“Trixie! Open this door now!”

The sound of a hoof hammering on a wooden door accompanied the angered voice of Twilight Sparkle. This torrent of sound was the first thing Trixie heard that morning.

“Go away!” the magician cried, taking shelter under the feather blankets of the inn’s bed.

“Trixie, if you don’t open this door right now, I’ll do it myself!”

The next few moments produced only silence as Trixie made no move to give in to Twilight’s demands.

“That’s it Trixie, I’m coming in!”

A high pitched ringing sounded from the door, followed moments later by splintering wood, and finally the sound of metal shattering on the floor. Trixie popped her head out from under her warm haven to see a furious Twilight Sparkle standing over the scattered remains of what was once a doorknob.

“You’re paying for that,” Trixie said, propping herself up on her elbows.

Twilight stood in the doorway, heaving with fury. Two saddlebags hung from her sides, crammed to breaking point with books, the tops of them peeking out from the bags pockets which were too filled to close. In between ragged breaths, she glanced down to see the doorknob she had just annihilated, suddenly realising she had just destroyed some of the inn’s property.

“Uhh… fine, whatever; just get up now, you’re going to be late!”

“But no sane pony gets up at this hour!” Trixie flopped down back on to her pillow with a groan. “The sun is only coming up!”

“Exactly, and that means Princess Celestia is going to be expecting us soon, and we are not going to keep her waiting! It’s a long trip to Canterlot, now get up!”

“Ugh, just give me another couple of hours.”

Twilight stomped over to Trixie’s bedside.

“Up, now!” she screamed, gripping the bed sheets between her teeth and heaving them off Trixie. Nothing unleashed the wrath of Twilight Sparkle like forcing her to be late to an engagement.

“Alright, alright, don’t pop a blood vessel.” Trixie stretched with a loud, drawn out yawn. She lay on her side for a few moments on the bed, her head propped up on a fore hoof, her other stroking the mattress in front of her body. She smiled as she took in Twilight’s face, tinged red with anger. Adorable she thought to herself. After a few moments of Trixie’s lingering, half-lidded gaze, Twilight’s expression turned from anger to confusion.

“What… why are you looking at me like that?” The red in Twilight’s face increased, no longer caused by her anger.

“Oh… its nothing,” Trixie replied. A few more moments of silence passed.

“Quit stalling!” Twilight cried, attempting to combat her new nervousness. “You had better be packed! I have business in Canterlot today too, I thought it’d be nice to accompany you since you’re starting back to school, but I am not going to have you keep me late!”

“Uhhh…” Trixie’s gaze fell to Twilight’s side, and Twilight followed the look to find an empty suitcase, the floor around it littered with various garments and Trixie’s other belongings.

“Trixie!” Twilight cried again as she caught sight of the thoroughly unpacked suitcase. “You’re unbelievable!”

“Yup, that’s what most ponies I meet say!”

“GET PACKING NOW!” Twilight’s voice squeaked as her vocal cords struggled to accommodate her fury.

“Ok, ok!” Trixie jumped off the bed, genuinely worried that Twilight might actually burst an internal organ if she did not comply.

The pair proceeded to toss Trixie’s belongings into the case. It wasn’t a long process as Trixie seemed to be travelling light, her possessions consisting mostly of beauty products and grooming utensils. The floor was eventually cleared of all objects, and Twilight turned to scan the room.

“Is that everything?” she asked, her hoof tapping the floor impatiently.

“I think so,” Trixie replied as she neatly folded her signature cape and placed it into the suitcase along with its matching hat. Her eyes then fell to the drawer beside her bed, and she suddenly remembered its contents.

“Uh, just one thing.” She stepped over to drawer and opened it, the picture of Princess Twilight looking back up at her. She hesitated as she considered leaving it behind to avoid the risk of Twilight seeing it. But it’s such a great picture of her… but I could always buy a new one… what if they don’t have it in print anymore? Trixie debated with herself internally.

“What is it?” Twilight snapped. “Come on, we’ve got to go!”

“Just a second!” Trixie cast a quick spell on the picture, then levitated it out of the drawer.

“Is… is that a picture of yourself?” Twilight asked, catching sight of the photograph hovering before her.

“Yeah! Can’t a mare appreciate a good photo of herself?” Trixie slipped the picture into her suitcase and shut it tight before releasing the spell.

“You’re… a strange pony Trixie.”

“I’m strange? I’m not the one who lives in a tree with a dragon, is a unicorn who recently sprouted a pair of wings, and is on friendly terms with the spirit of chaos!”

Twilight opened her mouth to retaliate, but no response came at first.

“Fair point,” she admitted, scratching her chin with a hoof, before a frown covered her face. “Why are we arguing again? Let’s go!” Twilight stomped towards the door she had victimized in her rage. Trixie smiled with glee once again at the sight of the worked up unicorn, following her out of the room, magically towing her suitcase behind her.

*

After leaving a hastily scribbled note of apology behind to the inn-keeper (who Trixie made the point of highlighting that even they were not awake yet) the pair walked down the streets of Ponyville towards the train station, before Trixie stopped suddenly.

“I’m hungry, let’s get some breakfast first.”

Twilight let out an irritated groan. “Can’t you wait? We really should be catching the next train.”

“You can’t just pull Trixie out of bed at this hour and not feed her, it’s simply not done.” Trixie stood in place.

“Ugh fine.” Twilight conceded when it was clear Trixie had no intention of leaving without getting fed first. She looked ahead to see a pink pony opening the doors to Sugarcube Corner. “There’s the bakery Pinkie works in, you can grab something there, quickly!” She trotted towards the shop, Trixie following.

“It’s no wonder you have never been in a relationship before Twilight, you have no idea how to treat a pony right.” Twilight just rolled her eyes in response, but Trixie continued her teasing. “You know,” Trixie’s voice grew quiet, and she leaned in to Twilight’s ear. “Ponies who treat me right are usually well rewarded.” She turned to wink at the now highly confused unicorn, the combination of Trixie’s gaze and tone leaving her befuddled.

“I… will you just hurry up and get some food!” she snapped as red crept into her cheeks. She walked on ahead to the bakery, avoiding eye contact with Trixie.

“Morning Twilight! You’re up early today! Oh, and morning meanie-pants!” Pinkie greeted as she caught sight of Twilight and Trixie.

“Yeah well, we are supposed to be getting to Canterlot, but somepony is trying their best to hold us up.” Twilight cast a piercing glare at Trixie, who only smiled in response.

“Really? Who?” Pinkie asked, oblivious to the daggers Twilight’s eyes were throwing at Trixie.

“It’s… never mind; Trixie, what do you want to eat?”

“I dunno, what’s good?”

“Everything is good here!” Pinkie exclaimed, dragging Trixie inside. “Let me show you!”

“Ugh, we do not have time for this!” Twilight groaned.

After a few tedious minutes of Pinkie pointing out her wares to Trixie, the magician finally decided upon a large raspberry muffin with purple icing. When Pinkie announced the price in bits, Trixie turned to look at Twilight.

“Are you serious?” Twilight asked.

“What did I tell you about treating a pony right?”

“But we’re not dating!”

“Not with that attitude!”

With another thoroughly irritated groan, Twilight rummaged for the bits in her saddlebags and tossed them on the counter.

“We’ve got to run, bye Pinkie!”

“See ya later Twilight, bye meanie-pants!”

As the two walked at a brisk pace down the road, luggage in tow, Trixie munched happily on her muffin, while Twilight fumed in silence.

“How are you so awake at this hour?” Trixie asked through a mouthful of muffin.

“I’m just used to getting up early.”

“Nah, I think you have some spell, something that helps you wake up faster, like that hangover spell.”

“It wasn’t a hangover spell… and I don’t have a trick for everything you know.”

“Why not? I bet you could find one for every little thing you needed doing.”

“Perhaps but, that’s not the point in magic. It’s not there just to take shortcuts all the time.”

“Why not? If it’s not there to make life easier then what is its point.

“Well, it’s fine to use it to help with a few things but, if you become reliant on magic as an easy way out of everything you become lazy and disrespectful of it. The ponies who created charms like the Alicorn Amulet were most likely the extreme form of this kind of thing, and their corruption was bound to their creation. They probably had no respect for magic, just seeing it as a tool to achieve power, or an easier life.” Twilight’s voice grew in volume and determination as she spoke.

Trixie swallowed down her muffin in silence as she listened to Twilight, a little in awe at how knowledgeable and passionate she was about the arcane arts.

“I can’t say I’ve ever really looked at magic as something to be respected.” Trixie admitted as she consumed the last of the muffin. “I always just saw it as a tool.”

“Well, it is a useful tool but, it’s also a gift and an art, and you can’t truly master it without being aware of this. It’s one of the first things Celestia taught me.”

“Great, so I guess I can look forward to hearing this lecture again from her?”

“Possibly,” Twilight agreed with a giggle, “but only if we make it there on time! I’m speeding things up!”

Before Trixie could ask what she meant, she felt Twilight’s hoof touch her own, followed by a brilliant flash of purple light, and the high pitched tone of a magic spell being cast. When the purple light subsided, Trixie could make out, through blurred vision, the Ponyville rail station. As her vision swayed in front of her, her stomach suddenly lurched, and she swung to one side on unbalanced hooves, smashing into a pony beside her and ending up in a heap on the floor.

“Uh, sorry, I forgot first time teleportation can be a bit of a doozy.” Twilight’s voice sounded from beneath Trixie.

“Great… thanks for the warning,” Trixie groaned. “It feels like we were just shoved through a tornado.” She raised her head, holding a hoof to the side of her face. She looked down to find herself face to face with Twilight lying beneath her.

“So… you wanna get off me?” Twilight asked.

“Eh, I’m good here.”

“Do you want me to teleport you again?”

Trixie promptly jumped off Twilight at this threat. “Do you not feel sick after that?” she asked, shaking her dizzy head.

“You get used to it after the first few jumps.” The high pitched ring of a train sounded after Twilight finished her sentence.

“Just in time!” she announced with a smile. “Let’s go!” The pair gathered up their luggage and boarded the train after it pulled up to the station.

*

Trixie stared out the window of the moving train, watching the town of Ponyville shrink in the distance. She and Twilight sat in a private booth large enough for about four ponies to sit comfortably on the benches that lined each side. An empty space sat next to her, but across from her sat Twilight, the space beside her occupied by a stack of books, and she currently had her eyes buried in one. A wooden door with a narrow glass window separated them from the rest of the train.

“I have to say, I’m not at all sorry to see that town behind me.”

Twilight looked up from her reading.

“So I assume you took care of the private business you were there to do?”

“It’s not quite taken care of just yet, it’s still a work in progress.” Trixie replied, still staring out the window.

“Still being all mysterious then huh?”

“Still being all nosy then?” Trixie turned to grin at Twilight.

“I suppose you got me there.”

“If it makes you feel any better, I can say it’s quite likely you will find out what I was back in town for.”

A frown covered Twilight’s face.

“Why does that make me feel uneasy?”

“I don’t know, but maybe it should.”

“Trixie…” Twilight’s voice now raised genuine concern, her expression nervous.

“Relax, I’m just messing with you, lighten up! I promise I’m not up to anything that will be intentionally upsetting to you or anypony else.”

“But it may possibly be upsetting?”

“Perhaps, you never know how things turn out.”

Twilight sighed, turning her eyes back to her book.

“I’m deciding to trust you Trixie, don’t make me regret it.”

I hope you don’t Trixie replied in her mind.