Chapter
"Hey, Starlight! Where are you going?" Trixie fell into step beside her friend, who was plodding down Ponyville Main Street in the direction of Twilight's castle.
"Oh, hi, Trix! Nowhere special, I'm just heading back to the castle for some more magic practice." Starlight shot the other unicorn a friendly smile.
"Can Trixie come with you?" she questioned eagerly... almost too eagerly.
She thinks she's being so subtle! "Sure," Starlight replied, turning her head to hide her grin. "I'd like that."
"Yes! Trixie is happy!" Trixie squealed, clasping her hooves. "I can't wait to practice magic. I'm getting so good. And speaking of magic... Trixie wants to show you something." She closed her eyes in concentration, chewing on her lower lip, and her horn flashed with magic. Bolts of white light beamed out of it, coalescing into the shape of a small heart, and transformed into a golden heart locket which then floated downwards into Starlight's outstretched hoof. "Trixie has been working on her transformation spells," the unicorn proudly informed her.
Starlight gasped. "My, you've gotten so good! And this locket is gorgeous! Thank you!" Genuinely touched, she slid it around her neck.
"It's not as gorgeous as you," Trixie commented offhandedly. Then she flushed, realizing that she had said too much. "Er - what Trixie meant was -"
Unable to conceal her grin any longer, Starlight allowed her muzzle to break out into a wide smile. "Oh, Trixie, did you really think I couldn't tell that you've been trying to flirt with me this whole time?" she giggled, holding a hoof to her mouth to stifle her laughter.
"You - you could?" she stammered, her ears drooping.
"Of course I could," she answered with a laugh. "And I have to tell you, it was kinda -"
"Enough! Trixie has heard enough!" Apparently, she had mistaken Starlight's amusement for condescension. She straightened her back and turned her muzzle up, staring at Starlight with narrowed eyes. "Trixie isn't good enough for you, is she? Well, perhaps Trixie should go and find somepony who appreciates her more! Hmph!" Nose in the air, she whipped around and stalked away, tossing her mane. But she wasn't able to keep up her facade for long and soon broke down in tears, increasing her pace to a gallop and teleporting away somewhere so that nopony could see her cry.
Starlight Glimmer stared after her in bewilderment. "What in the name of Pinkie Pie's insanity just happened?" She was used to Trixie's occasional mood swings, but this was different somehow. "Did I say something wrong, or... oh. Oh." She gasped. "She thought I was laughing at her." Groaning, she shut her eyes and ran a weary hoof through her mane. "I have to fix this..." Determined to make things right, she teleported away to the place she knew Trixie would have gone to in order to cry in private - her caravan.
***
"Trix! Trixie, open up!" Almost in a panic, Starlight hammered on the door of the caravan, cringing as some flakes of paint fell off but refusing to halt her onslaught. "TRIXIE! I know you're in there! I need to talk to you!"
The door suddenly swung open, and Starlight almost fell inside but managed to regain her balance just in time. "What do you want?" Trixie snapped, glaring, her eyes still watery and red-rimmed.
"I wanted to apologize," Starlight responded, her words tumbling over themselves as she rushed to explain her earlier behavior.
"Trixie doesn't need your apologies," the unicorn answered haughtily.
"No, please just listen..." She hung her head and sighed. "I'm sorry you thought I was laughing at you. I wasn't. And, well, before you interrupted me I was going to say I thought your flirting was kinda... cute."
Taken aback, Trixie blinked. "Y-you were?"
"Yes, I was. It was like... like..." Starlight cast around for a metaphor she could use that Trixie could relate to. "You were like a rabbit from a hat. You kinda shocked me when you came out all of a sudden, but when I looked closer I realized that you were cute. And then, when I thought a little more, I realized that I had actually liked rabbits all along. Because who doesn't?" Although this was the most embarrassing moment of her life - even more embarrassing than when she'd been caught trying to brainwash an entire town - Starlight forced herself to press on with her metaphor. Trixie needed to hear this. "And then, by the time I finished thinking, I realized that I didn't want to do anything else but hold that rabbit forever, and cuddle her, and see her first thing when I wake up every morning. In fact, I guess I've liked that rabbit for a really long time now. Because..." she dropped her gaze shyly. "Because that rabbit is the most amazing rabbit in the history of rabbits, and nothing would make me happier than watching that rabbit shine and be part of many, many more magic tricks to come."
By now, Trixie's eyes were brimming with tears again - happy ones this time. "Do you really mean it?" she whispered, in the quietest and humblest tone of voice that Starlight had ever heard from her.
"Yes... yes, I do. So..." Blushing, Starlight conjured up a bouquet of small blue flowers that matched Trixie's coat in hue and held it out to her, wearing a hopeful smile.
"What are these for?" The unicorn frowned, taking a cautious step back as though there were bombs nestled between the petals.
Starlight sighed. "You doofus. I'm asking you to go out with me."
Trixie gasped, her eyes shining, and slowly reached out to accept the flowers, staring at them in pure awe. Then she threw them over her shoulder and flung her hooves around Starlight in a crushing hug. "Yes! Yes yes yes yes yes! Trixie promises that she will make you happy!"
With a fond grin, Starlight returned the embrace, pressing their foreheads together. "I know you will, my little rabbit," she murmured softly against her muzzle. "I know you will."
Author's Note
Hope you enjoyed, despite how short it is!
