My Little Investigations: The Gemstone Godfather

by Metool Bard

Confrontation: Rarity

"Alright, you ruffians! Come on out! You have a lot to answer for!"

Thankfully, Derpy and I made it just in time. Rarity was standing in the middle of the plain yelling for the Diamond Dogs, but none of them came up to answer her call yet. I don't know if they just didn't hear her, or if they were too afraid to face her. I think both of those theories are valid.

"Rarity, wait a minute!" I called out as I made my way over to her.

Rarity turned around and blinked. "Sparkler? What are you doing out here?"

"I, uh, wanted to talk to you about something," I said.

"Can it wait? I need to teach some no-good Diamond Dogs a lesson," said Rarity.

"N-no, it can't," I said. "Because, well, I think you might be acting a bit hasty here."

Rarity gave me a quizzical look. "Why would you say that, darling? Don't you know what these brutes are capable of?"

I deadpanned. "I'm a jeweler's apprentice, Rarity. Of course I know what Diamond Dogs are capable of," I said. "And that's why I think you're overreacting."

Rarity pouted. "Hmph. Well, I mean no disrespect, darling, but I think I have a better grasp of the situation than you do."

"Alright then, prove it," I said. "Because I don't want you to make a fool of yourself."

"That's, very kind of you, Sparkler," said Rarity, appearing a bit confused. "Regardless, I shall explain exactly why these Diamond Dogs are the ones threatening me. In turn, you should explain to me why you're so willing to defend them."

"Agreed," I said. From Rarity's tone, I could tell that she had no idea what I was thinking. Then again, this was pretty odd behavior for me. I was poking my nose where it didn't belong, and I usually don't do that. However, you know what they say. Desperate times call for drastic measures.

"You may not know this, Sparkler, but I've had firsthoof experience with the Diamond Dogs," said Rarity. "A long time ago, they kidnapped me and forced me to be their slave. Of course, I worked my way out of that situation. Nevertheless, I suspect that they became bitter after suffering such a humiliating defeat. Thus, they're trying to get revenge by threatening me to give them gems. They have a motive, darling, and nothing you say can refute that."

I can see why Rarity would think that, but it didn't change the fact that she was wrong. The Diamond Dogs (or at least the Redvest pack) didn't have a motive to attack her. And I had to convince her of just that. But first, I needed to know more.

"I realize that you and the Diamond Dogs had some bad blood between you," I said. "But is that really your only evidence?"

"Well, of course not," said Rarity. "I also have the note I showed you."

I raised an eyebrow. "How is that evidence?" I inquired.

"Well, look who it's addressed to," said Rarity, showing me the note. "'Prissy Pony.' Notice that they didn't call me by name. They never did that when they ponynapped me unless I reminded them. Believe me, Sparkler. This has their pawprints all over it."

That was an interesting point. The Diamond Dogs did have trouble calling me by name when I went to meet them. But there was something she was overlooking.

"Rarity, I want you to look at something," I said, pointing to the bottom of the note. "This letter is signed 'Anonymous.' Now, why would the Diamond Dogs do that?"

"Humph. They must think I'm stupid," huffed Rarity. "They think they're tricking me, but..."

"But they have no reason to trick you," I interrupted.

Rarity blinked. "I, beg your pardon?"

"If the Diamond Dogs wanted you to give them gems, then they would've told you who they were," I said. "Let's face it, even without their signature, you knew it was them. Why would they even bother to be anonymous?"

Rarity had no answer for that. "W-well, I-I'm sure they had some reason..."

"Not one that makes sense," I countered.

"Eep!"

Rarity recoiled from my logic, but she still wasn't willing to back down.

"S-Sparkler, be reasonable! Th-there's no one else it could be!" she sputtered. "And why are you defending them, anyway?!"

"I have my reasons," I said. "And those reasons have to do with this."

I showed her the Diamond Dog collar.

"I found this in the wreckage of the jewelry store yesterday," I said. "Recognizing it, I went out here to see the Diamond Dogs about it."

"And?"

"Turns out they weren't the culprits," I said. "In fact, they were downright afraid of me. Not only that, but they said it was because they had bad luck with kidnapping ponies in the past. Does that sound familiar?"

"Indeed it does! My stars, darling!"

It didn't take long for Rarity to connect the dots.

"So, now you see that the Diamond Dogs aren't to blame for this letter," I said.

"W-well, I certainly see your point," said Rarity sheepishly. "However, there's still another matter left unsolved."

"Which is?"

"If those brutes didn't write this letter, then who did?"

"I, uh, I don't know," I said with a shrug. "All I know is that it wasn't these Diamond Dogs."

Rarity furrowed her brow and thought for a moment. "Wait. I think I might know who it could've been."

"Yeah?"

"Remember yesterday, when Spike mentioned the teenage dragons?"

"Well, of course."

"It was them. I has to be."

I raised an eyebrow. "Let me guess, you had a run-in with them, too."

"Of sorts," said Rarity. "I won't give all of the details, seeing as Spike would get rather cross with me if I did. Let's just say that, well, they're not very nice."

If their attack on the Redvest pack yesterday was any indication, I'd say that's putting it mildly. However, something was still bothering me.

"Rarity, tell me about this run-in you had," I said.

"Well, alright," said Rarity. "But I'm not going into every last detail. I must respect Spiky-Wikey's privacy."

"Sure, whatever," I said.

"Are you sure that's okay, Ammy?" Derpy whispered to me. "What if some of those details are required to help us out?"

"We'll cross that bridge when we get to it, Mom," I whispered back. "But in the meantime, I have to agree with this. Otherwise, Rarity isn't going to tell me anything."

Derpy shrugged. "If you say so," she said. "I just hope you know what you're doing."

Well, I had a rough idea, at least. So, that's something.

"It happened a while ago, during the last great Dragon Migration," said Rarity. "Spiky-Wikey got involved with a gang of ruthless teenage dragons. Of course, I kept a close eye on him to make sure he was safe. When the dragons started pressuring him into something he wasn't comfortable doing, I stepped out of the shadows and told them in no uncertain terms that I would not hesitate to pummel them if they so much harmed a scale on Spike's little head. They, didn't take kindly to that, and ended up chasing us all the way back to Ponyville. They're probably up to their old tricks again, just as Spike mentioned yesterday."

Once again, I couldn't blame Rarity for thinking that. After all, I came to the same conclusion when I first heard about them. But just like before, I know this wasn't the case. I had to set the record straight if I was going to get anywhere.

"So, these teenage dragons saw you, and chased you back to Ponyville," I said. "Is that right?"

"That's correct, darling," said Rarity.

"So, at any point, did they know that you worked with gems?"

Rarity opened her mouth to speak, but then furrowed her brow and stroked her chin in thought. "Hmm. Now that you mention it, they didn't. Actually, I'm not sure why they would bother with a letter in the first place. They could just take whatever gems they wanted, couldn't they?"

"My thoughts exactly," I said. "I'm not sure why you didn't catch onto this sooner, honestly."

"Mmm. It seems I'm not quite thinking straight today," mused Rarity. "However, that still leaves us with this problem. Who exactly is demanding gems of me?"

"We, actually might have an idea," said Derpy, giving me a nudge.

I gave Derpy a look. "We do?"

"Of course we do, Ammy," said Derpy. "Think for a minute. Someone is trying to force Rarity to give them gems. Doesn't that remind you of somepony?"

I saw what she was getting at, but I wasn't sure how to react. This was a bit of a long shot, and even if it was true, I wasn't comfortable with roping Rarity into my plight. Still, I didn't have many options at this point.

"Um, yeah," I said, clearing my throat. "I, do have something that might answer your question."

"Oh? What is it?"

I sighed and brought out the ransom notice I got. Rarity used her own magic to take it and levitate it in front of her face. After a few seconds, she gasped.

"Oh my stars, darling! Of all the worst things that could happen, this is THE, WORST, POSSIBLE, THING!"

For once, that wasn't an overreaction. As you know, I pretty much had the same reaction when this stupid thing was dumped onto my lap.

"Yeah, I know," I said. "I found this yesterday just outside the jewelry store. Someone is trying to blackmail me into paying a gem tribute, but they won't tell me who. I think that same someone is trying to blackmail you as well, and they made it look like it was the Diamond Dogs so that they would take the rap."

"W-well, that's quite a shock, Sparkler," said Rarity. "A-are you alright?"

"Frankly, no. But I'll manage," I said. "Look, the point is it's possible that this same jerk wrote these two letters."

"But, that makes no sense," said Rarity. "Why demand a gem tribute without revealing your identity?"

"If I knew that, I wouldn't have come all the way out here to defend the Diamond Dogs in the first place," I said with a sigh. "I'm actually trying to figure it out myself."

"Darling, you shouldn't shoulder this heavy burden on your own," said Rarity. "I'll go tell Twilight. She can help you."

"Thanks, but I feel responsible for this," I said. "Whoever this dock-hole is, he's threatening my family. They're being targeted because of me. I-I want to be the one to protect them."

Rarity paused for a moment. "My word, Sparkler. This is a side of you I've never seen before," she said. "I didn't know you felt this strongly about your family."

"Well, I never had to defend them before," I said with a shrug.

Rarity nodded. "Well, the offer's still on the table if you need any help," she said. "I can't imagine you doing this alone."

"Well, I'm not," I said. "I've got my mom helping me, and some friends in high places. Actually, the Diamond Dogs said they were willing to help me, too."

"Oh," said Rarity, blushing a little. "That's, part of the reason you were defending them, right?"

"Yeah," I said. "Don't worry, it's not your fault. I blamed them at first, too."

"Mmm," said Rarity. "Well, I guess I'd better head off back to town. Best of luck, darling. And remember, if you need any help, I'm more than willing to provide it."

"Right, I'll keep that in mind," I said. "Thank you."

"'Tis no trouble at all," said Rarity. With a polite nod, she headed off.

"That was pretty good work, Ammy," said Derpy. "Now we have some more facts."

I tilted my head. "We do? I didn't get much out of that conversation."

"Well, now we know that the same anonymous meanie threatening you is also threatening Rarity," said Derpy.

I sighed. "Mom, that was only a guess. I don't know if it's true or not. Besides, if that was the case, why did this dock-hole send me an elaborate threat while Rarity only got a simple, straightforward message? And furthermore, why wasn't she attacked?"

Derpy placed a hoof to her muzzle and struck a thinking attitude. "Well, you said before that the Diamond Dogs were meant to take the blame for this. Maybe to reinforce this notion, the culprit deliberately decided not to attack Rarity."

So, that meant the culprit knew of the Redvest pack's history with Rarity. That wasn't all that useful in and of itself, but I decided to make a mental note of it, anyway. Whoever this guy is, he sure likes his mind games. Almost makes me wonder if this entire farce has a point or not.

"Is she gone yet?"

My musings were interrupted by a meek voice coming from my right. I looked over to see Rover Redvest and his two pals, Fido and Spot, hiding in a small hole. It appears that they were going to meet me, but took cover as soon as Rarity came running in. I let out a brief snicker.

"Yes, she's gone," I said.

Rover breathed a sigh of relief. "Phew. That was close," he said. "Thank you for standing up for us, po— I mean, Ms. Star."

"Yeah, well. I figured you guys weren't the culprits," I said. "So, did you manage to arrange the meeting?"

"Um, about that," said Rover. "We, did tell Sykes Silvervest about your problem."

"And?"

"There's no one in the Silvervest pack named 'Anonymous,' either."

I smacked my forehead. "I wasn't asking if there was, you nimrods," I growled. "Look, can I meet him or not?"

"H-he says he's willing to meet with you, but there's a catch," said Rover.

"And that is?"

"You have to wear this."

Spot then reached into his vest and pulled out a blindfold.

"Sykes Silvervest says he doesn't want any ponies knowing where his territory is," said he.

"That's ridiculous," I said. "I wouldn't be able to find my way around those catacombs, anyway. The blindfold's completely unnecessary."

"Regardless, that's the only way he'll meet with you," said Fido. "Take it or leave it, pony."

I sighed. "Alright, I'll take it. Sheesh, I wasn't aware the great Sykes Silvervest was so paranoid."

"Mind your tongue!" Spot barked nervously. "Sykes Silvervest wouldn't take kindly to that!"

Oh, brother. I'm really getting the feeling that Sykes Silvervest isn't nearly as scary as the Redvest pack is making him out to be. Still, this was my only way I was going to talk to him, so I had to play along.

"Oh, and give one to me, too," said Derpy. "I'm going with her."

"Who's this pony?" said Rover. "Ms. Star, you didn't say anything about taking another pony with you."

"Well, I happen to be her mother," said Derpy sternly. "And I want to make sure my daughter is safe. You got a problem with that?"

Rover swallowed. "N-not at all, Mrs. Pony. I mean, Mrs. Star. I mean..."

"Hooves. My name is Derpy Hooves," said Derpy.

"Right, Hooves. Yes," said Rover, wringing his paws. "Spot, fetch another blindfold for Mrs. Hooves!"

"Right away, sir!" said Spot, diving underground. Fido then pulled himself up and presented the blindfold to me.

"Okay, Ms. Star. Now just hold still," he said.

"Hang on, hang on. I got this," I said, taking the blindfold with my magic. I then tied it around my eyes so that I couldn't see anything. "There. Happy?"

"Um, yes," said Fido. "Now, this way, po— Ms. Star."

"Just a sec," I said. "We should all leave together, don't you think?"

"Oh, right. Yes," said Fido sheepishly.

It wasn't long before Spot got back with a second blindfold for Derpy. After putting hers on (which I figure was difficult, considering Derpy's eye condition. I don't know for sure because I was blindfolded myself), we made our way into the darkest reaches of the underground network to meet with the infamous Sykes Silvervest.