Title:           Trix of the Trade - Chapter 8.5
Author:          gadget
Pastebin link:   http://pastebin.com/dgbDdNR9
First Edit:      Thursday 21st of June 2012 04:35:10 AM CDT
Last Edit:       Thursday 21st of June 2012 04:35:10 AM CDT

>You are Rarity.
>You have just decided to seek advice from the pony who knows Anonymous the best.
>Twilight Sparkle.
>Unfortunately… She’s a bit of a recluse, at the moment.
>Even since Trixie humiliated her in front of Ponyville, she hasn’t emerged from her Library.
>You haven’t seen her or your little Spikey-Wikey since.
>You knock on the front door of the library. The pitter-patter of Spike’s footsteps echo from inside.
>You hear whispers from the other side of the door.
>Then it cracks open. You see a hint of green and purple through the sliver of an opening.
>”T-Twilight doesn’t want to see anybody right now. P-Please come back some other time.”
“Even  me, Spikey?:
>The door swings open.
>”Rarity!?”
>You slip past Spike in his shocked state.
“Yes, I must speak to Twilight Sparkle immediately.”
>”You can’t! She’s… uh, tired.”
“Puh-leease, darling. She’s had over half a month to sleep. This is urgent.”
>”… How urgent?”
>You glare at Spike. He quickly gets the message
>”Uhhh… Yeah, I’ll get her.”
“Thank you, Spike.”
 
>Spike returns shortly after, Twilight Sparkle in tow.
>She looks… dreadful.
>Matted mane, baggy eyes, and you could SMELL her from here!
>If the circumstances were different, you’d force her to the Spa.
>She peels her eyes off the floor and brings them to your own.
>Then her bloodshot eyes begin to tear up.
>You feel yours misting up as well.
>Before you know it, the two of you are rushing into each other’s hooves.
>You embrace your friend. She had been hurt and you were too caught up in your own selfish thoughts to comfort her.
>Not anymore.
>It’s time to let your personal wants and desires go, at least until you’ve made sure your friends are happy.
>”Rarity… I’m sorry… I’m so sorry.”
“Hush, Twilight. It’s not your fault.”
>”*sniff* I-I guess you’re here to… to revoke my position as the Element of Magic?”
“What?!”
>You pull away from her.
“Why would you ever think that?”
>Twilight beings sobbing harder
>”B-Because Trixie-“
“No! Twilight, you are a scholar, not a brute.”
>”B-But-“
“Stop right there. If my position as the Element of generosity was revoked at the first sign of selfishness… I would have lost it long ago.”
>”Rarity… You’re the most generous pony I know.”
“… I find that hard to believe.”
>You pull Twilight back into a hug. This one was for you.
 
>Spike was kind enough to put on a pot of tea while You and Twilight comforted each other.
>Once it was made, Twilight said she’d like it in her room. She’d feel more comfortable that way.
>A wave a stench far worse than Twilight’s assaulted your senses as you entered her room. Good HEAVENS it is awful.
>You take one last good breath of air before following Twilight into her room.
>She gestures you to sit on the bed opposite to hers.
>You comply.
>”… Have I missed anything important?”
“Quite a bit, actually.”
>She sighs.
>”Start from the top.”
>You nod. You internally sigh. This is going to be a long talk.
>You start with the immediate aftermath.
>Trixie bathed in glory while Anonymous, Rainbow Dash, and Applejack carried Twilight home.
>Then Trixie came to you the following morning, looking for Anonymous.
>And…
>”You’re joking! Trixie offered Anonymous a job?!”
“… And he accepted.”
>Twilight spits hot tea in your face.
>”Why?!”
“Er… A series of events that may or may not have involved me asking Anonymous to move out?”
>You put on a grin. It’s not working.
>”You forced him to do this?”
>Did she honestly blame this on you?
“It’s not my fault! I thought Anonymous would have more common sense than that! Trixie is…”
>”Stupid, egotistical, rude, vile?”
“Yes.”
>Twilight stares into her tea for a moment.
>”… He can’t do this. He can’t leave all his friends like that!”
“That’s what I said.”
>”We’re going to bring him back!”
>Well… This was something you didn’t expect
“And how do you plan on doing that?”
>”I don’t know.” She leans in close, her putrid breath washes over you. “But we’re not leaving until we figure it out.”
>…
“But… the stench.”
 
>You are Anonymous
>It’s the day following the whole Fluttershy situation.
>And it sucked.
>Not as much as yesterday, but still…
>You decided that you should drive the wagon all day. It’s somewhat of a fair trade, you suppose. Trixie fixed both the exterior and interior of the wagon.
>Then she yelled at you about it, this morning.
>Then you made her breakfast.
>Food does a good job of shutting Trixie up, if only for a little bit.
>So while she stuffed her face, you took a few pieces of fruit and climbed to the top of the wagon.
>A gentle breeze hit your face as it emerged. The sky only had a few sparse clouds. Today was going to be a good day.
>You take a seat on the bench, set your food down next to you, and pick up the reins.
>You hear the creaking of the step ladder behind you.
>Nevermind, today is going to suck.
>Trixie trots over to the other side of the bench, levitated banana in tow, and awkwardly climbs over it.
>She takes a few moments to make sure her hat and cape are presentable before soaking in the environment.
>Then she notices you staring.
>”What?”
“Nothin’, just wondering why you’re up here.”
>”Oh,”
>She takes a bite of her banana.
>”Do youf not enfoy ‘ixie’s comfany?”
>You recoil as the white bits of chewed banana fly at you. Classy.
“There is no right answer to that.”
 
“So while you’re here, I guess you can finally tell me how to make this thing go faster.”
>You tug on the reins, twisting them in several directs and angles before giving up for the 500th time.
>Trixie swallows her food and steals the reins from you.
>”Like…”
>You almost fall out of your seat as the wagon gains a huge burst of speed.
>”This?”
>Bullshit. She didn’t do a thing. No tugging, no twisting. She just touched the fucking thing.
>10/10 you’re fucking mad.
>You slap off her hat because you’re so mad.
>Her horn is glowing.
>”Wha—Hey!”
>Cheating bitch!
>Your body goes rigid as magic surrounds you.
>Trixie looks furious.
>She gets close.
>Like, nose bumping close.
>”Listen closely, idiot. Trixie is only going say this once.”
>You shift your eyes from side to side, seeing as it’s the only thing you can do.
>”You DO NOT. Touch. Trixie’s. Hat. Got it?”
>She releases control, places her hat back on her head, and scoots to the far side of the bench.
“Umm… Do you mind if I ask why?”
>”Yes.”
>Well.
>Things just got awkward…
>Trixie was now sitting there, staring straightforward.
>She still looked incredibly frustrated.
>It’s probably for the best if you’d just leave her alone.
“So what do you know about Hoofington?”
>It’s like your mind and your mouth are two separate, sentient organisms with their own opinions and plans.
>Maybe they could talk to each other eventually?
>Nah, that’s dumb.
>”You first.”
>Her voice was a little cooler than before but it was still sharp.
“What I know about Hoofington? It’s an old Earth Pony town and it’s about three times as big as Ponyville. That’s about it.”
 
>”That’s all there is to it. Dumb ponies living in the foothills. Trixie doesn’t know why she bothers wasting time on those simpletons. She deserves so much more.”
>You have an outstanding amount of counter-arguments to that but you keep them to yourself.
“Maybe, but they have money, and money is good.”
>Trixie lets out an amused chuckle.
>”Yes, money IS good. And those idiots will give it all up with just a simple flick of the horn and a shake of the ru-“
“Aaahhjajahahfbah. No! That is exactly what got you chased out of Appleoosa. You are not going to half-ass this shit like you do with everything else.”
>”And Trixie supposes The Great and Powerful Idiot has an idea?”
“Uh, yeah. Don’t half-ass it.”
>You make it sound as if it’s the most obvious thing in the world.
>Because it is.
“Look, Hoofington is pretty far away from Canterlot. The further you get away from Canterlot, the fewer Unicorns you’ll find.”
>”What does that have to do with anything?”
“I assume there aren’t many Unicorns around. So… play yourself off as a little exotic. Not just ‘bang bam explosions and smoke!’ but a little mysterious and… I dunno. It’s just an idea.”
>Trixie taps a hoof against her chin.
>”Trixie… has an idea. She’ll be retiring into her room for the rest of the day. Trixie wishes  to not be disturbed.”
“Hey before you go,”
>You hold up the reins
“Seriously, is there a way to make this thing go faster?”
>She looks at you like you’re an idiot before crawling back down into the wagon.
>You reach for the food you brought ou-
>What? It’s gone?
>Fucking Trixie.