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The Shimmer of Magic

by Hakuno

Chapter 24: 24. Cut the Deck

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Chapter 24. Cut the Deck

Sunset sat alone, quietly inspecting a bloodstained deck of cards. Trixie had told her once that keeping her hands busy helped her when she was nervous. It wasn't doing much for Sunset though. It just helped remind her of how Trixie had always been there for her, but when Trixie needed her, she hadn't even been in the same state.

She sighed as her thumb brushed one side of the deck, feeling the cut along all the cards. She had just gotten home after working at the emporium last night when Rarity had called her. Her heart felt like it was being crushed the moment she learned what had happened to Trixie.

Rarity had been adamantly refusing to say who had stabbed Trixie, but Sunset had been just a few seconds from smashing her brand new cellphone against a wall, so Rarity complied.

The information didn’t sit well with Sunset, and she just let herself fall in her couch, dropping her phone to the floor and ignoring whatever Rarity kept saying. Of all the times her crazy doppelganger had to show up, it just had to be when she wasn’t around, and she just had to hurt her girlfriend.

It was unfair.

By the time Sunset had assimilated it, Rarity had hung up, but was actively calling her again. Part of Sunset wanted to just go to sleep and hope it was a dream, but the more rational part of her brain told her to get a hold of herself. So she picked up the phone and asked Rarity to tell her where was Trixie.

Rarity didn’t hesitate this time, and she told her that Trixie had been taken to the nearest hospital from Everton. Sunset hung up immediately and ran to the nearest bus stop. But, when she was just getting there, Rarity called her again, telling her that Trixie was being transported to Golden Oak Hospital Center, the biggest private hospital in Canterlot.

From there, Sunset ignored any advice or suggestions Rarity had for her, and went straight to the hospital.

Unfortunately for her, not only was Trixie still not there, making her wait for two slow, agonizing hours, only to be told that she could not visit Trixie until she was stable. And thus, Sunset spent the night in the waiting room.

The next day, Rarity arrived with a few plastic bags. Most of them had food, knowing full well that Sunset hadn’t eaten anything, and some toiletries, for which Sunset was very thankful. And in one last bag, there was an even smaller, pitch black bag. This one contained a bloodstained deck of cards.

Before Sunset could even ask, Rarity explained that Trixie’s father had urged Everton’s hospital to transport his daughter to the one in Canterlot once it was safe, and because of the natural chaos of a hospital, her clothes were left behind. Thankfully, Rarity had stayed, so she retrieved the clothes, deciding to try and repair Trixie’s hoodie, and finding the deck in the process.

And now, after Rarity had excused herself for a moment, Sunset sat alone in the waiting room in utter silence. She knew nothing about Trixie’s status; the nurses wouldn’t tell her anything, and she still wasn’t allowed to visit Trixie, so the only thing she could do was wait. And every second of it felt like a merciless eternity.

To say she was worried would be the biggest understatement of the century. Yes, Rarity had said that, according to Twilight, the probability that Trixie’s wound was lethal was minimal, maybe just ten percent. Sadly, that did nothing to ease Sunset’s mind. She was a logical person, and she knew that, no matter how low, a probability always meant that, in fact, there was a chance. And, thanks to recent events, Sunset wasn’t feeling very optimistic.

She sighed, her fingertips were feeling rough for all the fiddling with the deck. Maybe it wasn’t a good idea to have anything bloody in a hospital’s waiting room, but Sunset was, metaphorically speaking, holding on to it as an attempt to keep herself from violently bursting into Trixie’s room to see whether she was alright or not.

“I see you haven’t eaten anything,” Rarity said as she approached Sunset, eyeing the plastic bags, still full of various pastries and beverages.

“I’m not hungry,” Sunset replied without looking at her.

Rarity sat down, blowing out some air. “She’s not in intensive care, Sunset. She’ll be fine.”

Sunset closed her eyes and lowered her head. “I’m not only worried about Trixie… I just… I can’t… No, I don’t want to believe that my human version would try to…” Her lips trembled as she struggled with the next word. “To… Kill someone…”

“But, you knew she had done something similar to Twilight.”

“I know…” Sunset sighed. “And trust me, it took me awhile to come to terms that she’s not me, and that I’d never do what she did… And I managed to forget about it…” She shook her head for a moment. “But now, the very first day she reappears, she stabbed Trixie, and if it weren’t for Applejack, she’d have attacked Twilight, and quite possibly Pinkie and you too!” She opened her eyes, feeling tears forming at the corners, and looked at Rarity. “I’m afraid that Trixie might hate me…”

Rarity smiled and placed a hand on Sunset’s shoulder. “I know she won’t. She can easily keep you two apart.”

Sunset looked away and sighed. “I hope you’re right…”

“I believe it would do good to you to change the subject,” Rarity said. She grabbed a pack of chocolate cookies from the bag and offered it to Sunset. “And while we talk, you eat something, or I’ll tell the girls.” With a groan, Sunset agreed. Satisfied, Rarity decided to start the conversation again. “So, Trixie told us that you had to work. How did that go?”

Sunset had opened the pack and given a very small bite to a cookie. “I had to rewrite some documents. It took me all day, but I managed.” She gave another nibble at her cookie.

“I… see…” Rarity said. It was difficult enough to engage Sunset in a conversation, even more so now that she couldn’t think of anything besides Trixie.

Fortunately, she didn’t have to search for more topics, as a nurse was getting closer with the obvious intention to speak with Sunset.

“Miss Shimmer?” the nurse asked. When Sunset snapped up her neck to look at her, she smiled. “I’m sorry for keeping you in the dark. Trixie’s father wanted her to only be visited by the hospital staff until she was in condition to receive guests.”

Sunset stood up immediately, getting at an uncomfortable close distance from the nurse. “Is she alright? Can I go see her now?”

“Yes,” the nurse answered as she stepped back. “You may see her, but first, I must ask you to not be so… energetic… for now. Trixie is tired, and if you don’t behave, you could slow down her recovery.”

Sunset’s breath caught up in her throat. She frowned and crossed her arms. “Well, maybe if you had told me a damn thing about her, I wouldn’t have been on edge for, how long? Oh, yes, twelve hours straight!” She snorted, feeling a small tingle of guilt, but paying it no mind. “I know how to be around sick people, thank you very much.”

The nurse didn’t seem very satisfied with the reaction, if her raised eyebrow was any indication. However, she gave a sigh of defeat. “Room 304. You have only one hour today,” she said, then made a face. “And sorry about that, the hospital’s policy only allow us to discuss the patient's’ health with the family.”

“Thank you,” Sunset said before she made her way to Trixie’s room. Mindful of the fact she couldn’t run in a hospital, she managed to keep herself from breaking into a full on sprint, but she was only barely below that speed limit.

Her heart was pounding in her chest, her legs were shaking like crazy, and her breathing was hot and heavy. She had wanted to see Trixie for over twelve hours, she even slept in the hospital, but now she was beginning to doubt if she really wanted to see her now. For a moment, she wondered if she was prepared.

She didn’t have enough time to ponder, though, as she suddenly found herself at Trixie’s door. She took a very long, deep breath to calm herself, and entered.

As she opened the door, her eyes immediately fell upon Trixie. She was sitting up, dressed in a very ugly green hospital gown, with a plastic tube attached to her left arm, and holding the T.V. controller with her right hand. Her bored expression turned into one of happiness and relief when she noticed Sunset.

Right then, Sunset felt a weight disappear from her shoulders, and her heart slowed down at a comfortable rate again.

“Hello there,” Trixie said. “I was beginning to think they’d never let you visit me.” She then noticed Sunset’s weird expression, and raised an eyebrow. “What?”

“N-Nothing,” Sunset answered. She closed the door behind her and approached Trixie. “I’m glad to know you’re fine... “ She put her hand upon Trixie’s and smiled.

Trixie squeezed Sunset’s hand. “As if The Great and Powerful Trixie would go down at the hands of one crazy fan!” That earned her a snicker from Sunset. “But I’m glad you’re finally here…”

Sunset took the hint, and she leaned closer, giving Trixie the most tender kiss she was capable of. After a few seconds, she leaned back and smirked. “Peppermint? I thought you preferred strawberry.”

Trixie rolled her eyes, but smiled nonetheless. “When I woke up, I had an incredibly terrible breath. Heck, it even made myself gag! I asked my dad to bring me some gum, but he took the first thing he found.” She sighed dramatically. “Alas, we’ll have to stick to peppermint for the time being.”

After another chuckle, Sunset gave Trixie another kiss. “I certainly don’t mind the change…” She looked down at Trixie’s torso. The green blanket, and her own gown perfectly covered Trixie’s torso. Sunset couldn’t ignore her curiosity any longer. “So… How are you feeling?”

Trixie tried, and failed, to hide the pain in her eyes as she looked down at her torso. “Just breathing hurts… And when I move, it feels like I’m being stabbed all over again…” She frowned for a moment, then looked up at Sunset and smiled. “The doctor says that the pain will gradually disappear in a week or two.”

“I see...” Sunset said. “I take it the wound wasn’t that bad after all?”

“Fortunately,” Trixie answered. “If I understood the doctor, and I think I did, I was very lucky that I happened to have a deck of cards in my hoodie’s pocket. Apparently, it was like a barrier, or something, and prevented the knife from going deep enough to reach a vital point”

“Speaking of…” Sunset took the deck from her pocket and showed it to Trixie. “Rarity took it from your hoodie. I must admit that fiddling with it helped me with my anxiety.”

Trixie smirked. “A little creepy, if you ask me, but I’ll let it slide.” Her smile disappeared and she pushed the deck away. “Keep it. I don’t want that to remind me of what happened. I’ll have a scar to do that.” When Sunset hesitated, Trixie smiled weakly. “Who knows? Maybe it’ll protect you too.”

Sunset snorted. “Damn, that’s so cheesy.”

“Oh, shut up.”

In that moment, the door opened up, and Sunset felt the urge to hide the deck of cards, just in case, into her pocket. A man stepped inside, dressed with a tidy black suit, white shirt, and purple tie. His skin was a light blue, his eyes amber, and his silver hair was neatly drawn backwards. Sunset also noticed that he was quite tall, even for a man, and his gaze was hard and piercing, but not to the point of being uncomfortable, rather, it projected authority and respect.

Upon entering, his eyes quickly fell upon Sunset, silently observing her as if she was some kind of criminal.

Fortunately, Trixie broke the silence. “Hey, Dad,” she said. The man took his time to shift his gaze towards her. “This is Sunset, I told you about her.”

“Of course,” he answered. His voice was deep and a little raspy. He looked at Sunset again. “The similitud is outstanding.” He cleared his throat and approached Sunset, stretching his hand. “My name is Straight Totamoon. It’s a pleasure to finally meet Trixie’s best friend.”

Sunset felt her stomach fall a little, but she hid it with a smile and stretched his hand. “Yes, I’m Trixie’s friend, Sunset Shimmer.” She did her best not to stretch that one word too much.

Straight nodded, then looked at Trixie. “I spoke to the doctor. You’ll only be here for a few days, until the wound closes. Then you’ll be on bed rest for a week, more or less, depending on your recovery. Then you’ll be able to return to school. And don’t worry, I’ll call them to tell them what happened.”

Trixie groaned a little. “Alright.”

“I have to go now,” Straight said. “There’s a woman I intent to throw the book at.”

Sunset felt a freezing breeze through her spine, and she couldn’t help herself to ask. “You’re talking about the girl that stabbed Trixie, right?”

Straight turned to Sunset. His expression still serious and hard. “Don’t worry, Sunset. Trixie was very insistent in having me know the whole situation.”

That eased worries Sunset didn’t even know she had.

“Wait a moment,” Trixie said. “Twilight said there were cameras and fingerprints… Shouldn’t she already be in prison without the need of a trial?”

“It’s more complicated than that, Trixie. If you’d just read the books I give you, you’d know,” Straight reprimanded with a slight frown. “But, to answer your question, Sunset Shimmer, the other one, or more precisely, her family, is affluent. They will do everything they can to prevent her from going to prison.” He chuckled, and Sunset felt uneasy with the way his smile twisted to the side. “How naïve of them, thinking that money can get them out of any situation. Sadly, for them, they will only be able to hire the country’s second best lawyer. It is most unfortunate that they are going against the best.” He cleared his throat. “Anyway, I have to go. See you later, ladies.”

“Bye, dad.”

Once Straight left the room, Sunset turned to Trixie. “Now I know where did you get your ego from.”

Trixie rolled her eyes. “Well, he’s not exactly lying. He knows a lot of people, and many of them owe him favors.” She smiled. “And I know he’ll use those favors to send your doppelganger to the worst prison possible.”

“Well, now I’m afraid of your father, too,” Sunset said. “I don’t want to know what he’ll do to me when he learns that not only am I dating his very gay daughter, but that I’m also an illegal immigrant.”

Trixie erupted in laughter at the comment, only to moan in pain a short moment later. When she calmed herself again, she looked up at Sunset and smiled. “Well, then, I can give you my books so that you know how to defend yourself.”

“Good idea,” Sunset replied with a smile. She then trailed her fingers through Trixie’s hand and to her arm. “You know, I was thinking…”

“A dangerous habit,” Trixie retorted with a smirk.

Sunset rolled her eyes. “You say it hurts, even when you breath, right?” Trixie nodded. “Well…” Her fingers softly drummed along Trixie’s arm. “What if I kiss your booboo away?”

“Good luck with that. I’m bandaged,” Trixie pointed out.

That only made Sunset grin deviously. “In that case, I can just kiss lower… Until you start feeling better…”

Trixie rolled her eyes, attempting to belittle Sunset’s comment, but her blush gave her away quite fast. “I’m just going to ignore you.”

Sunset snickered. “You’re no fun.” She stopped drumming her fingers when they reached Trixie’s shoulder, and gently squeezed. “Anyway, I was wondering… Your dad said his name is Straight Totamoon, right?” Trixie nodded. “Call me weird if you want, but I kind of expected you two to have and share the same family name.”

Closing her eyes, Trixie sighed heavily. “I knew this moment would come…It’s such a pain to explain.” She opened her eyes and looked up at Sunset with a frown. “We don’t have a family name, we have a family naming tradition.”

“I see,” Sunset replied. “What is it about, exactly?”

“Well, basically, there are two rules to follow,” Trixie said, somehow managing to get a redder blush. “One, the word “moon” must always be in the second name, and two…” She looked away. “The whole name must be some kind of pun, or have a meaning.”

“So, if your father is Straight and Totamoon, it’s… Straight to the moon?” When Trixie nodded, Sunset snorted, miserably failing to hold back her laughter. “So, what about yours?”

Trixie sighed in defeat. “Trick a lull to the moon,” she muttered.

Sunset erupted in laughter. “Aww that’s so awowable!”

“It’s not adorable!” Trixie retorted while Sunset laughed. “It’s a hundred years old family tradition!”

“That doesn’t make it any less adorable, and you know it,” Sunset said as she finished laughing.

Trixie clicked her tongue. “Shouldn’t’ve told you anything.”

“Oh, come on!” Sunset said, leaning over until their cheeks met. “What’s the point of having a cute name if your girlfriend can’t make fun of it?” She began brushing their cheeks together.

“You’re always- What are you doing?”

Sunset froze as her eyes widened. “Uh… nothing…”

Trixie flashed a devious smile. “Are you nuzzling me?”

“... No…”

Trixie snickered and circled Sunset’s head with an arm. “Who knew you’d be a cuddler?” She asked, nuzzling Sunset back. “Melikes.”

“I’m not a cuddler!” Sunset said, trying to pull herself from Trixie’s grip, but failing miserably, as she was actively avoiding to move Trixie too much as to not hurt her.

“Is that so?” Trixie asked, still smiling. “Then, is it a pony thing?” Sunset immediately froze, and Trixie’s grin only grew. “It is, isn’t it?”

Sunset sighed and closed her eyes. “Nuzzling is to ponies what patting is for humans…” She blushed. “It’s… A simple show of affection between friends.”

“And lovers,” Trixie finished.

Sunset turned her head just enough to look at Trixie’s face. “You think you can just make fun of me and not expect vengeance?”

Instead of widening her eyes in horror, like Sunset expected, Trixie only smirked.

“You know, Sunny, I can still pick your costume for Halloween…” She smirked and gave Sunset a quick peck on the cheek. “I’m still debating whether to pick the sluttiest costume, or the most laughable… Hmm, choices, choices…”

“But… What’s the point? You’ll be in your house by halloween.”

“Oh, yes, that’s true,” Trixie confirmed. “But I’ll feel great satisfaction knowing that you’ll be out there, strutting your stuff around and about in whatever I pick for you.” She flashed her teeth, and her eyes seemed to glimmer. “And before I forget. Now that you’ve been properly introduced to my dad, you can now drop by my place, since I’m calling dibs on half the candy you manage to get.”

Sunset swallowed. “H-Hey, that’s just plain evil.”

Trixie caressed Sunset’s cheek, then playfully pinched some skin with her fingertips, and pulled. “That’s what you get for teasing me all the time.”

“Someone knows how to hold a grudge.”

“Just when the revenge will be so sweet,” Trixie said. “I can’t wait to see my parents’ expressions when they see you in a naughty costume.”

Sunset groaned. She supposed she should please Trixie, after everything she’d been through. With a sigh, she hung her head in defeat.

Halloween was going to be a long day.

Author's Notes:

You didn't really think I'd kill Trixie, did you?

Next Chapter: 25. Treating Trixie Estimated time remaining: 2 Hours, 32 Minutes
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