10 Days, 3 Adventures - Part 2 - "Manehattan Crime Story"

by TP Night

Chapter 4 - Train Ride

As the train started getting up to speed, Pinkie and Rarity both sat down in their box
in the cart, and prepared for the journey. They would arrive in Manehattan in roughly
six hours. Pinkie was looking out the window at the trees and other nature swooshing by
outside.

“We should arrive in Manehattan just before five in the afternoon.” Rarity said.

“And then we check in, and then we go to the cafe!” Pinkie replied

“Exactly, and after that I suggest we just rest and take it easy the rest of the day,
so we’re both well-rested tomorrow. I was thinking we could take a day in the town,
go sight-seeing and such. Then, the day after tomorrow, I plan to go see
the preparations and set-up for the fashion show. Maybe I’ll have a chance
to meet a designer or two BEFORE the shows start, and not only after.”
Rarity said with an excited smile.

“Sight-seeing sounds fun! Can we go find a candy shop?”

“Well, I’m sure we could, yes. Manehattan is a rather big city, I imagine they would
have several candy shops spread around, as well as tons of other shops with all sorts
of things. And I actually need a candy shop myself. I promised Sweetie Belle I would
get her something sweet, as a small gift. I might need your expertise in choosing
something suitable though.”

“Of course, I’ll help you find the bestest, sweetest, most tasty treat for Sweetie!”
Pinkie almost started bouncing on her seat.

“I’m sure you will, Pinkie.” Rarity said and smiled.

* * *

The first hour passed quickly, as Pinkie sat unusually still, looking out
the window, seemingly mesmerized by the nature passing by.
Meanwhile, Rarity was reading a book.

“What’cha reading?” Pinkie asked and finally moved from her fixed position.
Her neck made a few cracks as she turned her head. “Ow. Should’ve moved more.
An hour as a statue wasn’t good for the bones. Now I know how Discord
must have felt after his almost-thousand years like that!”

“Well, perhaps you should take a short walk then, and stretch the rest
of your body as well. Oh, and to answer your question, I’ve gotten into old crime novels
lately, so I’m reading an old Sherlock Hooves mystery,
‘The Diamond Dog of Baskerville’.”

“Ooh, Sherlock Hooves!” Pinkie said, and suddenly she had the Sherlock hat and bubble
pipe again, seemingly summoned from nowhere. “You’re probably right though,
a walk would be good for my limbs. I’ll be right back!”

“Would you mind going to the cafeteria cart and getting me some coffee?
I didn’t really sleep well last night.”

“That’s weird, neither did I! I had strange dreams!”

“That is even weirder.. so did I. Anyway, coffee now, we can discuss it later.”

“Come with me, we can discuss it and drink coffee in the cafeteria cart!”

“Very well, let’s do that.” Rarity smiled and put a bookmark in her book, and closed it.
“We better take our saddlebags with us though, one never knows what kind of lowlife
is on board. These days you can’t be completely safe from thieves anywhere,
not even on trains.”

“Thievery should be illegal!” Pinkie said. “If it was, nopony would do it!”

“Pinkie, dear, thievery IS illegal, it always has been. That’s the entire point
of being a thief. Doing something that is against the law.”

“Well, then maybe it should be legalized, so all the ponies who do it would
not feel challenged anymore and just stop.”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean, most criminals do it because they see it as a challenge - commit the crime,
don’t get caught, the loot and their freedom is the prize. If it wasn’t illegal, it wouldn’t
be a challenge anymore!”

“Wow Pinkie, sometimes you actually make sense. However, even if that is in fact
true for SOME criminals, it’s not true for ALL of them. the ‘challenge’ crimes is mainly
something small-timers do, like pickpockets and bag-grabbers. Organized crime is
much bigger, and is more about controlling the city, and the ponies in it.”

“How come you know so much about crime?”

“Well, like I said, I’ve been reading crime-fiction all summer.”

They got into the cafeteria cart and bought their coffee, and sat down.

“So, Pinkie, you said you had weird dreams?”

“Yeah! All night, I heard ghostly voices chanting ‘hook’ something ‘som’...something.”

“Hmm.. ‘Hoc Est Somnium’?” Rarity asked with a curious tone.

“Yes! How did you know?!”

“Well, in MY dream, I was sewing a collection of summer dresses..
On them, I was doing some embroidered text, summer-y stuff..
But every time I tried to make it, the words on the dress always became
‘hoc est somnium’ instead of the words I wanted.”

“Strange...” Pinkie said and slowly sipped her coffee.
“...Not enough sugar, too bitter....” She said to herself and took a sugar pack,
adding it to the coffee, and then another, and another.

“Anyway, It’s probably nothing, and if it IS, I’m sure it will be taken care of by the
time we get home. Weird things always seem to happen in and around Ponyville
ever since Twilight moved there and we became the Elements of Harmony.”

“Yeah, but it always ends well though, we always fix whatever it is!” Pinkie smiled,
and finally satisfied with her coffee, she drank it all in two gulps.

Rarity glanced at the 7 emptied sugar packs on the table and smiled,
thinking to herself, “This may actually be a fun trip...”