Trixie

“Fine, how about a deal? I’ve got the technical skills and you got the brawn, so what do you think about teaming up?” I read. “We’ll get a team together and contain the virus before it causes too much damage. You in?”

“Hmm…” Chrysalis replied, pausing as the script told her to. “As much as I hate cleaning up your messes… I’m in.”

“Aaaaand we got it!” Adrian said as Chrysalis finished her line. “We’re done! That’s a wrap, folks!”

A collective sigh left all of us as Adrian and his friends slouched in their seats. “Now we just need to finish animating and show the pilot to Mr. Render,” Cel Shade said.

“So, are you going to need us again when the show gets picked up?” Chrysalis asked as she and I walked out of the recording booth.

“Nah. Once this show goes into full production, we’ll be able to get professional voice actors, so you guys don’t have to worry about having to make time for this again,” Adrian explained.

“Hm, it’s a bit of a shame. I was just starting to enjoy this. Maybe I’ll get into the voice-acting scene if this whole modelling thing doesn’t work out.”

“Well, when you decide on the cast, just make sure you pick someone that can hold a candle to my performance,” I said, flipping my mane.

“Didn’t you have to redo, like, half your lines today?” Rusty asked.

“Okay, maybe I’m not absolutely perfect, but I have a distinct, unique voice that only I possess.”

“Weeeeeell…” Roxy drawled. “To be honest, your voice sounds a lot like Chrysalis’s.”

“Oh, thank God someone else said it!” Adrian groaned. “I thought I was the only one that noticed!”

“Huh, they do sound alike, don’t they?” said Cel Shade.

Chrysalis turned to me with an unconvinced look. “What are they talking about? We sound nothing alike.”

“I don’t know,” I sighed. “Anyway, are we still going out to celebrate tonight?”

“Uh-huh. I was thinking about hitting the Mellow Manticore. They got good drinks and the DJ is pretty good.” Adrian then looked over to Roxy and Cel Shade. “You guys coming, too?”

Roxy’s ears fell back as she averted her gaze from him. “Sorry, Adrian. I gotta take my Grandma to Bingo Night tonight.”

“And I really want to take a long rest after all this work, so I’m going into hibernation for the weekend,” Cel added.

“It’s okay, though. You guys have fun,” the diamond dog smiled. “We’ll get together with you some other time.”

“Well, I guess it’s just us tonight, then,” Adrian said, a little disappointed that his friends couldn’t join us. “We’re gonna head home. See you guys later.”

Roxy and Cel Shade bid us farewell as we left the studio, with Rusty once again riding in Adrian’s backpack. “So… what am I gonna do while you guys are out?” He asked.

“You say that like you’ve never been home by yourself before,” Chrysalis noted.

“I can only play so many video games and watch so many movies, Bugho- I mean… Chrysalis.”

“Hmph. Nice save.”

“Anyway, you guys seem even chummier than before,” Rusty continued. “You guys didn’t screw each other again, did you?”

My heart skipped a beat and my fur stood on end as I glared at the little rat. “Don’t say that out loud, you little shit!” I told him with a hushed yell.

“So you did?”

“No!” Chrysalis snapped. “Adrian, I know he’s your pet, but can I please kick the shit out of him?”

“I’ll give him a good bop on the head when we get home,” he replied.

“Oh, come on,” Rusty groaned “I mean, now that I’ve thought about it, it’s not as bad as I originally made it out to be. It’s actually pretty convenient. Adrian and Trixie get some occasional relief and Chrysalis gets to absorb love without having to bring someone else home. It’s a win-win, so long as you keep it quiet-OW”

The little jackalope whimpered as he rubbed the spot where Adrian’s fist hit his head, and Chrysalis and I got a little giggle out of that.

“That’ll teach him,” I thought with a satisfied smile.

“Hey, we’re coming up on our building,” Chrysalis said after we had our laugh.

Rusty nodded and ducked into the backpack, and Adrian zipped it up as we reached the building’s entrance.

“Maybe if we’re lucky, Mr. Saddleton isn’t in the lobby,” I said, but when we entered the building, the first thing we saw was the old stallion filling out some papers at the lobby desk.

“Looks like we have some shitty luck,” Chrysalis muttered.

“He might not see us if we move quickly and quietly,” Adrian whispered.

We took light steps, hoping that the old coot’s hearing was as bad as we assumed it was. It worked out well at first, but then we heard him clear his throat.

“Good afternoon, you three,” he spoke.

“Fuck,” we said under our breath as we turned to see him approaching us, turning back the knob on his hearing aid.

“Clever bastard,” I thought.

“In case you’re not aware, the rent is due Sunday,” he told us. “As usual, I’ll be coming by in the morning to collect-”

“We know how it works, Mr. Saddleton,” I interrupted.

“Really, Miss Lulamoon? That’s quite a surprise. I distinctly remember you paying your rent late for the first three months of your tenancy here.”

“I paid it, didn’t I?”

“I’m just surprised he could remember that far back,” Chrysalis quipped, and we all have a laugh at that.

Unfortunately, that included Rusty, too.

Adrian’s backpack shook a little as the jackalope chuckled inside, and I could see Adrian tense up a little when he felt it. “Well, you’ll get your rent money on Sunday,” he said.

The old stallion raised an eyebrow at us and leaned to the side, trying to see behind Adrian. “What’s going on back there?” he asked. “That backpack’s looking awfully big.”

“Well, considering that I’m coming back from work, that’s not unusual, y’know.”

“Plus there’s the fact that it’s, y’know, none of your business,” Chrysalis added.

I glanced towards the elevator and focused the magic in my horn, conjuring an aura around the “up” button and pushing it. After a few seconds of Mr. Saddleton going back and forth with Chrysalis and Adrian, we heard a loud “DING!”

“Well, looks like the elevator’s here,” I spoke up. “While it was great seeing you, Mr. Saddleton, we can’t miss our ride.”

The three of us slipped back into the elevator, a collective sigh of relief escaping us once the doors closed.

“That was way too close. Thanks, Trixie,” Adrian said, still trying to catch his breath. I couldn’t help feeling a little proud of myself for concocting such a brilliant escape plan.

Just then, I heard a soft laugh coming from Chrysalis, and I glanced over to see her looking down at me with a knowing grin. Great, she must have sensed my pride.

However, to my surprise, she didn’t call me out on it. She just kept that grin on her face until we reached the second floor. To be honest, I didn’t think she was able to exercise restraint. She usually just popped off at the mouth the first chance she got.

Then again… Adrian and I do the same thing.

Chrysalis

It was going on eight-o-clock, and I looked through my closet in search of something to wear.

“Black, green, black, green, black, green… Ugh, I really need to broaden my wardrobe,” I said to myself. I eventually decided on a dark green top with black skinny jeans, then looked at myself in the mirror. At the risk of sounding conceited, I looked pretty fetching. I could easily conjure up some new clothes and a new appearance if I just used my magic, but-

KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!

“Come in,” I called.

The door opened and Trixie walked in, trying to reach for something behind her back. “Could you help me out, Chrysalis?” she asked. “The zipper at the back of my top is stuck, and my magic can’t pull it up.”

“You can fake your own death, but you can’t pull up a zipper?” I smirked.

“Just help me, please.”

I sighed. “Alright, get over here.” Trixie walked over and turned her back towards me so I could get the zipper unstuck. To my surprise, it was a bit of a struggle, and as I tried to pull it up, I felt waves of sadness and embarrassment coming from the unicorn. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing, I’m just… wondering if I’m too big to fit the top,” she answered, her face going red.

“Don’t be ridiculous,” I said, squashing her concerns right then and there. “The zipper is just caught in the fabric.” I fidgeted with the zipper a little, eventually getting it unstuck and zipping it up for Trixie. “See? Perfect fit.”

“Thanks,” she smiled, looking at her reflection. “Do I look alright?”

I sighed. “You look just fine. Don’t worry about it. You may have a little ‘extra’ on you, but it’s not worth fretting over. The phrase ‘more to love’ exists for a reason.” a mischievous grin grew on my face as I lowered my muzzle down to her ear. “I mean, Adrian didn’t seem to care about your size when he was rutting you.”

Trixie let out a squeal of disgust and moved away from me, shivers running up her spine. “Chrysalis!”

“He just grabbed those thick ol’ hips and went at it,” I continued. “Even I was surprised. He just kept going, and going, and going. That boy gave you the work! I was starting to worry that you wouldn’t be able to walk the next morning! If I didn’t know any better, I’d say that Adrian has a secret fetish for chubby mares.”

“Quit it!” Trixie yelled, covering her ears.

“Sorry, I can’t help it!” I said in-between bursts of laughter. “I already held back one smart remark in the elevator. You can’t expect me to hold them all back!”

“That would be asking too much of you, wouldn’t it?”

“Come on! Be a good sport, will you?”

Trixie grunted and folded her arms. “Honestly, I don’t see how you can be so nonchalant about sex.”

“It’s just us talking, Trixie. We were both there. There’s no need to be all bothered about it.”

“Wasn’t choosing Adrian and me a last resort, though? Don’t you feel at least a little embarrassed?”

I thought about it for a moment. “Yeah, at first, but to be honest, when I look back on that night, as awkward as it started, it wasn’t that bad, plus we all stopped hating each other eventually, so it’s whatever.”

Trixie stared at me with a confused look. “I’ll never understand you.”

“I guess not,” I shrugged. “Come on. Adrian’s probably ready to go by now.”

“Wait, you aren’t going to disguise yourself?” Trixie asked.

I shook my head as we left the room. “Nah. Not tonight. If I want to get that job at the modelling agency, I’ll need to get comfortable with being seen as myself. Besides, I don’t need another love session just yet. You and Adrian gave enough to last me for quite a while.”

As we walked down the hallway, we saw Adrian and Rusty talking in the living room. Succumbing to our curiosity, Trixie and I did a bit of eavesdropping.

I wasn’t particularly proud of that… oh, who am I kidding? I didn’t give a shit.

“Once we get back, you and I are gonna have a little video game marathon as our own celebration,” said Adrian.

“Promise?” Rusty asked.

“Of course. Now, I refilled the snacks in the cabinet, and I put the house phone where you can reach it in case anything happens.”

“I know the deal, Adrian. You don’t have to worry about a thing.”

“Well, I wouldn’t be a good owner if I didn’t make sure every time.” Adrian ruffled the fur on Rusty’s head. “I’ll see you later tonight, okay?”

The jackalope nodded.

“Trixie! Chrysalis!” Adrian called out “You two ready yet?”

I snuck back a couple feet and called back “Just about!” I waited for a few seconds before walking out into the living room with Trixie. Adrian was checking his pockets to make sure he had everything, and Rusty was watching TV.

“Alright, let’s go,” the human said as he got his apartment key and opened the door. Before we left, he looked back at his pet and said “See you later Rusty.”

With the door closed, Adrian turned around and looked at me with a curious expression. “No disguise tonight?”

“Nope. No sessions tonight,” I told him. “Just a night out with… huh, I’m still getting used to calling you two friends.”

“Don’t force it,” said Trixie. “It’ll grow on us eventually.”

“It should be right around the corner,” Adrian said as he led us down the block. “It’s got pretty dim lighting, too, so I don’t think we’ll cause much of a scene.”

We were about to round the corner when my ears suddenly twitched. I could hear hurried footsteps around the corner and I let out an annoyed sigh. “Hold on for a second,” I said, halting the others as the footsteps came closer.

Suddenly, two teenagers, a unicorn and a griffon, came running around the corner, barely dodging us as they ran for their lives.

“I thought you said that spell was fool proof!” the griffon yelled.

“I didn’t think they had one of those scanner things!” the unicorn yelled back. “Only the high-end Upper East Side clubs have those!”

Trixie looked at the two boys with a confused face. “What… just happened?”

I scoffed. “A couple of teenagers trying to sneak into a club, that’s what.”

“Jeez, kids these days have no finesse when it comes to fake ID’s,” Adrian lamented.

“You’re tellin’ me.” We all blinked at the sudden voice we heard from behind us, and we turned to see a pink, freckled mare with an orange-brown mane and tail approaching us. “Then again, it was a bit easier for us t’ get by back then.”

“Sunflower!” Trixie squealed as she rushed over and hugged her friend. “What brings you here?”

“Oh, I’m just havin’ a little night out for myself. Babs is with our Aunt an’ Uncle Orange.” Sunflower glanced at me and Adrian, then looked back at Trixie. “Gee, Trix. When ya said that you were on good were friends with your roomies, I didn’t think y’all were that friendly.”

“Believe me, I never thought we’d be this friendly, either, but they’re alright.”

Adrian and I rolled our eyes at each other.

“Well, since you’re all here, I’ll ask the bartender t’ hook you up. He and I go way back,” said Sunflower.

“All the alcohol I want at no cost? Consider me interested,” I smiled.

“Can we, like, actually go in now?” Adrian asked. “I don’t think they’re gonna bring the party out here anytime soon.”

“Yeah, yeah, hold your horses,” Trixie told him with a dismissive wave.

The human furrowed his brow. “I’m gonna ignore the irony in that statement.”

Okay, so far so good.

We’ve been in the club for all of five minutes, and I’ve only caught a few whiffs of fear here and there. Nothing to be totally concerned about.

Then again, I’ve pretty much stayed in the same spot the whole time.

“Is this what you normally do when you got to places like this?” Adrian asked over the music, snapping me out of my thoughts.

“Well, I… uh…”

“I’m just teasing,” he grinned. “I kinda felt the same way the first time I came to Equus.”

“What do you mean?”

“I kinda felt out-of-place at first, but it got easier once I started talking to others. Even if you have to fake it, approaching folks with a good vibe makes it easier for them to get used to you,” he explained. “C’mon. Let’s go get a drink. Trixie and Sunflower are already at the bar.”

I nodded and followed him to the bar, taking a seat next to Trixie. “Look who decided to come out,” she joked. “I was considering ordering a drink for you.”

“Cut me some slack, will you?” I huffed.

“Aww, can’t handle it when somepony teases you?” she gave me a devious smile. “Guess the shoe’s on the other hoof.”

Damn. She had me there.

“Yo! Charlie!” Sunflower called. “Can we get some drinks over here for our friends?”

The minotaur bartender walked over to her with a smile. “Sure, Sunflower,” he said. His gaze then turned to me, Trixie, and Adrian, and he gulped when he saw me.

In an attempt to make him a little more comfortable, I gave him a small wave and smiled. “Hi,” I said to him.

My happy greeting seemed to calm him down, as the fear emanating from him went down a little bit. “W-What can I get for ya, miss?”

“I’ll take a vodka. Straight,” I said. I thought about batting my lashes a bit, but I decided it’d be going overboard.

“Gotcha.” He turned to Adrian. “And for you, sir?”

“Uh… Let me get a beer,” he answered.

“Any brand ya want in particular?”

“Surprise me.”

“Alrighty, then!” Charlie said as he went to get our drinks.

Adrian looked at me and Trixie. “So, can we all agree to not try and get wasted tonight? I don’t wanna have to carry anyone home.”

I then felt Adrian and Trixie looking right at me. “What’s with the stares?” I asked.

“You’re the one drinking straight vodka,” Trixie answered.

“I know what I’m doing,” I huffed. “Changelings can’t get drunk off alcohol. Love, on the other hand…”

“Really?” Sunflower asked, ears perked up in interest. “Has it ever happened to you before?”

“Once. It happened after one of my early conquests. We had some citizens leftover with a lot of love to spare and I may or may not have gotten a little carried away. Don’t remember much of it, but when I came to, I was spooning one of my generals, and he was shivering a little. He didn’t wanna talk about what happened. So yeah, that’s my drunk story,” I shrugged.

Sunflower chuckled. “Well, I got hit by a farm cart once. I was visitin’ Ponyville with Babs this one time and I kinda underestimated my cousin’s hard cider. I was fine, but the cart… eh, not so much.”

Our heads turned to Adrian, who shrugged and decided to spill his story. “I went over my limit at a bachelor party about two years ago. I woke up in a nursing home next to one of the Saddle Arabian dancers. She kept texting me for a few weeks after that, so I assume something happened.”

Hm, so Trixie and I weren’t his first mares? That’s somewhat disappointing.

“You’re up next, Trix,” said Sunflower. “We all shared our stories. Now it’s your turn.”

The showmare let out a hearty laugh. “Sorry to disappoint you all, but I don’t have a story to share. The Great and Powerful Trixie has never been inebriated before, and she takes pride in that fact.”

“Ha! Bullshit!” the earth mare laughed, only to receive an angry grunt from the bartender as he gave me and Adrian our drinks. “Heh… My bad, Charlie.”

Even I could tell that Trixie was lying. If her overcompensating words weren’t an obvious sign, her slight nervousness definitely was.

“Anyway,” Sunflower continued, “You ain’t foolin’ a soul, Trixie. I remember when I took you out for your twenty-first birthday last year and you got so shitfaced-”

“Okay, that’s enough,” Trixie interrupted.

“Somepony took her new privilege a little too far, huh?” I teased.

“You have no idea,” said Sunflower. “Don’t worry, though. I know when to cut her off so she doesn’t lose it again.”

“Pfft. Whatever,” Trixie grumbled.

Over the next few hours, Adrian and I got to know Sunflower a bit more, and I became more and more comfortable around everyone, even Charlie.

“Need another vodka over there, Chrysalis?” he asked as he served another customer.

“Yeah, on the rocks this time!” I called back. I tapped my empty glass to the beat of the music as I watched the crowd on the dance floor. Trixie was mixed in with the dancers, having left the bar a while ago, with Adrian and me opting to stay behind.

“Y’know, I never saw Trixie as the dancing type,” Adrian commented. “Then again, the alcohol probably loosened her up a little.”

“Speaking of dancers,” I said, an evil smile growing on my face, “that Saddle Arabian dancer from your bachelor party story. Was she pretty?”

“Uh-huh,” he answered. “She was real easy on the eyes.”

“You wouldn’t happen to have a picture of her, would you?”

“It’s probably buried somewhere in my phone’s pictures. Why?”

I chuckled. “Well, if you want, I could always turn into her for you. I’m sure you’d love to re-live that night sober, just to know what you missed.”

I waited eagerly for his flustered response, but after a few empty seconds, I looked at him to see that he had his brow furrowed in thought. Was he actually considering it!?

“It does sound interesting…”

“That is not what you’re supposed to say!” I snapped, gritting my teeth and slamming my fist onto the bar.

“What?”

“You were supposed to go ‘Quit it, Chrys! Get your mind out of the gutter! We’re in public!’ You know, stuff like that!”

He raised an eyebrow at me. “Well, sorry to disappoint you.”

“Hmph. You’re not as fun to tease as Trixie is,” I huffed, taking a sip of my drink. My ear twitched as I head a few giggles coming from Sunflower. “What’s so funny?”

“Sorry,” she said, trying to hold back her laughter. “It’s just that you guys’re hilarious! I didn’t think you’d be so funny! We gotta hang out more often!”

Adrian and I looked at each other and smiled, then turned back to Sunflower. “Sure,” he said. “We’ll take you up on that offer.”

Just then, Trixie walked over to us, beads of sweat rolling down her cheeks and a smile on her face. “Phew, what time is it?”

I took a moment to check my phone. “It’s going on 1-o-clock. You guys want to head home?”

“Yeah,” Adrian yawned. “I think I’m ready to head back.”

“Me too,” Trixie nodded.

“Well, if you guys’re gonna go, I’ll get going myself,” Sunflower looked over at me and Adrian and gave us a smile. “It was nice meetin’ ya!”

“You too,” we nodded as we all got up and left the club.

Adrian

“That friend of yours was really nice, Trixie,” I said as we walked up the stairs, digging into his pocket for the key.

Trixie nodded. “Isn’t she, though? I should have you guys meet her little sister one of these days, too.”

As we reached the door, we could faintly hear the TV inside. “Rusty’s still awake?” I asked out loud. “Huh, I thought he’d be in bed by now.” I opened the door and the three of us walked inside to see that Rusty wasn’t in the living room; the TV was just on with no one watching it.

“Well, I guess our power bill just went up a few bits,” Chrysalis quipped.

“Rusty knows to turn the TV off before going to bed, though,” I said, getting a little suspicious.

“Well, maybe he just forgot this time,” Trixie shrugged.

“Maybe…” I walked down the hall to my bedroom and opened the door, heading straight to Rusty’s bed…

And he wasn’t there.

“Okay, Rusty! This isn’t funny!” I called out. “Where are you, man?” With each passing second, I grew more and more nervous, and I walked out into the living room and looked underneath all the furniture. “Dude! Quit fucking around! Where are you?” I headed to the kitchen and looked in all the cabinets. “Come on, I must be losing my mind!”

“Adrian, calm down,” Chrysalis said, trying to get me to relax. “Check your phone. Maybe he called while we were out.”

I took a deep breath. “Okay.” I took out my phone, and sure enough, I had one missed call. “It says that he called two hours ago.”

“Did he leave a message?” Trixie asked.

“Yeah, hold on a sec.” I opened the voicemail and put it on speaker so we could all hear.

“YOU HAVE -ONE- UNHEARD MESSAGE. FIRST UNHEARD MESSAGE:”

Rusty’s voice came up, but it was rushed and quiet. “Adrian, you gotta come home quick! Mr. Saddleton came in and he’s searching the house! I was able to get away and hide and I’m gonna stay here for the rest of the night in case he comes back again.”

Okay, good. He’s in the house somewhere.

“If I’m asleep when you come back, I’m in the closet in our bedroom-”

“Ha! I knew it!”

Our eyes all widened as we heard that shrill, aged voice.

“Hey! Lemme go!” We could hear Rusty grunting and squirming in the background as his captor spoke.

“You’ll get an official eviction notice tomorrow.”

“END OF MESSAGE.”

We were all shocked, each for different reasons. Chrysalis and Trixie, for one, were furious.

“Why that ancient, bony old… AAAGH! He can’t do this to us!” the unicorn yelled.

“He can’t just walk into our apartment unannounced like that! There’s got to be something against that in the leasing agreement! This is bullshit!” the changeling added.

I, on the other hand, couldn’t even move, let alone speak.

“…Adrian?” Trixie said to me, taking a moment from her rage to look at me.

“Damn it,” I said, my voice barely audible. “I should’ve paid attention. If I had answered the phone when he called-”

“It wouldn’t have made a difference.”

“Chrysalis!” Trixie scolded.

“I’m only telling the truth,” the changeling stated before looking down at me. “Look, Adrian, there’s nothing you could’ve done. Even if you’d answered the phone when he called you, you wouldn’t have gotten back here in time to do anything about it, and you couldn’t have known that Saddleton was gonna do what he did. None of us could have.”

“Chrysalis, you’re not helping-”

“Let me finish,” her attention then turned back to me. “While we couldn’t have done anything to prevent this, we can still fix it. As much as I can’t stand Rusty, he’s important to you, so I’m gonna help you get him back. Besides, I did say that I’d owe you an extra favor, didn’t I?”

I looked up at her. “Really?”

“I’ll help, too,” said Trixie. “Saddleton crossed all of us, and this was the last straw.”

I nodded and picked up my phone again and dialed a number. “Who’re you calling?” Chrysalis asked.

“If we’re gonna get Rusty back, we’re gonna need some help.”

Author's Note

Help, huh? From who, I wonder. Maybe the police?

Pfft! Yeah, right. These three are gonna take matters into their own hands, knowing them. So, next chapter, we'll follow Adrian, Trixie, and Chrysalis as they try to break Rusty out. Still, how will that keep them from getting evicted? You'll just have to find out.

Until then, let me know what you thought of this chapter in the comments. Keep it sketchy, folks!