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The Tale of Trixie

by

Missing00

        It was the day of the apple festival, which was quite a fun time in Ponyville. All of the ponies would gather around Sweet Apple Acres to celebrate the coming harvest. There were games, rides, contests, and performers. One such performer was a unicorn named Trixie. She had just finished her latest performance to a surprisingly good crowd, despite her previous visit to Ponyville. She decided to take a rest inside of her caravan. She plopped down onto her cot after hanging up her hat and cape and was just about to enjoy a nice juicy Sweet Apple Acres apple when there was a sudden knock on her door. Trixie dropped her apple with a frown, slipped on her hat and cape and opened the top half of her door.

“Who dares disturb the Great and Powerful Trixie?!” She said with a melodramatic voice. Outside of her door two young unicorn colts bowed their heads out of respect.

“We’re sorry the Great and Powerful Trixie.” Stammered the short and pudgy colt.

“Yeah sorry.” Parroted the taller and thinner colt.

“Oh it’s these two again.” Trixie thought to herself, trying to think up a way to get them out of her hair.

“It’s just that,” The pudgy one started,” we noticed that the Great and Powerful Trixie had returned to Ponyville and we as your humble and loyal servants--”

“Enough!” Trixie interrupted, putting her hoof up into the air as if she were saying something important. The two unicorns bowed their heads down lower.

“The performance that I, the Great and Powerful Trixie, had just performed has left me very tired and I ,the Great and Powerful Trixie, require my beauty rest. so if you two would be so kind as to give the Great and Powerful Trixie her privacy?”

“Oh of course Great and Powerful Trixie.”

“Uh yeah of course.” The two said as they backed away with their heads still bowed. Trixie chuckled to herself about the power she held over these two young ponies. Trixie slammed the door shut and returned to her place on her cot and picked up the apple she dropped earlier.

“Now where were we before we were so rudely interrupted?” She asked the apple.

“Oh yeah, right about here.” She said as she was just about to take the first bite out of her apple when another knock came upon her door. Trixie sighed in frustration as she once again dropped her apple and swung open the door.

“Didn't I tell you two that I needed my-- oh hello.” Trixie said quite surprised to see not the unicorn boys she was expecting, but instead three young fillies.

“Who might you be?” Trixie said in a slightly more friendlier tone of voice.

“You ask her.” The orange Pegasus ordered the yellow earth pony.

“Nu uh you ask her.” Replied the earth pony back to the Pegasus.

“No you.”

“This was your ideah”

“Well I asked the last time.”

“Did not.”

“Did too.”

“Did not.”

“Did too.”

“Did not.”

“Did to--”

“Um, excuse me, miss Great and Powerful Trixie,” The white unicorn said, breaking up the argument between the other two.

“My name is Sweetie Bell, and this here is Scootaloo and Apple Bloom.” She said pointing out the other two fillies.

“We are the Cutie Mark Crusaders, and as you can see we do not have our cutie marks yet and you do. So, um, we were just wondering if you can tell us how you got your cutie mark?” Sweetie Bell asked exuberantly and the other two fillies replied with a “Yeah!” in unison. Trixie’s first instinct was to shoo them away like she did with the colts, but she decided that with these three she would have a little fun.

“So, you three want to know the story of the Great and Powerful Trixie?” She said and the young fillies nodded their heads in unison.

“I warn you, my cutie mark story is like none you have ever heard before. It is wrought with dangerous dangers, perilous perils, and treacherous trappings. It is not for the faint of heart, least not fillies like yourselves.” The crusaders looked at each other and then back to Trixie nodding their heads more vigorously.

“Very well then. This is the story of the Great and Powerful Trixie!”

-------

Long ago when I was but a little filly just like you three I lived in a quaint little cottage on the edge of a forest. Trixie began her story, illustrating with her magic. I lived very comfortably with my parents but even at that tender age I knew that I was bound for greater things. My parents always warned me never to venture into the forest, but I was a rebellious and precocious child. One night, under the cover of darkness, I put on my cloak and packed my saddle and went into that forest not knowing what lay beyond, but only knowing that whatever did it was certainly my destiny.

I crept deeper and deeper into the thick woods, braving the shadows and the sounds that the forest made during the night when suddenly my path was blocked by a mysterious pony in black. It said to me,

“Young adventurer, do you seek the treasure that lays in this forest?” I was not sure of what the stranger was talking about, but my interest was piqued at the mention of treasure.

“Of what treasure do you speak stranger?” I asked

“In the middle of this forest, there is a lake, and in the middle of that lake there is a great rock, and stuck in that great rock is a wand of unspeakable power and might.” I was very interested now. I told that strange pony that yes I was here to seek the treasure that lay in the forest and he said to me.

“Do not be so foolhardy young one, there are dangers in this forest that have bested even the strongest willed ponies. Many have tried for the treasure, none have succeeded.” The stranger warned but I told him that I was not afraid.

“Very well,” The stranger started, “On the path behind me there are three trials. The trial of might, the trial of wisdom, and the trial of courage. you must pass all three trials if you wish to posses the treasure. Fail just once and you shall perish.” I took to heart the instructions the stranger told me and continued on the path. I walked for what seemed like hours before I reached the first trial. A large armored pony stood in my path, a large sword stuck in the ground beside him.

“I am the immortal one.” He said in a booming voice. “If you wish to continue on your journey, take up arms and best me in combat.” Next to me was a rack of weapons, I grabbed a short sword in my teeth and he pulled his out of the ground. He wasted no time as he swung wildly at me. I only just dodged that attack but it wasn’t long before he came at me with another mighty blow. I blocked it with my sword but his strength was great and he hurled me into a nearby tree. it was very clear to me that if I was to defeat this terror that I would have to outsmart him, he may have the power, but I had speed on my side. The armored pony swung at me once again and I ducked under his sword and thrusted upward with mine and stabbed him through a gap in his armor. The pony staggered and fell at my hooves. A short while later he stood back up and bowed his head at me.

“You have bested me in fair combat, I concede.” The immortal said to me.

“Stand aside and clear my path warrior, for I am the powerful Trixie.” the warrior did as I said and I continued on my journey. The next trial took me by surprise as a tall wall of thorns and bones appeared in my path. A giant single eye appeared in the wall and it spoke to me with a mouth that I could not see.

“Young pony, you have bested the immortal, but very few has ever passed by me.” At the base of the wall three ornate chests appeared, each one identical to the last.

“I present to you a challenge young pony,” The wall said “Inside each of these chests is an object, guess all three and you shall pass, but get one wrong and you will become a part of me.” The wall chuckled to itself and I stayed my ground ready for the test.

“Inside of the first chest is the beginning of the end and the end of time and space, it is essential to creation and it surrounds every place. what is it?” The wall asked me. I thought long and hard about the question, and for the longest time could think of nothing but I did not want to become a part of that wall, so I thought and thought until the solution came to me, it was so simple!

“Inside of that chest,” I said to the wall with great confidence. “Is the Letter E!” The first chest opened and revealed to me a large wooden letter E. The wall only looked at me a bit cross before moving onto the next chest.

“Inside the second chest is something that has three lives, gentle enough to soothe the skin and light enough to caress the sky, yet hard enough to crack rocks. What is it?” This one was just a tricky as the first, but with just a little thought I came up with the answer.

“Inside of that chest wall is water!” The second chest opened up to reveal a cup full of water. The wall was even more visibly angry at me that I solved his second riddle but he continued on to the last chest.

“Inside the last chest young pony, is something more just than Princess Celestia, more dark than Nightmare Moon, The wealthy need it and the poverty stricken have it, if you were to eat it you would soon perish and it will always last forever. What is it?” This last puzzle was the most difficult of the lot. I sat there for what seemed like an eternity pacing back and forth thinking about the riddle the wall presented me with, and then suddenly with a flash of realization overcame me and I turned to the wall and shouted at it.

“Nothing! There is nothing in that last chest!” The final chest opened to reveal that it was completely empty. The wall screamed in defeat and I said to it.

“I have solved your riddles wall, now clear a path for I am the great Trixie!” The wall receded and I was back on the path. A short while later I came upon a small lake and in the center of it, a large rock stood and I could see that on top of that rock I could see the wand that the strange pony told me about. I walked towards the lake when suddenly a large dragon came to block my path to the lake. It growled and roared at me but I held my ground, knowing that this was my final trial. The dragon reeled back it’s head, preparing it’s flaming breath, when I interrupted the great beast.

“listen here great dragon!” I shouted at it. The beast stopped to listen to what I had to say.

“I have defeated the immortal warrior and outwitted the wall of thorns and bones. I am not afraid of you dragon and do you know why? It is because I am the Great and Powerful Trixie!” The dragon reeled back in terror yielded to my advance before it completely retreated to whence it came. I climbed that great rock and took the wand in the center and with a great tug I plucked the wand from the stone. At that moment I was bestowed great powers beyond any pony’s imagination and also at that moment I was branded with a mark, my cutie mark.

-------

“And that is how I, the Great and Powerful Trixie got her cutie mark.” The three fillies who were completely wrapped in the story that Trixie was telling only let out a simultaneous “Whoa”. Trixie reached for something on a high shelf in her caravan, a small and slender wooden box.

“This my darlings is that very wand I plucked from the rock that day.” She opened the box to reveal to the fillies a small and slender wand with a shimmering yellow star on one end of it.

“Why does it say made in Neighjing?” Applebloom asked as Trixie snapped the box shut, denying that such a thing was written on it.

“Now telling the epic story of how the Great and Powerful Trixie got to be so great and powerful has made me extremely tired. I need my rest so if you three would be so kind, I wish to be alone.” The Cutie Mark Crusaders scurried off and Trixie shut the door behind her. She was about to take her place on her cot again when a thought crossed her mind. She reached up to a high shelf in her caravan and brought down another box to examine what was inside. Waves of nostalgia overcame her as she remembered the story behind this object.

-------

“I cant do it I just cant do it!” A young Trixie protested to her teacher backstage at the annual school talent show. “I cant go out in front of all those ponies. They’ll just laugh at me.”

“Sweetie trust me, you’ll do great and they wont laugh at you, trust me.” Her teacher said, trying to comfort her. Cheering came from behind the curtain as the previous act finished. “Oh it looks like it’s your turn. Go and break a leg.” Trixie gave a loud gulp and put on her hoof-stitched wizard hat and trotted onto the stage. She looked out at the crowd of her peers and stayed silent for a long minute. The audience started to grow impatient and started to chatter amongst themselves as Trixie tried to stammer out an introduction. After a while and still suffering from stage fright Trixie decided to throw in the towel and started to make her way off stage while muttering something along the lines of “I’m sorry everypony”, but before she could leave something amazing happened. The sky above the entire crowd and Trixie exploded in a glorious display of color and was shortly followed by a deafening BOOM! Everypony there was amazed by it, most of all Trixie. This event, whatever it was, was exactly the thing that Trixie needed to boost her confidence and she used the event to her advantage.

“Do you see? Do you see that everypony? That was all me, and that was just my warm-up act. Now allow me to introduce myself, I am the Great and Powerful Trixie!” The audience was wrapped around Trixie’s hoof for the entire show as she produced fireworks, levitated objects, and made illusions for the crowd. The crowd was silent at the end of the of the talent show, anxious to know who won the competition.

“And the winner is,” Started the Judge pony, opening the envelope ever so slowly. “Is, The Great and Powerful Trixie!” Trixie was amazed that the judge had called her name, so amazed that she could hardly move. Her teacher gave her a light shove so she could accept her prize, a golden medal in the shape of a star that the judge hung around her neck. Trixie looked out upon the crowd and was overwhelmed with the natural high that came from an entire crowd of ponies all cheering for you. She was so caught up in the admiration that she didn't notice that a mark had appeared on her flank, a mark shaped like a magic wand.

-------

Trixie stroked that gold medal and put it back on the high shelf where it sat before. She smiled to herself about the happy memories as she set her cape and hat on a nearby hanger and plopped down on her cot. She found the apple she had dropped twice now, cleaned it on her chest, and took a bite out of it. Completely content.