Death Note: Equestria

by Nonagon

Breakdown

20
*Breakdown*

Once the victim’s name, time of death and situation of death have been written down in the Death Note, that death will still take place even if the Death Note or the part of the Note on which it is written is destroyed.

It didn’t take long for Straw Bolt’s company to reach the river.

The guard captain cursed as the golem’s trail of felled trees came to an abrupt halt. A swift and shallow river cut directly across their path, and the treeline lay unbroken on the other side. “Check for tracks!” he yelled as the rest of the herd came to a halt behind him. “It must have gone one way or the other. Find it!”

Zecora put a hoof on Straw Bolt’s breastplate before he could step forward. “Beware the shallow waters, my friends,” she warned, “for here many ponies have met their ends. The ground within will support your weight, but to leap without looking is to tempt a dark fate.”

“She’s right, sir,” one of the pegasus guards yelled from the river’s edge, dipping his hoof into the water. “This is sea dragon sand. Solid on the surface, but river serpents and the like can swim through it like it’s nothing. There could be anything waiting down there.”

“...I see.” Straw Bolt frowned thoughtfully. “And what would this mean for our clay foalnapper?”

“The golem, sir? Creature that size, it would sink to the bottom in seconds. Maybe found an air pocket for its passenger.”

“Right.” The captain looked back and forth. The river stretched, clear and tauntingly unbroken, for some distance both ways before turning. Upstream or downstream? No... a wrong choice at this stage could cost us days of backtracking. Days we don’t have. This is going to complicate things, but we have no choice. “Slipstream, you know rivers. Take half the squad and follow the water upstream. I’ll take the rest downstream. Make sure flares are evenly distributed in case we need to regroup. We’re looking for an underground foe now, so keep an ear open for any tremors.”

The pegasus saluted. “Yes, sir!”

As the team began to divide itself up, Straw Bolt sat down for a moment to collect himself. He sighed in frustration. Of course, it wouldn’t be so easy. This isn’t a good start. If this keeps up, this rescue operation could be over very soon.

---

Fluttershy’s imprisonment, day 4
Twilight Sparkle’s imprisonment, day 2

Overnight, the clutter in L’s corner of the room had doubled in size. Nearly all of the stratoscreens in the chamber had been stacked up around her, covering three desks and stretching across both walls to the left and right. Half showed Fluttershy’s cell from various angles, while the other half displayed Twilight Sparkle. L had been more animated than usual, swiveling back and forth between the two walls throughout the day. In her lap she held a bowl of chocolate-coated candies, which she would suck on individually for minutes at a time before cracking the caramel center between her teeth.

In all her years of police work in both Ponyville and Canterlot, Colgate had only ever had to interrogate anypony once. She doubted that it had counted, as it had taken little more than a stern glance before the filly had broken down and admitted to snatching sweets when Mrs. Cake wasn’t looking. Even so, she’d studied the art extensively as part of her training, more than long enough to recognize a professional when she saw one. Whatever else she had to say about her methods, Colgate would gladly acknowledge that L was such a professional.

“Fluttershy,” the detective asked calmly, “who was it who broke your jaw?” Her delivery was perfect. Her synthetic voice was intimidating without being terrifying; she created an alien, disquieting presence, but was casual enough that ponies felt comfortable opening up to her. If not for the restraints, Colgate would have called it the ideal interrogation.

At least, she would have after the first two rounds. By the fifth, the routine was getting tiring.

"I told you, I fell down the stairs," Fluttershy mumbled. "Why do you keep asking me?" She sniffed and her voice cracked. "I've told you everything I know. Please, please let me go..."

Colgate sighed. "L, this isn't helping. How many times are we going to go through this?"

"Until the truth comes out." L switched off her microphone and turned to face Colgate. She bit down on the candy in her mouth and swallowed it, instantly replacing it with another. "The report on Fluttershy's condition was quite thorough. We can't say exactly how the bone in her jaw was chipped, but it was not from falling down the stairs. Despite the evidence against her, she appears to be truthful in saying that she knows nothing about Kira. So why is it on this point that she remains reticent?" The detective stroked her chin. "It is a mystery."

Colgate couldn't summon the energy to argue. She turned away and stared at the ground, sighing. "You do what you want, L. I can't stop you."

In the middle of the room, Rainbow Dash hovered beside the gigantic abacus. She stared sympathetically in Colgate’s direction, her look of concentration slipping. "Pay attention!" Jazz yelled from below her, startling the pegasus back into movement. Perhaps spurred on by the thought of another pony touching his abacus, the normally quiet stallion was showing a surprisingly fierce side as he led the mare through her first lesson. "No distractions! The operator must remain focused! Eight times four."

Dash leaped into the air, pushing several strings of beads around the middle of the abacus' face back and forth. Satisfied, she pushed a button on the side. A crystal somewhere within the structure flashed, taking in the new arrangement of beads, and the resulting number was displayed on a small stratoscreen near the base. She landed briefly to read out her answer. "Thirty-two!"

"Seven times six!"

Another flurry of movement. "Forty-two!"

"Twelve times twenty-one!" Jazz tapped his hoof impatiently as Rainbow took to the air again. "Come on, come on, hurry up!" he yelled as she hesitated in front of the beads.

"Uh..." Rainbow Dash frowned at the abacus before tentatively moving the beads in front of her. "Come on, this is hard!" she yelled back. "I can't just do that kind of math in my head!"

The older pony swatted in irritation at the pegasus' dangling tail. "Don't use your head, use your hooves!" he ordered. Dash nodded and continued pushing the beads around, though at a slower pace than before. "Don't think about what you're doing. Let the numbers flow through you. Minty will do the heavy lifting for you, if you can tell her what to do. Oh, careful!" Jazz winced as a stray knee knocked against the wooden bars. "More precision! This crash course does not allow room for crashing!"

There was a faint clicking noise as Spike trudged into the main chamber, his unkempt claws scratching against the stone floor. He kept his head down and wordlessly handed a scroll to Colgate, still warm from the dragonfire that had delivered it. The unicorn tried to reach out to him comfortingly, but Spike turned away and pulled himself into a chair. Colgate bit her lip. Spike had fallen into a slump from the moment Twilight had entered her cell, and the report they’d received yesterday had only dampened his spirits further. The little dragon had fallen to a nearly comatose state, barely eating or speaking if he wasn't pushed. Seeing no change in his mood, Colgate looked at the scroll before her with something approaching terror. She unrolled it slowly, holding her breath as she read the words within. “This can’t be right,” she breathed. “I can’t believe it. I don’t believe it. There must be some kind of mistake.”

“Be wary of those words, Colgate,” L cautioned, taking the scroll from the stunned mare. “Those who speak them seldom find them to be truthful.” She scanned the message quickly. “I see. The same as yesterday.” Again, she swallowed her candy and popped another one into her mouth. She glanced meaningfully towards the microphone. “You promised to keep her updated. Do you want to tell her, or should I?”

Colgate bit her lip and glanced around the room. Spike wouldn’t meet her gaze. Rainbow Dash looked back at her for a moment, but was quickly jolted back into her work by a bark from Jazz. A sinking weight boring a hole in the bottom of her stomach, Colgate pulled L’s microphone towards her and pushed one of its many buttons. "Twilight?"

Onscreen, the purple mare's ears pricked up. "L? Is that you?"

"Um, no. This is Colgate." The policemare grimaced as the screen echoed L's synthetic voice back at her, her own words being converted into something she was growing to dislike. "How are you doing in there?"

"I'm okay." Twilight let out a yawn. "I thought I'd be bored out of my mind, but I'm really not. It's actually really relaxing in here, once you get past the cameras and the locked door. It’s nice not having to worry about anything. How are things on your end? Any new developments?"

"Um..." Colgate took a deep breath. She glanced at L's expectant stare, then at the scroll that lay on the desk before them. "A rescue team has been sent for Sunny Days," she stalled. "They seem pretty competent. I’m hoping they’ll get her back soon. I thought you'd like to know that."

Twilight’s head bolted upright. “Sunny Days was foalnapped?” she exclaimed.

"Y-yes. I... I thought you knew. It was all over the news." Colgate lowered her head. "A golem came to the park and dragged her into the forest. I was there. There was nothing anypony could do. I... I never should have brought her there."

"It's okay, Colgate," Twilight soothed, though her own voice was a little shaky. “It's not your fault. Thank you for telling me.” She swallowed hard and looked down at the bed. It’s my fault, she thought. I should have known this would happen. What I’ve done to her is terrible enough, but I never meant for... for her to suffer. Twilight rolled over and looked directly at one of the cameras. "Do you think she's still alive?"

"I..." Colgate frowned and squeezed her eyes shut for a moment. "Twilight, don't say things like that."

"Sorry." Twilight shifted her gaze upwards, appearing to stare into space thoughtfully. To her eyes, however, Byuk floated up near the corner of the room. As soon as Sunny Days' name had been mentioned, a mischievous smile had spread over his face. Wait a minute. Now that I think of it... can Sunny Days die? She frowned. I'll figure this out later. Right now, there's something more important. "I'm sure she'll be fine," she reassured Colgate. "But what I was really asking was... since I've been imprisoned, have any new targets for Kira been identified, any I wouldn't have known about before? If so, have any of them died?"

Colgate choked. "Twilight... since we... there haven't..." Abruptly she pushed the microphone back towards L and turned away, pressing her hooves against her temples. "I can't do this," she gasped. "I'm sorry. I can't."

The detective nodded slowly, positioning the device in front of her. “Apologies, Twilight,” she said. While the voice that Twilight heard was the same, even through the distortion it was noticeably calmer. “Colgate is not feeling well at the moment.”

Twilight gave the camera a pained look. “That... doesn’t sound like good news.”

“Perhaps.” L glanced at Colgate again before continuing. “You see, Twilight, while several new criminals have been identified over the past two days, from the moment you were put in custody not a single pony has died.”

There was a long silence. Even Rainbow Dash stopped her frantic movements, and Jazz said nothing to spur her on. Everypony stared as onscreen, Twilight Sparkle began to shake. “So... so that’s it, then,” she mumbled. Even with nothing but blank walls and unmoving cameras to look at, she could practically feel the accusing eyes of her friends boring into her from every direction. It stung more than she had prepared herself for. “You... you all must think I’m...”

“That has yet to be decided,” L interrupted. “You will be held here for further observation until a final decision can be made.”

“Th-thank you.” With a final sniff, Twilight collapsed back down onto her bed.

Colgate ground her teeth together as L turned the microphone off. “You’re just loving this, aren’t you?” she spat.

“I’m sure I don’t know what you-”

“It’s just like you always said, right? Everything points to Twilight. You were right, I was wrong. This is what you wanted, right?” The blue mare stood up and glared at the detective. “Well, are you happy now?”

L sighed. “Colgate, this is not-”

“You know what? Forget this.” Colgate turned and stomped away. “I have some real work to do. The Mayor needs my help preparing for tomorrow. Maybe we can finally lay something to rest properly for once.” She paused in front of the trapdoor lever, looking back at L without looking directly at her. “Enjoy your victory.” Then, still fuming, she left.

There was another long silence. With a gentle nudge from Jazz, Rainbow Dash flew back into her exercises. Bon Bon silently entered the room, surreptitiously topped up L’s bowl of sweets, then slipped away without a word. “Maybe Twilight was right,” Spike said after some time had passed. “Maybe she was being controlled somehow. It doesn’t have to be her fault.”

“No.” L shook her head, never tearing her gaze from the screens. “Twilight is a very intelligent mare. If there was an alien presence in her mind, she would have detected it long before now. Either she is Kira, or she is not.”

Spike looked up. “But how do you know?”

“It’s what I do.”

“No, I mean...” Spike frowned, unsure of how to express himself. “How do you know? You still can’t prove that Twilight’s Kira. There are lots of ways that this could be a setup. So out of all the ponies in Ponyville, why her? Why are you so sure that you’re right?”

L paused. She loudly swallowed her latest candy, but didn’t replace it. “The closer we look at anything,” she said softly, “the more difficult it becomes to be certain of anything. We cannot be certain of the events leading to this point. We cannot be certain that our friends are who they say they are. We can not, even in this day and age, be certain that the sun will rise in the morning.” L sighed. “And yet, this is exactly what my job entails. Being certain. I must have no doubt that my deductions are correct.”

“But what if they’re not?” Spike pressed. “Everyone makes mistakes sometimes. What if, somehow...” He gulped. “You’re wrong?”

“No. I am always right. All that ever changes is the way in which I am right.” The detective turned away and ran her hoof down the side of one of the smaller stratoscreens where the two walls met. For a second the image of Colgate crying behind a tree near the trapdoor appeared on the treated stone, but with another flick L made it disappear. “Spike. You have never seriously considered the possibility that Twilight Sparkle may be Kira, have you?”

“No!” Realizing how this sounded, Spike quickly corrected himself. “I mean, of course I have. I mean... I’ve thought about it.”

“No, you haven’t.” The detective sighed again. She swiveled around, and, for what seemed the first time in days, looked Spike directly in the eyes. “Spike. If you wish to understand, if you truly wish to understand, then there’s something that I want you to do for me.”

“Of course.” The little dragon nodded quickly. “I’ll do anything.”

“Then believe that Twilight Sparkle is Kira.” L nodded as Spike’s eyes widened. “Just for a few minutes. Put aside all your feelings and believe, with as much certainty as you can muster, that the pony you grew up with is guilty of these murders. From there, let your mind take you where it will, and once those minutes are up you can return to thinking and feeling however you like. But during this time, do not merely look at the facts and speculate. Be certain.”

“Uh... okay.” Spike shuffled uncomfortably. “But... I don’t believe Twilight is Kira. How can I go from one thing to the complete opposite just like that?”

“I had thought that you would know, Spike. It didn’t take you long to accept that your precious Rarity was not who you thought she was.” Spike gasped, feeling as if he’d been slapped across the face and heart simultaneously. L turned back to her monitors. “Imagine, then, that at some point in the future we discover Twilight Sparkle in an equally compromising position. Imagine that there could be no doubt that she is Kira, and has been Kira all along.” She narrowed her eyes at the reclining figure on the screen. “What would that imply about her actions these past few weeks?”

Spike recovered somewhat and pulled himself into a nearby chair. He sat facing away from L, folding his arms across his chest, and watched Rainbow Dash weave up and down as Jazz continued to bark orders at her. I don’t get it, he thought. Rarity was one thing, but... I’ve known Twilight literally my entire life. She can’t be a killer. It just doesn’t make sense. Grudgingly, he tried to force himself through the exercise. If L’s right, and Twilight is Kira... hypothetically, he reminded himself. Hypothetically, if Twilight is Kira, then that would mean... His heart skipped a beat. It would explain...

Just like that, all the pieces began to fit together.

---

In the late hours of the night, a lone stallion crept up to the Books and Branches library and knocked tentatively on the door. It began as a light tapping, but as the minutes ticked by it grew louder, developing into a tree-shaking pounding that threatened to wake every pony in the houses nearby.

But there was no answer.

---

Fluttershy’s imprisonment, day 5
Twilight Sparkle’s imprisonment, day 3

As usual, Bon Bon’s hooves made virtually no noise as she walked into the base’s central chamber. Even so, L turned to face her before she was halfway to the corner where she sat. Despite them being the only ones in the room, she still whispered when she spoke. “Has there been a response?”

Bon Bon nodded as she approached the seated detective. “Just minutes ago,” she whispered back. Now that they were alone, she nuzzled the unresponsive pony’s cheek and took a place close by her side before continuing. “He sends the usual greetings.”

“Just the important part, Bon Bon.”

The creamy mare smiled softly. “Twilight Sparkle was a candidate for one of their programs; he didn’t specify which one. But she was never accepted. Some kind of intervention led to her being tutored by Celestia herself, which he assured me was purely academic. He provided a list of her schools and teachers, if you’re interested.”

“I know them.” To Bon Bon’s delight, a faint smile was working its way across the detective’s face. “Anything else?”

“Just the usual order to never contact him again.”

“Good. That’s... good.” L sighed. “I had hoped that this was the case. I just had to be sure.”

“I’m glad that things worked out.” Bon Bon planted a quick kiss on the seated mare’s cheek. Instantly, the smile vanished. “Can I get you anything, dearest?”

“That will be all for now,” L said coldly. “You may go.” Uncomplaining, the earth pony slipped back away in the direction of the kitchen, letting her tail trail along L’s side as she went. A second later she had vanished, and the green detective was on her own.

Once again, the base was silent. L sat unmoving in front of the wall of stratoscreens, her eyes flicking back and forth between the two halves at an even pace. Both the ponies she observed were still, Twilight willingly, Fluttershy because of her restraints. The pegasus hung limply in her bonds, occasionally flexing her wings as much as the straps would allow. While parts of her were occasionally released to allow her to eat or use the bathroom, for the most part she had been kept completely motionless for the past five days. While the pain in her muscles must have been building up to something terrible, the yellow mare showed few signs of discomfort. She sat in complete silence, hanging her head in obedient fear.

While Twilight Sparkle had been allowed considerably more freedom, she’d shown no willingness to take advantage of it. She lay on her bed with her eyes closed, drifting in and out of sleep at odd hours of the day and night, shifting positions once every few hours. The only part of her that moved consistently was her tail, which would swish back and forth every so often in nervousness or irritation. Presently, the unicorn was scrunching her eyes up tightly, her tail flicking across the plush sheets of her cot. L levitated up a quill and added a note to one of the countless scrawl-covered sheets that surrounded her. 12:10 - Anxiety?

Twilight would not have disagreed with this diagnosis. She forced herself through her relaxing breathing techniques, willing herself as hard as she could not to move a muscle. I’m calm. I’m relaxed. I’m absolutely-

“Twilight, I’m boooooooored!” Byuk whined. The unicorn gritted her teeth and forced herself not to roll her eyes. The shinigami strutted around the room like a grouchy foal, disregarding gravity to stomp along the walls and ceiling. Twilight begged silently that he wouldn’t jostle any cameras, though thankfully the shinigami seemed to have the sense to avoid them. “Come on, Twilight,” he moaned, his petulant tone forming a surreal contrast with his imposing form. “You haven’t done anything in days. When can we have apples again? This is the worst plan ever...”

Sweet Celestia, he’s worse than Spike during the ruby season! Twilight groaned internally. She did her best to drown out the incessant chatter with thoughts of her own. Think of something else, anything else... On a whim, she returned to a subject that had been bothering her for a while. What about Sunny Days?

Is it possible for Sunny Days to die? If she’s been foalnapped, she could be in all kinds of danger. Anything might happen to her. If she was fated to die a ‘natural’ death before the 23 days are up, then nothing’s stopping her from being killed before the Death Note takes effect. Twilight’s frown deepened. Except this isn’t natural. The Death Note’s influence had already taken effect long before she was foalnapped. If her name hadn’t been written down... in fact, if it hadn’t been written down twice... then none of this would have ever happened to her. She would have lived a normal, carefree life, and would never have been put in any danger. So all this is just an unintended consequence of the Death Note’s curse, which means that whatever happens, the only way she can die is by her own hoof... about fifteen days from now. If anypony were to discover this, it would make things very complicated for us both.

Sunny... I’m so sorry...

“Miss Sparkle.” An artificial voice broke through the unicorn’s thoughts, mercifully silencing Byuk. “How are you feeling?”

“Bad.” Twilight rolled on her back and stared at the ceiling. “It feels like everything since Kira turned up has just been one long nightmare. I keep waiting for myself to wake up. But I never do.”

“An understandable position to be in.” L stared into Twilight’s eyes. There was no fear in them, only stress and tiredness. “Of course, it does not have to be this way. Confess to being Kira, Twilight. You have provided the evidence yourself. For your own sake, do not drag this out longer than you have to.”

The lavender mare sighed. “I can’t confess to what I don’t know, L,” she said. Technically, that’s true. “I’m sorry that I can’t give you what you want. It’s just not that simple.”

“It is that simple,” L snapped back. “You are not a pawn of Kira. You are not being controlled by Kira. You are Kira, and this game of yours is childish. For your own sake, confess, and do not make us drag out this charade longer than is necessary.”

"I can't," Twilight responded, a little surprised at the change in tone. "I would if I could, but I can't lie to you. I can't tell you I'm something I'm not." I see. This is when she starts to press me. I’ll have to make it soon...

"Very well." The voice dropped back to its usual pitch, as if nothing had happened. "That is a shame. If you were willing to be more cooperative, we might have been able to make arrangements for the funeral this afternoon."

"The funeral?" Twilight's eyes widened. "That's today?"

"Correct. The memorial for Rarity and Pinkie Pie is being held an hour from now in the town hall. Your presence will be missed."

"I'm going to... miss it?" Tears started to well up in the corners of Twilight's eyes, and a tremor ran through her as memories resurfaced. Gulping, she forced the feelings down. "Wait... they're being held together? Isn't that a little... you know... in bad taste?"

"Not necessarily. True, immediately after the incident we were unable to prevent gossip from spreading that one of your friends had murdered the other." L did not slow down as Twilight visibly flinched. "However, in the official reports and subsequent news stories, the events have been altered significantly. In the interest of protecting Diamond Edge's identity and the legacy of the Elements of Harmony, we cannot allow such negative influences to persist. As far as the rest of Equestria is concerned, both of your friends were killed by Kira."

Twilight made a noise like she'd been punched in the throat. "Y-you lied to everypony?" she stammered, her trembling beginning to return. "How can you do that?"

"I felt that it was necessary." L put her head to one side. "The pony you call Rarity is one of the most beloved ponies across Equestria. In times such as these, the corruption of one of the bearers of the Elements of Harmony would only bring further instability to a time already in great unrest. For the sake of Equestria, it is better that she be remembered as the kind and generous mare that she truly was, not the hurt and vengeful mare that she became."

"Th-thank you." Twilight rolled onto her side and pressed her head against her pillow, allowing tears to leak out onto her face. "I guess... doing the right thing for the wrong reasons is still the right thing. Thank you for doing this for her."

"It was nothing. It did require us to reveal that Kira can kill through methods other than heart attacks, but I suspect that that will be a minor detail at this stage of the game."

The purple mare squeezed her eyes shut. She clenched her teeth together, making an escaping sob mask her trembling of pure fury. You... you illiterate ignoramus! she cursed, using the most scathingly impolite words in her vocabulary. That was completely uncalled for. If ponies believe that Kira killed Rarity and Pinkie Pie, I'll never be able to win them over now. I want ponies to live free from fear of harm, not to live in fear of me! You stupid, stupid...

Her thoughts were interrupted a second time, this time by a different voice. Though it passed through the distortion on L's microphone, this one audibly sounded panicked and further away, backed by a constant stream of shrill squeaks and squawks. "Harpy! I need Fluttershy!"

L stared at the small stratoscreen that had flickered to life in the very corner of the room. A blue pony filled up most of the screen, inexpertly holding a crystal too closely for all of her face to be seen. The detective's brow furrowed in what might have been irritation. With a couple of flicks on her microphone, she turned to face the new screen. "Locket, you know that Fluttershy is not permitted to speak to anypony. Additionally, I instructed you to use this channel only in cases of dire emergency."

"This is an emergency!" the earth pony yelled back. "This crazy crocodile is trying to eat me!"

On the screens to L's right, Twilight sat up and was looking around in confusion. "Who was that?" she asked, wiping her eyes. "Hello? Is everypony all right?"

"Twilight?" Locket's one visible eye widened. "Twilight, is that you? You have to help me! This crazy thing won't stop biting me!"

With a faint sigh, L pushed another series of switches on her microphone. "You can speak to each other now," she said to both ponies. "Miss Sparkle, sort this out, would you?" With that, she pushed another button to remove the distortion effect and sat back.

There was a pause. "Sorry, who is this?" Twilight asked.

"It's Locket. Please, tell me how to-" There was a faint snapping sound, and Locket squealed. "Tell me how to get this thing off of me!"

"I can't see you. What is it?"

"It's some little crocodile, and it's stuck to my tail!"

Twilight's eyes lit up in recognition. "Gummy!" she said in delight. "Well, first off, Gummy's an alligator, not a crocodile. Crocodiles have a more ridged and pointed snout, and-"

"I don't care if it's Discord in a wedding dress, just get it off me!"

There were more sounds of hoofsteps and panicked squealing as Locket spun around in a circle, shaking her tail uselessly back and forth. Twilight couldn't help but giggle at the sound. "Slow down, for a start. You're not in any danger. Gummy doesn't have any teeth."

There was a sudden silence. Locket coughed. "Well... that would explain the name," she said sheepishly, needlessly trying to hide her blush. "So why is he stuck to me?"

"If he's biting, it's usually because he's hungry. Or grouchy. Or sleepy. Or bored. But usually hungry. Are there any little pink cans around? Pinkie Pie usually fed him out of those."

"You mean... oh! So that's what that mushy stuff was!" Locket put the crystal down and trotted off-camera, for the first time revealing a tiny green shape clamped firmly to her tail. A minute later she came back, visibly relieved and now sans-lizard. "You were right, Twilight. I guess he really was hungry. Thank you so much."

"It was my pleasure," Twilight said back, smiling. Now, this could be my chance. Just need to wait for the perfect opportunity... "Anything else you need help with while you're there?"

“Well... um...” Growing increasingly red, the blue pony picked up a long list that trailed down to the floor. “There’s this white cat who keeps trying to eat the smaller animals, even though I told her not to... and the birds keep flying up to places where I can’t reach them... and someone keeps unlocking the food drawers, and I can’t figure out how they’re doing it...” The noise behind her abruptly rose in volume, and Locket slumped to the table where the recording crystal lay. “Oh, I can’t do it!” she moaned. “I should be able to do this, but I just can’t. None of the animals listen to me. They all want Fluttershy. I’m not good enough for them, I’m not good enough for anypony...”

“Hey, it’s okay,” Twilight said quickly as the earth pony’s tone began to grow darker. “Maybe you’re just trying too hard. Animals get scared if you come at them with a bad attitude. Maybe you should take a break for a while, try to relax.”

Locket sniffed. “How?”

Twilight thought for a moment. “Do you know any stories about golems?”

“Sure. The legend of the Earthen King and his dolls of clay and stone. It was pretty popular in my old town.”

Perfect. “I’d like to hear it, if you have a while. L, you don’t mind, do you?”

L turned on her artificial voice just long enough to give a response. “I have no objection.”

Locket raised her head. “Why?” she asked. “I know you’ve studied a lot of old stories, and it’s been years since I’ve heard any of them. Your books would tell it a lot better than I would.”

“Two reasons,” Twilight explained. “First, because everypony who tells a story tells it differently. Even if the essence is the same, lots of little details change between versions, and sometimes the details are the most important parts. Secondly...” She looked down and narrowed her eyes. “One of my best friends is locked up, two more are dead, I’m missing their funeral, and I’m currently imprisoned on suspicion of being the biggest mass-murderer in Equestria. Please, I need to take my mind off things as well.”

“Oh! Um, right.” Locket jumped up and tried to compose herself in front of the camera. “Sorry, I... right.” She gulped. “Well... Mama Lillywhite told me some bedtime stories a long time ago. She was my great aunt really, or maybe my mom’s great aunt, but she was everypony’s Mama. Her special talent was storytelling. Whenever I was lonely or in a bad mood, she’d always have some magical tale to cheer me up.” Locket smiled, sighing. “This was one of the first she ever told me. I don’t remember a lot of it, but I can tell you the basic story. Is that okay?”

“That’s fine.”

“Okay.” The earth pony cleared her throat before beginning. “So, once upon a time, there was this old and powerful pony named... um... hang on...”

“Judas Loam?” Twilight offered.

“No, that wasn’t it. It was... anyway, that’s not important, because nopony called him by his real name. Maybe he didn’t have a real name. He was known as the Earthen King, and he ruled over the earth. While other ponies fought over the sky and land, he lived far, far underground, deeper than the Diamond Dogs, deeper than the darkest depths, deeper than the most daring dream. And he ruled over all that he saw, because he was all alone. All day he would collect gemstones and statues and all the wonders of the inner earth and he would stash them away in his tiny castle in the middle of the world. He didn’t have anypony to share them with, but he didn’t mind, because he’d been alone for so long that he’d forgotten what loneliness was.

“One day, something happened that had never happened before. There was an adventurous young colt who liked to dig, and... Oh! And his name was Judas Loam. One day, he set off on a journey to see how far he could dig into the earth, just to see what was there. He picked up his trusty shovel and got to work. He dug, and he dug, and he dug for so long that he fell right into the castle of the Earthen King. At first he was amazed at how beautiful everything was, but then he realized that he was lost and started to cry. The King heard the noise and came to see what it was, and he found Judas sitting on his biggest pile of gems, just crying away. But instead of being angry, the King held Judas, and... um, yeah, calmed him down until he could talk.

“So Judas told the Earthen King about where he was from. He told him about the plants, and the sky, and all the wonderful ponies who lived in the surface. The King really wanted to see all this, because he’d been away from the surface for so long that even boring, ordinary things sounded strange and beautiful to him. So he picked up Judas in his hooves and he rose up, up, up though the earth until they reached the very top. And then... there was some kind of nauseating song about seeing the sun and the sky for the first time. It was so syrupy-sweet that it made my teeth hurt just listening to it. There was a dance, too. Mama Lillywhite used to really get into it, singing and stomping around all over the room, but I always wanted her to just keep going.

“Anyways. So after they were done exploring, Judas took the Earthen King to meet his family, the humble and hard-working earth ponies. But when they came near, the earth ponies were so scared that they ran away and hid, and even Judas couldn’t convince them to come out and play. So next they went to the castle of the smart and beautiful unicorns, hoping to meet the ponies there. But when the unicorns saw the Earthen King walking down the road, they closed all their gates and locked them tight. So finally they went to the brave and courageous pegasi, who weren’t afraid of anything. But once again, when the pegasi saw the Earthen King coming, they hid in their cloud houses and just wouldn’t come out.”

“Why was everypony afraid of him?” Twilight interrupted. “Was he some kind of monster?”

“No, he was definitely a pony. At least, I’m pretty sure he was a pony.” Locket frowned. “Maybe because he’d been underground for so long, he didn’t really look like a pony any more. But anyways, once they were done searching, the Earthen King was sad because everypony was afraid of him, and nopony wanted to be his friend. But Judas reminded him that he was his friend, and that made the King feel a little better. So together they went to the top of the highest mountain they could find, to be close to the sky, and they made a home there just for the two of them.”

Locket chuckled. The noise sounded strange coming out of her, and Twilight wondered how long it had been since the mare had laughed. “I remember Mama Lillywhite would always try to stop at that point,” she said wistfully. “She’d say it was late, and that was a good place to stop for the night. But my favorite part was in the second half, so I’d always beg and plead for her to keep going.

“So after Judas and the Earthen King had lived on the mountain for... I don’t know, a while, the King started to get lonely. He was happy that Judas Loam was his friend, but after hearing about the hundreds and hundreds of ponies who lived down below-”

Twilight snorted, which caused the blue mare to stumble to a halt. “What?”

“I’m sorry,” the unicorn apologized. “It’s just... that’s completely off. Equestria’s population has never gone below twenty thousand.”

“It’s just a foal’s story,” Locket snapped back testily. “I didn’t even know what a thousand was when I heard this.” Twilight nearly argued that she could count to a thousand by the time she was in magic kindergarten, but wisely kept her mouth shut. “So anyways. The King was lonely, so he decided that since no ponies wanted to be his friend, he would make some ponies of his own. He took parts of the earth, since that was all he knew how to work with, and he made two dolls. One was made of... no wait, hang on. There were three dolls, one made of clay, one of stone, and one of mud. But the mud one didn’t work, because it wouldn’t stay together and kept falling apart. But he took the dolls of clay and stone, and he took some magical crystals he’d brought up from the middle of the earth, and he put the crystals into the dolls and brought them to life.

“Once the dolls were finished, the King showed them to his best friend Judas Loam, hoping they would make him happy. But instead, Judas was afraid of the dolls. He thought that the King didn’t want to be his friend any more, and had made little ponies out of the earth to replace him. So in the middle of the night, he ran away home to his family, leaving the Earthen King all alone with his dolls. When the King woke up the next morning and saw that Judas was gone he was very sad, but he was still so excited about his new friends that he decided to stay where he was.

“At first, the two dolls were like little foals. They ran around everywhere, always looking and exploring wherever they could find. But over time, the Earthen King taught them to sing and dance and do all the things that the ponies in the valleys below could. They did everything he told them to and never ran away, and for a while the Earthen King was happy. But as lifelike as the dolls were, they couldn’t give the same friendship as a real pony could. And with nopony to share with, the King eventually realized that he was no better off than he’d been in the middle of the world.

“So one day, the Earthen King took his dolls and went down the mountain to the place where the earth ponies lived. At first the ponies there were afraid, like they’d been before, but when they saw the dolls they came out to the King to see them. So the King made his dolls sing and dance for them, and the earth ponies were so happy that they let him stay. But no matter where he looked, Judas Loam was nowhere to be found, and at the end of the day he had to return to the mountain on his own.

“The next day, the Earthen King went to the castle of the unicorns, and he made his dolls dance for them as well. But no matter how hard he searched, Judas Loam wasn’t with them either. The day after he went to the pegasi and made the dolls dance for them too, but once again, Judas was nowhere to be found. So the King returned home, wondering if he would ever see his friend again.

“On the fourth day, the King was visited by a pair of ponies, a unicorn of light and a pegasus of darkness. Or... maybe a pegasus of light and a unicorn of darkness. One or the other. Anyway, they said they had heard that the greatest toymaker in all of Equestria lived at the top of the mountain, and they wanted to see what he had made. So he brought out his dolls of clay and stone and made them dance for the two ponies.”

“Could they have been the two Princesses?” Twilight interrupted.

Locket’s eyes widened. “Oh. My gosh. That’s so obvious! There was only one Princess when I was a filly, so I never made the connection.” She paused, frowning. “Or maybe not. See, when the two ponies saw the dolls and what they could do, instead of just being happy their eyes lit up with greed. The pony of light wanted the dolls for herself, so she could show them all over Equestria. But the pony of darkness only wanted the gemstones on their faces, because they were more powerful and beautiful than anything she’d seen before. But to the dolls, the gems were an eye and a heart and a dream all in one, and if the dark pony took them away they would no longer be alive.

“So the two ponies started to fight over the dolls. And as they were fighting, the Earthen King realized he’d made a terrible mistake. This was my favorite part, because this whole section was told in song, a sad song, and it went something like:

“And the ponies argued for a day and a night

‘til the moon turned back into the sun,

and the King tried to leave, but he couldn’t believe

all the chaos that he had begun.

So he gathered his toys, and he gathered his dolls,

and he gave one last call for his friend,

and he knew in his heart that they’d still be apart

but they’d carry their hope to the end.

“No, that’s wrong...” Locket sighed. “I don’t remember enough of the words. I can’t do it justice. Anyway, seeing that he’d ended up doing more harm than good, while the two greedy ponies were fighting he took his dolls and slipped away back inside the earth. It took a whole day for them to realize he was gone, and when they did, they took apart the whole mountain looking for him. But it was too late; he’d already gone all the way down to his castle in the middle of the world, where nopony could reach him.

“And the Earthen King is still down there, watching over us from below. Down in the dark, he’s waiting for a time when ponies are no longer scared and greedy, and he can walk among us as who he really is. But he remembered that Judas had been kind to him, so he sent his two dolls in the form of golems to spread gemstones all over the world as a way of saying thanks. So whenever you find a sapphire or a ruby or an emerald or a diamond, it’s a gift from the King, and a reminder that some things are more precious than toys and jewels.”

Locket smiled as she finished her story. “I used to think it was a happy ending,” she said wistfully. “But it’s not really, is it?”

Twilight was silent for a while as she absorbed this. “You told it very well, Locket,” she said slowly. Already she could picture how the next minute of conversation would go, and sensed the opportunity to finally make good on her plan. It filled her with a sense of apprehension, like preparing to step onto a stage; she couldn’t tell if it was anticipation or dread. “I found a book with a similar story a while back, but there were a lot of differences. For example, in the version I read, the colt that the King made friends with wasn’t a colt at all. It was a filly named Dig Dug. And she didn’t leave because she was afraid; she left because she was growing up, and the dolls only came after she was gone.”

“I don’t care what the book says,” Locket mumbled, a little defensively. “That’s what I remember. Mama Lillywhite never told it wrong.”

“I’m not saying she did,” Twilight continued, her heart pounding. “Everything changes with time. Subtle changes build up generation after generation, and every new speaker makes their own differences because of personal preference or the popular themes and messages of the time. It gets to the point where two ponies can tell the same story, and they come out completely different. Even books aren’t immune to that kind of manipulation. Ponies keep the parts that are important to them, and the rest they just...” The unicorn paused. She took a deep breath, then looked Byuk meaningfully in the eyes. “Throw away.”

The shinigami stared for a second, then grinned knowingly and waved.

And Twilight blinked.

She stretched, yawning loudly, then rubbed at the bags under her eyes. Her cheeks ached, as if she’d been pulling a face for the past week. “I guess you’re right,” she heard Locket say, but the voice seemed further away than it had been a second ago. “Sometimes my mom would read me a bedtime story instead, and we’d get into arguments over how it was supposed to go.” There was a pause. “Hey, that’s funny. The animals aren’t shouting at me any more. They’re all just... listening.”

Twilight smiled. She couldn’t put her hoof on why, but she felt a great deal happier now the story was over. “You see? A little kindness goes a long way. That’s a good lesson to learn.”

“Yeah. Thanks.” Locket smiled as well. “I guess I should get back to work, while everything’s still calm. It was nice to talk to you, Twilight.”

“You too, Locket.” There was a blip as the recording crystal was shut off, and Twilight was plunged back into silence. Still smiling, she rolled off the bed and stretched again, shaking out each stiff leg in turn. “L?” she said gently, still smiling. “You can let me out now. I think I’m done here.”

With a faint hiss, L’s synthetic voice crackled back to life. However, it only hissed static for a few seconds before there was a response. “You know I can’t do that, Twilight Sparkle.”

“You can, and you will.” Twilight looked up into the nearest camera, a new confidence shining from within her. “It’s like you said, this is just a charade. Let’s not drag this out any longer. You and I both know that I’m not Kira.”

There was another pause. “That is not what you said when you first suggested this.”

The lavender mare blushed a little. “I... was in a bad place at the time,” she admitted. “You could have told me I was Nightmare Moon and I probably would have believed it. But now that I’ve had time to rest, I’m feeling a lot better. I know who I am. And there’s no way that I could ever be Kira.”

L frowned. She scratched at her cheek. “The current evidence suggests otherwise,” she said.

Twilight laughed. “Yeah. It’s pretty much the worst frame job ever, isn’t it? The deaths stopping as soon as I’m locked up is way too convenient. Kira’s not as clever we thought if he thinks he can fool us with this.” She looked up hopefully. “But now that I’ve been in here this long, he’s sure to think we’ve taken the bait. While he’s distracted trying to cover himself up, now we’re free to figure out his real plan.”

Another long silence. Twilight’s smile began to slip a little as she waited for a response. “L?” she said uncertainly. “You do know I’m not Kira, right?”

Finally, the detective’s artificial voice rang out once more. “Even an attempted frame implies some connection to Kira. I’m sorry, Twilight, but this was not our deal. You will remain here until we are able to come to a decision.”

“No.” The unicorn’s smile completely disappeared, replaced by a look of desperation. “L, you’re being tricked. You have to see that. You can’t let Kira fool you! And...” Her breathing quickened. “And two of my friends died because of me. This could be my last chance to say goodbye to them. You have to let me go to them, L. You have to let me go.”

“I think not. You knew the risks when you placed yourself in my custody. My decision is final. Unless you make a confession, I have no reason to remove you from your cell.”

“L, I’m not Kira!” Anger flared up in Twilight, but with no power to back it up, it was quickly overwhelmed by fear. If she focused she could feel her magic somewhere inside her, but it felt disconnected, as if buried under a mountain of feathers. For the first time since the start of her confinement, Twilight felt true helplessness fill her. “L, my friends need me,” she said, shakily approaching one of the cameras. “They’ll be expecting me. I need to see them again.” She raised herself up and put her front hooves on the wall, staring straight into the camera desperately. She began to raise her voice. “Don’t leave me on my own in here!”

“Twilight.” The perpetually calm voice silenced the mare’s floundering. “What is friendship to you?”

Twilight didn’t hesitate in her response. She spoke passionately into the camera. “Friendship is the most important thing in the world.”

L switched her microphone off. She listened idly as the hornless unicorn continued to beg for her release, beginning to pace frantically back and forth within her cell. The detective picked up a quill, then put it down again. She spun around once in her chair, taking in all of the stratoscreens around her and the vast, empty space at her back. Again she put a hoof to her cheek, gingerly touching the place where Bon Bon had kissed her, and closed her eyes as she listened to her captive’s pleading voice.

---

On the surface, three ponies and one baby dragon made their way down the streets of Ponyville in silence. Of the four of them, only Rainbow Dash was not in formal attire; she simply didn’t own anything appropriate. Jazz had a seemingly endless supply of dark suits, though none even close to the young pegasus’ size, and Colgate had pulled a plain and dusty uniform vest from her limited wardrobe. Even Spike had put on a miniature tuxedo, though the effect was slightly spoiled as he’d spilled ketchup down his front during lunch. Dash kept her head down as she walked, throwing glances at the others around her. For once, she didn’t want her rainbow mane to make her stand out.

“Remember,” Colgate whispered as they neared their destination, “they were killed by Kira. Nopony has to know about what really happened.” Twisting the facts made her cringe, but she’d since accepted that in this case at least, it was necessary.

“We know,” Spike echoed, and they spoke of it no more.

The quartet stopped as they reached the main square. The town hall stood before them, grim and strangely quiet. In what seemed a cruel parody of Pinkie Pie’s final town-wide party, ponies had spent days carting tables and decorations out of the building to make space for the crowds to come. In ones and twos, ponies were starting to break away from the surrounding buildings and make their way to the door. Mayor Mare stood timidly at the front entrance, greeting the few early arrivals. From time to time snatches of friendly conversation could be heard, but they would quickly die down. Nopony seemed to feel like talking at the moment.

“Rainbow Dash!”

The pegasus turned at the sound of her name. Barreling down the road towards her was a familiar orange earth pony. For once she’d taken off her hat and had put on a faded grey dress, which was starting to pick up dust as she ran. “Applejack!” Dash yelled in delight as the mare slid to a halt in front of her. “Where’ve you been?”

The orange mare snorted, panting for breath. “Where’ve Ah been?” she snapped, looking like she didn't know whether to hug her friend or strangle her. "More like where have you been for the past week? Nopony’s seen head nor tail of you in days. Ah never thought you of all ponies would try to vanish at a time like this.”

Rainbow Dash fidgeted. “Well... you see...”

“And that ain’t all,” Applejack continued. “This all started when Twilight went off studying for days at a time. Ah haven’t seen her since before... well, you know. Then some strange pony at Fluttershy’s cottage tells me she’s gone to Cloudsdale for some family emergency - didn’t even leave a note, just flew off. And now, with you going AWOL on me as well, it’s like..." She sniffed. Her brother and sister came into view behind her, both wearing black, but they kept their distance. "It’s like... well, it ain't right," she finished. "It feels like we all started drifting apart just when we needed each other the most."

A pail of guilt washed through Rainbow Dash, and her eyes began to water. Before she could begin to cover for herself, however, Jazz stepped forward. "Apologies, miss Applejack," he said, shaking the surprised mare by the hoof. "I'm afraid it's my fault that miss Dash has been unable to attend to her regular duties. My name is Jazz, professor at the University of Canterlot, and currently a tutor to your friend. I thought that keeping her engaged for long hours would help to keep her mind off of more troubling matters; had I realized that her complaints about missing her friends were not merely social, I would have been more lenient."

"Tutor?" Applejack blinked. She stared at the unicorn for a few seconds before understanding. "Dash, you're going to school?"

"Not quite," Jazz continued, pre-empting the pegasus a second time. "Only a few lessons on the side. There are educational requirements for any stunt team beyond the purely physical, after all. In return for a favor from one of my former students, a miss Twilight Sparkle, I've come to Ponyville to assist Rainbow Dash with her studies." He leaned forward conspiratorially. "Now, you didn't hear this from me," he whispered, "but this favor is the reason why miss Sparkle has vanished of late. She's been called to Canterlot on an emergency to deal with some sort of crisis; a stasis leak on an ancient curse, I believe. To prevent any unnecessary panic, I've been instructed to tell you that she's visiting family, but I believe I can trust you with the truth.” He winked. “She sends her condolences, and deeply regrets that she's unable to be here today. Were the situation anything but dire, nothing would keep her from you."

"Well, that's an awful shame," Applejack said back. "Thank you kindly for being honest with me, at least." Jazz bowed and backed away. "I guess it's just you and me, then," she said sadly, turning back to Rainbow Dash.

"And me," Spike muttered.

"And of course you too, Spike." Applejack smiled sadly at him. "How are you holding up?"

"Fine," the dragon said, looking down.

At the edge of the group, Colgate coughed. "I'll leave you to it, then," she said. She tried to smile, which only seemed to accentuate the fact that she looked like she hadn't slept in days. "I gotta... you know, keep the peace. And stuff." She turned away, muttering to herself. "Like there's any chance of that."

Dash frowned and started to call after the policemare, but stopped when Jazz shook his head. The other unicorn backed away and followed Colgate towards the town hall, leaving the three friends on their own. They looked at each other, no one really knowing what to say. "I guess we should head inside, then," Applejack suggested. The other two nodded. Together, they made their way towards the building.

The inside of the town hall was mostly bare. Seats had been provided for those that wanted them, but most Ponyvillians were accustomed to standing. Everything was arranged around a raised area at the far end of the room, on which two caskets lay: one engraved with three balloons, the other with three diamonds. At the sight of these, Rainbow Dash felt what little defenses she had start to break down. She began to shudder, unable to tear her eyes away from the caskets, knowing what was inside. Applejack fared better, only stooping slightly at the sight. "You gonna be okay?" she whispered to the pegasus.

"Y-yeah." Rainbow Dash gulped. "Yeah. I'm fine. It's just..." She sighed as the pair walked up to the rear of the building. "Sometimes I forget that they're really gone. I wake up in the morning feeling like everything's okay, like we're all going to get together for an adventure and they'll be there like they always were. But they're not. It doesn't seem right." She sniffed. "It doesn't seem right that things can feel okay. But I keep going, like nothing’s changed. And that doesn't seem right."

Applejack nodded. "Ah know what you mean, Dash," she sighed. "Ah know what you mean." They reached what seemed an appropriate place and stopped. "Shame it's closed caskets," she noted glumly. "Now that ain't right. Rarity would have wanted everypony to see her one last time. She would have looked beautiful."

Dash suppressed a shudder. Having witnessed firsthoof what had become of Rarity, not having to see her body again felt like something of a blessing. Behind her, Spike felt his eyes well up with tears. Not willing to let his friends see him cry, he covered up his mouth to mask his faint sniffles and crept away. Neither of the pair paid him any attention. "It kind of creeps me out either way," Dash admitted. "Being buried and all. I can't imagine being trapped underground for all eternity."

"Well, there's more to it than that. It's an old earth pony tradition. We grow everything out of the ground, and when we die, we give ourselves back to it as thanks." Applejack glanced sideways at her friend. "Pegasi burn their dead, right?"

"And scatter them to the four winds, yeah." Rainbow Dash nodded. "So that we can always be free. That's the way I want to go. Being stuck in one place forever sounds awful. I can't imagine..." She started to laugh, but stopped instantly. Her voice became hollow. "I can't imagine Pinkie Pie staying still for that long."

"It's what she would have expected." Applejack shrugged. "Just the way we do things. And Ah don't know how unicorns care for their own, but Rarity spent the best years of her life in Ponyville. She always said so. So Ah think she'd have wanted things to end this way; to be put in the ground, in the Ponyville way, together with the ponies she fell in love with."

"Spending forever together with your friends..." Rainbow Dash seemed to lighten up a little at this. "I can see that. Maybe that wouldn't be so bad."

The pair stood in silence for a minute, listening to the sounds of other ponies entering the building. “Applejack?” Rainbow Dash said at last, her voice beginning to crack again.

“Yeah?”

“Is... is harmony dead?” Dash looked at the ground. “I mean... we didn’t just lose our friends. We lost Laughter and Generosity. Does that mean that... that the Elements are...”

“Whoa, shh. It’s okay, sugar cube.” Applejack wrapped a foreleg around her friend’s shoulders and held her as the pegasus held back tears again. “The Elements aren’t going anywhere. They never really belonged to us, anyhow. We just got to carry them for awhile.”

“But... but what if Discord comes back? Or the changelings, or the Nightmare, or-”

“Harmony finds a way,” Applejack reassured her. “Think of it like this. The way Ah see it, Laughter wasn’t exclusive to Pinkie Pie, just like Generosity wasn’t owned by Rarity. They were just the best at spreading them around, and things like that don’t die when their bearers do. Harmony lives on in all ponies, not just the six of us, and when Equestria really needs it, Ah’ll wager we’ll see two new ponies step up to take their place.”

Rainbow Dash glared. “Nopony could ever replace Pinkie Pie.”

“Ah’m not saying they would. Those would be some mighty big shoes to fill. But it’s like she used to say; finding friends isn’t about replacing old ones, it’s about making a new connection with somepony else. You never know who your friends will turn out to be until you finally meet them. After all, how long did we know Twilight for before she led us to defeat Nightmare Moon? For that matter, how often did we talk before that night?”

“That’s... a good point.” Rainbow Dash sighed, then looked towards her friend and smiled a little. “You really think things will be okay, Applejack?”

“Ah know it.” The orange mare nuzzled her friend’s neck and held her a little tighter. “It won’t be easy, that’s for sure, and things won’t ever be the same as they were. But we’ll be okay.”

A few paces back, Colgate sighed and smiled as well. At least that’s one weight off my mind, she thought, relieved. We’ll stand a chance against any more all-powerful entities that try to invade. At least, assuming Kira doesn’t kill the invader first... She shook off this thought and turned away. Over the past few minutes noise from outside had started to grow as more ponies arrived. Her finely-tuned ears picked up something else, though; the level of conversation seemed inconsistent with the thin line of ponies that was trickling inside. It sounds like a crowd’s forming. Her heart skipped a beat. Or a mob. With a final glance at the two ponies ahead of her, she quickly made her way back outside.

What she saw at first didn’t surprise her. As expected, a growing line of ponies in formal wear stretched across the town square, each being greeted by the Mayor in turn before heading inside. Some of them had brought foals, who were accounting for a good portion of the noise from the herd. Their reactions to the event varied from open sobbing to their usual playful chatter; evidently, some of them didn’t quite understand yet that their favorite party pony and the nice mare who ran the boutique were really gone. The thought tore across Colgate’s heart, but she didn’t have much time to reflect on it.

Standing across from the line, however, was what the policemare would have to describe as the most polite protest she’d ever witnessed. A group of around fifty ponies stood closely together, giving nervous yet friendly smiles to the others around them. They didn’t chant or shout, only making quiet conversation and passing out grey leaflets to anypony who approached them. Several had made non-confrontational signs, which read things like “We don’t want to offend anypony” and “Violence will not save us”. Each was marked at the bottom with the letters KNM.

Colgate stormed forwards. “What is the meaning of-” She stopped short as two stallions broke away from the ground and walked calmly towards her. One of them she didn’t recognize, a thin brown unicorn with a square shovel as a cutie mark. It was the second one, a tanned and muscular earth pony, who caused her to freeze in place. “You!”

“Surprised to see me?” The moustached pony smirked and held his head up proudly. He’d put on a professional brown suit and tie, but for some reason had kept his athletic headband. “I’m surprised to see you again, little policemare. I don’t think anypony expected you back after your little hissy fit at the hub station the other day.”

Colgate glared, but held her tongue. Having been pushed around by this stallion once already, the mere sound of his voice was making her hair stand on end. Right, ignoring that... “What are you doing here?” she asked, keeping her voice formal. “This is a funeral. You have no business disrupting it.”

“Disrupting?” The stallion feigned surprise. “Now, where would you get a silly idea like that? The KNM is a peaceful organization. All we’re trying to do is bring a little hope to everypony in this dark, dark time, something that the police don’t seem to think is important.” He pulled a grey page from within his suit. “Brochure?”

“Give me that.” Colgate magically snatched the proffered paper, grimacing as she saw the title. “The Kira Neutrality Movement? What in the hoof is that supposed to mean?”

The stallion grinned. “Tell her, Spades.”

Beside him, the brown unicorn smiled thinly and stepped forward. He spoke quickly and quietly, but his voice was far from unpleasant. “The Kira Neutrality Movement is a fast-growing organization co-founded by my associate Ace and I, with independent chapters opening across Equestria. We currently have more than two hundred supporters across three different cities, and our numbers are rising rapidly. Our goal is simple: in light of our government and law-enforcement agencies showing complete inaction in response to the presence of Kira, it has fallen to us, the common ponies, to protect ourselves by advocating a policy of complete inaction - yes, we are aware of the irony,” he quickly added as Colgate opened her mouth.

“Several days ago, Kira made his first public statement, asking for aid in the murder of criminals. Since then, no figure of authority has issued any statement in response to this, positive or negative. As such, it has fallen to us to make that decision in their stead.” Spades coughed. “Due to the vast potential for power struggles and abuse, we have decided that it is not in our best interests to broadcast the names of criminals, or to assist Kira in any similar way.”

Colgate clamped her mouth shut. The reason we never responded to that message, she argued silently, was because we have the mare who sent it tied up beneath Ponyville. But I can’t tell you that, because news of a second Kira would only make the situation worse. Still, at least some good’s come of this...

“However,” Spades continued as Colgate began to calm down, “we also stand in opposition to any attempt to find or stop Kira.” His smile slipped as the policemare glared at him, but he kept going. “Every attempt to catch Kira thus far has resulted in the deaths of innocent ponies. The killing of two of the Elements was a warning, and an effective one. We believe that so long as we do not pursue Kira, the deaths will be confined to only confirmed criminals. So in the interest of safety through neutrality, it is our duty to take a stand against any organization that attempts to insult or threaten Kira. Erm... sorry,” he finished sheepishly.

Colgate twisted her hooves against the ground in fury. “So what you’re saying,” she said slowly, causing the brown unicorn to squirm, “is that you decided to picket the funeral of two of the saviors of Equestria... just so you could say that you support the one who killed them?”

Spades backed away, rapidly shaking his head. “Oh, no no no, nothing like that. We don’t support Kira, that would be monstrous. But as we have no defense against him, in the interests of preserving innocent lives, we simply feel that it would be safest to simply... stay out of his way. Hence the basis for one of our slogans, ‘For Celestia’s sake, don’t antagonize him!’” He chuckled nervously, but this only seemed to infuriate Colgate further. “A-and if Kira did have reason to take our beloved Elements from us, then we don’t want to appear defiant by standing up for them. We’re just concerned about our safety, that’s all.”

“Cool it, Spades,” Ace said calmly. “We don’t need to defend ourselves to ponies like her.” He turned back to Colgate, smirking at her outraged expression. “Look, we’re a peaceful organization,” he repeated. “We’re not hurting anypony, and we’re not telling anypony what to do. We’re just giving some friendly advice. Like this advice, right now.” He leaned forward and glowered into Colgate’s eyes. “We don’t need you. Kira’s in charge now, and you’ve seen what happens to ponies who stand in his way. So stop this pointless little crusade of yours while you still can, or some non-specific entity may have to make you stop.”

“I can’t believe you,” Colgate snorted back. “How can you just bend over to a monster that killed a little filly right on your back?”

“No,” said Ace, stepping back. “A better question would be, how can you live with yourself? Because if you hadn’t chosen that moment to start spouting your pointless hate-speech, that poor little filly would still be alive.”

The policemare’s jaw dropped, then snapped back into a snarl of outrage. “That is not how it happened,” she growled, her eye beginning to twitch.

“Really? Seems you and I remember it differently. I definitely recall some crazy mare yelling about Kira stopping her from doing her job just before the filly hit the dust.” Ace gestured to the group behind him, not breaking eye contact. “If you ever feel like joining the not-getting-ponies-killed party, you’re always welcome. But in the meantime, maybe you should be a little more careful about what you say.” He turned away, failing to notice the sparks of blue that were crackling down Colgate’s horn. “Because I don’t think anypony would mind if Kira killed you next.”

To everypony else, what happened next was a blur. For Colgate, it was as if time had stopped. Magic filled her vision, a bright, fiery magic that coursed through her limbs and throbbed across her skull. In the blink of an eyelid she reared up, screamed furiously, and landed an earth-shattering punch on the stallion’s face.

Time rippled and snapped. Ace was knocked off his hooves and crashed to the ground, tumbling over once before coming to a halt. Breathing heavily, Colgate towered over him, lines of rage-fueled magic still streaking across her skin. “That’s for Sweetie Belle,” she hissed. Probably shouldn’t have done that, her inner policemare cautioned, a few seconds too late. But sweet Celestia did that feel g-

That’s when she saw the way Ace was looking at her. He gaped up at her from the ground, any trace of arrogance or malice replaced by shock. There was no hate in his stare, only wide-eyed, childlike fear.

And she realized how very quiet it had become.

Her breath slowing, Colgate looked around. Everypony was staring at her. The ponies of the KNM huddled close together, while those in line had frozen where they were. Parents were shielding their foals from her. Afraid. They're not bad ponies. They’re just afraid. Slowly, Colgate lowered herself to a standing position. As her rage began to ebb away, the last of the magic drained out of her system. She looked down at Ace. Now that realization had finally kicked in, he’d covered his face and lay softly whimpering in the dirt. Even him. He’s just afraid of pain. Afraid of loss. Afraid of the world not making sense.

Afraid of me.

Colgate gulped silently. “Get up,” she commanded. Her voice came out calm, naturally authoritative. Ace didn’t move. “Get up,” she said again, prodding the stallion’s side roughly with her hoof. Slowly, he rolled onto his hooves. As he stood Colgate’s horn lit up again, linking his foreleg to hers in a magical band resembling a long pair of hoofcuffs. “You’re coming with me.”

Retaining her composure, Colgate turned to face the remaining KNM. As one they inched backwards under her gaze, the remaining co-founder peeking out from somewhere within the mass. “Go inside or go home,” she said. “I understand what you’re trying to do, but this is not the time or the place.”

With a tug on the hoofcuffs, the policemare began to lead her prisoner in the direction of the police station. Ace took two steps behind her before stopping and spitting out a tooth. The sight chilled Colgate to the bone, but she showed no emotion as she walked her captive out of the square.

Once the pair were two streets away and safely out of sight of any pony, Colgate halted. The blue band binding her to Ace vanished. “Just go,” she said before the stallion could formulate a response to this. “Go home. Visit the clinic if something hurts. Just get out of here.”

Ace backed away. “You... you crazy little...” He spun around and galloped away, yelling over his shoulder as he ran. “This isn’t over, you hear me? This isn’t over!”

Colgate didn’t look back as the stallion ran away. She waited until his hoofsteps had faded to nothing, then stood stock still for another minute afterwards. She barely noticed as her own hooves began to carry her forwards, bringing her to a dark alley between two houses. It was only when she was in complete shadow that her legs started to tremble, forcing her to steady herself against a wall. She collapsed against it, letting the weight fall away from her as she began to cry.

What have I done?

---

After a brief pause, ponies continued to trickle into the town hall at a steady rate over the next hour. Applejack and Rainbow Dash passed the time by making note of the different characters who’d arrived to mourn their friends’ passing. They were certainly a diverse crowd; looking across the assembled ponies was like a living reminder of all the lives the group had touched on their adventures. At least half of Ponyville had shown up, including a fair number of foals; it was literally impossible to have lived in Ponyville for a year without Pinkie Pie having thrown at the very least a birthday party just for you. Unfamiliar pegasi fluttered nervously, unused to standing on anything that wasn’t cloud. Derpy sat among her fellow postal workers. Fancy nobleponies from Canterlot stood alongside simple farmers from Appleloosa. A group of mysterious ponies in matching suits and sunglasses stood together near the back, not speaking to anypony. There were doctors and vendors, chefs and constructions workers, even a few rare donkeys thrown into the mix.

But more notable to the grieving pair were the ponies who didn’t show up. “Ah was sure one of the Princesses would have come,” Applejack said, sounding annoyed. “They wouldn’t have to make a big deal of it or nothing. But just an appearance would have been nice.”

“Yeah,” Rainbow Dash agreed half-heartedly. She continued sneaking glances at the crowd behind her. “Do you see any of Pinkie Pie’s family anywhere? I always wanted to meet them.”

“Hmm... nope. Maybe they couldn’t make it.”

“Maybe.” Disappointed, Dash glanced at the two Cakes in the next row over. The bakery owners were standing together proudly, the shorter of the two resting her head on her husband’s shoulder. Beside them, Rarity’s parents were holding one another, sobbing loudly. I guess they have twice as much reason to be sad as the rest of us, Dash thought. They’re taking it pretty hard, though, considering Rarity wasn’t even their real... A closer look at their faces cut this thought short. Aw, who am I kidding? They were her parents, though and through. A fake name and history can’t take that away from them.

Applejack sighed sadly, following her friend’s gaze. “Poor folk,” she sympathized. “Magnum and Pearl have more to deal with than most. Ah don’t know how they’re going to make it through for the service for Sweetie Belle tonight.”

Rainbow Dash turned back to her friend. “Are we invited to that?”

“Ah think so. It’s supposed to be just close friends and family.”

“Right.” Dash paused. “How’s Apple Bloom holding up?”

Applejack bit her lip and looked away. Her siblings had taken up a position near the wall, still huddled close to one another. “Quiet,” Applejack said. “She ain’t talking much. Poor filly’s acting just like she did after the schoolhouse fire last year. But she’ll cope.” She sighed. “She’s a tough little pony at heart. Our granny raised her well.”

“Yeah. Hey, speaking of Granny Smith, where-”

“Hey, Dash?” Applejack interrupted, still looking away. “Is Colgate still running that group of yours to catch Kira?”

The pegasus gulped. Sorry, AJ, but I promised L I wouldn’t talk about that, not to anypony. Not even you. “Not really,” she said. “It kind of broke up after those agents died.”

The orange mare nodded sadly. “That’s a shame,” she said. She took a halting step forward. “The last thing Rarity and Ah ever talked about was Kira. Ah was stubborn... we were both stubborn. But she was right, in the end. And Ah never got to...” Applejack began to tremble again, tears springing to her eyes.

The noise level near the back of the room changed. Dash looked back as the main doors closed, and the mayor began to walk to the front of the room. “Hey, I think they’re starting soon,” she whispered, nudging her friend.

To the pegasus’ surprise, Applejack turned and wrapped her in a tight embrace. “No more,” she murmured. “Ah won’t let Kira take any more of our friends away, Dashie. Ah promise.”

Dash blinked. “Only Pinkie Pie calls me Dashie,” she mumbled. Carefully, she lowered her trembling friend off of her. “Forget the future,” she said. “When this is over, we can work out where we go from here. But for now, I just want to remember.”

Though still teary-eyed, Applejack smiled. “W-we had some good times, didn’t we?”

“Yeah.” In front of them, Mayor Mare took her place at her podium and started to organize her notes. “All those parties...”

“The fancy dresses...”

“The crazy antics...”

“The Galas...”

“Saving the world...

The two mares smiled at each other. The Mayor began to give her welcoming speech, but they barely heard her. “For Pinkie Pie,” Rainbow Dash said.

“For Rarity,” Applejack echoed.

And for a time, Ponyville remembered.

---

Near the top of the room, a wisp of coldness clung to the arch of the ceiling. The bone-white shinigami hovered in place, flaps of skin around the back of her neck flaring up of their own accord. She fixed her eyes on the diamond-engraved casket down below, the one holding the body of Diamond Edge, the one who called herself Rarity. “Kira,” the icy god growled, grinding her teeth together. “You failed to mention this. Was this always part of your plan? Is there any other treachery you didn’t feel inclined to reveal to me?”

With a single flap of her wings, Mer rose up through the ceiling and sailed towards the sky. The sun beat down on her between broken clouds, the light passing through her body without warming her in the slightest. For now, I’ll go along with your plan. But you’re not the only one who can play games, Kira. Do you think the suffering you can deal out can even compare to the wrath of a God of Death?

With a mad gleam in her eye and a rare, chilling laugh, Mer spread her wings even wider and vanished into the sky.

---

Dear Princess Luna,

Our captive pony is still claiming complete ignorance and says she has no involvement with Kira. Despite the evidence linking her to the second Kira’s crystal recordings, given her mental and physical condition I find myself believing her. Recently, the proven deaths from Kira have dropped to nothing and have yet to return. L, as always, suspects a trick, so we will wait a while longer before declaring any kind of victory.

As an aside, a new organization called the Kira Neutrality Movement has risen up in Ponyville, strongly opposing any attempts to catch or even publicly denounce Kira. However, they also take offense to those who try to aid or support Kira, so they need not necessarily be our enemies. Keeping track of the spread and influence of this group would be advised.

No other news.

Your loyal servant,

Colgate

Next episode: Cider!

Comments

[Mortis Nex]

Wow, just wow. As usual your writing was incredible. The emotion on display this chapter was amazing. Certainly worth the wait!

[im not here anymore11111]

"And for a time, Ponyville remembered."

I stopped reading for half a minute just to appreciate that line. It was incredibly effective the way you used it.

[aKaPinkiePie]

Finally i catched up and i have to say THIS FIC IS AMAZING! I must say you keep mixing my feelings between all the characters all the time and it's amazing how well you do it! Also the whole story is perfectly written i could not had asked for more! Looking forward to the next chapter! :D

[flutterfanshygal]

a good author would make you cry at the death, a great author leaves you in shock and adds a funeral scene later.

[sirmay]

[Wayward Mind]

Wow, I cannot express my delight. I'm impressed with the new concepts this story has taken. I'm glad the ending will probably be different than Death Note, because reading it again would be tiresome. I'll be eagerly awaiting the next addition to this gem of a fanfic.

dl.dropbox.com/u/31471793/FiMFiction/Twilight_Sparkle_lolface.png "I'm not Kira, heh heh."

[Ralfil]

I do see some ways for it to end differently already, but it's all up to the author as to which one is chosen. I'll be honest. This story gives me the creeps. I'm not saying it's because it's poorly written. I'm saying that because it's a well-done crossover with Death Note. I enjoy it, but it still creeps me out. I'm still hoping for a happy ending.

[White Hooves]

And for a time, Ponyville remembered.

And many manly tears were shed that day.

[DannyJ]

Great chapter. I'm really wondering about those golems now. I've really got no idea what's going to happen with them. Nice funeral too.

[IceFire]

wow... just wow...

[TundraStanza]

*Tearflood.plz*
Whoops, this isn't dA.
Let me try that again:
fc05.deviantart.net/fs70/f/2011/060/f/d/manly_tears_by_toadcroaker-d3aofll.gif

[bennett638]

This kind of story just leaves me shivering. Sadness. Anger. And als this gets my full approval because of all the puzzles and brainteasers. I can't really describe it.

[Duhad8]

God... I don't know what is more depressing, the funeral or the fact that the only people who know the actual truth of the deaths are the ones who are being lied too. Its like some horrible, Orwellian double speak, knowledge threw ignorance, with Twilight getting pissed at L for lying, when the lie is the truth... my brain hurts now...

[Noradora]

Damn.

Ponyville remembered... *sigh*

That scene was beautifully written. And then I remember that Twilight is her true self again and being kept from her friends' funeral. Arrrrgh...

[Fleeting Song]

The first time this story has brought me to tears.

Bucking tartarus, why did it have to be this way?
I need a hug.

[Nonagon]

2867776 *hugs*

[ShadowNinja27]

That part about a school going in flames that wasn't from the FLCL manga was it? Cause if it was then nice work.

[Sur-Toufaan]

I find it funny that Twilight is even WORSE than Light was.
Even near the end of the series, when killing his own sister would have kept Mello from getting the Death Note, he couldn't do it. That was a major tactical failure.
Twilight killed two of her friends to tie up a loose end.

[pinkiepie4th]

We need a way to bookmark individual chapters. Now.

[I Question That]

Anyone want to hear a joke?

The KNM

[verypeeved]

so they want to limit Kira's ability to kill his usual criminal targets as much as possible without antagonizing him into going after anyone else. not a bad idea, all things considered.

pulling something like that off would be a lot harder than just preventing people from reporting crimes, for obvious reasons, but if they could manage it... it could cut down on the bloodshed massively. and without endangering innocents if it fails.