I Like Youby TheKing2001ChaptersChapter IChapter IIChapter IIIChapter IVChapter VChapter I“Why do I need to make MORE friends? I got you, Spike and the others of the Mane Six. Isn’t that good enough?” I asked nervously. Why should I make more when I have all I need? Twilight gave a chuckle and gave me a warm smile. “Because. Making friends with the rest of the Elements was the first small test. Now you have the true test of going out and meeting a complete stranger and getting to know them. Isn’t this exciting!?” Twilight giggled. Making friends with the other Elements sure didn’t feel like a small test. “Oh yeah. Real exciting,” I rolled my eyes. “I know!” Twilight grinned. Somepony needs to teach that mare the definition of sarcasm because mine just flew over her head and out the window. She’s like Pinkie Pie right now. She doesn’t get sarcasm either unfortunately. Her lack of that skill has got me into some crazy messes, let me tell you. I shudder at the thought of us attempting to eat cake underwater. Who even thinks of something like that? I don’t even like cake! “Who do you think you’re gonna try talking to first?” Twilight was staring at me with a smile. I hope I hadn’t been accidentally ignoring her the whole time she was talking to me. “Uh I don’t know. I don’t really know anyponys names in town,” I admitted sheepishly and rubbed the back of my head. “Lucky for you, I have a whole scroll full of the ponies in this towns names, likes and jobs!” Twilight beamed as she levitated a few scrolls our way. “Of course you do,” I mumbled softly with an eyeroll. I really should have seen that coming. Twilight wrote down literally everything. Just the other night she wrote down how much water and time is used when Spike takes his daily eight hour bubble bath. That’s energy that can be used for something productive. Like flying kites or reading or napping. I never really liked napping until I met Rainbow Dash. Now I take one everyday. Quite refreshing, really. Thirty minutes of naps each day are actually proven to be good for you. “And then you can bring them for the dinner with Princess Celestia tonight!” “I’m sorry what?” I did a quick double take. If I had water in my mouth, I’d have spit it all over her accidently. Why do I need to automatically drag a friend to a dinner with the ruler of Equestria. Wouldn’t that be slightly awkward for a complete stranger who didn’t know he or she was getting into that? “Princess Celestia is coming all this way to see how I’m doing as a teacher and how you’re coming along. She’s very eager to test us both,” Twilight smiled. “I’m actually kinda nervous about it.” Now there was a shocker. Princess Twilight nervous about something? Never would have seen THAT coming. That was sarcasm, for the record. “You and me both sister,” I sighed as I sat down on my haunches. Twilight frowned and approached me, placing a hoof on my shoulder. “Starlight? Is everything alright?” I sighed and made eye contact with Twilight. “No it’s not. It’s just I’m fine with my friend group as is. I don’t want nor need more friends. It’s already a lot trying to keep up with all of you. Why add one more pony to the mix when my life is already going good and fine how it is? Why change a good thing? What is it that Applejack always say? If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it?” I sighed. “I’m just confused about all this. Aren’t I doing good with everything else? Have I disappointed you somehow and this is a way to see me fail so you can get rid of me?” Twilight shoved her hoof in my mouth and my eyes widened. It tasted like ink and dusty books. Disgusting. “I’m not doing this to get rid of you, Starlight. You haven’t disappointed me either and you’re doing great. But I’m the Princess of Friendship. I teach more than just magic. All I want is for you to have more friends,” Twilight explained. I spit her hoof out of my mouth and gagged a bit. “First off, your hoof tastes like ink still from when you accidentally stepped in that inkwell Rainbow and Pinkie pranked you with. How they managed that I have no clue. And I’ll try to make friends I guess,” I sighed as I wiped my tongue off with a hoof. “Excellent!” Twilight beamed as she levitated me and carried me outside to the foyer and the main doors. She opened the doors and plopped me on the ground. “I have complete faith in you!” She waved as the doors shut. I didn’t expect her to just pick me up and drop me like that. I could have countered her spell but I was too stunned to do anything. I also didn’t expect her to make me do it right now. I wanted a nap. With a long sigh, I headed to town. “Top of the morning to ya!” A magenta earth pony with a lime green mane eagerly waved as I trotted past a flower stand. “Uhm hi,” I paused and made eye contact with the mare. “Want to buy a flower?” She asked hopefully with a smile. I overlooked the bright red roses and daisies. I’m not really knowledgeable about flowers but they look pretty I guess. Isn’t that the whole point of flowers? “Uh I guess?” I shrugged. “I’m not really sure about flowers or know much about them. I don’t know anything about plants really.” The mare giggled as she turned around. “Well I’ll help you. I’m the flower expert!” The mare announced. “I’m Daisy.” “Uh I’m Starlight. Starlight Glimmer,” I mumbled. Daisy gave a nod as she nudged some purple flowers with her muzzle. “Princess Twilight’s student, right?” She asked before grabbing a purple flower. “Uh huh,” I answered cautiously. Daisy turned around and spit the flower out, holding it in her hooves. “That’s cool. Lean forward please,” she replied. I raised an eyebrow in confusion but complied. She slid the flower into my mane and stepped back. She excitedly clapped her hooves together and beamed. “Excellent! It matches your fur perfectly! It’s a perennial.” I levitated a mirror in front of me and stared into it. “Wow. It actually makes me look not ugly,” I admitted in awe. Daisy frowned at me slightly. “Whoever said you’re ugly is wrong. Nopony is ugly and you certainly aren’t. You don’t need flowers to see that,” she chided. “Thanks. How much do I owe you?” I levitated my bits out of my saddlebags. “Ten bits,” Daisy announced as she nosed open the register. I plopped the bits on the counter and she counted them out, sliding them in the drawer with a hoof. Nervously, I decided to take a risk. “Uhm wanna go hang out later?” I asked cautiously. Daisy shut the drawer and frowned at me. “Sorry but I’m busy later,” Daisy shrugged and my face fell. This was stupid of me. “I’m sorry for asking. I’ll get out of your hair,” I muttered and she cocked her head to the side curiously. “Are you-?” I didn’t hear the rest of her sentence because I teleported away and leaned against the tree I was reappeared at in Applejacks farm. This was my favorite spot. The smell of apples calmed me down. I slammed my head against the tree and groaned. That really hurt, I should be careful. “I’m so stupid thinking Daisy would want to be friends.” Chapter II“Uh what are ya doin?” My eyes shot open and stared into concerned green eyes of Applejack. I stretched out my hooves and groaned. I accidentally fell asleep apparently in her orchard. In my defense, the grass the was comfy and the tree gave me some very good shade. “Nothing. What about you?” I asked nervously. Hopefully Twilight didn’t tell the others about me having to go make friends. “Harvestin’ apples. You’re turning into the unicorn version of Rainbow, sleeping in mah orchard and all. At least ya ain’t sleeping in mah trees,” Applejack smirked and sat down next me, tucking her legs under her. “Bit for your thoughts?” “What?” I asked as she rolled an apple my way. “Thanks for the apple.” She placed a hoof on it before I could levitate it to my mouth. “Hey! I haven’t had breakfast yet.” “Then ya better start talkin and tell me what’s goin on,” Applejack gave me a smug look. “Ah ain’t stupid. Ya got that look on yur face that says something is wrong.” “Fine. Twilight wants me to make some more friends today to bring to some dinner with Princess Celestia,” I admitted. “But I’m fine with my friend group as is. Why change something that doesn’t need messed with. It’s like you always say. If it ain’t broke...” “Don’t fix it,” Applejack finished for me. “Exactly,” I sighed. “I just met a pony named Daisy. She seemed nice enough but didn’t really seem interested in being friends.” “Well did ya give her a chance?” Applejack asked and I glared at her. “What in the wide world of Equestria is that supposed to mean?” I demanded. “It means ya sometimes run away from ponies before they can finish their sentence,” Applejack said bluntly. “You don’t sugarcoat anything do you?” I sighed. I should have known that considering who I was talking to. “Nope. Wait right here. Ah got a mare ya might like,” Applejack stood up and galloped off. “Well that was fast. I’m going back to sleep,” I announced to nopony in particular. I tucked my legs back under myself and closed my eyes. “Hey wake up.” I cracked an eye open at Applejack standing next to me with another mare. I opened the other eye and stood up. “Hey what’s up?” I yawned and covered it with a hoof. The orange maned pony next to Applejack gave me a faint nervous smile which made me nervous. I don’t know why but ponies being nervous makes me nervous if that makes any sense. “This is Junebug, the mare ah I told ya about. She’s very friendly,” Applejack smiled. “She’s also very shy and is mah cousin.” Is everypony in this town her cousin, what is going on? “Hi. Nice to uh meet you,” I held out a hoof hopefully. “H-hi,” Junebug stuttered as she shook my hoof carefully. “H-how are you?” “Been better. How about yourself?” I’ve never met another pony with a stutter I don’t think. Kinda makes her unique. “I-i’m doing good,” Junebug rubbed her mane and looked away. She and Fluttershy would get along great honestly. Both very shy mares. “Ah’ll leave yall to get acquainted,” Applejack winked at us as she trotted off. “Sooo. What do you like doing for fun?” I asked. I assumed that was the next step on the quest of making friends. When I was a foal, I just winged it and hoped for the best. That probably would explain why I only had Sunburst as a friend. I should really look into that in my free time. “I-i find bugs, plant my flowers and rehome insects. You?” She asked. Now this was a topic I liked. Magic was my life. I loved anything related to magic. “Magic. Anything magic related. It’s practically my life,” I grinned. “Scratch that, it is my life!” “W-wait right here,” Junebug stuttered before trotting off. My ears flattened against my head. I assumed she was running off because I don’t know. “H-here.” She held out a bunch of flowers with a hopeful look. Maybe she could actually be my friend. That would be nice. Hopefully Princess Celestia didn’t care about stuttering mares being around her. If she did and was a bitch about it, my respect for her went to zero. I leaned forward and sniffed. They smelled....familiar. My eyes widened slightly in horror. “Are these Bermuda Buttercups?” I asked in fear. Junebug gave a slow confused nod. “I’m allergic!” I gave a sneeze and the flowers went all over Junebugs mane and face. She gave me an unimpressed look and I rubbed the back of my head sheepishly. I didn’t know what to say so I resorted to the one word I could think of. “Sorry?” “Okay so Junebug is out. She seemed upset about that whole accident,” I mused to myself as I rubbed my red eyes. It was painful at first but it’s gone down now. I was getting some weird looks as I trotted to the fountain. Hopefully the smell of the water and the smell of the fresh air would help calm down my allergies. I wasn’t mad at Junebug, she couldn’t have known. Maybe once she gets over I accidentally sneezed the flowers all over her she will come around. She seemed like a nice mare from our very limited conversation. Maybe one day we can get to know each other a bit better. I’ll have to remember her occupation of collecting bugs and flowers. What the hell she does with the bugs, I have no clue. Only one way to find out. I’m just gonna give it a few months before I ask around where she lives or approach her in public. I took a slow breath. What if I make no friends? What if I’m lonely forever? “Quit panicking Starlight. Quit panicking!” I shouted and everypony stared at me in confusion. I looked around in embarrassment did the only logical thing a pony could do in this situation: I ran. That was so embarrassing and I’ll never be able to live that down. Not until I die. Maybe not even after I die. I’ll have to move towns, change my name. Change my mane color and get married to a rich mare or stallion as a coverup. “You’re still panicking, Starlight. Breath in and breath out. Slowly.” I breathed in and out, counting the breaths I took. That slowly started to work and I calmed down. “Need help making friends huh?” Rainbow asked as she rested on her cloud above me, peering down. “Gah!” I screamed and looked around. “Don’t scare me like that again.” Rainbow rolled her eyes. “If you’re done Twilighting, I got three ponies you could meet.” Chapter III“Alright so who exactly are these three you want me to meet?” I asked with a raised eyebrow as Rainbow flapped her wings to stay aloft above me. “Wait for it,” Rainbow grinned as a roaring sound got closer and three pegasus landed in front of us, their smoky trails fading in the sky. “The Wonderbolts! Meet Soarin, High Winds and Sassaflash.” “Uh hi?” I said as they took their goggles off. The one who I assumed was Soarin approached me with an outstretched hoof. “Nice to meet ya. I’m Soarin if you haven’t figured it out,” he commented with a smirk. It was surprisingly a warm smile and not smug as I had expected. I shook his hoof and stepped backwards. “Sassaflash here lives in Ponyville,” Rainbow explained as she shoved the mare forward. “She lives with Sea Swirl, the unicorn with the dolphins for a cutie mark. I wanted to get a Wonderbolt who lived in Ponyville here. It was either Sassaflash or Bulk Biceps and well, he’s a bit excitable so I picked Sassy.” “Starlight right?” Sassaflash asked as she examined me. “You’re lucky Dash found me first. Raindrops is a bit grumpy, Cloudchaser has an ego, Sprinkle Medley would drag you into her house for music, White Lightning would get you drunk and Cloudkicker would drag you into her house for a different reason.” “Oh and what reason would that be?” I asked curiously. Sassaflash gave me a look and raised her eyes as I blushed. “Oh.” The others snickered a bit as I recovered from that. “Yeah Cloudy has a bit of a reputation,” the remaining Wonderbolt commented as she brushed her mane with a hoof. “So you’re the one who needs help with something the Princess assigned to you?” “You haven’t told them?” I asked Rainbow in surprise. Rainbow shook her head as the three other ponies gave us confused looks. “Nah. It’s your responsibility since Twilight gave this,” Rainbow explained and I turned around to hide my eye roll. “Twilight wants me to well make a friend,” I said simply and shifted nervously on my hooves. The three looked at each other and laughed as my ears pressed again my head. “That’s so Twilight!” Sassaflash giggled as she climbed to her hooves. “And I guess she said Rainbow and the others didn’t count, right?” “Right.” “I’m down,” Soarin shrugged. “Always could use more friends I suppose.” “Wanna race?” High Winds suggested and flapped her wings. “First one to the hill wins.” “Oh uh I don’t know,” I scuffed my hoof in the dirt. Rainbow wrapped her foreleg around my neck and grinned. “Oh come on! It’ll be fun. No teleporting either!” Rainbow exclaimed sternly as she stretched before giving her own wings a flap. “Ready, set, go!” The four took off and I spun around from the force of their take offs. “Woah!” I muttered as my eyes stopped spinning. “Dizzy. Hey wait for me!” I stared at the rapidly disappearing pegasi and sighed. “I’ll just go see Fluttershy I guess. Maybe she has some advice.” I raised a hoof and gently tapped it against the door of Fluttershys cottage. I hope I wasn’t waking her up. She could be great at unknowingly guilt tripping people. A white bunny opened the door and glared at me. “Oh it’s you,” I grumbled as I gave the bunny a dirty look. Angel and I didn’t really get along well ever since he repeatedly stole my carrots and swapped out my mane conditioner. Rainbow and the others secretly call him the devil of Ponyville. “Is Fluttershy home?” Angel stomped his foot a few times and made some noises and disappeared into the house. Either he was cussing me out in Bunny or what, I have no idea. He stuck his head out and angrily gestured for me to follow him. With a shrug, I followed him inside and closed the door with my magic. “Holy hell,” I said in awe as I stared at the plethora of animals in her house. There was even a bear. Who just has a bear chilling in their house like this? “Oh hi Starlight,” Fluttershy said quietly as usual as I stood in her living room. “I didn’t know you were coming over.” “Yeah sorry. Kinda freaked out a few times about this whole friend thing and figured here was a decent place to go to calm down. Just met some of Rainbows Wonderbolt friends. They’re well interesting to say the least,” I smiled faintly as we sat down. “I wouldn’t exactly call them her friends,” Fluttershy frowned as she stroked a squirrel with her wing tip. “She has a complicated relationship with them all.” “Huh weird. They seemed friendly when I met them,” I shrugged and stared at the bear. “She’s friends with the Ponyville ones but that’s because she was friends with them before they went to the academy. You know, Raindrops, Sassaflash, White Lightning, Cloudchaser, Cloudkicker and Sprinkle Medley. They all work on the weather team with her,” Fluttershy explained. “Cloudchaser and Flitter were always bullies.” Well I’m glad I didn’t really meet them. If Fluttershy doesn’t like someone, that’s a pretty good indicator that I shouldn’t like them or socialize with them either. “Got any advice or any ponies I can be friends with?” I asked hopefully and grinned at her. Fluttershy rubbed her chin with a hoof and her eyes lit up. “Wait right here. I don’t have a pony you can be friends with per se,” Fluttershy answered as she flapped her wings and flew off. I sat waiting as she quickly returned with a small bee on her hoof. “Meet Mister Buzzington. He’s a very nice honeybee.” He buzzed for a few moments and waved a leg. “He says hi how are you? He also likes your mane.” “I’m good and tell him I said thanks,” I answered. “Just one problem Fluttershy.” “What’s that?” “I think Twilight meant my friend had to be a pony.” Chapter IVI waved goodbye to Fluttershy and trotted down her path to the rest of town. I kinda wish Sunset was here, she had a similar past to me. Then again, she probably wouldn’t want to be my friend after I took her cutie mark and all. That most definitely wasn’t my greatest moment. I trotted past a large stage and tilted my head curiously at it before shrugging and continued walking. I didn’t think anything big was going on in the town but I guess I was wrong. “Hello darling!” Rarity called out from her upper window. A cream mare with a light blue mane waved me over with a smile. “Hi Rarity.” “Starlight, meet Coco Pommel. She works for me in Manhattan and is a close friend. Maybe you two can get to know each other?” Rarity suggested with a grin. I closely examined the mare and circled her, taking careful note of her cutie mark. I’m assume it was a weird hat with a feather, so clearly a fashion cutie. Explains how she came to be working for Rarity. “Sure why not?” I gave a shrug and stood in front of her. “Uh, hi.” “Hello,” Coco bowed her head slightly and I raised an eyebrow at Rarity who waved her hooves off in some random direction. “Do you wanna get coffee?” “Uh sure. I’ll catch up. Gotta have a word with Rarity,” I said and forced a smile on my face as she nodded. I waited till she was a few feet away and spun around. “Are you trying to get us to be friends or get us to go on a date?” “It’s just coffee darling. And besides, I don’t think Coco swings that way,” Rarity said as she placed a hoof on my shoulder. “Just give it a go. I don’t even know if you swing that way.” I didn’t really see the point in telling her I was into mares and stallions. Preferably mares but meh, minor details. “I’m into both but alright. I’ll go for coffee, make a friend, satisfy Twilight,” I said and ignored the back of my mind telling me how dirty that sounded. “And then go to spa probably and take a nap in the hot tub.” “Ooh, do be a dear and tell Aloe I’ll be there this week! Ciao!” I made a noncommittal grunt and waved a hoof as I trotted towards Coco. Who knew friendship had so much responsibility? “So how exactly did you come to work for Rarity?” I asked and stared into my coffee. Despite Rarity proclaiming this wasn’t her attempt to get me a date like she’s tried so many times in the past, it sure felt like one. “Oh, that’s an easy story. I was working for Suri, she stole Rarity’s designs and tricked her into not going to the fashion competition so she could win. I later told Rarity what happened, I quit and Rarity hired me a few months later after she opened a store front in Manehattan,” Coco explained as she looked around the small cafe we had found. “You?” “Oh, I met Rarity when they came to village when I forcibly took their cutie marks in an attempt to make all of Equestria give up their cutie marks so I could be the sore ruler and they defeated me. Later, met her again after I confronted Twilight in her castle with Sunset and a few other ponies and tried to alter the timeline so Twilight never met her friends,” I said and leaned back in my chair as Cocos eyed widened. “I -oh- I see. That’s uhm, an interesting back story?” Coco offered weakly and gave a sheepish smile. “And you haven’t taken anyponys cutie marks recently?” “No!” I exclaimed and slammed a hoof down on the table, recoiling at her scared expression as some other ponies glanced over at us. “No, I haven’t. Last pony was Sunset Shimmer and that was awhile ago. I don’t really want to rule Equestria anymore. I’d have been a terrible leader anyway.” Or well, I think I would have been. A country doesn’t really need a former villain ruling the country. Doesn’t really seem like the type of thing to boost morale among the ponies or towns. “You never know,” Coco offered as I watched the sun start to set. “I mean, you’re trying to change, correct? I don’t think Princess Celestia or Princess Luna were the greatest leaders right from the beginning. They had to learn themselves. And then you had the Lunar Rebellion Nightmare Moon issue.” “True. But I’m fine with not leading anything ever again. I’m just looking to have a simple quiet life,” I said as Coco chuckled. “Well maybe living with Princess Twilight in Ponyville isn’t the best place for that. I heard that this town is a regular hot spot for monster activity and then you have the normal drama that seems to follow Rarity and the others.” “You got a point there,” I said with a faint smile. “Ponyville is kind of crazy. Just last week, we had a herd of goats came rampaging through. The Ponyville Alarm went off like crazy.” “The Ponyville alarm?” “Roseluck, Daisy and Lily,” I clarified as Coco nodded. “They get scared super easily and scream whenever a monster comes into town or other animals. Granted, they also scream when a flower stem gets bent so they aren’t entirely reliable but they are okay I guess. Lily doesn’t trust me and thinks I’m going to take her cutie mark so she hides from me with Roseluck. Daisy is pretty much the only friendly one.” “That’s not nice,” Coco sighed and finished her coffee. “How did they find out about your past?” “I let Twilight tell the town. If I’m gonna try to change myself, everything I’ve done has to be all out on the table right?” I asked and stood up with Coco, levitating some bits to pay for our coffees. Why we chose coffee when the sun was setting, I will never know. “I’m not sure. It’s been nice meeting but I have to get back to Raritys.” “Goodbye,” I muttered as she started to walk away. “Oh and Starlight?” “Hm?” I grumbled and looked at her. “Forgiveness comes from within. Make sure you forgive yourself before other ponies can forgive you.” Chapter VI stifled a yawn as I dragged my self into the spa and slapped down some bits on the counter. Aloe or Lotus took them and I pointed to a sign behind them. I could never really tell them apart. Rarity and Fluttershy always said their names together so it was easy to get confused. Or maybe it’s a weird clone thing. “Thank you,” I said and nodded respectfully at Aloe. Or Lotus, one of the two. “Oh and Rarity said she would be back this week. Wanted me to tell you.” “Thank you miss,” the blue pony said. I’ve been here so much due to Rarity dragging me along, I’ve gotten used to their accents. I sat in the chair and relaxed as they put some weird green gunk on my face. I faintly remembered a pony on the seat behind me and smiled faintly. “Thank you Aloe,” I said as she paused before laughing. “I am Lotus. It is okay though. My sister and I easily get confused together,” Lotus chuckled as she dropped some cucumbers over my eyes. I idly wondered when that got started. I’ve always eaten cucumbers and that’s it. Well, maybe once as a teen for a more explicit dirty reason but we won’t talk about that. “Hello there,” I said and hoped the pony behind me was friendly. “Hey.” “How are you?” I asked curiously as Lotus rubbed my thigh. “I am decent. Yourself?” The mare asked as she stretched a bit. “Stressed out so I came here. Twilight wants me to make friends with some of the town folks but well, I haven’t really clicked with them ya know?” I said and nervously tapped my forelegs together. “I have a well just let’s just say complicated past and not many ponies are similar around here.” “I can relate. I have a bit of a complicated history myself,” the blue unicorn commented as she let out a moan. “Thanks, my foreleg was bothering me for a bit.” “Quite welcome.” “What did you do?” I asked curiously as the mare laughed quietly. “You first.” “I asked first.” “Came to town to do a magic show, two idiots brought an Ursa Minor to town, got me ran out and lost all my publicity, forced to work on a rock farm. Came back months later for revenge with the Alicorn whatsitcalled, enslaved the town and eventually got defeated again. Your turn,” the mare said as she sighed. “Oh you know, forcibly took cutie marks from Twilight and the others in an attempt to make all of Equestria give up their cutie marks so I could be the sole ruler and they defeated me. Months later, I confronted Twilight in her castle and a few other ponies and tried to alter the timeline so Twilight never met her friends,” I explained as I watched Lotus smile at me. “We don’t judge here for the record,” Lotus said and I sighed in relief. “We are open to anypony and everypony.” “Thank you,” I said and she nodded. “Hey, what are you doing after this?” The mare asked suddenly. “Probably going back to the castle. You?” “Not sure. Wanna hang out?” “Sure. I’m Starlight Glimmer by the way. What’s your name?” “Trixie.” I galloped down the hallway, hoping Trixie was hot on my hooves. She was a very attractive blue unicorn to say the least. Her purple eyes and silvery hair was adorable but I’d never say that out loud. “Twilight!” I called out as I searched for her. “Twilight! Where are you?” “I’m in the library!” Twilight called out as I skidded to a stop and Trixie ran into my flank as I turned red. “Trixie is sorry.” “Well Starlight forgives you,” I said with a wink as we turned around and started heading to the library. We had spent all night together, ice cream and just talking. We did get some pretty angry looks, mainly Trixie to my annoyance. “Twilight, I made a friend!” “Excellent!” Twilight said and closed her book, giving me a large grin. “She’s great!” “Great!” “She’s powerful!” “She’s powerful?” Twilight asked in confusion and gasped as Trixie stepped in. “Hello, princess,” Trixie said with a large grin. “Trixie? That’s your friend?” Twilight shouted as I jumped. Out of all the reactions, that isn’t what I expected. I expected happiness. I did what she wanted and made a friend. Right? “Yeah,” I said and smiled as Trixie wandered over to the table and levitated a fork to her face. “She’s super cool!” “Can we talk? Alone?” Twilight said and jerked her head to the left. I gave a nod as we trotted over there. “Are you out of your mind? Trixie of all ponies? She enslaved the town!” “And I enslaved a village,” I shot back and raised an eyebrow. “What’s your point? Don’t you trust me?” “I do trust you Starlight but well are you sure she’s going to be a good influence on you?” Twilight asked and placed a hoof on my shoulder. “Yeah I’m sure,” I said and gave her a glare. “Trixie is a nice pony and a good friend. She’s the only one in town who didn’t judge me for my past actions.” “I didn't judge you, Starlight. Are you sure you don’t want to be friends with anypony else? The mailmare is nice and so is Octavia. Maybe you could be their friends,” Twilight suggested and I gently removed her hoof. “I’m sure. Just please trust me. I got this,” I said as Twilight tossed Trixie a look as she levitated more forks to her face. “Alright. I do trust you Starlight. Don’t ever doubt that,” Twilight said as we walked back over to Trixie. “I hope you’re a good influence on her Trixie.” “Oh don’t you worry princess. I’ll be a good influence on our dear Starlight,” Trixie gave Twilight a mischievous smirk. “I have nothing but good intentions for my friend.” Trixie levitated the forks down onto the table as she wrapped a foreleg around my neck. Kinda felt nice to have a friend that wasn’t one of Twilight’s friends. I liked them but still, nice to make friends on my own.
Chapter I“Why do I need to make MORE friends? I got you, Spike and the others of the Mane Six. Isn’t that good enough?” I asked nervously. Why should I make more when I have all I need? Twilight gave a chuckle and gave me a warm smile. “Because. Making friends with the rest of the Elements was the first small test. Now you have the true test of going out and meeting a complete stranger and getting to know them. Isn’t this exciting!?” Twilight giggled. Making friends with the other Elements sure didn’t feel like a small test. “Oh yeah. Real exciting,” I rolled my eyes. “I know!” Twilight grinned. Somepony needs to teach that mare the definition of sarcasm because mine just flew over her head and out the window. She’s like Pinkie Pie right now. She doesn’t get sarcasm either unfortunately. Her lack of that skill has got me into some crazy messes, let me tell you. I shudder at the thought of us attempting to eat cake underwater. Who even thinks of something like that? I don’t even like cake! “Who do you think you’re gonna try talking to first?” Twilight was staring at me with a smile. I hope I hadn’t been accidentally ignoring her the whole time she was talking to me. “Uh I don’t know. I don’t really know anyponys names in town,” I admitted sheepishly and rubbed the back of my head. “Lucky for you, I have a whole scroll full of the ponies in this towns names, likes and jobs!” Twilight beamed as she levitated a few scrolls our way. “Of course you do,” I mumbled softly with an eyeroll. I really should have seen that coming. Twilight wrote down literally everything. Just the other night she wrote down how much water and time is used when Spike takes his daily eight hour bubble bath. That’s energy that can be used for something productive. Like flying kites or reading or napping. I never really liked napping until I met Rainbow Dash. Now I take one everyday. Quite refreshing, really. Thirty minutes of naps each day are actually proven to be good for you. “And then you can bring them for the dinner with Princess Celestia tonight!” “I’m sorry what?” I did a quick double take. If I had water in my mouth, I’d have spit it all over her accidently. Why do I need to automatically drag a friend to a dinner with the ruler of Equestria. Wouldn’t that be slightly awkward for a complete stranger who didn’t know he or she was getting into that? “Princess Celestia is coming all this way to see how I’m doing as a teacher and how you’re coming along. She’s very eager to test us both,” Twilight smiled. “I’m actually kinda nervous about it.” Now there was a shocker. Princess Twilight nervous about something? Never would have seen THAT coming. That was sarcasm, for the record. “You and me both sister,” I sighed as I sat down on my haunches. Twilight frowned and approached me, placing a hoof on my shoulder. “Starlight? Is everything alright?” I sighed and made eye contact with Twilight. “No it’s not. It’s just I’m fine with my friend group as is. I don’t want nor need more friends. It’s already a lot trying to keep up with all of you. Why add one more pony to the mix when my life is already going good and fine how it is? Why change a good thing? What is it that Applejack always say? If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it?” I sighed. “I’m just confused about all this. Aren’t I doing good with everything else? Have I disappointed you somehow and this is a way to see me fail so you can get rid of me?” Twilight shoved her hoof in my mouth and my eyes widened. It tasted like ink and dusty books. Disgusting. “I’m not doing this to get rid of you, Starlight. You haven’t disappointed me either and you’re doing great. But I’m the Princess of Friendship. I teach more than just magic. All I want is for you to have more friends,” Twilight explained. I spit her hoof out of my mouth and gagged a bit. “First off, your hoof tastes like ink still from when you accidentally stepped in that inkwell Rainbow and Pinkie pranked you with. How they managed that I have no clue. And I’ll try to make friends I guess,” I sighed as I wiped my tongue off with a hoof. “Excellent!” Twilight beamed as she levitated me and carried me outside to the foyer and the main doors. She opened the doors and plopped me on the ground. “I have complete faith in you!” She waved as the doors shut. I didn’t expect her to just pick me up and drop me like that. I could have countered her spell but I was too stunned to do anything. I also didn’t expect her to make me do it right now. I wanted a nap. With a long sigh, I headed to town. “Top of the morning to ya!” A magenta earth pony with a lime green mane eagerly waved as I trotted past a flower stand. “Uhm hi,” I paused and made eye contact with the mare. “Want to buy a flower?” She asked hopefully with a smile. I overlooked the bright red roses and daisies. I’m not really knowledgeable about flowers but they look pretty I guess. Isn’t that the whole point of flowers? “Uh I guess?” I shrugged. “I’m not really sure about flowers or know much about them. I don’t know anything about plants really.” The mare giggled as she turned around. “Well I’ll help you. I’m the flower expert!” The mare announced. “I’m Daisy.” “Uh I’m Starlight. Starlight Glimmer,” I mumbled. Daisy gave a nod as she nudged some purple flowers with her muzzle. “Princess Twilight’s student, right?” She asked before grabbing a purple flower. “Uh huh,” I answered cautiously. Daisy turned around and spit the flower out, holding it in her hooves. “That’s cool. Lean forward please,” she replied. I raised an eyebrow in confusion but complied. She slid the flower into my mane and stepped back. She excitedly clapped her hooves together and beamed. “Excellent! It matches your fur perfectly! It’s a perennial.” I levitated a mirror in front of me and stared into it. “Wow. It actually makes me look not ugly,” I admitted in awe. Daisy frowned at me slightly. “Whoever said you’re ugly is wrong. Nopony is ugly and you certainly aren’t. You don’t need flowers to see that,” she chided. “Thanks. How much do I owe you?” I levitated my bits out of my saddlebags. “Ten bits,” Daisy announced as she nosed open the register. I plopped the bits on the counter and she counted them out, sliding them in the drawer with a hoof. Nervously, I decided to take a risk. “Uhm wanna go hang out later?” I asked cautiously. Daisy shut the drawer and frowned at me. “Sorry but I’m busy later,” Daisy shrugged and my face fell. This was stupid of me. “I’m sorry for asking. I’ll get out of your hair,” I muttered and she cocked her head to the side curiously. “Are you-?” I didn’t hear the rest of her sentence because I teleported away and leaned against the tree I was reappeared at in Applejacks farm. This was my favorite spot. The smell of apples calmed me down. I slammed my head against the tree and groaned. That really hurt, I should be careful. “I’m so stupid thinking Daisy would want to be friends.”
Chapter II“Uh what are ya doin?” My eyes shot open and stared into concerned green eyes of Applejack. I stretched out my hooves and groaned. I accidentally fell asleep apparently in her orchard. In my defense, the grass the was comfy and the tree gave me some very good shade. “Nothing. What about you?” I asked nervously. Hopefully Twilight didn’t tell the others about me having to go make friends. “Harvestin’ apples. You’re turning into the unicorn version of Rainbow, sleeping in mah orchard and all. At least ya ain’t sleeping in mah trees,” Applejack smirked and sat down next me, tucking her legs under her. “Bit for your thoughts?” “What?” I asked as she rolled an apple my way. “Thanks for the apple.” She placed a hoof on it before I could levitate it to my mouth. “Hey! I haven’t had breakfast yet.” “Then ya better start talkin and tell me what’s goin on,” Applejack gave me a smug look. “Ah ain’t stupid. Ya got that look on yur face that says something is wrong.” “Fine. Twilight wants me to make some more friends today to bring to some dinner with Princess Celestia,” I admitted. “But I’m fine with my friend group as is. Why change something that doesn’t need messed with. It’s like you always say. If it ain’t broke...” “Don’t fix it,” Applejack finished for me. “Exactly,” I sighed. “I just met a pony named Daisy. She seemed nice enough but didn’t really seem interested in being friends.” “Well did ya give her a chance?” Applejack asked and I glared at her. “What in the wide world of Equestria is that supposed to mean?” I demanded. “It means ya sometimes run away from ponies before they can finish their sentence,” Applejack said bluntly. “You don’t sugarcoat anything do you?” I sighed. I should have known that considering who I was talking to. “Nope. Wait right here. Ah got a mare ya might like,” Applejack stood up and galloped off. “Well that was fast. I’m going back to sleep,” I announced to nopony in particular. I tucked my legs back under myself and closed my eyes. “Hey wake up.” I cracked an eye open at Applejack standing next to me with another mare. I opened the other eye and stood up. “Hey what’s up?” I yawned and covered it with a hoof. The orange maned pony next to Applejack gave me a faint nervous smile which made me nervous. I don’t know why but ponies being nervous makes me nervous if that makes any sense. “This is Junebug, the mare ah I told ya about. She’s very friendly,” Applejack smiled. “She’s also very shy and is mah cousin.” Is everypony in this town her cousin, what is going on? “Hi. Nice to uh meet you,” I held out a hoof hopefully. “H-hi,” Junebug stuttered as she shook my hoof carefully. “H-how are you?” “Been better. How about yourself?” I’ve never met another pony with a stutter I don’t think. Kinda makes her unique. “I-i’m doing good,” Junebug rubbed her mane and looked away. She and Fluttershy would get along great honestly. Both very shy mares. “Ah’ll leave yall to get acquainted,” Applejack winked at us as she trotted off. “Sooo. What do you like doing for fun?” I asked. I assumed that was the next step on the quest of making friends. When I was a foal, I just winged it and hoped for the best. That probably would explain why I only had Sunburst as a friend. I should really look into that in my free time. “I-i find bugs, plant my flowers and rehome insects. You?” She asked. Now this was a topic I liked. Magic was my life. I loved anything related to magic. “Magic. Anything magic related. It’s practically my life,” I grinned. “Scratch that, it is my life!” “W-wait right here,” Junebug stuttered before trotting off. My ears flattened against my head. I assumed she was running off because I don’t know. “H-here.” She held out a bunch of flowers with a hopeful look. Maybe she could actually be my friend. That would be nice. Hopefully Princess Celestia didn’t care about stuttering mares being around her. If she did and was a bitch about it, my respect for her went to zero. I leaned forward and sniffed. They smelled....familiar. My eyes widened slightly in horror. “Are these Bermuda Buttercups?” I asked in fear. Junebug gave a slow confused nod. “I’m allergic!” I gave a sneeze and the flowers went all over Junebugs mane and face. She gave me an unimpressed look and I rubbed the back of my head sheepishly. I didn’t know what to say so I resorted to the one word I could think of. “Sorry?” “Okay so Junebug is out. She seemed upset about that whole accident,” I mused to myself as I rubbed my red eyes. It was painful at first but it’s gone down now. I was getting some weird looks as I trotted to the fountain. Hopefully the smell of the water and the smell of the fresh air would help calm down my allergies. I wasn’t mad at Junebug, she couldn’t have known. Maybe once she gets over I accidentally sneezed the flowers all over her she will come around. She seemed like a nice mare from our very limited conversation. Maybe one day we can get to know each other a bit better. I’ll have to remember her occupation of collecting bugs and flowers. What the hell she does with the bugs, I have no clue. Only one way to find out. I’m just gonna give it a few months before I ask around where she lives or approach her in public. I took a slow breath. What if I make no friends? What if I’m lonely forever? “Quit panicking Starlight. Quit panicking!” I shouted and everypony stared at me in confusion. I looked around in embarrassment did the only logical thing a pony could do in this situation: I ran. That was so embarrassing and I’ll never be able to live that down. Not until I die. Maybe not even after I die. I’ll have to move towns, change my name. Change my mane color and get married to a rich mare or stallion as a coverup. “You’re still panicking, Starlight. Breath in and breath out. Slowly.” I breathed in and out, counting the breaths I took. That slowly started to work and I calmed down. “Need help making friends huh?” Rainbow asked as she rested on her cloud above me, peering down. “Gah!” I screamed and looked around. “Don’t scare me like that again.” Rainbow rolled her eyes. “If you’re done Twilighting, I got three ponies you could meet.”
Chapter III“Alright so who exactly are these three you want me to meet?” I asked with a raised eyebrow as Rainbow flapped her wings to stay aloft above me. “Wait for it,” Rainbow grinned as a roaring sound got closer and three pegasus landed in front of us, their smoky trails fading in the sky. “The Wonderbolts! Meet Soarin, High Winds and Sassaflash.” “Uh hi?” I said as they took their goggles off. The one who I assumed was Soarin approached me with an outstretched hoof. “Nice to meet ya. I’m Soarin if you haven’t figured it out,” he commented with a smirk. It was surprisingly a warm smile and not smug as I had expected. I shook his hoof and stepped backwards. “Sassaflash here lives in Ponyville,” Rainbow explained as she shoved the mare forward. “She lives with Sea Swirl, the unicorn with the dolphins for a cutie mark. I wanted to get a Wonderbolt who lived in Ponyville here. It was either Sassaflash or Bulk Biceps and well, he’s a bit excitable so I picked Sassy.” “Starlight right?” Sassaflash asked as she examined me. “You’re lucky Dash found me first. Raindrops is a bit grumpy, Cloudchaser has an ego, Sprinkle Medley would drag you into her house for music, White Lightning would get you drunk and Cloudkicker would drag you into her house for a different reason.” “Oh and what reason would that be?” I asked curiously. Sassaflash gave me a look and raised her eyes as I blushed. “Oh.” The others snickered a bit as I recovered from that. “Yeah Cloudy has a bit of a reputation,” the remaining Wonderbolt commented as she brushed her mane with a hoof. “So you’re the one who needs help with something the Princess assigned to you?” “You haven’t told them?” I asked Rainbow in surprise. Rainbow shook her head as the three other ponies gave us confused looks. “Nah. It’s your responsibility since Twilight gave this,” Rainbow explained and I turned around to hide my eye roll. “Twilight wants me to well make a friend,” I said simply and shifted nervously on my hooves. The three looked at each other and laughed as my ears pressed again my head. “That’s so Twilight!” Sassaflash giggled as she climbed to her hooves. “And I guess she said Rainbow and the others didn’t count, right?” “Right.” “I’m down,” Soarin shrugged. “Always could use more friends I suppose.” “Wanna race?” High Winds suggested and flapped her wings. “First one to the hill wins.” “Oh uh I don’t know,” I scuffed my hoof in the dirt. Rainbow wrapped her foreleg around my neck and grinned. “Oh come on! It’ll be fun. No teleporting either!” Rainbow exclaimed sternly as she stretched before giving her own wings a flap. “Ready, set, go!” The four took off and I spun around from the force of their take offs. “Woah!” I muttered as my eyes stopped spinning. “Dizzy. Hey wait for me!” I stared at the rapidly disappearing pegasi and sighed. “I’ll just go see Fluttershy I guess. Maybe she has some advice.” I raised a hoof and gently tapped it against the door of Fluttershys cottage. I hope I wasn’t waking her up. She could be great at unknowingly guilt tripping people. A white bunny opened the door and glared at me. “Oh it’s you,” I grumbled as I gave the bunny a dirty look. Angel and I didn’t really get along well ever since he repeatedly stole my carrots and swapped out my mane conditioner. Rainbow and the others secretly call him the devil of Ponyville. “Is Fluttershy home?” Angel stomped his foot a few times and made some noises and disappeared into the house. Either he was cussing me out in Bunny or what, I have no idea. He stuck his head out and angrily gestured for me to follow him. With a shrug, I followed him inside and closed the door with my magic. “Holy hell,” I said in awe as I stared at the plethora of animals in her house. There was even a bear. Who just has a bear chilling in their house like this? “Oh hi Starlight,” Fluttershy said quietly as usual as I stood in her living room. “I didn’t know you were coming over.” “Yeah sorry. Kinda freaked out a few times about this whole friend thing and figured here was a decent place to go to calm down. Just met some of Rainbows Wonderbolt friends. They’re well interesting to say the least,” I smiled faintly as we sat down. “I wouldn’t exactly call them her friends,” Fluttershy frowned as she stroked a squirrel with her wing tip. “She has a complicated relationship with them all.” “Huh weird. They seemed friendly when I met them,” I shrugged and stared at the bear. “She’s friends with the Ponyville ones but that’s because she was friends with them before they went to the academy. You know, Raindrops, Sassaflash, White Lightning, Cloudchaser, Cloudkicker and Sprinkle Medley. They all work on the weather team with her,” Fluttershy explained. “Cloudchaser and Flitter were always bullies.” Well I’m glad I didn’t really meet them. If Fluttershy doesn’t like someone, that’s a pretty good indicator that I shouldn’t like them or socialize with them either. “Got any advice or any ponies I can be friends with?” I asked hopefully and grinned at her. Fluttershy rubbed her chin with a hoof and her eyes lit up. “Wait right here. I don’t have a pony you can be friends with per se,” Fluttershy answered as she flapped her wings and flew off. I sat waiting as she quickly returned with a small bee on her hoof. “Meet Mister Buzzington. He’s a very nice honeybee.” He buzzed for a few moments and waved a leg. “He says hi how are you? He also likes your mane.” “I’m good and tell him I said thanks,” I answered. “Just one problem Fluttershy.” “What’s that?” “I think Twilight meant my friend had to be a pony.”
Chapter IVI waved goodbye to Fluttershy and trotted down her path to the rest of town. I kinda wish Sunset was here, she had a similar past to me. Then again, she probably wouldn’t want to be my friend after I took her cutie mark and all. That most definitely wasn’t my greatest moment. I trotted past a large stage and tilted my head curiously at it before shrugging and continued walking. I didn’t think anything big was going on in the town but I guess I was wrong. “Hello darling!” Rarity called out from her upper window. A cream mare with a light blue mane waved me over with a smile. “Hi Rarity.” “Starlight, meet Coco Pommel. She works for me in Manhattan and is a close friend. Maybe you two can get to know each other?” Rarity suggested with a grin. I closely examined the mare and circled her, taking careful note of her cutie mark. I’m assume it was a weird hat with a feather, so clearly a fashion cutie. Explains how she came to be working for Rarity. “Sure why not?” I gave a shrug and stood in front of her. “Uh, hi.” “Hello,” Coco bowed her head slightly and I raised an eyebrow at Rarity who waved her hooves off in some random direction. “Do you wanna get coffee?” “Uh sure. I’ll catch up. Gotta have a word with Rarity,” I said and forced a smile on my face as she nodded. I waited till she was a few feet away and spun around. “Are you trying to get us to be friends or get us to go on a date?” “It’s just coffee darling. And besides, I don’t think Coco swings that way,” Rarity said as she placed a hoof on my shoulder. “Just give it a go. I don’t even know if you swing that way.” I didn’t really see the point in telling her I was into mares and stallions. Preferably mares but meh, minor details. “I’m into both but alright. I’ll go for coffee, make a friend, satisfy Twilight,” I said and ignored the back of my mind telling me how dirty that sounded. “And then go to spa probably and take a nap in the hot tub.” “Ooh, do be a dear and tell Aloe I’ll be there this week! Ciao!” I made a noncommittal grunt and waved a hoof as I trotted towards Coco. Who knew friendship had so much responsibility? “So how exactly did you come to work for Rarity?” I asked and stared into my coffee. Despite Rarity proclaiming this wasn’t her attempt to get me a date like she’s tried so many times in the past, it sure felt like one. “Oh, that’s an easy story. I was working for Suri, she stole Rarity’s designs and tricked her into not going to the fashion competition so she could win. I later told Rarity what happened, I quit and Rarity hired me a few months later after she opened a store front in Manehattan,” Coco explained as she looked around the small cafe we had found. “You?” “Oh, I met Rarity when they came to village when I forcibly took their cutie marks in an attempt to make all of Equestria give up their cutie marks so I could be the sore ruler and they defeated me. Later, met her again after I confronted Twilight in her castle with Sunset and a few other ponies and tried to alter the timeline so Twilight never met her friends,” I said and leaned back in my chair as Cocos eyed widened. “I -oh- I see. That’s uhm, an interesting back story?” Coco offered weakly and gave a sheepish smile. “And you haven’t taken anyponys cutie marks recently?” “No!” I exclaimed and slammed a hoof down on the table, recoiling at her scared expression as some other ponies glanced over at us. “No, I haven’t. Last pony was Sunset Shimmer and that was awhile ago. I don’t really want to rule Equestria anymore. I’d have been a terrible leader anyway.” Or well, I think I would have been. A country doesn’t really need a former villain ruling the country. Doesn’t really seem like the type of thing to boost morale among the ponies or towns. “You never know,” Coco offered as I watched the sun start to set. “I mean, you’re trying to change, correct? I don’t think Princess Celestia or Princess Luna were the greatest leaders right from the beginning. They had to learn themselves. And then you had the Lunar Rebellion Nightmare Moon issue.” “True. But I’m fine with not leading anything ever again. I’m just looking to have a simple quiet life,” I said as Coco chuckled. “Well maybe living with Princess Twilight in Ponyville isn’t the best place for that. I heard that this town is a regular hot spot for monster activity and then you have the normal drama that seems to follow Rarity and the others.” “You got a point there,” I said with a faint smile. “Ponyville is kind of crazy. Just last week, we had a herd of goats came rampaging through. The Ponyville Alarm went off like crazy.” “The Ponyville alarm?” “Roseluck, Daisy and Lily,” I clarified as Coco nodded. “They get scared super easily and scream whenever a monster comes into town or other animals. Granted, they also scream when a flower stem gets bent so they aren’t entirely reliable but they are okay I guess. Lily doesn’t trust me and thinks I’m going to take her cutie mark so she hides from me with Roseluck. Daisy is pretty much the only friendly one.” “That’s not nice,” Coco sighed and finished her coffee. “How did they find out about your past?” “I let Twilight tell the town. If I’m gonna try to change myself, everything I’ve done has to be all out on the table right?” I asked and stood up with Coco, levitating some bits to pay for our coffees. Why we chose coffee when the sun was setting, I will never know. “I’m not sure. It’s been nice meeting but I have to get back to Raritys.” “Goodbye,” I muttered as she started to walk away. “Oh and Starlight?” “Hm?” I grumbled and looked at her. “Forgiveness comes from within. Make sure you forgive yourself before other ponies can forgive you.”
Chapter VI stifled a yawn as I dragged my self into the spa and slapped down some bits on the counter. Aloe or Lotus took them and I pointed to a sign behind them. I could never really tell them apart. Rarity and Fluttershy always said their names together so it was easy to get confused. Or maybe it’s a weird clone thing. “Thank you,” I said and nodded respectfully at Aloe. Or Lotus, one of the two. “Oh and Rarity said she would be back this week. Wanted me to tell you.” “Thank you miss,” the blue pony said. I’ve been here so much due to Rarity dragging me along, I’ve gotten used to their accents. I sat in the chair and relaxed as they put some weird green gunk on my face. I faintly remembered a pony on the seat behind me and smiled faintly. “Thank you Aloe,” I said as she paused before laughing. “I am Lotus. It is okay though. My sister and I easily get confused together,” Lotus chuckled as she dropped some cucumbers over my eyes. I idly wondered when that got started. I’ve always eaten cucumbers and that’s it. Well, maybe once as a teen for a more explicit dirty reason but we won’t talk about that. “Hello there,” I said and hoped the pony behind me was friendly. “Hey.” “How are you?” I asked curiously as Lotus rubbed my thigh. “I am decent. Yourself?” The mare asked as she stretched a bit. “Stressed out so I came here. Twilight wants me to make friends with some of the town folks but well, I haven’t really clicked with them ya know?” I said and nervously tapped my forelegs together. “I have a well just let’s just say complicated past and not many ponies are similar around here.” “I can relate. I have a bit of a complicated history myself,” the blue unicorn commented as she let out a moan. “Thanks, my foreleg was bothering me for a bit.” “Quite welcome.” “What did you do?” I asked curiously as the mare laughed quietly. “You first.” “I asked first.” “Came to town to do a magic show, two idiots brought an Ursa Minor to town, got me ran out and lost all my publicity, forced to work on a rock farm. Came back months later for revenge with the Alicorn whatsitcalled, enslaved the town and eventually got defeated again. Your turn,” the mare said as she sighed. “Oh you know, forcibly took cutie marks from Twilight and the others in an attempt to make all of Equestria give up their cutie marks so I could be the sole ruler and they defeated me. Months later, I confronted Twilight in her castle and a few other ponies and tried to alter the timeline so Twilight never met her friends,” I explained as I watched Lotus smile at me. “We don’t judge here for the record,” Lotus said and I sighed in relief. “We are open to anypony and everypony.” “Thank you,” I said and she nodded. “Hey, what are you doing after this?” The mare asked suddenly. “Probably going back to the castle. You?” “Not sure. Wanna hang out?” “Sure. I’m Starlight Glimmer by the way. What’s your name?” “Trixie.” I galloped down the hallway, hoping Trixie was hot on my hooves. She was a very attractive blue unicorn to say the least. Her purple eyes and silvery hair was adorable but I’d never say that out loud. “Twilight!” I called out as I searched for her. “Twilight! Where are you?” “I’m in the library!” Twilight called out as I skidded to a stop and Trixie ran into my flank as I turned red. “Trixie is sorry.” “Well Starlight forgives you,” I said with a wink as we turned around and started heading to the library. We had spent all night together, ice cream and just talking. We did get some pretty angry looks, mainly Trixie to my annoyance. “Twilight, I made a friend!” “Excellent!” Twilight said and closed her book, giving me a large grin. “She’s great!” “Great!” “She’s powerful!” “She’s powerful?” Twilight asked in confusion and gasped as Trixie stepped in. “Hello, princess,” Trixie said with a large grin. “Trixie? That’s your friend?” Twilight shouted as I jumped. Out of all the reactions, that isn’t what I expected. I expected happiness. I did what she wanted and made a friend. Right? “Yeah,” I said and smiled as Trixie wandered over to the table and levitated a fork to her face. “She’s super cool!” “Can we talk? Alone?” Twilight said and jerked her head to the left. I gave a nod as we trotted over there. “Are you out of your mind? Trixie of all ponies? She enslaved the town!” “And I enslaved a village,” I shot back and raised an eyebrow. “What’s your point? Don’t you trust me?” “I do trust you Starlight but well are you sure she’s going to be a good influence on you?” Twilight asked and placed a hoof on my shoulder. “Yeah I’m sure,” I said and gave her a glare. “Trixie is a nice pony and a good friend. She’s the only one in town who didn’t judge me for my past actions.” “I didn't judge you, Starlight. Are you sure you don’t want to be friends with anypony else? The mailmare is nice and so is Octavia. Maybe you could be their friends,” Twilight suggested and I gently removed her hoof. “I’m sure. Just please trust me. I got this,” I said as Twilight tossed Trixie a look as she levitated more forks to her face. “Alright. I do trust you Starlight. Don’t ever doubt that,” Twilight said as we walked back over to Trixie. “I hope you’re a good influence on her Trixie.” “Oh don’t you worry princess. I’ll be a good influence on our dear Starlight,” Trixie gave Twilight a mischievous smirk. “I have nothing but good intentions for my friend.” Trixie levitated the forks down onto the table as she wrapped a foreleg around my neck. Kinda felt nice to have a friend that wasn’t one of Twilight’s friends. I liked them but still, nice to make friends on my own.
