Thursday 22nd February
“I’m glad you’re coming with me, to be honest,” Autumn said, as she and Lyra disembarked from the train at Ponyville station, “I can’t help but feel I’m not particularly welcome here after what happened in June.”
“I’m sure that there won’t be any trouble,” Lyra said, “It might have been awkward if you ran into Dinky or Ruby, but Dinky's in London and I'll diffuse any tension if we run into Ruby. Anyway, I know my way around here.”
“It still feels off, disappearing off to Ponyville for much of the day.”
“Technically, we’re on duty,” Lyra replied, “We’re conducting an investigation, it just so happens that lunch time falls in the middle of it, and it also means we’re away from her for a while.”
“And what can I do for you?” Berry asked, as the two of them entered the Traveller’s Rest.
“Well, we might as well get the, er, unpleasantries over with,” Autumn said.
“Unpleasantries?” Berry asked.
“Belladonna said that she was ‘concerned’ about the fact that your daughter lives surrounded by alcohol. I have no idea how she suddenly become concerned about the fact that a pub would serve alcohol, but, and I know this sounds like the most stupid question ever, do you store supplies in your daughter’s bedroom?”
“What? That’s ridiculous. Ruby and I sleep upstairs, and all the alcohol is stored in the cellar, to which I have the key. And to preempt another of her ‘concerns’, while I like to have the odd drink, I’m not a heavy drinker - why would someone running a pub drink their profits?”
“In that case,” Lyra said, “What caused Belladonna to get on your case?”
“I think I have a rough idea…” Berry replied.
Monday 18th December
“...then it’ll be time to blow the final whistle on this silly agreement.”
Belladonna smirked as she turned around and walked away, registering the devastated look on Derpy’s face. Of course Chelsea weren’t going to win the treble; all she was doing was saving her from heartache further down the line.
According to her timetable, there was time for a drink before the next train to Canterlot. She remembered passing a pub on the way from the station, and decided to stop there. She arrived at the pub, entered it, and walked up to the bar.
“Good afternoon. I'll have-” she began, but Berry cut her off.
“Get out of my pub,” she said, forcefully.
“What?” Belladonna asked, taken aback.
“You heard me, out! And stay out; You're barred for life! And if you don't vacate these premises in the next five seconds I'm calling the constabulary!”
Thursday 22nd February
“So Belladonna wanted Ruby taken away because she got banned from here?” Autumn said, as their food arrived, “That's wrong on just about every level imaginable.”
“We can't prove that, though,” Lyra replied, “Which is most likely why she waited two months before making her move. If it works and Ruby ends up being taken away, then she gets her revenge, and if, as thankfully in this case, it doesn't, then nopony is going to be able to prove it. We need solid evidence, and we don't have any. It would just be written off as a coincidence.”
“In the same way I can't prove that she's tampering with the visitation forms,” Autumn said, looking up, as if for guidance, at the TV, which was showing a replay of David Beckham's free kick against Arsenal from the previous evening.
Saturday 24th February
“...ahead of this evening’s London Derby, several Tottenham players have said that they want revenge, not just for the match in October, but also an apparent dispute between the two sides which took place in the tunnel after said match.”
“That’s the first I’ve heard of it,” I said, “Maybe they’re so desperate to beat us in the league that they’re making stuff up now. Then again, we both saw how Galatasaray reacted after the second half on Tuesday.”
“But surely they’ll be fresher? After all, they didn’t play in midweek...” Dinky said tentatively.
“Maybe, but that comeback against Galatasaray will be a huge boost. Not only that, but we call their ground ‘Three Point Lane’ for a reason.”
“A ding-dong derby here at White Hart Lane this evening,” Kick Off announced, “With Tottenham hosting Chelsea. The Blues come into this match on a massive high after their win over Galatasaray in midweek, but there was no midweek game for Tottenham, as they received a bye from UEFA for their UEFA Cup Round of 32 tie against Feyenoord. Chelsea are without Michael Essien, who picked up a knock, as well as Carvalho and Cech who are still not fully fit. Tottenham, meanwhile, know that a win will see them climb to sixth in the table, after Portsmouth’s 0-0 draw against Aston Villa...”
At half time, the score stood at one goal each. The deadlock had been broken after 37 minutes, when Robbie Keane had fed in Aaron Lennon, the England winger firing the ball past Cech to give Tottenham the lead. Chelsea’s response had been nearly instantaneous, with Drogba sending a piledriver past Robinson from 20 yards four minutes later.
The second half, however, was a lot more tentative, and it took nearly half an hour for the first real chance to emerge, as Drogba ran onto a loose ball and sent his shot over the bar. Four minutes later, Keane received the ball from Jenas 35 yards out and tried to emulate Drogba at Everton, but his shot was comfortably caught by Cudicini.
Mourinho brought Joe Cole and Gudjohnsen on, and with eight minutes to go, this paid dividends. Chelsea won possession in the centre circle and Joe Cole played a one-two with Gudjohnsen, before getting past Ledley King and hitting a low shot from the edge of the area into the bottom corner of the net beyond the despairing dive of Robinson.
“...and Joe Cole gets on the scoresheet again!” Kick Off exclaimed, “Eight minutes left, and once again Joe Cole comes off the bench to score a vital goal!”
There was still some fight left in the home side, however, and with time nearly up, they won a corner. Jenas tried to whip the ball into the area, but Kovac intercepted and blasted it upfield, with the match ending a minute later.
Tottenham Hotspur 1-2 Chelsea (Lennon 37; Drogba 41, Joe Cole 82)
“Well, Tottenham miss out on the chance to go back up to sixth,” Big Match said, as he analysed the match with Kick Off and Full Time afterwards, “But Chelsea really seem to be hitting form at just the right time. Can either of you see them retaining their title?”
“It’s unlikely,” Kick Off replied, “But if United were to slip up, then I can easily see Chelsea pouncing and increasing the pressure.”
“Liverpool and United aside, we’ve got a fairly straightforward run-in,” I said, as the two of us boarded the train at Hackney Downs to take us back to West Brompton. “And if United run out of steam and we keep winning...well, like I said, bigger leads have been overhauled in the past.”
Premier League Table
1 Man Utd 67pts
2 Chelsea 58pts
3 Arsenal 58pts
4 Liverpool 54pts
5 Bolton 46pts
6 Everton 44pts
…
16 Sheff Utd 30pts
17 Wigan 29pts
18 Charlton 21pts
19 West Ham 20pts
20 Watford 19pts