Her Last Show

Trixie got to the building very quick. It was on a deserted side street, the last house on the left. It was a small place; barely standing taller than some of the marketplaces in town. It was one of the few industrial buildings in town, made entirely of steel with few windows. The bleak look didn't phase her; she was accustomed to off-putting sets. Although, she did have to admit, it seemed rather unfit for the location of a film. Nevertheless, Trxie happily cantered up the cobblestone path and to the front door. Unlike the house, it was made of wood, applepine trees presumably. There were some scars and indents in the bark, some deeper than others.

Skip in her step, she eagerly rapped her hooves on the door. It wasn't long before a burly stallion opened the doors. He had a tan hide, raven hair, and an oddball cutiemark of a camera and rope. He offered Trixie a kind grin. "Ah, you must be interested in being our lead actress."

Trixie nodded her head enthusiastically. "Trixie saw your ad and wanted to be your star!"

The stallion chuckled at her enthusiasm and ushered her inside. "Please, come in. Make yourself at home." He nudged the door shut behind them and latched it. "Our director isn't here right now, but you may acquaintance yourself with your fellow actors. I'm Cinder, and you just have to call if you need anything." Trixie nodded her head in understanding and collapsed into a black sofa in the center of the room.

Cinder excused himself and exited the room, leaving her with the rest of the cast. She was unbothered to find they were all males. If anything, that fact excited her all the more. She looked around and saw the six of them sitting around a table making bets. She couldn't quite make out what they were saying, so she hopped from her seat to introduce herself.

"Hello," she said with a proud grin. "The Great and Powerful Trixie will accommodate you while she waits for further instruction." Nopony protested, so she sat down on her rump to watch.

One of the stallions smirked. "Nice to meet ya," he said in a strong voice and reached out a big red hoof. "We're mighty happy to have you here. I'm Big Macintosh."

Trixie's ears perked up at his name. "Applejack's brother?" she asked, mouth gaping. He smiled and nodded his head, making her heart skip a beat. She had only ever heard of him, she had never in her wildest dreams imagined he'd be that attractive. His golden hair hung in his face, just barely obscuring one of his green eyes. Even still, she could feel his gaze linger on her even as she focused elsewhere.

The pony sat beside Mac shoved him playfully. "Look what you did, Mac. You made her all flustered." The two shared a laugh at Trixie's expense, who simply pouted and tried to ignore how hot her face was. "You starting early?"

Mac grinned mischievously. "There's no shame in that, is there?"

Trixie cocked her head to the side. "Starting what early?" she asked innocently.

No response came before another stallion entered the room. He was wearing a deep navy suit coupled with a white tie to hide his cream-colored fur, and his blue locks slicked back against his head. The coat he was wearing successfully hid his mark, though she could barely make out an arrow. His eyes fell on the lone mare in the room and he beamed. "Ah, finally, a mare befitting of this role!"

Trixie got back to her hooves and approached him. "You must be the director. I'm-"

"Dearest, I could recognize you anywhere," he interrupted her with a smile. "I was pining for you to join this production. I'm so thrilled you came!" She couldn't help but blush, especially as he scrutinized her. She tensed up when he ran a hoof down her side, sneaking a quick flank touch before retreating his arm. "You're perfect for this role."

She just laughed uncomfortably, playing it off. "Aha, yeah."

"You must be wondering what your role is," he said matter-of-factly. She opened her mouth to confirm, but he produced a stack of papers out of seemingly nowhere. "This is your script."

Perplexed, she looked down at the stack of papers. She enveloped them in her purple aura and brought them up to eye level. She observed slowly, digesting everything. She felt unease settle into her gut when she read the title. "Her last show?" Trixie asked, unsure as to what to think.

The director paid her hesitance no heed. "I did say this would be a controversial film," he reminded her, his smile falling. He looked at the conflict in her eyes and turned away. "But of course, if you aren't willing to be a part of this…"

Her heart sank and she jumped. "Of course not!" she exclaimed quickly, missing the sly grin that split his face. "It's just.. well, kinda ominous, don't you think?"

He simply chuckled, turning around and ruffling her soft mane. "You need to calm yourself, dear," he said with a smile.
Despite his reassurance, Trixie still felt uneasy. She pushed her thoughts away and flipped from the title page. The following page was detailing the cast, and she was taken aback to already see her name listed. Had he just made these? She looked over at him. He was with her crew, chatting it up without a care in the world. Even though she wanted to say something, she couldn't bring herself to.

The director cantered back up to Trixie, wearing his trademark smile. "Do you like it?" he asked.

His tone didn't seem genuine, more expectant. "Yes," she replied quickly.

"Excellent!" he yelled, catching the stallion's attention as well. "I think we've done enough sitting around. It's time to review your scripts. We want to get this thing shot by tonight

Trixie shivered in her boots. "Tonight?" she asked in disbelief.

He waved her off with a hoof. "Yes, tonight. Now enough talking and more practicing."

She just couldn't bring herself to argue, resorting to nodding her head and reading through the script. He left the room and shut the door behind him, leaving her and her crew to their own devices. The ponies around her seemed far less motivated to learn, but she paid them no heed. It was their pay they were jeopardizing, not hers. She flipped through the script, finding it rather short. Though, she found it was so because the script was just made of simple plot lines where the actors would improvise their lines. Improv wasn't exactly her forte, but she had been on the stage many times before and had faith she'd be fine.

She spared a glance in the direction of the stallions. They all stared back, and even though they were smiling, Trixie felt her heart skip a beat. There was something off, but she couldn't put her finger on it.

The script had set her up as a damsel in distress of sorts, kidnapped and used for ransom. She had to admit, she'd never intended on playing such a submissive role, but she swallowed her pride. This could be your saving grace, she reminded herself.

With a sigh, she slumped down and began rereading the script again. That director wanted it filmed by the end of the day, and Trixie didn't want to disappoint. She ignored the concerned voice in her head and ultimately decided.

The show must go on.

A few long hours passed until the director returned, Cinder in toe. Cinder greeted Trixie briefly before hurrying towards the stallions in the back of the room. The director happily approached Trixie, who smiled in return. Her smile faltered however when he announced, "shooting in five minutes."

Trixie shuffled her hooves nervously, following Cinder to the dressing room down the hall.

Once the two were out of earshot, she sighed. "I don't know if I'm ready for this," she admitted sadly. "I'm gonna be honest, I didn't expect my role to be so submissive."

Cinder just chuckled. "It's a one and done. It'll be over before you know it." Trixie opened her mouth to say something, but her words died in her throat. He nudged her towards the closet. "You're on soon, put on a nice dress."

Trixie was confused as to why she had to wear a dress seeing as the script never specified, but she shrugged and approached the doors. She pushed them open with her magic and dug around until one peaked her fancy. She couldn't help but voice her approval as she pulled an extravagant blue gown off its hanger. It was big, puffy, and embossed with patterns of constellations made from gorgeous gems. The cuffs of the arms and neck were silk and iridescent.

Cinder grew impatient and nearly shoved the mare towards the restroom. "Enough gawking. You have three minutes."

Trixie feebly apologized and ran for the restroom. She made quick work of putting on the frilly dress, taking a few seconds to admire herself in the stained mirror. The stomping of hooves alerted her and she quickly dashed back down the hall to the main room.

She discovered that they had put together the 'set' in her absence. She bit her lip checking everything, feeling the wave of unease wash over her once again. All that was there was a filthy mattress and a thick bundle of rope. "Is," she began slowly, "is this all?"

The director, who was now sat in his own personal chair, nodded. "We're low budget," he explained.

She shuddered as the six stallions approached her, eyeing her with hungry expressions. She looked to each face, suddenly feeling ill. "W-why a mattress?" she asked in a trembling voice.

Cinder reentered the room with the tripod. He set it down in front of the dirty mattress and position the camera on top. "You need to relax," he advised as he tweaked the angle. "This is all just an act."

His words of reassurance did little to ease her fear and she yelped when a hoof pushed her gown up. She backed away quickly, whimpering as the stallions approached. "This seems pretty real for an act," she whispered, her ears folding back against her head.

The director looked to Cinder for confirming and grinned when he nodded. "Oh, Trixie," he said in a sickly sweet voice. "That's because it isn't. The cardboard clapped, signalling the scene to begin.