“Trixie, are you okay?” asks Minty, giving Trixie a worried glance out of the corner of her eye as they drive down the dirty Canterlot streets in Joe.

Trixie is once again sitting in the passenger seat of Minty's desecrated vehicle, her head resting on her hoof and her moody, lidded eyes staring straight ahead at the passing scenery with a deep frown on her face. There is a few seconds of silence, with Minty casting a concerned glance at Trixie and the unicorn fighting every muscle in her neck to keep herself from looking at the rude pony next to her.

“Are you going to talk to me?” says Minty.

“I don't want to talk to you,” grumbles Trixie.

Minty sighs sadly. “Look, I'm sorry I got a little carried away back there, but the file they gave me said you were arrested in Appleloosa for prostitution, so I was just trying to see if this was some kind of habit of yours that we had to deal with.”

Trixie glares at Minty. “Habit? Oh, great. Just great. So I'm a skank on top of a convicted terrorist, now? How nice.”

“Trixie, I'm not saying that-”

“Oh, yes you are.”

“No, what I'm saying is that-”

“I'm a killer slut with no talent? Got it.”

“Will you let me-”

“Did that fancy file tell you that when they arrested me I was half starved and having to eat food out of a dumpster?”

“...No.”

Trixie scoffs and slumps against the window again. “Of course not. I sold myself so I could eat real food. Not that broth with grass bits that they serve at the soup kitchens. I was tired of eating out of the dumpsters and begging for money and food, but you know what? I'm glad I was arrested in Appleloosa because there, I at least had a home, three meals a day and an actual bed and blanket and showers for a year and nopony tortured me on a daily basis.”

Trixie sniffles, blinks wet haze out of her eyes and swallows a lump in her throat with great difficulty. Minty does not say a word, though. The officer's ears have drooped and her eyes have become blanketed with sadness. Trixie sees Minty wanting to say something, but she can barely move her lips, much less make a sound. When Minty Sprinkles lifts her hoof off the speed lever to pat Trixie on the shoulder, Trixie tenses and squishes herself against the door, not wanting to look at her parole officer or the world around her. She just wants it all to fade away. All of the misery, all of the false friends, all of the betrayals, all the memories. She wants nothing but a shell, for at least when she was a shell, no one noticed her, and nobody can hurt what they can't see.

Minty glides to a stop at an intersection, and she takes a deep breath, looks down, swallowing, then lifts her head to look at Trixie, who has yet to pull her bloodshot eyes off of the metropolis. “Trixie, I know things are rough, right now, but I promise you that when this is all over you will have a happy ending.”

“What makes you say that?” says Trixie.

“Because if it isn't sunshine and rainbows, it ain't the end.”

The next few minutes have been quiet, which is fine by Trixie. She is glad that Minty has not gone on a tangent on tackle tag or asked her perverted questions, or talked to her in general. The silence is a welcoming companion to her, and her brain has shut down for the most part. Not a thought has slithered into her mind and her eyes may see the outside world, but they are not buildings or ponies or vehicles that she sees. All she sees are colors without faces or personalities. Everything is blank and simple, and she loves it. But her peace and quiet is shattered when Minty Sprinkles' voice invades her ears.

“Now, Trixie, before we settle down for the night we have to do two things,” says Minty hesitantly. “Thing one, Princess Celestia wants to talk to you. Thing two, we gotta get you a job. Luckily for you, I know a cool guy that’ll give you one.”

“What does Celestia want to talk to me about?” asks Trixie moodily.

“Just some stuff. I already did most of the talking on your behalf, so you two are mostly cool, but she just wants to have a few words with you personally.”

“About what?”

Minty sighs. “I don't know, Trixie. Maybe she just wants to see if you're not as bad as the world says you are.”

The two fall silent again, with only the wooshing of passing motor wagons to fill the void of silence. When they enter a particularly crowded metropolis street, Minty has to slow down and Trixie finds herself actually taking in the scope of the towering skyscrapers and the zeppelins displaying patriotic messages floating above the metal spires. But her moment of marveling at the strangeness of comes to an end when Minty releases a loud, aggravated growl, and Trixie looks at her, then ahead and realizes that they slowed to a crawl because of a small motor wagon dragging its weight in front of them while the lanes surrounding them are filled with vehicles passing them with ease.

“What the heck is up with this driver?” says Minty. She honks her horn and pokes her head out of the truck to glare at the motor wagon in front of them. “Hey, buddy, the speed limit’s forty! Start moving or go in the slow lane!”

A mare pokes her head out of her vehicle and shakes her hoof at her. “Buck you!”

The mare pulls her head back inside and continues on with her turtle speed, and Trixie cringes when Minty’s eyes narrow with yet another growl.

“Oh, no she didn’t,” sneers Minty.

“Um, Minty, are you okay?” asks Trixie uneasily.

“I will be in a moment.”

Minty starts speeding up and soon the front of the truck is bumping up against the little car in front of them. Minty cackles psychotically and Trixie’s ears droop and shrinks down in her seat while shifting her eyes side to side nervously. She swears that she’ll book it if Minty squishes the car in front of them. When she hears metal grinding against metal she shrinks down even further and prays that nothing will happen.

“Little lady better speed up,” says Minty.

The little vehicle suddenly shoots forward and weaves through the other cars, making some of the vehicles swerve out of the way and ponies jump to safety. Horns honk and insults are thrown out almost instantly, and Minty sighs with relief and her demeanor relaxes as Trixie remains scrunched and trembling in her seat and staring nervously at her.

Minty takes another breath, runs her hoof through her mane, then smiles reassuringly at Trixie. “Don’t worry, no pony was hurt.”

“Are you sure about that?” asks Trixie.

“Yep. Oh, there it is!”

Minty suddenly swerves her way through traffic, narrowly avoiding half a dozen collisions, jerking Trixie in her seat-belt constraint and not caring in the slightest of screeching tires and angry honks and yells. The officer does another sharp turn, dodging more oncoming traffic, ripping up a stretch of grass and getting brief air before landing with a couple of bounces in a crowded parking lot. After that, she does yet another turn where the tires screech against the asphalt and she stops with a perfect parallel park in between two other vehicles, leaving Trixie's adrenaline oozing out of her via sweat and her face getting a taste of the dashboard, which has a lemon flavor to it of all things.

With them perfectly parked, Minty yanks the keys out, cheers, and claps her hooves together with a massive grin. “That was fun!”

Trixie whimpers and rubs her muzzle as she pulls away from the dashboard. She glares at Minty for only a moment, but that moment is short for the bonbon design of the building they are in front of catches her eye and replaces her annoyance and pain with confusion. While Trixie stares in bewilderment of the strange design, Minty leans over, uncuffs Trixie and tosses the chains in the back.

“We're going to start over. No strikes, no resentment. All bad feelings just water under the bridge, okay?” says Minty.

Trixie can only nod, but she feels a weight lift off her chest since she does not have to deal with the chains at the moment. Meanwhile, Minty eagerly hops out of her truck, trots to Trixie’s side and pops open the door and smiles brightly at her.

“Come on, Trixie, we gotta get some candy for the Princess!” she says.

Not wanting another scuffle in a parking lot and risk getting chained up again, Trixie reluctantly gets out of the truck and follows her to the store with her head down.

As soon Trixie steps inside the store her whole body is blasted with frigid air, giving her a frosty, prickling sensation from horn to tail, making her shiver and shakes herself, but Minty goes on forward, without care. Trixie has to go into a slight trot to catch up to Minty, and when they get into the actual shopping area they are miserably greeted by a unicorn mare in a clown costume who was born with an aquamarine coat and cyan mane and tail with white highlights.

“Hi, welcome to Bon Bon’s Bonbon Land. Home of bonbons and other yummy candies and baking goods and other junk,” says the unicorn.

“Thanks!” says Minty cheerfully before snatching a store basket.

“Um, enjoy your day,” says Trixie quietly, still keeping her head low.

“Uh huh,” grumbles the unicorn.

Trixie keeps her head down and bites her lip nervously with drooped ears and a face red as heated ore as Minty escorts her through colorful crowded aisles overrun with eager foals, aggravated parents, and stallions complaining about finding the perfect candy for their picky mates. The good news is that everyone is distracted, so they are not looking at the cuts and bruises that plague Trixie's body or peeking inside her soul to count her sins. The better news is that Minty is able to find what she is looking for, which is the chocolate and caramel candies, and she does not hesitate in grabbing dozens of bags of each kind and stuffing them in the basket.

“Princess Celestia loves chocolate and caramel,” says Minty brightly.

“So, I’ve noticed,” mumbles Trixie, shifting anxiously in her spot when she sees a couple of stallions staring at her. They are quick to resume their business, though, and she swallows and inches just a little bit closer to Minty with a heavy beating heart and dry mouth. However, despite her move, someone still taps on her flank, causing her to shriek and jump. But when she looks to the source, she sees a small colt with a white coat, brown spots and a brown mane and tail staring at her.

“Sorry, ma’am, but I was just wondering if you were okay since you got bruises all over you,” he says in a Trottingham accent with a deceptively older voice.

Before Trixie can answer, a similarly colored and obviously older mare hurriedly pushes him away with her hoof.

“Pipsqueak, what have I told you about talking to those kinds of ponies?” says the mother sternly, her voice carrying a thicker accent than the colt.

Trixie frowns at the mare, and while the two ponies have a small argument Trixie inspects herself. Sure she’s covered in bruises and scratches and has a horrible scar ring around her eye, but some sympathy would be nice rather than rash judgment.

“Awww, but mother!” whines Pipsqueak.

“Don't you 'mother' me, mister! Get back to shopping for your candy or else you'll get no birthday party!” snaps his mother.

Pipsqueak huffs and walks away with his head down, and Trixie shakes her head and turns around to see how much more candy Minty can grab. Only to see a filly and her mom in place of her parole officer.

Trixie's eyes bulge and her mouth instantly goes dry as her heart threatens to blow out of her chest cavity and run away screaming down the aisle while ripping off shreds of itself. A worried whimper escapes her throat as she looks to the left and right and forward and back in search for Minty Sprinkles.

She snakes up and down the aisles, checking everything, from candy bars to candy pops, rock candy to powdered candy, soda to smoothie mixes, and lollipops to jawbreakers. No matter where she looks, no matter how loud she yells for Minty, that eccentric pony is nowhere to be seen or heard. Her replies are the chatters of the patrons too busy shopping to care about her plight.

After calling Minty again with no luck by the jawbreakers, Trixie whines and stomps her front hooves repeatedly on the tile as hard as she can with her heart and lungs ready to pop and eyes close to melting.

“Are you fucking kidding me!?” yells Trixie.

Some employees carrying stock and shoppers look at her, but they do not stop to see what the problem is. They just keep walking, albeit a little bit faster than before, and Trixie groans and slumps against the wall, rubbing her face and shaking enough to shed herself.

“Great. Just great,” says Trixie to herself, loathing her situation of being alone in a city she no longer recognizes with an outstanding criminal record and no idea what to do about it. However, little does she know, she has plopped herself right next to the manager's office and has a great seat in listening in on a conversation she should not be hearing.

“Look, Bon Bon, you’re a nice mare, and me and Grim like you a lot, but the point is you haven’t paid Gilda in what... four months?” says a female with a light Stalliongrad accent.

“Sounds about right” says a gruff male with thicker accent.

“Look I’ll pay Gilda, all right? I just need more time,” says Bon Bon, trying to be brave, but clearly terrified.

Trixie's ears perk and she looks at the door, not being able to see anything due to her angle and the fogged glass blocking everything.

“Four months is a long time not to pay and now your asking for more time?” says the female.

“Yes, I have employees to pay and stocks to, um, restock,” says Bon Bon.

“Look, Bon Bon, I’m a patient griffin, a very patient griffin, and the only reason why Gilda hasn’t had this place shot up is because I said: ‘Look, Gilda, Bon Bon is a good mare, she’ll pay up’. And Gilda said: ‘Winny, get her to pay by the end of the week or she’s dead’. It’s the end of the week and I can’t protect you any longer.”

There is a moment of silence, and Trixie slides closer to the door and hears uneasily shuffling.

“But Sunday is the end of the week,” says Bon Bon.

“No, Friday is,” says the female, Winny.

“But I base all my schedule on Sunday being the end of the week.”

“And we use the griffin calendar when doing griffin stuff, which includes you. So we’ll be seeing you tonight. Don’t leave town unless you want that unicorn friend of yours to be your replacement.”

The door suddenly opens and Trixie quickly backs up and pretends shopping for some candy as the two griffins walk out. The female is slender and has red tips on her head feathers with red eyeshadow. The male she is with is a heavyweight of solid muscle, has an eye-patch as well as a huge bald spot on the top of his head to go with a collection of healed scars all over his body. They look at Trixie suspiciously and she smiles uneasily at them as the male griffin steps forward to confront her, but Winny grabs his shoulder and shakes her head.

“Leave her, Grim. She's just shopping for candy,” she says.

“Bullshit,” says the male, Grim. He then looks back at Trixie and jabs her in the chest with his talon, making her wince and stumble back. “Whatever you heard, you did not hear, and if you did hear what you heard, you are dead, got it, shitbird?”

Trixie gulps.

“Grim, that's enough. I'll meet you at Gilda's,” says Winny sternly.

Grim glares at his female counterpart for only a moment before he stomps away, muttering to himself and using unnecessary roughness to grab a box of jawbreakers. Meanwhile, Winny, shakes her head and smiles apologetically at Trixie.

“Sorry about that. My colleague can be rough, sometimes,” she says.

Trixie forces an awkward giggle and rubs the back of her neck as her eyes flick around in search of Minty. “It's fine. This is just another Tuesday for me.”

“Today's Friday.”

“...No it isn't.”

Winny frowns and inspects Trixie's closer, making her step back and widen her eyes slightly.

“You do not look so well. Is someone giving you a hard time?” asks Winny.

“Me? No!” Trixie giggles anxiously, shakes her head and backs up into a wall of gumballs while shaking her hoof dismissively. “No, I-I'm fine, really. I just fell down some stairs and hit a doorknob, and there was this cat with big claws, and it was all like rawr and-and-”

Winny holds up her hand. “Okay, I get it, you're afraid of someone, but if you want it all to end then I can help. Just drop by the Alázatos Roost on Dream Boulevard and let the doorman know that Winny invited you, and if I'm not there, I will be soon, okay?”

A shiver runs up Trixie's spine as she gulps and nods her head. “Sure. Sounds good.”

Winny grins and pats Trixie's cheek. “Very good. Hope to see you, soon.”

Winny then leaves in the direction of Grim, and after the griffin is out of sight, Trixie breathes a sigh of relief and slumps to the ground.

“What did I tell you about talking with griffins?” says Minty right next to Trixie with her basket of candy at her hooves.

Trixie yells and leaps away from Minty, heart racing and eyes bugged out again. “Minty, what the hell!?”

“You mad?” asks Minty with a smirk.

“Yes! You left me in a candy shop looking like-like an escaped convict! I'm surprised nopony tried a citizens arrest on me! Or that nopony tried snatching me or-or-or-”

Minty grabs Trixie's shoulders and holds her still while the unicorn hyperventilates and trembles with tears in her eyes. “Relax, Trixie, relax. I wasn't going to let anything happen to you. I just wanted to see what you would do and you did not disappoint. Except for the griffin part. I told you not to talk to them and you go and talk to them.”

“But they started it and I heard them talking and I think they're going to kill somepony and-”

Minty shoves her hoof in Trixie's mouth, turning her words into muffled gibberish. “Shushy shush. I gotta buy this stuff and then take you to Princess Celestia so she can talk with you a little bit, w porządku?”

“But what about-”

“I'll call it in. You just need to relax and help me get this stuff out of here so we can get this day over with.”

Trixie is about to protest, but stops herself and lowers her head with a defeated sigh and a scuff of her hoof against the floor. “Fine.”

Around ten minutes later, Trixie and Minty finally get to the checkout line, but they would have gotten there sooner if Minty had not decided to pick up baking goods and puzzle books. A few minutes after that, the duo is outside carrying bags of candy, baking supplies and puzzle books, and Trixie's mind, for the most part, is in overdrive about hearing the death threat and wondering what Gray Muffin would do if he were in her horseshoes.

“--And so then I said yes, he said no, I said yes, he said no, I said yes, he said no, and finally I shoved the cherry pie in his face and figured out he was allergic to cherries. I felt bad about it and apologized and made him cards and stuff, but he still dumped me,” says Minty.

Trixie stops and looks at Minty, her low powered mind now more confused than ever. “Wait, what are we talking about?”

“I was talking about failed relationships. You were just being quiet. By the way, have you ever had a boyfriend, Trixie?”

Trixie thinks for a moment, then her body sulks. “Once. A long time ago.”

“Ooh.” Minty unlocks the door to Joe and opens the passenger door for Trixie. “Was he cute?”

Trixie rolls her eyes. “No, he was butt-ugly.”

“Aww, looking at the heart.” Minty hugs Trixie, making her gag and tense. “See, I knew you weren't all bad.”

Trixie frowns, pushes Minty away and hops on her seat. “That was sarcasm, Minty.”

“Oh.” Minty's ears droop and she slithers on over to her side, speaking again when she is inside and buckled up. “So, what happened?”

“He didn't dump me over pie if that is what you're asking.”

Minty frowns. “Um, no. I was just wondering why you're single, now.”

Trixie looks at Minty.

“Besides the obvious.”

Trixie continues staring.

“You know, with the homelessness, jail time, terrorism and... um...”

Trixie keeps staring and Minty's voice drifts away.

Minty clears her throat awkwardly and starts her vehicle. “How about we go see Celesita?”

Trixie sighs moodily and rests her head on her window, wearily replying: “Let’s just get this over with.”

“Okie dokie lokie!”

Minty pulls out of the Bonbon Land parking lot and Trixie stares at the glamorous white towers of the Royal Palace that overlook Canterlot like a benevolent entity. But Trixie doesn’t care about the godly features of the palace or the divine orange and blue glow it has from the sun setting behind it. She just wants some answers as to why she was suddenly released from prison. And now was the time to get some.

Author's Notes:

Added 07 Sep 2015