Story: Friendship is Magic - Trixie's Return

[Skye]

Here's another story I'd been working on. I've worked a bit less dialogue into it than I'd have liked, but since most of it was intended to be a self-reflection of Trixie, I felt there didn't need to be. But of course, I'm always looking for suggestions to improve, critique, typographical comments!

[Skye]

My Little Pony Friendship is Magic - Trixie's Return

2011 Shawn "Skye" Winnie

http://equestria.electronook.com

Trixie ran as hard as her hooves could carry her beyond the limits of Ponyville, eager to be as far away from the scene of her humiliation as possible as quickly as she could. Those ponies, destroying all she had worked so hard for! How dare they! Didn't they realize how important and wonderful she was? The Great and Powerful Trixie never had to worry about things like this! How could this have gone so terribly wrong! She'd make them pay, she'd make them all pay for what they had done!

But even as she ran, a strange feeling began to gnaw at her heart. It was a strange feeling, kind of a little painful, like that time she got some brambles stuck in her beautiful coat. She'd spent ages brushing them out and getting her mane just right again. But they'd hurt! Their sharp little edges, digging into her delicate skin, marring her sapphire hide. Horrid, horrid little things, just like those ponies who'd treated her so badly! She couldn't remember the last time she'd felt like this.

How was she to know that those young upstarts would have actually dared test her! To get an Ursa, and not just any Ursa, not even an Ursa Major, but an Ursa Minor, proving in front of all of them that even she couldn't even handle one of those! Couldn't they have just oohed and ahhed at her stories like everyone else? Those ponies in Hoofington didn't test her!

And now her beautiful carriage was ruined. Destroyed, how was she to show off her amazing abilities? She'd have to find another. But where? Who would make her another one so awesome and inspiring? She had no more money, having spent the last of it getting to Ponyville where she had hoped to earn more to move on. Possibly even to Canterlot! She could have amazed even Princess Celestia!

This thought brought her up short just on the edges of the Everfree Forest, on the fork in the road that took her past the dark and foreboding entrance, and looked at the sign that pointed south to Fillydelphia. Maybe she'd find some refuge there, some ponies who would be so awe-inspired that they'd practically give her anything she wanted. But would they? Would they notice her, without her grand carriage and special effects?

Trixie paused to look at herself in a nearby puddle. Her beautiful mane was ragged, blown wild by the wind and spattered with random flecks of debris. Her gorgeous tail hung limp and matted from the kicked-up dirt from her galloping. Chipped hooves, her hide glistening with a layer of sweat from the efforts she'd become unaccustomed to for so long. Who would notice her? Even a few moments of trying with her magic failed to make her even remotely presentable, and once again she gazed into the pool of water.

The feeling in her heart only grew stronger as she regarded her mirror image below, and no matter how hard she tried, only seemed to get worse. It felt as if her chest would burst trying to contain it and the blue unicorn felt herself gasping as if for breath before a strange sound came out of her mouth that surprised even her.

She sobbed.

Suddenly tears welled up from the corners of her eyes, a sudden salty warmth that flowed down her cheeks like twin rivers of their own, dripping from the end of her nose into the puddle. This overwhelming feeling was so strange to her, so foreign, she couldn't remember crying in so long!

"Why! How could this have happened to me? The...the great...the great and powerful...Trixie.." her words were broken up between each of the deep breaths she had to take.

But even as she cried there, at the fork in the road, her mind was working in overtime, taking her back to the days when she was just a little filly. Poor little Trixie, laughed at in school because she was a nobody. No talents, no cutie mark, not even any idea of what she was or who she would be. Where had she come from? She tried to remember, so hard after finding it so easy to forget. Her parents didn't seem to care, leaving her on her own so often that her only entertainment was telling herself stories and to anyone who would listen. Not that they were very good, and more often than not her classmates would laugh at how ridiculous they sounded.

The harder she tried, the less believeable they got and the harder they laughed. Scornfully, derisively, snorting and crying as she tried to impress them, failing each time. She had no magic, no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't even make her horn so much as light up. Trixie felt more and more alienated from those around her from...where was she from? Somewhere else, she couldn't even remember. The hurt was just too great.

Someone had taken pity on her, taken her in, had spent time with her even as her family did not. With more important things to do, they had no time for their foal. But this someone had. What was her name...even she'd forgotten that, the one pony who'd shown her kindness...and she couldn't even remember her name. She was white, maybe...yes, that was it. White, a white unicorn. She'd taught Trixie how to make her horn glow, and how to make it sparkle.

Trixie practiced in the mirror every day with her new abilities, learning how to make bright colors and flashes, little pops. At first, they were tiny and didn't last long, but she could make them. They were so much more than nothing, they were at least something! Her mentor...Fizzy Pop! That was her name! Fizzy Pop, seemed so impressed by what the little unicorn filly could do, and she praised her, and Trixie felt something she'd never thought she would feel in herself. Pride! She was proud of what she'd accomplished.

She remembered how her classmates had laughed at her, so she told her stories now only to herself in the mirror, making her little crackles and sparks. As Trixie grew older, so did Fizzy Pop. One day, Fizzy had told her that she wouldn't be around forever, and that Trixie would have to find her own way in life. She was nearly a mare now, and surely her cutie mark would appear any day, but she had to go out into the world and discover her talents.

"But I don't want to go out there! They'll only laugh at me again." she'd replied.

"Oh, dear, just give it a try. Nobody's laughing at you here, and give them time. You'll have friends in no time. Just be yourself, and everything will be alright." Fizzy had told her.

Skeptical, Trixie poked her head out the door, and timidly entered the town square. Nobody laughed at her. Nobody pointed at her and called her names. Names like Blank Flank, No-Skill, Wonderdolt, she'd heard them all before and they'd hurt. They'd stuck in her mind, and the thought of facing them again terrified her.

Hurt. That's what this felt like, she remembered now. This was hurt, she was hurting, only this time, it was deeper inside, and she'd done it to herself. No, it was those ponies of Ponyville...wasn't it? No, she should have known, she remembered how she had been laughed at. Maybe she'd gone a bit overboard with the Ursa bit.

At first, she'd tried finding work in her town. Beyond little odd jobs here and there for a filly her size, there was nothing that really lent itself to finding her cutie mark, or her special talent. She had only mediocre talents at cleaning, or helping gather food, or anything else particularily special. This rate, she would be a blank flank forever. Even her voice, which was the only thing about her she'd always liked, didn't seem well suited enough for singing. She just didn't have the memory for writing song lyrics or music. And she didn't want to be second fiddle forever.

It wasn't until some pony players came to town with their little stage when Trixie found her true calling. They'd needed help with special effects, and held auditions. For once, she'd felt brave enough to try out. After all, she'd been such a miserable failure at so many other things, it wouldn't have hurt to try yet another thing.

And this, she was good at. She'd hardly begun to show her sparkles and pops when she realized that the panel was mesmerized. Their eyes were so wide, looking up into the air, that Trixie paused and glanced up herself. Wow! Was she doing that? Floating in the air was an incredible display of fireworks, spinning and flashing, glowing and changing color, sparkling and popping in nearly infinite combinations, and all of it was her! She was doing this! They were good, she was better at it than she'd thought!

A twinge on her flank caused her to lose her concentration, and a quick swish of her tail failed to calm it, so she turned to see what it was that was bothering her. But to more amazement, she had a cutie mark! She had found her special talent! She was good at putting on magic shows! But she didn't want to get ahead of herself. Not at first, this was all still too new.

The blue unicorn first busied herself with background displays. Adding her little touch here and there with the player's act, setting off displays to liven up their shows and even occasionally putting on an intermission venue of her own as she grew older. The money came rolling in as they travelled from place to place, until a terrible accident had left the stage destroyed. The players were finished, but Trixie's insatiable hunger for fame began to gnaw at the filly's insides.

Using the money she'd earned, she'd purchased a small carriage and began travelling around on her own. As ponies grew accustomed to each of her shows, she found herself having to do more and more to continue interesting them. First it was little anecdotes of things she had seen, small snippets of the acts the players had put on with her own special touch, but soon even these began to wear thin and she had to do more.

On one morning, when she was to go on stage, Trixie glanced out her door at the crowd that had shown up. There were so many, it seemed, but all of them each had small pouches full of bits...she had to have them! They were so beautiful and so helpful. Maybe just this once...she could tell a fib, but this time, it would be like an act, it wouldn't be true. It couldn't hurt, could it?

And it didn't. It was such a fantastic tale, about having gone abroad and visiting the strange creatures there and narrowly escaping with her life. It was a very short fib, only based on escaping the terrible fire that had destroyed the stage. She alone had managed to make her escape, and the precious players who had taken her on quickly faded into a hazy memory. She earned just enough for some food for a while and to get herself to the next town, that she resolved herself to try harder.

Until she'd come to Ponyville. She'd just left Hoofington and found her way through the Whitetail Wood until she'd come there. She'd thought they'd be just as easy, just as impressed. And she was right! Even when she showed up that Rainbow Pegasus, tied up that farmgirl with her own rope, and even made a nest out of that unicorn's precious mane, she'd thought she'd won yet another audience! Only one more story to go, just one more, and she'd have them eating out of her hoof. Her purse was empty, having spent the last of her bits on a hay shake. This time, they'd give it all up, she had the best story yet!

"The dreaded URSA MAJOR!" she'd exclaimed, throwing off her greatest display yet. And they were blown away! All but those few ponies...but they didn't matter, they were just small time, they didn't know what it truly meant to be in show business, they were nothing at all.

So what went wrong?

Those two little colts hadn't had enough of her story. They wanted more. They were her downfall. She'd been angry enough at them at first for disturbing her, but she'd never thought they'd actually bring an Ursa to town!

Here she was now, penniless, homeless, and a growling in her stomach reminded her that she hadn't even eaten since the morning before. And it was so far to Fillydelphia, she didn't know if she'd even make it there before succumbing to hunger. But she had to try, she couldn't go back to Ponyville, not there, not the scene of her humiliation. There was only one place to go.

Trixie sniffed back her tears, and wiped her nose with her hoof. It didn't help her looks any, and she appeared simply dreadful in the puddle. But she'd worry about that later, she had to get to Fillydelphia. Trixie screwed up her determination, kicked up her heels one last time at Ponyville, and trotted down the road on the way to her new destination.

She arrived, barely on the last of her strength, her ribs showing from how hungry she was. It had been nearly a week at her slow pace, and there had only been grass to eat on the plains. Most of it was tough and nearly tasteless, that it hadn't really done her much good. And she was truly a mess now. Even her cutie mark was obscured with dust and grime from the road, Trixie had never felt so filthy in her life. Fillydelphia stood just a few trots away, all she had to do was cross a bridge and she'd be there.

But another glance in the water beneath the bridge showed her scraggly appearance. Trixie was horrified, she couldn't go into town like this! Tears welled up at her eyes again as she realized just how far she'd sunk. Her pride didn't let her just go into town and ask someone for help. But...maybe...maybe she could tell just one more story...

"Could somepony help me?" she whispered as she dragged herself into town. "Somepony...anypony?" she moaned, favoring one of her hooves as if she'd tripped and hurt herself. Ponies around her ignored her at first, but as she moved closer to the town center, some began to take notice of her presence.

"Oh, you poor dear, whatever happened to you?" a matronly pony with the cutie mark of a bed and plate of bacon and eggs paused nearby her. "You look terrible, are you okay?"

Trixie summoned up some of the hurt she still felt, thinking about how she'd been abused. Her mind, while not quick, still let her fabricate this most whopper of lies. "I was attacked by...by strange griffons just outside of town. They took everything, even my wagon! And left me there without food, or a place to sleep." the unicorn imagined this so hard, she nearly believed it herself. "They hurt me, and flapped their wings at me, and kicked at me, until I didn't get up anymore. Then when they left, I had to drag myself here, and I'm so hungry and thirsty..." she hung her head. While this last was true, she still didn't feel safe to look into the eyes of the pony who'd stopped to speak to her.

"Goodness, that's terrible! You should come..." then she paused a moment, as her old eyes focused on Trixie's horn. "You look familar...you're...you're Trixie, aren't you? I've heard ponies talking about you before." a look of disgust crossed the old mare's face, as she backed away. "I'm not giving you a thing, you fraud. I remember what you said in Hoofington last month." she turned and began to walk away, leaving Trixie standing there dumbfounded.

She blinked for a moment, before she turned to another pony, who merely turned her face up and continued on her way. And another, and another. "But... please... somebody?" real tears flowed this time, pooling on her cheeks. Nobody seemed to want to help her.

Her stomach grumbled again, reminding herself that she hadn't eaten in days, and her dry tongue flicked across her lips. At least she might be able to get a drink, that river just outside of town was clean. It didn't take her long until she was seated on the shore of the river, and sobs began to shudder in her chest, turning into hiccups as she tried to drink. Finally, she broke down again and cried. This time, she let all the hurt out, she had nothing to lose, and nobody was around to listen to her. It felt good to cry, to let out the pain she'd been bottling up all of these years.

Trixie just wanted to be loved. To be liked, and she'd never had any friends. None, except for Fizzy Pop, who had even left her alone. Why did nobody ever seem to give her a real chance? She'd blown it so completely this time.

"Hello?"

The unicorn hiccuped again, sniffling back another sob before she peered through the haze of her tears at a strange pony that stood there on the bridge.

He looked back at her, his head tilted to the side. "Are you alright, Miss?"

"I'm..." Trixie sniffled back her tears and rubbed at her face with her foreleg. "I'm alright. I'm just hungry and lonely, and nobody will help me. I've lost everything. And that's the truth!" she cried out, almost bursting into tears again.

"Woah, woah, girl, calm down, it's alright. Hungry? Well, I was just going out to the plains to look for flowers, but I have a sandwich. I can always make one later. Here." he reached into his saddlebag and pulled out a small pouch. Trixie could smell a lettuce and cucumber sandwich even from where she was, and with how hungry she was, it was the greatest thing ever.

Timidly, she reached out and took the bag, watching the pony for any signs that he was going to trick her and run off. He stood there, smiling as she opened the pouch, and merely twitched an ear at the breeze as he watched her eat it. When she'd finished the sandwich and licked her hooves clean of the crumbs, she glanced up at the stallion who'd been so kind to her.

"T-thanks.." she managed to say, sniffling as a new feeling began to tickle. This one was different too, but it almost felt...good. Tears came to her eyes again as she smiled up at him. "That was the nicest thing anyone's ever done for me, how can I thank you?"

"Ah, no thanks needed. I'm glad to help a pony in need. You look like you've been through a wringer, sharing a sandwich with you is the least I could do. What's your name?"

"Oh, I'm...I'm Trixie." she replied, looking shy.

He quirked an eyebrow. "The Great and Powerful Trixie?"

"Ye..uh...no, no." she shook her head, looking down at the ground, pawing at it. "Just Trixie. I'm really not that great and powerful anymore, I know that now."

"Well, Not-so-Great-and-Powerful Trixie, I'm Satchel. I'm pleased to meet you. I'd better get going, or I'll never find those flowers." he turned with a swish of his white tail against his tan-colored side. "Want to come with me?"

"But, I look terrible." Trixie looked down at herself, and it was true.

"Ah, no worries. There's a lake out here not far from the road where you can clean up. I don't judge, I'm going to get all dirty and dusty out here on the plains anyway, it happens." his hooves clopped on the roadway as she hurried after him.

"Why are you so nice to me? Everybody's been so mean to me for so long." Trixie followed behind him, trying not to get any dirtier than she already was. No unicorn enjoyed being filthy, but the promise of the bath was very enticing.

He turned to look at her, with a quirk to his ear. "It doesn't matter where you've been, only where you're going. A pony should treat others as he wants to be treated. My dad told me that, and it's worked pretty well."

She thought on this as she followed along. Soon enough she got her bath, and her lustrous mane was restored to its former beauty. Even if she couldn't curl it, at least it looked much more presentable than before. Trixie sniffed one last time, feeling grateful for the kindness this pony had showed her.

"Thank you. I just don't know what to say." as she returned to where he was gathering some small, brightly colored flowers from the tops of weaving stalks.

"You're welcome." he replied. Together, they gathered a large satchelful of flowers for him, but as it began to grow dark, Trixie felt apprehensive.

She didn't want to go back to town where everybody seemed to know her before she'd even stepped hoof in it. Was there anywhere else she could stay?

"I only have my small place, just barely big enough for me, but you're welcome to it for the night. After that, you'll have to find your own place." he told her. "It's not far into town, I like to keep out here where it's easier to find the flowers."

He led her home, and after all she'd been through, it was the most beautiful place she'd ever seen. And he right, it wasn't much, but right then, it was perfect. Trixie's eyes brimmed with tears again as he closed the door, and settled down outside.

In the morning, she gave him a hug for all he'd done. "I can't thank you enough for all you've done."

"Oh, it's nothing." he replied. "Somepony would do it for me, least I could do is do it for you. But maybe things will look up for you."

She nodded, and glanced back down the road she'd come. She knew what she had to do now, and if they wouldn't listen to her, she'd at least try.

Ponyville was just a few days away.

* * *

Trixie coughed from the dust on the road. This time, she was returning to Ponyville in worse condition than she'd originally showed up in, but she was in better condition than she'd shown up in Fillydelphia. This time, a few minutes in a nearby stream made her presentable enough. A glance at her reflection in its water left her satisfied, if not pleased with her efforts, and she took a deep breath as she prepared to do what she'd promised herself she'd do.

Just a cross over the bridge, and she found herself on the outskirts of Ponyville once again. Her knees trembled, nearly knocking as she remembered how she'd been practically run out of town last time, and she was afraid of how the Ponyvillians would react to seeing her again. In the town square, she could see many ponies milling about. She didn't want to go there right away. She wasn't quite that brave yet. A quick look around, and she noticed a rather tall, beautiful building that seemed to be a botique of some sort. She didn't have much money, but she could afford to spruce herself up a little more and maybe find out where to start.

A bell rung as she opened the door, and a beautiful shimmer of fabric nearly filled her vision. From eye to eye on racks as far as she could see, were beautiful outfits, gorgeous ensembles, and twinkling accessories of just about every kind. Her eyes went wide as she took in all the shop had to offer, before a gasp and a thud caught her attention.

"Oh no." she whimpered, as she realized who's shop it was.

"What are -you- doing here?" said Rarity, glaring at the blue unicorn who'd had the audacity to come back after all she had done.

"I.." Trixie trailed off as she glanced away, but everywhere she looked, she realized that all she'd seen was this pony's hoofiwork. Everything was so beautiful, so well made, and Rarity's words came back to her.

"There's more to magic than your brutish ways. A unicorn needs to be more than just muscle. A unicorn needs to have style. A unicorn's not a unicorn without grace and beauty." Rarity had said on her stage.

Trixie realized she'd been right. These outfits were simply gorgeous.

"Well?" said Rarity, who'd turned away to work on yet another stunning outfit she'd had on a dressing doll.

The blue unicorn took a breath, and lifted her head, and tried her best to keep her eyes on Rarity. "I'm sorry for what I'd done. You were right. I didn't know. I just wanted to be liked." it stung to hear her say this, but she'd promised, and if nothing else, she could at least try to keep that.

"What's that?" an ear of Rarity's perked, and turned her way. She paused, and turned her head to look Trixie over again. This time, the look in her eyes was a little kinder, but still she waited.

"I'm sorry. I was horrible and mean to you, and you were right. There is more to being a unicorn. I'm sorry I ruined your mane." Trixie closed her eyes and flinched, preparing for the worst.

But a gentle touch of a hoof on her shoulder caused her to gasp in surprise. There in front of her, was Rarity, smiling at her. "It's okay, I forgive you. It takes a lot to apologize, and you made such an effort, I can't stay mad at you. Besides, it was time for a change in manestyle anyway. Come on in, you look like you could use some time in the spa."

An hour later, with much of Rarity's help, Trixie left the Carousel Boutique looking much as she did when she'd first come to Ponyville. Minus the finery and carriage, but at least now her mane was properly styled, her tail properly brushed and curled, her hooves filed and pony pedi'd, she felt like her old self once again. She'd thanked Rarity profusely for her generosity and headed out on her way. She felt much better, but she still had at least three more ponies she had to find.

She looked up, but there wasn't a cloud in the sky this time, but soon she came to a tree. Maybe a map of Ponyville would be there. Though she realized she knew nothing of the ponies that lived here, maybe she'd get an idea of the way the town was laid out that might help her find the ponies she'd been the meanest to.

Trixie poked her head into the library and looked around. That funny little purple dragon she'd seen earlier was there, sorting books and humming to himself. She bit her lip, and looked back and forth before stepping in, knocking on the door. "Uhm, excuse me?" she called.

Spike put his hands on his hips as he noticed her come in. "Huh? Oh, it's you. Didn't you do enough last time you were here?"

"Who's there, Spike?" called someone from upstairs.

"Guess who. It's our loudmouthed friend, the Great and Powerful Trixie." replied Spike as he turned away and started shelving books again.

Twilight Sparkle descended the stairs, poking her head around the corner, spying Trixie. As their eyes met, Twilight sighed, and rolled her eyes, before approaching the blue unicorn. "Something I can help you with?"

Trixie pawed at the ground, looking at her hoof. For some reason, this was so hard to do, but it'd worked with Rarity... "I wanted to apologize. You're so much better at magic, and I made such a mess when I was last here."

Twilight regarded Trixie as she spoke, trying to determine the unicorn's sincerity. She'd made it so hard to trust her before, but...she sure sounded like she meant it. "No more tricks?"

"No more tricks. I never meant to hurt anyone. I was so mean to your friends, trying to show them all up." Trixie looked up.

"Well, just so as you know, you did put on a pretty big show and made quite a fool of yourself." Twilight turned to help Spike lift a stack of books onto a shelf.

"I met your friend Rarity, the one who's mane I ruined. She helped me clean up, and did this for my mane. I had no idea anypony could be so kind. I don't have any friends, it's always been so hard, and now I don't have anything. My work in show business is finished."

"Well, where are you going when you're finished here?" Twilight looked over her shoulder.

"I made a promise to someone that I'm going to keep. I'm going to go everywhere I can and apologize for what I've done." replied Trixie.

"Then, apology accepted. Have you found Rainbow Dash? I'm sure she'd appreciate the same. Since you've already apologized to Rarity and I." smiled the purple unicorn. "I think she was out doing a weather job."

"I saw Rainbow napping in a tree just outside Ponyville." interjected Spike. "She finished up early for the day."

"She's probably still there. I've never seen a pony need as much asleep as Rainbow." chuckled Twilight as Trixie turned to leave. "Oh, and I'm Twilight Sparkle."

"I'm...just Trixie." said the blue unicorn. "And I'm pleased to meet you." she said it again as if tasting how it felt in her mouth, and found that it tasted good. "Pleased to meet you."

Twilight's expression softened. "Pleased to meet you, too." before Trixie cantered out the door.

She paused as she realized she still didn't know where she was going, but she found she was getting hungry, and felt that maybe a meal would be a good idea. Nopony seemed to particularily give her any trouble as she ordered a lettuce and cucumber sandwich, and munched on it thoughtfully as she watched the other ponies interacting with each other. How nice it would be to have a meal with a friend, chatting about...the weather? The food? She listened as she chewed, trying not to look like she was eavesdropping but doing it all the same. Trixie was learning something new, she'd never done it before. She'd never listened, she'd always did the talking, the showboating, making others listen to her.

It dawned on her that it was what she had missed out on. Time had flown by quicker than a flock of birds, and next thing she'd known, she was where she was. That was a lot of time to make up. She'd spent so much of it trying to make herself happy, but the ponies she was watching seemed to be making each other happy. It was a foreign concept, and tasted funny to her thoughts. Trixie finished the sandwich, then shrank as she saw the two colts who had brought the Ursa to town passed by. Oh, of the ponies she wanted to see, those two weren't very high on her list, not just yet. She had no experience with little ponies, and the last thing she needed was more trouble.

When they'd moved on, she stepped back out into the street and resumed her search for the rainbow-maned pegasus. It didn't take her long before she found herself in the outskirts again near Sweet Apple Acres.

Applejack wiped a trickle of sweat from her brow as she paused from her applebucking, pleased at once again managing to get a whole treeful of apples into their baskets without spilling one. As she opened her eyes, she spotted Trixie coming up the walk, and rolled her eyes.

"What'd y'all want?" she grunted as she hooked a bushelful of apples on first one hook of her saddleharness, then the other. "Can I help you?"

Trixie nearly stumbled to catch up as the orange pony carried the huge pile of apples. Her eyes widened as she realized Applejack was carrying more than she could ever hope to, even with her magic. She'd really underestimated these ponies, all the ones she'd treated so badly, and how much of a fool she'd made herself look in front of all of them. "I'm sorry. I tied you up and made you look silly in front of everyone, but I guess I was the really silly one. You're amazing, I couldn't carry all of those."

"Hmm? All in a day's work. Nnnngh!" Applejack grunted as she hefted the apples into a bin, and dropped the baskets nearby. "Y'know, hard work? But I don't s'pose y'all are familiar with that one."

"I'm not doing that anymore. I don't know what I'm going to do, but it definitely won't be that. But I came to tell you I was sorry."

"Now why'd the sudden change of heart?" said the orange one as she gathered together more baskets in a cart and took up the harness. "Y'weren't gone all that long, just a coupla days, it's hard t'take y'all serious."

"I met someone in Fillydelphia who showed me what I was missing. I've been doing things wrong for so long, it took Ponyville to make me realize it. Can I help?"

Applejack started to say no, before she glanced at Trixie, who seemed to be eager to do something other than stand there. "Sure. Y'can help me with those baskets fer now, but I got all th' help I'll need later."

Trixie practically dove at the small pile of baskets, and found herself only able to get her teeth around the handle of one. Something told her using magic to cheat and lift them would be the wrong thing to do, so she strained and grunted as she dragged the basket from its place.

They hadn't gone far before Applejack said, "Here'll do, jest leave it under this here tree and I'll take care of th' rest. Thank yuh kindly. Apology accepted."

The blue unicorn bit her lip again before the words registered, and she splayed her ears and smiled. "Thanks. I guess I'm not cut out to be a farm pony either, but maybe I can find something useful. I've never been useful in my life, and I want to start by doing it right."

"Yeah, Pinkie's the one to see. She'll set y'all straight. She's over in Sugarcube Corner, it's that candyshop near the middle of town. Always bakin' something, that Pinkie. She loves to throw parties, maybe yer magic tricks might come in handy there. Now if y'all excuse me, ah got apple's t'buck. Maybe see y'all later?"

Trixie stepped back out of Applejack's way, nodded, and trotted back out of the gate of Sweet Apple Acres. Pinkie Pie was more than, well, tickled pink to have her help, especially after Trixie showed her what she could do with her own limited magic. And for the first time in her life, Trixie felt like she'd found her real place.

Later, at a party, Trixie managed to apologize to Rainbow Dash as well, who'd seemed just as critical as the others. But once again, she'd found closure when Dash accepted, even if she still seemed reserved. Pinkie, of course, always threw outrageous parties that were huge affairs, and together she and Trixie had planned an incredible bash for somepony's birthday. The blue unicorn hadn't been in Ponyville long enough to learn the pony's name yet, but she put her heart into doing as best a job as she could. Her experience at telling stories even came in handy, as she told a few young ponies a story, a true one this time, that she'd read in a book of fairy tales and used some of her magic to illustrate it.

It all felt good, so completely different from the show business she'd put on before, this time she was a part of something instead of the center of attention. Twilight noticed the effort Trixie was putting into turning herself around, that it gave her an idea for a letter to the Princess.

"Dear Princess Celestia. Today, I learned that even when somepony does something that makes her look foolish, pride should never be the reason you can't say you're sorry. An apology can be a great and powerful thing, and the effort will always be worthwhile."

[Dew Drop]

I almost cried there Skye, i really liked it! no i loved it =D this would be a great episode idea to send to lauren to see if she would use it. nice work!