Ch.2 (Ab)normal Days Part 3
Wait a second... This is exactly the same as the first time.
The crack appears, then the guards disappear along with it.
Maybe they’re repairing the damage? It’s possible that they’re doing it at such an abnormal rate, I can never really catch it on time.
Next time it happens, I’ll have this camera ready.
_______________________________________________________________
Day 5, 8:53 AM, Honesty District - Crop Fields
Despite the fact that we gathered here at the honesty district, the only thing that ran through my mind was the shatter and repair of the sky. There’s definitely something up with this place.
I’d like to think we’re in a magical dome of sorts, and I assumed that what we see outside is the same, but when I see those fractures, I just can’t help but wonder if there’s something about this place we don’t know?
I know Apple Bloom wanted to tell everypony here about how far her farm had come and to talk about the harvester she’s in, but I couldn’t really pay attention all that much. All I could do was ponder my next move while fiddling with the camera lens.
“Heeeeeeeey! Ah’ hope yer plannin’ to take a pic of me!”
Of course, she’d snap me out of my thoughts.
And snapping a picture of all of this wouldn’t make for that good of a scoop.
“Yeah, yeah.” I replied, just so she won’t keep pestering me.
“This is just another scheme to get a cutie mark, right?” Scootaloo asked, hopping into the harvester, followed by Sweetie Belle.
“Yep! Why not?” Apple Bloom quickly agreed.
“Well teach, you’re missing a few students. Miss Cheerilee can attest to that.” Scootaloo pointed to our teacher standing with us, who looked at the farm mare with eyes that speak, “What are you doing?”
Of course today was Scootaloo’s turn to “take care of the dog”, so it couldn’t be helped.
“Oh, come on! She can’t even speak right now! And who cares about that lil’ prissy girl anyway? Yer disruptin’ mah lesson!”
“That’s not the issue here!” Truffle shouted, but was promptly ignored.
“Err, why are ya teachin’ anyway? Dinky asked, letting out a quick yawn. Pipsqueak of course, laid on the grass sleeping with his back turned to everything.
The only ones here are me, Ginger, Grace, Pipsqeak, Dinky, Snails, Twist, Truffle, and of course, the Cutie Mark Crusaders.
Diamond Tiara would have none of it and didn’t want a lesson from a “blank flank” as usual, and Silver Spoon followed along, while Rumble is still surveying the area.
“Ah only wanted to show that I know mah stuff!”
“Pfft. I ain’t plannin’ on working on a farm no time soon! Besides, I betcha that thing ain’t fast!” Grace taunted.
“Is too!” Apple Bloom shifted her body, to face forward to operate the machine. What caught my attention is the combine harvester suddenly moving forward, followed by a yelp from a suddenly thrown off Scootaloo!
“Scoots, are you okay!?”
“Ah, yeah, I’m fine!” Scootaloo lifted her back off the ground and stood on her hooves, shaking off the dirt on her hoodie.
Did Apple Bloom crank the engine already?!
“Whoa, whoooooooah!” Apple Bloom started saying, as she frantically shifted the controls around until it suddenly stopped. I can see Apple Bloom lifting something and placing it by her legs before letting out a sigh of relief.
“Heh, what I tell ya! It’s slow!” Grace gloated.
“I think the fact that it was slow was a good thing. If she hadn’t stopped it on time, she would’ve crashed into the barn.” Ginger added.
“It’s too bad, too. I personally hoped that Scootaloo would get run over!”
That voice... oh great. And he’s using a stupid southern accent too!
“Ya know, ya’ll bastards had ya’ll fun yesterday! Stop trying to destroy that there property!” Monobear came out of the crop field while wearing cowboy hat, as well as a certain vest he made a few days ago.
“I thought you’d watch the race yesterday. Where were you?” Ginger rose an eyebrow. Maybe she believed that Monobear would screw with the race somehow.
“Eh, I was coming up with a different motive! We can’t let my entertainment end with just one murder!”
“Get on with it!” Snails stood up, staring daggers into the strange bear before us. I’m not surprised that his temper would come out with the sight of that vest.
“You’re still thinking about that dead horse, huh?”
Ginger immediately held Snails back the moment his horn began to glow, making Monobear tremble in fear.
“Geez, can’t even take a good pun! You bastards really had it too good all your lives!”
“Well, having our loved ones threatened and living in some foreign kingdom that we’re trapped in isn’t what we’d call normal.” Pipsqueak replied.
“Oh, really? Isn’t Equestria itself a kingdom? Isn’t Canterlot the capitol? Wasn’t it ruled by princesses only? That’s what I’d find strange! At least in Monolot, you’re not ruled over by little girls!”
Can Celestia and Luna really be called ‘little girls’...?
“Enough about that though! Your king has a present for you!”
“Ooooh, a present!” Dinky’s eyes widened, but quickly shook off that sparkle. “Wait, I can’t get excited about this, can I?”
No. No you can’t!
Monobear then hopped back into the crops, shouting “Hurry up!”
The Monoguards suddenly land behind us, forcing us to follow the self proclaimed ‘king’.
Once inside, we found Diamond Tiara, Silver Spoon, and Rumble headed towards us with the guards behind them as well.
At the center, what stood before us appeared to be a box covered in a giant blue sheet.
Rumble though, had a smirk of anticipation. He was definitely looking forward to this.
“I’m curious...” He muttered.
“Great, now I gotta listen to this bear!” Tiara grumbled.
“Now that you’re all here, I present to you...” Monobear ran up to grasp the sheet, followed by an audible drumroll. “THIS!”
With a quick, audible fwap, the contents revealed a... bookshelf and a rocking chair...?
“Huh...?” Scootaloo dropped her shoulders in disbelief, expressing the confusion that we all shared.
On the bookshelf, we saw fourteen books neatly spread and organized next to each other.
“Oh come on. You all love books. At least that’s what my little pony told me!” Monobear stroked the fake Twilight’s mane in a surprisingly loving manner.
“You’re doing this again?!” Diamond Tiara’s eye twitched as she focused on the obviously fake alicorn princess.
“She’s not fake, she’s right here!”
“Cut the crap!” Grace Lightning followed up.
“Wow. You kids really refuse to believe me, even here in the Honesty district? Ya’ll’s got some gall!” Monobear chided, suddenly using his southern accent again.
“Ah... Ah’m not sure how Ah’ feel about you mockin’ mah sister like that.” Apple Bloom’s expression lacked any emotional output, matching her deadpan tone. I honestly can’t tell how she feels.
“What’s that supposed to mean!? You’re supposed to get mad!” Scootaloo glared at Apple Bloom instead.
“Ignoring all of that riff-raff, here’s your next motive” Monobear pointed his paw at the bookshelf, “Monobear’s Aesop Madness!!”
“You mean... by reading books...?! Why should I read anything to you!?” Snails hissed at the bear.
“Do you really think this is just any old story!? Look at the book covers!”
When Monobear pointed at the bookshelf, I narrowed my eyes to see those eight-bit portraits on the covers.
“So... we’re to read the books that are assigned to us, correct?” Silver Spoon asked.
“Bingo! Kids these days don’t like to read, so I’m going to fix that by having you read me a story!”
“Why? Are you late for your hibernation or something?” Dinky asked.
“Oh please, I’m more energetic than your average bear! I wouldn’t be able to enjoy myself if I went to sleep!” Monobear launched himself in the air, performing a perfect 360 flip, landing in the rocking chair perfectly.
.....
“See, these stories contain a moral, just like any other story! However, when you finish, you have to tell me the moral! Only then will I give you the prize!”
“Perhaps like a children’s book, maybe?” Ginger theorized.
“The prize...?” Twist asked, expecting Monobear to answer.
“One truth! Learn the moral of the story, and you’ll learn one truth, which could be about the state of your homes, the state of your loved ones, the truth behind the Monobear Special...”
“I don’t think I can trust that last one...” Pipsqueak said.
The moral of the story, huh?
“You’re free to try it right now! I’ll be right here all day! Any takers?”
“NO! I’m not reading anything unless it’s a book daddy recommended!” And there she goes, running off, avoiding the motive.
“Who’s the coward now?” Scootaloo hissed under her breath.
“Eh, she’ll come around!” Apple Bloom cheerfully said.
“We can think about it, right?” Dinky Doo asked, tilting her head just before Pipsqueak immediately pulled her aside.
“I’ll read it.” Rumble stepped forward, heading straight for the book case.
“No surprise there, freak.” Scootaloo commented.
“B-but why?!” Sweetie Belle asked, as if she wanted to beg him not to do it.
Rumble turned his head towards the supposed songwriter. “Sweetie Belle... I understand that you believe in the saying, ‘Ignorance is Bliss’, and in this kind of game, we’d actually live longer. But not everyone wishes to remain ignorant. A disagreement that puts lives on the line is a despair-inducing friendship.”
“W-what do you mean!? I don’t get it!” Sweetie Belle cried out.
“Redirect that question to somepony else.” Rumble turned his attention back to the bookshelf and grabbed the book meant for him.
...
Is it wrong that I knew what he meant?
The context was made more obvious when Sweetie Belle turned to Scootaloo and Apple Bloom. Gritting her teeth, she looked as if she were gathering the courage to ask them.
“A meeting...” Sweetie Belle muttered.
“Eh?” Scootaloo perked her head up in confusion.
“We need a meeting!” Sweetie Belle shouted.
“Oh come on, you don’t seriously believe that guy!?” Scootaloo scowled at her friend despite her plea.
“Alright! Meetin’ time!” Apple Bloom of course, wholeheartedly agreed, beckoning Scootaloo to come along.
“Agh, fine.” After a reluctant agreement, Scootaloo followed her friends, keeping Miss Cheerilee in tow, but not before Rumble earned a quick glare from our ‘class pet’.
“Oh, don’t worry about it. A dog that’s just jealous that she doesn’t have a motive is just a worthless mutt! I should’ve trained her to not be jealous! Uu~pupupu~!” Monobear giggled, kicking his legs about like a kid.
“I disagree. With her suit, she can’t commit a murder anyway.”
“Have you ever done mail delivery?” Monobear asked.
“I know where you’re going with this, and it’s because of that that Pegasi are the ones allowed to deliver any mail.” Rumble calmly answered.
“But then you’ll feel teeth sinking into your wings! You’ll be feeding them those hot wings they craved for a while now! Too bad it’d be their last meal!”
“Our wings don’t get hot like that. I don’t fly very often unless I have to.” Rumble answered. Though for some reason, he didn’t smile coolly like usual...
“What in the world...?” I muttered, gaining their attention.
“Uu~pupu~! You’re here to take a picture of my furry curves? Well too bad! You need to be a Super High-School Level Photographer to snap a picture of me!” Monobear ranted.
You’re not worth wasting film on anyway.
“No, I’m trying to wrap my head around what you two are talking about!” I retorted.
“Oh, poo poo. It’s got nothing to do with you, so why don’t you just run along and wait your turn like everyone else?”
“It’s as he says, Shady Daze. I’ll tell you my findings when the time is right.”
“Oh, I forgot to mention; You can’t share the contents of the prize! Gotta teach you bastards a little selfishness! Didn’t anyone tell you it’s okay to be selfish?”
“Hmm... I see. That’s too bad. I was hoping to share information about my family to my friend there.”
“Tch... we’re not friends, Rumble. Don’t decide that on your own.” After my sharp decline, I take my leave.
Before I could even get one good hoof forward, I hear a clap-clap behind me, followed by a huge thud eerily close by.
I turn my head around to see a Monoguard there, staring down at me.
It didn’t move though... I guess it’s safe to back away, right? I guess he’s here to prevent the contents of the stories from being shared.
Damn it.
Maybe deep down, I wanted to see what that guy was up to. What Monobear would say, what Rumble would get...
What drives him to go on and on about friendship so much?
I can’t be bothered to wreck my brain on this.
I’d rather check on the others.
_________________________________________________________________________
9:30 AM, Generosity District - Housing Area
Guess I’ll hang out in the Generosity District for a while. There’s no way to get to that crop circle with the guard around...
Just as I decided to head to my assigned home, I find Snails, standing outside of somepony’s home, seemingly spacing out.
My curiosity takes over my legs, leading me to him.
The moment I saw the nameplate however, everything became clear.
“Ah, Shady! What’s up?” He jumped but quickly regained his composure, quickly letting out a sigh.
“Wondering why you’re spacing out.”
“Oh... I just have some stuff on my mind.” Snails said, focusing his sight on the white noise emitted from the empty nameplate.
Looking at that plate... it makes me wonder if it was really worth it.
I’m curious as to what Snails has to say. I know we talked before, but still... This isn’t an easy thing to just move on from.
“Hey, wanna chat for a bit?” I asked.
“Oh! I kinda thought you might’ve hated me. Because... y’know, association and whatnot...?”
“Nah. It’s a waste of energy to hate for no reason.”
I only have so much energy to spend for a day’s worth of tasks.
“Yeah, I know! The Great and Powerful Trixie said the same thing! Hahaha!” Snails stifled a laugh.
We decide to head over to the coffee shop so we could talk.
Once Snails took his seat, he took his top hat off and magically set it on the table. “Alright, so what’s up?”
“Why were you just standing there, looking at Snips’s house?” I had to get straight to the point.
“Oh, I dunno, just wondering if I could’ve... y’know, stopped him? I mean, if I did, Featherweight would be alive, and we’d all be pretty chipper, but... guess that’s how it’s gotta be.”
“Can I ask some questions about him? If you don’t mind that is.”
“I don’t mind I guess... Only if you’re willing to trade-off.” Snails gave a serious look.
“Gotcha.” I replied, already understanding what he means.
“Alright, what’s up?”
“I’m curious. His words at the end of the trial... before he got executed...”
“What, him being defiant? He’s been like that since that whole Alicorn Amulet deal.”
“I meant the siblings part.”
“Oh right... that... tough question right off the bat.” Snails sighed and groaned, but shifted his body a bit. It was as if he was about to walk through some fire.
“Weeelllllll, remember how I went on about how the Great-and-Powerful Trixie is my master and stuff? Well, I would take whatever I learned from her and put on a fun and awesome little show for the kids. Snips actually has like, five little siblings! All from different dads of course, but still!” Snails answered carefully, speaking faster at the end like usual.
“I take it they liked your show?”
“Yeah! Even Snips thought it was cool! I can’t begin to describe how it feels to be cheered on after putting on a magic show! Like, it made me awaken something I never thought when I was just a colt who fooled around!”
I guess he’s really passionate about his magic... but isn’t it stated that he won’t reach any sort of full potential unless he’s particularly talented? Last I remember, his talent’s in bug taming...
“Err, Snails, what exactly are the contents of the magic show...?”
“Oh, just me turning different things into different bugs and taming them to fly around, do tricks and whatnot. I mean, yeah. It’s probably as you suspect; I’m not quite that talented at magic, but I can use it to do a whole lotta cool tricks with bugs and even show that even the scariest ones aren’t so... you know, scary! Buuuuuuuut, like, it’s not like I summon bees, butterflies, parasprites, tatzelwurms, fruit flies, wasps, dragonflies, mosquitos-”
I put a hoof to my face, sighing, “Stop right there... you’re making my head hurt.”
“Oh come on, I haven’t even gotten started! Bugs are cool, but the Great and Powerful Trixie isn’t too fond of’em. Got sent flying through a window when I woke her up with a stag beetle one time! you should’ve seen it’s cute little legs crawl up her mane! Hehehehe~” Snails smiled with glee.
You have an insane amount of balls to do that to Trixie...
“Right... I think I get the picture regarding your shows for Snips’s siblings. And I assume he got jealous, right?”
“Geez, way to ruin my attempt at lightening the mood!”
“Shouldn’tve changed the topic.” I bluntly answered as usual.
“Meh. But yeaaaah, he got a little snippy with me.”
That pun was intended. It had to be.
“When I told him that I was training with Trixie. After all that time, he still hated her.” Snails sighed.
I could tell that Snails was probably more sad that his friend never learned to forgive before his death...
“I see... I think I get the whole picture now.”
“Yeah. Now it’s your turn, man.”
“What?”
“Tell me about Featherweight! He didn’t have some deep dark secrets, ya?”
“Uh.......”
No. I’m serious. Featherweight was as chipper as anypony can be. Ever positive and never one to quit.
Though I can say he’s never really handled pressure well. He would freak out whenever the going got tough, but it never lasted. He would always bounce back and keep going.
At the very least, I had to say that much. He didn’t particularly have any crazy secrets. His life was actually pretty lively, with his parents and brother always finding a way to have fun after a rough day, keeping hope alive.
....................
“Hey, Shady. Glad we had this chat. But uh... next time, let’s not start with such a heavy topic, alright? I mean, it’s just that I’m being considerate for everypony here not just me, but I guess I sound selfish and stuff, but maybe it’s hard on you too and so maybe-”
“Slow down, alright? We’re good.”
Sheesh, what a motor mouth. But he’s right. Talking about this over and over, I don’t really feel like we’re getting any closer as friends. I just feel like a reporter pressing a victim for answers.
Give me a break...
___________________________________________________________
10:54 AM, Generosity District - District Gateway
After that chat, I decided to head back to the Honesty District. Not because I want to find out my motive.
No.
I just want to investigate some more.
...
Am I lying to myself now?
What’s happening to me...?
I wouldn’t have much of a chance to ponder though...
“Are you sure about that...?”
Walking past the Applejack statue, I could hear some voices...
“C’mon! What’s the worst that can happen? Besides, look at this!”
Wait... those voices sound like they’re coming from within the fruit forest...
“Wha-! No! Who’d you get that from?! Monobear?!”
“Scootaloo, shhh!!”
Sweetie Belle, Apple Bloom, and Scootaloo...
I remember them saying they had a meeting, but why are they even hiding in the orchard? Don’t they realize how loud they are?
I’ll hop over this fence and get in a little closer. This is a little too suspicious to ignore...
I hide behind a pomogranate tree, listening to their voices grow louder as I draw closer. The trees ahead block out most of their figures, but as long as I can hear, that’s good enough.
“Who knows? Point is, mah sister’s alive!” Apple Bloom whispered, holding her excitement back.
Her sister? She has evidence of that?! But why would Monobear give her that kind of evidence!?
No, wait...
Him giving her something like that makes a lot of sense. It might give her all the more reason to kill.
“That may mean Rarity’s alive too! I’m so glad!” I saw Sweetie Belle’s tail sweeping left and right...
Why are you even happy about that though...?
“Don’t get your hopes up. We still need to cover each other. Never know when Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon might want to kill us.” Scootaloo sighed.
Despite the blatant bias against the spoiled wanna-be princess, Scootaloo makes a good point here.
At least someone’s level-headed.
“S-she wouldn’t! She may call us blank flanks but she wouldn’t go that far!”
“She uses words that cut us like a knife every chance she gets!”
“Still, we have to get along! We can’t keep fighting like this!” Sweetie Belle cried out.
“Tch... I wouldn’t be so upset if I could just kill her without any consequences!” Scootaloo scoffed. I could even hear her spit on the ground.
“Oh, did ya read yer motive?” Apple Bloom asked casually.
“Nah, I don’t need Monobear’s help to get rid of her, but what if Rainbow Dash is alive? She’d stop thinking I’m cool if I sold you guys out like that.”
“*phew*!” Sweetie Belle sighed with a bit of relief.
“Ya’ll need to stay alive ya hear? I don’t wanna get my cutie mark without ya’ll!”
“You’re still on about that? You could be dead before that happens!”
“All the more reason to hurry up! I’m a talented gal! I have potential! Ya really think Ah’ll just kick over n’ die like talentless trash?”
“Wh- I didn’t say all of that! I just think we have more important things to worry about!”
“Oh, is that so?” Apple Bloom asked, calmly. Yet, for some reason, I always get a chill down my spine when she starts behaving this way.
“TWIST, WAIT! WAIT UP!!”
Truffle? What...?
Hearing his scream, I turn my head towards the dirt road leading back to the Applejack statue. I could see Twist galloping with all her strength, with Truffle chasing after her despite quickly running out of breath. After collapsing for a moment, he gets back up and runs after her again.
“Hey, ya know? Ah’ ain’t spoken to Twist in a long time.” Apple Bloom suddenly said, then ran through the trees and over the fence.
“Wait, Apple Bloom?!”
“Come back here! I’m not finished talking!” Scootaloo dashed off with Sweetie Belle, chasing after their friend.
I better get out of here too.
“Getting that scoop must be tough, ya know?”
“I know, right? Gotta jump through hoop-oh my god!” I shrieked, turning to face Pipsqueak, who couldn’t hold back his laughter after startling me again.
“Man, you’re gonna let the girls know you were spyin’ on’em, ya know?” Pip reminded me.
I wouldn’t scream if he didn’t sneak up on me like that!
After a deep sigh, I turn to him, “What do you want?”
“I saw ya sneakin’ into the forest, ya know! Guess we’re lucky we didn’t get caught!”
“Wait, how long were you-”
“A few seconds after you jumped the fence! Thought I’d try to scare ya again, but man, you gotta admit, the girls were talking about some interesting stuff!”
“So you think they’re suspicious?”
“Mmmm, nah. Gotta have a little faith in’em, ya know! I’m not gonna get crazy ya know! Then again, I wish they were more or less talking about what kind of nightmares they had last night...”
“That’s not a normal topic...”
“Anyway, whaddya think? Should I go check out what my motive is? I mean, truth be told, I think good horror flicks gotta have an aesop, and well... yeah.”
“It’s up to you. I mean, you have somepony you care about at home, right?” I asked.
Did I seriously say that instead of saying ‘no’?
“Yeah, my aunt, Milky Way. Been raising me since I heard the news ya know!”
“What news?” I rose an eyebrow, expecting an answer considering how easygoing he is.
“Oh, uh... no need to worry about that, ya know! Hahahaha! Gotta run off. See ya, and try not to have a heart attack!”
That was weird... suddenly running off like that. Don’t tell me that I’ve actually found a sensitive topic...?
Anyway, let’s get out of here.
________________________________________________________________
12:00 PM, Honesty District - Crop Fields
“Huh, the guard’s gone.”
It wasn’t standing outside the crop circle this time... Guess I can enter without restraint.
“Hey you!”
I know that annoying voice anywhere now...
“Yeah, you! I need some entertainment! Care to read a story in Monobear’s Aesop Madness?”
“Aesop Madness?”
“C’mon, you’re supposed to be my jesters! Haven’t you ever needed some fun entertainment when you’re stressed out from dealing with pests?!” Monobear clenched his little paw.
“What, got too many fleas on you?”
“Aww. Guess you don’t get it. But it’s better that you don’t. If I told you, you’d get all chummy with me!”
Right...
I turn my attention to the bookshelf, which lacked any sign of Rumble or Truffle Shuffle...
Just those two? Could’ve sworn Apple Bloom read hers...
“...let’s just get this over with.” I walk up to the bookshelf to grab the blue book with my portrait on it.
... It’s surprisingly thin, actually. Guess they are children’s books, right?
Why am I doing this?
Curiosity? Satisfaction? An inability to resist temptation? Possibilities?
There’s nopony here to stop me, is there?
I take a seat in the dirt, and open the book with my left hoof...
Inside, I could see the text, accompanied by crudely drawn illustrations.
___________________________________________________________________
A long time ago, there once was a sheep, who had hopes and dreams that extended beyond the reaches of space.
A space that only he knew in his mind, and kept it to himself.
His own world, he knew the way things worked for everyone, but not himself.
Others would reach for the stars of this lone sheep’s world, but he, as the god rejected them all.
Giving up, the outsiders would continue with their everyday, ordinary lives.
The sheep, giving up, would continue with his every, ordinary life.
A life that continued until he became just a memory that would soon fade with each generation.
A life that was considered ordinary, a life that the sheep never gave up on, a life that the sheep simply went along with.
No one knew this sheep, aside from his name, age, and a few details such as what kind of food he likes.
But those details are quick to disappear into the void of time.
______________________________________________________________
I’m... confused... What is this?
“So? Whaddya think? Huh? Award-winning?” Monobear asked, tilting his head, kicking his legs about.
“Short story.” I commented, closing the book.
“I know, right? I think I did pretty well if I do say so myself! So what’s the aesop?”
“This is about me, right? That I should stop being a realist?” I asked, giving the obvious answer.
“BZZZZT! Aww, I thought I made the aesop for this one painfully obvious!” Monobear hung his head low in disappointment, “But since you got it wrong, there’s no prize for you!”
“I read your stupid story, what the heck!?”
“But you missed the point of the story! Geez, you’re quite the idiot! Guess that’s why you got that little idiot antenna on your head like a typical protagonist, huh? Uu~pupupu~!” Monobear giggled.
“Hang on, the message couldn’t be anything else!”
“Come on, isn’t disappointment a gift too? But hey, get out! You were wrong already!” Monobear clapped his paws together, summoning a Monoguard to stand in my presence.
“Damn it!”
Of course Monobear would cackle at my failure here...
Despite being forced out of the barn, my book was here at my hooves. Guess it’d be okay to take it.
______________________________________________________________________
9:30 PM, Generosity District - Shady’s House
“I still don’t get it!!”
The book I held in my hooves was sent flying at the desk lamp in a fit of frustration.
The only good this book did was get me to ponder my life until now.
I wake up, work, come back, donate money to the orphanage... rinse and repeat.
My life would have some stable pattern to it, conforming, working as a functioning member of society.
...
If that were the case, I guess I wouldn’t have had as much fun trying to get that one big scoop for the Ponyville Express.
I’ll always be grateful to Featherweight for helping me get a job there.
I didn’t have quite the talent, but they would rely on my connections, which is pretty critical.
Yet, if I’m laying here reminiscing, then maybe I have a serious problem.
I really don’t know anymore.
If I’m some sort of functioning member of society with such a set pattern, maybe that’s why everypony here thinks I’m so easy to read.
....................................
*KNOCK KNOCK*
I need to get up.
*KNOCK KNOCK* *DING DONG*
Dunno who it could be, but I guess I better see who it is and fast.
The knocking starts to kick up the pace, soon followed by a loud, annoying ding-dong.
Alright... on the hooves, and out the door.
The door opens faster than I intended, despite not putting that much force into opening it.
After the wide swing, along with a quick breeze, a cold, rough steel made contact with my neck for a brief moment.
Thanks to instinct, I find myself lying on the floor, then rolling away from repeated attempts to disembowel me with a pitchfork!
...!
“Dinky Doo...?!”
What the hell is going on?! Why is she trying to kill me!?
“GIVE ME BACK MY MOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!!!!”
Her cry, her demand echoed through the walls of this house, ringing my eardrums.
“What the hell are you talking about!?” I quickly got up and backed away slowly.
Dinky Doo’s tears dripped to my floor, as she slowly marched towards me.
“You know... what you did... TO MY MOM!”
I seriously don’t know what she’s talking about!
Wait... was it the motive?! If that’s the case, then how did it drive her trying to kill me!?
I scan my surroundings for a way to get around her.
I’m backed into a wall, so my options are limited...
Not to mention there’s a trail of blood on the floor, stopping to where I am. Not to mention the sudden pain around my neck.
...
Oh. Well this might not end well...
Think! Come on, THINK! Don’t stop thinking...!
Got it!
My legs gather strength as they take me straight to her. At that moment, she used her magic to try and stab me fast.
Just as I thought! Now a quick tuck-n’-roll... yes! I’m at the door!
Now to just run! I’ll head for the Honesty District; there’s gotta be something I can use! I can’t die yet!
“DIE, SHADY! DIE! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!!”
“WHAT THE HELL DID I DO?!”
“AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!!”
Right, of course she won’t tell me!
I just have to keep running... and hope I find some first aid...!
Okay, there’s the gate! Wait, why can’t I...?! No, NO!
Crap, of course she’s use her magic on me! I have to fight it! I have to! I can’t die! Not now!!!
Wait, I can save myself if I just... need to reach for it... fight this magic and hit that shutter when I’m close enough...
Just a little more... come on... aaahh...! *FLASH*
“AAAGH!!!”
The moment I heard Dinky’s yelp, I fell to the pavement, but quickly got up and galloped away, holding onto the camera tightly.
Thanks buddy...
_____________________________________________________________
9:45 PM, Honesty District - Apple Barn
Alright, there’s the barn!
I quickly run inside and slam the doors shut before collapsing to the floor.
“Haaa... haaa... damn it...”
I guess I’m pretty lucky that the wound’s not too deep. Too bad the trail might get me killed for real this time...
I have to look for something... to defend myself with...
The moment I got on my hooves, bam, goes the door, blowing a gust of wind at my back.
Heh... she got here quick.
Ah, she’s about to throw the pitchfork at me. With that magic of hers, she won’t miss.
I have to dodge it.
Just as I started to think this through, Dinky Doo’s body was sent flying to the wooden beam in here, slamming her head against it. After a loud thud, an unconscious unicorn laid out near the door.
“Good thing I got here in time. Are you okay?”
“You should be grateful.”
Oh, Ginger. And Silver Spoon. Wait, how did they find me... oh right.
I quickly figured it out the moment Ginger rushed to my aid, examining my neck.
“It’s not too bad, but we need to get you some first aid.”
“I’ll inform the others.” Silver Spoon walked off. “We can’t stay in the dark about this.”
“And her...?” I looked over to Dinky.
“She’s just unconscious.” Ginger answered.
“... Let me make sure.” I barely walk over to Dinky, placing my forehoof to her neck. Sure enough, I felt a steady thump.
“Wow, can’t even trust me for a minute, huh?”
“I don’t really know much about you besides the fact that you’re a girl scout for some crazy group.” I replied.
“You’re right about that, but you seriously need some first aid, Shady. Keep losing blood like this, and you’ll end up unconscious.” Ginger said before scanning her surroundings. “There’s gotta be a first-aid kit around here somewhere...”
I watch her movement to make sure she’s not trying anything funny. I’ll believe the first aid when I see it.
“Oh!” Ginger dug around the hay next to the barn door. “Dynamite?!”
“You planning to blow me up...?”
“Shady, I’m simply helping out of the kindness of my heart. At the very least, I’d like to believe that kindness gives everypony a decent sense morality.” Ginger replied with a hint of irritation.
“Oh... you’re planning on treating Dinky too then.”
“Yes. I wish I didn’t have to kick her like that, but I just couldn’t sit by and watch you die.” Ginger pulled out another crate from the hay, and opening it quickly.
“Okay, we have some cotton balls, alcohol... don’t need those... oh, out of gauze. Hang on!” Ginger whipped her to the left side of the exit, noticing a cloth there.
Oh, right... that large cloth covering the hole Pip made... or was it Grace?
After a harsh ripping sound, Ginger approached me with the first-aid supplies.
She laid me on my back, prompting me to relax for a moment. I could feel her hoof tilting my head upwards, and suddenly a sharp, burning sensation!!
“Hold still! We have to clean the wound!” Ginger struggled to wipe the blood off... and my flailing about wasn’t helping. It’s not my fault this happened!
Right... as a Super High-School Level Girl Scout, she’d have to know First Aid, but still!
She thoroughly cleaned the blood off, then quickly applied that piece of cloth around my neck, with that same stinging sensation. However, it wasn’t as strong.
Guess she must’ve used alcohol on the cloth as well. It’s not too tight either, thankfully.
“Okay, that should do it! Now to treat Dinky...” Ginger quickly ran over to the unconscious killer to treat her wound as well.
______________________________________________________________
10:11 PM, Generosity District - Coffee Shop
We gathered here after getting my wounds treated and tying Dinky to a chair, leaving her in the barn. Emergency discussion I guess.
But I’m not really in the mood.
“Man, I thought I’d have to go through that whole trial thing again. I’m already sick of it!” Snails complained, gripping his head in anguish.
“Ya know, I still think she had a good reason for targeting Shady, ya know?” Pipsqueak didn’t look like his usual easy-going self.
A memory that would fade into the void of time...
“Hmph! She was whining about her mom! I bet she got some kind of dead body pic!” Diamond Tiara said.
“Don’t joke about that!” Sweetie Belle cried out. It’s too sad that somepony almost died!
“Don’t see you blank flanks coming up with any ideas!” Tiara scoffed at her demand.
“Quite peculiar indeed...” Rumble sighed.
“Guys, think it might’ve been those books? That aesop madness thing!” Snails said, turning to Rumble.
“Rumble, you read your book, right?! What was it about!?” Scootaloo angrily asked.
“Oh, I simply got a document or two about my brother, nothing special. Of course, you get nothing if you get the aesop wrong.” Rumble answered coolly as usual, looking at me.
Guess he must’ve saw when I tried to guess my aesop.
If it’s not about keeping others away, then just... what is it?
“Then that means Blue Snooper don’t know a damn thing...” Grace scratched her head.
“Wait, what about Dinky? We can’t just leave her there by herself ya know!” Pip sternly suggested.
Time... memory... past tense...
“I say we have somepony watch over her for the night! We need to at least be ready to ask questions when she regains consciousness!” Truffle made a good point, but still...
“We also need to make sure we all take turns so we don’t fall asleep.” Ginger said.
“Oh, the Nighttime rule, I forgot about that!” Truffle frowned, almost as if he were regretting his forgetfulness.
“Ah’ll watch over’er!” Apple Bloom stood on two hooves as she made her quick declaration.
“Oh no you don’t. We watch over her; all three of us!” Scootaloo scolded her.
“Pfft, you three blank flanks? Seriously? I’d rather barf!” Diamond Tiara said, flipping her hair.
“But Truffle Shuffle has a point. We need to know why she tried to kill Shady Daze.” Silver Spoon added.
“You sure you don’t know anything?!” Scootaloo turned to me with a scowl.
.........
Is this my punishment? For my own world view?
“I told you, I don’t know why she tried to kill me.” I answered.
But she did try to kill me.
I was just thinking about Featherweight in the past tense before all of this.
“Does it matter!? Point is, she DID try to kill! She’s dangerous if you ask me!” Diamond Tiara argued.
Past tense...
Past tense... past tense... I just thought of Featherweight in the past tense...
“We still don’t know! We need more information ya know!” Pip stood his ground on the issue.
“I... I can help watch Dinky too actually.” Twist meekly rose her hoof, volunteering.
“Oh, see? Twist has a talent! She’d be much better than you three!” Diamond taunted.
“Oh, whatever! You’re just scared of her, aren’t you!” Scootaloo fired shots at the spoiled mare.
Past tense...!
“You wanted to call me a chicken, didn’t you! YOU CHICKEN!” Diamond fired back. She shouldn’t be surprised that Scootaloo tried to hop the table to attack her. Thankfully Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle are holding her back.
I wouldn’t be here if Ginger didn’t save me.
What would’ve happened if I died?
They’d talk about me in the past tense, right?
And I’d be just a memory... to disappear into the void of time...?
A memory that’d fade in due time.
It’s like I’d cease to exist. Is that really me? My fate?
......I... I can’t.
I won’t have it...
“I WON’T HAVE IT!”
“S-Shady!?” Sweetie Belle tried to call out to me, but...
I... I can’t have this happen!
She's gonna try to kill me again, right?! RIGHT?!
My body bolted on it’s own in a mad gallop to the barn where Dinky Doo was restrained.
I might agitate my wounds with this furious screaming, but I don’t care... I have to live! I don’t wanna die!
There’s the barn... I just... have to kill her, right?!
“SHADY! STOP!”
Against all expectations, I felt something heavy slam against my side, sending me sliding into the crop circle. I open my eyes, expecting to see stars, but instead, I see Miss Cheerilee’s face hovering over me.
“Don’t do it! It’s not worth it! Don’t do it!” Sweetie Belle shouted.
“But... but I...!!!”
“Shady, it’s okay! You’re not alone!” Just as Sweetie Belle said that, my teacher wrapped her arms around me, holding me close, despite my trembling...
I even felt small droplets of water hitting my cheeks. I felt prompted to look at the source... the eyes of my teacher... our class pet.
“She’s right!” Ginger added, rushing to my side.
......
I... really was about to... huh?
I...
“Ahh... AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!”
All I could do was regret that desire to kill through screaming into Miss Cheerilee’s chest.
“It’s okay... it’ll be alright.” Sweetie Belle cooed.
Even as Sweetie Belle and Miss Cheerilee tried to comfort me, I just... couldn’t stop screaming.
*CRASH*
“What?!” I opened my eyes and quickly broke away from Miss Cheerilee to look at the direction that noise came from.
*BOOM!*
I quickly grab Sweetie Belle, pulling her down to the ground as I felt something fly over us.
Whipping my head around, I could see a wheel and some large pieces of wood strewn all over. The source of it all easily illuminating the night sky.
“Oh no! NO!” Ginger galloped to the blazing wreckage that was once a simple barn.
“Dinky Doo!!” Sweetie Belle screamed.
I’m already assuming the worst. When I step closer, I stumble upon a certain mare at my feet.
“Wait a minute, Twist?! What’s she doing-” I started to ask, but got an immediate answer.
“She was checking on Dinky to make sure nothing happened!” Ginger answered as she checked on her, gasping the moment she determined the burns on her back. “Her burns are horrible... second... no, third degree burns!”
She’s barely even breathing, her glasses are broken. There’s blood running down her face as well... Looks like the culprit tried to kill them both...
“H-help... me...” Twist meekly cried out.
“Who would do this...?” Sweetie Belle’s tears would never soothe the flames that lit up the night.
Before we could look for a way through, I suddenly felt some wet drops hitting my face.
After several minutes, the fire was put out, revealing a horribly charred unicorn.
Ding~Ding! A body has been discovered!
Annnnnnnnnnd... another one bites the dust! *insert Queen song here*
Anyway, took a while to get to this point, but here we are! And honestly, I feel this is one of my best chapters yet!
WHEEEEEEEE. Also, I've been trying to impliment a new style of writing, and also decided to list the current location every time I put the in-story timestamp. >_> (less confusion I hope)
Have fun speculating what next, because once you're on Mr. Monobear's wild ride, there's no way off!
Also, have I mentioned how I hate how Google's importing looks when I'm viewing the chapter in err... not-editing mode on here? 
Anyway, thanks for reading like always, guys, and thanks thegreenone for pulling through for me and helping me polish this chapter!
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What I did for the paragraph spacing, is that after I uploaded the story from docs to here and had all the text transformations put in, I then copied everything to notepad. Then I used the find & replace tool to get rid of the space tabs. Finally, I tabbed each line for proper paragraph spacing. I know a few other techniques to help with beautifying your story so if you want help, PM me.
3865658 I have no idea why i never thought of that, but my god, is it an awesome idea!
I'll have to give it a shot when I post a chapter next time!
My logic was flawed however the case is simple the only ones that knew of the dynamite were ginger and silver(excluding shady for obvious reasons) CORRECTION! the fact that they noticed. the dynamite doesn't mean they were the only ones to know about it! Damn it naegi why do you always have to be right...huff he's right anypony could know about the dynamite so let us instead look to the cause of ignition!
Now that is a way to go out.
3866633 One thing that bothers me is who could have anticipated that Dinky would be tied up in there. Why else would there be dynamite in a barn? They could have just waited for anypony to enter, but for that to work they'd have to be watching constantly and still be able to ignite it in secret.
Hehehe... I made quite the mystery this time around.
And to think, I got worried on whether or not I'd grow predictable like Shady.
Uu~pupupu~
3868249 the trap wasn't specifically targeted at dinky and as for my guess it's not that hard to rig a time delayed explosive especially if you are a super highschool girl scout!
I hate to say it but there are about four ponies that could have set the trap sweetie belle,twist,pipsqueak,and scootaloo and ab(just so she will stay out of the way.)(side note:there are others but this is long enough as is and we don't need me to say the obvious.)
3868249 what bothers me though is who gave dinky the pitchfork i suspect it's a dead line but we should still look into it also rumble is acting like a suspect more and more I'm at least 56% sure he's the mastermind.
3868728 Sore wa chigau yo!
Frankly, Ginger's the one I'm least suspicious of. The entire time between catching Dinky in the barn and the explosion, Ginger and Shady were together. She would have had no opportunity to set up any sort of ignition system. Besides, she was the one who actually brought the dynamite to Shady's attention. Silver Spoon has a valid alibi for that same reason.
As for Rumble, I'm not too suspicious of him at the moment, because reasons.
3868728 NO! That means that if its true then we are gonna see a CMC getting ax
3869618 there is a possibility that twist did it.
3869648 Ya that could be. I kinda wonder if she damange herself on purpose just to have a alibi. If so then I got to admit that is pretty clever of her. But I'll wait and see how the evidence will show.
3869608 The big part would be a timing mechanism however there is another option you could easily sneak in and set them off if you could fly! But your defense doesn't stand up it would have been suspicious if ginger DIDN'T bring it to shady's attention therefore she gave her observation of the dynamite not to clear herself but to prove that it's there to quote dr. whatson nobody looks for a bullet in a bombing.
3869678 Perhaps she would do that, but she still had no way of way of knowing if and when the barn would be occupied, and she had no way of activating an ignition system while Shady was so close. Actually, Silver Spoon could have potentially lit it, if a fuse or something similar was set up just outside.
3869678 Yes that is true. Unless Twist really think this well, she might as well be the victim of this attempted murder. This makes me wonder who else won the prize other then Dinky.
3869698 the more we debate this the more i feel like we are looking for two suspects. Where was grace and tiara?
3869723 That much is unconfirmed. They could have been anywhere, though Silver Spoon seemed to have found them easily enough.
3869710 we know rumble did also i got a arguement against ginger being ignorant what if she told dinky something to incite her(dinky is a girl right?)murderous rampage i got a feeling whoever desided totalk with dinky is the culprit.
3869766 Oh I see. More like trying to get rid more of the competitions.
Great Fic, I Love It
3869796 a la celes
3869739 meaning the were either at home or more likely they were already in the district for some reason
I play this when a body is found.
3870196 Oh my gosh thank you I've been wanting that noise!
3872365 Your welcome