//------------------------------// // Chapter 17 - Dodge Junction Cherry Hill Ranch 1 // Story: Trixie's Threeway Trouble // by crowscrowcrow //------------------------------// The basement of Golden Oaks Library was nestled deep between the roots of the old tree. The only way in or out was a single door. A door that Twilight had recently reinforced with locks since the last break-in. She wouldn’t risk that a second time. Especially not since it was now the hub of her investigation into whoever had taken the book from there. Twilight paced back and forth in front of the large murder board she’d constructed since then.  A timeline stretched across the top and a map of the town made up most of the background. Copious amounts of red string was strung between pins that held pictures of locations and ponies along with notations on potential travel time, motives, and means. A majority of the strings all connected back to Trixie, but she would not allow anypony to say she hadn’t explored other options.  To the right of it all were her two newest additions taped to the large blackboard where an open envelope and a one-page letter. Both had simple black lettering scrawled onto them, an address and a message respectively. Twilight came to a stop and looked up to read the letter again for what felt like the hundredth time. Hey there, Just writing to let you know I’m fine. Here’s another drawing. What followed was what looked to be a poorly scribbled rabbit that took up most of the remainder of the page. It was almost child-like. Not unlike the magical drawing, Trixie had used during her show to illustrate her supposed battle with the Ursa Major. “What does it mean?” Twilight pondered aloud. “I think it’s a rabbit,” a sudden voice from behind her said. “Wagh!” Twilight spun around only to find Spike standing there, holding a plate of food. “Oh! Hey, Spike. I didn’t hear you come on.” “You looked pretty busy.” Spike held out the plate. “You missed dinner, so I brought you some.” “Thanks, Spike.” Hunger was the last thing on her mind, but she’d eat if he went through the effort. She took the plate from him and settled down. Spike didn’t leave. Maybe he suspected she’d forget to finish eating and go right back to her investigation if he wasn’t there. That probably was a fair assumption if she was being honest. He looked at the blackboard with obvious apprehension. “You’ve been down here all day, please tell me you figured out something horrible and you didn’t just steal an innocent pony’s mail.” “Well...” Twilight bit her lip. If she’d found something she wouldn’t have stayed in the basement. “I managed to rule out any magical enchantments on the letter, it’s entirely mundane other than some mild traces of telekinesis which is consistent with a unicorn levitating it.” “So, no illusions hiding the true contents then,” Spike correctly surmised. “Well, yes, but that doesn’t mean there isn't some hidden message encoded here.” Twilight did her best to hide her irritation. “If you take the number of letters in each word and correlate them to the alphabet you get: CEDGBCCEBDEGG.” Spike looked at the section on the blackboard that held that exact phrase, plus several additional phrases that came up when Twilight assumed the correlation did not simply start at A or didn’t count up or skipped some letters. She caught him looking at the string below it. “For that one, I assumed perhaps the code would start at ‘R’ for Rabbit; the drawing might be the key after all. From that perspective, you get: TVUXS—” “Twilight,” Spike interrupted as he turned to face her, one hand on the board. “I’m on your side here. We should find whoever broke in, but this is getting you nowhere. All you did was steal Trixie’s mail and I’m not even sure why. I thought you two were doing okay now.” “We are! I think so at least. She hasn’t done anything overly suspicious lately.” “Then why are you doing this now?” “Well, to be honest… I set this up a while ago and totally forgot about it. It was right after she took a page of blank parchment from here, remember? Back when she distracted me with Rainbow Dash and came here to ‘hang out’ with you for a while. I had that postmare promise to let me handle her next delivery from there.”  “That was weeks ago!” Spike exclaimed. “I know that! I told you, I forgot about it until she showed up with that letter.” She pointed toward the letter on the board. “Which, by the way, is the same type of parchment that went missing, so I was at least right about that.”  “Great.” Spike threw up his hands. “We have her on one count of taking a piece of paper without asking for it. Just too bad you’ll have to admit to mail fraud to confront her with it.” “I get it, okay. I should have refused the letter.” Twilight sighed in exasperation. “I just thought that if I could find something then all of this would finally be over, but I’ve been here all day with nothing to show for it…  So, I’m probably on the wrong track. I guess I’m just glad Trixie didn’t write anything too personal.” If anything, the letter had been weirdly short, which had fueled her initial suspicion that there was more to it. “Oh, uhm, good.” Spike motioned at the letter. “So, what are we gonna do about this?” Twilight plucked the letter from the board and folded it back into an envelope. “What else, Spike? Express Delivery by yours truly. It’s the least I can do.” “I’m not sure if that really makes up for it, but it's a nice gesture. Where to?” Twilight held up the envelope S. N. Dodge Junction Cherry Hill Ranch 1. “Are you kidding!? That’s on the outskirts of Equestria! A trip like that will take a whole day!” Twilight nodded. “You’re right, so we better hurry before the evening train leaves.” Dodge Junction.  It had to be a testament to the uncanny ability of earth ponies to grow a crop anywhere in the world. Even in an otherwise completely barren dust bowl such as this. For the past few hours, the view from the train window had been downright depressing. Nothing but sun-bleached sand and rock red with iron as far as the eye could see. Twilight felt a pang of sympathy for whichever poor souls had the unenviable task of painstaking laying down the tracks they were now speeding across. Even on the train, the heat was almost unbearable. The book she’d brought along for the journey was used for reading as much as it was used to fan herself. Why would anypony voluntarily come here? Spike on the other hand laid back on the opposite bench as if he was comfortable for the first time in his life. The searing heat seemed to agree with him somehow. “Can we move here? It’s like a perfectly sunny day every day.” “I’ll leave you here.” Twilight groaned and laid the open book across in face to get at least some shade. “Don’t think I won’t.” Finally, the train pulled into the station. As Twilight stepped out from the train, she had to wonder if this was the furthest she would ever be from home. She couldn’t imagine ever finding a reason to venture any further. Mercifully, the town itself had a much more livable climate than the desert that surrounded it. which was probably why the acres of cherry trees hadn’t turned to dust yet. It had to be a sustained effort to bring in enough rain and shade to keep the place so livable. “Hey, Twilight,” Spike said with a mischievous grin. “Wouldn’t it be funny if Trixie knew you’d take her letter and deliberately sent it as far away as she could just so you’d go away to check it out? I mean, it does explain why she didn’t put much effort into writing the message. It was just for a prank.” Twilight paused.  “That is a frightfully real possibility that I really wish you’d brought up when we were still in Ponyville…” She looked over to the train schedule with quiet dread. The next train back was not leaving any time soon. “What if this letter was a decoy? What if she sent the real one after we left? No! What if she is planning something while we’re gone?” Spike just shrugged. “Then I guess she’s got us. We might as well do what we came here for, though. I mean, you don’t really think that, do you?” “I… I suppose not.” Twilight sighed and shook her head. “It’s just this heat that’s making it harder to think rationally. And we are not checking it out, Spike.” She couldn’t escape the sneaking feeling she was being played somehow, but for now, she’d focus on delivering that letter. Hopefully, she was just being paranoid. Much like the apple farm, it wasn’t hard to find the cherry ranch. All it took was heading toward the nearest bunch of cherry trees and following the biggest road there. On the way, they spotted a few ponies working to fill a bucket with cherries who helpfully confirmed they were on the right path. “Yup. Right over yonder.” A large rough-coated stallion pointed the way. As he did, the light refracted off of a metallic-looking bracelet half-hidden beneath his long fetlocks. If Rarity had been here, she’d probably remark on how It didn’t seem to match his otherwise rugged look. Something about it was familiar to Twilight, but she couldn’t put her hoof on it. Maybe it would come to her on the journey. Before long the ranch came into view. It struck Twilight as a more modern building than the old farm back in Ponyville. Many more ponies seemed to be coming and going from it as well, directed by a red-maned mare with a southern accent. Was that just how every pony with a fruit tree spoke? As they approached, the mare took notice and came trotting up.  “Oh, well if it ain’t some brand new faces ‘round these parts. Cherry Jubilee, boss of Cherry Hill Ranch. What can I do you fine folk for today? We’re always happy to take on new workers, no questions asked.” “Actually, we’re just looking for somepony.” Twilight did her best to keep a casual smile, but the way Cherry had made the offer for work was strange. “Do you know an ‘S.N.’?” Apparently, something she’d said has put Cherry on edge as well. She gave them both a sharp look for a moment before she continued with just a bit more caution to her voice. “Is that a fact? Well, I got so many ponies working ‘round these parts that it is hard to keep track sometimes. What else can ya tell me about this S.N. to jog my memory?” “Uh.” “Full name, perhaps?” “Well, no.” “Right. What do you need her for if ya don’t mind my asking?” There was more going on here. Twilight was sure of it. Cherry had said ‘her’, which indicated she did know who S.N. was, but she chose to make it difficult for some reason. Twilight would have to think carefully about how she would approach the problem. Spike reached into her saddlebag and pulled out the letter. “We’re just trying to get this to her.” Or that. “Funny, y’all don’t look like the regular mailpony.” Cherry scanned the envelope as it was presented then quickly brought her attention back to the two of them. “Is Swift Wind sick?” “Somehow I doubt that is their actual name,” Twilight noticed a distinct lack of surprise on Cherry’s face. “You can stop trying to test us, we’re not mailponies.” “Figured as much, really.” Cherry held out her hoof. “Well, thanks for bringing it all this way. I’ll take it from here.” Twilight pulled back the letter, Spike and all. “If it's all the same to you, we’d like to see this through.” Cherry grasped for the letter but just missed it. She grumbled but quickly regained her composure as though nothing had happened. “What’s it to you?” Twilight didn’t have a response ready. The flimsy excuse she’d used on Spike was not going to work; the letter was at its destination in record time. She hadn’t admitted it, but she just wanted to investigate whoever the letter went to to put her mind at ease for good. What to say? What was Cherry’s deal in the first place? Why did she have to be so difficult? Meanwhile, the quick physical exchange did not go unnoticed. Twilight spotted a few ponies with a cart sharply changing direction to come their way just a bit faster than looked casual. It seemed they hadn’t quite decided if there was trouble just yet and slowed down after Cherry made eye contact with them. For a moment, Twilight thought one of them was the stallion from before with the bracelet, but she quickly realized it was just somepony wearing the same accessory. Odd to see it twice. Unless there was some connection.  It was largely featureless save for a small half-ring to the side. From what she could tell at a glance it had to be made from simple materials, a common metal. Why is the band so thick? That has to be heavier than is comfortable and…Oh! That’s a shackle! Yep, definitely a hoof shackle. For criminals. Oh, horsefeathers! Aren’t these supposed to be attached to a chain and a big heavy ball or a wall? Why are they just walking around? She pulled her gaze away from the shackled pony, but it was obviously too late. Cherry was still looking right at her and she had obviously noticed her notice. “Tell you what,” Cherry said as she stepped uncomfortably close. “You don’t make any fuss and I’ll mention you when I give it over, deal?” “We can’t just—On second thought… Look at the time!” Twilight smiled nervously while she levitated Spike onto her back as casually as she could manage. “We should be going. Our friends will be worried about us if we miss our get-together and all. I’m sure the letter is in good hooves with you. No reason to go prying into anypony else’s business after all, right?” “Why that’s mighty understanding of y’all.” Cherry plucked the letter out of Spike’s grasp. “Hey!” Spike tried to reach for the letter but Twilight was already on her way out. “I’d say ya best get some lodging given the next train won’t be here till morning, but since y’all are in such a rush, perhaps you’ll want to catch a stagecoach outa town instead.” Twilight did not stick around to see how much more ‘advice’ Cherry had for them. On the way, she found that nopony was trying to stop them. At least that was one less thing she’d have to worry about. Good, because there was plenty more to worry about. Most notably how they were going to get back to Ponyville as soon as possible. They already had train tickets that would cover the return trip, but she wasn’t sure she liked the idea of staying the night in town. She nearly jumped out of her skin when Spike tapped her on the shoulder. “What just happened?” he asked. “You mean beside Trixie luring us to a place where curious ponies might go missing?” Twilight hissed under her breath. Nopony was near enough to easily hear them, but she could see a couple arranging buckets under a tree four rows down. “T-that can’t be right.” “If you have a better explanation for escaped prisoners wandering around, I’d love to hear it.”  It didn’t take long to find their way back to town.  The train was gone. Unfortunate, but anticipated. A quick inquiry revealed the next stagecoach was expected to show up in as little as an hour. All that was left was to get out of the sun for a while and hope that no further trouble would find them before then. She settled on the local saloon. A big wooden building with little swinging doors took them into a surprisingly empty main room with chairs, tables, and booths for their choosing. In the back stood the bar and one pony absentmindedly polishing a glass. The back wall held up a large mirror, shelves, and bottles of all kinds. A corner booth by the window and the exit would do. That way they could keep an eye on when the stagecoach arrived. She didn’t want to have to be here any longer than necessary. Now all they had to do was not draw attention to themselves. “Hey! Can we get a couple of waters, please?” Spike waved at the pony by the bar. Of course. Twilight inwardly cringed as she looked toward the bar. “Can do!” the bartender replied in a surprisingly chipper voice. “You folks sure you want water, though? ‘Round these parts it's more expensive than plain ol’ cherry juice. And frankly speaking between you and me, you’d be doing yourselves a disservice coming all the way out here without trying some. Why it’s just about the only thing this town's got going for it.” Twilight relented. A cool drink did sound good and the bartender seemed nice enough. “Sure, how much?” He smiled. “For you fine folk? It’s—-“ “On me!” An unfamiliar female voice called out. A heavily panting white pegasus stood leaned up against the doorway. From the way she was struggling to catch her breath, it was as if she’d just sprinted across the desert. “The, hah, the drinks. Hah. Are on me. Hah. And get me one.” “Uhm, thank you?” Twilight said as she studied the new arrival. She looked to be maybe twice Twilight’s own age but in good shape. Which made the fact she was winded odd. Had she rushed here? The very next thing she noticed was that she too had one of the metal manacles. That had her a little more worried. “You alright there, Sly?” The bartender asked but his concern was waved away with a hoof and he didn’t press the issue any further, choosing instead to pour the drink and bring them over to the booth. “I’ll put it on yer tab.” “Thanks.” The pegasus, who was apparently named Sly, managed to recover enough to come to join them at the table. She chugged half the glass before she regained some semblance of composure. “Gosh, that hit the spot. Sorry if I spooked you and, uh, sorry if Cherry spooked you. I promise she means well.” Twilight rolled her eyes. “Could have fooled me. It felt like we’d be run out of town on a rail if we pushed our luck any further.” Sly chuckled weakly. “Well… Okay, that’s probably accurate, but you have to understand. Ponies rarely drop by here unannounced and those who do are usually looking for trouble. Usually, because they have a grudge against a, uhm, ‘resident’. It happened to me once so far.” “And who are you exactly?” Twilight asked.  “Ah! Right. I am the ‘S.N.’ you asked about. Sly Nightsky? I heard you went out of the way to bring my Trixie’s letter. Thank you so much, I’ve been worried sick about her.” “You’re Trixie’s mom?” Spike asked, incredulous. “I kinda thought you’d be a unicorn. Also, aren’t you supposed to be crippled or something?” Sly smirked at the first comment but then blinked confusedly. “I, what?” “Trixie mentioned her mom couldn’t travel anymore,” Twilight explained. “So, either you aren’t who you say you are… or…” A quiet moment dragged on between the three of them as Twilight left Sly with some room to provide an explanation while Sly seemed to be giving the two of them a closer, more discerning look. Actually, it was a familiar one. Sly had the same calculating look that Trixie sometimes displayed. Perhaps she was telling the truth after all, but then did that mean Trixie had lied to all her friends? “…Who are you to my daughter?” Sly finally asked. Twilight didn’t hesitate to answer. “Friends.”  “I’m a little skeptical. Trixie doesn’t do ‘friends’ anymore. You’ve met her, presumably.” “I’d be lying if I said she wasn’t challenging on occasion.” Sly sighed and leaned back in her seat. “That’s fair. Alright, I’ll believe you. As for me… Well… Trixie didn’t lie to you she just… I guess she’s a little ashamed of me... It’s true that I can’t travel anymore, but maybe she preferred for you to think I was cripple rather than know about this?” She held up the hoof with the manacle. “I know what it’s for, but how is that keeping you from traveling? You aren’t exactly chained down.” Twilight looked it over again, it didn’t appear to be magically tethered or anything either. “I noticed some of the other ponies here have them as well?” Sly nodded. “They are prisoners and this town is the prison. Well, that might be a little too harsh. We’re working off our debt to society, thanks to Miss Cherry Jubilee. She has a soft spot for the lost and wayward.” “And the criminal?” Spiked chimed in. “After a sort. Nopony here is bad at heart. Just circumstances and desperation that landed most of us in hot water.” She tapped the manacle on the table. “This is a formality. Something to remind me I’ve got work to do still. If I really wanted to ‘break out’ I could, but what does that get me? A face on a wanted poster till I get caught and go to an actual dungeon this time? No, thank you.” Twilight gave Spike a glare but he didn’t seem to notice. Still, as long as he’d brought it up and Sly didn’t seem to mind, she might as well go with it. “Trixie mentioned you’ve been, uhm, ‘stuck’ for nearly a year. Is it almost over?” Sly chuckled sadly. “I’m afraid not. It’s going to be at most another two decades. Well, I suppose just one year with good behavior if I could pay for my debt today, but I don’t see that happening.  Even with Cherry’s charity here, it’s probably going to take me at least a decade.” “Once you’ve earned the bits to pay the debt, you’re free to go?” Twilight asked. “Or to stay. Some do so permanently. It’s not a bad job and the ponies here are friendly. Others stay for a while to earn enough bits for themselves to get back on their hooves before leaving.” Sly motioned out the window at the arid desert separating them from the rest of the world. “Nopony is all too eager to try to cross that at the best of times anyway.” “Makes sense. Even on the train, it was the worst ride we’ve ever been on. I can’t imagine crossing it on hoof.” Twilight shuddered. “I’m glad I don’t usually travel.” “So, what brought you all the way out here then? Trixie didn’t ask you to come, that much is obvious. You didn’t even know who the letter was for and… ” Sly paused, looking the two of them over again. “Wait, how did you get that letter?” Now it was Twilight’s turn to sweat. “I guess, uhm, well… I was worried about her.” It wasn’t a lie if it was true, right? Why did that feel so familiar? “Something happened and I thought it might help if I knew more about her, but as much as Trixie likes to talk about herself she doesn’t like to reveal a lot. This was a long shot.” “What happened? Is she okay?” Sly asked relatively calmly, but her anxious grip on her drink was making the glass creak under the pressure. “She’s fine!‘ Twilight hastened to assure her. “There was a bit of an uhm incident with an Ursa Minor, but nopony got hurt, promise. Actually, I should start at the beginning...” Once she started to fill Sly in, Twilight found it was difficult to stop as Sly kept pressing to hear more of Trixie’s escapades. Not just the story of the Ursa Minor, but also how she’d apparently secretly taken refuge in the cottage, made friends, and even attended a party.  Twilight had a whole lot she couldn’t tell without diving into her suspicions and other parts she’d only vaguely learned about later, but Sly didn’t seem to mind how disjointed the story was and had no problem following along. At some point midway, they all had their drinks refreshed. By the end of the tale, Sly was just smiling. “Thank you. I’m so glad to hear she’s doing well. You are trying to help her with the fallout of this big blue bear thing, then? I’d be happy to tell you anything I can if you think it’ll help.”  “So, what are you in for?” Spike asked while trying to fish out a loose cherry in his glass. “Telling tall tales?” “Spike!” Twilight snapped. “What? It can’t be that bad.” “That’s not the point!” Sly had quieted down after the question, staring down at the metal ring as she rotated it around her wrist. “…It’s alright, Twilight. I suppose it can’t do any harm. I… took some things that didn’t belong to me. I told myself I had a good reason, but Trixie was so angry at me when she found out that she refuses to visit me even now.” Her voice broke toward the end and she rubbed at her eyes. “Sorry. It’s still hard.” Spike reached out to pat her hoof empathically. “Sorry.”  Twilight meanwhile had her own moment of realization. Was this why Trixie got so angry when she’d called her a book thief? Had she inadvertently been reminding Trixie of her mother? She felt a pang of guilt at the thought that up until now, she’d always considered the overreaction as evidence she was on to something.  It felt difficult to parse now. She’d come here hoping to find something to aid her investigation, either to prove Trixie’s guilt to others or her innocence to herself. Where did learning her mother was a thief fall?  In the abstract, she’d have assumed it would make Trixie guilty in a ‘the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree’ sort of way. But in reality, the effort Trixie took to distance herself from her mother felt more significant. Was Trixie’s only contact with her really just a letter every so often? Actually, hadn’t Sly said her sentence was twenty years? That didn’t seem to line up with a mere theft. Was she lying? Or had she taken something of immense value?  Twilight didn’t like the idea that she didn’t know the full context, but she couldn’t exactly blame Sly for not sharing her entire life story with a pony she’d only just met. “Honestly, I’m just glad Trixie’s made such good friends. Ever since her accident she’s been so lonely that I was sure her ‘punishment’ for me was hurting her the most.” Sly looked at the pair of them with a soft smile, though her eyes still glistened with moisture. “Please take care of her for me. I know she can be difficult, but she is just a little filly eager for love underneath it all.” “Of course…” Twilight felt her chest tighten painfully as she lied through her teeth to a worried mother. Maybe it was high time she buried her stupid hatchet and set to work on turning that lie into a truth. Something caught her attention, though. “Accident?” Despite her white fur, Sly somehow paled further. “Nothing. Uhm… Who’s up for another drink?”  Now that piqued her interest more than anything Sly could have said. The task now was to figure out how to make her willing to talk.  “We’re fine.” Twilight crossed her forelegs over the table as she leaned in. “Listen, we can change the subject if that’s what you really want, but before we do… can you promise me this is not a story that would help me understand Trixie better?” Sly bit her lip and Twilight could guess at what she must be thinking. Sly had promised to answer any questions that might help them deal with this ‘accident’ involving the Ursa Minor, knowing how Trixie handled it before would be helpful. After what looked like a solid minute of mental anguish, Sly let out a sigh. “...Okay, fine, but not here. Come with me.” From the outside, Sly’s home looked like little more than a quickly raised shed near the outskirts of the cherry orchard. Several similar structures were visible further afield. It was how the ‘residents’ were housed.  “Home sweet home,” Sly remarked dryly. “Come on in.” It wasn’t much, but Twilight suspected she’d be told it was better than a dungeon cell if she asked. She set her saddlebags down by the door after she entered. A few things stuck out to Twilight as she was welcomed inside. It was small and sparsely decorated, more like a dorm room than an apartment. A single room with two beds to either side, a small breakfast nook to one corner, and a closet in the other.  The closet door was slightly ajar and Twilight caught a glimpse of the letter they’d delivered, or at least the big drawing of a rabbit. It was inside a box atop a pile of other letters. Sly took a seat on the bed on the left. She motioned to the other with her hoof. “Sorry, I don’t usually have guests. Have a seat if you like.” The bed was neat and tidy in that way that only an entirely unused one could be. Sly apparently didn’t have a roommate yet. Which struck Twilight as odd given the time span of her stay. More likely, then, was that this was reserved for Trixie. She really hadn’t been here in a long time if that was the case.  Before Twilight even had time to consider if she wanted to disturb it, Spike had already jumped on and was busy testing the bounciness of the mattress until she gave him a telekinetic swat with a pillow.  Twilight chose to remain standing. “So, what is this about?” Sly looked her in the eyes for a long moment. That same calculating look was back but it faded and just left the mare looking tired. “Be honest with me, are you here to do for Trixie what you did for Princess Luna?” “You know about that?” Twilight asked, surprised. “I, I mean, I wouldn’t say I did all that much. Princess Celestia had a plan all along.” Sly shrugged. “It takes a while, but news does travel. Though, I do have some extra incentive to be paying attention to what happened. So, are you?” “I guess you could say that.” Twilight felt weirded out to meet somepony that seemed to know so much about her already. She wasn’t famous or anything. The strangest thing, though, was that Sly had not mentioned it until now. “...Why did you not say something before?” “I was playing along,” Sly said while making a non-committal swirling motion with her hoof, “but since the cards are all on the table now, great. We can stop dancing around the issue. You want to know our side of how she ended up banished, right?” This was where a suave detective from her novels would calmly play along to find out the truth.  Twilight was not suave. “TRIXIE’S BANISHED?!” She and Spike both called out simultaneously. “What, but, YOU DIDN’T KNOW?!” Sly sounded equally as incredulous. “I thought this was your thing!” “How is any of this my thing?!” Twilight threw up her hooves. “Oh, I don’t know. Some long-banished villain shows up and causes trouble, then you show up, stop the trouble and figure out how to redeem them. You just finished telling me about how Trixie showed up, caused trouble, you dealt with it, and now—you mean to tell me you aren’t here to figure this out? Come on, why else would you be here!” “That only happened once! And I didn’t even do that alone. I’m only here because I thought Trixie stole a magic book and I was hoping the letter I took would be incriminating! I didn’t think she was just writing home!” “The letter you took?!” “...” “...” Even as a librarian, Twilight preferred the screaming over the awkward silence that now hung between them.  It’s just that she wasn’t sure where to begin at this point. Besides, it felt like she’d just burned any bridges she might have built. Spike cleared his throat, drawing the attention of them both. “So, uhm… I know this is weird. What with the coincidence, mail fraud, misunderstanding, and all that, but we really do want Trixie to be okay. ” As he looked in her direction, Twilight quickly gave an affirming nod. “I get the sense we have different ideas about what ‘okay’ means.” Sly narrowed her eyes a little, but she didn’t tell them to leave. Finally, she focused on Twilight. “...What is this about a magic book? Did she get herself in more trouble than just that big bear?”  “To be honest, I’m not sure,” Twilight admitted. “I picked up her old books from the wreckage and while I was doing restoration work I noticed one was strange. Turns out an illusion spell was hiding the real content of the book. I was able to see some of it and it looked like dark magic.” “I’m going to assume we are not talking about spells to cast a shadow or turn a light off,” Sly said. “What’s wrong with it?” Spike flopped down onto his back with a sigh. “Oh, boy. Here we go.”  Twilight shot him an annoyed look, but she supposed she should at least try and keep it brief this time. It was hard to discuss magical theory with somepony who didn’t have magic anyway. Though, she expected Sly would have at least some familiarity if she raised Trixie. “You know how your body naturally limits how much strength you can use in order to prevent you from causing damage to yourself? There is a magical equivalent of that. It is a subconscious process that enables the safe use of spells. You could think of it as a failsafe.” Twilight flexed a foreleg to provide some kind of visual, lacking a blackboard. “For example, you can probably think of a great many things that could go wrong with teleportation, right?” “You might end up in a wall or something.” Sly winced a little as she contemplated the idea.  “Exactly! But nopony who is learning teleportation ever actually gets badly hurt, even if it does sometimes cause problems. That’s because the failsafe is using a portion of the magic to mitigate risk. The bigger and more numerous the risks involved, the more magic it requires.” In a flash, she teleported to the other side of the room. “Like so! Of course, I do need to know how to actually cast the spell, which can be complicated. And it takes a lot of magic, but most of that magic actually just goes into making it safe to use. Collision detection. Mass measurement. Destination consolidation. Bodily integr—” Spike loudly interrupted by feigning a cough. “We get it. Spells are hard.” “Quite.” Sly chuckled at his antics. “So, dark magic is what? Spell slinging with the safety off? I get it. You could cast dangerous stuff with way less magic, right?” “Uh, actually yes,” Twilight said surprised as she came trotting back over. “It’s much more complicated since not only do you have to mitigate the risk manually, but you can’t just ‘turn it off’ you have to temporarily break something in your head. It’s a really bad idea. Not just because the spells could go haywire but because messing with your own head isn’t without consequences.” The look of amusement on Sly’s face quickly drained away as she caught on. She fixed Twilight with a level stare. “What kind of consequences?” “Mental issues. It starts simple. Nightmares. Mental issues, especially paranoia or megalomania. Every pony on record that continued using it eventually went completely mad, assuming they lived that long.” “And my Trixie’s using this?” Sly’s eyes widened a fraction and she covered her mouth with her wings. “I’m not sure!” Twilight hastily added. “I just know that after I told Trixie about it the book went missing. If she does have it then I don’t think she is using it yet. Maybe that’s because she still has a headache, I don’t know. If she doesn’t have it, then it is in the hooves of somepony who isn’t being monitored, which is much worse.” Breathing a sigh of relief, Sly settled down once more. “Alright… Alright, I’m starting to see why you took some ‘liberties’ shall we say. I’m happy to say that Trixie hasn’t mentioned any new books in her letter, at least. I have an idea.” “You do?” Twilight asked. Sly tapped the shackle on her foreleg. “You get rid of this and promise me Trixie gets a full pardon? I will personally march over there and guarantee she’ll hoof over any and all books she might have. You can take it from there.” Spike and Twilight shared a look. “Uh, can you even do that?” Spike asked. “No, I definitely can’t.” Twilight shook her head then walked toward the door. “Wait!” Sly launched herself up and over Twilight, blocking the door. “Maybe I asked for a bit much, but can’t we negotiate?” “No, we can’t.”  Twilight picked up her saddlebags and levitated them toward Spike.  “Spike, take a letter. Dear Princess Celestia...”