//------------------------------//
// Secrets of Sugar, Revealed! 
// Story: The Quest for Celestia's Raiment 
// by GaPJaxie 
//------------------------------//

As Azure Charger approaches Rambling Ridge once again, she can see Lightning Glass on one of the rooftops near the gate. She seems to be dancing and singing to herself. "~I got the Light and the Ning and the G-L-A-S-S, small town weatherpony but I do it with class, fancy ponies come in, think they can make a scene, but I...~"

Azure flies toward the town at half speed, approaching Lightning. Her tail is sagging, her ears drooped, her gaze downcast. "Umm... Hi, Lightning Glass."

Lightning Glass trails off, stopping her little dance as she notices Azure Charging flying up. "Oh, it's you again," she says, with a frown. "What is it now?"

Azure rubs one foreleg with the other. "Look, uh, I just wanted to apologize for how I acted…  last week?" she says after thinking a moment. "Last week. That was a pretty disgraceful way for me to act."

Lightning Glass eyes her suspiciously. "What are you even doing back here? Aren't you supposed to be in, like… somewhere, by now?"

"I was! But I felt really bad about all this," Azure says, looking downcast. "I was hoping I could apologize and make up for it."

Lightning Glass pauses and sizes her up. "You came all the way back here, just to say sorry?"

Azure quietly nods.

"...well," Lightning Glass says, after a moment. "That's about right. Because you were a huge jerk. And you went and picked a fight, and you're the reason everypony keeps hitting on me now. But..." She pauses, while Azure gives a confused little glance at that last bit. "Whatever. Apology accepted, I guess."

Shaking off the confusion, and with a sheepish look, Azure spreads her forelegs apart, offering a hug. "So... what do you say? Bury the hatchet?"

"We'ree not on hugging terms just yet," Lightning Glass says, gently pushing Azure back. "But, you did come all this way, so… Sure. We're cool."

"Ah well. That's fine too, I guess." She turns her back to Lightning, hovering just in front of her. "Suppose I shoulda seen that coming anyway. After all..." She inhales sharply. "Hindsight Twenty Twenty!" And then she lets loose a sharp buck to Lightning Glass’s head.

Lightning Glass gets kicked in the face, leaving a fetching hoof-shaped impact mark around her eyes. The snap blow leaves her stumbling, and after a moment, she tumbles off the edge of the roof. 

Two of the earth ponies who had been watching the exchange rush to her, moving to help her up. "HEY!" they shout up at Azure.

Azure Charger blows a raspberry down in her direction. "What's the matter? You can dish out named attacks but can't take em?"

"You... unbelievable..." Lightning Glass sits back up, holding a hoof over her eye.

"Are you okay? You—" one of the ponies helping her asks.

"I'm fine. Which is more than I'll be able to say for her in a second!" Lightning Glass shoots back up, spreading her wings and taking off. Azure Charger laughs and takes off at top speed out to the forest, Lightning Glass cursing and giving chase, the two pegasi bolting off into the distance.





"I know I said it was a thing, but is it really a thing?" On the road nearby, Moonlight Meadows frowns, watching Lightning chase Azure off toward the horizon. "Because it looks like it really is a thing."

"I wouldn't put too much thought into it," Virtue says nonchalantly, as she transforms. She uses a small mirror, levitating it in an unseen aura to make sure she has all the details right. Soon, she stands before them as a spitting image of the weathermare: a sky-blue pegasus pony with a golden mane and tail, with a golden lightning bolt cutie mark.

Moonlight Meadows stands up and stretches. "Do you want comp’ny?"

"Possibly. What's your plan?"

"I can be a cat."

Virtue nods. "That will do. Can you question her plants while in that shape?"

"Meow." The unremarkable housecat nods to Lightning Glass. And so, the two of them head off toward the town gates once more.

The two guards are still peering off into the distance when they approach. "Hey! Lightning Glass!" the stallion calls, trotting forward to meet her. "Are you okay!?"

Virtue takes on entirely different mannerisms as they approach, tossing her mane irritably and flicking her tail. "Yeah, I'm fine."

Moonlight Meadows pads up to the stallion, weaves her way between his legs, and starts pawing at his tail.

"I saw everything! I can't believe she… Uh…" He lowers his head to peer down under his legs. "Hi there, kitty," he says, awkwardly trying to move away. "Uh. Mew? Mew."

"Maow."

"Oh." The guard blanches. "Why didn't you just say so? Sorry, go ahead. We won't bother her."

"Mrow."

Virtue walks on past, doing her best to look like she has no interest in chatting the others up.

The mare guard looks at her companion, then after Lightning Glass: "She was just in a brawl! We should at least—"

"No, cat says she needs some private time."

While there are a few more conversations of that sort, the townsfolk offering 'Lightning Glass' their outrage or sympathy, the two have little trouble making it to Wisp Will's Potted Plant and Candle store, the little bell over the door ringing when they enter.

"Hello!" Wisp Will calls from behind the desk, sing-song. "How can I h—" Wisp Will falls silent at once when she sees Virtue. "H-help. Help you. Hi. Lightning Glass." She is obviously ill at ease, her body tense.

While Moonlight Meadows makes a beeline for the oak tree, Virtue grins at Wisp Will, putting on the sort of arrogant confidence she always saw on Lightning Glass. "Wisp! Just the pony I was looking for."

"Were you. Now?" Wisp Will asks, her speech stilted. 

The oak tree is right where it was before. Moonlight Meadows's fur ripples a bit, as she extends claws and does that thing cats do, with the clawing of wooden surfaces. In short order, she is communing with the small oak once more.

"What, not happy to see me?" Virtue asks, stepping forward.

"No, of course I'm... happy to see you," Wisp Will says, with a stiff smile. "Here to... buy another plant?"

"May be, at that," Virtue says, leaning up against the counter. Wisp Will leans away, looking at Virtue head on, her eyes darting left and right. "Looking for something?"

"No!" Wisp Will yelps. "I mean, no. Just... wondering why you're here! Eh heh."

"Oh, well, if you must focus on business..."

"Uh. Sure. Sure. That sounds... good." Wisp Will says, almost sweating. "Um. What do you want to talk about?"

Virtue reaches out to touch her, her eyes giving off the faintest of glows. "You know one of those ponies from last week showed up again?"

"Ah," Wisp Will says, her panicked breaths slowing. "I thought they were gone. Moved on to griffon lands."

"So did I. Wonder might have brought them back," Virtue says, narrowing her eyes at Wisp suspiciously.

Wisp Will gives a sharp twist of her body, her face snarling up. "No, shut up!" she snaps.

Virtue arches an eyebrow. "Beg pardon?"

"I mean—" She stammers, giving Virtue a wide-eyed stare. "N-nothing. I said, how should I know what brought them back?"

"No, actually, you told me to shut up."

"N-no, I—"

Virtue opens her eyes, seeming to suck her right in. "Tell me everything..."

"I didn't. I..." As she stares back at Virtue, her form seems to slouch ever so slightly. Her muscles and movements are still tense, but her breathing at least takes a more regular pace. "Fine. I mean, fine. You're right. Maybe we should talk privately?"

Wisp Will to the door of the shop. She pauses halfway through locking the door to the shop. After a moments hesitation, she completes the motion, pulling the blinds down and casting the room into a shadowy darkness. "Where do you want me to start?"

"The beginning."

"I... I guess that would be best," she says, turning back to face Virtue. "Well. I guess I would say it really started about... eight years ago now? That's the first time Dad told me that one day, a group of ponies would come around, asking questions!" Her hoof drags over the floor, producing a loud scraping on the wood. "And that they wouldn't—"

Wisp Will bucks Virtue hard in the chest. Virtue goes wide-eyed, coughing up a few specks of blood.

"—leave me—"

A savage right hook connects with her gut, launching Virtue a few inches into the air.

"ALONE!"

Virtue crumples immediately to the floor upon landing, robbed of her consciousness. From her corner of the shop, Moonlight stares, frozen in place, as Wisp Will stands over her fallen friend.

"All I wanted is for you to leave me alone!" Wisp Will screams, reaching down to pull the clip out of Virtue's hair, her disguise fading away. Her eyes are wide and wild as she rants at Virtue, not appearing to pay the small cat any mind. "All you had to do was leave. I like just selling ferns and candles. I can be a normal pony! I'm good at being a normal pony. But you just kept poking around and lying to me and attacking my friends, and so this is your fault!"

With a snarl, Wisp Will whirls about, glaring to her right. Moonlight doesn’t see anypony there. "No, but— No, shut up! I'm handling it!" She motions angrily with her hooves, pointing down at Virtue. "No, see? She's out cold. We can just tell everypony that she was hiding her friend with the clip and they'll understand." She goes silent as she stares at the unicorn. "...I guess she is tricky. I mean—" Wisp shakes her head slowly. "That seems a bit extreme." She worries at her lip a moment, looking to her window, then back to Virtue. "Well... okay." 

Moonlight Meadows decides to keep her distance. Quietly, she collects a few of the fern seeds, holding them in her mouth, then slinks along behind Wisp Will.

"It's not fair. It's not fair." She wails as she picks up Virtue's unconscious form and tosses her over her back. She starts up the staircase, Moonlight following at a safe distance. "All I want is to have a nice normal life." Upstairs, she enters a small bedroom and heads straight to its tiny closet. Reaching inside with her mouth, she bites down on a handle and drags out a large trunk. "I didn't want to hurt anypony. And you didn't want to get mailed to Cloudsdale by express freight. But we don't always get what we want, do we!?" She sets to work, stuffing Virtue into the trunk and shutting the lid. "No, just, shut up! I'm finding stamps."

Wisp Will sets about applying postage to the traveling trunk, along with directions to cloudsdale, grunting as she pulls it away and down the stairs. While Wisp does all this, Moonlight spies a window in the bedroom. She jumps up onto the sill and noses it open. Dropping the seeds onto the sill, she goes completely stock still, then looks out at the sky.





It's not long later that a bird goes tweet-tweet, landing on Silver's shoulder and looking between him, Balti, and Dawn. "Tweet! Tweet tweet tweet tweet!" the little bird says, obviously distressed.

"Hello Mister Bird! Or Miss Bird!" says Dawn Star, ever the friendly host.

Silver Shine blinks in confusion. "What the?"

"Tweet tweet!" The bird points towards the town with one wing. Holds its wings flat together in front of it, and bows its head as though in reverence. Then makes a sharp swinging motion across its head and takes a stage-fall, lying on its back with feet up. "Tweeet!"

"That can't be good," Silver grumbles. "Moonlight and Virtue must be in trouble." The bird warbles and nods eagerly. "Alright, they were going to Wisp's shop. Something went wrong. If the little"—Silver looks at the sparrow perched on his shoulder—"birdie is telling the truth, it doesn't sound good. We'd better think of a plan fast!"

Balti has a plan. "Mrrrow!" She darts off towards the town gates.

Silver Shine nods to Dawn. "You follow Balti. I'll fly in, land on the roof of that shop, and try and figure out what's going on."

"Right! Uh… lets go!" Dawn Star galloping after the mountain lion.





Back in the center of town, Wisp Will is dragging her trunk across the street to the post office, tailed by this oddly persistent housecat. She's muttering under her breath the whole time, the heavy load balanced over her back.

Then, three things happen at once.

The first of these is that Azure makes her way back, grinning ear to ear as she speeds into town, pursued by a furious Lightning Glass.

The second is that Balti runs at a full sprint through the town gates, the guards gaping as Dawn and Silver both speed after her, spotting Wisp in the street.

The third is that someone shouts: "Hey! It's the pegasus who robbed us! And he brought his attack cat!"

"MAOW!" mews Moonlight. Balti gives her a reproachful look.

"Oh, no! It's the sugar thief and that knight that keeps beating up Lightning Glass!" somepony shouts.

"We're being raided by pegasi!" shouts another mare, with a suitable panicked shriek. "It's the old days all over again! Quick, form a panicked herd!" 

"No! We're earth ponies!" yells another. "Form an angry herd!"

Ahead of them, the herd sees Wisp Will dragging a very large trunk across the street, but before they have time to consider that, a shout goes up from the earth ponies around the town! "Get them!"

Dawn Star looks over at her friends and moves to gallop towards Wisp. "Hey! Hey! Um… did you see a unicorn? Our friend, Virtue? She's in trouble and went to see you, do you know where she went?" Wisp Will doesn’t respond at first, too distracted with her luggage.

Above them, Lightning Glass puts on a burst of speed to get ahead of Azure, coming to a stop ahead of her to block her path. "Enough! I've had it with you! Time to fix your attitude for good!" She claps her hooves together, the horseshoes there sparking as she prepares herself to fight! 

Azure whips her lance out of its restraints. "Unfortunately, after last time, I don't think I'll give you the chance. Sonic Shish-Kebab!" She charges directly at Lightning with her lance.

"Calling attacks is my thing!" Lightning Glass manages to shout, before the charge connects.

The whole town looks up at the echoing boom that rings over the town, Lightning Glass launched clear through the air and into one of the many merchant stands that dots the way. She rips through the canopy and smashes down through layers of pumpkins, her impact smashing the stand to splinters.

For a moment, nopony moves, watching the remains of the fruit stand.

Lightning Glass groans, pushing herself back up, spitting out a chunk of melon and fixing Azure with a glare. "Is..." she starts, panting for breath. "That all you got!?"

Azure grins back, hot-blooded.

Moonlight Meadows sees what's happening, sees where things are going, and slips directly into a Stray Cat Strut, letting a soft mewl as she does so. The earth beneath the trunk that Wisp Will is dragging responds, and rapidly evacuates the area, dispersing itself into the air and creating a pit for the trunk to fall into. She then makes a beeline past Balti, yowling all the way.

The guard at the gate looks up and the sound of a distress call, albeit in cat. "Wait, what?"

The trunk falls into the sudden hole in the earth, smashing open on impact. Virtue hacks up more blood, moaning plaintively and clutching her head, but at least she’s conscious.

Wisp Will and Dawn Star both peer down into the newly-formed hole, at Virtue’s recovering body, then back up at one another. Her face darkening, Wisp Will shrieks at her. "You've ruined everything!" 

Before Dawn can react, Wisp swings at her with a precision nerve-strike attack! Luckily for Dawn, it lands right on that pressure point in her back that’s been giving her trouble. Already, Dawn Star feels more limber, and also like she has better circulation. "Oh! Thank you! Um...that's been bothering me for days!" she says with a bright smile. "But, that doesn't make up for the fact that you were really mean to Virtue!"

Wisp Will hears none of this. She is already running off, back toward her store from the looks of it.

Lightning Glass is still getting up out of the fruit stand when a crossbow bolt whizzes through the air past her, nicking her foreleg and making her stumble. Looking up above her, she sees Silver Shine in a hover, loading up another round. "Oh no you don't..." she growls at him.

"The sugar thief is trying to hurt Lightning Glass!" someone in the herd shouts. "Quickly! Launch formation!" And thus, the earth ponies defend themselves against pegasi encroachment in the traditional manner: in which the strongest amongst them lifts their greatest warrior, and hurls them skyward! 

Right at Silver Shine. He gets hit in the face by an angry, skybound earth pony mare. The mare can't get a good grip though, and he manages to shake her off and send her back to the ground. "Is that the best you can do!" Silver Shine calls down.

Azure blinks in shock. "What the... these townsponies are going completely ballistic!" A few groans are heard above the din of combat.

The thrown earth pony falls into the hole with a squeak. "Oof!" She turns to Virtue. "Run, dear! The pegasi are attacking!"

Needing no further encouragement, Virtue staggers up to her hooves and leaps, trying to hook her hooves on the edge of the pit. She’s still recovering from a concussion, however, so she slides right back down. Looking upward, she spots Silver Shine in the sky. "Idiot! Don't antagonize them!"  she shouts, bleary. "Keep an eye on Wisp Will and don't let her escape!" With that, her horn flares, and Silver Shine vanishes from view. 

Balti is going to go after the fleeing Wisp. Everything else is distraction.

Virtue herself feels the magic of another unicorn wrapping around her. Soon, she has cleared the ground, and she feels the vitality returning to her weary muscles. Dawn Star is waiting for her at the edge of the pit, wearing a warm smile.

"No way. No way!" Lightning Glass leaps forward, driving her hooves into the ground to accelerate her leap skyward. She hurls herself towards Azure Charger, hooves swinging as she shouts: "Lightning Parts the Clouds!" Azure manages to deflect the blows, though it's a close thing, the two striking and dodging as they whirl through the air!

"Y'know"—Azure thrusts with her lance but is dodged at the last moment—"you're being"—she blocks an incoming kick with her shield—"awfully persistent"—she thrusts again, this time landing true—"you know that?"

Lightning Glass gets cracked across the face by the side of Azure's lance, and goes tumbling down to the ground again, hitting the stones hard. "Bullies like you... s'why I left Cloudsdale. Not gonna give you the satisfaction!"

Meanwhile, at the edge of the fray, a small cat dances and hums to itself. Now, normally, plants are a requirement for an entanglement spell. In a paved city like this, usually, such a spell is useless. But Moonlight has an advantage. Lead by a heroic oak tree, the ferns leap out of Wisp Will's shop, tackling ponies to the ground and pinning them in place! "What in Equestria is happening!?" one of them manages to shout, as he's being pinned to the ground by a very large earthen pot.

Wisp, though, seems to neatly avoid her rebellious plants. Slowed, but not stopped, she leaps through the open window of her store, vanishing inside, with Balti hot on her heels.

On the wings of the mystified shouts of "Witch! Witch!" from the townsponies, Silver Shine silently—and invisibly—flies to the west and towards Candles & Potted Plants, hovering outside the windows. Silver Shine can easily see into the window to her bedroom, where she appears to be talking to herself and hurriedly packing a bag. The window is open.

"HOOOLD IIIT!" the gate guard screams at the top of his lungs. A fine set of pipes on that stallion. The mob slowly coming to a stop. "Why were you in that trunk!? Why are you even back here!? Why is there a mountain lion over there!? What in Equestria is going on?"

Virtue looks bloody, battered, and infuriated. She looks to all of the ponies gathered about, and draws herself up to her full height. "Wisp Will attacked me and apparently shoved me into that trunk while I was barely conscious. I believe she arranged the theft that took place a week prior and attempted to hush me up in a bid to conceal that fact."

"Okay..." He gives her a questioning look. "And why are your pegasi terrorizing the town and beating up our weatherpony!?"

"Suspected accomplice. If you'll step lively, gentlecolts, we may be able to detain Wisp Will and sort this all out."

Lightning Glass looks like she got run over by a stampeding herd of bunnies, but she picks herself up anyway, flying back up to Azure's altitude, looking over at her through a bruised eye. She swings, but her vision is swimming by now, and her hoof clangs off Azure's armor.

With the eyes of the townsponies on her, Azure looks Lightning in the eye, her expression completely level. "Y'know. You're kind of cute." And then she lands one last hit on the jaw, and Lightning Glass crumples.

Meanwhile, Candles & Potted Plants is swarmed from all sides. Dawn Star dashes in the front door, channeling radiance through her glass orb. Silver Shine flies in through the bedroom window, followed closely by Moonlight and Balti who manage to claw their way up the building’s siding. A quick spell from Moonlight causes Wisp Will’s skin to sweat and her muscles to fatigue. Or that might be the fact that Balti sits on top of her.





Once all the dust has settled, Virtue assembles everyone back in the town square. Quite the crowd has assembled, to see this all get sorted out. Charitably, they're here to finally see the mystery resolved! Though, Azure suspects some of them may not still be 100% convinced that she and her friends are not the bad guys. Particularly those towns-ponies now carrying bats. Or crossbows. Or that one very precocious young foal who seems to have found a grenade.

Somepony should really tell his parents. That's not safe.

The elderly judge from last week’s trial makes his appearance in good time, looking at the guards, at Virtue, at Balti sitting on top of Wisp Will, and at Moonlight perched on top of Balti’s head. 

Sweet Tooth has also made an appearance, pushing through from the back with considerably less decorum than the judge. "Wisp! What happened?"

"That's exactly what I'd like to know!" the judge says, with a sharp frown.

"Meow," Moonlight explains.

Virtue discreetly spits more blood out, walking towards the pair, as the judge calls out to her. "Young mare! Please understand I mean you no disrespect. But if you do not explain why your two pegasi friends are making trouble in my town, and why your cat is sitting on your other cat who is sitting on one of our citizens, I will have you and your friends thrown in prison without a second thought!"

Looking not at all pleased with what she's doing—or about to do—Virtue looks to the judge, then down to Wisp WIll. "I have to admit, I was hoping it wouldn't come to this. Wisp Will, would you care to explain what you were doing?"

"Shut up!" Wisp Will doesn't look particularly villainous right now. In fact, she looks like she's struggling to emotionally hold herself together, her voice rough. "I didn't do anything wrong!"

"Well, um, Wisp, telling the truth here is super important. You really gotta do that, especially in front of a judge." Dawn’s horn lights up, and at once, the town square is bathed in a warm bubble of light. "There! Now everypony has to say the truth, okay?"

"Meow," says Moonlight.

"The cat can testify against her, Your Honor," the guard points out.

"Moonlight, please tell them what happened," says Virtue. "Unless Wisp Will would like to elaborate on why she was dragging me across town in a trunk of her own accord?"

"Wisp, it's super important that you tell." Dawn Star smiles at her.

"I just wanted you to leave!" Wisp Will says, her voice cracking as she looks at the ground, starting to tear up. "Because you're here to take me away and throw me in a dungeon for the rest of my life! Just like dad said would happen!"

Moonlight Meadows tilts her head quizzically. "Meow?"

"Why would I do that, Wisp Will?" Virtue asks.

"Because of Dad's old stuff! Because of me," Wisp Will says between sniffles. "He said that one day ponies from Canterlot would come asking after him, and if I wasn't careful I'd end up in a dungeon for the rest of my life. And now it's coming true. It's not my fault," she insists, crying now as she stares at the ground.

"Um, I don't wanna put you in a dungeon!" Dawn coughs. "And I'm the only one here from Canterlot."

Virtue frowns. "What isn't your fault, Wisp Will?" 

"Help us understand why it's not your fault," adds Azure. 

Wisp Will doesn't seem to want to say, and the spell won't let her lie, so she says nothing, just whimpering and pressing her hooves together.

Virtue goes down to her knees, lowering her face near Wisp Will. "I don't want to put you into a dungeon, and I won't let that happen."

Moonlight Meadows hops down from Balti's head, and starts rubbing her head against Wisp's cheek.

"It's not my fault," Wisp repeats, staring down at the earth. After a moment, Sweet Tooth joins Virtue and Moonlight next to her, putting a hoof on her shoulder. "I didn't want to be a freak. I just kind of do things, like see through your disguise or make faces. I don't even know how! But Dad said nopony could ever know or you'd..." Wisp Will finally breaks down, crying incoherently in the street, her forehooves over her head.

"Shh, it's..." Sweet Tooth struggles and fails to find something clever to say. "It's... it'll be okay."

"No it won't be. My life is over," Wisp Will sniffles.

Moonlight Meadows looks at Virtue, twitching an ear questioningly.

Virtue sighs. "You did what you did because you were scared. I... understand that. It doesn't have to end in prison. Your life doesn't need to be over."

"The law does not necessarily see things that way, young mare," the judge points out, gruffly. "If she committed grand theft and then attempted to frame an innocent pony to hide the evidence, that is a very serious matter, circumstances notwithstanding."

"That's not fair!" Sweet Tooth says, quickly. "She thought she was in danger!"

"Sweet Tooth..." Virtue puts a hoof to him, then looks to the judge. "I understand the seriousness of the charges, Your Honor. Even if I drop my own charges, the remainders are quite severe. Which is why I would like to take responsibility for this mare and her rehabilitation."

"Absolutely not," the judge says, at once. "Firstly, there is still the matter of you lying about your own involvement. While you may not have stolen the sugar, obstruction of justice is in-and-of-itself a crime. One I may decide to charge you with, if the mood so strikes me! Second, that would require you to be of a good standing and unquestionable moral character—properties which you have yet to demonstrate to me. She'll be held in the jail until decide otherwise."

"Um, I could," Dawn volunteers, raising a hoof. The judge considers her a moment, then snorts.

"This mare beat me within an inch of my life and I am prepared to forgive her," Virtue continues, "because I understand that she did both that and the theft with deep fears of her safety in mind."

"Young mare, please understand I'm only this grumpy because I was awoken by the sight of my daughter being hurled through the air as an earth pony anti-air projectile. However, I was awoken by my daughter being used as an anti-air projectile. So certainly, no one in your company—"

Virtue steps forward, interrupting. "My employer, Sir Blueblood, can vouch for my on my behalf. He makes a practice of reaching out to ponies with strange and misunderstood powers."

"...mmph." He frowns at Virtue.

"Mrrrow."

'The cat vouches for her, Your Honor," the guard supplies.

"If need be, I will contact Celestia herself," says Virtue. "Dawn Star here is a member of her circle, however distantly. I don't want to see Miss Will rot in a dungeon. Justice is not served by harming those like her."

"Name dropping carries no weight with me, young mare! I don't care if you're Celestia's own daughter." After a moment’s thought, the judge harrumphs. "But, I will contact Sir Blueblood. Perhaps he will have an opinion as to if you yourself should be charged with something. You can remain free, until I hear back from him, and she will remain in jail until that time as well."

Sweet Tooth takes a hesitant step forward. "Can I keep her company?"

"...yes, very well. Guards? Please. Let's get this horrific chain of events over with."

The guards move to take Wisp Will from Balti, apologetically attempting to shoo the cats away. "Mrrrr!" Balti reluctantly moves.

"It's all right, Balti." Virtue looks to Azure, a little uncertain.

Azure Charger nods in return. "Sir Blueblood will be able to straighten out the matter of this detainment, I'm sure."

With the show over, the crowd starts to disperse. A few ponies trot up to apologize to Virtue or Azure or even Silver for suspecting them—or to say that they knew they were innocent all along! Some ponies seem disappointed there wasn't a better fight. Most are just shocked and gossiping. That Wisp always was a strange one.

Virtue thanks whoever comes up to apologize to her, looking tired. She should be pleased, by all rights, but she just looks haggard instead.

Only the guard that speaks cat stays behind the watch them really, the judge already going off to write his letters. "I ah... I didn't see that one coming, I admit. I have to ask though, did Lightning Glass have anything to do with it, or was that really just a pegasi territorial thing?"

Azure silently works her jaw a few times before offering. "No, not territory. It would seem she was tied into these messy affairs." She bows slightly. "I apologize for my handlings in the matter. We can see about contacting Cloudsdale while Lightning Glass recovers."

"Of course," he nods. "We can do without a weatherpony for a few days, at least. In the meanwhile, I know it's small courtesy for everything you've been through, but I'm sure the judge will cover your stay until this all gets sorted out. You... look like you could use some time. You'll all be alright?"

Azure nods. "Yes, thank you." Then, she turns to Virtue, giving her a gentle nudge. "C'mon. You should lie down a bit."

"Mmph..." she nods, rocking back a bit. "I suppose. It just doesn't feel right. Why is it everything has to be so ambiguous on this journey?" She sighs. "No, don't answer that. Foal's question." Azure chuckles goodnaturedly. "Thank you, all, for coming to help me… I don't know what she was doing, but I suspect I wouldn't have liked it."

"Mrrrrrow." Moonlight nods in agreement.

"She says she was planning to mail you to Cloudsdale," the guard says.

Virtue goes to Meadows, giving the little cat a hug, then around to Silver and Dawn and finally Azure, embracing each in turn.

"Locked in a bin?" Silver chuckles wryly. "Can't have been good."

"Well, I’m glad we got you out. I don't think you'd have liked Cloudsdale." Dawn Star pauses, looking skyward. "Well, maybe, but, not going in the mail."

The guard pats Moonlight’s head gently. "That's one smart cat you've got, by the way. Saved the day."

Azure chuckles. "Yes. Yes, she's a smart kitty."

"Rrrrrrrrr."

The guard blanches. "I'm not translating that. It's rude! Anyway…" he says, shaking his head. "I'll let you all... collect yourselves. Let me know if you have any more trouble. I'll be at my post." The guards heads off, leaving the group to their own devices.

Azure Charger gives an apologetic shrug to Moonlight, then starts leading Virtue to the inn. "C'mon. Worrying to the point of exhaustion won't help any."

Virtue lets Azure lead her. She seems a little shaken up, actually, rubbing her face where it got hit. "...I suppose I do need to be cleaned up."

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Ouch. Well! The herd finally found their culprit, but there’s a lot of mystery and a lot of fallout. Multiple chapters’ worth, in fact. Still, at least for now, spirits were high that everypony was safe, and that we were on the verge of putting this one small mystery to rest.
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