A Great and Powerful Wrath

Departing Fillydelphia

Three days had passed since Trixie arrived in Fillydelphia to tell her mother about everything that had happened. While Trixie was expecting an unpleasant reaction from her mother and a rocky visit overall, her visit was very pleasant and the two had done things that they had not done since she was a filly.

As Moonrise was fixing breakfast that morning she couldn't help but wonder if she would ever get to meet Starlight. She asked, "So Trixie, am I ever going to get to meet Starlight...." she began to laugh, "or am I going to have to wait until the wedding?"

Trixie said, "Mom, don't jinx it! I haven't even told her about my feelings yet!"

Moonrise replied, "Well I would still like to meet your first crush."

Trixie suggested, "Hey, what would you think of coming to Ponyville with me. I don't think there will be anything special going on so you should be able to get to know her just fine."

Moonrise asked, "So would you want to leave right after breakfast?"

Trixie replied, "Of course I would. I really want to get back to Ponyville and see Starlight again."

Moonrise smiled, "Yeah and tell her how you really feel? After all, she needs to know so you won't have to worry about anypony else hitting on her and maybe taking her."

Trixie agreed, "I will have to do that."

After they finished their breakfast they departed for the train station and departed for Ponyville. While Trixie was simply excited to get to see Starlight after a few days away, Moonrise was anticipating much more. Despite looking forward to meeting Trixie's crush and hoping she held the same feelings, a voice in the back of her head told her that much more was going to happen than a mere meeting.

A Second Invite

Starlight and Twilight were finishing breakfast on another ordinary morning when the mail arrived. As Twilight looked through it at first there was nothing out of the ordinary until she discovered a letter that was not only addressed to her, but also Starlight and Trixie. Twilight opened it and gasped, "Starlight, my brother wants us to go back up to the Crystal Empire."

Starlight asked, "Already, this soon?"

Twilight replied, "Yes and he wants Trixie to come too."

Starlight celebrated, "Yes, I am so happy that she wants her to go too!" She gave Twilight a curious look and asked, "Twilight, did he say why he wanted her to come?"

Twilight replied, "No but the fact that I received a letter from him rather than Cadence does concern me because he never sends their letters, it is always Cadence."

Starlight said, "Well I guess we'll find out once we get up there."

Twilight sighed, "Yeah and now we just have to wait for Trixie to get home...."

Just as she said this there was a knock on the door and Twilight continued, "Perhaps that is her, perhaps she finally learned how to knock."

Twilight headed to the door and opened it. Before her stood not just Trixie, but a darker blue unicorn mare wearing the same style of cloak and hat as Trixie. Twilight looked at her and asked, "And you are.....?"

Moonrise replied, "Moonrise Lulamoon, The Awesome and Powerful Moonrise!"

Twilight asked, "So how are you related to Trixie?"

Moonrise replied, "Moonrise is The Great and Powerful Trixie's mother."

Twilight rolled her eyes in frustration realizing that now she would have not just one pony who speaks in the third pony, but two and she wanted to put a stop to it right then and there. She asked, "Trixie, Moonrise, I know you two normally speak like this but could you please speak normally. Having one pony do it is bad enough but having two of them do it is unbearable."

When Starlight finally heard Twilight address Trixie she rushed to the door and hugged her friend. She said, "Trixie, it is so good to see you're back. I was really getting worried about you."

Trixie replied, "I'm so happy to see you too. The Great and Powerful Trixie was very happy to visit her mom but she is even more happy to see you again!"

Moonrise watched Starlight closely and could see the love in her eyes. She could sense the energy between the two was full of love but her thoughts would be interrupted when Twilight shouted, "Trixie, did you even hear a word of what I said?"

Trixie asked, "What?"

Twilight again told the two Lulamoons that she wanted them to speak normally rather than in their normal way and while Moonrise could understand that it was annoying her, Trixie couldn't. She asked, "What, you really want The Great and Powerful Trixie to speak like you do?"

Twilight sighed, "Yes and besides, Starlight speaks like that too. Given you two are so close just think of it as speaking like that for her." Twilight looked at the door and continued, "Trixie, I know you just got back but the three of us are needed in the Crystal Empire. My brother has summoned all three of us."

Moonrise gave Twilight an intense look and said, "Well if my daughter is going up there, so am I."

There was something about Moonrise's stare that unnerved Twilight. Twilight replied, "Ok, well I'm thinking we should leave here right away."

She noticed that Starlight and Trixie were talking about her trip and not even listening. She raised her voice, "Ahem, Trixie, Starlight, we are leaving for the Crystal Empire now. Come on, my brother said he would be waiting for us at the station."

The two nodded and all four of them headed to the station to catch the next train to the Crystal Empire. While Trixie and Starlight obviously were focused so much on one another that they weren't even thinking about it being Shining Armor who wanted them to go up there, Moonrise was doing her best to get a good feel of Twilight and Twilight herself couldn't help but be very nervous over why it was Shining who invited them and not Cadence.

The Interrogation

There were an abnormally large number of ponies on the train that day and there were only four empty seats. Starlight and Trixie sat next to one another and Twilight found herself crammed next to Moonrise. Twilight felt very uncomfortable sitting next to Moonrise and she could sense it. For the whole trip Twilight could see Moonrise watching her out of the corner of her eye and it was really freaking her out. Just as they were pulling into the Empire Twilight snapped, "Could you stop it? Could you stop watching me out of the corner of your eye? It is really freaking me out."

Moonrise replied, "Oh I'm sorry Twilight, I just find myself doing that and trying to get a feel for ponies that I meet."

Once the train stopped entirely a whole flood of ponies left the train. As soon as they got off the train they were greeted by Shining, "Twily, it is so good to see you again!"

Twilight replied, "It is so good to see you too!" Twilight's happy mood changed to one of concern as she continued, "Shining, I am curious. Why was it you that sent the letter wanting us to come up here instead of Cadence? You never send the letters."

Shining replied, "Well we've had a disaster happen up here recently and Cadence and I need to talk to the three of you, especially to Trixie."

Twilight asked, "Trixie? Why Trixie?"

Shining replied, "You'll find out more once we get to the throne room."

This caused Twilight a great deal of concern considering that she couldn't think of any real reason why her brother or Cadence would need to speak to Trixie.

Once they arrived in the throne room they were greeted by Cadence but Twilight immediately noticed that one pony was not present, Flurry Heart. She asked, "Cadence, where is Flurry Heart? You normally have her with you when I come up to visit."

Cadence raised her voice and said, "We are having one of the guards watch her right now because we do not feel comfortable with her being around Trixie right now."

Trixie's ears shot up when she heard this. She asked, "What? Why would you not feel comfortable with Flurry being around The Great and Powerful Trixie?" She saw Twilight giving her a glare so she continued, "I mean why don't you feel comfortable with her being around me? She loves me."

Cadence cast her gaze at Shining and asked, "Do you want to tell her or should I?"

Shining replied, "I think it would be best if I did." Shining cast his gaze towards Trixie and began, "Trixie, last Thursday night we had a horrible tragedy strike up here. I don't know how it happened but somepony broke into Sunburst's house and brutally tortured him to death."

Twilight screeched, "What? Somepony brutally tortured Sunburst to death?"

Not only were Cadence and Shining Armor watching Trixie closer, but so were Twilight and Starlight. Once he saw that he had the attention of most everypony he continued, "Trixie, I don't mean to jump the gun here but not only do I, but also Cadence, have reason to believe that you killed him."

While Trixie was shocked that they would even think that she would do such a thing, she knew she had to be strong. She knew that if there was ever a moment to be like her mother, that this would be it. She asked, "Really, someone tortured Sunburst to death? Why would they do that?"

Cadence walked up to Trixie and replied, "Trixie, we all remember how you were distraught when Starlight went with Sunburst to talk and also given that you told us about your crush on Starlight, both Shining and I have reason to believe that you viewed him as a threat and wanted to take him out."

Before anypony could say anything else Starlight rushed to Trixie and hugged her, "You have a crush on me? Really?"

Cadence used her magic to pull Starlight off of her and said, "Yes Starlight, she did but right now is not the time for you to celebrate. YOUR friend was brutally tortured to death."

Shining locked eyes with Trixie and asked, "Tell me Trixie, did you or did you not view Sunburst as a threat? Were you worried that he might win Starlight's heart?"

Twilight added, "And don't even try to lie to my brother. He can spot a liar a mile away."

Trixie stared intently into Shining's eyes and replied, "I will admit that I viewed him as a threat but I certainly wouldn't kill him over it."

Shining asked, "Is that so? I know enough from Twilight about your history that you would probably have no problems doing it." He got closer in her face and continued, "After all, you did banish Twilight from Ponyville when you had that amulet."

While she was still not the biggest fan of Trixie, Twilight came to her defense. She interrupted, "Shining, when she had that amulet on, it corrupted her. When a pony uses the Alicorn Amulet, it corrupts them and the more she used it, the more it corrupted her so I don't think the amulet situation would apply here."

Everypony, especially Shining Armor and Cadence were shocked that Twilight would go to her defense. Shining did realize that he would have to ask something else. He asked, "Trixie, I want to know something. Where were you on last Thursday night?"

Trixie replied, "I was visiting my mother in Fillydelphia."

Shining looked up and said, "What a shame she isn't here to vouch for you, it would make you far more credible."

Moonrise spoke up, "Actually she is here. I am Moonrise Lulamoon, Trixie's mother."

Shining walked over to Moonrise and given that she is a taller mare, he was able to meet her eye to eye without bending down any. He asked, "Moonrise, I want to know something. Is what Trixie said the truth? Was she visiting you last Thursday night?"

Moonrise replied, "Trixie arrived in Fillydelphia last Thursday afternoon and has been by my side ever since then."

Moonrise's intense glare into Shining's eyes began to make him weak in the knees. He stepped back and said, "Ok, I believe you."

Cadence motioned for Shining to come to her and asked, "Shining, are you ok? That Moonrise pony seemed awfully intense."

Shining replied, "I'm ok honey." He then regained his composure and continued, "Well everything Trixie and her mother has said seems true but I want to see how they react to the crime scene and his body."

Cadence said, "Alright but I'm coming with you. I don't trust Trixie's mother."

Shining nodded and said, "Well, so far everything seems fine but follow me. I have a couple of things to show everypony."

Everypony nodded and followed Shining out the door. Moonrise walked by her daughter and gave her a smile as she knew that so far Trixie had the same toughness as her, the type of toughness that will get her through this.

Seeing the Evidence

A few minutes later they arrived at Sunburst's house, which had been roped off with police tape. Shining lifted it up and said, "Go on in everypony."

They all headed in and despite knowing it inside and out, Trixie pretended to be disoriented. Shining said, "Trixie, back here. Come back to the bedroom."

When they all crowded in there they all gasped in shock when they saw the blood stained floor. The one to be most affected by this though was Trixie. She began to cry, "Somepony killed Sunburst and spilled this much blood? That is awful, absolutely awful."

While Trixie's crying shocked Cadence and Shining Armor, what really surprised them was the solemn look on Starlight's face. Cadence asked, "Starlight, are you ok? I thought you would be really sad."

Starlight replied, "I am sad, I just try to appear strong in situations like this."

Shining put his hoof on Trixie and said, "Come on Trixie, I think there is one more thing we need to see."

Trixie asked, "What is that?"

Shining replied, "You'll see."

They all followed Shining as they headed towards the city morgue. While Cadence was getting frustrated that despite her belief that she did it, it seemed more and more like perhaps Trixie didn't do it. Moonrise was walking in the back with a smile on her face realizing that if her daughter can pass one more test, that she will likely get away with this.

As they entered the morgue the first thing they couldn't help but notice was how small and cramped it was. Starlight, who is no fan of cramped places, said, "How can ponies even work in here? It is so cramped."

Shining replied, "They just do."

As they headed into the large freezer where the bodies awaiting burial were located Trixie knew what Shining was going to show them and knew that she would have to try and cry real tears, that her tears could not be overly dramatic like that of Rarity. When Shining presented them with Sunburst's bruised, battered and tortured body, everypony except for two began to cry tears of agony, Shining Armor and Moonrise.

Shining saw the agonizing cries coming from Trixie and realized that their suspicions about her being the murderer were wrong. He bent down, stroked Trixie's mane and said, "I'm sorry for suspecting you of this Trixie. I know now that a genuine cry such as yours could never come from a murderer."

Trixie sniffled, "Thank you for believing me your Majesty."

Shining replied, "Just call me Shining Armor, it would make me more comfortable."

Trixie said, "Alright."

Shining stood up and suggested, "How about we get out of here? It is cold and I'm not sure about you, but I think we should get away from these bodies."

Moonrise said, "I agree. Being around so many corpses is very unnerving."

As they left the morgue Shining addressed everypony, "Well I am glad we were able to determine that Trixie was not the one who killed Sunburst."

Trixie sniffled, "Hopefully you'll be able to catch the murderer someday."

Shining replied, "I hope so but I have a feeling this will likely become one of those crimes that will never be solved."

Given that there was no longer any reason for them to be up there, Moonrise asked, "Shining Armor, since all of this is over and done with, could my daughter and I head back to Ponyville?"

Shining replied, "Yeah unless you want to have a good meal with us."

Cadence added, "And Trixie, I'm sure Flurry will be excited to see you!"

Moonrise sighed, "Alright, a good meal sounds alright."

Shining said, "Follow all of us to the palace then. I'm sure you'll enjoy all the delicacies of the Crystal Empire."

They followed Shining towards the palace and Moonrise nudged her daughter and gave her a smile. She bent down and whispered, "You're a chip off the old block you know that?"

Trixie whispered back, "I know. Now for the hard part."

Moonrise asked, "Hard part, hard part about what?"

Trixie replied, "Telling Starlight I love her, that I have a crush on her."

Moonrise couldn't help but laugh, "Trixie, your crush to her has already been revealed! I'm sure you two can bring it up during this meal and make your relationship official."

Trixie replied, "Oh yeah, you're right."

Moonrise said, "I know I'm right."

Moonrise was certain that her daughter could get through this easily and just as she expected, she did. She was very proud of her daughter for being as good of a liar and actress as her and now she waited for just one thing, for Starlight and Trixie to admit their love and grow closer and closer. While she would never admit it, she thought that Starlight was likely the only pony out there deserving of Trixie's love.