“A… census?” Ivory Scroll asked.
Twilight nodded, “To determine if there are any other ponies missing from town. I’d like to know if you have some sort of registry of all the citizens of Ponyville that we can use as a starting point.”
Twilight stood in the middle of the office, staring at the Mayor with a weary but firm look. Spike stood not too far from her, scratching his head and alternating his glance between Twilight and the Mayor.
Ivory leaned back on her chair and scratched her chin as she thought, “I do believe we have something of the sort, I’ll tell my assistant to give us a copy right away. Wait here, Miss Sparkle,” she said, and then jumped from her chair.
Twilight followed the Mayor with her eyes as she left the room. As soon as she left, Twilight let out a long sigh. She had been doing a lot of that lately.
“What is it, Twi?” Spike asked her.
The unicorn didn’t answer for a few seconds as she looked through a nearby window instead, “When the guards arrived yesterday, they immediately closed off the roads and everypony ran back home. At that moment I didn’t think about making sure everypony was still in town,” she turned around and looked at Spike, “And because of that, this thing, this… plague may spread to the rest of Equestria.”
Spike remained silent. He didn’t know what to say, he couldn’t stand seeing Twilight like this, but what could he possibly say? He had never seen Twilight so shaken up before, not when she was trying to prevent Nightmare Moon’s return, not even when she had faced Discord. He kicked his feet in the air, and twisted his tail in nervousness, “Twi…” he said in a small voice.
Twilight didn’t say anything, but simply turned around to look at him. He was now the one looking sideways.
“Do you remember when I had that greed growth?” Spike said, still holding his tail.
Twilight blinked a couple of times and sat upright. Spike didn’t like to mention the incident that had caused him to turn into a huge, rampaging dragon. She wondered what had brought this up.
“Back when that happened, I didn’t know how I could cope with all the stuff I did,” Spike said, twisting his tail even harder than before, “I mean, I caused a lot of pain and damage to a lot of ponies, how could I ever make it up to everyone?” Spike let go of his tail and looked upwards. Twilight wanted to say something, but the dragon turned around and smiled, “But you girls were always by my side, all the time. You helped me every step of the way and, in the end, things went back to how they were. It took a lot of effort, but I don’t think I could have done it without all of you.”
“Spike…” Twilight said in a slow, whispery voice.
“Twilight,” Spike said, taking the unicorn’s hoof in his claws, “I don’t want you to blame yourself for this, nothing good will come of it. I know everything is going to be alright in the end, and you can count on me being by your side all the way.”
Twilight blinked a couple of times; Spike was looking at her with beaming eyes. She opened and closed her mouth, for a moment unable to form a sound.
“Twilight?” Spike said, his smile faltering ever so slightly.
Twilight threw her arms around Spike and pulled him closer to her, holding him tight. She hadn’t realised just how much she had kept bottled inside of her for these past couple of days, but in that moment it all came crashing down on her, “I love you, Spike,” she said.
“I love you too, Twi,” Spike said, returning the embrace, “It’s all gonna be alright, you’ll see.”
Thanks to that simple gesture, Twilight could feel as if the weight that had been accumulating over her started to lighten up, if only a little bit.
They remained like this, until the sound of a door opening reminded them of where they were. Clearing her throat, Twilight let go of Spike and turned around to face the Mayor.
“Here it is,” Ivory Scroll said, entering the room while holding a bundle of papers, “It was made almost a year before both of you arrived to Ponyville, but it should be more than enough to begin.”
Twilight levitated the files towards her, and proceeded to skim the pages, “How many ponies could Town Hall spare to help us, Miss Scroll?”
“Since paperwork has taken a considerable dip in importance for the time being, I think every set of hooves is available, Miss Sparkle,” the Mayor said, crossing her hooves over her chest.
“Great, let’s go to a meeting room so we can properly organise this,” Twilight said.
“Alright, I’ll be right behind you,” the Mayor said. She then pushed a pack of files off her desk and into the trash bin, the largest of which was labeled ‘The Advantages of Gravel as a Building Material for High Transit Roads in Small Rural Towns’. Twilight pretended not to notice.
“I also wanted to talk to you about something else,” Twilight added as she gave Spike the file.
“What is it?” the Mayor asked.
Twilight took a deep breath and walked towards the Mayor’s desk, “I have a proposition for you.”
This caused the Mayor to raise an eyebrow, but didn’t say anything else.
“We don’t know how long the barrier is going to stay up,” Twilight said, “It may be one week, or it could be much more than that. Whichever it is, we need to figure out a course of action for the town.”
“I… see,” the Mayor nodded, “I was already discussing with my advisors regarding that matter. We wanted to have a meeting with the whole town tomorrow at sunrise.”
“Good,” Twilight said, “but if yesterday’s event was any indication, it’d be better if we already had a plan to discuss with the rest of town tomorrow. Even a rough draft, at the very least.”
“What do you mean by that Miss Sparkle?” the Mayor asked her.
“I’d like to have a meeting with a smaller group of ponies, just a few who would be able to give us their insight on how to handle this situation.”
“Do you have somepony in mind, Miss Twilight?”
“A few,” Twilight said as she brought a quill close to her with magic.
“And who may they be?” The Mayor asked as Twilight wrote down something in the piece of paper. Once she had finished, Twilight levitated the parchment towards the Mayor, who took it and ran her eyes down the listed names.
“I hope you agree with the names on the list,” Twilight said.
“I assume there is a reason for choosing these ponies in particular,” the Mayor asked.
Twilight nodded, “I thought it’d be better if we could get as many different points of view as possible.”
“I see no problem with that,” the Mayor said before she scribbled down a couple of names down the list, “If we are going to have this ready by tomorrow’s town meeting, then we’d have to talk tonight at the very least.”
“We’d have to let them know immediately, though I’m sure that can be done while we carry out the census,” Twilight said.
“I’ll see that it’s done,” The Mayor said, nodding, “Will you need something else, Miss Twilight?”
“Not something,” Twilight said as she opened the door, “but rather somepony.”
“And who would that be?” the Mayor asked, furrowing her brow.
“Somepony who knows everypony in Ponyville,” Twilight said with a sigh before leaving the room.
“Welcome to Sugar Cube Corner! How may I help—Oh, hi Twilight! Hi, Spike!” Pinkie Pie said from behind the counter.
“Hi, Pinkie,” Spike said as he waved.
“Good evening, Pinkie,” Twilight said, closing the door behind her, “How are you?”
“Oh, same ol’, same ol’,” she said, “I feel much better now that you get to be the first customer of the day!”
Twilight and Spike looked around the room. The pastry shop, known as a lively place, gave an eerie feeling due to how vacant it was at the moment. Even with the vibrant pink pony behind the counter.
“Actually, now that I think about it, nopony has come since yesterday’s evening,” Pinkie Pie said, as she tapped her chin, deep in thought, "Oh, well. I’m sure they’ll show up sooner or later.”
“Hopefully that’ll be the case,” Twilight said with a hint of bitterness.
“Anyway, how can your pal Pinkie Pie procure you some pretty palatable pastries?” Pinkie asked.
“Well, I’d—” Spike started, before being interrupted by Twilight.
“I’m not here to buy anything, actually. I was—” Twilight said, before being interrupted herself.
“Oh, shoot,” Pinkie Pie said, stomping her hoof on the floor,” I thought I’d get to sell at least a cupcake today.”
“Pinkie, I need your help,” Twilight exclaimed, interrupting her friend’s tirade.
“Well, why didn’t you say so?” Pinkie Pie said with cheerfulness, “How can I help you?”
“I need you to come with me, we’re going to visit some ponies,” Twilight said as she levitated a file.
“Why? Are we going to have an ‘Under the Dome’ party? Because I’m still not done with the arrangements,” Pinkie Pie said.
“No, that’s… not why we’re doing this,” Twilight said, slightly bewildered by Pinkie’s shocking gleefulness.
“Oh, so why are we visiting them, then?” Pinkie said.
“We just want to know if anypony is missing,” Twilight said.
“Sounds like fun!” Pinkie said before jumping from behind the counter and landing next to the unicorn, “It’ll be like playing hide and seek, except nopony is actually hiding.”
“You could… you could say that,” Twilight said.
“Where are we going first, Twilight?” Pinkie chimed in.
“The ponies who work at Town Hall are lending us a hoof so we can cover all of Ponyville before nightfall,” Twilight said as they both headed for the exit, “We’re going to start with the south of town and then meet back in Town Hall once we’re done.”
“Sounds like a plan!” Pinkie half said, half yelled. Suddenly, her eyes shot wide open, and she pursed her lips.
“Uh… Pinkie, are you alright?” Twilight asked, but before she could say anything else, Pinkie Pie bolted to the kitchen.
Twilight blinked a couple of times and was about to call out for her friend, and tell her that there was no time for stalling, when the pink pony darted back to her side, holding a large basket with her mouth.
“Pinkie, what are those?” Twilight asked.
Pinkie laid the basket on the ground before smiling, “All the cupcakes we made today, we can bring them along and give one to the ponies we find,” Pinkie Pie said.
Twilight started at Pinkie in silence before giving her a small smile, “That’s a nice gesture, Pinkie.”
“It’s better than letting them go to waste, Twilight,” Pinkie Pie said before picking up the basket again.
Twilight nodded absent-mindedly. While she hadn’t been so sure that bringing Pinkie Pie along would be the best decision, she knew her knowledge about “every pony in Ponyville” came in extremely handy with the present task. And seeing her do something so simple yet thoughtful reminded her that perhaps a touch of laughter could be what the town needed after what they’ve been through.
“Let’s go, we have to be on our way,” Twilight said, turning around and heading for the door.
“Do you think we’ll see any of the girls?” Pinkie asked, as she tried to balance the basket on her back .
Twilight didn’t answer immediately, instead she kept walking, staring into the distance.
“Twi?” Pinkie prodded her.
“I believe so, Pinkie,” Twilight said, turning around to face her pink friend, giving her a smile.
“Me too, I want to check on Rarity before the day is over,” Spike said.
A joyous smile bubbled its way to Pinkie’s face. She continued to hop alongside Twilight, her cheerfulness contrasting heavily with the somber atmosphere that hung all over town.
“Oh, no. I better bake a huge cake when they let her back in, then,” Pinkie said with worry, “do you think she’ll be alright, Twilight?”
“She probably will. After all, Rainbow Dash left Ponyville just as this whole madness was starting. The chance of her not being infected is quite high,” Twilight said as she skimmed the file.
“Phew! That’s good to know, for a second there I was starting to get worried,” Pinkie Pie said.
Twilight didn’t say anything else. She figured a little white lie wouldn’t hurt anypony. Besides it wasn’t entirely a lie, it was highly possible that Rainbow Dash hadn’t been afflicted by the disease. And either way, she did say ‘probably’.
“Are we close, Twi?” Spike asked, veering the conversation back to the problem at hoof.
“Yes, we’re starting with this block,” Twilight replied as she walked towards the closest group of houses, followed closely by Pinkie Pie.
“Oh, I know this place, this is where Cherry Berry lives,” Pinkie Pie chirped in, “and there’s where Sweetie Drops has her shop.”
Pinkie Pie went on and on, listing the ponies who lived in that particular block, and then the ones on the next block, all while Twilight cross referenced it with the list she had. When she arrived at the wooden door, she stood still for a brief moment before taking a deep breath and knocking on the door. She made sure to knock loudly enough as to be sure she was heard, but not so much as to be an annoyance, and she stood there, waiting for someone to come out.
And she kept standing.
And she kept waiting.
Twilight frowned. She leaned towards Pinkie and whispered in her ear, “You said Cherry Berry lives here, didn’t you?”
“Abso-posi-tuvely, Twi,” Pinkie said with a firm nod.
Twilight looked back at the house, and grimaced.
“Hello? Miss Berry?” Twilight asked after knocking again, but there was still no response, “I’m Twilight Sparkle, I’m here on behalf of the Royal Guard, we just want to make sure you are alright.”
Twilight stood still, perking her ears in the hopes that she could catch the sound of Cherry Berry moving inside of her house, but she couldn’t hear anything. She turned around to face Spike and Pinkie Pie, and she could notice the feeling of worry in their eyes, but before Twilight said anything, she was finally able to hear a faint shuffling inside the house.
The attention of the little group was focused on the door, they heard a metallic sound, followed by a loud thump. They stood expectantly for Cherry Berry to come out. Finally, the door opened slightly, barely a hoof’s width, and through that gap, they could see a lock of blond hair draping over a violet eye.
“Good evening, Miss Berry,” Twilight said, and Spike nodded behind her.
“Hi, Cherry!” Pinkie Pie chirped, waving at her from the back.
“Good… good evening,” Cherry Berry said, averting her gaze.
“Thanks for opening the door, Miss Berry,” Twilight said, “We just wanted to check how everypony was doing.”
“I haven’t lost my cutie mark, if that’s what you wanted to know,” Cherry Berry said as she turned around to show her marked flank to Twilight through the gap in the door.
Twilight was taken aback by Cherry Berry’s boldness, causing her to stammer an unintelligible response before Pinkie Pie intervened.
“Oh, silly. We’re not here for that,” Pinkie Pie said, stepping next to Twilight.
Cherry Berry turned around and faced the pink mare, “Why, then?”
Twilight cleared her throat loudly, and gently pushed Pinkie aside, “The Mayor has scheduled a town-wide meeting, everypony must assist, it’ll be over at Town Hall first thing in the morning.”
Silence followed Twilight’s statement. Cherry Berry looked at Twilight with inquisitiveness before nodding, “Alright.”
Twilight gave Cherry Berry her best reassuring smile, “Great, then. Thanks for your time, Miss Berry.”
Cherry Berry was about to close the door when Pinkie Pie butted in.
“Hold on, Cherry” Pinkie said as she rummaged through the contents of the basket. “This is for you,” she said after a few seconds, and held a hoof outstretched, holding a cupcake in front of Cherry Berry.
It had a cherry on top.
Cherry Berry grimaced initially but after a moment she let out a long, drawn out sigh, and took the cupcake from Pinkie’s hoof, “Thanks, Pinkie Pie.”
“Don’t mention it!” she managed to say back before trotting away..
Twilight looked at Cherry Berry through the door. She was eyeing the cupcake, and Twilight could almost swear she saw Cherry smirk before taking a bite and closing the door.
It seemed that bringing Pinkie Pie with them had been the right choice.
“Come on, Pinkie. We still have a lot of ponies to check on,” Twilight said with a hint of a smile.
There was a knock on the door.
“Apple Bloom?” a deep voice came from outside. When there was no reply, the door opened, and a burly stallion entered the room.
Big Mac looked around the room until his eyes fell upon a small heap under the blankets. He remained silent as he walked towards the bed and he remained silent as he knelt next to it.
“‘Bloom?” He asked in a low voice.
The bundle squirmed under the blankets, and only grunted in reply.
“Supper’s ready,” he said.
The bundle did not move.
“We all are waiting for you,” he said.
“M’not hungry,” Apple Bloom said back.
Big Macintosh didn’t say anything at first. Applejack had told him how their little sister had been feeling these past couple of days, and truth be told, he was a tad sad knowing that she was still feeling down. He kept looking at his sister, thinking about what he should say.
“You ain’t gonna solve a thing by staying cooped up in here, you know?” he said.
“Goin’ down won’t solve much either,” Apple Bloom said back, not looking at her brother.
He raised an eyebrow at her sister’s reply, and thought for a couple of seconds before speaking again, “I know this whole thing is hitting you pretty hard, but staying holed up in your room won’t do you any good,” Apple Bloom squirmed under her blanket, but Big Mac kept going, “If we’re ever gonna go back to the way things were, we need to take control over our lives. An apple tree can’t grow if you keep the seeds in a bag, and we can’t move on if we stay holed up in our rooms.”
They remained silent afterwards.
“They’re waiting for us,” Big Mac said as he stood up.
“Will… will there be apple fritters?” Apple Bloom ventured, peeking her head from under the blanket.
“I’m sure Granny Smith will be happy to make some for all of us,” Big Mac said, smiling.
Apple Bloom shook the blanket off herself and jumped to the floor. She didn’t look happy, but she didn’t look sad either. To be honest, she didn’t feel either way, and maybe that was good enough for the moment.
“Let’s go, Apple Bloom,” Big Mac said, turning around and headed for the door.
“Let’s,” Apple Bloom said as she walked behind her brother.
“Thanks for your time, Lyra,” Twilight said as she nodded.
“No problem, Twi. Glad to be helpful,” Lyra said, smiling.
“Send my regards to Sweetie Drops,” Twilight added, and she saw Lyra’s smile falter for a brief moment.
“Sure thing, Twilight. See you tomorrow at six,” Lyra said before closing the door.
“My basket is only a quarter of the way empty. I knew it was a good idea to bring all of these,” Pinkie Pie said as she rummaged through the basket she had brought, but almost immediately looked up and frowned, “Wait, that should be three quarters of the way full…”
“There’s only one house left,” Spike said, pointing at the last house of the block.
The two story house stood slightly away from the rest of the houses, but still close enough to form part of the block. Adding to its aura of isolation were the closed windows and drawn drapes, giving the building an unnerving sensation. And yet, what shocked Twilight was what she saw once she got closer to the house.
“Pinkie?” Twilight asked.
“Yes, Twilight?” Pinkie pie said.
“Who lives there?” Twilight said back.
Pinkie Pie scratched her chin and let out a long hum as she thought, “Oh, there’s where Pokey Pierce lives,” she said, “I didn’t know he was into carpentry.”
Twilight eyed the house warily, although the upper windows just had drapes over them, the first floor was a different matter. If the whole atmosphere of the town wasn’t enough to let Twilight know that the fear was starting to take over the ponies of Ponyville, the boarded up windows were.
“Let’s go,” she said, walking forward and pushing aside the worrisome thoughts that threatened to creep back to her mind.
This time, Pinkie Pie went ahead and knocked on the door,” Hiya, Pokey! It’s Pinkie Pie, we wanted to—”
“Go away, Pinkie!” A loud voice came from inside the house, taking the group by surprise.
“Somepony is jumpy today…” Spike said, shaking his head.
Twilight didn’t say anything because of the shock, although she couldn’t say that she wasn’t expecting a reaction like this sooner or later.
“Pokey?” Pinkie Pie asked, folding back her ears.
“I’m not coming out until this situation has drastically improved,” Pokey Pierce yelled.
Twilight looked around her, and for the first time since the quarantine had begun, she was grateful that there was nopony on the streets right now. Nodding to herself, she marched towards the house and spoke mustering all the authority she could.
“Mister Pierce, you don’t have to come out,” Twilight said, causing Pinkie to turn around and lash out at her.
“But Twi! We can’t just—” Pinkie started, but Twilight laid a hoof on her shoulder. With a shake of her head, she told her friend to remain silent.
“I just need you to listen to me,” Twilight said, when no reply came out, she kept talking, “things will improve. You have my word that this problem is going to be solved, but that can only happen if we all work together, all of Ponyville.”
Initially, there was no response, Twilight didn’t know if what she had said had gotten through Pokey, and was about to speak again when the stallion’s shaky voice came from one of the windows.
“What do you want from me…”
“Nothing,” Twilight said back immediately, “we’re just here to inform you that the Mayor has organised a meeting for tomorrow morning, they hope to have the participation of all citizens of Ponyville.”
Again, no response.
“We need everypony’s help if we’re going to make it, Mister Pierce.”
“I… I’ll think about it,” he said.
Twilight let out a sigh of relief, as did Pinkie Pie next to her.
“That's all I ask for, mister Pierce. Thank you, and I hope we can see you tomorrow,” Twilight said.
“Bye, bye, Pokey,” Pinkie Pie said, “I’m going to leave you a cupcake outside your window, alright?”
“Ah... alright, Pinkie,” Pokey trailed off.
Having settled things to the best of her abilities, Twilight turned around and walked away, closely followed by Spike. Pinkie Pie, however, lingered in front of the house for a brief moment before walking next to Twilight.
“That’s it for this block, Twi,” Spike said once they had walked a considerable distance away from the house. He looked throught the list and searched for the next group of ponies to look for, hoping to take the group’s mind of the encounter they just had.
“How many do we have left?” Twilight asked.
“We have to check the next three before going back to Town Hall,” he said back.
Twilight nodded absentmindedly as she walked, “Are you feeling up to it, Pinkie?” she asked.
“I am, Twi, I still have a bunch of cupcakes left to share, and a whole lot of ponies’ day to brighten up,” Pinkie Pie said, shaking her basket. Although Twilight thought she looked a bit more determined now.
“That’s good to hear,” Twilight said with a small smile.
And so, they marched on.
The two ponies and a dragon stepped into the reception of Town Hall, where they were greeted by a frantic group of ponies talking loudly and walking around the room.
“Hi, Miss Mayor!” Pinkie Pie said cheerfully, waving at a couple of ponies.
“Miss Twilight, it’s good to see you,” Ivory Scroll said as she walked towards the group with a greenish mare with a gavel cutie mark following her closely, “most of the aides have already returned, and are waiting for your report, but it seems that no more ponies are missing.”
Twilight let out a sigh of relief, after the way this day had played out, it was nice to have some good news.
“Pinkie Pie, Spike, why don’t you go ahead and talk with them? I want to have a word with the Mayor for a moment,” Twilight said as she gave the papers to Spike.
“Sure thing, Twi,” Spike said before jumping from her back.
“Please follow Miss Justice, she’ll let you know how can you help,” Ivory Scroll said, motioning to the green mare next to her.
“If you may,” Justice said walking past Pinkie Pie and towards the end of the room.
“Who wants cupcakes~?” Pinkie sang as the trio trotted off to meet with the rest of the ponies.
“How are the preparations for the meeting coming along?” Twilight asked as she watched them walk away.
“Swimmingly,” Ivory Scroll said, setting her stack of papers on a nearby table, “all the participants agreed to come at the allotted time; we should be ready within a couple of hours. In the meantime, I’d recommend you to try and rest for a while. You know, get ready and everything.”
It was true Twilight hadn’t been sleeping well these past couple of days, and she would have loved to get some rest, but she knew there was still much to be done before she could allow herself that luxury.
“Thanks, Miss Scroll, I appreciate the concern, but I think I’m alright,” Twilight said with a nod as she tried to stifle a very untimely yawn.
“As you wish, Miss Sparkle, the meeting will start at eight o’clock, be sure to be there at that time,” the Mayor said before turning around and returning to her office.
Twilight stood in the middle of the reception of Town Hall. She was staring at the door to Miss Scroll’s office. She blinked a couple of times to clear her head before turning around, and her eyes lingered on the front door for a brief moment.
It had been a hard day, quite a few of them in fact. Her sleeping schedule left a lot to be desired, not to mention she hadn’t been eating that well due to the frenzy she had been thrown into since that Thursday’s morning. The Mayor was right, she did need some rest.
Twilight stood in the middle of the reception of Town Hall, staring at the front door, lingering there for some time. She then looked at the clock on the wall and squinted.
“Six forty-five,” Twilight read out-loud, “I still have an hour to help sort out the list.”
After that, she turned around, and walked towards the group of ponies at the far end of the room.
“N’after you’ve got them all nice ‘n golden, you take ‘em out and dry them,” Granny Smith said before flipping the pan over and letting the apple fritters slide into a plate with a few paper towels on top of it, “and done in less time than you can say ‘refill’.”
“I wanna try it now, Granny Smith,” Apple Bloom said as she took a spoonful of batter and tried to hold it still.
“Hold yer horses, yung’n. You don’t want the oil splashing all over your face, do you?” Granny Smith said, holding back her granddaughter.
“Listen to Granny Smith, Apple Bloom, and try to be in bed by nine, will you?” Applejack said as she finished scrubbing the dishes.
“Will y’all be back by then?” Apple Bloom asked her sister.
“Can’t say I know, but I sure hope so,” Applejack shook her hooves of excess water and walked towards the door, “I don’t even know why the Mayor asked for us to be there, but they said we should swing by there by eight, so we will.”
A pony came to the farm earlier and talked with AJ and Big Mac. She didn’t quite catch what they talked about, but apparently he was sent by the Mayor to know if everyone at the farm was accounted for. Apple Bloom couldn’t say she cared much about what happened. Right now her mind was focused only on making apple fritters.
“It’s gettin’ late, AJ,” Big Mac said, popping his head through the door, “we should be on our way.”
“I’m goin’, I’m goin’... Don’t get your tail in a knot. We’ll try to come back early,” Applejack spared her family one last look before leaving the farmhouse.
Silence followed.
“Now now, Apple Bloom, get that spoon over ‘ere and let’s finish up this batch.”
Apple Bloom started at the doorway for an instant before grabbing the spoon between her teeth and going back to help her grandmother. There were fritters to be made.
“Twilight?” Spike asked as he gently shook the unicorn’s shoulder.
“Huh… what?” Twilight mumbled, waking from the trance she had unwittingly fell into.
“You’ve been staring at the same page for a while now,” Spike said, stating the obvious, “I didn’t want to wake you up, but the meeting is going to start soon.”
Twilight shook her head a couple of times and looked around the room. Pinkie Pie was listing all the ponies of Ponyville as the Mayor’s aides cross-referenced it with their own data.
“Then there’s Davenport, and Raindrops, and Sunny Meadows for the third block of Second Street. The fourth block is where Daisy, Lily, and Roseluck live,” Pinkie Pie said, counting in her mind.
“Miss Pie, please slow down,” a gray stallion said as he fumbled with his papers.
“Official Decree, please do try to keep up, we are working against the clock here,” Lady Justice said, more than a little bit exasperated.
“What time is it?” Twilight asked Spike in a low voice.
“Eight minus ten,” Spike replied in an equally low voice.
Twilight nodded. She then looked back at the desk and the pages that were spread all over it. Sighing, she stacked them together with her magic and walked towards the group of ponies.
“Justice, do you have the records for the fifth block?” Official Decree said as he went through the papers in front of him.
“Here they are, sir,” one of the aids said, pushing a folder towards him.
“How’s everything going?” she asked them.
“We’re almost halfway through all the data, and there are only a couple of ponies who are yet to arrive with their lists,” Official Decree said.
Lady Justice nodded as she added another sheet of paper to a pile next to her, “It appears that every citizen is accounted for.”
“Yup! No pony, donkey, mule, or cow is missing,” Pinkie Pie added.
“So far, at least…” the greenish mare added somberly.
“Alright, then. The rest of the team should be arriving shortly, so keep up the good work. I’ll be back as soon as the meeting with the Mayor is over,” Twilight said.
“There’s something else,” Official Decree said.
“Yes, what is it?” Twilight asked him.
The whole group looked at each other, all of them with uncomfortable expressions on their faces. Even Pinkie Pie seemed a bit unnerved.
“From… from what we’ve gathered so far, I think it’s safe to assume that…” Lady Justice trailed off.
“About one in every five ponies have already lost their cutie mark,” Official Decree said.
Twilight didn’t react immediately. The news were shocking, yes; but she couldn’t say she didn’t see something like this coming.
“That’s… that’s more than I…” Twilight wanted to say hoped, but said, “expected,” instead.
One in five. Twilight found herself trying to connect that information with something else, to give it context, but fell short of doing it. She simply didn’t know how fast this plague was spreading, or if everypony had been infected. Hell, she didn’t know the first thing about what was going on. Every bit of information that she acquired only made another question pop up, while also reminding her of all that she didn’t know.
“It’s more than any of us expected, and we thought we should let you know so you could pass the information along to the Mayor and everyone else at the meeting, Miss Sparkle,” Official Decree said.
Twilight limited herself to giving a firm nod.
“I will,” she said as she turned around, “keep up the good work.” She didn’t want to betray her thoughts by saying anything else, so she walked out of the Reception Hall and into one of the smaller rooms.
This night, Twilight knew, would certainly be a long one.