Princess Flurry Heart's New Babysitter

Chapters

Part One
Part Two
Part Three
prologue

Part One

Trixie's journey towards the outskirts of town were met with sudden, brief blizzards, and only a few laps of warmth coming from the sun in between the short gaps. It took Trixie a little under an hour to overcome the hardest part of her struggle through the slush, and lugging that heavy caravan through it all was no small task, but she pulled through in the end, and the pay off made it all worthwhile. More and more, Trixie began to see the beginnings of the Crystal Empire. Huge shards were coming into her view, sticking out of the ground along the way, and they only got larger and larger the more Trixie wandered closer into town. Finally, just in the distance, she saw the castle spire in the middle of it all to be more beautiful than ever before, and already showed details Trixie had never noticed before now.

The more the fog before her cleared away to reveal cottages and homes, the more Trixie realized just how far she’d already gotten into town. Vending stalls for local trade were put up already. It was an entire outer district of trading to be done the moment anypony leaves those clouds behind them. There even resided a well built cider hall lying right next to the inner gates. Of course, Trixie wasn’t interested in any of that. If anything she was merely impressed with the old world look and feel of things.

"And yet," Trixie said to herself while approaching the entrance, "Trixie also feels as if there're probably even more the further you get."

With a free hoof, she rubbed her chin and smirked in thought of what might be waiting for her beyond the tall standing walls. She kept her posture in check when approaching the guards, and though this was usually an extensive process, in less time than she’d ever experienced when entering a city, Trixie was allowed to pass through with hardly any trouble whatsoever. A few questions along with a very little bit of paperwork was all the guards here really needed, which Trixie wished it could be that way anywhere she went. As Trixie came in, she mumbled to herself, "The Great and Powerful Trixie likes this place already… Now then, where to put up the stage?"

With so many ponies crowding the front gate and doing business, Trixie had to walk just a bit further in before finally reaching an open spot. Luckily it was where the grass still grew, and it seemed vacant enough. Not to mention how many spectators she’d undoubtedly attract by being so nearby where everypony comes in at. Setting the stage took three simple steps. Makes sure no pony was standing in the way, pull a lever, and latch some wires. In little time at all, Trixie’s grand performance was just about ready to start. She still needed to freshen her make-up, though, but that wouldn’t take long, and she was just about ready to head inside when she overheard a conversation going on not too far from where she stood.

Two local stallions kept talking about the baby being named Princess Flurry Heart, the name being almost all Trixie could catch. She came up, hearing more before interrupting. "She’s really special."

"Umm, Excuse Trixie," Trixie said with a hoof raising to bring attention to herself. "What’s that about Princess Cadance’s baby?"

"Oh, you haven’t heard?" the pony on the left asked.

"Turns out she’s a princess," the other pony chimed, hoofing as if it were a big deal. It was, in fact, but Trixie hadn’t realized the meaning just yet.

"Well… Trixie guesses that’s great!" She awkwardly tried to play it off as if she knew what they were talking about, and hoped they’d later down the line explain what they meant, but they didn’t.

"Well, anyways," one began, looking at his friend with a raised eyebrow.

"Oh, right! We gotta be headed out now. What'd you say your name was?"

Trixie looked at they two of them, blinking, but smiled and boasted casually, "I'm the Great and powerful Trixie." She then asked with a concerning tone, "So soon?"

"Yep," the one on the left replied.

"We'll see you around, Trixie." As one began walking off, the other departed as well. "Bye."

Trixie reluctantly waved goodbye, quickly shrugged, and returned to her caravan. Meanwhile, within the caselt, and inside Princess Flurry Heart's room, Shining Armor and his wife had come to an ultimate decision. They looked down at the foal they cared dearly for, and looked at one another grimly. "It must be done," Shining Armor spoke to comfort Princess Cadance.

"Come," the alicorn said, taking her husband’s hoof into her own. "We must address everypony, then."

They left onto the balcony, and by using a spell, Shining Armor’s voice travelled all the way to the terrible blizzards way far off in the distance. "Subjects of the Crystal Empire, and visitors of all types."

Just before entering her caravan like Trixie had been trying to do since she had arrived, Trixie turned around to listen to the announcement. She also couldn’t help herself from asking aloud, "What the…? Where in Equestria is that coming from?!"

She soon realized the voice was coming all the way from the castle spire, and being completely distracted, Trixie payed attention a bit longer, if only for a minute or two. "There is a pressing matter that we must attend to, outside the Crystal Empire," Shining Armor revealed. "The both of us."

Cadance then said, "In other words, we won’t be able to look after Princess Flurry Heart while we're gone."

This was followed by murmurs throughout the crowd Trixie found herself in. It seemed everypony had become enthralled with this bit of news, but Trixie soon got back to what she was doing first. While the showmare began to block out the announcement and missing the most important part, Shining Armor pressed on, "Sun Burst is coming along, too, so there’s little choice in the matter. Luckily…" He winked down at Sun Burst who assisted in finding a solution. "A certain somepony was able to find an old archive. It showed us some interesting ways we can use the crystal heart to our advantage in this situation."

Princess Cadance then explained further, "Combining both our magical power, we can have it select the most appropriate babysitter in all of the empire. We'll know who he or she is because they'll be shining the brightest, like a beacon for us to find."

Everypony outside Trixie's room was now rambling on about whether or not they'd be chosen or not, all except for Trixie who had no idea what was going on, and was just finishing up what she was doing. She left the sanctity of her dressing table and mirror, and heard Shining Armor and his wife finish with, "Since we don’t have a lot of time, we have to do this quickly, and then the three of us will be off once everything is situated."

All Trixie could think about at that time was how her show would turn out, and how much this citywide instance was taking her audience away from her. So, she rolled her eyes, and just as she was about to turn away again, a burst of energy surged through the sky, and it seemed as though there was an earthquake going on. Trixie was scared at first, but then she remembered hearing about this event. She believed it to be the crystal heart bursting with energy from everypony being so happy. Needless to say, that wasn’t necessarily the case here.

Trixie hadn’t really noticed herself shining brighter than all the other ponies that day. She’d have to be looking at herself from up above to really notice. At the time, all the other ponies coming her way, and talking about her seemed like a gathering, mystified audience. One after another started appearing, and Trixie was more than happy to boast, "Yes, come one, come all! Come see the Great and Powerful Trixie perform feats beyond your imagination!" She got up on stage, and it wasn’t until this that she noticed what they were all even gathering for.

Somepony called out, "She’s glowing the brightest!"

And then somepony else, "She must be the one!"

"She’s must be Sitterborn!"

Trixie began backing up. "Umm…"

Then, Princess Cadance showed up overhead, flying gracefully. She landed on the stage in front of Trixie, her eyebrows raised. She then huffed, "Uh, so you’re the babysitter, huh?"

Trixie gulped, and then asked nervously, "Wait, what did Trixie miss?"

Cadance answered while ponies below began to bow, "You’ve been selected by the crystal heart to be Princess Flurry Heart’s royal babysitter."

Trixie blinked at this, and coughed before stating, "What...? You’ve got to be joking."

Shocked at this, everypony gasped, and the princess seemed insulted as well, but she managed to keep herself from flying off then and there. Instead, she asked, "Does it look like I’m joking?"

Trixie glanced at her equipment hidden behind the red curtains. "But why Trixie? She’s just here to perform and make some bits! That’s all..."

Shining Armor had arrived to the scene, and hopped onto stage to explain, "Let me explain. We can’t be here for tonight."

Just as he was getting started, Cadance stopped him by questioning, "Are you sure she was the shiniest out here? I mean, maybe the heart was wrong."

Reactively, Shining told her, "Hey, it can't be! There's gotta be a reason for it choosing... Uhh, what's your name again?"

Trixie answered, looking him in the eyes, "Trixie, and perhaps she's right. Surely there's been some mix up."

Now with raised eyebrows and a nervous smile, Shining Armor pleaded, "No, it couldn't possibly be a mix up. I read that book five times! Hehe..." He looked all around, and coughed. "Wh-what's your special talent, Trixie?"

Trixie smiled wide, and a little deviously, and answered, "The Great and Powerful Trixie entertains ponies with her brilliant magic tricks!"

He clapped after hearing that, and pointed at Trixie while glancing from her to the princess, Trixie's smile deteriorating as Shining Armor spoke. "Perfect! Look, Trixie, it’s only until sometime tomorrow, and the crystal heart must’ve chosen you because you'd do a great job at keeping our baby Flurry Heart entertained."

Trixie averted her eyes as best she could, but no matter how she wanted to refuse the mere notion, Trixie knew she probably didn’t have much of a choice in the matter. Cadance asked Trixie sweetly, "Why don’t you at the very least come have a look at her. You probably haven't even gotten a chance to see what she looks like yet, huh?"

At that, Trixie shook her head. Shining Armor also mentioned, "You'd be doing everypony a huge favor..."

Ponies all around her began chanting as well, that she should at least consider it. So, Trixie grunted in defeat, and said with gritted teeth, "Fine… Trixie will come see the baby."

Part Two

Trixie insisted her caraven be left where it was, and naturally, Cadance ordered a few guards that were present at the time to keep watch of Trixie’s belongings. With Trixie’s mind at ease, she behaved much more cooperative while wandering the great, crystal walls of the inner castle. She even felt the need for a bit of conversation. Considering the three of them hadn’t hardly talked at all, let alone introduced one another properly, she knew just how to get the ball rolling. Cadance lead the way up front, and her husband was now slowing to walk directly next to Trixie, so the showmare began.

"So, you know Trixie’s name, but she doesn’t know yours."

"Oh," Shining Armor huffed. He was clearly embarrassed at the fact that he hadn’t even told Trixie his name yet. "It’s Shining Armor."

Trixie nodded. "Ah, that’s right. Trixie remembers you now. She recalls when you two were wed. It’s been awhile since she’d heard much of anything else, though, except the baby of course."

Shining smiled at her, and said, "Well, you probably know who Princess Cadance is, then. Now… Trixie… Trixie… That name sounds so familiar."

The prince was now scratching his chin in thought. Trixie offered, "Trixie is known widely throughout Equestria. No doubt you’ve heard of the Great and Powerful Trixie from one of the citizens outside the palace."

He shook his head in denial, stating, "No… A-and, it’s a castle. Now, I’ve read about you somewhere..." Then, his eyes widened. Trixie could only guess that Shining had figured out where he’d heard her name from. "My sister Twily! That’s right. She’s told me all about you in her letters."

Trixie blinked. "Twily? Who’s that?" she asked almost snidely.

Shining gestured with a hoof as though Trixie should already know. "Twilight Sparkle, my sister." Shining Armor then began naming off all the things he already knew about, which meant it was probably likewise with his wife. All Trixie could really do was listen, her lively, snooty expression and walk dissipating the longer Shining Armor kept count. "She’s told me about the first time you came to Ponyville, about how you tried to use the alicorn amulet against her, how you nearly ruined your relationship between that one pony, Starlight Glimmer…"

Trixie was now falling behind, her confidence sinking. "Starlight Glimmer?" Trixie asked, but the two up ahead didn’t hear her. She was getting too far away.

The next words to leave Shining Armor’s lips would force Trixie to reconsider, and maybe even run away, abandoning the offer outright. He hadn’t even realized she wasn’t next to his side anymore when he said, "Uhh… All those questionable things you did just confuses me... Why did the heart choose you?" He looked to his right for Trixie, but kept talking. "Maybe it's trying to help you redeem... Trixie?"

He had to turn a full one hundred and eighty degrees just to face her. All Trixie could do now was shake a little where she stood, and hide her face with her hat in shame. She was so proud of herself before entering these walls, too, until she heard that. Cadance even turned around, but not to face Trixie, though. She asked Shining Armor with a bit of shock in her voice, "Honey, you don’t really think that’s actually helping, do you?"

The stallion facehoofed. "Gah! I sound like Pinkie, don’t I?!"

Cadance stepped forth to reassure Trixie, "That’s all in the past now. Just... come with us. We’re sure you can do this." She glanced at Shining, and asked, "Aren’t we?"

He nodded in compliance. "Yes, of course we are!" His eyes dodged the shiny walls for a moment in anticipation. "It’s just, what if Sunburst skipped something in his work or something?"

Cadance again took the lead, and continued the conversation with, "Need I remind you that both of us checked his work for him? We took every possible precaution we could into account, and besides, Sunburst already told us that the results might not’ve been what we envisioned at first. For whatever reason, the heart chose Trixie. We have to trust in the crystal heart, and that’s all there is to it."

They finally reached the end of the corridor where a set of closed doors stood tall. This was without question where Princess Flurry Heart was being kept, and as the doors opened wider and wider, Trixie followed closely behind, still eager to see the baby despite what had happened earlier in the hall. Time slowed down somewhat once Cadance and Shining opened the door fully. They separated one another, and beyond them, dim lights shined down on Princess Flurry Heart's crib. Trixie lifted her torso up and against the white, wooden railing to get a better view. Flurry was all bundled and cozy in this noticeably familiar, silk blanket. Trixie stared not at the baby, but at that peculiar blanket that surrounded her for a second or two.

It was a pale, light blue color with small and white, spaced out dots. "Like glitter... or something," Trixie whispered. Although the parents of this sleepy headed baby heard Trixie’s remark, Shining Armor shrugged it off as Cadance warily looked his way. Trixie just got closer and closer the more she leaned in, blinking her attention away from the familiar blanket and towards what was nestled inside it. Trixie’s hoof started to dangle, trying to pet the locks of Flurry’s beautiful mane, but she had awoken by then, and reached out for Trixie. Their eyes made contact, and Flurry grabbed hold of Trixie’s hoof so snugly, the mare could hardly pull away.

She was just about to let out a pleasant sigh due to how touching the moment was when the baby finally unravel the cloth by using the very wings that hid them. Trixie quickly retracted her hoof once seeing this, and even used it to back away, stunned. Just before her rump bumped right into the closed door she was backing into, she let out a noise of shock that sounded something like, "Gwah!" Then, just before asking her question, she looked back and forth at the confused faces of the prince and his wife. "Sh-sh-she’s an alicorn? You want Trixie to babysit your alicorn baby?!"

Cadance began with, "Well," but Shining Armor answered for her.

"Yes!"

Cadance talked over her husband. "We thought you knew. Trixie, that’s what a princess is…"

"No," Trixie muttered, sinking and again hiding her head under her hat, like she did in the hall. "No, no, no… Trixie doesn’t even babysit." She then lifted herself up hastily, turned and told the two, "What Trixie means to say is… Trixie has had a little experience with foals when she was a filly, before she got her cutie mark. There was this orphanage in Trixie’s hometown that she went to sometimes, and Trixie remembers it having lots of uncared for foals dropped off almost everyday."

Shining Armor asked, "Huh… Really?"

Trixie looked around before stating, "Uh-huh... Trixie made lots of friends there, too, but afterwards, she grew up to become a successful showmare. That’s what she always wanted to be in life ever since she was a foal herself. So, the crystal heart couldn’t have chosen Trixie to take care of your… princess solely because Trixie had once visited an orphanage on occasions so long ago. Right?"

Cadance simply inhaled a fair amount of air, and said with a bit of stress in her voice, "Probably not. According to the book, the spell selects a pony that is destined to do whatever we need them to do, which is just a little vague if you think about it... The point is, in this case, that’d be babysitting our Princess Flurry Heart. It’s only until tomorrow, and besides, it’s not like you wouldn’t be getting a reward."

Trixie’s ears perked. Those were the magic words she’d been waiting to hear all this time. "How much we talkin’?" Trixie asked bluntly.

Before Cadance made her offer, she stared at Trixie, surprised at the immediate change of attitude. "Err, a thousand bits."

To Trixie, that wasn’t really even enough to cover a week’s worth of things she needed. So, she gave the Princess a cocky, raised eyebrow, and smiled. Thanks to this, Shining Armor reacted as if it were an auction by then offering, "Ten thousand gold!"

Cadance covered her mouth when she gasped, but Trixie couldn’t help but cough. She pointed at Shining, and managed to say, "You’ve got a deal!"

Part Three

Time was running short for Flurry’s parents. In fact, it was so short that Cadance had to make things quick but professional all at the same time, something difficult to do when the afternoon was ticking by so suddenly. While still negatively moved by Shining’s actions thus far, she did her best to understand the stress he’d been placed under lately. If anything, Cadance was more content rather than aggravated at how well he had been able to control himself. She’d seen him do much worse in the past when under great amounts of pressure.

Just before getting Trixie situated, who was preoccupied at the time with inspecting the baby, Cadance came to her husband in private to tell him, "Just wanted to let you know…" He looked at her glumly, and didn’t say a word. "Hey, it’s alright…"

He raised his chin up a little bit in order to look her in the eyes. "It is? You mean it, hun?"

Cadance smiled his way, and said, "Of course I do. Look, I know how you must feel, but try not to worry. Everything always works out in the end. Right?"

The stallion started to form a smile, and said, "I guess it does…"

With her husband more focused on what he needed to be doing, Princess Cadance could now tend to the needs of the baby and her new sitter. "Trixie?" Cadence asked while walking up, sounding humble as ever. "There are a few things I’d like to go over with you before we depart for our brief journey."

Trixie had just finished putting down her saddlebag next to the couch in the living room, and was lowered herself from the crib. She looked at Cadance with a smile. "Sorry, your Highness. Trixie’s just so distracted by Flurry…" She glanced back to see the baby coming up to the bars, peeping through to see what was going on, not that she could ever really know at that age.

Cadance agreed with Trixie. "She is cute. That’s for sure."

"Well, besides that, look at those wings!" Trixie said this while hopping back up on the beams and pointing down at them. The way Flurry laid on her stomach made it easy for Trixie to spread one of them out, if only to get a good feel. "They’re so thick with feathers, and heavy…"

"Heh," Cadance quirkily giggled, hoping this wouldn’t go much further than it needed to. "I know, right?" She hoofed with a cheeky, suspicious grin, and then said, "Well, anyways, what do you say we get you up to date on where everything is, and how to go about keeping her entertained."

Trixie nodded, redirecting her attention from the baby to the instructor. "Yes, Trixie is ready. Although, Trixie’s sure she’ll have little trouble."

As they both left Flurry in her crib, Cadance began to speak while entering the kitchen. "I’ll go over the most important things first. Flurry can be… Well, she can be a real headache! Compared to how she is right now, that is…"

Cadance realized she wasn’t making much sense, especially after looking back at Trixie to check and make sure, who asked with interest, "What do you mean?"

Cadance blushed nervously, and explained, "She’s an alicorn, you see. Alicorns have loads of magic. We only just recently got an enchantment for Flurry from a pony named Sunburst, and it keeps her from being able to use her powers." Cadance inhaled some air before saying, "If that enchantment wears off, just call for us, and we’ll come."

Trixie questioned, "How does that work exactly?"

"It’s a spell ponies receive when they enter here. We established it just before having the crystal heart choose a babysitter." Trixie seemed fine with this answer, so Cadance proceeded to show Trixie the basics. "You’ll find her baby formula in the fridge. It’s already bottled and ready to be fed to her should she get a little hungry, which I can almost guarantee you, she’ll probably be wanting just that the moment we leave."

Trixie merely opened the fridge, and then shut it again. "Got it."

"Good… and of course, there’s food in there for yourself as well should you get hungry." Cadance walked towards the master bedroom, where a big, lush bed sat in the middle. It was being hastily made by Shining Armor. Cadance said to Trixie without entering the room, "You can either sleep in here, or on the couch across from Flurry’s crib, next to the balcony. Whichever you prefer."

Trixie hummed, "Hmmm, tough decision."

At that, Cadance rolled her eyes while smiling, and said, "I’m sure it is." She turned around and began walking back towards the living room where Flurry could be found, and asked loud enough so that she could be heard, "Hun? Did you change Flurry’s diaper, like I asked of you before we went to go see Sunburst?"

Trixie heard Shining Armor reply, "Uh, yeah! I did."

Before double checking his work, Cadance muttered, "We’ll see…" Up Flurry went, out of her crib, coaxed in her mother’s shimmering aura. "Hi there, baby girl!"

The foal was quickly held if only for a second so that Cadance could smell her. The second she knew whether or not Flurry’s fresh diaper needed to be tended to, the mother placed her baby back in the crib gently, and all Flurry did through it all was giggle when in her mother’s warm grasp. "See?" Shining asked, coming around the corner. "Told you I took care of it."

Cadance smiled, but didn’t look back at him. "We should be going, then. Just… Trixie? It’s very likely you’ll have to change Flurry's diaper at least once… Can you do that?" Trixie looked worried when asked, "Have you ever done that before? Do you need to be shown?"

Despite fear that she had forgotten the steps by now, Trixie assured not only herself, but Flurry’s parents, "Trixie’s done it at least a dozen times!" She said this statement boldly, and with confidently closed eyes. "Trixie remembers the orphanage having a very young foal that constantly cried, and she would only settle down for Trixie, but she was sweet in a way… She resembled Flurry greatly, come to think of it. If only Trixie could remember her name."

While Trixie held her head for a moment, Cadance asked, "Trixie, you okay?"

Trixie replied, "Started with an 'S', as Trixie recalls... Anyways, Trixie took it upon herself to change the foal when nopony else…" She gestured quotation marks with her hooves when saying, "Had the time."

"Really?" Cadance asked. "You did? Well… That’s a relief. Even though it’s silly for me to think this, I just hope it really won’t come to that, but considering it most likely will happen, are you sure you wouldn’t like a refresher?"

"No, no," Trixie insisted. "Trixie remembers it quite well. So long as there’s enough baby powder…"

Cadance mentioned before grabbing Shining Armor by one of his hooves, "Diapers and the baby powder can be found in the cabinet next to the fridge."

"We ready to head on out?" Shining asked while smirking.

"I suppose so," Cadance said with raised eyebrows. The way she looked around, double checking everything in her head, though, made it seem as if she were anything but ready to go. "Uhh… Trixie? Take care of Flurry Heart. We’ll be back soon. You said you knew how to keep her entertained, right?"

Trixie chuckled, and cockily said, "Naturally."

The Princess glanced mostly at Flurry, who was now beginning to whine for her mother. It was almost as if she knew they wouldn’t be back for a while. "Aww," Cadance sighed, coming on over to say goodbye.

Trixie didn’t stick around too long to watch such a scene, as even the prince was now using baby talk to appease his daughter. In the meantime, just to be sure, Trixie checked to see where the diapers were, as well as the powder. Afterwards, Cadance and Shining Armor could be heard finishing up, so Trixie regrouped with them just in time for Cadance to say, "Alright, we’ll see you when we get back."

Shining Armor smiled at their new babysitter as well, and Trixie hadn’t noticed it until just then, but the smiles they wore were anything but believable, or happy for that matter. Just as the door closed, and Trixie was all alone, she commented, "How entertaining… Trixie can’t help but wonder what threatens Equestria this time!"

Trixie had lost count of just how many instances there were of her minding her own business, and then some villain comes along seemingly out of nowhere to turn her world inside out for a brief time, or as Tirek forcibly once did, steal away her magic entirely. It was returned to her in the end, but putting that aside in her mind, whatever was going on now must’ve been of great importance to call both Shining Armor and Princess Cadance away from their child. With all this running through her head, Trixie hardly heard the baby crying for attention behind her. "Hmm?" As she stopped rubbing her chin, Trixie turned away from the door she’d been looking at. "What’s the matter? Already hungry?"

Trixie wasn’t about to devolve herself by talking like that of a baby towards Flurry Heart. Ever since Trixie was just a filly, she never could understand why other ponies would do that, and even to this day, it perplexed her. To Trixie, when growing up, baby talk always seemed like it would do more damage than good, because then the child wouldn’t know whether to form correct words, or to simple babble on the way they’d always done. Instead, Trixie kept her adult voice in check whenever speaking to Flurry. She started rounding for the kitchen, saying, "Trixie will have to get you something to eat." Just before she was able to finish the last words, however, a remarkably memorable smell passed by her nose.

Although it was putrid, Trixie found herself fondly lapsing to the past, and immediately uttered a few familiar words as well. "Whoa, now that is a magic trick!" Just like Cadance a few moments ago, Flurry was dowsed in magic, this time the aura belonging to Trixie. She was careful when levitating Flurry to the changing table found next to her bath. Trixie spent a surprisingly short amount of time loligagging, and unsecured the pin. Off came the dirty diaper, it only lasting about four seconds in her hooves before her magic grabbed hold of the ends to make it into a bag, and disposed of it in the trash.

Above the justly used waste bin came the powder along with a new diaper. It was uncanny how quickly Trixie was able to get Flurry to stay still long enough, and got her all cleaned and changed in what must’ve been only a few motions. "There!" Trixie grinned at her flawless work. "Trixie bet even Cadance would be impressed." Finally, the last item to come floating through the air in Trixie’s direction was a yummy looking bottle of milk.

After feeding Flurry, Trixie hoped the baby would grow tired thanks to a full belly, and fall asleep. Trixie made sure she wrapped Flurry up snugly in her blue blanket before adjusting her into Trixie’s hooves. Now sitting there, pleasantly wiggling and waiting to be fed, Flurry just looked so adorable to Trixie that she got a bit too distracted. With the bottle in her aura lowering, and Trixie’s smile rising, she couldn’t have possibly prepared what was coming next.

"AH-CHOO!"

Princess Flurry Heart had sneezed harshly, right into Trixie’s pretty face and mane, annoying her greatly. Had she not had the capability of bringing forth a cloth by magical means, and fast, Trixie would’ve likely had a tiny tantrum. Nevertheless, she calmed herself, and looked at the baby as though Flurry Heart knew just what she’d done. Although, she hadn’t. How could she? She’s just a baby, and these were the thoughts that ran through Trixie’s head. They helped, too, because Trixie was already rearranging her scoul into a friendly smirk.

"Trixie knows you didn’t mean to do that," the mare spoke in a matter of fact tone. She began feeding Flurry like she should've in the first place, and watched as the white liquid inside the bottle she held drain slowly with every slurp. Once it was all gone, Trixie sent it on its way to the kitchen sink. Using a fresh cloth, she also made sure no milk dribbled down Flurry’s chin. "Trixie bets that was pretty good, huh?" Flurry even responded by giggling, but no burp had come yet, and judging by the look on her face, this seemed to be irritating her with every slightly pained noise that left her lips.

Trixie remembered hearing something about this very situation when she was younger. It was best to help a baby out when they’re eating by burping them. She had some of the details wrong of course, but that didn’t stop Trixie from holding Flurry against her chest so that the foal's chin would be resting perfectly on the mare’s shoulder. All Trixie had to do was give three little taps on the back, and she’d be regretting it. The sound of burbling and flowing substance pierced her ears, but she dared not look at her ruined cape. All poor Trixie could do at that point was grit her teeth with a scowl, and return Flurry to her crib as soundly as possible. She quickly threw the cape away knowing good and well she’d likely never get the stains out of it, and decided to later buy a new one using the bits she’d be collecting once this whole fiasco was over.

"Flurry will need to be fed again, of course," Trixie mumbled through the teeth she was grinding. Once her article of clothing was discarded, she then suddenly, and rather loudly took in a deep breath, and sighed. "It’s… alright. These things happen." Trixie was even able to form a quivering smile through all of this, happy that it would only be her that would ever even know of these occurrences.

Standing by the trash, and again getting something from the fridge’s general area which happened to be another milk bottle, she also brought forth her nighttime silk shirt she'd brought along, packed away in her saddlebag. This time, Trixie simply fed the baby from up above the crib bars with her magic. Flurry seemed to cooperate the first time around well enough for Trixie to attempt this, and it remarkably went smoother than the last feeding. Flurry even yawned once she had complete her meal. The second bottle was put next to the first, but Trixie wouldn’t be attempting to burp Flurry this time around.

Instead, Trixie simply stayed like that, watching Flurry drift off to dreamland. By the time Flurry began snoring, Trixie began stuttering emotionally, "Y-you know… You’re more adorable than any other foal Trixie’s ever seen. Even though you sneezed in Trixie’s face, and ruined her cape… you’re still just… Just…"

A tear escaped, dropping onto the foal’s free hoof, waking her ever so slightly. Flurry blinked, and stared at Trixie for her to say, "A-and, you’re going to have such great adventures, and laughter with all your loved ones." Her face contorted, and animated into sheer seriousness. "Trixie can tell, too, that times will be hard for you, but not always… Through it all…"

Another tear fell as Trixie nodded.

"Trixie will gladly be your friend…"

Her hoof grabbed where her tears were landing, and Flurry hugged back. She faded back into her dream, and though Trixie wouldn’t know it for quite some time, those words would be the earliest of Flurry's wondrous memories.

prologue

Trixie hadn’t even heard the news yet, about how Princess Cadance and Shining Armor’s baby came out to be an alicorn, and hadn’t even fathomed such a thing yet. This is why it’d come as such a shock for her when she found out. However, for the start of the story, Trixie could be found awakening and leaving through her caravan door. She stepped off the creeky, wooden steps and onto the green, lush grass, and breathed deeply. For what seemed like weeks she’d been traveling, headed for the fork in the road that split her path between the Crystal Empire and Las Pegasus. For the longest time, too, she couldn’t quite make up her mind on whether or not she wanted to return to a place she’d already been to multiple times before in her life, or someplace completely new.

Hidden under the shade of a tree growing way overhead, Trixie peered her muzzle out and into the light, and looked down the faded, stony road to see the mirage of water lying right underneath the post and loosely wired fences. Last night, she had come up that way to read the sign splitting the road in half. Only now was she realizing just how much freedom she actually had with this decision. Either way she went would surely be an overall successful route, because Las Pegasus would always welcome a confident showpony like the Great and Powerful Trixie anyday. The Crystal Empire on the other hoof had never seen such acts performed live, so Trixie would surely be the first to help them with indulging in even more modern entertainment.

She came into the clearing, her hooves clomping loudly against the hard stones she walked on. Had anypony been at her side and asked which way she thought she’d go with, she would’ve chosen Las Pegasus. The nearer she got, however, the less sure she felt about that path, and she couldn’t even conclude why. Something just pulled her closer to the right, where the Crystal Empire could be reached. It wasn’t that she’d gotten tired of the lavish, bustling city she learned most of her tricks from. In her mind, there seemed to be something special about going to the Crystal Empire for a change.

She pulled out a coin from her sattlebag, and considered flipping it, and had she done so, it would’ve landed on tails. "Heads is the Crystal Empire," Trixie said silently to herself. "Tails is… Nah!" She pocketed the thing, and looked down the road towards her right. "The Great and Powerful Trixie chooses for herself for once! A new road awaits."

She got to walking, headed straight for her destination, but quickly stopped after realizing she’d forgotten her caravan. Following a brief return, and a moment of double checking everything, Trixie was ready to officially take off.