Invitation

"Here you go, darling." Rarity said as she placed the bag down on the counter.

The bag was a pale blue with pink polka-dots and inside was an outfit Rarity had made as part of a favor she owed you. You had helped her by partaking in a stakeout with Applejack and in exchange Rarity made the clothing for free.

"Thank you," you said as you took the gift.

"I must say, I didn't expect a stallion like you to wear something like that." Rarity teased.

"It's not for me," you retorted, "it's a gift for Irisa. You remember her right?"

"Yes, I remember," Rarity answered, "that quiet mare who was convinced that she was your maid?"

"That would be correct, yes."

It had been just a little over a month since Irisa had begun to serve the needs of your house. After you had accepted her aid to clean and maintain your home, she had been diligently working. Every morning there was a cup of coffee waiting for you and whenever you came home late from a meeting in Canterlot, there was a warm meal ready.

Yet despite your efforts, Irisa had insisted on wearing her maid uniform at all times. It had even gone so far that you had purchased five copies of the maiden attire so that she could stay in character even while the original was in the laundry.

Perhaps the outfit made her feel more confident, or maybe she just didn't want all her scars exposed for the world to see.

While you didn't object to her clothing choices, you thought it might be nice if she had something more laid back and comfortable to wear.

"Well, I'm sure she'll enjoy the thought," Rarity said, breaking you out of your thoughts.

"Yes, I'm sure she will."

"One more thing: how are you and Irisa getting along?"

"We are doing fine," you answered, "why?"

"I just think it is kind of romantic that you’re buying her this cute outfit is all." Rarity said with a clever smile.

"It's nothing like that," you replied, "if anything we’re just close friends."

Aside from her submissive manner, work around the house and the maid uniform she wore, your relationship with Irisa was that of good friends.

"Whatever you say." Rarity winked. Clearly trying to read something more into the situation.

With a huff, you picked up your package and left the clothing store, making your way back to your home. It was a cloudy day, the autumn breeze blowing orange, red and yellow leaves about the street.

Ponies moved about the streets, preparing for Nightmare Night as it drew near. Some were buying candy, some costumes and others decorations for their homes.

As you were on your way home, you recalled something important.

"Oh, shoot! I need to go buy some more food."

Well, it was a good thing you remembered. While you still had enough food at home, there were a few items you were running low on. Changing your route, you made your way to the marketplace.

Reaching your destination, you managed to find all the food that was on your list. As you peered over the piece of paper, you considered what additional items you might want to purchase before heading home.

"Maybe I should pick up some popcorn," you thought to yourself, "the series premiere of that show, Dusting Doubt is in a few days, so that might be kind of nice."

Dusting Doubt was a show about a maid named Dust, who follows a princess around Equestria, solving mysteries along the way. Irisa expressed great interest in the series after seeing an advertisement for it on television.

Yes, some buttery popcorn would be very nice for both of you to eat when you watched the premiere. Your mouth began to water at the thought.

Lost in your thoughts, you neglected to notice where you were going and walked straight into a pole. Upon hitting the pole you fell backwards, your saddle bags toppling to the ground. Tasting iron in the back of your throat, you could guess that your nose had taken the brunt of the impact.

"Are you alright?"

As your eyes refocused you noticed a blue mare standing next to you, her pale blue mane moving despite the lack of wind. A handkerchief was held out to you with a pale magenta aura. Responding to the kind gesture, you took the white cloth and proceeded to clean your bloody nose with it.

"Thank you."

After holding the handkerchief to your nose, you looked back at the mare and realized who it was that had given it to you.

"Oh, Mrs. Rich," you exclaimed, "I am so sorry!"

The mare raised a hoof, "It's no trouble and please call me Trixie."

Trixie was the local magician as well as Mr. Rich's second wife. From what you heard, apparently Rich's previous wife, Spoiled Milk had been unfaithful and had more than a few affairs around the town. After discovering his wife's adultery, Filthy Rich divorced her. Later he fell in love with Trixie and they both were married.

"Well, thank you." You tried to return the handkerchief but Trixie stopped you.

"Keep it," Trixie said, "think of it as a gift from the great and powerful Trixie."

Trixie wore a dark purple jacket with silver trim, the back of the outfit reaching back and covering her flank. Gray and black fur framed the jacket's collar.

The magician's reputation had a rocky start with some townsfolk being annoyed with her tricks and an incident where she assumed control of the town with the aid of a magical artifact. However, as time went on, Trixie became a very talented magic user and earned back the respect she’d lost.

From what you heard, her more recent tricks involved magically detaching limbs. She could cut a pony in half, thirds and quarters with ease and put them back without any injuries.

"So, I heard you have a maid," Trixie said, bringing you back to the present.

"Uh, yes, I guess so," you replied, "how do you know?"

Trixie smiled, "Well, as Mr. Rich's wife, it would be foolish of me not to know the local gossip... Also Rarity told me."

"Well, shoot," you groaned as you placed a hoof against your brow.

Of course, Rarity would talk about it with her customers. Trixie let out a giggle.

"I wouldn't worry too much about it," Trixie said, "Everypony needs an assistant or two from time to time."

At that point, two mares walked up next to Trixie, one on each side. Both possessed charcoal coats and icy blue eyes. Their manes pink with white highlights were tied and pulled back into a ponytail. They both wore black scarves around their necks, with the symbol of an X sewn into each end of the garment. Were they twins?

"This is Gash Bloom and Flash Gloom," Trixie said, introducing her assistants, "They are helping me with some errands."

"Actually I'm Gash Bloom," the one on the left said.

"And I'm Flash Gloom," said the other.

Trixie rolled her eyes in an annoyed manner. Judging from the slight grin on both of the twins faces, this was a joke they liked to pull a lot.

"It's getting old," Trixie growled, before regaining her composure. "Anyway. They are assisting me with preparations for a Nightmare Night party, my husband and I are planning."

"Sounds like fun."

"Here take one of these."

Trixie reached forward and seemingly pulled a small scroll from the inside of your left ear. Taking the scroll, you opened it and realized that it was in fact an invitation. It was an invitation for a pony and one companion to attend the Rich Family Nightmare Night Costume Party.

"I couldn't."

"Nonsense," Trixie insisted, pushing the invitation closer to you.

Even as Trixie held out the invitation to you, the scroll seemed to beg for you to accept it. On top of that it wasn’t like you had anything better planned for that evening.

"Please accept this invitation from me."

Judging from the look on Trixie's face, she wasn't going to take no for an answer.

"Well, thank you very much for your kindness," you said, preparing to resume your shopping.

"Oh, and bring your maid. It would be a shame if the great and powerful Trixie didn't meet her in person."

Having given you the invitation, Trixie and the twins walked off. As they walked away you noticed that both of the twins had a matching cutie mark, resembling a set of hoofcuffs.

After you finished your grocery shopping, you made your way home.

Suddenly you were shocked when another pony bumped into you. It would seem that the princesses had wished to delay your journey home once more.

"Oh, I’m sorry, sir," you said, recovering quickly.

The pony was an earth pony stallion with a brown coat and white hair. His scraggly beard covered most of his face as well as the dirty rags he was wearing. The scent of garbage permeated the air around him. One of his eyes was concealed by a mold covered hat, however his one available eye peered at you intently.

"The worm…" he muttered.

"Uh, what?"

The homeless stallion suddenly looked frightened, his single eye rolling around in its socket.

"The Wandering Worm!" He shouted, "The Wandering Worm is coming!"

"Um, sir are you okay?"

With a single crazed eye, the stallion drew close to you at shocking speed, his muzzle next to your ear.

"The glass is turning and with it soon the door," He whispered, "the truth is revealed by night or by arrow."

All you could do was stand still, frozen by this mad stallion's crazed mannerisms.

"HEY YOU!"

The homeless stallion suddenly looked up in surprise as a few other ponies approached, forcing the stallion to flee. As they came into view it was clear by their uniforms that they were medical personnel.

"The worm is among us," the mad stallion yelled as one of the medical ponies wrestled him to the ground.

Slowly, you turned away and began to walk back home, hoping that no further madness would ensue this day.

A sigh of relief escaped your lungs as you went up to your door and opened it.

Stepping through the front door, who was standing there but you pet gecko, who proceeded to lick their left eyeball as you entered your abode.

"Hello Sunny, how are you doing?"

The gecko turned his head as if to ask, why are you talking to a gecko?

"Yeah, figures."

Irisa had insisted that you give the gecko a name and after some discussion the both of you had agreed upon Sunny. Sunny, the gecko.

"Do you know where Irisa is?"

The gecko merely scurried up the stairs. No help at all.

"Okay, thanks."

As you listened, you heard what sounded like music coming from downstairs. One of Irisa's habits when she was working was to play some music on your record player. You smiled as you walked over to the stairs.

Following the music, you descended the steps into the basement. Slowly you made your way to the library where the music was coming from. It was there that you saw Irisa, however before you could call out to her, you noticed that something was off.

In the center of the room was Irisa, wearing her uniform and humming to the song coming over the record player. She stood there, her back to you as she cleaned.

What had caught your attention were the additional limbs coming forth from a few of her additional eye sockets. Spilling forth from the holes were long wispy arms made of bluish smoke, with numerous green eyes lingering among the fumes. At the end of these arms were smoky claws like those of a dragon.

With these appendages, Irisa was dusting, vacuuming, sweeping and wiping the room.

As she cleaned, one of Irisa's many eyes spotted you. With a gasp, Irisa retracted the smoky limbs back into her body, the scars closing shut. Some of her cleaning instruments fell to the floor. With the appendages gone, Irisa stood there deathly quiet.

"Uh... Irisa?"

Irisa's ears drooped, 'Yes, master.'

You walked over to the record player and turned off the music. Irisa's body shivered in response to the silence.

While you were concerned about what you had seen, you were also aware that Irisa had never meant you harm before. So you chose to address this matter with a level head.

"Irisa, please turn around."

'Y-yes, sir.'

Turning around, Irisa looked nervous, like a foal caught with their hoof in the cookie jar.

"Will you please explain to me what I just saw?" You asked calmly, giving her a reassuring smile.

Irisa rubbed her left foreleg against the other. The bandage that once covered her hoof weeks ago, now gone.

'I-I did a bad thing.' she answered.

You scrunched your eyes at her statement, "Like what?"

'I moved my cleaning supplies with my eyes.'

While you found it an odd situation, you knew that Irisa was a good worker, so if she was using this ability secretly she had used it merely to clean the house to full effect. However you were somewhat perplexed about Irisa's feelings about this ability.

"Why is it a bad thing?"

Irisa looked up from the floor, her eyes swelling with tears, 'Please don't kick me out, sir. I won't do it again. I promise.'

You raised a hoof, "I'm not going to kick you out Irisa. Please tell me why you think it's so bad."

Gazing back down at the floor, Irisa seemed to be considering what to say.

'They didn't like it and after I escaped anypony that managed to look past the eyes covering my body, would usually accuse me of practicing dark magic when they saw this. So there must be something wrong with it.'

That might be true, but on the other hoof, maybe this ability wasn't as ominous as it would appear. Looking around the room you saw a feather duster, which had fallen to the ground when Irisa had dispelled her smoky appendages.

"Please pick up that duster," you said, motioning to the object with a hoof.

Irisa proceeded to move toward the feather duster, however you reached out a hoof to stop her.

"No, not like that," you instructed, "please use your eyes to pick it up."

'A-are you sure master?'

You nodded.

Looking over at the duster, one of the eyes on Irisa's neck closed and when it reopened a smokey tendril emerged from the socket. As the limb stretched out, green eyes began to materialize among the vapors and the end of the appendages formed into a hand. Reaching out it picked up the item and brought it back to Irisa. She brought it to you and you took hold of the feather duster with your magic.

"Thank you."

Despite its bizarre appearance there wasn't anything truly foreboding about Irisa's ability. In fact, aside from how it looked, it wasn't much different from a unicorn's telekinetic magic.

'Are you pleased?'

"Yes," you answered, "tell me are there any other abilities you possess that I should know about?"

Irisa shook her head, 'No, sir.'

Holding the feather duster with your magic, you held it out to your maid. Carefully, Irisa took the duster.

'So... you're not mad with me?'

"No, I’m not mad with you," you answered, "I trust that you didn't withhold this information maliciously, nor that you intended to. "

'T-thank you, master.'

"Of course, I would recommend you keep this ability a secret. At least for now."

While you were aware that Irisa's appendages could do only as much harm as a unicorn's telekinesis, there were plenty of ponies in Equestria and even Ponyville that wouldn’t see it that way.

Irisa nodded, 'I understand.'

"Thank you."

'Ummm... master?' Irisa asked, the tone of her telepathic voice seeming a bit concerned.

"What is it?"

'I've been meaning to tell you, that I've been hearing strange noises coming from the kitchen.'

"Really what kind of noises?"

Irisa placed a hoof to her chin. 'Sometimes it sounds like something is hissing or groaning. Then there are times that I think I hear somepony breathing.'

Upon hearing Irisa's statement, you couldn't help but chuckle a bit. "It's probably the house just settling. Nothing to worry about."

'I suppose you're right.' Irisa smiled.

As you stood there, you considered telling Irisa about the outfit you have acquired from Rarity for her, however you felt that Trixie's invitation was probably a more urgent matter.

"I was given an invitation to a party earlier today." You presented the letter to Irisa who took and read the document.

'I see,' Irisa replied, 'tomorrow I will check with miss Rarity to acquire a costume for you to wear.'

"You should find one for yourself as well," you said, "I would like for you to accompany me as my plus one to this event."

All of Irisa's eyes opened wide in shock. 'Me, sir?'

"Yes."

Once Irisa realized what you were saying, a blush crept across her cheeks and a small smile gently graced her lips.

'If that is what my master desires, then I shall accompany you to the party.'

"Splendid. Then tomorrow we'll go fetch some costumes."

'Costumes!' Irisa looked at you with surprise. 'As in for both of us? Don’t you think my standard attire will suffice?'

You shook your head. "It's a costume party, so it wouldn't make sense for you to wear something you already wear on a daily basis. I'm sure we can find something in Rarity's shop that you will like."

Irisa let out a sigh. 'As you wish, my master.'

You let out a sigh of relief as you closed the door to your home, a refuge from the storm outside. Your trip to the Haywaiian Islands had been a wonderfully, exciting venture. The locals had treated you kindly and you had even met a cute shark pony stallion. Admittedly, remembering the shark stallion's chiseled form made your heart flutter.

After taking your bags into your room, you went into the bathroom, to dry off the raindrops. Picking up a purple towel, you dried your coat and silky mane.

"There we go."

Setting the towel in the hamper to be cleaned later, you stopped to examine yourself in the mirror. A unicorn mare stared back at you with a smile on her face.

With a giggle and a trot in your step, you made your way back to your bedroom and began to unload your suitcase. As you were about to unlatch the container, when suddenly you were startled as the suitcase began to move on its own. After rumbling around the case stood still.

Cautiously, you stepped forward and very slowly you opened the suitcase. In response the container swung open revealing a green, confused looking gecko inside.

"YOU!"

The gecko scurried out of the box, across the room and onto the window ledge to peer outside. Following the reptile you peered out the window, down into the streets of Ponyville. It was then that you saw somepony rushing from building to building, trying to evade the rain.

While you knew it was probably a bad idea, you couldn't help but feel pity on whoever it was running out in the storm. Leaving your room, you walked down the steps to the entryway and opened the front door. As the door opened you heard a crash from a nearby trash can.

"Hello?" you called out, "Is anypony out there?"

You listened but the only sound you could hear was the pitter patter of the raindrops hitting the cobblestone streets.

"It's raining! Why don't you come inside?"

Again there was no response.

"Well, if you change your mind, come and knock! Okay!"

Closing the door you wondered back upstairs toward the kitchen.

"Well, that was stupid!" You reprimanded yourself. "Inviting a complete stranger into your home. You're only asking for trouble."

As you began cooking some popcorn, you remembered some of the horror stories you had heard. Especially of the infamous boogiemare, the Vermillion Hourglass. It was said that those who came across this mysterious mare would vanish without a trace. Even after the cases for the Vermillion Hourglass stopped, whenever a pony suddenly disappeared many would gossip that they had been taken by the urban legend.

Even if it wasn't the Vermillion Hourglass out there, who was to say that it was some other criminal out there in the streets, seeking to break into your house and rob you. Of course, there were other worse things that a stranger could do to a mare like you.

Still you couldn't help but put yourself in that pony's hooves. What if they were just out there, alone and cold, just needing a place to stay warm until the harsh weather passed?

While the bag of popcorn began to pop in the microwave, you made your way to the living room and turned on your television. The Silver Spade Cases flashed onto the screen as your favorite tv series came on.

As you prepared to sit down and enjoy your show, you heard a knock at the door. For a moment you felt nervous, afraid of who might be behind the door. Yet despite that fear, you stood up from your seat.

Taking a deep breath, you made your way to the front door. A strange sense of deja vu flowing over you.

Opening the door, you saw standing before you a wary stallion, his body wrapped in a dirty, brown cloak. Looking down you saw that he was favoring his right hoof with blood dripping onto your doorstep.

"You're bleeding," you said, "please come inside."

The stallion followed your directions and stepped inside, his eyes looking around the room cautiously. You closed the door behind him.

"Please let me take your cloak."

After a moment, the stallion relented and pulled off a makeshift garment, your eyes widened at the stallion's form. His body looked sickly and weak, with numerous scars covering his purple coat.

Setting the cloak on the coat hanger, you guided the stallion upstairs to the living room. With a hoof you motioned toward the couch.

"Why don't you take a seat and I will fetch some supplies to tend to your injury."

Sheepishly the stranger went over to the couch and sat down. Going into the bathroom, you opened the medical cabinet, grabbing a few items including bandages, hydrogen peroxide, a couple towels and some tweezers. As you fetched the equipment a feeling of sympathy filled you as you recalled the stallion's scars.

"I wonder how he got those."

Using your magic, you brought the medical supplies back to the living room and sat down next to the stallion. Setting down one of the towels you motioned for the stranger to place their hoof on it.

"Here let us take a look at that injured hoof of yours."

Slowly the stallion placed his hoof on the towel for you to examine. Looking at the underside of his hoof, you saw a shard of glass sticking out.

With your magic you took hold of the tweezers. "Alright, this might hurt a bit."

The stranger gritted his teeth as you took hold of the glass with the tweezers and pulled it out. The shared tainted red with the stallion's blood. Considering the condition of the wound, you were sure that there was a great possibility that it might be infected. As you placed the piece of glass aside, you noticed a scar on the stallion's neck, the marking seemingly different compared to the other scars on his body.

"Okay, this is going to sting a bit." You said, as you poured some hydrogen peroxide on the injury.

The stallion yelped and as he did you were startled as all the scars on his body ripped open, revealing green eyes underneath. In shock both you and the stallion looked at one another.

'I-I'm sorry. Forgive me for this.' You heard the stallion say, even though his lips didn't move.

"What?"

Suddenly, two shadowy appendages appeared from two of the eyes covering the stallion's body, reaching forth and gripping you by the neck. Struggling for breath, you tried to remove the limbs only for your hooves to pass through.

As you tried to free yourself, you could feel your body being lifted off the couch. Glancing down at your assailant, you saw within his eyes not a look of malice but of sorrow and of determination. A fearsome desire to survive, no matter what.

You awoke from the dream, your body drenched in sweat. Feeling the damp bed sheets around you, you panicked for a moment fearing that you had wet the bed. Upon examining the bed, the only liquid there was from your frightened pores.

With a sigh of relief, you took a deep breath and lay back into your bed. However, you struggled to sleep, your thoughts going back to your dream.

Ignoring the weird aspect of the genders being swapped, the dream seemed very different from what had happened when you first met Irisa that fateful day. Perhaps it was your subconsciousness trying to process Irisa's secret.

While you had told Irisa that her shadowy talons didn't bother you, perhaps deep down they did. Maybe it was that fact that Irisa had kept it a secret from you, that disturbed you.

Could she be trusted? That fear flooded your mind as you peered up at the ceiling.

Eventually the alluring song of sleep sung to you once more and you drifted back into sleep.

The next day, both Irisa and you went to Rarity's boutique to prepare for the Rich family's party.

'Are you sure I couldn't just go in my uniform, sir?' Irisa asked.

"Yes," you answered, "It would be as if you were going as yourself. The whole point behind Nightmare Night is to dress up as something or somepony else."

'Somepony else?'

"Yes."

For a moment, Irisa seemed to ponder what you had said.

'Very well, if it pleases you master, then I shall do it.'

"Thank you."

The bell jingled as both of you stepped into the fashionable clothing store. At the counter was Rarity, her smile sparkling at the sight of her new customers.

"Good afternoon," Rarity greeted, "it is great to see you so soon."

'So soon?' Irisa gave you a puzzled look.

"Uh, yes, it is great to be here." You said, hoping to sidestep Irisa's inquiry. "I hope you still have some costumes for a festive occasion."

"I am mostly sold out," Rarity answered, "however, I'm sure I can find something for the two of you."

The next few minutes consisted of both Irisa and you consulting a couple catalogues with Rarity's Nightmare Night costumes. While Rarity counseled another customer, Irisa gave you a questioning look.

'Do you have an idea what you're going to pick, sir?'

You considered your options and nodded.

"I'm thinking I might go with this." You pointed to the picture of a stallion wearing a heavy, black trench coat with two screws emerging from the sides of his neck. It was a costume of Doctor Frankenstall's Monster.

Irisa careened her neck at the image, with a slight frown. 'I don't know, master. You don't strike me as a brute.'

"Well, that's kind of the idea." You gave a chuckle. "To disguise yourself as something you're not."

Despite your explanation, Irisa didn't seem too convinced.

"I suppose I could wear something else," you answered, "what about this?"

With a hoof you pointed at the photo of a Zebra Witch Doctor, possessing a dark purple coat with various colorful trinkets hanging off, a top hat with an eye on the head band with white face paint resembling a skull on his face. Looking at the image, Irisa smiled.

'Yes, I think that would look great on you, master.'

"What about you," you inquired, "have you found anything you're interested in?"

Irisa bit her lower lip as she examined the magazine she'd been looking through.

'I was thinking maybe one of these two.'

Presenting the magazine to you, Irisa pointed to two costumes. One was of a Somnubulian Queen and the second was a Little Red Trotting Hood outfit. Looking at the costumes you considered the two. Irisa would look cute in either one.

"I think... That one would be a good fit." You said pointing to the Trotting Hood costume.

'Very well.'

It was about that time that Rarity walked back over. "Did two find something you would like to try?"

"I believe so," you answered, "I will have the witch doctor costume and Irisa would like your Little Red Trotting Hood outfit."

Hearing the second costume mentioned, Rarity's expression saddened. "I'm sorry but I sold the last Trotting Hood costume over an hour ago."

'Oh.'

Irisa looked a little sad by the revelation, something that Rarity had noticed. Cautiously Rarity looked around the shop to see if any other customers were present in the shop.

"Although, I suppose I could make one more," Rarity said, "though I would need some help."

"Help?" You asked.

"I would need to take some measurements and I figure if I am going to make an outfit for a single mare, I should try to fit it to her rather than just a general template. Are you interested?"

While looking a little nervous, Irisa nodded.

"Very well then come this way, dear." Rarity said motioning to a fitting room. Cautiously Irisa followed.

While Rarity and Irisa worked on the dress, you looked through more of the costume magazines. There was also a magazine with clothes for the coming winter season. Peeking through the magazine you found a section with a selection of scarves.

"It might be kind of nice to purchase one of these for Irisa and me."

As you looked through the scarf section, you saw among them a purple scarf that looked like the tentacle from a deep sea creature or alien invader.

"That's an odd one."

Suddenly there was a scream that caught you off guard. Dropping the magazine you ran toward the fitting room to discover a frightening scene. All of Irisa's eyes were wide open in a panicked state, all except for one, which was closed with blood leaking from the scar. On the other side of the room was Rarity, who was trying to remain calm.

"I-I know I have an emergency medical kit around here somewhere!"

Looking around, Rarity saw you and trotted over.

"What happened?" You asked.

"I accidentally poked her... side with one of my needles," Rarity answered, "Please keep an eye on her, while I find... something to stop the bleeding!"

As Rarity left the room, you looked back to Irisa, her numerous eyes filled with panic. You stepped forward doing your best to soothe her.

"Don't worry everything is going to be fine."

'Master! I think she knows!'

"It's going to be okay." You said, trying to calm her down. "Everything is going to be alright."

'Master, what if she tells... them?'

"Them?"

This statement puzzled you. Filling you with concern as Irisa's remark hinted at something dangerous in her past. However, Irisa didn't respond. She just continued to stand there, her many eyes looking off to nothingness. Clearly in dread of whoever 'they' were.

"You'll be okay." You said, even though you weren't certain if you were saying that to her or yourself.

You stood in your home bathroom, pulling out some medical supplies for Irisa's injured eye. Rarity said she would finish the costume and give it to Irisa for free, due to the injury she had sustained. However, the air between the two mares had remained tense.

"How are you feeling?" You asked as you gently pulled back the bandage to examine Irisa's wounded eye.

'A little sore; however, you have no need to worry, master,' Irisa said, 'my eyes heal fairly quickly. It is the flesh around them that takes time.'

Like Irisa had said, the eyeball that had been injured looked back at you without any sign of a scratch. The flesh that composed the eyelid on the other hoof, looked swollen and red.

Taking out some aloe vera cream, you applied the ointment to the wound, eliciting a slight hiss from Irisa.

"Irisa, tell me something."

'What is it master?'

After applying some new bandages, you took a deep breath, knowing that this wasn't going to be an easy thing to ask.

"Who are 'they?'"

Irisa was silent for a moment as she considered your question.

'I can't tell you.'

"Irisa, you said there were no more secrets."

'I know… but… I can't tell you.'

Tears began to drop from Irisa's many eyes.

You weren't sure how to deal with this, clearly this was something that was bothering her, yet Irisa refused to share it with you. Did she not trust you?

"Fine. You don't have to tell me if you don't want to."

"Sand. Time is sand. Life is sand. Flowing through the veins of the great worm is azure sand."
-Scribbles on a White Wall

Macabre

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The loud thud of metal resonated through the air as you knocked on the door to the Rich family estate using the knocker. Both you and your maid, Irisa stood waiting in front of the door. There was a pregnant silence as the two of you stood there waiting, wearing your Nightmare Night costumes. You with your witch doctor outfit and Irisa with the Little Red Trotting Hood costume Rarity had made for her.

'Do you think we got the time wrong, master?' Irisa asked.

"No, I'm sure we're on time," you answered.

Aside from the leaves blowing in the chilly autumn air, all was quiet. The weather was perfectly suitable for Nightmare Night, especially with the thunderstorm that was organized by the Ponyville weather team for the evening.

'Master, are you sure, you wanted me to accompany you this evening?' Irisa inquired, 'I'm sure you could have found a prettier mare to come with you.'

As usual, Irisa overestimated your charm. However, even if you were so charismatic, you hadn't intended to come to the party with a trophy mare as your accompaniment. Instead you had wanted to bring a friend.

'This place is a little spooky,' Irisa said, 'kind of like one of those haunted mansion from one of the books in your collection.'

"You're not too scared, are you?"

Irisa smiled. 'No, I'm fine master.'

It was then that the door opened and an elderly stallion in a butler's uniform opened the door. You recognized him as Randolph, the Rich family's personal butler.

"Good evening," Randolph said, "do either of you have an invitation?"

Using your magic, you presented to Randolph the invitation Trixie had given you. Examining the invitation, Randolph gave a nod.

"Very good, sir." The butler pulled the door open further and motioned with a hoof for Irisa and you to enter. "Please do come in."

After you both entered the house, Randolph closed the door behind you.

"Please, allow me to escort both of you to the trophy room. Some of the other guests arrived early and Mister Rich wanted to show them his achievements."

You followed Randolph upstairs to the second floor. The house was massive with exquisite walls, paintings and chandeliers. There was also the scent of polish and cleaning supplies in the air, it wasn’t strong enough to be offensive but it was a subtle, lingering presence.

'This place is huge, master.'

"Indeed," you whispered in response.

Eventually the three of you reached a door with the golden symbol of an axe and a shield. The sound of other ponies conversing on the other side could be heard.

"And here we are," Randolph said, "dinner will be ready in an hour, however drinks and appetizers are available for you and your companion. Please enjoy your time."

Randolph opened the door and you walked in, with Irisa following behind, her movement being a little uneasy. You were completely aware that she was uncomfortable around crowds and ponies she wasn't familiar with. Still, you hoped that this party would help her grow more secure. Plus she could use more friends and parties were a great way to make friends.

Stepping into the trophy room, you beheld the rest of the guests. There was Mr. Rich with his wife, Trixie, both of whom wore the outfits of a couple Victorian nobles. Not too far away were Rarity and Applejack. While Rarity wore a striking dress in the style of the famous Shadow Spade, Applejack's outfit was that of a cowcolt clown, something that seemed to be annoying Rarity. There was also Sunshine Smiles who was wearing a toga and a crown of leaves. Following her annoyed gaze you saw Caramel in a set of knightly armor, flirting with one of the twins.

Serving drinks were the twins, Gash Bloom and Flash Gloom. Both of the mares were wearing matching bunny suits, with fishnet stockings, a purple, coat tight suit with fluffy white bunny tails, white bunny ears along with white collars and black bow ties. The outfits appeared rather alluring on both of them.

While the twin, Caramel was flirting with giggled, the other seemed to be sharing in Sunshine's irritation.

'Oh, my.' Irisa appeared to be shocked by the costumes. 'those are some... Interesting uniforms.'

"I suppose so," you whispered.

'Master, would you like for me to possess such an outfit?'

You could feel your cheeks growing warm in response to Irisa's inquiry.

"I don't think that would be necessary." You whispered back, though secretly there was a part of you that wondered how Irisa might look in such an outfit.

"You made it!" Trixie exclaimed as she walked over. "And this must be the maid I have heard about."

Irisa moved closer to your side as if doing so would provide her with some protection. Seeing the visitor's, Sunshine Smiles came over to observe.

"Yes, this is Irisa." You introduced your maid.

Irisa waved at Trixie, still clinging close to you.

"Well, hello Irisa, I'm Trixie and it's nice having you here."

This warranted a nod and a slight smile from Irisa. Trixie on the other hoof looked rather confused by Irisa's silence. Seeing Trixie's reaction, Irisa seemed to shrink behind you.

"Unfortunately Irisa can't talk." You explained.

Immediately Trixie's confusion changed to an apologetic smile. "I'm so sorry, I didn't know. I hope I haven't troubled her."

"I'm sure she'll be fine," you replied, "it just takes her time to warm up to others is all."

Irisa smiled slightly, which seemed to liven Trixie's mood.

'Thank you master.'

Looking around you noticed that one member of the Rich family was missing.

"So where's your… uh, step daughter?" You asked.

"Oh, Diamond Tiara, she's spending Nightmare Night with her friends. I believe she said that Silver Spoon and her were going to hang out with Apple Bloom and her friends."

"I see, well that's kind of nice."

"Yes, it means she won't be walking around bored at this party and that my hubby and I can… well…"

Seeing a slight redness to Trixie's cheeks, you had a vague idea what Trixie and Mister Rich might have planned once the party was over. You decided to try to change the subject.

"If you don't mind me asking, how did you and Mister Rich meet?" You asked.

"Well, as I'm sure you are aware a few years ago I had caused some trouble in Ponyville…"

Yes, you recalled the time that a crazed Trixie had seized control of Ponyville with the use of a powerful amulet. Fortunately you had avoided much of the abuse.

"After that nopony would associate with me, which had resulted in me going broke," Trixie continued, "I would have starved to death if it wasn't for the generosity of a certain stallion."

"Mister Rich."

"Yes. The two of us became friends and after Rich divorced his first wife due to her infidelity, we… developed a bond. With his help I was able to return to show business."

As Trixie said this, you thought you could recall seeing one of those shows.

"Didn't you have a trick involving petrification?"

"I did," Trixie replied, "however after a few ears and tails broke off, I decided to stop."

The both of you had a little chuckle at that and even Irisa seemed to find the joke to be amusing, even in her silence.

"Well, thank you both for coming," Trixie said, "I hope you'll enjoy the party."

"I'm sure we will."

'She seems nice,' Irisa said.

"Well, she certainly has come a long way."

As you walked around the room, Irisa followed you closely. The room consisted of various items mounted on the wall, such as the head of a massive timber wolf, its eyes absent of the light that signaled that the wooden being was alive. Its teeth glistening in the room's lighting.

Next to it was the severed head of a hydra, it's lips curled back with a mighty hiss. It's eyes glazed over.

There were also paintings of other members of the Rich family, including what appeared to be a family portrait with Filthy Rich, his new wife Trixie and Mister Rich's daughter, Diamond Tiara. From the smiles on their faces it seemed that the family was very happy.

Attached to the room was another door which had a golden label above the door with the word, Study etched into it. You guessed that it probably contained documents pertaining to his business.

"Hey there, sugarcube." A familiar feminine voice called out.

You turned to see both Applejack and Rarity drawing near. While Applejack appeared happy to see you, Rarity seemed sullen, her eyes focused on Irisa. No doubt, she still felt bad for what had happened at the boutique. Taking a quick peek over your shoulder, you could see Irisa hiding behind you.

After a sigh, you gave Applejack and Rarity a smile. "Hey, it's nice seeing both of you here."

"Yep, the Apple family and the Rich family go back a ways," Applejack said, "though when I accepted the invitation, I didn't expect you to be joinin' us."

You let out a chuckle as you scratched the back of your head. " Yeah, Trixie was nice enough to give me an invitation."

"Well, both of you are lookin' nice this evening." Applejack said, motioning to the costumes you and Irisa were wearing.

"Yes, we purchased them from Rarity's store."

"Rarity does make some nice costumes," Applejack answered, “you should have seen the costume she made for Sweetie Belle. Ah’ve never seen a cuter robot before. As fer me, I made my costume myself."

"I can see that." It had been very obvious since your arrival, by Rarity's mood, however now she seemed rather sad. It was like she wanted to say something, but wasn't sure what words to speak.

You weren't sure how to proceed. While it was very clear that there was some tension between Rarity and Irisa, it seemed that neither knew how to address the subject.

The tension was thick enough that even Applejack could sense it.

"Hey, Rarity why don't we go talk with Sunshine Smiles." Applejack suggested.

"Uh, yeah."

You watched as both Applejack and Rarity walked away. Once they were out of earshot, you turned your attention to your maid.

"Are you okay?" You whispered, concerned for Irisa's wellbeing.

'I'm sorry master.' Her eyes looking down at her hooves.

Though even as you said it, you realized that there really wasn't much Irisa could do to communicate with others without giving away her true nature. You would have to think of some way to allow for Irisa to talk with others.

"No, it's fine," you said, "though if you don't feel up to this, we don't have to stay."

Irisa shook her head. 'No, master, I'll be okay I can do this.'

Well, if Irisa was alright, then it probably wouldn't hurt to stay for a little while. Perhaps this party could help her come out of her shell a little more and maybe you could think of something that would allow her to talk to others without using her eyes.

"Can I have a drink?" You asked one of the twins as she drew near.

This twin who had previously been glaring daggers at Caramel gave you a bright smile. "It would be a pleasure, sir."

She held out the tray so that you could take the glass with your magic. Irisa carefully reached out with a hoof and took a glass for herself.

"Thank you," you said, "now I know I will probably be asking this again, but who are you?"

"I am Gash Bloom." The twin answered.

You took a sip from your glass of champagne. Looking over at Irisa, your lips curled slightly as you noticed her blink a few times in response to the drink.

"Does it annoy you, when other ponies try to figure out, which of you is which?"

"Oh, it can be frustrating at times." Gash Bloom lifted the tray once more, before giving you a mischievous grin. "But sometimes keeping others guessing as to which sister they're talking to can be a little fun."

"Are you having fun now?"

Gash Bloom looked back to her sister who was still in a joyful conversation with Caramel, her frown returning.

"No, not at the moment."

"Is everything okay?" You asked.

"I'm sure she will be fine." Gash Bloom shrugged. "There are just some things I don't like sharing is all."

'Sharing?'

You were about to inquire more on the subject, when you heard the door open and the room went completely quiet. Turning around you saw the reason for the silence.

Standing in the doorway with a condescending expression was none other than Mister Rich's ex-wife, Spoiled Milk.

"Randolph, be a dear and pour me a glass." Milk said, her demeanor being that of a mare who controlled the room.

While she wasn't wearing a costume, you were fairly certain that Spoiled Milk didn't need one.

The butler was about to do as Spoiled Milk had instructed, before Trixie raised a hoof and walked over to the other mare. "Spoiled Milk, why are you here? Surely you could be spoiling the mood elsewhere."

Spoiled Milk looked smugly at the new misses Rich. "For your information dear, I was invited."

"Really, you don't say." Trixie glared over her shoulder at the twins, a look of embarrassment on their faces. Seeing this, you guessed that they might have sent Spoiled Milk an invitation by accident.

Mister Rich coughed in an attempt to distract everypony from the tension in the air. "How about I give you all a tour of the trophies I have here."

While most of the ponies at the party seemed to be following along, both Trixie and Spoiled Milk continued to share hateful glances. Taking a deep breath, you joined the group.

Our host started by standing in front of a wall mounted axe. The weapon possessed a steel axe head, strong oak handle and leather wrapped around the handle. Something resembling a timber wolf was carved into the side of the axe head.

Even as you and Irisa joined the group, it was very clear that your maid was very apprehensive, her eyes seeming to focus on Rarity on more than a few occasions.

"This axe here belonged to my grandfather, Stinkin Rich," Rich said, "when Ponyville was first established there were many problems of timber wolves leaving the Everfree Forest and terrorizing the town. Many of the villagers including my grandfather created a posse to hunt down any timber wolves when they entered the town. This axe is the very axe he used for such hunts."

"It's quite a charming weapon," Sunshine said, "but a mere axe isn't going to do much to a timber wolf."

"That is true," Rich replied, "a normal axe would merely make a timber wolf fall apart, which was why when he started the posy, he had a unicorn enchant this axe so that it could cut through the strongest material like butter. In fact, I would dare say that if the Vermillion Hourglass were still around and she were to show up in this manor, that this axe could dispatch her with ease."

'Master, I don't believe that axe is magical.'

You looked over your shoulder to see Irisa standing there. Carefully you whispered to her, "Are you sure?"

'According to one of your books, The Art of Enchantment, magical items will usually have some runes etched into them, though I don't see any.'

Interesting. Did Filthy Rich know this? Well, it would probably be wise to reveal this to the stallion when the party was over. No reason to spoil everypony's fun. After all, a good host is a happy host.

At one point, you noticed Randolph walk up to Gash Bloom. The two of them seemed to be talking to each other in hushed tones. Reaching into his suit pocket, Randolph gave some sort of small object to the twin, who quickly accepted it. Aside from the slight glimmer of metal, you couldn't tell what it was.

After the exchange, Gash Bloom made her way to the door and stepped outside.

'What do you think they're doing?' Irisa asked, clearly noticing what had happened as well.

"I'm not sure," you replied.

"So who is this?" Caramel asked, pointing to a portrait on the wall.

The painting showed a stallion with a close resemblance to Filthy Rich other than his beard and mustache, which possessed some additional gray hairs. The stallion in the painting seemed to be looking down on the viewers, his gaze carrying a sense of disdain. As you gazed upon the portrait, something about him seemed familiar.

Mister Rich let out a deep sigh in response to the portrait. "That's my father, Sir Cunning Rich. A stallion whose shadow I would prefer to avoid."

"Why do you say that?" Rarity asked.

"Well, let's just say that he wasn’t all right in the head," Rich continued. "He was a paranoid stallion who assumed the worst of those around him, even his own son. To make matters worse he's reputation stained our family name, his greed and deceit knowing no bounds. Furthermore, there are rumors that he might have participated in some… occult practices."

Spoiled Milk rolled her eyes, clearly having heard this on more than a few occasions.

"Give me a drink dear," Spoiled Milk said as she plucked a drink off of Gash Bloom's tray.

Despite the spoiled mare's reaction, you found this information to be rather interesting. You could probably adjust it for one of your stories.

'His eyes are so haunting.' Irisa shivered.

As you examined the portrait further, the sudden image of the homeless stallion you had encountered on the way home appeared in your mind.

"Where is your father now?" you asked nervously.

Mister Rich gave you an uncomfortable look. "At the Ponyville Asylum for the Insane."

Almost as if on cue, there was a flash of lightning outside. Looking around you could see that a few of the ponies were a bit disturbed by this. One such pony was one of the twins carrying a tray of appetizers.

"Are you okay, miss Gloom?" you asked, trying to comfort the mare while also distracting yourself from the fact that you might have met Filthy Rich's mad father earlier.

The twin smiled at you. "Actually I'm Gash Bloom."

You shook your head, returning the smile. "No, Gash Bloom is the one serving drinks."

"What makes you think that we didn't swap trays?"

"Because even if that were the case, your mannerisms returned to your happy normal self, after I distracted you from the lightning."

Flash Gloom gave you an impressed smile. "Very clever."

"So are you okay?"

The twin looked a little nervous. "I'm just not a huge fan of thunderstorms is all."

You nodded. "That's understandable, but I wouldn't worry about it."

The thunderstorm had been scheduled by the weather team to help with the Nightmare Night theme, so you were sure that everything was under control.

"So why is your sister upset?" you asked, as you took a spinach appetizer. Even as you chewed on the snack, something felt a bit off.

"I'm actually not too sure," Flash Gloom said, "she was fairly happy for a while, then Caramel came over and her mood changed."

"Really."

Flash nodded. "He had suggested we sleep together and I was like, sure that could be kind of fun."

You nearly coughed up the appetizer. "What?"

"Yeah, I mean love slumber parties, so I didn't see the harm in it, but apparently it just soured Gash's mood."

A part of you was shocked by what you had heard. Was Flash Gloom really so innocent that she didn't realize that Caramel was hitting on her or was she trying to trick you, like she had just moments ago?

Though that did explain why Gash Bloom was so displeased.

"I don't think it's a slumber party that he was wanting."

Flash gave you a confused look. "Then what else could he want?"

Looking over at the stallion in question, you saw him speaking with the snobby, Spoiled Milk. He certainly was a sly little stallion.

'Master, do you think he is trying to find somepony to mate with?' Irisa said, eliciting a slight blush from your cheeks. It was about then that your insides started to feel like they were twisting and churning.

"Is something wrong, sir?" Flash Gloom asked.

'Are you okay, master? You're looking a little green.'

Your insides gurgled. It felt almost as if there were worms squirming inside your stomach. Was there something wrong with the appetizer?

"Ummm… if you will excuse me, I need to attend the restroom."

'Would you like for me to accompany you, master?'

You gave Irisa a quick look and shook your head, signaling that you didn't want her following you.

Slowly you walked to the door, not wanting to aggravate anything too soon. As you made your way to the door, the butler spotted you.

"Is everything alright sir?" Randolph asked.

"Could you show me where the restroom is?" You wheezed.

"Absolutely sir, right this way."

Randolph escorted you down the hallway to the bathroom. As pristine as the room was your attention was more focused on expelling whatever it was that had upset your stomach.

Hunching of the Ivory throne you proceeded to violently vomit into the bowl. While the process probably only took a few minutes, to you it felt like hours.

After splitting up the last of the bile, you flushed the toilet and walked over to the sink to wash your hooves. As you were washing a sound caught your attention.

Tap. Tap. Tap.

As you heard the noise, you could have sworn it was coming from the mirror. Almost as if somepony was tapping on the other side of the mirror.

"I wonder if something was wrong with the appetizer." You groaned.

With your hooves you splashed some cold water onto your face. Feeling clean and a little empty, you emerged from the bathroom. There Randolph stood, patiently waiting for you.

"Are you feeling better, sir?"

You nodded. "Yes, thank you."

There was a bright flash of lightning outside and the crack of thunder, before the lights went out. Moments later you heard a scream from the trophy room.

Fearing that something might have happened to Irisa you ran to the door, the image of its frame burned into your eyes as another flash of lightning illuminated the hallway.

You were about to pull open the door when suddenly the door swung open and slammed right into your nose. The pain flashed through you like the lightning outside.

"Are you okay sir?" Randolph asked.

"Oh, sorry about that." Sunshine Smiles said, verifying that she was the one who slammed the door in your face.

"I'm fine," you groaned, "just make sure everypony else is okay."

After recovering from your nose pain, you followed Randolph into the room.

"Is everypony alright?" You heard Applejack call out, off to your left.

Lights began to fill the room as the unicorns that were present illuminated their surroundings with their magic. Pale blue and light pink energy began to radiate in the room. Once you had recovered from your nasal injury, you contributed your own magic to lighting the room.

"Randolph, please light the candles," Filthy Rich instructed.

"Of course, sir."

As the candles were lit, Rarity let out a sharp gasp. Soon it became very clear why as a macabre scene was revealed. On the floor lay both Gash Bloom and Flash Gloom, their heads completely severed from their bodies. A surprised expression marred the twins' faces.

Aside from the thunder outside, the room was quiet and still. It was as if everypony hoped that by being silent, the scene before them would disappear and the party would return to its jovial mood. However nothing changed. Finally Mr. Rich spoke, breaking the silence.

"Let us go downstairs into the dining hall. Randolph, could you please move the bodies to a more secure location?"

"I would advise against that," you spoke up.

"Agreed," Rarity said, "we don't want to tamper with the crime scene."

"Crime scene?" Trixie inquired anxiously.

"Yes," Rarity replied, "it isn't normal for ponies heads to just pop off last I checked."

Looking back to the twins you observed the killing incisions. Each of the cuts along the necks were straight and clean. No blood leaked from the bodies, merely a black ashy powder. It would seem that the killing blow was delivered by magic or an extremely hot blade.

Filthy Rich nodded, "No, no, you're right. Well, could we at least cover the bodies with a blanket?"

"Yes, I suppose that would be fine." Rarity said, grimacing at the grotesque scene.

Even as Randolph came and placed a blanket over the bodies, you couldn't help but feel uneasy. Looking around you could see that you weren't the only one that possessed such feelings and that made matters more difficult. After all, one of them had to be the killer.

Examining the expressions of all the other guests you noticed that most of them carried a sad demeanor. That is except for two ponies. Caramel who had a large scowl on his face and Irisa who was completely absent from the room.

"Now if you will all please follow me," Mr. Rich instructed, "we should go to the dining room and wait for the authorities to arrive."

"Has anypony seen Irisa?" You asked.

"She might be in the study." Rarity suggested, pointing a hoof at the door that was now open.

As the rest of the group vacated the room, you walked over to the door and stepped into the study. The room was dark, save for what little light came through the window. More of the room came into view as the light from your horn illuminated your path.

"Irisa, are you in here?"

There was a moment of silence before a familiar voice entered your head. 'Master?'

Peering around the room you saw Irisa, huddled in a corner, rocking back and forth on her haunches. Many of her eyes gazed around the room in a frenzied manner. Slowly, you walked toward her.

"Yes, it's me," you answered, "Are you okay?"

Irisa shook her head. 'No.'

"Are you hurt?"

For a moment Irisa was silent. 'I remembered it again. I try to forget, but it keeps coming back.'

Tears leaked from multiple eyes on Irisa's body.

"What do you remember?"

Once more Irisa shook her head. 'I don't want to talk about it.'

So that's how it was going to be. Just like before, she wasn't going to talk to you about what was bothering her. This filled you with a sense of fear and insecurity. You weren't sure which was a more dreadful thought, the idea that she didn't trust with this matter or that perhaps this secret was so horrible that it was crippling for Irisa to talk about.

As you pondered this, Irisa looked up to you.

'The twins... are they...?'

It seemed that even this was difficult for Irisa to put to words.

You nodded. "Yes, it would seem that both Flash Gloom and Gash Bloom are no longer with us."

"Blank walls and empty space. White ceramic covering writhing red flesh, chewy pulsating muscle moving behind the walls. The smooth walls devoid of sockets for lifeless, ever watching eyes."
-Scribbles on a White Wall

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As Irisa and you entered the dining room to meet up with the others, the sound of yelling could be heard.

"You did this, didn't you?" Caramel barked, raising a hoof at Trixie, who was currently positioned behind a defensive Filthy Rich.

"I did not!" Trixie protested.

"Really?" Caramel growled, "You're the one with the magic show where you dismember ponies on stage!"

"It's an illusion!" Trixie retaliated. "Besides, nopony dies in my show either!"

Spoiled Milk smiled mischievously. "Well, I'm sure we all know that if this had been my party that none of this would have happened."

This statement elicited a dirty look from Trixie, causing Spoiled Milk to chuckle.

"Will ya'll quiet down?" Applejack said, stepping forward. "The truth is we're all suspects. With the exception of two ponies, everypony was in the room at the time of the murder, which means that anypony that was in the room when the lights went off could be the killer."

Rarity sighed. "Yes, which means that until the authorities arrive we all just need to stay put."

"I fear I have bad news," Randolph spoke up. "It would seem that the phone line is out as a result of the storm. We have no way of contacting the guard until morning."

"Well, I'm not sticking around," Spoiled Milk growled. "I have no intention of sticking around with a killer about."

"I'm afraid you have no choice ma'am." Randolph said.

"Why not!" Spoiled barked.

"Well, one of the twins, Flash Bloom I believe, had suggested that we lock the doors to add to the Nightmare Night atmosphere," Trixie explained. "I thought the idea was fitting and so I had it implemented."

"You're joking!"

Trixie gave Spoiled Milk a sly grin, clearly pleased with the other mare's annoyance.

"Once miss... er... Milk arrived," Randolph spoke, "I locked all the doors and gave the key to one of the twins."

That coincided with what you saw with Gash Bloom leaving the room after talking with the butler earlier. Unfortunately that meant that the key to the house doors could literally be anywhere on the premises.

"So you're saying that we're stuck in here with a killer on the loose?" Caramel inquired.

"Yes, I'm afraid so darling." Rarity nodded.

Randolph let out a slight cough. “Furthermore, it would seem that the Mister Rich’s family axe has gone missing.”

There was some murmuring among the group. Applejack turned to you, a weary look in her eyes.

"I hate to say, but it looks like it's up to you Sugarcube to figure out what happened and who's responsible for this."

You were suddenly conscious of every eye in the room staring at you.

"So, what would you have us do?" Filthy Rich asked.

Quickly you considered what you had to do. Remembering what you had read in various detective novels as well as a few of the stories in your own stories.

"Randolph, is there another room that could be used to interrogate the guests?" you asked.

"There is one, sir." Randolph answered.

You nodded. "Then I guess it's time to start fishing for clues."

The first pony you questioned was Sunshine Smiles, the mare responsible for the injury to your nose. Seeing as she had been trying to flee the scene at the time it made her a strong suspect.

"Hello Miss Sunshine Smiles," you started.

"Please just call me Sunny," Sunshine giggled, "all my friends do."

You weren’t sure if this was her attempting to flirt with you or she was genuinely happy at the moment. Her bright smile, a strong contrast with the face she had made during the party.

"Sunny, do you mind telling me who invited you to this party?"

"I was invited to the party by Trixie's husband, Mr. Rich," Sunny answered.

"So you know Filthy Rich?"

"I know him enough to know that he doesn't like being called by his first name," Sunny replied. "Of course there are two other mares who know him much more intimately than I do. Though if you're wondering how I know him, I just so happen to be his wife's favorite author."

"Really, I am an author myself," you said, somewhat excited to meet another writer. "You don't suppose it would be rude if I asked you which stories you've written?"

"Oh, I don't mind. I'm actually flattered, you asked. My two most popular series are The Wonderful Tales of Little Scarlet as well as A Peek Behind the Lavender Veil."

As an author, you possessed some familiarity with these two series. The Wonderful Tales of Little Scarlet was a series of books you had recommended for Irisa to read and it had become one of her favorite novels. As for A Peek Behind the Lavender Veil, while you hadn't read it, you had heard of it being a saucy story of a mare being romantically persuaded by monsters in another world.

"I guess that would make your pen name, S.S. Lovely."

Sunny blushed and let out a little giggle. "Guilty as charged."

It would certainly seem that she was flirting with you. You decided it would be safer to draw your attention back to the case.

"Did you come alone this evening or did you bring somepony along as your plus one?"

Upon asking the question, Sunny's cheerful disposition disappeared, replaced with a frown. "Yes, I brought mister playcolt out there, along."

"You mean, Caramel."

"Yes," Sunny sighed. "I had hoped that perhaps we could have had a wonderful evening. Perhaps we could have been conveniently locked out on the balcony, the situation evolving from a moment of terror to that of pleasure. A spicy moment of romance all to ourselves."

Sunshine Smiles let out a happy sigh and you wondered if maybe what you had thought was flirting before was just a part of Sunny's personality. A part that made you feel a little uncomfortable.

In a moment, Sunny's annoyed look returned. "However that dumb colt had to start drooling over every mare in that room. Even that poor mare in the Little Scarlet costume had to deal with his salaciousness."

"Actually it's a Little Red Trotting Hood outfit," you said.

Sunshine Smile shrugged.

"I modeled Little Scarlet after the mare in that fairy tale, so sometimes I can't tell the difference."

"At the time of the murder, you were trying to flee the room. Could you tell me why?"

Sunny placed a hoof to her lips. "I assure you that while it looks rather… suspicious, I wasn't trying to flee the scene of the crime. I had been caught off guard by Rarity's startled scream and had gone to the door to call for help."

"I see."

It did make some sense considering the circumstances.

"Who do you think is responsible for the twin's death?" you asked.

"As much as I would like to say that it was my date, Caramel has such a weak spot for mares that I doubt he could kill one, even if his life depended on it, let alone two," Sunshine Smiles answered. "However, I do feel that Filthy Rich's first wife might have had something to do with it."

"You mean Spoiled Milk?"

"Yes, as much as she liked to fool around behind his back, Spoiled loved the fortune that having such a rich husband entailed. You could say she enjoyed having her cake and eating it."

"Then why kill the twins, why not Trixie?"

"Because it would be too obvious," Sunny replied. "This way, Trixie is now a suspect and if Spoiled plays her cards right, she could potentially make Filthy's new bride look like the killer. The perfect revenge."

"Well, thank you for your time."

"Oh, the pleasure was all mine, dear." Sunshine shot you a wink.

Next you decided to talk to the lady's stallion himself. Caramel sat in his chair, a smug smile on his face.

"Good evening Caramel."

"Sure if you wish to call it that," Caramel said sarcastically.

You sat down across from him.

"It's merely a figure of speech," you replied. "Of course, if we can find the murderer and prevent any more death, then it truly will be a good evening."

"I can agree to that," Caramel chuckled. "So what is it you would like to talk about?"

"Did you happen to know the twins before this evening?"

Caramel shook his head. "I had seen them around town with Trixie but I didn't have a chance to meet with them until this evening. It's a shame though, they were pretty cute too."

"Yeah, I suppose they were." You weren't too sure how reliable Caramel was going to be, due to his sparky behavior. "Do you know why Gash Bloom was upset this evening?"

"Well, I'm not sure which is which, I just thought I would ask them both if after the party they would like to come back to my place for some... coffee," Caramel said. "One of them was super excited but the other wasn't. It's a shame too, it could have been a lot of fun, but well... you know what happened."

Yep, it would seem that Caramel was a player and that he might have been trying to round up some twin action. Poor Sunshine Smiles, this guy really was a bad pick to bring along to a party. As you listened to Caramel's statement you remembered something that Gash Bloom had said.

"There are just somethings I don't like sharing is all."

This probably implied that Gash Bloom didn't want to share the same coltfriend as her sister, which is fair. You probably wouldn't want to share your special somepony with your brother either. As you pondered this you felt a slight pain in your chest. It would probably be good to ask another question to think about something else.

"Do you know what happened to the axe?"

Caramel shrugged. "I thought I heard the sound of something metallic hitting the floor shortly after the scream but that is all I can remember."

"I see."

Perhaps the axe was still in the trophy room. You would definitely want to check and see if you could find it. After all it was potentially the weapon that took the twins' lives.

"Earlier you accused Trixie," you said. "Why was that?"

"Have you not seen her show?"

"No, actually I haven't."

"Well, basically she puts them in a box and takes a saw, like one of the saws you use to cut a wooden board and would cut them in half. Surely if you can cut somepony in half you can cut their head off too."

"I guess I can see the logic in that, but that doesn't mean that she is the one responsible."

"I suppose you're right," Caramel answered. "It made more sense in the heat of the moment."

That seemed fair, still you had no evidence pointing in that direction, so you decided to ask another question.

"At the time of the crime, somepony was heard screaming," you said, "do you know who it was?"

Caramel squinted as he pondered who it might be. "I can't say for sure. The voice sounded feminine and mature in nature. So I would guess either Spoiled Milk, Sunshine or perhaps even Trixie."

Assuming what Sunshine Smiles had said was true, then it would indicate that either Spoiled Milk or Trixie was the one who screamed. As you pondered this, Caramel leaned forward, leering at you slightly.

"So how has it been going between you two?"

"Hmm?"

"You know, you and that cute maid of yours," Caramel said. "I'm sure the two of you get around to all sorts of fun stuff in that house of yours."

"Our relationship is strictly professional," you answered, glaring daggers at Caramel. Not to pleased with the idea that Caramel was thinking of something lewd going on between you and Irisa.

"Really? The way she kept looking at you throughout the night, you would think she had strong feelings for you."

In Caramel's defense, he didn't know that Irisa could communicate telepathically with you, using her eyes. While a part of you hated to admit it, a part of you was actually kind of pleased that Caramel had told you about his observation. Perhaps as horrible as this secret was that Irisa was keeping to herself, she still trusted you.

You waved a hoof. "We are just friends. I helped her out and now she helps me around the house."

"Right." Caramel said, giving you a suggestive wink.

"I think we are done for now."

Taking a lantern with you, you started to search the trophy room for the axe. In the light of the lantern, the shapes of the trinkets, trophies and paintings on the walls took on a creepy appearance. The light reflecting in the eyes of the mounted timber wolf, seeming to bring it to life, the shadows casting the illusion that it was breathing.

The bodies of the dead twins were covered with a couple white blankets, their presence making you feel uneasy. The way the light cascaded across the cloth draped over the deceased bodies, you'd swear they were breathing underneath.

Shaking your head you focused back to the matter at hoof.

"If I was a killer, where would I hide the murder weapon?"

Looking around the room, you checked to see if maybe it had been hidden behind a curtain or under something. As you carefully looked around, your eye caught something glistening behind a cabinet. Stepping closer to the source, you realized that it was in fact an axe head.

With your magic, you reached behind the cabinet and pulled out an axe and examined it. Like Irisa had said there weren't any magical runes on the axe head, though there did appear to be some on the leather wrapped around the handle. While your knowledge of magical runes was rusty, you were able to deduce that these runes were to enhance the strength of the wielder.

"I see, Stinkin Rich was able to cut through those timber wolves not because of any offensive magic that axe was enchanted with, but because it gave him the strength to cleave through them."

Yet that wouldn't explain the twins' fatal wounds.

Looking back at the cabinet, you noticed that it was underneath the stand where the axe had previously been mounted. So if this wasn't the weapon that dealt the killing blow, then why had it been misplaced?

Even if it wasn't the murder weapon, it was possible that the murderer could still use it or that one of the survivors might take it and act hastily with it. Two deaths was more than enough, you didn't need more.

Looking around the room, you tried to see if there was perhaps some place to hide the deadly instrument. After a quick observation you saw a suit of armor underneath the mounted head of a hydra. Immediately a clever idea came to mind.

Carefully you removed the suit's helmet before placing the axe inside. Once the weapon was concealed, you put the helmet back in place.

"Perfect."

With a satisfied grin, you left the room. As you walked through the hall, there was a flash of lightning and for a moment you thought you saw somepony’s shadow coming through the window. Was somepony out there?

Rarity and Applejack were next to be interrogated. While Applejack looked a little grumpy, Rarity actually seemed rather sad.

"So we're suspects," Applejack grumbled.

You nodded. "I'm afraid so."

"Well, I didn't do it!" Applejack interjected.

"I didn't say you did," you answered. "Until we find Filthy Rich's axe, all I can do is ask questions and look for clues. Can you both tell me what happened when the power went out?"

"I was fetchin' an appetizer when the lights went off," Applejack answered. “Aside from the yellin' afterwards, I didn't see anythin' out of the ordinary."

You looked over at Rarity, who had been quiet for the whole interrogation. Though strangely enough she had been rather withdrawn since Irisa and you joined the party.

"What about you Rarity? Did you see anything?"

"I'm not quite sure," Rarity replied, "after the lightning struck and everything went dark, I heard a scream. I looked in the direction and for a brief moment I thought I saw a spark."

"A spark?"

"Yes, it was almost like simmering coals reigniting for a few seconds before flashing back out."

"I see," you said. “Now, somepony said they heard you screaming."

Rarity shook her head. "No, I was shocked when I saw the twins' bodies; however, I never screamed. It was somepony else who screamed."

"Do you know who it was?"

"I don't."

You sat there considering what you had heard. None of it helped with the case.

"Okay, well thank you both for your time," you said, "if I need anything else I will have Randolph fetch you."

Applejack stood up and walked out of the room. Rarity however, stayed behind.

"How is Irisa doing?" Rarity asked.

"She is a little nervous due to this whole situation, but I'm sure she will be fine."

"No, I mean after yesterday," Rarity clarified.

Hearing Rarity's statement you recalled the incident at Rarity's boutique. You remembered how Rarity had accidentally wounded Irisa and how that had affected her mood for the remainder of the day. While a part of you trusted both of the mare's before you, a part of you felt uneasy revealing further details about Irisa's background to them.

"She is healing," you answered.

"Wait, what now?" Applejack asked.

You looked into Rarity's eyes, peeking for any sign of malice or betrayal that might be lingering behind those blue spheres. All you saw there was remorse, as she turned her gaze from you back down to the table.

"It's nothing Applejack," Rarity answered. "I accidentally poked Irisa with a needle while I was making her costume was all."

"Oh, I'm sure she'll be alright," Applejack said. “After all if she has someone like our friend here, then she'll be okay. Ah'm sure she'll forgive you."

Even as Applejack said that, the dream you had had where the male Irisa was strangling you, lingered in your mind. Could this all have been a murder attempt by Irisa to kill Rarity, in order to maintain her secret. While a part of you hated it, this was indeed a possibility.

Next was Spoiled Milk, the previous misses Rich. Her stance was that of a mare with a superiority complex. Gazing upon her, you wondered how such a mare had wormed her way into Filthy Rich's heart.

'Maybe she was a nicer mare before she got her hooves on her husband's money,' you considered.

"Well, let's get this over with shall we," Spoiled Milk said. "I didn't kill them. If anypony is to blame, it's that TRAMP!"

No doubt, the "tramp" she was referring to was Trixie.

"Do you have any evidence to support your accusations?" you asked.

Spoiled huffed. "Do I need to, it's clearly obvious. She let some commoners into my house and now one of them is trying to kill us!"

You weren't sure that Spoiled Milk was aware that you were one such guest, so you decided to play off of her antagonism. "So you’re suggesting that only commoners can be murderers then."

"Oh, you know what I mean," Spoiled growled, "she should have properly screened her guests before inviting them. Naturally if this was my party, I would have been very strict to prevent something like this from happening."

"While that might be true, do you have any evidence that any of them are the murderer?"

"No," Spoiled Rich grumbled.

"Now do you have any evidence that can help me eliminate you as a suspect?"

Spoiled Milk frowned, clearly having no defensive response.

"In that case, I will continue this investigation," you said. "Now during the power outage, somepony screamed. Do you know who it was?"

"No, I do not," Spoiled retorted.

You considered her stern reaction, wondering if she was hiding something or retaliating out of anger in response to your previous questioning. As you observed Spoiled Milk's mood, it became clear that she wasn't going to be a cooperative witness, at least not at the moment.

"Well, thank you for your time," you said, "if anything occurs to you that could be helpful for the investigation, please let me know."

A disgruntled Spoiled Milk stood up from her seat and walked toward the door. Upon reaching the door, Spoiled turned around, a sly smile on her face. "What about her? Is she innocent?"

"Who?"

"Your maid."

The question struck you like a hidden blade. While you hated to admit it, Spoiled Milk was right. Irisa was indeed a suspect. She was in the room when the murder occurred and you now knew that she possessed a unique ability, something you had little to no knowledge about. Could Irisa's smoke have potentially inflicted that fatal wound upon the twins?

Needless to say, it would be foolish to assume her innocence. Still you couldn't help but feel a twinge of annoyance in response to Spoiled Milk's smile.

"I will be questioning my maid later," you answered. "Now, I suggest you join the rest of the group and do your best to not anger them. After all one of those... commoners might be wanting your head next."

Spoiled Milk smiled, clearly aware that she had struck a nerve. "Fine."

Then there was Trixie and Filthy Rich, the hosting family this tragic evening. The two of them sat next to each other, holding hooves as they waited for you. Mister Rich looked caringly at his wife, while Trixie looked sullenly down at the table. From the circles under the mare's eyes, you could guess that Trixie had been crying earlier.

"Good evening, mister and misses Rich," you said, as you sat down. "I hope you understand that I'm just trying to get the facts and find the pony responsible for this."

"Of course," Filthy Rich nodded.

"Could the two of you tell me your relationship with the twins?"

"Well, honestly I didn't see that much of them," Filthy Rich answered, "they don't usually come over unless they are working for my wife and when they do, they're usually working on a routine."

You looked over at Trixie, who seemed focused on the table in front of her.

"Is everything okay, misses Rich?" you asked.

Trixie looked up, a surprised look on her face before bobbing her head. "I'm sorry, I'm still a little shocked by this is all."

You nodded. "It's totally understandable. Could you please tell me about your relationship with the twins?"

Trixie straightened her posture. "Well, I was working on trying to do a magical tour around Equestria when I happened across the twins, Flash Gloom and Gash Bloom, they showed me a magic trick of theirs and it inspired me to try out some new tricks. After some practice sessions around Ponyville we were going to prepare for a special event that is coming up."

"In fact, Trixie and I were going to make an announcement tonight," Filthy Rich explained, "but, with the arrival of my ex-wife, it was delayed."

"I see," you said. “Do you know anypony who might want to bring an end to this performance?"

"Aside from Misses Milk, I can't think of any," Trixie replied. “As time has gone on ponies have grown fond of the great and powerful Trixie! Also the twins are… were fairly popular as well."

"Could you tell me what you were doing when the power died?"

Trixie nodded. "My husband and I were talking with Sunshine Smiles right as the lights went off. I obviously couldn't see, so I clung to my husband for protection."

"It's true," Mister Rich said.

Well, they seemed to have a solid alibi. Granted if they were working together, they could have dispatched the twins and be covering each other's tracks. Still there wasn't any evidence of that. Except...

"Mister Rich, you seem like an intelligent business pony," you said, "so tell me, why did you want to move the twins' bodies?"

As you mentioned this, you saw a drop of sweat run down Filthy Rich's face.

"Is that really important?" Trixie asked defensively.

Filthy Rich raised a hoof. "No, Trixie, our friend here has a valid point."

After taking a deep breath, Mister Rich wiped the sweat off his brow.

"I will confess that that was rather foolish of me," Rich said, "when I was a young colt, I stumbled upon a dead body in the woods. Due to the trauma of the event, I developed Necrophobia, specifically a fear of corpses. Even seeing a dead body in a movie makes me feel anxious."

That made some sense, it was very possible that Filthy Rich's phobia could have kicked in when he saw that the twins were dead and that may have been why he wanted the bodies moved. At least nothing ended up being tampered with.

The door creaked as Randolph stepped into the room. "Sir, I moved the heads just as you asked."

"You did what!" You looked angrily at mister Rich. "I told you not to tamper with the evidence!"

Filthy Rich looked at you apologetically. "I felt that it was disrespectful to leave the heads on the floor where somepony could trip over them, so I had Randolph take them to the cellar where they would be safe until the authorities arrived."

While a part of you wanted to bite the wealthy stallion's head off, you could also understand his thinking. Flash Gloom and Gash Bloom were good mares, they didn't deserve this kind of treatment.

"Fine," you said, "but NO MORE tampering with evidence. Understood?"

Rich nodded. "I understand."

Now that that matter had been settled you could return to your interrogation.

"Did the twins have a room here?" you asked.

"No," Trixie answered, "though they did hang around the prop room a lot during practice."

"May I see this room?"

"Certainly, Randolph, can you show our guest to the prop room?" Trixie asked.

Randolph gave a bow. "Of course, my lady."

"Here is the prop room, sir," Randolph said as both of you entered the room.

"Yes, thank you."

Randolph waited outside of the room as you went about your examination.

The prop room consisted of numerous items including a magic box covered with stars, a few mirrors, some rope, a rack with some costumes, even a large circular saw. While you had heard of someone being cut in with a saw, a saw of this caliber just seemed a bit like overkill.

As you pondered this, you recalled what Caramel had mentioned about the show.

"...She puts them in a box and takes a saw, like one of the saws you use to cut a wooden board and would cut them in half."

Perhaps Trixie was trying to upgrade her act to make it seem more dangerous.

"I guess there's nothing too grand for the great and powerful Trixie," you mumbled to yourself.

As you looked around the room, you tried to find things that would have belonged to the twins. Examining the mirrors, you saw some photographs typed onto the corners, showing Trixie and the twins at some of their shows. The three of them seemed very happy in the photographs.

Tap.

The glass of the mirror you were looking at, seemed to shiver.

Tap.

What was this?

Tap.

What was going on?

The glass of the mirror stopped moving. Despite that, you couldn't help but feel uneasy about whatever was causing this. The memory of what Filthy Rich had said came to mind.

"...there are rumors that he might have participated in some… occult practices."

Could Mister Rich's father be involved in this somehow?

As you glanced around the room once more, something caught your attention. There was some sort of weird stain on the neck hole of the magic box. Reaching out with a hoof, you touched the stain, a faint grainy substance lingering on your hoof. Pulling it back you examined the dark substance.

It was... ash.

Looking over at the saw, you saw a similar stain on the saw's teeth. It was faint, but still present. Didn't the twins have ash coming from their headless stumps?

"What is going on here?"

This would almost indicate that the twins were decapitated here, but how was that possible?

The last suspect you were going to have to question was going to be the most difficult pony to deal with.

Sitting in front of you was Irisa, your faithful maid, or so you believed. Now you were uncertain, her secrets and the events of the evening, filling your mind with doubt.

"Hello Irisa," you greeted.

Upon hearing your greeting, Irisa's eyes which were aloft, now focused on you. With a smile, Irisa bowed her head to you. 'Hello master.'

"Now I have some questions, I need to ask you. Are you ready to answer them?"

'Of course, master.'

"Do you remember what happened before the lights went out?"

Irisa took a deep breath. 'Yes, miss Rarity was trying to talk with me, however I didn't feel comfortable due to the... incident, so I tried to distance myself.'

"I see," you replied, "I'm sorry to hear that."

'You are?' Irisa looked at you, clearly worried that she had somehow offended you.

"Yes, I talked with Rarity earlier," you answered. “She was very concerned for your health after she poked you. She probably feels bad since you've been avoiding her."

Irisa looked down at the table. 'I'm sorry master. Would you like for me to apologize to her?'

For a moment you considered Irisa's inquiry. While you definitely thought that she should apologize, you didn't want her doing it just because you had instructed her to. Such an action could increase Irisa's dependency on you.

"I will leave that decision up to you," you answered, "for now I have some questions I need to ask."

'Yes, master.'

"After the power went out, did you notice anything?"

'I heard a commotion,' Irisa answered, 'after that I heard somepony scream and I panicked.'

"So you fled to the study."

Irisa nodded 'I felt around in the darkness until I found the doorway. I just felt that I needed to get away.'

While you considered this information, a worrying thought occurred to you.

"Did you use your eyes to feel your way to the door?" You asked, remembering Irisa's shadowy appendages.

Irisa looked down at the table, a look of shame stretching across her face. 'Yes.'

Now you were concerned. While you were pleased with Irisa's honesty, you still had no idea what those tendrils could do and the nightmare you had endured the night before, added further to your unease.

Was it possible that Irisa had accidentally decapitated the twins with this ability?

'I'm sorry, master,' Irisa said, clearly noticing your concern.

You shook it off. "No, it's fine. I'm glad you're safe."

Yes, she was safe, but if she did kill the twins, accident or not, how long would you be able to protect her?

You paced around the candle, considering the evidence you had gathered. Who was the one responsible for the death of the twins?

After much consideration you removed Applejack and Rarity from the list of suspects. Despite occasionally being overly dramatic, Rarity was a caring and generous mare who would gladly give the shawl from around her shoulders to help somepony else. The idea of her killing the twins over a disagreement seemed overly drastic.

Not only that but your examination of Filthy Rich's axe showed that despite the entrepreneur's statement, that the axe was just a regular axe. While Applejack was certainly strong enough to wield such an instrument, the injuries the twins had sustained to their necks were that of a magical nature. This indicated that it wasn't the murder weapon and that Applejack as well as the other earth ponies present, were innocent.

That narrowed it down to two suspects, Sunshine Smiles and Trixie. You frowned and shook your head.

No, three suspects. Unfortunately, while she wasn't a unicorn, having learned of Irisa's abilities, meant that she was also capable. If she could communicate through her eyes and manipulate her surroundings with those ethereal limbs, there was no telling what else she could possibly do.

So the suspects were Sunshine, Trixie and Irisa. Three potential magic users, all capable of using their talents to bring the twins' lives to a tragic end.

Then as you considered the evidence you had collected, a sad smile crept across your face. There was only one more piece of evidence you needed to prove your suspicions. Not only was the decapitation of the twins coinciding with Trixie's magic tricks but the ash around the twin's necks and the props linked the case back to her.

"Randolph." You said, coming to a halt.

"Yes, sir?" the butler stood at attention.

"Round up the guests," you answered, "once you have done that, I would like for you to bring me some of the ashes from the twins' bodies."

"Very good, sir."

You took a deep breath as Randolph left the room. Things were about to become tense.

The ponies glanced around the room anxiously and paranoid as you returned to the dining room. It was reasonable after all as far as they were aware, one of their fellow comrades was a murderer and who knew when they might strike again. All of them looked to you for answers. Fortunately you had read enough mystery novels to know how to act off of this.

"Hello, everypony,” you said, as you paced about the room. "Earlier this evening a pair of twins were murdered and one of you is the culprit! The question... is who?"

"Yeah, who?" Spoiled Milk interrupted.

"Hey, quiet!" Sunshine Smiles retorted, "I was enjoying his dialogue."

Spoiled Milk frowned at the other mare's remark.

You smiled. "Don't worry, while I am certain that I know who the murderer is, I thought I would present all the facts while Randolph acquires the last piece of evidence I need to prove who the killer is."

Glancing around the room, you noticed that aside from Irisa, everypony else seemed to be able to keep their composure. Irisa on the other hoof was looking at the floor nervously.

"The truth is, many of you had a reason to want the twins dead," you said, "however, only a few of you possessed the means to kill them."

Once more you looked around the room, seeing if any response or reaction could hint as to who was guilty. Slowly you turned your attention toward Trixie.

"I checked the prop room where the twins would hang out during their stay here and I discovered something interesting. I found some ash, not only on the saw but also on the neck areas of your magic box."

"What are you saying?" Trixie asked, giving you a dirty look.

As you peered into the magicians eyes, something just felt wrong. Yes, she looked angry, but could she really be the killer? Nonetheless, so far the evidence seemed to be pointing that way.

"The axe wasn't what killed the twins, therefore that leaves only magic and if my hunch is correct, the ash on the twins necks will match the ash found in the prop room, which links the twins death to you misses Rich."

Hearing the door to the dining room open, you turned to see Randolph standing there.

"Randolph did you find the ash on the twin's bodies?"

"Ummm... sir, I wasn't able to."

You looked at the butler, a little irritated both by this news. "Why not?"

"The bodies sir," Randolph answered, "they're gone."

"What do you mean?"

Suddenly the sound of something shrieking could be heard, echoing off the walls. The screech made your blood run cold as if a wendigo had breathed into your veins.

Quickly you looked around the room, counting the group you saw that everypony was accounted for... except two. The twins.

"What's that?" Applejack asked, a look of concern on her face.

Another screech echoed through the halls, louder this time. As you heard the horrifying noise, stories of undead ponies began coming to mind, but one in particular stood out.

"Wraiths,” you muttered.

"A what?" Caramel asked.

It was believed in times past before the unification of the tribes that if a pony died a violent death on unholy ground that they might be reanimated as undead that would hunt the living, avenging their deaths by causing other ponies to share their fates. If what Filthy Rich said about his father studying the occult was true, then it was possible that this house might be considered "unholy ground," and with the twins being murdered, it was possible that there was not one but two wraiths now stalking the premises.

When being hunted by a wraith, there was only one thing you could do to survive.

"Mister Rich, is there someplace more secure in your house?" you asked.

"There is a panic room connected to my study," Filthy Rich answered, "why?"

From what you could recall reading about wraiths, they would continue to reside in the area of their death until sunrise. If that was the case and these were truly wraiths, then there was hope that you and everyone here could survive. You would just need to stay safe until morning.

"If that is what I think it is," you replied, "then we need to get everypony in there, right now."

"But what about the killer?" Spoiled Milk protested.

The sound of a third haunting cry echoed throughout the halls. It was drawing closer.

"Something tells me that the killer is the least of our concerns, darling," Rarity said.

Cautiously everypony followed Filthy Rich out into the hallway, moving toward the steps so that we could ascend to the second floor. As Filthy Rich, Trixie and Randolph led the way, the others followed with Irisa and you taking up the rear. Another screech could be heard in the distance.

Suddenly out from the corridor stepped a terrible monstrosity. It possessed the headless body of one of the twins, a ball of violet flame flickering from the severed stump. The creature stood there, separating the rest of the group from you and Irisa. With its head raised high, the creature let out a terrifying, ear piercing screech.

There was a brief glance between you and the rest of the group that had made it up the stairs. It became very clear that you and Irisa were cut off.

"Run Sugarcube!" Applejack called out.

As the monster let out another terrifying cry, Irisa and you fled, the sound of hooves hitting the floor behind you. Looking forward you saw an open door.

"There!"

Running into the room, you found yourselves in the kitchen. Looking around you saw a door that you were sure led to the dining room. Running over to it, you tried to open it; however, it was locked.

"It's locked!"

'Over here, master!' Irisa exclaimed.

Trotting over to Irisa, you saw her sliding open a metal door in the wall with one of her shadowy appendages. It was a dumbwaiter. Seeing this you were surprised you hadn't noticed it before. Amazing!

"How did you know this was here?"

'I learned about it in one of the books in your collection.'

Looking inside the dumbwaiter, you knew that it would be cramped but that both you and Irisa could fit inside.

"Let me help you up."

'No, you should go ahead, master.'

As much as you wanted to argue with her, the thud on the kitchen door, alerted you to the headless ghoul's presence. With haste you pulled yourself into the dumbwaiter.

"Alright, climb in!"

Irisa was about to pull herself in when the kitchen door slammed open A shriek filled the air as the monstrosity entered the room. The creature's neck swaying back and forth, the violet flame spouted forth, illuminating the room. Irisa looked at the monster and back to you, her many eyes opened wide with surprise before suddenly a calm expression stretched across her face, the corners of her lips lifting into a smile as she stepped backwards.

"Irisa what are you doing?"

'Take care, master.' Her voice was closed off as her shadowy claw slammed the metal door shut. As the door closed you could hear gears moving and grinding as the dumbwaiter began to descend.

"Irisa!"

You couldn't hear Irisa from behind the door. All you could hear was the turning gears and another loud shriek.

As the dumbwaiter descended there was a jolt and suddenly the box began to fall. Metal scratching on metal as you plummeted into the depths.

Fear gripped your heart, both for Irisa's safety and your own as you drew near to your fate.

The container lurched as it crashed to a sudden halt, causing your head to slam into the metal wall and you saw no more.

"It wonders the halls, a beast with eight tails and twelve legs. Strands of wire link all it ensnares to its talons. Its prey, helpless and bound. With its fangs it fills the rooms."
-Scribbles on a White Wall

Afterparty

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You sat in a chair, cross legged as you watched your "guest" who lay tied up on the couch.

While his shadowy limbs had caught you by surprise, you were still able to use your magic to pick up a book off the shelf and slam it into the back of his head. Now you sat, waiting for the stallion to awaken and explain themselves. During your wait you had cooked up a bowl of red, lentil soup, taking an occasional sip with a spoon.

Eventually the shape on the couch, stirred. Multiple eyes slowly blinking before opening wide once they realized their predicament. Feeling their bonds, the stallion began to struggle, though with how weak his body was, it was unlikely that he would be able to escape.

"Hey, easy!" You spoke up. "I'm not going to hurt you! Though you do have some explaining to do, considering the stunt you pulled! Now sit still!"

Hearing your command, the stallion went completely still, his only movement being the blinking eyes covering his body and the rise and fall of his chest.

"Good. Now why don't you tell me your name."

The stallion remained silent.

"Look I know you can talk or at least something similar."

You could recall hearing his voice even though his lips were still. Ventriloquism perhaps? Despite your statement, the stallion remained silent.

As you examined your soup, an idea popped into your head.

"How about this, if you answer my questions, I'll give you some of my soup. If you can prove yourself trustworthy, I will untie you and give you the whole bowl. What do you think?"

All of the stallion's eyes blinked in unison.

"Alright, let's try this again. What is your name?"

For a moment it was silent and you wondered if perhaps the stallion was refusing your offer. Then you heard the stallion's voice and it sounded almost as if he was standing right next to you.

'I... I am Iris.'

As you had promised, you scooped up some of your soup with a spoon and levitated it over to Iris's mouth. Like a parent feeding a sick child, you placed the spoon inside his mouth and he ate. Taking back the clean spoon you proceeded with your questioning.

"How are you able to communicate this way?"

'When I look at others, I can talk to them through my eyes,' Iris explained, 'though that scares most ponies so I don't do it often.'

Giving Iris another spoonful you considered what he had said. Could this be some form of telepathy?

"Why did you attack me?"

'I was afraid, that once you knew what I was, that you might talk to somepony who would send me back to that place.'

Another answer, another spoonful.

"Back to what place?"

For a moment Iris was quiet, his eyes looking around the room nervously. Then all but his two main eyes closed shut.

'The White Rooms.'

Opening your eyes, you beheld nothing but darkness, your body aching all over from your fall. Your surroundings felt cold and gritty.

"At least I'm not dead." You mumbled to yourself.

While you were sore, you knew that the pain signaled that your nerves were intact and therefore hadn't suffered any damage to your spinal cord thankfully.

As you tried to pull yourself up, you allowed your magic to flow through your horn, illuminating your surroundings. Looking around you saw that you were presumably in the Rich family's basement. Trying to step out of the dumbwaiter, a sharp pain shot up your right leg.

"Crap, I must have broken it!"

Looking around the room, you saw shelves containing various items. Among them were some metal rods and some fabric. As you observed these items, you recalled reading about a character in a similar situation.

"I sure hope mister Rich doesn't mind me borrowing these."

Taking two of the rods and the cloth, you tore the fabric and tied the metal rods to your leg, creating a splint. While it wasn't comfortable, it did seem to support your wait for the meantime.

"There, that should do until I get proper medical attention."

With a painful step, you picked yourself up and limped your way to the door. As you drew close you heard a noise. Upon noticing it, you stopped to listen, trying to discern if it was one of the headless ghouls. The longer you listened, the more you recognized the sound as weeping.

Had Irisa found her way down here or perhaps one of the other guests?

Glancing around the room you saw the entryway to two other rooms, one that was dark and the other that possessed a small yellow light illuminating the inside. From what you could see there were rows of wine barrels within the lit room. Believing that one of your comrades was hiding within, you limped over to the wine cellar.

"Hello?"

As you called out, the crying stopped, feeling the area with an eerie silence.

Peering into the wine cellar, you saw rows of wine barrels as well as rakes holding some fancy wine bottles. As you entered the room, you caught the scent of a slight musty smell.

Next to the rake was a wooden table, upon which rested a blanket covering two large objects. Taking a deep breath, you reached out with your magic and pulled away the blanket. You gasped as you unveiled two heads underneath. The decapitated heads of the twins.

Almost out of morbid curiosity, you examined the two heads closely. Both of their eyes were closed, almost as if they were asleep.

'Such a shame,' you thought to yourself, 'to have died so young.'

You were about to walk away from the sight, when you noticed something on one of the twin's cheeks. The black stain of mascara almost as if the dead twin had been crying. Placing a hoof against the mare's cheek two sensations caught you by surprise. Not only was the flesh still wet but it was warm.

"ACHOO!" You were startled as the head next to the one you were touching let out a sneeze.

Both of the heads looked at you, then each other then back to you.

"Wait are you both still alive?" You asked.

"Ummm..." One of the heads mumbled.

"Yes?" said the other.

You looked at them in silence. Finally it was the head that had sneezed that spoke up. "Please don't crush us, sir!"

"I'm not going to crush you," you answered, "but could you please explain to me what's going on?"

The twins' eyes turned back to each other, then back to you.

"Gash Bloom and I, are what you'd call, Dullahans." The head that had been crying answered.

"Dullahan?"

The word seemed familiar but you couldn't recall where you had heard it from. Perhaps from some research for one of your novels.

"Yeah," Gash Bloom said, "from when we were teenagers both Gash Bloom and I have had to keep track of our bodies."

"Our parents warned us that if anypony discovered that we were Dullahans that they would crush our heads and we would die."

Hearing the twin's explanation, you recalled where you had read about Dullahans before. They were said to be ponies, whose heads were separated from their bodies. Other tales said that Dullahans were undead that would drag sinful ponies into the depths of Tartarus. If a pony was being hunted by a Dullahan, the only way they could stop the Dullahan was to destroy its head.

As you considered this information, you pondered what had been happening prior to this point.

"So you're not dead?" You asked.

"No!" Both of the twins said simultaneously.

You considered what had happened, trying to piece together the mystery that had been puzzling you hours ago. It was then that you remembered the headless bodies that had scattered your party and had caused Irisa to sacrifice herself so you could escape. Panic gripped your heart at this matter.

"Your bodies, you need to stop them before they hurt anypony!"

"Hurt somepony?" Gash Bloom asked quizzically.

"Why would they do that?" Flash Gloom asked cutely.

"Well, with the fire and the shrieking!"

"You mean the fire that comes from our necks?" Gash Bloom inquired, "those flames are completely harmless."

"Yeah, you can put a hoof in it if you wanted." Flash Gloom said happily.

"But please don't actually do that." Gash blushed slightly.

"I don't mind it." Flash smiled.

"W-what about the shrieking?"

"Well, that serves two purposes," Gash answered, "One is a defense mechanism to try and scare off any potential assailants. The other is that it allows us to hear our bodies so we can direct them back to us."

"However, we haven't been able to hear them." Flash said.

Hearing these words, a few gears in your mind began to clear and process what had happened. Calmly you started to focus on another question you had for the twins.

"Do either of you remember how you got here?"

"Well, the power went out," Gash replied, "somepony screamed and I bumped into somepony and my head was dislodged."

"Me too!" Flash said.

Finally things were starting to fall into place and you understood that in the end, there was no murder. Just a big misunderstanding, due to the involved parties being unaware of the complete circumstances. Or were they? A thought occurred to you about this matter.

"Does Trixie know that you're both Dullahans?"

The twins glanced at each other, before looking back to you, simultaneously saying, "Not exactly."

"We sort of convinced her it was a magic trick," Gash Bloom explained, "which might have inspired her to do the whole dismemberment tricks."

"Then she hired us to be her assistants." Flash Gloom said.

That eliminated the odds that this was some sort of elaborate prank set up by Trixie. Still there was one mystery that remained. who was it that had screamed?

"Well, I guess this is the end." Gash said.

"What do you mean?" You asked.

"Even if we were able to find and reunite with our bodies," Gash explained, "everypony thinks we're dead. Our lives as we know it are over."

"I guess we'll have to go somewhere else," Flash said, "maybe we should move to the town of Hollow Shades, that might be a nice place."

It was a pity that all of this had happened. Because of this accident, these twins would be forced to leave the lives they had carved out for themselves, all because everypony thought they had perished. IF they found their bodies, their secret would be out in the open and nothing would be the same. They would have to stop working as Trixie's assistants and move on.

But what if they didn't have to?

Trixie had been working on the dismemberment magic act for a while now and surely some were growing tired of it. What if her act could use a little remarketing.

"There might be a way to fix this."

"You think so?" Both twins asked.

You nodded. "Yes, however we need to find a way to escape this basement first."

"Well, two heads are better than one." Gash stated.

"And we have three." Flash said cheerfully.

Gash Bloom gave her sister a bemused glance.

"So do you have any ideas?" You asked.

The two heads looked at each other, until suddenly Flash Gloom's eyes lit up. "In the storage room! There is a secret passage to the prop room in the storage room!"

"A secret passage?"

"Yeah, apparently Mister Rich's dad had made it to peep on his maids," Flash explained, "which is why they changed the maid's quarters."

That was... concerning, but you currently had other things you were worried about.

"So how do I access this passageway?" You asked.

"There is a lever on the side of an old grandfather's clock," Flash Gloom explained, "pull the lever and the clock should move aside. Also the storage room is just next to this room, so you should be able to access it from here."

"That room is a little messy," Gash Bloom continued, "so you should be cautious when searching for it."

You gave the twins a bow. "Thank you."

"Wait! What happens to us?" Flash asked.

"Don't worry," you answered, "I think I might have an answer that will explain your disappearances and sudden revival."

Stepping out of the wine cellar you walked into the storage room, the light of your horn guiding you.

As you walked through the storage room you noticed something strange sitting on one of the shelves. Something twinkling among the dust. Curious, you lifted the item off of the shelf and after quickly blowing the dust off, you examined it. It was in fact a book with a dark leather cover with a blue gem encrusted in the center.

Pulling back the cover, you discovered a title page with the words, The Way of the Wondering Worm, written on the page in black ink. Seeing the text, you remembered your encounter with the homeless pony from the other day.

"The Wandering Worm! The Wandering Worm is coming!"

Assuming this book belonged to Filthy Rich's father, then it was very likely that he was also the homeless stallion you encountered. Even as you examined the book a part of you was curious as to it's contents. At the very least it might give you some ideas for one of your novels.

"Well, I doubt Mister Rich would mind if I borrowed this."

After stowing away the book, you resumed your search for the secret door out of here.

Tap. Tap. Tap.

You suddenly came to a halt when you heard something tapping. For a brief moment you thought you might be just imagining things when suddenly you heard it again, to your left.

Tap. Tap. Tap.

You turned your head, to see a mirror standing there, however there was something off about it. On the other side of the glass wasn't your reflection, instead it was a familiar stallion with a tan coat and brown mane. Behind his round glasses were two blue eyes. His right hoof was up against the glass.

Tap. Tap. Tap.

Horrified you fell back on your hunches, your leg screaming in pain from the sudden movement.

A chill ran up your spine as you recalled who that stallion was, a pony that had vanished from your life several years ago. The stallion's lips moved as warped words resonated from the glass.

"Hello, brother."

Then in a blink of an eye, the reflection of your brother disappeared, almost as if it had never been there to begin with.

"I really need to get home and have a good night's sleep." You grumbled as you resumed your search.

Looking about you were pleased to see the clock that the twins had described. A tall, wooden clock resting next to the wall. Above the clock's face, was the curving of an elderly stallion's, well... face.

With a limp you approached the old clock, its wooden frame made of strong oak, the carved face covered with flaking blue paint. Looking at both sides of the clock, you spotted the lever on the right side. Reaching out with your magic, you grasped the oak lever and pulled.

The sound of old metal gears could be heard moving within the clock. Stepping back you watched as the curved face on the front of the clock began to move, its mouth and wooden eyes opened in an uncannily surprised manner.

"Ack!"

You jumped back as you observed a black spider crawl forth from the stallion's mouth. Almost as if one queue, as soon as the spider had crawled out of sight, the clock began to move, revealing a secret staircase.

Slowly you ascended the dusty steps, wood creaking beneath your hooves. With your injured leg, you ascent felt like it went on for hours, when in truth it was probably only a few minutes. Reaching the top of the steps, you discovered a wooden wall with a matching lever on the side.

Pulling the lever, the wall pulled back revealing the prop room interior. Stepping into the room, you saw Irisa at the door.

'Master, are you alright?' Irisa asked as she saw you. Her eyes were open with a few forming shadowy tendrils that barred the door, which shook violently. Even though your maid had secured the door it was clear that it was forcing a strain on her.

"What's going on?" You inquired.

'The wraiths,' Irisa answered, 'they followed me here, however I've been able to hold them off.'

So the dullahan twins' bodies were trying to reconnect with their heads. Now it was clear what needed to be done.

"Open the door."

'What?' Irisa's eyes shot wide open as she looked back over her shoulder at you, her eyes filled with confusion. 'But master, the wraiths...'

"They are not wraiths."

You could understand her hesitation, considering what little information she had on the situation.

"Trust me," you answered, "they don't wish us any harm."

For a moment, Irisa seemed to struggle with your instructions, however after giving you one last glance, she relented.

'Yes, master.'

Stepping off to the side, Irisa closed all her eyes resulting in the shadowy appendages bracing the door to evaporate.

Immediately the door slammed open as two headless bodies charged into the room releasing a horrifying screech. Both of the necks swayed side to side as if searching for something, then focusing on the doorway you had emerged from. Suddenly the lavender flames turned blue as the dullahans' bodies charged forward.

You barely had time to move aside as the headless bodies ran past you. As the bodies descended to reclaim their heads, you turned back to Irisa and gave her a smile. The maid gave you a bewildered look.

'Master, what just happened?'

"That Irisa, was two bodies heading to an important meeting.”

While you thought it was a funny joke, Irisa didn’t seem to understand it. It would also seem that the universe didn’t think it was that funny either as suddenly a sharp pain ran up your leg, reminding you of your injury.

"Ugh!"

'MASTER! ARE YOU OKAY!' Irisa asked, all her eyes opened wide in panic.

"Nope!" You answered, shaking your head. "But we need to get the others... So I can solve the case and end this once and... For all."

With Irisa's assistance, you were able to vacate the prop room.

"Thank you all for coming," you said, "I know tonight has been very stressful for all of us."

With some convincing you and Irisa had managed to encourage the other partygoers to leave Filthy Rich's panic room. Now they all sat around the dining room table, their mannerisms still expressing concern, especially Spoiled Milk whose eyes kept flickering back and forth at anything that moved.

"So ya sure those things are gone?" Applejack asked.

"They've been taken care of," you answered, "Now I'm going to fill you all in on what happened this evening."

"I'll tell you what happened," Spoiled Milk scoffed, "this TRAMP brought a murderer into my house!"

"Your house!" Trixie barked, "This stopped being your house the day you started cheating on your husband!"

"Oh, you just had to bring that up, didn't you!"

"Spoiled Milk." Caramel spoke up.

"Yes?" The way Spoiled spoke to Caramel reminded you of a filly trying to charm her new coltfriend. Had something happened between the two of them this evening? Come to think of it, where did his costume go?

"Please let our friend finish what he was going to say," Caramel said.

"Very well dear." Spoiled Milk said, before turning and motioning with a hoof for you to proceed. "Please continue."

Yes, it would seem that Caramel and Spoiled Milk might have hooked up. You had to shake your head as a few... disturbing images involving the two of them ran through your head. A shiver went down your spine.

With a cough you continued your speech. "Earlier this evening the power went out causing some panic among us. During this time, somepony screamed and when light was brought into the room it was discovered that Trixie's assistants were found seemingly dead, their heads separated from their bodies."

You looked around the room, most of the ponies were nodding their heads in agreement, with the exception being Rarity who looked at you in a puzzled manner.

"It was later discovered that Mister Rich's axe, a family heirloom was missing and it was deemed to be a potential murder weapon," you continued, "since Randolph and I were not in the room at the time, we were deemed innocent and I proceeded to interview you all. It was shortly after that that the bodies of the victims began to haunt these halls."

"Yes, but who is the murderer?" Sunny Smiles asked.

A smile stretched across your face as you looked back to Rarity. "Is something on your mind Rarity?"

"Well, you said that the twins were seemingly dead," Rarity said, "what did you mean by that?"

Applejack blinked a couple times. "Yeah, that's an odd thing fer you to say. They were dead, we saw their bodies."

"Did you?" You said, giving them all a mischievous grin.

It was then that the other ponies began to share both Rarity and Applejack's expression. Even Irisa cocked her head to the side in a quizzical manner.

"Uh, yeah we did," Spoiled Milk grumbled, "we saw them lying dead on the floor."

You raised a hoof and tapped your brow. "Yes, we saw them there lying on the floor, but they weren't dead. Not only that but I can prove it."

Clapping your hooves together, you signaled for Flash Gloom and Gash Bloom to enter the room. The door creaked open and the dullahans entered the room and immediately you could feel all the other ponies in the room going into shock. The twins stood on either side of you, both looking around the room nervously.

"Wait... how?" Trixie asked, looking very confused.

"How are they not dead," you answered, "like you the twins here have some talent with magic. A trick that inspired your recent set of magic tricks. They can… remove their limbs or more specifically their heads."

The rest of the partygoers looked at Trixie, some in shock and others with anger.

"You knew about this?" Spoiled Milk growled.

Trixie looked at you intently, a pleading expression on her face.

"Actually no," you said, "while Trixie was aware of their trick, she didn't know how it worked. Sure she worked with the twins to create more creative acts involving dismemberment for her show, however Trixie had no idea that this was going to happen. When the lights went out, somepony screamed, causing many of the ponies in the room to panic."

You paced between Flash and Gash. Both of the twins looked nervous. Of course, you had no intention of revealing their dullahan natures and instead you were weaving a logical and convincing lie to cover their tracks.

"The twins here we're among those ponies and when they collided with each other, they accidentally activated their trick, causing their heads to topple to the floor, causing both of them to fall unconscious."

"But what about the flames and the shrieking?" Sunny asked.

"That my friends is a bit of a security measure the two of them set up when formulating this magic trick," you explained, "just in case their bodies are separated from their heads for too long and are far away. The sound and illusionary flame serves as a way for the twins to relocate their bodies."

A partial truth for sure, but a convincing one nonetheless. You couldn't help but smile slightly as the other guests seemed to be buying all the information you were giving them.

"But why?" Rarity asked.

"Yeah, why did they have the trick set up to begin with?" Applejack asked.

"Why indeed," you replied, "well my guess is that it was supposed to be part of a surprise. Both of them were aware of an announcement that both Mister and Misses Rich were going to make this evening. No doubt they intended it to be an amusing joke to go along with good news, unfortunately the presence of an unwanted visitor and a power outage delayed the matter."

You could feel Spoiled Milk's angry gaze fixed on you and if looks could kill, they would. Fortunately the spoiled mare lacked the abilities that Irisa had.

"Yes, so unfortunately all of the events of the evening have been the result of a complete mishap."

Feeling your sore leg, you walked over to a chair and sat down.

"However nopony can leave this place," you continued, "without saying that they had a Nightmare Night to remember."

A few of the ponies after pondering this statement, nodded in agreement. The only pony who seemed to still be annoyed was Spoiled Milk.

"So what was the announcement?" Caramel asked.

Filthy Rich stood up. "The announcement was that Mayor Mare has been looking for ways to increase tourism here in Ponyville and has commissioned me to create a theme park on the outskirts of the town."

Trixie stepped forward next. "And that my show will be one of the park's attractions."

"Which means that my wife and I will be able to spend more time together." Rich said, placing his hoof around Trixie's shoulder in a loving manner.

Scrunching her nose, it was clear the Spoiled Milk wasn't too fond about this arrangement but currently wasn't in the mood to argue.

"Can we leave now?" Spoiled Milk growled.

One of the twins pulled a key from within her outfit. "Yes, I believe you can."

Judging from the twin's demeanor it was probably Gash Bloom that had answered. While the twin gave the key to Randolph, the other twin drew closer to you.

"Thank you." She whispered.

"No problem," you replied softly, "however I strongly suggest you tell Trixie the truth to avoid any further misunderstanding."

The twin that you believed was Flash Gloom nodded, though it was clear that she was nervous about the idea. Still if Trixie didn't know then what would occur if something like this happened again? Plus as showy was Trixie was, you were pretty certain that she would keep a secret if it added in the illusion for her show. Then again it was also possible that she might use it and everypony would just think that the twins being dullahans was all a part of the show.

"And thus the mystery comes to it's conclusion," Sunny said, "it's not much of an ending but I'm sure my sister would find it intriguing."

"Wait so who was the pony that screamed?" Applejack asked.

You shrugged. "I guess we may never know."

"Well, if we're done, then I would like to leave," Spoiled Milk grumbled, "Caramel was going to show me some of his paintings."

"I was?" Caramel asked, seeming confused.

"Yes, back at your place, remember?" Spoiled said, raising her eyebrows.

It wasn't hard to tell what she was implying. It was perfectly clear that it wasn't paintings that she was interested in. You coughed as you tried to distract yourself from a few unwholesome images that popped into your head.

"Oh yeah. In that case let us be off my dear." Caramel said, right before smacking Spoiled playfully on her hindquarters.

Immediately Spoiled Milk let out a cry of shock with a hunt of arousal. A cry that was very similar to a certain scream that had been heard earlier that evening. Everypony's eyes were wide with surprise.

With an embarrassed cough, both Caramel and Spoiled Milk left, leaving the rest of the room wide eyed and a few blushing. In fact, you could even feel your own cheeks heating up.

Irisa looked at you, her cheeks a slight tinge of red. 'Master, I think it is time for us to head home.'

You coughed. "Uh, yes. I think so too."

As Irisa and you approached the main entrance, you were shocked to see that the front door was left wide open. The wind that blew through the door and had blown out the candles, leaving the room in pitch blackness save for the occasional lightning that flashed through the windows.

Even as you surveyed the scene, you could tell that something was off. While both Caramel and Spoiled Milk might have been a bit too eager to leave the scene, you didn't think they would be the kind of ponies to just leave the doors wide open.

'What's wrong, master?' Irisa asked.

You pondered why the doors might have been left this way. Had Caramel and Spoiled been frightened off? If so by who?

"I'm not su-"

There was a flash of lightning through the windows, illuminating the room as well as a shape off to your right. As you turned toward the intruder and another flash revealed the intruder's form.

It seemed to be a green mare with a fluffy, curly green mane, her mouth opened wide with a strange almost sparkly substance leaking from her mouth. Her body was covered in ragged dirty clothes and in her hooves was a knife.

The intruder lunged toward you, their dagger aimed right for your throat.

'MASTER LOOK OUT!!!'

Out of the corner of your eye, you watched as a shadowy appendage reached out from Irisa and pushed you out of the way.

As you fell to the floor, you could only look on with horror as the intruder's blade came in contact with Irisa's body, cutting into her flesh…

Or it would have if the knife were real. Instead the rubber blade bent off to the side, leaving Irisa unharmed. The intruder stepped backwards, seemingly confused by what had just happened.

"WITCH!" The intruder yelled.

Suddenly the sound of numerous hooves and lights filled the room as a group of ponies in medical attire jumped through the door and grappled the intruder, causing their mask to fall off. Upon closer inspection you realized that it was the plastic mask of a crazed looking mare, with pink paint and sparkly confetti around its mouth.

"No! How dear the great pen in the sky, hide its secret words under Nightmare Moon's gaze and with the cursed arrow of the tyrant sun!"

As the intruder struggled with the medical ponies, you realized that you recognized the intruder's voice. It was the homeless stallion from the other day. Slowly you pulled yourself off the floor.

It was about then that Randolph along with Mister and Misses Rich entered the room.

"What is going on here?" Filthy Rich called out.

The homeless stallion looked up, a crooked smile on his face. "Ignorant child, do you not recognize the vessel whose seed brought you into this inky world?"

Trixie squinted. "Wait is he?"

Filthy Rich let out a sad sigh. "Yes, this is… was my father."

Slowly the medical staff began to drag out Rich's father, however that didn't prevent him from bellowing out some sinister words in his wake.

"You're all fools! The portal will open and the Vermillion Hourglass will return! None shall escape! You will all be taken into the plastered bones of the great work! Mark my syllables!"

Everypony just stared as the mad Rich senior was dragged away. Once the crazy stallion was gone, Irisa turned giving you an ashamed look.

‘I’m sorry, master.’

Walking over to Irisa, you gave her a hug. “No, thank you, Irisa.”

Indeed, this was going to be a very memorable Nightmare Night.

With a limp you walked into the living room, a special package resting on your back. Inside the living room, Irisa was moving about excitedly as she set things up so that the two of you could watch the series premiere of Dusting Doubt.

'I'm so excited!' Irisa said happily.

You chuckled. "I can see that."

A dull pain ran through your injured leg. Fortunately you hadn’t broken your leg, however you had sprained it badly and so the doctor had advised you to keep it wrapped and to put as little weight as possible on it.

Upon learning of this, Irisa had been so upset that she blamed herself, since she had been the one to push you into the dumbwaiter. However after some convincing your maid had calmed down.

As Irisa's many eyes looked around the room, one of them caught sight of the package you were carrying. 'What's that?'

"Take a look for yourself," you said, showing the present to her.

Irisa blushed at the gesture. 'Master, are you sure?'

"Yes, I wanted to thank you for helping me."

'Oh, master you didn't have to do that. I am more than happy to serve you.'

Using your magic, you levitated the package over to her. "Please take it."

Her cheeks still red, Irisa smiled and opened the present. Her eyes widening pleasantly as she pulled forth a penguin onesie. 'Thank you, master.'

"Do you like it?"

'It's wonderful master,' Irisa answered, 'thank you so much.'

As you smiled at Irisa's joy, you remembered that there was something important that you needed to do.

"Hey Irisa, why don't you go try that on?"

'But master, shouldn't I grab some popcorn for the show?'

"I'll fetch the popcorn," you replied, "go try on the outfit. I am curious to see how it looks on you."

With a blush, Irisa smiled and ran off to her room to change into the onesie. Once your maid was gone, you stood up and limped your way to the kitchen.

On the counter was a popcorn maker with a shiny metal bowl holding a sizable amount of popcorn. You were pretty sure there would be more than enough popcorn for the two of you.

However what had drawn your attention was the faint noise of something breathing.

After seasoning the popcorn with some garlic salt and butter, you took a small bowl and put in some popcorn. With a limp you walked over to the breadbox and after looking around, making sure that nopony was present, you pulled the breadbox aside, revealing a small horizontal slit in the wall. The sound of some creature breathing became more apparent with the slots unveiling.

Using your magic, you poured the popcorn you were carrying into the slot. Once all the kernels were dispensed, the breathing stopped. Satisfied for the time being. As much as you hated it, you knew this needed to be done. It was the last thing he instructed you to do after all.

Placing the breadbox back where it belonged, concealing the feeding hole in the wall. Once you were certain that it was secure you fetched another bowl, filled them both with popcorn and returned to the living room.

It was about then that Irisa had returned, wearing the penguin onesie you have bought her. Her body was covered in black fabric with a white, circular pattern on her belly, attached to the outfit was a black hood with a small, orange triangular piece to represent a beak.

'What do you think?' Irisa asked smiling.

You returned the smile. "I think you look really cute in that outfit."

Irisa blushed. 'Thank you, master.'

With that concluded, both of you sat down on the couch with your popcorn. The television flickered on as you turned it on with the remote, the series premiere of Dusting Doubt was about to begin.

As it reached time for a commercial break, you stretched your hooves. With your magic you picked up the bowls.

"I'm going to fetch us some more popcorn, okay."

'Master… there is something I need to talk to you about.'

The look of concern on Irisa's face told you that she was a little nervous.

"What is it?"

What few of her eyes you could see on Irisa's body looked around as if trying to help her find the words to speak.

'You were wondering who, "they" were, right?'

For a moment the room fell silent. Even though a commercial for some overpriced item was running on the television, your attention was completely focused on Irisa.

"If you don't want to talk about it, I understand." You said.

'It's not that,' Irisa answered, 'it's just that I don't remember much about it. All and can recall are the ponies in those white suits and that white maze.'

As Irisa spoke of a white maze, you remembered what Jagged Nibble had said during your trip to Haywaii, of white rooms. The feeling that there could be such a connection.

'I'm sorry I couldn't tell you before master,' Irisa continued, 'I was just afraid. Thanks to you bringing me into your home, I have not felt so happy before in my life. I just don't want those old memories ruining it is all.'

That was understandable, if Irisa had experienced the same things that Jagged Nibble had gone through, then you could understand why she would want to avoid bringing it up, or that she might be afraid of returning to such a place.

You smiled and gave Irisa a hug. "If you don't want to talk about it, then you don't have to."

'Thank you.'

After you grabbed some more popcorn, the two of you resumed watching the show. At some point during the show, Irisa must have fallen asleep, her head resting on your shoulder.

It was nice to know that she trusted this way. Even so, you still couldn't help but feel uneasy about what she had told you.

'How’s your tea, ma'am?'

Iris stood across the table from you wearing a butler uniform. Despite your efforts, the strange stallion had insisted on wearing it.

Taking a sip of the green tea, you were pleased by its flavor. "It's delicious, thank you Iris."

'You're very welcome my lady."

"You really don't have to refer to me by that if you don't want to."

Iris bowed his head in a subservient manner. 'Madam, it is the least I can do considering how you've treated me in spite of my actions. It will be a pleasure for me to serve you.'

You let out a sigh. It seemed that Iris was going to continue his role as your butler a little while longer. Not that you were going to complain, it would be great to have some help around the house. Also he looked kind of cute in that butler outfit.

"The pleasure is all mine, Iris." You said as you took another sip of your tea.

"In order to escape the belly of the ivory beast we must follow the moth, it will save us from this fate. However it must first grow. Grow from a worm into a great fuzzy moth. Only its wings can take us to safety. Praise the moth with many eyes."
-Scribbles on a White Wall

Don't Lose Your Head...

by Robipony

Invitation

Macabre

Searching

Afterparty