Babs Seed took the last pin and used it to put the poster in just the right position in the wall. She let go a satisfied “Hmph” but then took another look and decided the poster wasn´t right so took it out and put it in another position.
Apple Bloom let go an exhausted “Hmph”, seeing as it was the eighth time her cousin had tried to place the poster in the clubhouse wall,
“Babs, are yah gonna finish any time soon? The girls are about to arrive…”
“I just needed it to be right in the middle…” Babs said and Apple Bloom rolled her eyes again. “Perfect! What do you think?”
“Well, yah wanted something yours in the clubhouse and it certainly...lights up the place,” Apple Bloom, trying to come out with a sincere praise. Babs seemed satisfied but she was probably distracted looking at her beloved picture.
“What the haystacks is that thing?”
“Scootaloo, that´s something very rude to say!” Apple Bloom shouted, pointing at her cousin.
“I wasn´t talking about her, dummy. I meant that...thing!” Scootaloo explained pointing at the poster.
The four fillies took a look at the extravagant poster of a magician pony surrounded by dolphins, lions and about a dozen other things, all spread across a sign of her name,
“It´s a poster of the Great and Powerful Trixie, the greatest magician to have ever lived!” Babs Seed declared wit proud.
“You got to be kidding me!” Scootaloo yelled.
“Trixie again?” Sweetie Belle asked, pushing Scootaloo to get inside.
“What can ah say? Mah cousin has become quite a Trixie fan since our adventure back in Manehattan,” Apple Bloom said, shrugging. “She even writes her fan mail and actually gets a response,” she whispered to Sweetie.
“I sincerely doubt the waiting time is long…”
“How can you be a fan of that...that phony?” Scootaloo yelled, although not as loud as before.
“She is not a phony! Trixie is a very talented magician and besides, she changed her ways. She no longer does bad things,” Babs retorted.
“She also never apologized for what she did like making Rainbow stuck in a whirlpool or making one of Rainbow´s wings grow supersize!”
“Sounds less that you´re mad at Trixie for what she did and more than you hate she bested Rainbow, twice,” Sweetie said with a very Rarity-like tone of sarcasm.
“Shut up. Besides, she´s still a phony. She even got kicked out from Celestia´s school so you know she´s not that big a deal.”
“She´s a big deal!” Babs barked, her yell so loud the other three fell down. “She is talented and smart and pretty and does great trick and has beautiful hair and she is not a phony!”
“Woah cuz, ah have never seen you so...vocal, before,” Apple Bloom said, trying to get her hearing sense back,
“If I didn´t know better, I´ll say somepony has a not so little crush…” Sweetie said.
“A...a crush?” Babs repeated, trying to process that.
“More like totally in love with that phony,” Scootaloo mumbled while Apple Bloom shrugged.
Babs was blushing so hard her face matched her cousin´s mane but rather than say anything, she just kicked them on the flank and stomped out of the clubhouse.
Angry and embarrassed, Babs Seed took a walk to the town, talking loudly to herself.
“Dum Scootaloo, dumb Sweetie Belle, dumb cousin, making fun of me. I bet that if I have put a poster of that Sapphire Shores or any of those pop bands they like they wouldn't complain. What´s wrong with Trixie anyways? She is gorgeous, I mean awesome, I mean...dumb Sweetie Belle!”
“Look Silver Spoon, Babs is trying to steal our act,” a voice said behind her.
Babs recognized it right away but din´t want to turn around and face them, not that she had many choice since they were approaching her.
“Hi Diamond, Silver…”
“What´s the matter, country girl, having regrets of joining the Cutie Mark Lost Crusade-rs?” Silver Spoon joked. “Get it, because their crusade is a lost cause so they…”
“Leave the name calling to me, Silver,” Diamond said, obviously annoyed.
“I don´t want to talk about it,” Babs said, hoping they would turn around and leave her alone.
“Suit yourself, is not like at one point we actually thought you were cool enough to join us,” Diamond said, making a haughty gesture.
“You didn't want me as your friend. You just used me because I'm taller and stronger than you two, way stronger,” Babs said, making sure to remark that part.
Both Diamond and Silver cleared their throats and changed the subject. “So anyways, what are you doing back in town? If I lived in Manehattan I would never come back to this town,” Diamond said.
“I´m just visiting my family.”
“Lucky you, you only have to deal with that filthy barn for a few days and then you´re back to the true Big Apple,” Silver Spoon said.
“Actually, I´m staying a whole week and then my sister is taking me to Fillydelphia for a Trixie show….and the barn is not that filthy!”
“Trixie? You mean that second rate magician that almost got the town destroyed with a star bear or whatever is called?” Diamond said.
“Actually, I think those were Snips and Snails,” Silver corrected her.
“But putting the whole town inside a bowlfish was her fault.”
“That´s true but it´s fishbowl...”
“Cut it out! Trixie has changed, she´s now a famous and talented magician and one of the nicest and prettiest mares in the whole of Equestria!” Babs yelled, so loud the ponies come out of their stores to see what the fuss was about.
“Jeez, okay we get it. You´re a fan,” Diamond said while Silver Spoon put her glasses back. “I don´t even know what you see in that unicorn like magic was so special or something.”
“It´s nota bout that. I just...well, don´t you have anypony that you two admire?”
“Why? We´re so awesome in our own, there´s nopony we could look up to except maybe ourselves but that will be rebounded…”
“Redundant,” Silver Spoon corrected her.
“Shut up, Silver.”
“You don´t get it either…” Babs whispered and then a flier landed on her head. Diamond and Silver made a comment about the annoying pegasus throwing stuff at them while Babs read out loud the sign, “New fashion parade coming to town. Suri Polomare´s newest line. Who is Suri Polo…”
“SURI POLOMARE!!! OH MY SADDLES, SHE IS THE MOST AMAZING PONY THAT EVER LIVED!!! AAAAAHHHHHH!!”
Now it was Babs turn to roll over because of the potent yell. “Who?”
“Oh my stars, how can you be so ignorant?” Diamond said.
“Yeah, Suri is like the best designer in the entire kingdom,” SIlver added. “Plus, she´s so pretty!”
“I know and so smart and with a such a lovely laugh,” Diamond said, imitating that noise Suri makes.
“I know! Isn´t she the greatest?” Silver asked.
“I know! Oh, I wish she was my big sister! We´ll be the perfect family!”
“(Author´s note, you can tell there´s not much continuity in my stories, right? ^^)
“We have yo get ready for her show, Diamond!”
“Let´s go to Rarity´s store and get some of those knock off she makes of Suri´s line!”
“Yeah, it´s like almost the same thing except chapear!”
Babs looked at them ran away, completely ignoring her. She sighed and kept walking and talking to herself.
“So even those two have somepony they admire and they kinda admitted they liked her I mean, really liked her. Is..is that how I sound about Trixie? I mean I do like her but I don´t think is a crush or anything.Could it be? I don't know, I never had a crush before. Hey Spike…”
“Oh hi Babs, nice to see you,” said the dragon passing by.
(Author´s note: see, what did I told you ^^)
“Maybe it is a crush or maybe something more…” Babs wasn´t addressing anyone in particular but the entire crowd of ponies stopped talking to see what she would do. This of course made Babs blush and she ran away “I´ll go ask Twilight, she should know about this stuff. She´s a princess after all, not the princess of love but good enough.”
Once inside the still standing Golden Oaks Library, Babs explained the whole situation to Twilight.
“For starters, you do understand that it was wrong of you to hit your friends, right Babs?” Twilight said.
“I know...but they were teasing me and making fun of me in not a good way!”
“Well, sometimes friends do that…”
“But making friends feel bad with your teasing is a nono in the friendship rulebook,” Pinkie Pie said, popping out of...somewhere.
“There's no rulebook in friendship Pinkie, that´s why it´s so both complicated and magical.”
“Sure, there´s one. Here it is!” Pinkie said, showing Twilight a book,
“That´s a shipping rulebook and it shouldn't be here but in the mail office,” Twilight said.
“Shipping, friendship, they both deal with the same things…”
“No, they do not!”
“Please, can you help me with my...uh crush problem?” Babs asked.
“Uuuh, you came t the right place, twelve times removed cousin, this girl here knows everything about crushes!”
“Pinkie, what are you saying?” Twilight said, slightly blushing.
“Come on, princess. We all know about your little thing with that god looking guard. What was his name again?”
“Don´t bring Flash Sentry into this!”
“Wasn´t Flash the guy who met in the hairless monkeys world? You have a crush on two guys? You go, girl!”
“Oh you´re one to talk, Mrs. Pinkie Sandwich!”
“WHAT?” Pinkie yelled.
“Oh yeah, we all know your latest song. The Cake twins were repeating it the other day. Guess somepony likes to sing about her very special somepony while cooking…”
“You take that back! I was baking!”
“Hye girls, are we making fun of Twilight´s crush on that travelling comedian and Pinkie´s crush in the pegasus guard that lives in the Crystal Empire?” Rainbow Dash asked, popping out from the ceiling, holding a Daring Do book.
“It´s the other way around!” they both yelled and then blushed once they realized what Rainbow had done. She was of course smirking.
“I´m out of here,” Babs said, leaving unnoticed by the bickering ponies.
“And what about your crush on Daring Do?”
“Yeah Twilight´s right; and we´re not talking about the book Daring Do but the real-what a twist one!”
“Like if that was a big secret….”
****
Without nopony to ask for advice, Babs returned to the farm but not the clubhouse. She instead laid in a haystack, looking at the pegasi move around the clouds.
“Maybe the problem is not that I need somepony telling me the answer but that I know the answer, I just...can´t spit out. Why is this so complicated? It shouldn´t be so hard to just say that you like somepony, rguht? You think so too, right cousin Big Mac?”
“Eeeeyup.”
“So if you liked somepony you will just tell that pony how you feel, right?”
“Eeeeyup.”
“Then what you´re saying is that I shouldn't be ashamed of my feelings, that Trixie will understand them if I just come out and say it and her show next week is the perfect opportunity! Thank you cousin Big Mac, you give the best advices.”
Big Mac nodded, watching his little cousin rauna wat and went back to stashing haystacks.
“Hello Big Mac, I came to buy a few apples. We´re doing a science experiment in class tomorrow,” Cheerilee said, approaching him.
Big Mac put down the haystacks and just stood there, speechless.
“Is there something you want to say, Big Mac?”
“...noppppe.”
****
A week later, Babs was lead by the hotel staff to the vip section and there to Trixie´s dressing room. She knocked the door and instinctively fixed her hair but when Trixie came out, it bounced back into her forehead.
“Babs! So happy you could made it!” Trixie said, giving her a big hug.
“I wouldn't have missed it for the world! Thanks for letting me in backstage!”
“Anything for my number one fan,” Trixie said and Babs blushed. “Actually, I was really looking forward to see you. It´s been a while since your last letter.”
“Yeah, I...I have been busy with schoolwork,” Babs lied. Truth was she made a dozen different letters, all of them telling Trixie how she felt but she tossed them away and preferred to just tell her in the face like she had decided in the first place.
“Well, your letters are always a source of joy for me. See, they even have a special pile in my fan mail,” Trixie said, leading Babs into the dressing room.
Babs took a look at the pile and couldn't help but express her disappointment. “I was...expecting a larger pile.”
“Well, in comparison to the regular fan mail, they made not look like much but I appreciate very one,” Trixie said, trying to ignore the truth.
“The unpaid taxes pile is bigger than both combined…”
“Okay, so I don´t get a lot of mail! I got it!” Trixie said, flustered and Babs tried to hold a giggle. “Anyways, let me get changed and I´ll invite you and your sister to a dinner worthy of a princess or the closest counterpart…”
“Ahh before that, I...I wanted to tell you something, Trixie.”
“What is it?” Trixie said and Babs was expecting her to turn around and get changed but no, she stayed there, paying her full attention. That only made things more difficult for Babs who was now blushing hard.
“I...I just wanted to say that I..that I…”
Trixie now was a bit confused and placed a hoof on the kid, trying to comfort her.
“Come on Babs, spit it out!”
“You realize you just said that outloud, right?”
“Trixie, I like you!”
There was a second of silence and then Trixie smiled. “I like you too, kid.”
“Really?”
“Sure, you´re my biggest fan and smallest friend!” Trixie said, ruffling her mane.
“Auh, cut it out! No Trixie, what I meant is that I really like you. I mean...that I like you a lot.”
“Oh...oh!”
Once the realization hit her, Trixie went silent again. Babs started to regret her confession, thinking she had only made things weird and that know Trixie wouldn't want to hang out with her anymore or be her friend or a million other things.
Trixie however just sighed and made Babs lift her face. “I...thank you for that. That made me really happy. You´re a very special friend for me, Babs and I really like you too,”
“But it´s not the same thing…”
“No, it´s not. For starters, you´re too young…”
“I´m not that young! I´m a year and a half older than Apple Bloom!”
“Yeah but I´m about your sister's age. Besides, there´s another reason. You see, I already…”
“Hey Trix, that jerk hotel clerk is telling us to leave in five. I tell you, next time we should go to a stadium. I know you think the rooms are work but we get more audience and no nagging from the owners.”
“Hey, I know you. you´re turkey butt!” Babs said.
“WHAT?” Gilda the griffon roared, way louder than Babs could ever get.
“I´m sorry, I know your name is Gilda but that´s how Scootaloo calls you,” Babs apologies but Trixie was snickering in the back.
“Scoota-who? Wait is that little chicken squeak that is always following Rainbow around and being a nuisance?”
“Gilda, I told you to stop treating the ponies of Ponyville like that! They´re my friends!”
“Well, they´re not here!”
“That´s not an excuse!”
“Oh, are you gonna start again?”
“Oh I get it,” Babs said and the bickering couple stopped. “I mean, is that looking at you two you, kinda remind me of my parents.”
There was another awkward silence when the two adults blushed before Gilda said “He-hey kid, it´s not like that. We…” But Gilda was interrupted by Trixie taking her claw and holding it. “Ah okay, it´s totally like that.”
Babs and Trixie laughed while Gilda blushed some more.
****
A couple days later, Babs was back in the clubhouse, placing a photo of her, Trixie and Gilda (taken by her sister, of course) right next to the poster. She let go a satisfied “Hmph” and then put the photo in a different position because she wasn´t satisfied.
“Sorry that your love confession didnt work, cuz,” Apple Bloom said.
“It´s okay. I don´t think I was really enamored of Trixie,” Babs said while Scootaloo mocked her for using that word. “I think because I couldn´t say it outloud, that´s because I made it a big deal. But i learned that some ponies and some gryphons, don´t need to say things out loud if they know they´re true.”
Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle smiled but Scootaloo just groaned and went back to her magazine.
“But now that I´m over Trixie, maybe I should consider looking after some other pony…”
“What? Really? Who?” Apple Bloom asked.
“That fella Spike seems nice. Never considered falling for a dragon but…”
“You keep your hooves off Spike!” Sweetie suddenly yelled.
“Woah Sweetie, ah had no idea…”
“Ha, isn't it funny that you´re chasing after him while he chases your sister?” Scootaloo said.
“Shut up! It´s not like that! And what about you, chasing after Rainbow Dash?”
“Like that was a secret.”
“Scoots kinda has a point…” Apple Bloom said.
“Oh yeah, what about you going all gaga over Trenderhoof?”
“Ah..ah didn't want all gogo! Ah just saw him in one of your sister's magazines and said he was cute.”
“Seriously, this guy?” Scootaloo mocked her, pointing at the magazine. “You´re worse than Sweetie…”
“Shut up!” they both yelled.
“Babs, what are yah doing?” Apple Bloom asked.
“Taking notes. Lots of potential suitors here in this town…”
“Cut it out!” Sweetie and Bloom yelled, jumping over here, while Scootaloo laughed out loud.
Babs was also laughing, laughing with nothing buried in her chest, laughing from the bottom of her heart.
