Shades of Noire

by HapHazred

Chapter 2

Night had fallen. Shining had to admit that the inky sky had a bit more beauty now that the Princess of the Night had returned. He looked back down, not at the dirty pavement under his hooves, but at his stained notebook. He reviewed everything he knew, and more that he had guessed and assumed.

Schwartz was dirty. That much was for sure. Nopony thought of him highly. He made advances on his workers, and he may even be in the salt trade. A lot of motives for murder.

There was Octavia. First suspect. Shining had to admit, she gave him an uneasy feeling. She was too proper, too calculating. She was tough, too. Her first thought when hearing that Schwartz died was if she might be in danger, a thought that at first seemed stupid and silly, on second thought remarkably self serving. Still, she was cooperative. Gave them a possible lead on Vinyl.

Which brought him to Vinyl. Her claiming to be a fillyfooler might have just been to throw him off the scent... as far as he could tell Black's involvement was probably bogus, so that too could have just been a ruse.

The Doctor was still fit enough to commit a murder... but honestly it felt off. He was old, his attitude didn't speak of a knife in the back. He'd call the guard, maybe. Punch him in the face, perhaps. Not this.

Shining needed more. There were too little clues at this point.

“Think we can run by Schwartz's apartment?” he asked his partner. Private Eye groaned.

“We've been running in circles all day. Can't we just talk this over at the Tar Pit?” he asked. Shining sighed.

“C'mon, it'll just take a minute. Listen, you go ahead to the Tar Pit, I'll catch you there when I'm done. It should be just five minutes from here.”

Private Eye sighed in resignation.

“Fine, just don't break anything. I want to sort through that stuff later.” he said, before they parted ways. "After all, it is protocol to search through the victim's house."

Canterlot at night had a sort of serene beauty that Shining admired... however, when you left the upper quarter and the palace, that beauty was marred by trash that seemed to appear only at night, ponies of questionable motives patrolling the streets, an air of vile scum that would persist well into the night.

As Shining made his way down these tarnished streets, he found himself thinking about Cadence. Not in relation to his surroundings, of course, but he found that the longer they spend apart the more she would occupy his thoughts. He had to wonder why she found it necessary to go to Trottingham for a while... diplomatic relations, she had said.

Her absence wasn't doing Shining any favours.

He blinked as he found himself in front of Schwartz's house. Not at all like Doctor Blacks. It was run down and scummy, like the neighbourhood. Ponies had drawn graffiti on the walls, something they hadn't done to the Doctor's: Shining knew that most ponies respected the doc' enough to steer clear of him.

Shining tried the door: locked. He quickly kicked it in, his training allowing for such a display of strength.

The inside was pitch black, leaving no clue as to what was within. Shining's horn flickered to life. He wasn't familiar with a lot of spells, but creating light was one of them. The other was shielding magic, his special talent.

The corridor was cluttered with shoes, clothes and books thrown across the shelves in an disorganized pattern that made sense only to the occupant of the house. Shining ran his eyes across where he imagined Schwartz putting his mail: it would have to be close to the door...

Bingo.

He picked up the small heap of letters and quickly gave them a look. Most of them were bills: another was from Femme Fatale. He gave that one a look.

It was a quick reminder that she was back in town. Shining imagined it must be easier to cheat on your marefriend when she was gone. Or coltfriend.

That thought made him a little uneasy, again his thoughts returning to his beloved Cadence, but not wanting to pursue that line of thought, he pocketed the letters and continued his search. He had to admit, nothing immediately stood out: some music records. A quick glance at the names revealed he didn't have many that were produced outside his own company. A rapid search through his drawers and Shining found a small plastic bag of salt. He smiled grimly.

“Looks like I have some evidence to hand over to the Captain.” he muttered to himself.

Pictures on the walls. Not many. There was one of a pristine white mare with a dark mane. Could it be Femme Fatale? He couldn't say. He made a mental note of the pony's appearance and decided he would have Private Eye and some other guards search the place more thoroughly: hoofprints, ledgers, anything that could be even vaguely relevant.

He stepped out of the house and into the night beyond.

_

The Tar Pit: you will never find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy: and for some reason it appealed to the two detectives that frequented that place, and many other citizens of this district. Shining found he met just about anypony there, including Doctor Black, the Captain, and many others.

Currently, he was looking for Private Eye. The grim faced detective pony was in his usual corner, where he enjoyed scrutinizing the rest of the clientèle, observing their mild debauchery, and consumption of legalized vice. Not that he was complaining, mind. His only concern was for illegal vice.

Shining made his way immediately to his colleague and friend, who waved briefly at him. Shining paused on his way only to order a mug of cheap cider. Once that matter was dealt with he sat down.

“So, you found anything that positively couldn't wait for tomorrow?” Private asked. Shining shrugged, and showed the salt to him, making sure the rest of the ponies in the room couldn't see. He didn't trust them to not make a move on it if they got the chance.

“Evidence that Schwartz was in the salt game. Doc' Black wasn't lying, or wrong.”

“Horseapples. That's a lot of salt.” Private said, peering inside. “Quality stuff too. Not that half refined stuff from Zebrica. This must come from the Griffon Empire, or a new lab we haven't found yet.”

Shining nodded. “Unfortunately, there's no way to trace it on the bag just yet. We'll have to give it to the lab boys, but in the meantime, we'll have to keep looking for other leads. Maybe one of the other suspects will have something to say about this.”

Private Eye nodded over to the far side of the room.

“Speaking of other suspects, check this out...”

Shining peered through the curtain of gloom and smoke to see what Private was showing him. He saw the pony he must have been referring too, but didn't see...

Ah, now he recognized her. Octavia.

The mare was face down on her table, apparently inebriated. That didn't come as much of a surprise, considering the atmosphere and general state of the ponies in this establishment. What confused Shining was that Octavia had been so very collected earlier. Perhaps she had simply been putting on a brave face... perhaps Schwartz meant more to her than they had expected. Something to remember, at least.

“Can't I get five minutes without something from my case hounding me at every turn?” Private asked, a little frustrated. Shining chuckled.

“Let's just see how this plays out. Don't want her retreating back into that stony façade she had going on earlier.”

“Yeah, I forgot to ask... she seemed to be acting weird for a suspect. You think it was an act?” Private asked. Shining shrugged.

“If she's just breaking down now, it could have been. Or this is a coincidence. A lot of ponies try seeming tougher than they really are. Without more info, I guess we'll have to wait and see.”

And so they did: observing Octavia as closely as they dared. She occasionally glanced up from her mug. Make-up was running down her face, making it look like she had been crying ink. This continued for about five minutes before yet another suspect appeared on the scene: this time her co-worker, Vinyl Scratch.

The mare made her way to Octavia and sat across from her, concerned. Shining tried listening to what they had to say, but at that distance, it was impossible.

“Can you get closer?” he asked his partner. Private Eye nodded.

“Sure. I needed another cider anyway.”

Private Eye made his way over to the bar before attracting the bartender's eye, but Shining could tell his attention was focussed on Vinyl and Octavia. Their conversation seemed to be between that of comforter and comforted, from what Shining could tell, and he had witnessed enough of them to tell. Eventually, a small shimmer appeared around Octavia's mug and pulled away from her. Then the drunken musician was hoisted onto Vinyl's shoulder, who was promptly carrying her out of the bar. Private Eye looked over at Shining.

“Do we follow?” he mouthed. Shining hesitated, and nodded.

“We'd better. But keep your distance.”

_

She streets hadn't gotten darker in the meantime, but it had began to rain. A faint drizzle, but it was enough to annoy Private Eye. With a small amount of effort, a thin purple barrier appeared over their heads, the rain rolling over it's side.

“Better?” asked Shining. Private Eye nodded.

“Yeah.”

They tailed the pair from a distance, always remaining in the shadows when they could. Thankfully, Vinyl wasn't expecting spies. Perhaps she hadn't gotten used to the idea of living in a dangerous neighbourhood. Everypony else Shining knew would always check their surroundings at night.

Shining checked his notebook: he quickly deduced that they were heading towards Vinyl's apartment, not Octavia's. Perhaps she didn't know where her friend lived. Perhaps Vinyl was going to try and get rid of her, but then why wouldn't she be more nervous, and check for anypony who might be watching? Or go into a side alley and finish her there?

Shining doubted that. He skirted around a pool of vomit, left behind by somepony who had obviously had too much to drink. Private Eye grimaced.

“Ugh, I'll need to wash my hooves...” he muttered.

“Quiet down. We're almost there.”

Vinyl's apartment was at the top of a large building: an utterly basic construction with little to no ornaments. Shining realized he had been noting building's appearances with increasing frequency these days: he'd make a mental note to try to focus on more than just architecture.

“Hey, 'Tavi, can you manage stairs?” Vinyl asked. Shining craned his neck to hear. Octavia gave an affirmative grunt.

“Y-yes, but I'll be fine, Vinyl, just... let me head home...”

“'Tavi, you actually can't stand. But nice try.” Vinyl retorted, the shadow of a smile on her lips. Not an aggressive one, Shining noted. It seemed friendly. Vinyl's eyes lingered on Octavia a moment longer before she opened the door and went in.

Shining rocketed to get to the door before it closed: if it did they'd have to buzz somepony to let them in, and that ruined the whole idea of a stealthy observation. His hoof caught it just before it locked. He let out a sigh of relief.

“Let's go.” he said. Private Eye chuckled.

“Red Tape's going to bury us under memo's for entering without a warrant.” he said. Shining didn't care.

They made sure not to make any sound as they followed Vinyl through the bare corridors and staircases of the building. It was a long journey up the stairs, but eventually they got there. Vinyl fumbled with her keys as she propped up Octavia.

“Why're you doing this... Vinylllllll.....” Octavia asked, trailing off at the last consonant. Vinyl shrugged.

“Hay, sometimes even I don't know. I'll tell you in the morning when you sober up.” she responded. Octavia grimaced.

“I hate mornings.”

“I know you do, 'Tavi.”

The door finally opened. Octavia almost fell in, but Vinyl steadied her.

“Watch it!” she exclaimed, giving a small laugh as she wrapped her hooves around her, steadying her. Octavia's head slumped to the side.

“Why'd you... help a mean pony like me, huh?” she asked, still slurring her words. Shining pressed himself even closer against the corner in order to hear more.

“You're not a mean pony, 'Tavi. Don't talk rubbish.”

“I'm glad he's gone, Vinyl.”

Vinyl had no immediate response to that. Shining fought the urge to take a note: after all, the slightest movement could betray him.

“He was an ass-hole. It's okay to feel that way.” Vinyl replied eventually. “I'm not sad he's gone either. Come on, let's get you to sleep...”

The door closed. Shining cursed.

“Crud! That could have been important!” he exclaimed. Private Eye shrugged.

“So two mare's didn't like him? He was a sick gelding. But it is noteworthy.” he replied. Shining grumbled as they made their way back down the stairs.

“So... if Octavia was so sad she was drinking herself silly, it doesn't sound like she'd have killed him.” he said. Private Eye shrugged.

“Or she was drinking out of guilt. She was certainly guilty about hating the guy, even if it was the alcohol talking.” he replied. Shining grunted.

“Maybe. We'll keep it on the table for now. I have another idea: Vinyl looked like she was into Octavia, right?”

Private nodded half heartedly.

“Maybe. I gotta' admit that there was definitely something there.”

“Could she have done away with Schwartz because he made a move on Octavia? Aside from everything else Schwartz might have done to Vinyl, that leaves a lot of motive.”

Private Eye shrugged.

“Maybe... it depends on whether Schwartz really did beat her up, like the Doc claimed, and if she really does have the hots for Octavia.”

Shining made no response. Instead he tore open one of the letters he had taken from Schwartz's house, and began reading. It was nothing interesting, a bill. He opened another and read it. As he perused the words, his face began to darken.

“My bet is still that Octavia is the best canditate. Something about that mare rubs me the wrong way.” Private Eye said. Shining sighed.

“I'm afraid you might be wrong about that.” he said, and handed the letter over to his partner. “Give this a read.”

_

Dear Cadence,

Just had a really long day after I wrote my last letter, so I'm enclosing this one inside it as well. I guess I have some stuff on my case that feels nice to air out, you know?

Anyway, so our prime suspect is a DJ pony of some popularity among the right circles... got a lot of motive, and even some written evidence by the victim, so it looks pretty open and shut. Still need more evidence though: everything is circumstantial at this point. My partner thinks it's a possible marefriend of the suspect, but... well, very little points to her. Some motive, but less, and no evidence at all yet.

Still, we can't shut the case before interviewing the marefriend of the victim. That won't be fun, but I've handled worse.

I can't wait for your reply, just to get news. I miss you a lot, and I think about you constantly... when not working on my case of course (just in case my boss finds this letter)

Shining Armour

_

Morning was slow. It trickled on like syrup, the passing of time barely visible to the almost comatose Shining Armour who made his way through the early hours.

He posted both letters on his way to the office, the journey not taking him even five minutes. He also purchased some stamps: he was running out. And to his immense happiness, he hag gotten another letter from Cadence: he saved it for his lunch break.

Apparently there was some kind of bustle at headquarters: ponies were muttering in an unusual manner and looking like they had seen a ghost. Shining had of course no idea what was going on until Red Tape made her way up to him.

“Listen, Shining. I know you like to play loose with the rules sometimes, but this time... just, for the sake of the department, be... the kind of pony we want you to be, okay?” she said. Shining frowned as she stepped back, puzzled.

“What in Celestia's name are you talking about?” he asked.

“Art thou the pony in charge of the murder proceedings?” came a deep, booming, but unmistakeably feminine voice from behind him. "And pray not take my sisters name in vain."

He turned, surprised.

He immediately saw two ponies who outranked him enough to pretty much control his life if they wanted: the Captain, who was glaring at both him, and the second pony most likely to ruin his very existence, should she choose.

Princess Luna herself.

“Uhm. Your majesty... to what do I owe the honour?”

The Captain growled.

“Stand up straight when you're adressing royalty, Armour!” he shouted. Luna held a hoof up.

“Do not be too alarmed. Today We are not seeking deference, but instead an update on the murder case.”

Shining gulped. No wonder everypony had been alarmed: the princess only visited to give commendations... and besides, this was a very different princess altogether. Not a week ago, this had been Nightmare Moon, a story meant to scare little filly's into staying in at night. Now a benevolent princess... so Celestia claimed.

“Forgive me, Princess, but why are you interested?” Shining asked her. Luna frowned. The Captain glared viciously.

“The Princess asked you to give her an update. So do it.” he growled.

“We are resuming our former position as guardian of the night. Murder is still a crime, therefore we shall take an interest, and it shall not be questioned.”

Shining swallowed again, a foul taste in his mouth. He didn't like the idea of being watched.

“We have a few suspects: we should be bringing Vinyl Scratch in for questioning, and I'll be going to look for the marefriend today as soon as I check for any updates. A piece of evidence came to light, and it might incriminate Vinyl strongly, if interrogation goes well.”

Luna nodded.

“Good. We can tell why it is you who are praised so highly... you know where you stand and what to do. Remember, We shall be taking an interest, so bear in mind that you are reporting to Us as well as your Captain now. This is all.”

The princess turned to leave. The Captain gave Shining a dark look before making his way to his office. Shining finally relaxed.

He saw Private Eye trot over to him, beaming.

“You got friends in high places.” he commented sarcastically. Shining shook his head.

“No, I've got problems with infinite resources. Come on, you take in Vinyl, I'll grab Fatale.”