountain. In the back of her mind she could only think of one thing.

“What a prick.”

As Trixie slowly entered the room, she struggled to see through the darkness with the exception of the dull embers from a few candlelight's flame to assist her.

She carefully made her way in the middle of the room when the light within the hall began to swirl and dance around her, illuminating the furthest corners of the chapel. She squinted her eyes as her pupils compensated for the new light and as they focused she noticed the walls covered in intricately placed stained-glass windows which extended across the length of the room. Towards the front of the room stood an altar, emblazoned with emeralds and pewter, along the center of the room lay candle holders twice her size, a dozen each flickering with a mystical hue.

She examined the stain glass closely and she felt her heart stop when she was able to make out the unicorn that it was depicting. The mane had various shades of purple to it along with the lavender coat that covered her.

'SPARKLE.'

She felt a deep flame began to ignite within her, and she let her anger overtake her mind.

Blindly using her magic, she grabbed the nearest object, which just so happen to be a candlestick holder and flung it with reckless abandon into the window. The glass shattered into an explosion of multi-colored rain that cascaded down to the hall's floor in slow motion and the crash echoed throughout the castle.

Trixie couldn't do anything but stare at the gaping hole where the pristine glass had been before her, when suddenly she heard shouting from outside the hall's doors and in her panic, Trixie wished for nothing more than to just simply disappear. She closed her eyes and anticipated the worst of the royal guard....imprisonment...maybe banishment....

The door swung open and Trixie felt as if there was a pine cone stuck in her throat and her heart raced. Nightshade and another unicorn guard entered the room, both were on edge and their horns were illuminated, armed and ready to fight. They peered around the room and saw that it was empty, the only thing they could see was the glass on the ground in front of them and the candlestick holder, which was about fifteen feet away outside on the ground.

"Search the grounds. She can't be far." Nightshade commanded and the other guard saluted him before galloping towards the exit. Nightshade returned his gaze to the shattered glass. Trixie's heart and mind raced as she watched the events unfold before her and she could not understand in the slightest how she didn't get caught. She looked down at her hooves only to see the red carpet of the hall before her. She had cast the cloaking spell on herself without even realizing it.

Trixie let out a small squeak of surprise and immediately covered her mouth with her hoof. Nightshade's attention shot up at the extrinsic sound, and unknowingly to him, he began to stare at Trixie. She could feel her heart within her throat and froze.

Trixie held her breath and just told herself that this was all just a long nightmare induced by too many hay-shakes and she was actually safe in her trailer, between her warm and comfy bedsheets. She tried to force herself to wake up, but unfortunately for her, reality is a fickle mistress. She snapped back to the waking world as Nightshade turned swiftly and exited the room. To his surprise, a large crowd of royal staff had gathered outside of the entrance and when they saw him approaching, all of them averted their eyes to anywhere other than his face. His brow furrowed at this.

"Will somepony get a broom in here and sweep up this mess?" Nightshade said sternly as he watched all of the staff begin to fumble over each other to accommodate their new order.

Trixie continued to hold her breath for what seemed like minutes after Nightshade had left, until she couldn't bear to hold it any longer. She exhaled loudly and began to take deep, long breaths to regain her composure. Once she was able to calm herself down, she forced herself to sneak out of the chapel and started running back towards Gilda.

As Trixie got closer to where she left Gilda, her pace began to slow her stride from a gallop to a methodical movement of her legs. She stopped several steps from the fountain’s edge and let herself catch her breath. When she was able to focus her thoughts again, she began to emit low pulses of magic in an attempt to locate the griffin. When she was unsuccessful, she assumed that Gilda had taken off in a fit of anger and abandoned her.

“Gilda...Trixie is sorry she's a failure.” Trixie's voice was barely audible, but Gilda was able to catch the muffled tones of Trixie crying. She circled above the fountain in the sky and noticed the waves being discharge from a unseen source where the two had been. She flew down and landed besides the radiating pulses of lights, unsure where it was coming from. She reached out towards the light and felt the unicorn's supple coat.

“Trixie? Is that you? What happened?” Gilda tilted her head in a failed effort to see the unicorn.

“Trixie is a failure. She can't even perform basic spells correctly.” Trixie could not even acknowledge Gilda's presence near her.

“What are you talking about? I thought magic was your talent.” Gilda was unsure what had happened to Trixie in her absence, but from what she could tell, it had taken it's toll on the mare.

"Trixie's special ability is not magic....it is the ability to bend and manipulate light...she is an utter failure."

Gilda searched her mind for something to say, but nothing came to her. These weren't exactly the types of situations that she was good at handling by herself, let alone helping someone else with.

“Do you ever wish that you could just disappear?” Trixie stared into the water in a semi-comatose state. She wasn't able to see her own reflection, but instead gazed past herself to the night sky and watched as the stars became distorted. Her vision became blurred as she noticed a slow pattern of ripples forming beneath her. Trixie had become so mentally and physically exhausted that she didn't even care that she had begun to cry.

"Like, if you were to vanish off the face of Equestria, do you think anypony would notice or even care?"

Gilda remained silent as she thought about what to say until she heard Trixie sniffling and it broke her concentration.

"No." Gilda's tone was stoic and precise. Trixie wiped her muzzle with her forehoof and looked at the griffin.

"Only once you've lost everything, then you can find out who you truly are. I learned that the hard way a long time ago. All we really have in this life is who we tell ourselves we are. Others' opinions about who they think you are shouldn't matter to you. Just know that you are going to make it far, don't let anypony else tell you otherwise.”

All that Gilda could see was the night sky flowing immaculately with each of the individual constellations emulating brightly. Gilda stared to the night sky as if she were searching for a better answer to give when she felt a warm embrace around her. Trixie had wrapped her arms around Gilda and buried her face into the griffin's shoulder. Gilda instinctively tried to brush Trixie off of her, but after a few seconds, she allowed herself to indulge into the enveloping mare's arms. Trixie closed her eyes and concentrated as a calming wave of self assurance washed over her. Her horn began to glow a deep mauve and her magic started to flow freely around the pair. This time, her aura had a eerie recalescence to its glow.

Trixie imagined the subtle contours of Gilda's body and the complexity of each of her feathers as her magic caressed them. Trixie felt her face began to blush with a ferocious heat that she was unaccustomed to. She felt her magic surge throughout the entirety of her body and allowed herself to release it all with an unbridled wave of exhilaration.

Gilda shielded her eyes as the effulgent light from Trixie's magic overtook them both and she felt the warmth of its glow overtake her. The spell enveloped her and the tingling sensation reminded her of floating in a hot spring on a crisp night. She felt to magic begin to slow and eventually the warmth dissipated from her body. She opened one of her eyes and was able to see Trixie in front of her with her eyes still shut. Gilda looked down and saw her talons grasping on to the edge of the fountain and exhaled in relief.

“You did it, Trixie! You really did it!” Gilda began to chuckle and a wave of relaxation filled her. She looked at Trixie, whom still had her eyes closed and had a lugubrious expression on her face, as if she was trapped in a trance. Gilda felt her heart skip a beat as the unicorn began to lose her balance and started to collapse. The griffin quickly jumped to catch her before Trixie could hit the ground.

“Trixie! Wake up!” Gilda held her head against Trixie's chest as close as she could and heard slow, shallow breathing coming from her. She held Trixie in her arms and close to her as Trixie slowly opened her eyes and her blurred sight began to focus, she was able to see the amber rays of Gilda's eyes reflecting the moon's light and it's warmth penetrated deep within her.

“Did it work?” Trixie asked, the cognitive part of her brain was still reeling from the exorbitant amount of magic she had just used. Gilda cracked a slight smirk and nodded at the mare.

“Dude, are you okay?” Gilda's concern inundated throughout her voice and Trixie began to lift herself off of the ground at her own accord. Gilda let go of the unicorn, but she stayed close as a support if Trixie ended up needing it.

“Trixie is....fine. She is just tired.” Trixie smiled at Gilda and looked upon her with renewed admiration, then turned her attention toward the eternal fountain.

"So Trixie assumes that Gilda wishes for her payment now?" Trixie began to go through the purple saddlebag, levitating then in the air and dividing them between the two of them. Gilda shook her head and held up her hand to dismiss the action.

"Maybe we should hold off on that for the night, Trixie...I trust you. Besides, it's not like I'm going anywhere." Gilda yawned while she stretched her wings, followed systematically by her arms and legs. Trixie watched Gilda's face scrunch up as she yawned and an overwhelming feeling of glee filled her spirit as Gilda's words replayed in her head .

'Trixie...I trust you.'

She basked in the warmth of the feeling for a moment when an idea swept through her mind.

"Trixie has something she wants to show you." The mare rummaged through the second saddlebag and pulled out two large fireworks. Gilda looked over as Trixie flung both fireworks high into the air, leaving a lingering trail of green and purple behind as they begun to ignite. Once they were well above Canterlot, they burst into an explosion of emerald and violet hues that seemed to extend past the stratosphere. Trixie concentrated on the center of both explosions and began to slowly stretch the light particles outward. Gilda watched in awe as the colors from them began to melt and blend together, creating an illuminating glow that contrasted with the stars and moon across the crystalline night sky.

"Trixie....it's beautiful..." Gilda leaned over and spoke softly into her ear as more smaller explosions emitted from the sky. Trixie continued to smear the light upon the Equestrian evening sky, as if it were her own personal canvas and she were an artist painting for her muse.

The two sat in silence when suddenly they were interrupted by a low grumble coming from Gilda's stomach. She blushed and Trixie chuckled to herself.

"Sorry...I never really got a chance to eat anything after breakfast..." Gilda rubbed her stomach in an attempt to quell it. Trixie grabbed the purple saddlebag as she remember the food that Bit had packed them for lunch and pulled out two soggy piles of mush that at one point in time had resembled food.

"Trixie warned Shining Armor to mind the sandwiches..." The unicorn looked at the mangled clumps of cloth which held the once pristine meals.

"Well, its not the perfect meal, but it is a great end to a long day with good company." Gilda smiled at Trixie as she popped the mashed ball of sandwich in her mouth and almost swallowed it whole. Trixie began to giggle at Gilda's etiquette, despite having despised it earlier this morning. Something felt...different this time, or at least Trixie felt that way as she watched Gilda lick her mouth.

Gilda gazed into the unfathomable candour of Trixie's eyes and capture the reflected glow of the aurora borealis. She felt another pulse flow through her spine and her cheeks burn hotter as Trixie untied the blanket that she had been using as a cape and levitated it so that it covered the both of them from the crispy autumn night.

“You should really change the name of your act if I'm going to be helping you out.” Gilda chuckled to herself.

“To what, pray tell?” Trixie cocked her eyebrow upwards.

“How about 'Gilda the Magnificent presents: The Great and Powerful Trixie!'” Gilda waved her arm in the air as if she was panning over the invisible text of the headline on the marquee. Trixie merely guffawed at the suggestion.

“Trixie insists that if anything, your title should be 'sidekick'.” Trixie smirked at the griffin, whom just nudged the unicorn's shoulder playfully. The two continued stargazing and watch the colors glow brightly as it covered the moon's light.

As they sat in silence, Trixie leaned her head upon Gilda's neck and gently closed her eyes.

Gilda could feel her heartbeat begin to speed up as she felt Trixie's soft fur caressing her feathers and she watched the unicorn's chest as it rose and fell with every passing breath. Trixie sighed contently and began to nuzzle her cheek closer to Gilda's side, which inadvertently made the griffin rest her head against the unicorn. The quiescence of the moment lingered in the night breeze until Trixie leaned over and whispered to Gilda.

“Charity and Bit offered to keep the both of us up for the night. We can catch the train out of Canterlot in the morning.” Trixie spoke quietly, in an attempt to not break the moment with Gilda, whom merely cooed dreamily in response.

Nightshade quietly escorted Luna to her sister's bed chambers and knocked on Celestia's door once more. The door slowly opened with a golden magical aura surrounding it as Celestia continued to stand on her porch observing the night sky without moving. The two looked at the regal alicorn before glancing back to one another.

“Would you require anything else of my services?” Nightshade asked and was met with Luna shaking her head in denial.

“We are grateful for your assistance, thank you. All that we ask of you now is that you give us time. We have much we wish to discuss with our sister.” Luna bowed her head slightly and Nightshade closed the door tightly behind him.

Luna approached her sister with the utmost discretion as she thought about what she wanted to say.

'We have had one thousand years to think of this. Why do we hesitate now?'

Luna had entered the balcony and timidly sat next to her elder sister. She turned to look at the Goddess of the Sun's face only to find it was covered by her flowing mane.

“Dear Luna, I have some things that I wish to say to you... I miss you. I really do. I know that it will take time for us to be as we were, but we have to at least try... Please.”

“Sister....we can not express ourselves without thinking of the things we've said and the ones we've hurt, especially you...” Luna's tone began remorseful as the images of the events leading to the Nightmare incident came flashing back to her. Celestia saw her sister's abrupt change in disposition and brought her in for a tight embrace.

“Luna....it is not your fault...I've told you this time and time again....”

“Tia, it is! It was our doing that led to us being ostracized from Equestria, oh dear sister.... We shouldn't have allowed Discord's words to affect us. We never been jealous of your powers.” Luna broke down as she spoke, the tears flowing freely down her face. Celestia approached Luna and wrapped her wings around the alicorn and Luna reciprocated into it. The two sisters said nothing and the feelings of animosity between them melted.

The tender moment was interrupted by the flash of a phosphorescent light followed by the sound of two echoing explosions. The sisters looked up from their embrace to see that the midnight sky had been illuminated in jade and amethyst. The colors bled together and gleamed with the reminiscence of the ante meridiem chromaticity while maintaining the exquisiteness of the nocturnal illusion of the night sky. Both Celestia and Luna looked to one another, as if the other had subconsciously cast the spell. Though the sisters had been separated for a millennium, they still maintained a bond that told the other that the blood that runs through them will remain the same despite any differences that may ever have.

“Luna, Look at our sky, sister. It is neither yours nor mine. It is ours. It is the shared responsibility greater than one could handle alone. I need you, Luna. Not merely in a diarchial sense, but as my confidant. I need you as my best friend and so much more. I need you as my sister now more than ever.” Celestia tried to avert her tears, but she felt a breach in the facade that she had built for herself since Luna's departure. For the first time in one thousand years, the eternal alicorns felt peace within themselves. Celestia and Luna continued to watch the night sky together as they fell asleep in their embrace.

As the two returned to the store, they observed a crowd gathering in the street and admiring the enticing beauty of the aurora borealis. Gilda noticed the expressions on each of their faces had a childlike joviality to them, pure in its utmost form. Trixie's expression on the other hoof, consisted of a mare who had mentally checked out for the day, her legs moved without their master's consent to their final destination. All she wanted was to be in a nice warm bed and nothing in Equestria would stop her from her objective.

Bit and Charity stood on the porch of their store, lost in an embrace as they stargazed. The moment of halcyon between the married couple ended as they saw Trixie and Gilda approach.

“Trixie! Gilda! Have you seen the night sky? Isn't it something?” Bit's enthusiasm was comparative to a young colt half his age and based off of Charity's expression, her demeanor had seemed to revert to that of her fillyhood state. The couple's affection of each other ran deep and was evident even to a blind mare.

“I know! It's amazing, Trixie...” Gilda was about to speak praise of Trixie's creation, but was quickly interrupted by the unicorn.

“Trixie and Gilda wish to take you up on your offer of shelter for the evening. It has been a long and trying day for both of us.” Trixie sounded half asleep and Gilda looked at her, shocked that she did not even attempt to acknowledge her effort in her creation of the aurora borealis.

Charity looked at Bit and the two nodded, breaking their embrace.

“Please, come in.” Charity led the two into the store as Bit locked up for the night. The four walked up the stairs, revealing that the owners lived in the second story of their store.

“Luckily, we don't have to worry about commuting to work.” Bit said jokingly. Gilda chuckled a little, just to be polite to their host's attempt at humor. Trixie just kept staring forward, knowing her journey was almost complete. Her stride became heavy as she walked up the stairs, occasionally bumping into Gilda. The griffin's thoughts began to race with questions and uncertainties with each unintentional contact with the mare.

“The guest bedroom is the door on the right and the bathroom is down the hall. I hope you both don't mind sharing a bed, we only have a single.” Charity vaguely waved her hoof in the general direction, but she was too lost in her husband's eyes. Trixie and Gilda looked at each other then at the door quickly. They both darted for the bedroom, pushing the other out of the way.

“Thankyougoodnight!” Gilda quickly slammed the door behind them. Bit and Charity chuckled and smiled.

“Ah, to be young and falling in love again...” Charity sighed contently. Bit flashed her a malicious grin. Charity blushed and pulled Bit in for a deep and passionate kiss. She led her husband into the next room and immediately locked the door.

Gilda and Trixie examined the small guest bedroom. It was simple in design, a single bed, a painting of Whitetail Woods over it, a nightstand with a lamp and a window with a view of downtown Canterlot. Trixie looked out the window to see that even though a good hour had passed, the light show she had created still filled the sky and had blended with the light from the stars. She smiled and closed her eyes.

'Despite everything that has happened, you still know how to put on a good show.' Trixie thought to herself. She started to yawn and her vision began to blur. 'At least I can sleep in a bed tonight...' Trixie turned around to see that the bed in question was already occupied by a griffin who seemed quite comfortable within the sheets.

“Oh no, this will not do. The Great and Powerful Trixie DEMANDS the bed for the night. She needs as much beauty rest as she can get.” Trixie stared at Gilda, whom proceeded not to give a flying pony feather about the situation.

“First come, first serve. Sorry, dude.” Gilda said sarcastically with a smirk on her face while keeping her eyes shut and adjusting herself in a more comfortable position. Suddenly, she felt a familiar magnetic force push her directly off the bed and onto the hard wood floor with a loud thump.

"Hey, what the hell?" Gilda protested as she rubbed the side that she fell on. Trixie crawled into the bed and using her magic, she adjusted the sheets to allow herself to get comfortable. Gilda got up and forced herself between the sheets.

"Move your fat flank over!" Gilda pushed Trixie to the edge of the bed and the mare tried her best to maintain her balance.

"How dare you! Trixie's flank is the finest in Equestria!" She shifted her body weight to her hips and tried to push Gilda back off the bed.

"Sorry, there's only enough room in this bed for the ones that live in reality!" Gilda pushed back. The two started to wrestle for the sheets when suddenly, they both heard a loud thump.

"Quit it, Gilda! You're going to break something!"

"Me? If anyone is going to break something, it's going to be your fat ass breaking the bed!" Gilda began to head butt Trixie side when they heard the sound again.

Thump...

The two sat up side by side and stopped to listen.

Thump...

Trixie looked at the wall and the painting above the head board began to shake.

THUMP.
THUMP.

The sound grew louder and the pace more rapid. Trixie's eyes widened as she realized what the sound was coming from....or rather from whom.

THUMP.

"Actually, you can have the bed. Trixie sees a much more appealing spot on the floor." Trixie telekinetically pulled the pillow from beneath Gilda and hopped off the bed. She put as much distance between herself and the bed by crawling to the opposite corner of the bedroom. Gilda remained sitting on the bed, confused until she listened closely and heard moaning coming from the other room.

THUMP.
THUMP.
THUMP.

'Oh, Bit...'

Gilda panicked and fell back onto the floor. She frantically began to flap her wings and hover over the bed.

“I don't want the bed, I was being selfish....I'll trade you and sleep in the corner with the pillow....” Gilda said in disgust as she tried to remove the mental images of their hosts...current activities....

Trixie chuckled and Gilda shot a glare at her as Trixie swiftly hid the pillow from the griffin with an innocent grin plastered on her face.

Gilda pounced straight at Trixie from the air, but Trixie countered by using her magic to smash the pillow straight into Gilda's face. She tackled Trixie back into the corner and pinned her down, grabbing the pillow from her.

“Trixie demands that you....yawn....release her pillow.....”

“It's not yours....I had it.....first....zzzZZzzzz.....”

Exhausted from the day's events, the pair passed out still lightly jabbing each other in their sleep.

Chapter 5: Train Ride to Nowhere

Note from Iron Hooves: All the images that I will use in this story will be ones that I have personally drawn (the photography from rock formations were taken by me at Año Nuevo during my field research) to help create a more in depth mood and atmosphere for the piece as a whole. I hope you all enjoy it.

Chapter 5: Train Ride to Nowhere

Daylight broke through the window and Gilda began to stir from her slumber. As she went to stretch, she felt the pressure of a somewhat heavy object draped over her chest. When she opened her eyes, she found herself in Rainbow Dash's bedroom with the chromatic maned pegasi comfortably asleep and snuggling with her. Gilda felt as if her heart was about to pop out of her chest and her thoughts raced for a moment as her senses absorbed her surroundings and she let out an audible sigh of relief.

'It must have all been a dream....a weird one, but a dream none the less.' Gilda allowed herself to sink further into Rainbow Dash's cumulus bed and her eyes fell upon the mare. Gilda smiled as Dash let out a light snore and a few strains of ruby hair fell across her forehead. The griffin carefully brushed them from Dash's face and ran them with her finger behind the pegasi's ear. The sensation of Gilda subtle touch inadvertently made Dash's ear twitch and she began to slowly open her eyes as Gilda started to stroke her mane.

Dash's cerise colored eyes penetrated deep into Gilda's soul as she peered longingly up at her.

“Morning G'...how'd you sleep?” Dash smiled at Gilda and the griffin felt herself melting.

“It was alright... I had this weird dream though...” Gilda continued to play with Dash's mane and lightly rub her back.

“Oh? What happened in it?” Dash crawled closer to Gilda and started to massage her chest feathers. Gilda took a deep breath before speaking.

“Well, I dreamt that I was traveling with this unicorn that kept talking about herself in third pony...and then we were in Canterlot and I tried to get lunch but there were more unicorn jerks and then there was a magic show, but I got sucked into going up on stage and then I was invisible and then I played a prank on one of the asshole unicorns and pretended that I was Death, then the unicorn I was traveling with was invisible too, but then we weren't anymore and then there were fireworks!... And then...” Gilda tried to explain all of the details without taking a break for air, which prompted Rainbow Dash to burst out giggling.

“And then what happened?” Dash propped herself up on her forehooves now that she was emotionally invested into the story.

“...And then, I woke up right where I'm supposed to be.” Gilda placed her talon gently on Rainbow Dash's forehoof and gave it a reassuring squeeze. The two held eye contact with one another as Dash inched her way closer to her. Gilda's lips parted as Dash's made contact with them, the kiss sent an electrifying pulse streaming through the griffin's body and she moaned ever so lightly that Dash could feel the vibrations of it as their tongues met. Their kiss lingered for what seemed like an eternity until Dash pulled away from Gilda and smiled, looking deeply into the griffin’s eyes.

“You know, I'm suppose to go in for Weather Patrol today....but... I could call in sick...” Dash's face grew a mischievous grin as she traced her hoof in circles around Gilda's chest. A smile grew on the griffin’s face and Gilda began to nip at Dash’s neck. Rainbow Dash began to moan and pulled Gilda in closer to her. Gilda ran her hand from behind Dash's ear and caressed the base of her horn, which gave the griffin a tiny discharge of magic that reverberated throughout her talon....

'Wait a minute....horn?'

Gilda froze and rubbed her eyes before looking at Dash again. The rainbow maned pegasi began to slowly fade away and the room that she was in began to dissolve. Gilda forced herself awake and found herself on the floor of Charity and Bit's guest room, interlocked with Trixie's legs between hers and her talon was firmly grasping the base of the unicorn's horn. Gilda froze and started to panic when she felt Trixie subtly grinding her hips back and forth against her own. The griffin looked at the unicorn's face, her eyes remained close, but her face was heavily blushed and she was letting out small gasps of pleasure. Gilda struggled to put any distance between them, but her erect wings rubbing against the floor and shifting positions amid Trixie's grinding sent immense waves of heat and gratification through her body. Gilda felt an inferno building within herself with each passing moment and she realized that if she couldn't stop Trixie soon, she wasn't going to be able to contain herself much longer.

“Trix...hey Trixie!” Gilda attempted to awaken the mare and push herself off of the unicorn.

“Mmm...Gilda....” Trixie replied in a sensuous manner and Gilda felt her wings throb. Gilda's eyes shot wide open at hearing the unicorn call out her name when they were suddenly interrupted.

KNOCK KNOCK.

The pair broke their embrace, Gilda's entire face turned crimson and Trixie’s eyes opened as she fought to catch her breath. Gilda and Trixie looked at each other but broke eye contact when they heard a voice from behind the door.

“Hey you guys, breakfast is almost ready! If you want to shower, the bathroom is down the hall.” Charity called to Trixie and Gilda from behind the door.

“We're...coming...” Trixie replied between breaths of air.

'At least you almost did....' A voice at the back of Gilda's mind mocked her. Gilda looked down at Trixie and the two felt an awkward tension around them as they both blushed furiously.

“Ummm...I call shower!” Gilda immediately jumped up and ran out of the room and through the hallway. Her erect wings hit the paintings that adorned the hall, leaving a wake of uncentered artwork as she passed. She made it to the bathroom and slammed the door closed and tried to collect herself.

'Pull yourself together, G...She’s gone.’

Gilda stepped into the tub and turned on the knobs, letting the warm water trickle down the back of her neck and began to lightly bang her head against the shower tile. She stared at the water as it cascaded from her body into a whirlpool down the drain, her sight blurring slightly. It took her several moments to realize that the water had mixing with tears that had escaped from her. She shut her eyes and took a deep breath in an attempt to regain her composure. She sighed and shook the tears from her eyes and thoughts. Gilda felt herself shiver as the water continued to fall from her still erect wings. She began to preen her right wing first, suckling the excess water from her feathers and smoothing them out. Grooming to Gilda was normally something that she found herself doing when she was stress or out of frustration, she rarely had done it to alleviate sexual tension, but was finding it inadvertently a sensual process.

She closed her eyes and her arm caressed the length of her side, eventually making its way to her thighs. Gilda imagined caressing Dash’s silky chromatic mane with her talon as the pegasus gently nipped from the base of the griffin’s wings to the side of her neck.The rhythm of Gilda’s panting began to grow louder and more sporadic as a slight moan escaped her breath. The mare’s eyes began to radiate brightly, turning from a rosy cerise to a deep amethyst reminisce of Trixie’s. Gilda gasped and was brought back to reality. Her eyes shot back open and Gilda turned the knob of the cold water all the way on and immediately tensed up as the freezing water made contact with her back.

Trixie sat still, watching the door in paralyzing embarrassment about what she had just done.
‘Why would you kiss her?? Now she’s going to leave you, just like everyone else has…’ Trixie’s heart and thoughts raced in fear as she contemplated her actions. She wasn't just confused about the events that had past since she woke up, but the way that she felt clouded her thoughts. Just by thinking about Gilda, Trixie began to feel her heart skip a beat and her breathing became rigid. She closed her eyes and took several deep breaths in an attempt to calm herself. ‘It’s okay….just relax…’

Trixie glanced at their saddlebags across the room and levitated her lavender sack at her side. She opened the clasp and decided that it would be an opportune moment to sort through her earnings from her performance the night before thinking that it might take her mind off of things. Trixie removed the book that Luna had entrusted her and carefully placed it beside her and figured that she could read more of it later during the train ride. This way, she could learn some new spells before her next show in Manehattan. She returned her focus to her saddlebag and gazed in excitement at her haul for the night. The morning sunlight that shone through the window reflected off the gold bits and the shimmer momentarily distracted her. Trixie pushed the remaining fireworks aside in Gilda's saddlebag and evenly distributed the earnings between them. When she finished counting the last two bits, she closed the clasp and sighed contently. As she inhaled, her senses overtook and her primal instincts captured a whiff of sweet maple syrup and inadvertently her stomach began to protest of her hunger. Trixie licked her muzzle and carried both saddlebags as she exited the bedroom.

Trixie followed the aroma of buttermilk down the stairs and into the back of the store. She walked past the back room of shelves each piled high with goods from Bit's shop and from the look of it, some of the items haven't been moved in years. The stock room opened up at the back to reveal a rather large kitchen and dining room with a bay window that viewed the castle in the distance. Bit was already at the table with his coffee and reading the newspaper as Charity worked effortlessly in the kitchen to prepare breakfast.

Bit looked up from his paper at Trixie and motioned at his coffee mug and then slightly nodded his head at the mare, indicating if she would like any.

“No, thanks. If you have any herbal tea, Trixie would be most grateful.” Trixie was still half asleep as she sat down at the table. Her mane was disheveled and her appearance lacked the grooming she was accustom to. After the last few days, she was too tired to care before getting a home cooked meal inside of her stomach. After all, a mare must tend to her priorities.

Charity came from the kitchen carrying a cup with an teabag filled with Canterlot Jasmine and a kettle of boiling water. She poured the water into the cup, filling it to the brim. Trixie smiled at Charity and took a lingering whiff of the tea. The fragrance of the Jasmine filled the entirety of her spirit and she sighed contently.

“Let me know if you'd like more, dear.” Charity returned to the stove as Trixie blew on her tea in an effort to cool it down, taking small sips at a time.

“Did you both sleep well?” Charity called to Trixie from the kitchen as the pan sizzled from the pancake batter making contact with it. “I hope that we didn't keep you two from sleeping.”

Trixie gagged on her tea momentarily as memories of why both Gilda and herself refused to sleep in the bed last night.

“It is okay, we slept....decently enough. Compared to sleeping on the ground in a cave again, this was quite comfortable.” Trixie watched as Charity flipped the finished pancakes onto several plates and returned to the dining room. Charity put out a plate for Gilda at the empty seat and one for Trixie. The unicorn nodded in gratitude and immediately began to levitate her fork and bit into a large chunk of buttermilky goodness. Charity giggled at the sight and put some maple syrup and some berry preserves on the table.

Trixie looked at Bit, whom was still behind his morning edition of Equestria Daily and she noticed an article the back page titled “The Great and Powerful Has-Been” across the top.

'The self proclaimed 'Great and Powerful’ Trixie’s performance in Canterlot last night left someponies asking the question: Has Trixie lost her touch?

While her performance was flashy, it failed to sizzle in the way that it once did and felt as if it were cut half short. After the news of the events in Ponyville that led to its partial destruction and how she lied about defeating an Ursa Major leaves a disheartening taste in our mouths.

Though we wish that we could go back in time before we knew that she was a phony show pony, The ‘Great and Powerful’ Trixie is now ‘The Great and Powerful Has-Been’ to us.’

Trixie felt a sharp pain in her chest, as if a knife had stabbed and twisted its cold steel deep inside her. She closed her eyes and did her best to bury her anger and hurt pride within herself, as she had always done after reading reviews that were less than stellar.

‘You are Trixie. You are great. You are powerful.’ The mare felt her eyes burn and she gritted her teeth on her tongue subtly to force herself not to cry. She repeated the phrase in her mind several times until she calmed herself. As she opened her eyes, her amaranthine colored irides were glazed over and she retained a deadpan expression.

'The editors at Equestria Daily wouldn't know talent if it bit them on the flank...' Trixie scoffed at the article and despite its harsh tone, her mind decided that it was more focused on her immediate griffin problem at hoof. She took a sip of her tea and took another bite of pancakes before she was interrupted by Bit.

“Can you believe some of the garbage they allow in this paper? Listen to this….”

‘Last night at approximately 11:24pm, two large explosions were detonated above Canterlot Royal Gardens. Though there is still no official comment from the Royal Guard, inside sources to EQD says that it is being investigated as a failed terrorist attempt. Despite the political implications that may stem from this attack, talks between Gryphondor and Equestrian leaders will continue.’

“That’s complete garbage, I don’t care how the media portrays it, the light show in the sky last night was crafted from the bottom of somepony’s heart for the one they love.” Charity scoffed at the fear pandering story.

“What do you mean?” Trixie blushed furiously at Charity.

“I mean, you and Gilda should know how it is, being in love and such. How long have you two been together, anyways?” Charity asked suddenly as she placed a plate of pancakes down in front of Bit and she sat down at the table next to her husband. Trixie choked on her pancakes in surprise and smacked herself twice in her chest in an attempt to dislodge her breakfast.

“Charity, show some tact!” Bit looked from his newspaper and shook his head disapprovingly. Charity merely responded by approaching her husband from behind and nipped at the back of his left ear while ruffling his mane with her hoof. Bit immediately grew a fatuous grin that plastered across his face and felt as if he were about to melt into his chair. Trixie blushed and averted her gaze from the couple.

“I’m sorry, dear. I didn’t mean to make you feel uncomfortable. I just thought you two were…” Charity tried to regain her composure, reminding herself that they had company present.

“No, we’re not….Trixie means it’s nothing like that….I don’t think…Trixie met Gilda a few days ago....she had saved Trixie's life....” Trixie stared at her plate of half eaten pancakes and silence filled the room. Bit put his paper down and Charity looked to her husband and then back to the mare. Trixie's blank expression held for several moments before she spoke again.

“Our personalities seem to differ from time to time, but Trixie believes Gilda has a good heart...we wouldn't be here right now if it wasn't for Gilda...” Trixie looked up at the couple, whom both shared an expression of utmost sympathy for the unicorn. Bit put his hoof on Charity's and gave it a reassuring pat and Charity nodded. She moved her chair from her husband's side towards Trixie and rubbed her back comfortingly.

"Trixie thinks that she...might have been too bold... She's never done anything like that...come to think of it, she's never felt like this before." Trixie glanced up at Charity and quickly looked back to her breakfast.

“Trixie...kissed Gilda while she was sleeping... Trixie awoke this morning and found that Gilda was stroking our mane. After last night, Trixie felt something within her whenever she looks at Gilda... Trixie knows it was stupid of her to do, but she just did it... and then Gilda went along with it for a bit before she freaked out and went to the bathroom...Trixie doesn't want to lose her only friend... but she doesn't understand why she feels this way either...” Trixie felt as if she had lost her appetite and nudged the plate with her hoof, pushing it away slightly.

"Does it feel like some twisting feeling in your stomach and when you see or think about her, do you feel excited and nervous? Like you have the power to do anything and helpless to do anything about at the same time?" Charity asked Trixie softly and elegantly enough to recapture the mare's attention, prompting Trixie to nod. Her eyes however, never left the sight of her pancakes. Charity noticed this and brought her hoof beneath Trixie's chin and gingerly guided the depressed unicorn's eyes to meet with her own.

“There's an energy that binds us all together. It's more powerful than any magic that any pony can describe. You can see it in a look, an action or even just a moment between one another. You might not really be able to describe the feeling, but it’s one that’s wonderful and nerve-wracking all the same.”

“But she's so...unrefined.... And we constantly bicker about the most asinine of subjects...” Trixie looked up at Charity, who shot her a cock eyed expression.

“What couple doesn't? Just because you both have strong personalities doesn't mean that you can't be together... It's all about the mutual respect of each others' boundaries and the ability to know when to give and when to take.” Charity looked Trixie in the eyes with a deep reassuring smile upon her face.

“What about that were both … or that we're so different....” Trixie's mind was consumed with a plethora of uncertainties, all of which involved the griffin in question.

“Love knows no gender, race or creed. If it is real and true, it has no boundaries. No relationship is perfect, Trixie. I mean, if I told you that ours was, I’d be lying. You’ll make some mistakes here and there and arguments are bound to happen, but you have to learn from them. When someone really loves you, they love you for who you are not what you are. They already looked past all your flaws. All they know is that they love you and that nothing would ever change that feeling.” Charity looked at Bit and she rubbed a tentative hoof on his back. The stallion peered into his wife's eyes and gave her a gentle kiss before returning his attention back to his paper. The two returned their attention to their breakfast, leaving the unicorn to her thoughts.

Gilda dried herself off and fluffed her wings several times to dispel the excess water from them, still frustrated from the unwanted wake-up call. She inspected herself and grinned as she noticed that her feathers were glowing with a healthy sheen in the light. She shut the bathroom door and the smell of fresh pancakes hit her like a sack of bricks. She inhaled the scent deeply and a smile returned to her face. Gilda walked down the stairs and followed the aroma of fresh buttermilk and coffee. As she entered the kitchen, all attention shifted to Gilda and the conversation stopped, making her feel extremely out of place. The mares became quiet and an awkward tension filled Trixie as she made eye contact with the griffin.

"Good morning, Gilda! Please help yourself!" Charity pointed her hoof to the empty seat at the table, which had a clean plate next to half a dozen freshly made pancakes. Gilda sat down immediately and had already proceeded to shovel a forkful of pancakes into her gullet. “Would you like some coffee?”

Gilda nodded excitedly at the offer and without savoring the first taste of her breakfast continued to eat another chunk of pancakes.

“So how long have you guys owned the store?” Gilda asked between mouthfuls of her breakfast.

“Well, it's a family run chain. We have stores all over Equestria and each one is run by one of my brothers or cousins. In fact, my brother, Filthy runs the 'Rich's Barnyard Bargains' in Ponyville!” Bit chimed in merrily, proud of his family's accomplishments and then resumed to eat his breakfast. Gilda and Trixie both let out a faint shutter as Bit mentioned Ponyville. The pair shot each other a glance after noticing the others' reaction and attempted to stifle their own giggling by stuffing their faces full of pancakes. Gilda washed her mouthful with a large sip of her coffee and let out an ample burp before sighed contently. The two mares looked at the griffin in befuddlement at her display of sheer shamelessness. Bit was far too distracted with his plate to pay attention to what was going on and continued to eat.

“Excuse me...” Gilda spoke with a timid smile on her face as Trixie shot her a look of embarrassment. The unicorn quickly tried to change the subject.

"So...how long have you two...?” Trixie pointed her hoof back and forth between the married couple for a moment before Charity spoke.

"15 years and counting. He may not look like it now, but Bit used to be a real stud." Charity looked at her husband, whom had a mouthful of pancakes and was chewing loudly and extremely contently. She sighed. "I just don't know what went wrong..."

"He's a romantic at heart, really. We grew up together and he's been my best friend all my life. When we finally decided to start dating, he took me to Canterlot Meadows during the Harvest Festival. We snuck off with a picnic basket full of these hoof-made sandwiches we had made together and a bottle of Apple Acres' Finest Hard Cider and watched the fireworks from the festival.” Charity’s eyes began to gleam with a youthful vigor.

"We looked into each others' eyes and I just knew she was the one, even if she wouldn't admit it." Bit chimed in upon hearing his wife reminisce of their first night together. "It was the night that started the best thing that ever happened to me."

Gilda scoffed quietly to herself when Charity mentioned Bit being her childhood friend and her thoughts momentarily returned to the cyan pegasus. Gilda quickly shook Dash from her mind and was met with a concerned glance from Trixie. Gilda avoided looking into the mare's eyes and redirected her focus on her pancakes.

"And the sex was amazing too." Charity smirked as she shuffled her flank away from the table to put the dishes in the kitchen. Gilda began to choke on her forkful of pancakes and had to forcefully swallow the last bit of it as the married couple began to nuzzle each other’s noses.

“Well, we should get going....we don't want to miss our train...” Gilda tried to compose herself and get themselves back on track from the awkward situation. It was then that Gilda realized that she had no real idea of where their destination actually was.

“Pssstt.....Hey Trix, where are we going anyways?” Gilda leaned over to the unicorn and whispered nonchalantly into her ear.

“The Great and Powerful Trixie's next act is in Manehattan. She is performing in two days; however she should be getting her accommodations secured soon.” Trixie pushed her chair from the table as Bit approached her with a small parchment in his mouth.

“Trixie, I want you to have this. I wrote down an order for my cousin's branch of 'Rich's Barnyard Bargains' for when you get to Manehattan. Just give it to him, the payment is already taken care of.” Bit handed the invoice to Trixie and her mouth dropped as she read it over.

“....This is a month's worth of food and supplies....Trixie does not know what to say....” Trixie was used to having fans give her gifts, but this felt different. The altruistic nature of the couple was something she had never experienced before. She stood there silently, words escaping her until Charity brought her in for a tight embrace.

“Then don’t say anything at all.” Charity smiled as Trixie slowly accepted the hug. Gilda stood back and smirked at the display of affection.

“Friends don’t say goodbye, we just meet again another day.” Bit chimed in, extending his hoof to the griffin. Those words penetrated Gilda straight to her bones and echoed within her. She stood staring at the stallion, momentarily stunned. As she shook his hoof, Dash returned to her plagued thoughts and she smiled awkwardly.

The mare and griffin left the couple's home in utter silence other than a simple wave. The walk to the train station was less than a few blocks from the store, but a lingering presence hung thick in the air around them, making it feel like the trip was longer than it actually was. Gilda snuck a glimpse of the unicorn out of the corner of her eye, her mind still reeling from her dream. The moment Trixie caught Gilda staring at her, the griffin immediately shot her gaze away.

Canterlot Station was alive and full of commuting ponies running around to start their daily routines. The trials of the daily 'horse race' seemed to be embedded within Canterlot society.

'Even if you win the race, at the end of it, you're still a horse...' Gilda thought to herself and smirked. She never really understood how others could allow themselves to get caught up in petty things like status or the prospect of fame. She wondered to herself how Trixie could be so far entranced by it. 'Could you actually get so far deep into it that it blinds you from reality?' Gilda became mentally lost in the activity around her that she didn't notice Trixie had left her side and approached the ticket booth.

"The Great and Powerful Trixie requires two tickets to the next train to Manehattan." Trixie stood proudly before the ticket booth cashier. The clerk within the booth was caught off guard by the mare.

"Who?" The expression from the clerk was one of genuine confusion and was met with a look of complete disdain from the show-mare. Trixie’s face grew crimson as a slight rage began to burn within her.

“How dare you not know greatness when you see it before you! How does an entire city not know of The Great and Powerful…” Before Trixie could finish, Gilda shoved the unicorn out of the way and covered her mouth. Gilda threw the payment for both tickets on the counter and held up two of her fingers to the shocked and unwitting stallion. He printed two tickets and Gilda snatched the from him and drug Trixie to the boarding platform, leaving the stallion utterly confused about what had just transpired. When the two were a safe distance away, Gilda let go of Trixie. The unicorn’s face was still blushed and she was about to tell the griffin off, but Gilda interjected first.

"Chill out, we don’t need to get kicked off of this train..... I am NOT WALKING to Manehattan," Gilda shoved her ticket into her saddlebag and shuttered at the idea of having to cross the arid rain shadow that extended approximately fifty miles upon the leeward side of the Canterlot Mountain range. All alongside the self-absorbed cyan mare.

Trixie closed her eyes and took a deep breath to try and calm herself down. After a few moments, Trixie felt herself become relaxed. She opened her eyes and they were met with the griffin’s rich goldenrod irides, which caused Trixie’s heart to skip a beat. The train whistle interrupted the two as its doors opened in front of them. Both Gilda and Trixie entered the train car and quickly took the only remaining bench seats available. Gilda sat down at the window seat and immediately reclined back. Trixie readjusted her cape before removing her saddlebag and placed it on the floor in front of her.

"It should take us only about an hour to get to Manehattan. Trixie needs to receive her promotional fliers once we get into the city. Will you help her post them again?” Trixie looked at Gilda, who had found herself in a comfortable position with her hands behind her head and leaning back against the back of the bench.

“Yeah yeah, sure. No worries.” Gilda’s eyes remained closed in her response, which irked Trixie. She didn’t know if the griffin was really paying attention to her or not. The train slowly departed from Canterlot Station. The metal screeched as the steam pistons propelled the crank shaft to drive the wheels forward. The smoke stack expelled vicious black soot as the whistle blew.

"Woot woot!" Trixie's attention was caught by a little colt with a toy train mimicking the train’s whistle. The small earth pony held his train up to the cabin window and began to follow the horizon as they travelled forward. The delight that was evident on the colt's face was accentuated by the content expressions of his parents, whom were sitting with their forehooves around one another. Trixie smiled at the sight and looked over to Gilda, who had already fallen fast asleep across from her. Trixie's smiled faded as she rolled her eyes at the griffin and turned her gaze to the window.

The emerald forest that covered the west part of Canterlot Mountain and well past Ponyville began to dwindle the further east they headed. Vibrant greens that seemed to create a separate life on their own became dull and barren that stretched past Trixie could see. Aside from an occasional change in the horizon or a wayward cactus, it seemed as if they weren't moving at all after a while. She caught Gilda's reflection in the glare of the window and a slight smile returned to the mare's face.

Trixie glance at her saddlebag and decided to go through and try and learn a new spell for her act from the book that Luna had entrusted her with. She carefully removed the text from her bag and opened up to the chapter marked ‘Fundamentals of Magick’. Trixie rolled her eyes and sighed before beginning to read the page.

‘Fundamentals of Magick: by Starswirl the Bearded

In my years of research with the Counsel of Magick, as well as in my own experiences, Magick is as crucial of a process of life as those of any unconscious action the body and mind take, like breathing. Although it is commonly believed that only unicorn and alicorns possess the powers of ‘traditional magick’, all life has this ability to harness its power.

For example: Earth ponies have the natural ability to communicate with the Earth itself. Their understandings of the intricate biological systems of flora and how other species interact and co-exist with them allow Earth ponies to be the ultimate cultivators of the land.

Pegasi have magick bred into them that allow for the manipulation of weather patterns, however they have the keen ability to sense the most subtle of changes in these patterns themselves. While all of the equine races have the ability to harness magick, it is only the unicorns and alicorns that have the aptitude to emulate it.'

'True power stems from confidence.'

Trixie smirked as she read that line, as if it were basic knowledge. Her smugness dissolved as she continued to read.

'However, confidence and arrogance cannot be mistaken for or replaced with one another retroactively. In order to maintain composure while casting any spell, elementary or advanced, the caster must concentrate on the type of magick they wish to perform: transformation, healing, matter manipulation, etc. While the spells are different, the matter in which they are cast remain the same.'

“Ah-hum.”

Trixie looked up and saw the train’s conductor standing in front of her in the aisle.

“Tickets please.” The conductor broke Trixie from her concentration and she reached into her back and showed the ticket. The conductor smiled and then looked over at Gilda, whom was still fast asleep.

“What about your friend?” The conductor asked the unicorn, reverting back to his serious tone. Trixie nudged Gilda's shoulder in an attempt to wake her up which was met with an inaudible mumble from the griffin. Trixie jabbed her elbow into Gilda’s side and the griffin shot awake.

“What the hell was that about!?” Gilda rubbed her side in anger and was met with the stare of two ponies.

“Tickets please.” Trixie mimicked the tone of the conductor and let out a smirk. Gilda rumbled as she opened her saddlebag to retrieve her ticket and instead several different fireworks fell out and rolled along the cabin floor and stopped at the conductor's hoof.

The conductor adjusted his bifocals and looked at the homemade explosive and gasped in horror.

"BOMB! THE GRIFFIN HAS A BOMB!"

Gilda froze and was at a loss of words as Trixie interjected between the two.

"Fear not, that is merely a stage prop for the Great and Powerful Trixie!” The showmare’s horn began to generate a bright lavender glow and the fuse of the firecrackers started to burn. Within a second, the train car lit up with colors and two sizable 'pops' that shook the structure of the cabin. Trixie stood proudly at her introduction, but her smile dropped the moment that she saw looks of sheer panic from the conductor and the train's passengers.

“It’s the al-Colta terrorists! They've come to blow up the train!” Somepony from the back of the train car yelled out and the passengers immediately broke out into a frenzied free-for-all, running around screaming at the top of their lungs.

Trixie shot a look back at Gilda, whose expression was one of complete and utter shock at how quickly things got out of hoof.

“Stop right there, criminal scum!” Two large Royal Guard members approached the pair, cornering them to their row.

Gilda frantically searched for a way to escape and though they may have been cornered, there was still a window behind them.

“Trixie, grab the bags!” Gilda shouted to the unicorn, whom instinctively levitated them with her magic and Gilda slammed the latch and the window flew open. The speed of the train created a vortex of air pressure displacement between the in and outside of the train and Gilda swallowed in nervous anticipation. Gilda grabbed Trixie and the griffin took off into the air, leaving the train and their pursuers in the distance.

At first, stabilizing herself was an issue, not only from the velocity of her take off, but the additional weight from Trixie was a major factor. She had to force herself to ascend quickly to avoid face diving into the ground at such a high speed. Gilda had flown fast before, but never from a stationary spot into an immediate acceleration. Thoughts of lessons from Junior Speedsters flashed in her head, she remembered the professor speaking of correcting flight patterns for velocity variables. It would probably be useful right now if she hadn't spent the entire lecture period talking with Dash in the back of the classroom. She was snapped from her thoughts when she felt Trixie's back against her chest. She felt a racing heart beat, but in the moment of adrenaline, she could not distinguish whether or not it was her own. Despite the severity of their certain predicament, she felt herself invigorated by it...

The speed of a chase....
The danger of the escape.....
The adventure behind it all.

And in the back of her mind, she questioned whether or not it was from her company she kept as well. She knew that when she was with Dash, there were always those moments of unbridled endeavors that kept their bond intriguing. This felt different to her, but maintained a sense of nostalgic familiarity to it.

After what had seemed like several minutes of flying at top speed, Gilda felt her wings grow heavy and she began to feel herself gasp for air. She landed with more force than she had anticipated, making both the griffin and mare stumble across the dirt. Trixie coughed as the dust settled,

“We left those dweebs in the dust!” Gilda sneer as she fluffed her wings against her sides into a comfortable position as her strained muscles ached for rest. She glanced at Trixie, whom was staring at Gilda in complete silence. ‘Heh, my flying skill must have really left her speechless…. I’m not surprised….’ The griffin grinned at the mare until Trixie began to speak.

“Wait…. Where are we?” Trixie broke her gaze from Gilda and the two looked around only to find that they were nowhere near any civilization.