//------------------------------// // Facing the Flim Flam Brothers // Story: Ciderholic // by twilightsparkle3562 //------------------------------// Chapter 5 "Facing the Flim Flam Brothers" It took a while for Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, Rarity and Pinkie Pie to calm down after the good cry the four of them had. Once they had calmed down, Rainbow Dash was allowed to leave but was warned that she would be starting her punishment the very next day. Still, there was a matter of the true culprits and that was the two ponies who had made the alcoholic cider to begin with, the Flim Flam Brothers themselves. "I hope those two frauds have a very good reason for making this kind of drek," said Applejack as they left the Wonderbolt Academy that afternoon. "Everypony knows that my family's cider is the best in all of Equestria. I just hope those brothers understand of the consequences that they will soon be facing." "I agree," added Rarity. "They took advantage of a sad pony like Rainbow Dash and brainwashed her into becoming a lover of their poison." "Poison?" remarked Pinkie, suddenly holding up a bottle marked poison out of thin air. "You mean like this, with the skull and cross bones?" "Yes, that!" cried Rarity, hiding her eyes away. "Get that away from me, Pinkie!" Pinkie shrugged her shoulders and tossed the bottle away, comically exploding confetti when it hit the ground. Aside from that comic moment, the ponies remained serious of the matter, especially Twilight, who was now dealing with the matter of protecting her subjects from all kinds of danger as a princess. Upon return to the castle, she walked into her study and approached Spike, who was reading a comic book. "Spike?" asked Twilight, getting the baby dragon's attention. "Send a message to all of Equestria." "What kind of message, Twilight?" replied Spike, holding out a quill and paper. "A wanted message," she replied. "Write that the Flim Flam brothers are wanted to attempting to induce harm to ponies by producing a poisonous product. Anypony who spots them are required to contact the royal guard at once." As Spike wrote the message, Rainbow Dash was feeling her body grow tired and was led into a secluded room by Applejack and Fluttershy. The amounts of alcohol that Rainbow Dash had consumed had taken their toll on her and had made her very weak and tired. "Did the Flim Flam brothers really try to kill me?" Rainbow Dash wondered as she fell asleep. "Was something that I was looking to take my troubles to have a permanent effect on me? I need to think of better coping strategies, so this doesn't happen again." Meanwhile, Spike had finished drafting up the message and handed it over to Twilight for her inspection and approval. Once Twilight had approved the message, she used a duplication spell to multiply the letter into thousands and thousands of copies. "Spread these throughout Equestria," she ordered the royal guards. "I want those brothers brought to me." "At once, your highness," they replied, bowing to her before leaving. Once the guards were gone, it was all a matter of waiting for the flim flam brothers to be found. They were eventually found in Manehattan, selling several more of their new alcoholic products to unsuspecting citizens of Equestria's largest metropolis. Once they were arrested, they were brought to Twilight's castle in chains and looked up nervously to the princess of friendship and her friends, who all glared down on them with strong glances. "Do you know why you are here?" asked Twilight, sternly, rubbing the armrest of her throne. The brothers didn't respond and instead motioned their heads sideways, meaning that they didn't know why they were in Twilight's kingdom. "Answer the question!" cried Twilight, raising her voice slightly. This made the brothers tremble and Flam lowered himself in fear of Twilight's wrath. "Do you know why you are here?" "We are here, missy, because of our product that we've been selling," said Flim, taking his hat off. "It has been making ponies sick and…" "…having an effect on them that makes them not themselves even though we said it had no effect," finished Flam, chuckling nervously while also taking his own hat off and stroking his moustache. "Your product has caused numerous ponies to be involved in life threatening accidents by all the alcohol you put in your product," explained Twilight. "But, the reason that you are here before us today is because your product was frequently sold to our friend, Rainbow Dash." She used her magic to make the brothers face Rainbow Dash, who was still recovering from the continuous amounts of alcohol she had drank. "Why make her look at us, princess?" stuttered Flim as Twilight released her magical grip on them. "She was just another customer." "There is much more to this than Rainbow Dash just being another customer," suggested Applejack, her throne glowing in the same colors as her cutie mark. "I knew that you were always nothing but trouble since you both came to Ponyville with your contraption that nearly caused my family to be run off our own ranch. But, this time you've gone too far." "Why, don't you see, Applejack?" asked Flam, nervously. "Maybe there was something that we may have done wrong and we can fix any damage that we may have caused." "The only damage you both caused," interrupted Twilight, stepping off from her throne. "Was trying to turn Rainbow Dash into something else after a tough time in her lives. You claimed to say that your product would calm down a pony's mind. Rainbow Dash had something to turn to and it wasn't your product, it was us and you made her see otherwise. In other words, you took advantage of somepony as they grieved for a personal matter." Applejack gave her archenemies a strong stare as she stepped down and faced them in the eyes. This made the brothers quiver again and it was at that moment Twilight turned to them and handed down her punishment against them. "Flim and Flam," she said with authority in her voice. "As the Princess of Friendship, I sentence you both to ten years' probation and your product will be immediately discontinued by the order of myself and the other princesses. You are to never make or sell your products in Ponyville, Canterlot and Appleloosa. Failure to comply will result in eternal punishment in the prison of Tartarus." Twilight then slammed down her rainbow colored gavel and the two brothers were led away from the throne room, flanked by the two guardsponies who brought them there. The culprits had been captured, but the damage was far from being repaired…