//------------------------------//
// Night Falls 
// Story: Cutie Mark Crusader Bounty Hunters 
// by WanderingPuffin 
//------------------------------//

	Scootaloo couldn’t sleep. She should be asleep by any measure having spent the last few hours running around the park with Applebloom and Sweetie Bell. However, her mind did not seem to agree and she was stuck being very unsleepy. Normally she would just walk around or get drinks of water or just… do something until the urge overtook her and she finally ended up asleep. However, she was in a huge field of ponies. They were all, or at least seemed to be, asleep.  Sweetie Bell and Applebloom were curled up next to her and both were sound asleep. She couldn’t just walk around or she would end up waking them.  So she wriggled around trying to find a comfortable position that she could lie in until the sandpony came and let her sleep in peace. She stared up at the sky. The stars were beautiful tonight.  The moon was a quarter full and as silver as she had ever seen it.  The stars seemed to glow as brightly as any nightlight she had ever had in her room. She could feel the breezes that swept across the park passing over the grateful ponies in a reprieve from the heat of the day. However, no matter how beautiful the sky or how welcoming the temperature she just couldn’t get comfortable. She ended up on her side starring at the Carousel Boutique. She sighed and just continued to stare at the shop hoping that somehow the clothing shop would work some miracle and be so boring that she would have no choice to fall fast asleep.  However, fate had chosen something else for this little pony. A light appeared by the door to the shop. Scootaloo blinked. It was faint and far away but a light had definitely appeared next to the shop. Scootaloo looked to her left to see if Rarity had decided against sleeping in the park and had decided to go home. Apparently she hadn’t as Rarity curled up on a red silk cushion she had brought from the shop to sleep on. Scoots turned back to the shop. The light wasn’t bright enough for her to make out any details was but she guessed that somepony had to have either lit the lantern or cast the spell that was creating the glow. She nudged the pony next to her. 
“Applebloom,” She whispered as loud as she dared but the little filly didn’t rouse. “Applebloom!,” she whispered again a little louder. Again nothing happened as little filly was sound asleep. Scoot thought for a moment and then covered Applebloom’s mouth and nose with hoof like she had seen in action movies. Suddenly the tan pony was wide awake and shouting. The hoof muffled most of the sound though Scootaloo learned not trust action movies as she caught a glancing blow to the face before Applebloom calmed down. 
“What the hay was that for?” Applebloom asked accusingly. She obviously did not take well to being awoken by suffocation. Her hair was in a mess and hung over her face as it wasn’t tied back with its ever present bow. 
“Something weird is happening at Carousel Boutique.” Scootaloo said pointing in the direction of the glow.”
“Is Rarity going home?” 
“No, it’s something else.”
“Like what?”
“I don’t know that’s why I woke you.” 
Applebloom thought for a second. She knew that if she woke her sister up she would probably just be told to go back to sleep and be chewed out for waking her up the next day. She looked at the light for a bit. There was just enough light to make out that there was a pony by the lantern but not enough to make out anything more than that. It was a gamble to do anything more but that had never stopped Applebloom before.
“Well it can’t hurt just to have look.” Applebloom said tilting her head slightly.
“Okay, but you wake up Sweetie Bell,” Scootaloo said still a little tender in her snout.
Apple Bloom shrugged. She leaned down close to the third member of their group. Applebloom cleared her throat and whispered into her friends ear in her best impersonation of Rarity, “Oh, Sweetie would you mind helping me decide on what to wear tonight?” Sweetie Bell suddenly sprang right to her feet eyes darting wildly for an escape.
“How did that work?” Scootaloo asked mildly confused and annoyed that Applebloom had been able to do it so easily. 
“You have never had to help Rarity choose outfits,” Sweetie Bell said trying to shake off the mind fog from sleep, “She once kept me trapped for hours trying to help her decide between light purple and lavender.” 
“Well follow me Cutie Mark Investigators.”  Applebloom said  trying to make her way through the collected mass of ponies. It was tricky to try to get around the field in the dim lighting but the three little ponies managed to get through with a minimal amount of stepping on tails and ears.  They eventually got to Rarity’s shop only to find a white earth pony standing in the doorway. The light had had attracted them came from a dim lantern perched on a wagon nearby. 
“Whatca doing?” Applebloom asked startling the older pony. He jumped and turned around to see the three small fillies staring at him. 
“Oh, I’m not doing anything that involves you little ones.  Why don’t you go back to sleep?” The pony said with a charming half smile. The pony had carefully positioned his body between the ponies and the door to the boutique so the ponies couldn’t see anything.
“This is my sister’s shop you know? What are you doing?”  Sweetie Bell tried to get past him to see what the heck he was hiding.
“Oh, are you related to the,” the white pony let out a loud sigh,” ABSOLUTELY stunning Miss Rarity? I left my notebook in the shop and I need it to write my article about her?”
“So you decided to wake her up in the middle of the night to get the notebook back?” Applebloom said with the reinforced understanding that adults were weird.
“Well…I wanted to get a head start on the article for sending back to my editor tomorrow. I REALLY think you should go back to sleep,” the white pony said pointing his hoof at the park. 
“What is with the 5th degree homepony? Wakin’ fillies from needed beauty sleep to mess around with a mare’s home? A mare you just met? That sounds like some buckin’ suspicious shit mister. Maybe I bring the coppers round to arrest your ass you don’t get out of here right quick yo,” Everyponies’ jaws dropped with the little orange filly suddenly developing the personality of Shaft. What surprised the Cutie Mark Crusaders even more however was the stallion’s response. With a smooth practiced movement a crossbow appeared from underneath his saddlebags and was pointed at the jive talking little filly.
“You are too smart for your own good little one,” the pony’s highbrow accent was replaced with a lowborn Manehatten one. With a rear hoof the earth pony bucked the door behind him open. The Cutie Mark Crusaders could clearly see what he had been attempting to hide. In the door’s lock was a lock pick and a tension wrench. 
“Now listen to everything I say and you might just live through this. This Rarity,” He spit at the mention of the name, “apparently keeps a load of jewels here and you are going to help me find them.”
“What?” Applebloom said stunned by the turn of events. 
“You know her right? Well you are going to lead me to them so I can get them in this wagon.  Now get yourself in gear and get me some rubies.” 
“You can’t shoot all of us,” Scootaloo said defiantly and somehow able to think coherently. 
“Maybe, but do any of you want to live knowing your friend died because of you?” Pomme said the three little fillies finally obeyed and headed into the shop with Sweetie bell Leading and Applebloom bringing up the rear end. “And for making me repeat myself,” The white stallion kicked Applebloom into a wall stunning her.  “Don’t buck with me got it?” He waited for Applebloom to recover her balance before following her and her friends further into the house.  
“How the hay did you figure out that he was the guy we were looking for?” Sweetie Bell whispered to Scoots.
“I didn’t. What are the odds that the one time I do that I get an actual criminal?” Scootaloo said shrugging nervously.
“What?” exploded Applebloom in disbelief.
“Hey, you got to do a monologue earlier. I guess it kinda rubbed off.”
“Rubbed off? You sounded like some sort of zebrasploitation feature.”  Applebloom thought about the card hidden in her bow. If she could only find some way to burn it she could probably alert Hawkeye. She glanced at the lantern on the wagon.  She turned her companions. “If you guys could buy me some time I could use that lantern to contact Hawkeye.”
“I have an idea. You know how Rarity distracted those diamond dogs?” Sweetie bell suggested. 
“That whole annoying them until they begged us to take her away thing?” 
“Yeah, why don’t we try that?” 
Scootaloo gave her a side glance. She played out the whole scenario in her head
“No Crabapple, this is whining,” Applebloom said beginning to cry even louder. Crabapple didn’t say anything and instead grabbed a large pair of fabric scissors off the top of the nearest table. Without a word he smacked the little filly across the face. As Applebloom attempted to cry out he grabbed the bottom of her jaw with his hoof. Forcing it open he inserted the scissors with his other hoof and opened them around her tounge. Without a moment of hesitation he quickly closed the scissors to sever the tounge from her head a fearful gurgle escaping her lips. Watching coldly as the filly struggled not to choke upon the blood gushing out of her mouth he replied “This is me being mildly irritated. Do you wish to continue?”
“I don’t think that would work.” She said a different idea coming to mind. “I’ve been here before Mr. Apple she uses this main floor as a display floor for her work. Her workshop is in the basement. That is where you are going to find the jewels.” 
“What prompted this sudden change of heart?” 
“Nothing, Rarity can find more diamonds but she can’t find a way to bring us back from the dead.” Crabapple nodded at the statement satisfied. He nodded in the direction of the stairwell and the CMC lead the way to the basement. With a flip of a switch a treasure-trove of chests were illuminated. Boxes full of rubies, sapphires, opals and gems of every hue could be seen?
“She uses these things in dresses? With just one of these I could buy an industrial blow dryer.”
“Well you can’t really compare after the whole industrial pet hair dryer speculation crash. How did anyone see that as a smart investment?” Applebloom said shaking her head. 
“So how are we going to get these out of here?” Scootaloo said pausing before adding, “Boss?”
Crabapple smirked at the little pony. “I don’t know. You guys sit in a corner. I’ll load it up in the wagon.”
“Look, I don’t want to be here any longer than I have to be. No offense but I don’t want to be near a stallion with a crossbow aimed at me. If you let us help you load you will be out of here quicker.”
This definitely confused the career criminal. His years of experience expressed in the simple elegant statement of “What?” 
“Come on, as long as you keep that bow trained on one of us we are not going to risk running off.”
“Are you sure you aren’t a criminal?” Crabapple said slowly blinking.
“Don’t know really. I’m not old enough to know what the laws are enough to figure out if I’m breaking them,” 
“What is wrong with your parents?” Crabapple exclaimed stunned. “Okay, you white one stay near me. Little miss mafia princess and red head you take a case each and load it on my cart.”
“I’ll need a lantern.” She said pointing to the lantern currently in Crabapple’s hand 
“I’ve only got the one so make do,” 
“You also have the owner’s sister,” Scootaloo said pointing not to Sweetie Belle but to Applebloom. “She knows this place well enough to find a candle and some matches.” 
“If that is true then get to work kid.”  Suddenly Applebloom was immensely grateful for few things. One, that Rarity was enough of a self-absorbed drama queen to not talk about her sister. Two, that the Apple family bred large enough for cousins to not recognize each other and three that Rarity had a scented candle collection that could only be described as whopping.  Heading off before he made the connection between the small white and purple unicorn filly and Rarity’s own color scheme. A convenient supply of aroma therapy candles were located in a close basement bathroom along with a supply of matches. Pulling the card from its hiding place she felt her heart quicken in her tiny chest. Her hooves shook as placed it on top of a thick lavender candle and picked up a small matchbox. Sliding it open she took one of the few remaining matches. She placed on the strike pad only to have it snap immediately from her shaking hooves. The second snapped just as fast. 
“Everything is fine, everything is fine everything is fine,” Applebloom said repeating a mantra to try to calm her quickly fraying nerves. She reached for a third match. A quick swipe and success. A flame sprouted from the match. Holding it to the card balanced on the candle it produced a flash of green magical flame and disappeared. Applebloom gasped and waited. Nothing happened. Hawkeye didn’t appear suddenly in the room. Disappointing in the greatest degree. 
“What is taking so long?” Crabapple shouted from the workshop. Applebloom tried to force herself to remain calm when every single muscle in her body wanted to run away from the big scary stallion as fast as her legs could take her. She struck another match to life and lit the regular candle this time carrying it in her hoof.
“Because I hate lavender that’s why. It took a while to find one that is carrot scented.” 
“You took the time to find a carrot candle in the middle of a hostage situation?”
“I really hate lavender,” she stated matter of fact.
Crabapple groaned, “I swore I would never come back here again,” He straightened up. “Okay, Now that you have a candle we can get a move on. You two carry whatever you can.” Grabbing one end of a chest with his free hoof he pulled the chest with surprising strength.  The three fillies worked together to barely put up one chest to every two that Crabapple put up. The wagon filled up quickly as the three worked together to split the load. 
“Alright then, that should be enough,” Crabapple said practically drooling at the sight of a wagon full of jewels. Already he was thinking of all he could afford. First he was going to get a good lawyer who could get the charges he was on trial for thrown out and then he was going to buy one of the best nights he had ever had. He turned around to look at his three helpers. An open window caught his eye. When had that happened? “I appreciate the help but I’m going to be leaving now.” He produced a length of rope from his saddlebags. He tied each of them up quickly with scrap cloth serving as gags. “You really should look into being a criminal. A score like this is just a wonderful feeling.” He booped the little orange one’s nose and turned around just in time to see a pair of hooves drop out of the dark ceiling, connect with his face and throw him across the room. Three eyes widened as Hawkeye appeared out of the ceiling’s shadows. His coat and armor blended perfected with the dark recesses and his cloth vest prevented the chain mail from making a sound. 
“I looove vaulted ceilings. Nobody every sees a Pegasus above them indoors.” He pulled a nightstick from his vest. “Normally I would have had you knocked out already but this day has been rather stressful and I need an outlet.” 
By this time Crabapple had managed to pull himself together. His crossbow had been knocked away by the first attack so Crab decided to forego style and instead charged head down at the bounty hunter. Hawkeye drew himself to standing position on his hind legs, puffed out his wings to their full extent and held his ground. A smile filled his face. When the collision seemed impossible to avoid Hawkeye flapped his wings and drew himself up into a somersault. As Crabapple passed underneath him he pulled out of the mid-air ball and used his momentum to buck Crabapple and send the stallion crashing into the wall. A sharp crack could be heard as some of the boards in the all broke. 
“Forgot I had wings didn’t ya?” The three fillies knew from years of classes that they should probably go get a police pony. They also knew a fight like this wasn’t something a pony could just pass up. Crabapple got up a second time. He wasn’t looking so this time good as blood was rushing from his nose and running down his face. One eye was already beginning to swell. 
“Shut up,” Crabapple shouted as he tried to simply hit Hawkeye with some wild haymakers. Hawkeye took an unexpected left hook before blocking the right swing and snapping at the back leg with the nightstick. A sick snapping sound was heard. This time it wasn’t wood. 
“LUNA,” Crabapple screamed as he fell to his knees the fight completely forgotten. 
“Crabapple, You are hereby captured for your frakking bounty,” Hawkeye was breathing heavily as the adrenaline left his system. He produced a set of hoofcuffs from his vest and shackled the prisoner.  After he was sure that Crabapple wasn’t going anywhere he walked over to the CMC. “Pardon me,” Hawkeye said pausing before untying the group. A breath later he ungagged the fillies. “Just wanted to enjoy the silence one last time.” 
“That was awesome!” All three seemed to chorus at once. 
“And there it goes…” Hawkeye said both exasperated and soaking up the admiration at the same time. He produced a knife from the seemingly endless pockets in his vest and cut through rope tying up the three fillies. “How did you kids get ahold of one of my cards?” 
“I told Twilight I thought you were cute. She gave me the card.” Applebloom said shrugging off the ropes. 
“You know I was just kidding about the broccoli threat right? You don’t have to keep trying to keep me away from girls.” 
“Can you teach me to fly like you?” Scootaloo asked loudly. “If I can learn those moves Rainbow Dash will have no choice but to pay attention to me.” 
“Kid, I’m awesome at fighting not flying.” Hawkeye turned away from the fillies and threw away the cut rope into a trash can. He walked back to the captive. Hawkeye hoisted the distraught Crabapple on his back. 
“But your Cutie Mark?” Scootaloo cried loudly in disbelief.
“Cuties are weird. I was raised by my grandparents on a farm. They were earth ponies who didn’t know anything about flying...” Hawkeye opened the front door and came face to face with the wagon full of gems. The veteran’s eyes widened to the size of dinner plates. “Celestia’s holy heat! Who has this many gems in one place?” 
“My sister the dressmaker,” Sweetie Belle answered. “Crabapple was flirting with her today to get them.” 
“Point her out to me when I drop you off. I’m gonna borrow it.” Hawkeye dropped the heavy moaning stallion from his back to the cart and hitched himself up so he could pull it. 
“What were you saying about Cutie Marks? Can farming help you get a flying Cutie Mark?” 
“Which way is the Police station from here?” Hawkeye asked ignoring the question. It seemed most of the crowd was too far away from the Carousel Boutique to have heard the fight and the masses of ponies were all sleeping soundly. 
“That way,” Scootaloo said pointing out a direction guessed more from experience than what she could see in the dark. 
“Well, you see my grandfather could tell you anything you wanted to know when it came to farming but he didn’t know the first thing about flying. When it came time for me to learn we were too far out in the country to find a teacher so my grandfather told me to watch birds since he figured that they knew how to fly and I could copy them.”
“But birds and ponies fly completely differently?” Scootaloo had often listened to everything Rainbow Dash had told her about flying. Birds were creatures of nature while ponies had magic assistance to help with their heavier bodies. 
“Yeah, but my pappy didn’t know that and neither did I. So I watched the birds when I didn’t have any chores to do and started to copy them. I saw a hawk chase down a rabbit and I think it is cool. I try. I fail. So I try again and again. Eventually I somehow manage to do it. I see a hummingbird and think I should be able to hover. Again something I shouldn’t be able to do. Somehow I succeed. Since I attended a school with only earth ponies I thought I was just a normal Pegasus. It was only once I joined the army that I learned just how crazy the stuff I was doing was.”
“So that is how you got the hawk cutie mark?” 
“Yeah, my talent isn’t flying. It is succeeding in things that I shouldn’t be able to do due to not knowing I can’t”
“So your talent is being so dumb and stubborn you warp reality?”
“That is a bit more brutal than I like to put it.”
“I don’t get it. We caught the bad guy. Why no cutie marks?” Applebloom asked out loud.
“Probably for the best. Violence is a skill that is really limited. The 1% of the time you need violence it can make you a hero. The other 99% of the time it just makes everyone else really nervous.”
The police station was a small brick building in the middle of the town square. When the group entered there was just a young rookie manning the desk and looking asleep on his hooves. This condition was quickly dispelled when an armed and armored pony entered towing a load of jewels and a hoofcuffed pony. The three young foals quickly learned the meaning of beaurcracy as forms were passed and filled out, statements about the kidnapping made, written down, photographs taken and so on until the authorities were satisfied with the situation. Eventually the three passed out on a couch in the break room. By the time the police were satisfied about who was telling the truth it was already dawn. 
“Not bad for a police station. Yes, I am going to have to mark it down for having worn out old furniture but I must say I love the coffee. 9 out of 10 would be arrested in again” Hawkeye was the only one of the group who was still functioning after the night of excitement. As soon as he stepped out the door he was face first with angry mares.
“Girls we have been looking everywhere for you? Why were you in the police station? Mr. Hawkeye what is going on here?” 
This time it was Sweetie Belle’s turn to monologue. “Last, night I could feel it. The chill down an honest mare’s spine when evil is afoot. I can never sleep when evil rears its ugly head. Too many years on the job have taught me that. I roused my Watsons’ so that we might begin the game once again. “ She looked Rarity deep in the eye. “Do you know the true blackness in somebody’s heart? The evil that lurks where angels fears to go? The Sweetie Belle knows.”
“Oh, neat,” exclaimed Pinkie somehow producing popcorn. “I love radio serials.”
“Okay crazy train stopping here.” Hawkeye exclaimed. “If anypony could direct us to a place where I can find some breakfast I’ll be glad to explain what happened.”
The group migrated to a diner where they could discuss the events of last night. Over numerous cups of black coffee the story eventually came to light. 
“And then we all went to the police station.” Hawkeye said finishing up the story.
“Will you be staying long Mr. No Name?” Twilight asked her curiosity still unsatisfied.
“No, I’ll catch the first train back after I leave here.” Hawkeye said. “I’m needed to testify at a trial in two days.”
“I can’t believe Pomme was a crook. Or that someone that sophisticated was related to Applejack.”
“Hey,” Applejack protested.
“I am a pony shamed.” Rarity cried draping a hoof over her face. “However shall I go on?”
“Change your name and move to another city?” Pinkie Pie suggested.
“Oh Pinkie, where do you get these ideas?”