I cannot begin to describe how much I hate rain. It soaks through your mane and ruins it, weighs down your fur, and worst of all, it waterlogs the cardboard box that took you forever to find in a size for two. I always loathed having to waste a day going about town looking for a shop with a spare box after the one I had fell apart with sogginess. Let alone having it be an appropriate size for one to call home. Ironically, the box was for a queen size mattress.

That’s something to worry about tomorrow. For now, I cast a small shield above myself and my sister to keep the rain out. It never stayed up the whole night, but not being soaked is always worth an attempt. I glanced at the little pink filly snoring in a cocoon of blankets. I have no idea how she can sleep through the noise, especially the lightning.

Oh, Sabrina… I’m sorry a box and a spell are all I can give you. I ran my hoof across her golden mane, I’ll do better someday. I promise.

I forgot to mention how the day after it rains, the humidity takes the heat and magnifies it. Another item on the list of ‘reasons I hate the rain.’ At least my spell held up through the night. Our square home was saved another rainstorm, and our bedding saved from another day of hanging out to dry.

My stomach growled, it reminded me of more pressing matters. It’d be a shame to have to wake her. Lucky for me, I don’t have to. Broken Record, the loudmouth foal the Canterlot Daily hired as a crier, flailed his bell about, halfway down the block, yammering on and waking anypony that dared attempt to sleep in, ‘Extra, extra! Read all about Prince Blueblood’s possible Timberwolf ancestry! This is an issue you don’t want to miss, ponies!”

Broken Record had a streak of hamming up whatever the headline was for the day. I remember a time when a spell from a mare in Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns backfired and turned the water green for a day or so. The Canterlot Daily had everyone believing that it was a poisonous attack from the Everfree Forest with a very convenient ad for Sparkle-Cola placed just below the headline. He was proof that the loudest voice is usually the one better paid.

I looked at Sabrina. She was tossing and shifting in her blankets, throwing me a tired glance before rolling over to avoid talking to me. I looked down at her and smiled warmly "Now now, Sabrina. We gotta see Paid Tab before the brunch rush comes in." I nudged her in the back with my hoof, and with a groan she tossed her blankets aside and stood up, the cardboard crackling beneath the sudden shift in pressure.

"That mean old stallion yelled at us the last time we came around, why do you think he'd give us anything?" huffed Sabrina.

Paid Tab is the restaurant owner that we could trust to give us surplus eggs, a bit of hay, or on a good day, some candy for Sabrina. Though she was right, the last time they came around, he shouted at us about being too dependent on him. Word was starting to spread that he was feeding rats.

My stomach growled along with Sabrina’s. I know the wounds were still fresh with him, but we don’t have a choice. No other business gives us the time of day. No legitimate business, anyway. I put a hoof on Sabrina, “Even if he’s mad at us, is he gonna turn down the best show pony in town?”

Her mouth straightened from a frown and then curved into a smile. “There’s no chance!”

I grinned. “That’s my Sabrina.”

“Look, Trixie, you an’ Sabrina gotta stop comin’ round here. I’m already gettin’ enough flak from the press ‘fer feedin’ yas. I already said my piece yesterday, and if I’m honest with yas too, I was a bit harsh. But you gotta understan’ where I’m comin’ from, see?” The white stallion scratched his patchy beard. “My reputation’s on the line, an’ I can’ be seen feedin’ yous. You understan’, doncha?”

I looked Paid Tab up and down, and then back to Sabrina who was kicking her hoof in place on the sidewalk, and once again to the alabaster pony before me. “You know what I understand, Tab?” I put a hoof down for emphasis. “I understand that Sabrina is hungry right now. I understand that this might be her only meal for the day, and that everypony else turns their nose up at us!”

Paid Tab ran his hoof across his beard once more. “I get all that, Trixie. But look at things from my eyes, eh? You broke glasses o’ mine, you broke a damn window too. Don’ think I forgot about that. I had to shut down business for a whole two days to get an estimate and an installation. That’s not even mentionin’ how long it took fer folks to forget about it.”

I huffed, “And so what? Do those accidents prevent us from being able to eat?”

Paid Tab blinked, taken aback. “No, no Trixie, you got it all wrong. One accident, fine, cool, whatevers. Everyone has one once in a while. Two, close to the first, yeah again, no big deal. But when yer lil sis keeps havin’ em, and keeps drivin’ away business I gotta turn yous away.”

I pressed a hoof into his chest. “And just where are we supposed to go then, Tab? The soup kitchen we were tossed out of? The shady poorhouses that make our empty stomachs and soggy alley feel like Celestia’s castle?”

Tab wiped my hoof off him, “That ain’t my fault Trixie. It ain’t my faults if yous got nowheres. I feel for yous both, I really do. If I had it my way you twos would have a damn medal for what you gotta do to get by. An’ a damn Bridleway show fer all yer talents. Sabrina, the lil squirt, she’s got the brains an’ ability of two unicorns, I tell ya.” I looked down, I was waiting for the ‘but’. And then he put his hoof on my head and turned it towards him. “But,” there it was, “I have foals to feed too, you know? I got a reputation and restaurant to uphold on top a’ that. It might hurt, Trixie, but somepony’s gotta tell you: I got something to lose, and you ain’t got much more to.”

I felt weak as despair washed over me. I couldn’t look Tab in the eye, I couldn’t say anything at all. It was as though in one line he defeated everything I’ve done or stood for up until that moment. Sabrina saw this, and tugged at my tail. When my eyes met hers, I could tell she felt as I did. I looked back to Tab. “S-so… So what do you suppose we do then? Forage? Get a job? Starve? We’ve tried all of those and are doing the third now. We’ve tried getting jobs, but everypony is acting just like you are now. Stuck up and -”

Paid Tab stamped at the ground. “Trixie, I’m a lotta things, see? But stuck up ain’t one of em’. Why would I help you if that were the case? Why would I even have answered the door for you when I should be in there prepping? Cause I care about yous. But you gotta save yourself from drowning before you go savin’ somepony else. And if the papers are sayin that —”

“Stop!” The world was spinning and I lost my breath. Panting, I trembled to ask, “What papers, Tab?”

“Oh, what? You didn’ hear?”

I shook my head weakly

Tab scratched his beard before returning back to the doorway he was standing in. “A fella by the name of, er… Paper Trail, yeah, Paper Trail wrote this piece about you an’ yer sister ‘ere.”

“What?” I couldn’t believe Tab. Why would anypony care enough about the doings of two ponies like my sister and I?

“Yeah, it was somethin’ malicious that Paper Trail. The long and short of it was, he’d been followin’ yous around town, getting a bead on ya. Supposed to be a piece about Canterlot’s underbelly, but he called you twos ‘Canterlot’s Rats.’”

I had to lean against the wall under the window to prevent falling. “So, you’re saying… That some spineless, silver spoon writer called my sister and I vermin and that you believed him enough to turn us away?”

Paid Tab shook his head. “Not me Trixie. Canterlot. Trail believed it enough to impact me, that’s why I was so harsh on yous yesterdays.”

“Why would somepony do this?”

“I don’t know, Trixie. I wish I knew where these ponies got off. But I don’t. What I do know though, is that I can’t keep servin’ you free grub outta the kindness of my heart anymore.”

I hung my head and heard Sabrina sniffle by where the sidewalk met the road. “So what do we do then, Tab?”

He sighed, “I don’t know Trixie. But whatever it is, you gotta do it away from my business. It hurts me turnin’ you away too, but between takin’ care of you and takin’ care of my two colts at home, I’d choose them. I’m sorry, Trixie.”

I stepped away from him and to Sabrina. I embraced her and looked back to Paid Tab. He wouldn’t look me in the eye, and silently closed the door. He gave us a slow wave, looking as dejected as we did. Whatever it was we were gonna do started elsewhere, so I started walking. I felt tears drip out of my eyes and my pace quickened into a run.

I had no idea where I was running to. My hooves must've known where I needed to go before I did. I was fortunate that Sabrina kept up with me, she has a habit of wandering off when we’re not holding hooves. We found ourselves in the square we usually perform in. We never had any formal magical education, like most other unicorns in Canterlot, so our variety of spells were limited. What we did have though, was charisma with a crowd. It usually gave us enough money to feed us that night.

I always told Sabrina that we should move out of town and into that smaller town to the south, Ponyville. Things were cheaper there, and I might be able to get a proper performing job. We never seemed to keep the money needed to get a train ticket down. Between paying off the guards to not kick us out of the alley and meager meals that kept us from collapsing, there was a smattering left. But that might be all we need…

I looked down at Sabrina, who sniffled before looking up at me. Those emerald eyes. I place a hoof beside her horn. “Sabrina,” I cooed, acting stronger than I really was. “How about we save for the Ponyville train ticket, hm?”

She beamed up at me, and I won’t forget that look. The twinkle in her eye, the bounce she did, and that smile. Sabrina knew how I spoke of the town, all that opportunity for work and for her to go to school and make friends. She wanted this more than I did, after all, only one of us was skipping in a circle.

I placed a hoof beside my face, and she stopped, sitting in place and copied my stance. I smirked, putting on a mock-serious tone and closing my eyes. “I, Trixie Lulamoon.”

I peeked one eye to see her mimic me. “I, Sabrina Lulamoon.”

I shut my eyes again. “Vow to save all bits for a train ticket to Ponyville.” She repeated. “And not to use my share of performance earnings to buy sweets from the bakery.”

There was a pause. I peered at her once more to find her fidgeting. She really did love the eclairs down at that bakery of Flaky Crusts’. “And to… Tonotusemysharetobuysweets!”

I knew it was going to be hard for her. It was going to be difficult for both of us to ration what meager money we did make for a train ride to a place that didn’t guarantee a better life. Though, if Ponyville didn’t pan out, there was always a rock farm in need of hooves somewhere in Equestria.

I stood, and Sabrina followed, looking to the ponies around us who stared for a moment too long at our giving of vows. I stamped on the grey city brick. “With that, the Lulamoon Magic Show has begun! My sister and I here were just sharing our vows to guarantee you a solid show, as is the Lulamoon Standard!” Sabrina put her back into mine and saluted with me to a now gathering crowd, our eyes half-closed in steely determination. One such stallion towards the front levitated a handkerchief and blew his nose loud enough for the ponies near him to put distance between them and the possibly ill him.

Our shows weren’t nearly what they could’ve been, I’d never managed to actually learn magic formally. All I could do were simple spells, but I always managed to find a way to make things interesting and different for the usual crowd that had gathered. You’d be surprised the show a pony can put on with simple illusions. Though, I was wary of the crowd. I never knew if they came for enjoyment or pity. Some may have gathered and thrown their bits in the ring thinking it their good deed for the day. Regardless, I tried to create a show that varied and kept people coming back, and with any luck, from a genuine interest in the show, not the wellbeing of the two performing.

I looked to Sabrina and nodded, smirking for what was about to occur. “Ink Behemoth.” Her horn glowed a dim gold and the ground began to rumble. I let my eyes flutter shut as my horn sparked. In my mind, I could see the spell coming forward. Our eyes snapped open in a white gleam of power. Black splotches splattered across the bricks, seeping further across them, the crowd backing away from it as it drew closer to their hooves. Then, from what looked like the bottom of the inky lake forming, Sabrina created two dots, which faded in from nothing, and grew brighter. Twin pairs of a foul crimson floated their way to the top of the murky advance. Then… Stillness. Nothing stirred, the mirage of an abyss with its piercing eyes held fast. The onlookers, now a much larger crowd, held their breath, anticipating the creature’s next move.

The ground erupted in a spout of opaque ichor, the blinding eyes flashed brighter and a crevice formed under them, sharp lines of white light forming the rows of knife-like teeth. The crowd collectively screamed, running and creating distance between them and it.

Now for my favorite part. My hooves dug into the ground, my legs moving away from each other allowing for a stronger stance. My horn glared brighter with an extra layer of light forming around my already radiant horn. I grunted and heard the same in a softer, higher pitch beside me. The illusion gurgled out an earth-shaking explosion of a roar and drew itself closer to the ponies running away before crashing down upon them, dissipating into a sea of glittering specks.

I released my magic, I collapsed but caught myself before I hit the ground, turning my loss of balance into a bow. Sabrina wasn’t so graceful. I raised my head to stamping hooves. Bits rained down on us, and mares ran to us with handkerchiefs demanding a signature. The stallion that blew his nose helped Sabrina to her hooves and sputtered a few coughs will doing so. He called for an autograph in a nasally pitch. Sabrina obliged, ignoring the more… used areas.

After the show, and all the bits were counted, we set out for Paid Tab’s restaurant, aptly named Tab’s. Though we only had enough for one ticket to Ponyville, and a sore hoof from signing all those autographs, we had enough after the cost to eat a meal at a dignified establishment. Tab’s was not a high-end eatery, but it was good enough to feel like we've gotten ahead.

I felt pride swell through me as I drew closer to Tab’s. I couldn’t recall how long it’s been since I had a meal in a restaurant. And I never had enough to afford one with Sabrina. Today was a fluke in terms of success. A day’s pay matching this one hasn’t happened since we first stepped foot into Canterlot. Before then, it was Manehatten, which was up to its snout in magicians looking to make their mark the same as me. We could never afford to sit down in a restaurant in Manehatten. The best we could do was forage in the dumpsters of those restaurants, or on particularly nasty streaks of starvation, steal vegetables from farms on the outskirts of the city. Today marked a turning in the tides for the Lulamoons, and I hoped Sabrina could see it past her hayburger and soda. On that note, I hope she can settle down enough to sleep after the soda.

The pride then withered away into hollow ennui. There at the sidewalk is where I nearly lost hope. No. I did lose hope in that spot. Looking to the skipping filly at my side, however, reminded me that she was my hope. Today’s success and our eventual move to Ponyville would be with her and for her. The once decayed pride grew again, regaining its place. We were the Lulamoon sisters, masters of the minor illusion and the rats of Canterlot. With pride, I held the door open for Sabrina, and we slipped inside Tab’s to claim our discount.

The smell of sweet stewing vegetables and earthy searing hay greeted me along with a condescending glance from the hostess. The carpets were a dull dark red, going well with the dim lighting to set a mood that one was eating in a cushy hayburger joint, and not one of the common folk. A gentle melody floated above us as we were shown to our booth, light chatter from ponies wearing suits and dresses nestling just under it.

I gritted my teeth as I sat down, but loosened tension when I saw Sabrina’s curious glances to everything within the diner. This wasn’t about being better or worse than anypony else, and it wasn’t about the silent judgement coming from the pony’s fine clothes. it was about showing Sabrina a good night. And promising that this wasn’t the last of them.

We never got within eyeshot of Tab throughout the night, the stallion was a chef as well as an owner, and he liked to produce his product alongside the cooks in his employ. We did catch side-eyed glances from the wait staff from our booth, however. I couldn’t care less, I was beaming as I ordered, as I ate across from my sister, and as I paid for her sake. Even if she didn’t know how much ketchup lined her cheeks or how fidgety Sparkle Cola made her, I’m still happy she got to have ketchup on her, and be hyper from the Sparkle Cola.

I cannot begin to describe how much I hate the snow. It’s cold, especially on your underhoof, and makes the roof of your cardboard box sag down. But worst of all it gets in your underhoof and that frosty pain needs not to be described. I shudder thinking of it now.

“Right, Sabrina? Don’t you feel the same? Isn’t snow just the absolute worst?”

Glancing at her resting within the first snow of the winter season, a patchy plane of slush covering her blanket. She looked pale, but ever since our breakout performance she had always looked of a brighter hue. I nudged her. “Hey, Sabrina. Cmon, you’re not gonna miss your chance to talk smack on the weather, are you?” No response. “Oh well… I guess I’m gonna have to go to Flaky Crust’s alone today…” I trailed off, making my way out of the alley.

Sabrina slumped over. Must’ve been really tired from yesterday, we did try to outdo our breakout performance, after all. “Alright, I’ll let you sleep in today. But I expect you bright-eyed and at attention when I get back with a chocolate eclair.”

I smirked as I made my way towards the bakery and tuned out Broken Record after he droned about a sheriff in Appleloosa being some drunkard from Ponyville imposing a simply unbearable tax on apples to pay for a booze import. Ignoring him was easy with the newfound jingle of bits at my side and a tune in my head from a street performer I saw yesterday. Maybe I should pick up an instrument in Ponyville. Magicians with a score accompanying them would be a sight no one could ignore, or refuse donating to.

The sign on the sidewalk of Flaky Crust’s read, “We made too many! 2 for 1 eclairs and tarts! Get them before they’re gone or before we fire the new baker!” I snorted, what luck. The smell of pastries floated gingerly out beyond the plain glass doors. I took in the smell deeply before stepping through the doors and right into the back of a line. Great, what luck.

During the wait, I savored the thought that my sister and I have moved up in the world. At least, certainly higher than we were a month before. An apartment was out of our financial grasp, as was most eateries. We did have enough to make our box a comfortable one. Thicker blankets, a book on a warming spell and even a sound muffling spell for Sabrina so that she could make all the noise she wanted without drawing the guard in our alley. While I’m embarrassed to admit, she did use it to sneak behind me and make me nearly jump out of my fur more than several times. Such is a filly, I suppose.

I was next in line, and glanced towards the billboard of a menu behind the barista. I knew what I wanted, but it was always a sight to see everything Flaky Crust had on hoof and made every day. We had enough money to nearly afford two tickets to Ponyville. While we did have enough just a few days after our big day, the railways got wind of the whole Nightmare Moon fiasco and jacked the prices. Even though she was gone and the moon was now was mareless, the prices remained. Crooks, I tell you. Though, I was engaging in crooked behaviour by breaking our vows. We earned it and could afford it, so no harm done.

I picked up my two eclairs I set out for, now four thanks to Lady Luck, and winked to the light-green mare behind the counter before heading out. I was feeling on top of the world. Within a few days Sabrina and I would be riding the rails to our future. After so long, aimless and destitute, we were going to succeed. I can finally feel like somepony she looks up to. Though, she was never one to sleep in. Come to think of it… I didn’t see the blankets rise with her breaths at all.

The plain brown bag hit the sidewalk, and I bolted back to the alley with such haste I nearly tripped over my own hooves. I slid into the crack between two buildings to find the top of the box slumped over in a heap of snow. I levitated the snow off, with a shaky magical grip and a shout of her name. The opening returned to its position as a rigid shape and revealed Sabrina. Motionless.

I ran to her, shook her, hurling the blankets off her. Her mouth hung open limply, her eyes stared back at me blankly and unfocused. Her fur was cold to the touch.

“No... No, Sabrina!” I shrieked out into the cold city for help. Broken Record was the first to run to me, and immediately started shouting for help. The city guard came and saw me, clutching my sister’s body to my own, bawling and shaking my head. I was a sputtering mess of ‘no’ and ‘cmon, Sabrina. Come back’. We were so close. We were gonna make it and we were gonna do it together. She couldn’t have...

A guard tried to separate us, and was met with an arcane blast into his chestplate. He and his partner responded by casting a nullifying spell on my horn and barked, “We’re trying to help you!” My vision went red, and I broke through their nullification to cast a forcefield between us, pushing them to the edge of the sidewalk outside the alley, and cracking the bricks to either side of me.

I looked down to Sabrina. She was a cold doll in my hooves, I embraced her again, wailing as the guards pounded on the field. I didn’t care what they did, or what their muffled voices were saying. One of them trotted off, but the other calmed and tried to open negotiations. I will not be reasoned with, especially not by some lowly grunt who would do so by the book. I shivered and cast the warming spell over Sabrina and I. I winced as I finished it and looked down to her glassy eyes. Closing my eyes, I cast Sabrina’s sound muffling spell and let myself scream until my voice gave out.

The second guard returned with Paid Tab in tow. His mouth hung open, and his expression was blank. I threw him a searing look that I wished burned every patch of fur off him.

“What in Celestia’s name are you doing here, Tab!?” I coarsely barked.

“Trixie, when they told me I thought, I dunno, I thought it’d be another one of Sabrina’s tricks. Like that time she —”

“Does this look like a trick, Tab!?” I held up Sabrina’s body, her head jolting and then slumping down.

He cringed, and averted his gaze. I seized him with a magical grip, forcing his eyes open and his head towards her. “Look Tab. Don’t you dare look away.”

“Alright! I get it Trixie, Celstia damn it. I’m sorry. I wish I could do more.”

“Oh is that it?” I held Sabrina back in my hooves once again, “What was it you said Tab? That you have something to lose, and there ain’t much more I can?”

He looked down, regret soaking his face, only to be yanked up to face me. I saw his eyes begin to water. “Trixie, I’m sorry. Really, I am. I thought you twos would —”

“That we’d pull ourselves up by our bootstraps? You believe that, you silver spoon stallion? This world isn’t fair, Tab. How is this fair. We were so close.”

Paid Tab sighed, wiping away a tear. “Look, Trixie. I wish I could’ve done more. I wish Canterlot was more to second chances. And third, and fourth.”

I shot him a glance. He flinched and resumed, “I can help you still, though. Look, I’ll pay for Sabrina’s funeral, out of my own pocket. Maybe even give you a job.”

“Now you wanna help me? Are you joking?”

“Trixie, if not for you, then for her. She’d want to be put to rest.”

“What did you say?”

“She’d…. She’d want to be put to rest.”

“She’d also want to make friends in Ponyville, get her cutie mark, go to school, grow up! She would’ve wanted a meal when her stomach was empty, how dare you.”

He gulped, looking to the stoic guards at either side of him. “Trixie. You’re gonna have to come out of there eventually. And you’re going to have to bury her some time. Let me help you, I know I was wrong to turn yous away, but allow me to do this. For her. For Sabrina.” The guilt on his face was painful. He was being genuine, and I wanted his help. I just… I couldn’t let go.

I hung my head, giving Sabrina a look then one to Tab. “Ok, we’re doing this today. You’re paying for the — “I winced, “—the autopsy too.”

“Of course.”

I glanced to the two guards, casting a longer one on the stallion with a singed chestplate, “And these guards aren’t going to press arcane assault charges either.”

The three gave each other mutual stares and nodded. I released the forcefield, and we made our way to the mortician’s building, as per the direction of the guards. One guard blew a whistle, and a crowd of guards drew close, forming a tight circle around us.

The autopsy ruled it as an airborne disease he’s only ever seen in one stallion before. I wish I could’ve heard him better, but the walls were making waves like a plaster ocean and his voice was out of focus. I did hear that it builds up without any noticeable signs, other than a sniffling nose, which is normal in colder months, and then kills in one’s sleep. Of course, I was then tested for it, and miraculously didn’t catch it.

I had been tuning out what the mare leading the funeral was saying, flashing back to the autopsy room. The words, “Trixie, if you would say a few words,” came into sharp focus and I snapped up and made my way to the north point of her grave. A small black coffin in a filly sized grave with a small mound of soil beside it.

“Sometimes,” I began, my voice shaky. “Silence speaks more than words can.” I hung my head and let a tear fall, a small splash against her coffin. My eye twitched when I grabbed the first hoofful of dirt from the pile and dropped it in. I felt a piece of myself drop in with the clump. After the second I felt it again. The first shovelful, more. When the coffin was covered, and the mound was gone, I felt no trace of myself. I was an empty shell.

All at once, a fire ignited in my heart, and it quickly rose to an inferno. I felt a new identity forcing itself to life. I felt Trixie Lulamoon leave me in the dirt. In her stead, stood the Great and Powerful Trixie.

Paid Tab silently walked behind me, and put his hand on my back. “I’m sorry Trixie. She was a talented filly.”

I spun to face him, his hoof outstretched. I shook it, and with a sneer, leaned in and whispered, “The Great and Powerful Trixie forgives you.”

Author's Note

How's that for a start?
As always, be sure to upvote and comment what you thought!