Crazy, Clever and Cunning

by Fresnor

Observing Sunny Town

“Fluttershy as a famous fashion model, how could Rarity have thought she enjoyed that?” After finding the magazine with her on it I immediately went to visit and find out what was going on. It seems that they both were hiding their feeling from each other while Twilight somehow was caught up in the middle of it all. This was following some sort of kidnapping fiasco involving Rarity and some diamond dogs.

“I do need to figure out what is going on with those diamond dogs sometime. I vaguely remember my mom saying something about them, but I just can’t remember what.” I take a look at my calendar and note that tomorrow is a day I had predicted for Sunny Town to go active again, so I marked a later period for to check out the gem fields. While looking at it I notice that Twilight and her friends were going to be gone the next few days as they deliver a tree to some of Applejack’s family.

I turn back towards the door of the study as I hear a loud crash come from somewhere else in the house causing me to sigh. “Even with everything breakable destroyed or put away they still find something to break.” I head out and try to corral the two idle Crusaders as Applebloom is busy writing down everything she feels needs fixing or replacing, as well as a list of items that will be needed.

“At least I have the attic and basements locked up. I definitely don’t want to think about what they’d do if they got into those areas.” Thinking about the basement I try to think of what should be done down there. “I probably should just use it for storage and dig out from it for some of my more dangerous things as well as an emergency exit.”

I gather up the three Crusaders for a meal to reduce the damage caused by the two, and find out what the third one needs. I go over the list while they are distracted by food and pie to see what I’ll need to get. Hmm, I still have some spare lumber from before, but I might need to get some more ready to be safe. Good thing she already has most of the tools so I only have to pay for the things from the blacksmith like the nails and hinges.

Going off of the estimates Applebloom put down I see that I have plenty of bits for everything she needs. As they finish up I hand her a spare key as well as a bag with more than enough bits for everything as well as for anything extra they might need later. “Now remember that you can take your time with this since you have other things to do. Don’t worry if I’m not here, but just make sure to lock up when you leave if I’m not around.”

Seeing as night is fast approaching the three head off to their homes as I get things prepared for the next day. I notice myself feeling a bit off, but I just brush it off as nerves as I clean up before bed. After another quick check of everything I crawl under the covers and drift off to sleep.

<><><><><><><>

The next morning I awaken to my body feeling warmer than usual and I quickly realize the problem. “Ugh, that time again? Glad I found a way to ignore it; those first few years were such a pain.” Heading upstairs I dig around in my jewels until I find the small piece of lapis lazuli I found and enchanted years ago. Taking a cord and putting the stone on I feel the heat fade and my concentration improve enough for me to ignore the feelings.

“I should see if I can find a gem that works better; in this town alone I’d be able to sell a lot.” With that problem taken care of I focus on the diamond and find that the town is currently active again. “So it looks like I was right, some reason it’s all tied to the new moon for some reason.” Getting my packs I prepare to head out, though not before leaving a note for Applebloom if she shows.

Making my way to the Everfree I keep an eye out again to make sure nopony is around. Once I am inside and in the clear I shift to my original form and make my way to the outskirts of Sunny Town. I can feel that odd feeling I’ve felt from the town as I near the borders of my land, though the feeling of being watched is still missing.

As I get closer I make sure that the sapphire and emerald with me are charged just as a precaution. Keeping out of sight I peer into the town and notice a few ponies roaming around, and like Applebloom said not a one has a cutie mark. Hopefully I’d be safer if they spot me in this form than in pony form. I observe them from where I am for a while and notice a couple peculiar things.

Is that one setting up for some sort of party? I remember mention of one doing that when the filly was there, so why would he still be doing that now? Deciding to take a bit of a risk I cast a spell to divert attention away from me. While not enough to hide me from something concentrating on finding me, it’ll keep casual glimpses from paying attention to me. I then sneak around until I find the house that Applebloom said she found Mitta in and notice that it is being guarded by a pony.

Going from the description I was given it looks to be the same one that was there before. As I get closer I can hear him muttering something about finding a gem he dropped. Now I know something is going on, Applebloom said she found that gem for him already and even where she found it. Checking out the place she found it I find it still to be there so I decide to grab it for a closer examination.

Taking a close look at it I find it to be no different from any other ruby I’ve seen before. Probing it with my magic I find that it gives off the same feeling as the rest of the town. Getting an idea I set the gem somewhere that is visible to the pony guarding the door before I examine the building itself. I take note of any other ways I could use to escape it if I need to, as well as hoping for an alternate entrance.

Finding a couple areas that look lose I make note of their positions so I can find them from the inside later. Getting into a good position I make sure that nopony else is visible, before using a touch of magic to cause a sparkle to emit from the gem. It takes a couple minutes, but eventually the pony catches sight of the gem, and he rushes over to it happily. As he goes off elsewhere I make note of the time and see that it is still before noon, so I don’t need to worry too much about night arriving unexpectedly.

Making sure once again that the coast is clear I sneak over to the door and quickly slip inside. I wait just inside so that my eyes can adjust to the dark, while I keep my ears open for any sounds. I can hear something breathing faintly somewhere in the dark, and I hope it’s who I think it is.

As soon as I can see well enough I slowly creep my way through the building in search of the breathing. I soon find the source which was a grey mare with a dark red mane. This is the same description that Applebloom gave of the one nice pony she met here, Mitta. I take a position that is visible to her but blocked off by the rest of the room before dropping the spell keeping attention off of me and I wait.

As I sit there I study her and note that she appears to be asleep; or at least sitting with her eyes closed. Her coat isn’t in very good shape, and there are tracks down her face showing the path of tears. Her physical age seems to be around the same age as Twilight and the others, or at least a year below it at the most.

She eventually lifts her head up and looks around everywhere but in my direction. It’s not until I twitch my tail that she catches the movement causing her to whip her head around in my direction. “Where did you come from little guy? I thought the spell was keeping things like you away from the town still even though it no longer stops ponies.” She seems saddened at the sight of me, probably fearing that the forest creatures are no longer protected from the town.

Her eyes get very wide and mouth drops open though when I start to speak. “Well I came in through the front door after getting the pony outside to leave, and I believe the spell over the town still keeps things away, just not those driven by intelligence instead of instinct.” I just sit there waiting for her to reply, but after a couple minutes of her being frozen in the same position I just sigh.

“You know it’s kind of awkward having you staring at me like that. What would Applebloom think if she saw you doing something so rude?” I decide to try dropping the fillies name to see if it helps snap her out of it. It seems to work to some extent as she attempts to put words together. “You? What? How? Wait, you know Applebloom!? How is she!? Did she get out of here safely that night? How do-“

I cut her off to try and calm her frantic questioning. “Calm down, my name is Flarenza and yes I know Applebloom, I live in the same town she does and learned everything she knew about this place so I know that you are Mitta the only sane pony in town. She is doing fine, though she worries about both you and Ruby and she escaped just fine with Ruby’s help.” She does a good impersonation of a fish as she tries to absorb all this information before she gives a sigh of relief.

“She actually made it, I’m glad I could at least protect one pony from this town. But what do you mean about Ruby helping her? She was killed by this town and that is why it is cursed.” I try to answer her the best I can. “Well according to Applebloom, Ruby is now a ghost or some other kind of spirit. I only caught a glimpse of her myself once so I can’t personally say.”

This news saddens her to the point where I can see some tears beginning to form. I just wait for her to recover before saying anything else. Eventually she gets a hold on her emotions and begins speaking again. “So if you know the story of this place then why are you here? For that matter, what are you and who are you really?” I would chuckle at the questions, yet after seeing this place with the curse in action I don’t feel much humor.

“Well the ‘what’ really doesn’t matter other than the fact that I get very concerned when anything involving undeath is involved. That and the fact that I now live on the land that borders the town makes me doubly concerned. Why I’m here though is to try and find out how the spell over this place works, and hopefully remove it in some way. This town should not exist as it should have been dead long ago and its very presence is a danger. Even though the spell was used as a punishment it has failed in doing so and only harms the innocent.”

She considers what I said for a bit before she replies. “If the spell that keeps ponies away is faded enough that it no longer works then you might be right. I’m not sure why you are talking to me about it though; I’m just another part of the problem here.” She looks downcast at this and I realize that she has little thought for her self-worth, even after saving another.

“You are probably the only one I can get any information about this place from. This town has been long forgotten by history and was only recently found again. The only beings I know that would possibly have any knowledge of it are the princesses and I can’t go to them to ask.” She considers my words before she eventually sighs.

“I don’t know much, but I’ll tell you what little I do know. Whatever the spell is, it forces the town to replay the same day over and over again. None of the other ponies seem to acknowledge that this is happening, and even if something changes they just forget about it the next day. Everything goes back to how it was, so anything that was moved goes back to where it was originally… and any wounds are erased as well.”

I catch the pause before the last bit and feel sympathy for what must have happened when she protected Applebloom. I think back on what I knew of the place for any questions that might help, even if she doesn’t know. “I was starting to suspect that was the case since things Applebloom said she did seem to have never happened at all. If you’ve been locked in here you probably don’t know much about where the spell was cast, but what about those ponies that aren’t zombies at night, the more skeletal ones, what is special about them?”

She considers this question and she gets a confused look on her face. “I don’t know… In fact I don’t even know who they are at all. Even at night I know the names of the other ponies in town, yet the ones like that I’ve seen I don’t know a thing about.” At this I can feel a chill go down my spine as I come up with an explanation that is not pleasant.

“If you don’t know them, then that could mean the spell around the town was never fully working or had been down for longer than I guessed. If my guess is right, they are the remains of ponies who found the town but weren’t able to escape before nightfall… if they even had the chance to if they were grown.” Her eyes widen at this and she starts to shiver as the weight of this possibility hits her.

“Y-y-you mean that there could have been more ponies killed by this town?” She starts to break down and I move to try and comfort her, wrapping my tail over her shoulders. “If it is true, then it is not your fault, you have been trapped in here every day since the curse was placed.” She still cries for a bit longer as I just sit there, being there for her like nobody ever was before. Eventually she seems to have run out of tears and I glance towards a window, noting that it is getting late.

“I have to leave now, it looks like there are only a couple hours until sunset and I’d rather not be in town by then. Before I go, just some words to think on. I suspect something happened to you after you protected Applebloom and helped her escape. If that happened then, think of what would have happened if you did try to do the same for Ruby.” I give her one last pat on the shoulder before making my way to the door and peer through the keyhole.

The coast still seems clear, so I put my spell back up to avoid attention and sneak out while barely opening the door. As I go I can hear a faint whisper of thanks behind me, and I give a small smile as I make my way out of town. I escape from there without any difficulty and get back onto the land protected by me. Once there I revert back into my pony shape and head home for dinner.

As I finish eating, and night starts to fall I head back out to the edge of the property bordering the town and hide within the boundaries. I spot movement around the town from where I am, and on careful inspection make out the forms of some of the skeletal ponies. Hmm, they don’t seem to notice me, I wonder if they can even see me through the aura of the place. Maybe they are fully limited by the borders of the curse, so once you get out of that you are safe?

I decide to test this by attempting to form an illusion of a pony next to me. Not having much practice at it causes me to take a good length of time to even get something to appear. Once I do I notice that it wouldn’t pass for a pony in any way except maybe on a quick glance. I sigh as I still move it to the outside of the protected area to see if it has any effect.

The effect is immediate as it crosses the bored as the heads of the distant figures home in on it and a few skeletal being erupt from the ground nearby. Upon me banishing the illusion the creatures seem to just forget that it was even there and go back into their previous state. It still gave me enough time to examine one of the closer ones, and I carefully probed it with my magic.

I can sense a subtle difference between it and the town, which points to it not being originally of that place. I may have actually been right about these not being ponies that originally lived in the town. From their looks they must not have been given the same protections the spell granted the others as a punishment, meaning they might be in even worse torment than Mitta is. I really hope the forgetfulness was passed on to them at the very least.

After a few minutes more of observation I make my way home with a heavy heart and head to sleep, hoping for the next day to cheer me up.

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I felt a bit better the next morning as I prepared for a trip to the gem fields. I had two goals in mind for today, restock on gems and maybe find a few I didn’t have, and find out about the diamond dogs in the area. I still couldn’t remember what I had been told about them, but I had a feeling that it was extremely important.

I pack only the essentials for the trip, as well as my usual selection of vials. Making sure that the pantry is stocked enough in case Applebloom shows with her friends I leave a note for her before I head out. I enjoy the cool morning on the way as I take the path out there, which takes me about half an hour at a walking pace.

Once I get there I observe the area from a higher point, but notice nothing moving in the areas I can see. There do seem to be scattered mounds of dirt around the place, hinting at the presence of diamond dogs being around at one point. Shrugging I pull out my crystal and start try to scry for the locations of gems.

I spend a large part of the day searching and digging up gems, with a break for lunch, but through it all I don’t find anything new. “I haven’t even seen anything move out here. I would have thought I’d see some birds or something by now, must not be much reason for them to come through here I guess.” I hadn’t noticed how empty this place was my last few trips, but then I wasn’t really paying attention then.

Finding an abnormally strong signal I put away my crystal and start digging. Even though this one is stronger than I’ve been getting I had to dig much deeper than I usually would to find the gems. I find out the reason as to why as I uncover a set of eyes and feel something grab my forelimbs and drag me into the hole and the darkness beyond.

Author's Note:

Finally a bit more on Sunny Town, though no Ruby yet though I have some ideas to go with there. I wonder if it was wise to leave the CMC unattended in the home with all the pies just sitting in the pantry being available to them. Nothing can go wrong with that situation. Still accepting a gripes, groans and whines enthusiastically. Really I want more stuff to read <.<

Comments

[Imperium Bedlam]

Goddammit. Flossy is a Kitsune isn't she? The trickster-fox-deity things? I had a suspicion from the cutie mark but I just shrugged it off as 'foreign knowlege'.
I can't help but think that if Flossy was a lesser being she would find a way to curve the spell that limits the zombies around her house for night-time protection.

[Asolem2]

“I don’t know much, but I’ll tell you what little I do know. Whatever the spell is, it forces the town to replay the same day over and over again. None of the other ponies seem to acknowledge that this is happening, and even if something changes they just forget about it the next day. Everything goes back to how it was, so anything that was moved goes back to where it was originally… and any wounds are erased as well.”

Who is this supposed to punish?

So far the only ones who seems to suffer is Ruby, Mitta and whatever individual that enters the town, whichever alicorn that came up with this needs a hoof to the face

 I wonder if it was wise to leave the CMC unattended in the home with all the pies just sitting in the pantry being available to them. Nothing can go wrong with that situation. 

Probably not