//------------------------------//
// Subject 222: Cake Sibling Secrets 
// Story: Interviews With Equestrians 
// by Jmaster49 
//------------------------------//

While we waited on the Exorcism Team to arrive--yes it was a real thing--I had to move onto the next patient, er, victim. Jeez, it did feel like I was in a position of a doctor though, huh? Only way more...deadly? Bleegh. Not something I wanted to think about too much.

Anyway, next up was Pumpkin Cake from the Cake’s residence. Now at first I thought that this case would be a bit easier, right? I mean, think about it. Pumpkin came from a well-off home with little conflict in her life. She was the daughter of a wealthy pair of retired bakers and worked with the most skilled pastry chef in the world: Pinkie Pie. What could possibly warp her perception of the world? Surely there wasn’t anything that this disgusting swine of a being could do to get inside of her head, right?

Oh how ignorant I was.

First thing’s first, I called upon her twin brother: Pound Cake from the end of the hall. “My dude. Can you come here for a sec?”

The pale-gold pegasus flew over, and landed next to me. Unable to make eye contact, Pound’s face was full of uncertainty and fear. He nibbled upon his hoof while he stared at the floor next to me. “Y-yes sir?”

Once again, I’d have to take this a bit slower. I didn’t want to traumatize him with any of these questions, though things were about to get ugly regardless. Still, patience was key, Cork. Come on. 

“Alright. Pound Cake, right?”

“Yeah...that’s me…”

I turned towards him. “Has there been anything going on with your sister that we should know about? Anything at all?” 

“Nothing! I swear! There’s nothing that could be plaguing her at all!” the stallion vehemently denied it, all while his knees wobbled like xylophones. His eyes darted upwards and to the left.

Yeah, I didn’t buy it. Not one bit.

I took a step closer. “...My man. I know you’re hiding something. Please. For the benefit of your only sister--think hard. If you know anything--and I mean anything that could help, please explain to me what you can.” I faced him with a concerned, understanding look in my eyes. “Don’t worry. I promise you won’t be hurt for providing evidence.”

His eyes darted to the right, then to the left once more before he shut them and sighed. “Argh...fine.” At last, Pound Cake relented, and started to clarify the details that I needed. “I...read her diary a few days ago and...well…”
Oh dear. That’s why he was so concerned. Well, I couldn’t condone the act of snooping into one’s privacy. However, on the flip side it was nice to know that he was such a caring sibling. Regardless, I needed to put my biases aside and remain neutral as I listened.

“Aaaaand?” I asked with a rotation of my hoof to gesture for him to keep going.

I guess once he realized that I wasn’t gonna chew him out, his body ceased its movements, and he let out the stressful inhale he had taken moments ago. “...whew, um,” he rubbed the back of his head, and started to tell me what he knew. “Basically, I read a little and saw that she was a bit unsatisfied with her life.”

This was good. Now I had finally gotten somewhere. But I needed to know more. “Wait really? Why?” I asked. 

“I don’t know all the details, but i-it has something to do with the fact that she doesn’t wanna run the business anymore.” Pound Cake turned his head away from me. “...I think it has to do with the fact that she knows I’m gonna be involved with Flurry Heart soon. And once we get older, I’ll likely live with her in the Crystal Castle, which will leave Pumps…”

I finished the train of thought for him. “It’ll leave her with the family bakery business...something that she doesn’t exactly want to do now does she?”

“She wants to be enrolled in the School for Gifted Unicorns but has constantly denied it, saying she’d rather stay at Sugarcube Corner since mom and dad have left. But deep down...I know she wants to follow what makes her happy. Sadly, if she does that, it’ll mean leaving the family business alone…” He leaned against the wall, and let out an annoyed groan. “Ugh. I really wish that I could manage being a prince and the bakery at the same time. Unfortunately…”

Okay, this issue was way bigger than what I had initially prepared for. All I could do was use the evidence I had presented to me and do whatever Pale would do. That usually worked, right? And if not, well, I could always wing it. No pun intended.

“Alright, kid,” I pat him once on the shoulder, “Go have a seat, and I’ll make sure your sister comes back to you with a clear mind, alright?”

Pound Cake wasn’t fully eased by my words, but he was able to take a chill pill since he knew his sister would be cared for. “...Alright. I trust you guys.” With that, he flew back over to the bench he had initially came from.

I took a look behind me, and shouted down the hall. “Yo, Quick. Have those folks arrived yet?”

“Almost here! Give it another ten minutes.”

I shook my head, and looked at the interrogation room that the yellow unicorn was in. “Bleh. Can’t wait that long.”

And so, I entered. Likely to the chagrin of Quick. I took a seat across from Pumpkin Cake at the table, and took a look at her. Her eyes were still bloodshot as she stared off into space like a sleep-deprived gremlin. I let out an audible shudder as soon as I made eye contact. “Brrrhgh…”

Just how disturbing could this thing get?