Author's Note

Hello! This is my new project that I will be working on, alongside Sparkle and Flame after I took a short hiatus when I uploaded my last chapter update! I hope you enjoy this new project, and please leave your feedback in the comments!

Chapter 1

Canterlot, 2005.

On the stage set of Plaza Theater, a small crowd comprised of middle-aged men and women awaits the opening announcement of the stage speaker, waiting for the show to start. A minute has passed and the silence that filled the air has been replaced with the sound of a man tapping his microphone.

“Alright ladies and gentlemen, continuing our evening of magic, the Plaza Theater is proud to present The Illusionist!”

The curtains tried to give way for the performer, but they didn't budged. The man tried again to pull the lever, to no avail.

“Ahem, apologies. It seems we have some difficulties. Please, give your warm applause again for The Illusionist!”

The man whispered and signaled the performer hastily as the curtains proved inefficient for the reveal of his introduction. After a few seconds, the performer stepped out. Sporting a starry cape and hat, and a pair of suit, Starswirl The Bearded, who goes by the stage name “The Illusionist” looks at the audience left and right, before taking a bow. Sighing deeply, he fixes his bowtie, putting down his magician’s hat on the small stool he brought with him. He reaches for the inside, but his hand immediately recoiled away from the hat.

After a few seconds, he grabs the hat and shows to the audience the hole of the hat, before setting it back down. Before he could reach his hand in, the hat moved and fell down on the floor, to which he reacted with an awkward stomp. Putting back the hat on the small stool, he reaches in and tries to pull out the thing from inside, struggling for a bit before successfully pulling out a fat rabbit from the magician’s hat. The audience clapped lightly, earning himself an awkward smile as he looked at the audience, his hat moving and falling down on the floor again, moving away from the stage.

Canterlot, 2006.

In the same theater one year later, Starswirl had just finished performing his magic tricks and illusions to an audience who kept bored looks. Picking up the stuff he pulled out from his hat, he went back to his stage room and neatly placed back all the things he used for tonight’s performance. Sighing, he took out a cigarette from his small cigar case and lit it up. “What a night…”, he said to no one in particular. Taking a drag from his cigar, he sat down and began to apply powder on his nose to keep the sweat away. “Another night, another performance.” He muttered.

In the mirror are pictures posted on the sides, containing various memories from his young days as a magician. On the right is him pictured pulling out a glass set of wine from his hat, on the left is an image of him and his old buddies. But one picture, in particular, he kept close is an image of him as a young boy, wearing a set of simple clothes and a hat. He sighed, taking another drag from his cigarette as he looked at his younger self in the photo. A few seconds later, the Rabbit approached him with puppy eyes and flopped down ears. “Yeah, yeah, I got you, little guy.”

Setting down his cigar in the tray, he pulled out a carrot from his magician’s hat and gave it to the rabbit, watching the small creature devour the piece of carrot. “Yeah, I know. Not a lot of magicians these days would bother performing when they’re not as popular as they used to be.” He spoke to the rabbit.

“But it’s better than being homeless, am I right little buddy?” He looked at the rabbit, expecting a reply, but to no avail. Sighing, he went back to his daily dose of smoking, which was rudely interrupted by a loud knocking at the door. “One second!” Taking one last drag, he opened the door to be greeted by the manager of the theater.

“Good evening, Starswirl.” He greeted.

“Good evening, Jackie.” Starswirl greeted back.

“Listen, Starswirl… I got news, and well…”

“Just get to the point, Jackie, You don’t need to go in circles to tell me.”Starswirl said.

Jackie sighed, throwing down the cigar and stepping on it. “You’re laid off, Starswirl. Starting tonight.”

“What? Jackie, you can’t do that to me. I’ve worked in this theater ever since I started my career as a magician!” Starswirl raised his voice.

“I know, I know, and I respect that. But the audience, they’re bored of the same tricks and the same magical illusions you’ve been doing for the past decades. Nowadays, people wants the new entertainment, and-“

Starswirl interrupted him, “So is that’s what this is all about, huh? You want to replace me with a set of boy bands who barely knows a thing or two about entertainment from who knows where?”

“Sadly, you’re right on that one. Look, I appreciate your contributions to this theater, but even you should know when your time is up. Just look at the audience tonight, they looked bored! Your ticket sales are barely meeting the minimum chart, and the theater is losing a lot of money trying to promote you! No offense, Starswirl, but this is business! This is nothing personal!”

“This IS personal to me, Jackie! This theater is practically my second home! I grew up performing in this theater even before you became manager!” Starswirl shouted.

Jackie sighed, and took out an envelope from his suit. “Sorry, but this is the best I can do. This is the last pay I can give. From now on, you’re laid off. I’m so sorry, Starswirl, but I have to keep the business afloat. Nothing personal, but keeping you in here has cost the theater a lot of money…”

Starswirl took the envelope and sighed. “You’re not sorry and you know it. You just care about the profits.” He slammed the door shut.

With tears flooding his eyes, he set down the envelope and sat back down, sobbing as he took his cigarette. I can’t believe this, he’s kicking me out for real! I can’t afford to lose the theater that I grew up in! Yet, even if I fight it, it’s not going to work. Starswirl thought to himself.

“Maybe my time is up. Maybe it’s time for me to move on…”

Two days after he was laid off from the theatre, Starswirl sets off to work at a different theater in Manehattan. After being given the offer from a manager his friend referred him to, he packed his belongings and accepted the new manager’s offer. Starswirl carried only one travel case with his bunny’s cage tied on the top. Perhaps I should get a bigger cage for him. He thought to himself. For Starswirl, Manehattan is a city too big for him, but knowing that this is a big city, it can mean that he can still make it as a magician. Arriving at the Emporium Bay Theater, he adjusts his tie and enters the theater, only to be greeted by a man in a pink suit.

"Ah, hello! You must be Starswirl!" The man said.

"Yes, that is me. Are you the manager that I spoke to two days ago?" He asked.

"Yes, that would be me! My name is Higgins. Come, come! Let's talk in my office." He gestured to follow him.

"So, how's your stay in Manehattan? Grand, I presume?" The manager asked.

"It's alright. I stayed at a cheap hotel for the night." Starswirl responded. He felt like he could do a big impression if he lied, but he knows honesty is the better option.

"Ah, well it's good to save money. You don't know when you'll need them nowadays!"

"Yeah, definitely."

Starswirl sat down on the chair, making sure that his suit is still clean for impression. "Tea or Coffee?" The manager asked.

"Water would do." Starswirl responded.

A moment later, the manager sat down and gave him a glass of water.

"Okay, so here's the deal. You can perform tonight and if it works well, you can definitely stay here."

"That is great to hear. What time am I set to perform?" Starswirl asked.

"Around 10 PM, we have a famous singer performing tonight and the whole theater's sold out for his performance." The manager said.

"That's alright with me. I prefer to perform in the evening. Here's my poster." Starswirl showed the manager his bright blue poster, with him adorning his magician's outfit.

"Excellent! I'll have it posted outside for customers to see."

It's five minutes before the show ends, Starswirl patiently waits at the backstage, donning his magician's outfit. He watched the singer perform from the backstage monitors to try and stave off the boredom of having to wait for full 5 hours. Kid's got some talent, I'll give him that.

Knowing that his performance will end, he stood up and prepared his materials for this magical performance. As the curtains went down, he took two steps before the curtains went up again. He stepped back, surprised that he's still performing. "What the? Isn't it 10 PM already?"

The lever boy responded, "The singer requested an extra hour before he started. Sorry pal."

He sighed, frustrated that he's lost an hour's worth of performance. Alas, he kept his cool and sat back down, waiting for his turn.

An hour has passed, Starswirl dusted off his outfit and prepared himself to step in once the curtains go down. He hopes that there won't be another hour lost to a singer again. As soon as the curtains went down, the singer walked to the back stage, with a grin on his face.

"The girls loved my performance, so much that they're begging me to do an encore! Haha!" He then looked at Starswirl. "Sorry about that old timer, the girl's needed an extra hour of my lovely voice."

Starswirl simply replied, "It's alright."

As soon as the singer is out of sight, he steps in the stage and puts down the stool. As the curtain went up, he is surprised to see that almost all of the audience have disappeared. The only ones that remain would be an old lady, and her two grandsons.

Outside, a wave of fangirls fawned over the singer, blocked by police to prevent them from stampeding over the local celebrity. Some even fought over a poster that he gave to a girl.

Nevertheless, he pushed on and went on to perform. For his first trick, he pulls out a wineglass from his pocket, showing to the audience that it is empty. He covered the wine glass with a cloth, and a few seconds after, he pulled the cloth away to reveal two wine glasses now filled with wine. No applause came from the two young boys, except for the grandmother who smiled at him. Tough crowd.

The next day, he took his poster down from the theater's display box, as he looks onward to find another place to perform at.