Trixie stared at the structure that was her home, office, and workplace in Ponyville. It was a simple thatched roof building, the only thing differentiating it from the rest of the houses in Ponyville was a simple iron fence that surrounded the property, and a simple sign in the front yard stating it was the residence of the Representative of the Night Court. Trixie had not been in Ponyville long, but she had already grown to like her new home.
What she did not like was the fact the structure was now thrashed. The roof was caved in on one side, her nice iron fence was bent, scorch marks covered the front yard, and Trixie didn't even know where her simple little sign was. And the window was completely crashed in, like several ponies had thrown several bricks through it (a suspicion she had confirmed earlier when she spied a small pile of brick in the main room of the residence)
Trixie sighed. She walked through the residence, walking over the debris, until she reached her destination: her office. Looking around the assorted books strewn about the floor, her eyes eventually eyed what she was looking for: A map of Ponyville. The map was quickly enveloped in a blue magic aura and lifted in front of Trixie's eyes. She had intended to leave right than and there, until she spied something else. The town registry, a record from the last census, including names and places of residence for the whole town. Trixie doubted she would need it, but....
"I'd better take this just in case something goes wrong. It seems everything else has been lately." She joked to herself cynically as she slipped the registry into the saddlebags she wore. She slowly scanned the map, eventually landing on a plot of land listed as "Ponyville Motel"
This would be simple.
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FOR YOUR CONVENIENCE
THE PONYVILLE MOTEL IS BEING REMODELED
THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME
Trixie stared at the sign, behind it a half constructed building, with construction equipment dotting the rest of the property.
"THAT IS NOT HOW THE WORD CONVENIENCE WORKS!" Trixie yelled. "I'd better head to Carrot Top's place. Maybe she could spare a bed...." she muttered, cursing the fact that there was still slushy, hard to walk in snow dotting the ground as she sauntered to the farms of Ponyville.
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Trixie was thankful when Carrot Top's farm came into view, thankful she would be able to rest her weary bones and get some much needed sleep. When she eventually reached the front door, she stopped a moment to catch her breath before lightly knocking on the door. Thirty seconds later after no response, she knocked, a bit louder than the last time. After another thirty seconds, she began yelling and frantically walking around the outside of the house, desperately looking through the windows for a sign of her orange maned friend.
"CARROT TOP!!! ARE YOU THERE!?"
Still no response. She briefly considered just breaking in and apologizing for it later, but decided against it. That's not something friends would do, even if Trixie desperately needed shelter. She pulled out the town registry, wondering if the Universe had planned this, and scanned it to see where Ditzy Doo's house was. "Wait a minute, that can't be right...." she muttered as she walked to the building the registry spelled out, even though she considered it a wild goose chase.
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The post office came into sight. Trixie was still convinced the registry was wrong and Ditzy Doo did not, in fact, live there, but desperation, curiosity, and fatigue is not a good combination for the brain. She felt foolish as she lifted her hoof up, ready to knock on the door, until a light cough coming from behind the building distracted her. Trixie quietly crept until the backyard of the post office revealed itself to her.
There was a large firepit sitting behind the post office. And a fire blazed inside it, illuminating the area. Sitting on a bench a few yards away sat Ditzy Doo and her daughter, a warm blanket draped over them. "Momma?" the young unicorn filly drowsily said. "I think I can get back to sleep now."
Her mother nodded lightly, both eyes resting upon Dinky. "Alright Muffin, I'll just put out the fire" She began to stand up until her daughter spoke some more.
"Um...but is it alright if I sleep in your bed tonight? I...I don't want the monster to get me again......" Upon the light of the fire, Trixie thought she could see tears.
Ditzy wrapped her forelegs around Dinky in a tight hug. "It's ok. I won't let anyone get you. I'll make sure that monster won't get anyone ever again." Ditzy whispered.
It was here that Trixie was left with two choices. She could just walk away, since it was obvious that Ditzy needed her daughter, and Dinky needed her mother, and look for a bed to sleep in elsewhere. Or, she could bother them, and-
Trixie shook her head. "I wouldn't be able to look at myself in the mirror if I did that" she thought to herself as she walked away, scanning the registry once again for a place to hang her hat.
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Trixie figured Lyra would be staying with her marefriend Bonbon. Or at least she figured it out once she noted that Lyra's name didn't even appear on the registry. Trixie figured that Lyra HAD been living in Canterlot for the last three years, so that made sense. She just hoped that, between the two of them, that would mean two beds would be occupied. Trixie hoped Bonbon had a third bed or a couch.
Trixie was quickly broken out of her worries when a scream split through the air. After scanning around for a moment, Trixie determined the source of the scream: Bonbon's Confectionarium. Fearing the worse (Spies? Zebras? Monsters? Pirate Ninja Zebra?) she ran down the street, her previous fatigue forgotten, hoping she would get there in time to help. She had gotten to the front door, preparing to tear it down, until another scream split through the air.
"Ooooohhhhh LYRA!!!!!"
Trixie froze, her mind having trouble processing exactly what she had just heard. Her ears were picking up other noises: moans, squeaks, and other noises Trixie REALLY wished her brain could ignore. Her senses had finally decided her sanity had been assaulted enough and Trixie ran away, very very fast, and did not stop running for at least five minutes.
Panting, short of breath, Trixie finally gave herself a moment to rest. She saw a bench, which she sat on, thankful for the chance to rest her hooves. "You'd think....." Trixie thought aloud. "...that ponies that....loud.....would invest in soundproofing or something....." She slowly grabbed the registry from her saddlebags, scanning for another place she could sleep, praying to Luna herself that she would not have to get in range of that horrible horrible noise again. As she scanned the map, she was thankful her next destination was a short ways away, and notably far away from the accursed candy place. As she got up and walked, ironically feeling slightly refreshed from her fleeing in terror, a stray thought entered her mind.
Cheerilee was right. She DOES have a strong command of the Equestrian tongue...
"SHUT UP BRAIN!" Trixie yelled.
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Luckily, thankfully, Luna blessedly so, Raindrops's house was a normal, somewhat on the small side, but big enough to allow for a guest, the lights were on, and Trixie couldn't hear any horrible horrible noises.
"Please let this be normal, please let this be normal" Trixie though to herself as she knocked on the door. A moment passed, and the door opened, revealing a lanky young colt, his fur a muted yellow, with a messy green mane, and a particularly dim look in his eyes.
Worried for a moment that she may have accidentally gotten the wrong house, Trixie asked as nicely as her voice could muster "Is Raindrops here?"
The colt stared up at Trixie, the dim look ever present on his eyes. Then, as if someone had flipped a switch, the look in his eyes brightened up, and a wide smile appeared on his face."Oh wow, you're the Great and Powerful Trixie! I loved your show! You were so AWESOME!" he yelled, in what some ponies would consider a...dumb sounding voice."Can I have your autograph!?" he asked, his eyes shining in expectation.
Trixie briefly remembered something her grandfather had told her so many years ago...
It doesn't matter how tired you may be. It doesn't matter how bad your day has been. It does not matter that the only thing you want to do is to sit down and relax. When you're a performer, your fans will think the world of you, and the worst feeling is the feeling of letting even one of them down.
Showtime.
"But of course! The Great and Powerful Trixie would be honored to give an autograph to an adoring fan!" Trixie loudly proclaimed, ignoring the fatigue that ran through her. "The Great and Powerful Trixie only asks you bring a quill and a scroll she may sign!"Trixie didn't think it possible, but the smile grew even wider, as he ran back into his house, leaving his front door open, and she heard what sounded like the noise of somepony messily searching through a desk drawer.
"Hey Snails, what's taking so lo-" Raindrops began, than noticing the open door with Trixie standing on her doorstep. "Hey.....I don't remember telling you where I lived." Raindrops remarked, confused more than anything else.
"You didn't. I looked it up." Trixie flatly replied, as if that explained everything.
"Oh..." Raindrops quickly decided that it was a bit creepy that someone could look up her address so easily. "...Why?"
"Well-" Trixie began, before being interrupted by a very excited Snails, holding a scrap of paper that looked like it was used to hold chewing gum and a quill that looked like it was chewed by something with far too many teeth.He looked up at Trixie, his eyes with a glimmer in them.
Encore Performance.
Trixie grabbed both the quill and scrap of paper and twirled them around in the air, making them fly around much like a pair of butterflies, all while keeping her eyes at the ground. After a few seconds of that, she gently floated both items back down to Snails, to reveal the Scrap had been signed.
To The Great and Powerful Trixie's Biggest Fan Snails
He stared at the paper, his mouth hung wide open. Than suddenly, he made noise similiar to that of a squee, grasped the paper in a shaky yellow hued magic aura, and bolted into the house, yelling "Snips is gonna be SO jealous!"
"....was the showmareship really necessary?" Raindrops asked, raising an eyebrow
"It was for a fan. They expect big things from me." Trixie answered, yawning. "So, that was your little brother?" Trixie asked, stifling another yawn. Raindrops nodded. "He's visiting from your parent's house?". Raindrops shook her head.
The implications of that answer took a second to click in Trixie's mind.
"You still live with your parents!?" Trixie yelled a little bit louder than she had intended.
"Yes. and?" Raindrops answered, her until then slightly confused stature shifting to a more aggressive stance.
"I...um..."Trixie quickly scanned for an answer. "You seemed so independent, that I thought you woulda headed out on your own by now!"
Raindrops suddenly softened, satisfied with the answer. "Anyway, yeah, that was my little brother Snails." Raindrops closed her eyes in thought for a moment, considering what to say next. "You know, earlier he wouldn't shut up about the show you put on, and now he thinks you're some kind of super hero."
"Was he....?" Trixie started, not sure how to ask the question on her mind.
"No, Corona didn't kidnap him. Good thing too, otherwise, I probably woulda tried bucking her right in the face, consequences be damned." a slight smile met Raindrops face, as if she was considering the situation, but it disappeared as quickly as it had appeared.
Trixie didn't doubt that Raindrops would be willing to fight Corona in one to one combat.
"Anyway, what brings you here so late?" Raindrops finally cutting to the chase.
"My house has a bunch of holes in it, so I need a place to stay. At least for tonight until I can find something more permanent tomorrow."
"um....about that..." Raindrops voice suddenly sounded shaky, which Trixie instantly though irregular. "We don't exactly have a lot of room."
Trixie cocked her eyebrow at that, until looking at the house for a few seconds.
She suddenly realized the main reason that she was surprised at Raindrops living with her parents wasn't because of Raindrops herself. It was because the house looked like it was made for with only one pony in mind.
"Not to mention Snails seems to be utterly sleep proof, and would probably keep you up all night with questions about what happened in the forest, your life in general, and everything else he can think of."
Trixie nodded to Raindrops. "I understand. Thank you." Trixie turned and walked off, once again pulling out her best friend and worst enemy for the night, the town registry. Fifth time's the charm, right?"
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Final house. Final friend. Cheerilee has to pull through, right? Trixie knocked on the door, praying to Luna someone would answer.
She heard a small shuffle, and the door opened, revealing Cheerilee. Trixie was about to ask about a bed, but than a familiar smell hit her nostrils. "Hey twixie!" Cheerilee slurred. "Are you here for the PARTAY!?"
Trixie looked inside the school teachers house, and was shocked at what she saw. There were bookshelves filled with books. But sitting alongside those books were bottles that, Trixie assumed as early as a few hours ago, held all manners of alcohol. Trixie stared at Cheerilee. Earth pony endurance indeed..... "Actually Cheerilee, I wasn't here for a party, I-"
"But come on! I just shaved the world, and told off a god, and LIVED! WOO!" the drunk magenta mare took a swig from a nearby bottle to punctuate the line.
Trixie sighed. "Cheerilee, my house has the consistency of Skyrosland cheese right now. Can I crash here tonight?"
Trixie was caught off guard by the change in Cheerilee's expression. "Why would you need to shtay here when you could jusht shtay at town hall?"
"what."
"Under The Equeshtrian Employee Protection Act of 860, shection 3, any government employees, including represhentatives, are guarenteed houshing and board in the event that their exishting reshidence ish temporarily unlivable"
Trixie blinked, wondering if the fatigue was finally causing her to hallucinate"...are you sure you're drunk?"
"Furthermore" Cheerliee continued, her speech slowly becoming more coherent "Under the Equeshtrian Government Initiative of 532, the main government facility of a town, in this case being Town Hall, must always have at least one employee on duty at any given time, so that problems that may arise outside of conventional hours may be addressed or reported."
Trixie stared at her friend, waiting for the laugh that would punctuate the punchline. After realizing that the drunk was completely serious, Trixie turned away, and walked to Town Hall. "...you have got to be kidding me..." she muttered to herself.
"BUUUUUUUUUUURP" Cheerilee's burp roared through the air. "Have a nishe night Twixie!" Cheerilee yelled, waving her hoof in the air.
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Trixie dragged herself to Town Hall, her body slowly giving into all the punishment it had received over the past 3 days. "...Just a little closer, and this night will be done.....I night I could have avoided if I had studied bylaws better.....ugh, I need to pay more attention to these things......" Eventually, she reached the doors of Town Hall and threw them open. She briefly looked around the lobby. Some paintings, a magazine rack full of magazines older than Trixie was, and a pony sitting behind a counter, their identity obscured by a newspaper. "Excuse me, but I was told I could get some help? My house is currently unstable, and I need a place to stay, and I was told that-" the newspaper came down, revealing the identity of the pony working the receptionist counter.
"...CARROT TOP!?!?!?!?!" Trixie yelled, convinced she was hallucinating.
"Hi Trixie. How are you tonight?" Carrot Top answered, a smile on her face.
"...I thought you were a farmer. Why are you working at town hall?"
"I am a farmer. But since Town Hall always needs someone to man it, the town usually takes volunteers. And I signed up for this week a while back because I thought I would need the money. So how can I help you?" Carrot Top answered in what Trixie could only assume was an attempt to sound professional.
And this is the end note on a weird, wild night Trixie thought to herself.
"My house is unlivable. I need a place to stay. Since I'm a Representative of the Night Court, Town hall is supposed to supply me with a place to stay until my house is livable."
In a movement that appeared FAR too normal, Carrot Top grabbed a small key from a drawer and dropped it on the counter. "Third door to the left. Just bring back the key to the front counter in the morning. Have a nice night."
Trixie stared down at the key until bringing her gaze back to Carrot Top. "...how often does this key get used?"
"Ponyville borders the Everfree Forest. Take a wild guess." Carrot Top answered.
"Stop questioning it Trixie. Just take the key, lie down, and get some sleep." Trixie thought. "Good night Carrot Top" Trixie yawned, grabbing the key in a barely functioning magical aura as she walked down the hall to the door Carrot Top had pointed out. Trixie thought she heard Carrot Top also wish a good night, but Trixie was too tired to notice. Upon opening the door, Trixie's eyes came upon the most beautiful thing Trixie had seen that night: A very comfortable looking bed. Trixie was asleep the moment her head hit the pillow.
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The Town of Ponyville was on fire. Everything was ablaze, and ponies ran in terror. In the middle of town, Trixie was trapped in a ring of fire that blocked all possible chances of escape. And her captor only stared as Trixie suffered. "We will defeat you Corona!" Trixie yelled at the Alicorn demon. "My friends will get here and then you'll never be able to hurt anyone ever again!"
Corona sat upon a throne made of gold, glimmering in the fire's light. Corona herself remained silent, only staring blankly back. "Well!?" Trixie yelled. "Aren't you afraid!? They'll bring the Elements of Harmony, and than Luna can send you straight to the sun where you belong!"
Corona rose slowly from her throne, walked towards Trixie, walking through the flames, the flames themselves parting, letting Corona through. She came to stand right in front of Trixie, staring down, a look of anger upon her face. Corona than drew herself up, taking a deep breath, and screamed at Trixie.
"Ooooohhhhh LYRA!!!!!"
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"AAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!"
Trixie woke up screaming, covered in cold sweat, her heart racing. Trixie was vaguely aware of the sound of hoofsteps from down the hall until Carrot Top burst into the room. "Trixie! Are you alright!?" Carrot Top shouted, worried. A few moments passed as Trixie breathed in deeply, trying to calm herself down. Than she very calmly turned to Carrot Top and spoke.
"I'd like to report a noise violation...."
THE END
