It had been hours till Rainbow had read through several books before finally falling asleep, Spike covering her in a blanket and leaving her to rest. Rainbow now snored peacefully, sleeping a dreamless sleep.
Her sleeping became disturbed as felt something heavy over her. She tossed and turned, but the heavy thing only pressed down on her more, so she pushed her hooves up against it to move it, opening her eyes as the disturbance woke her...
And stared directly into the face of Grand Heist, who immediately shoved his hoof against her mouth just as she was about to scream.
“Now, now, now, none of that.” Grand Heist said with a smirk. “We’re gonna discuss things like civilised ponies, without that...pet of yours interfering. Agreed?”
Rainbow Dash responded by kicking Grand Heist off of her, and opened her mouth to call for Spike...but no sound came.
Grand Heist dusted himself as he got up and walked towards her, chuckling. “Don’t worry, it’s not permanent, just something in my bag of tricks to help make my heists easier. Now, let’s chat shall we? I feel we got off on the wrong hoof, so how about we clear the air.”
Rainbow Dash snarled, her wings glowing.
“Ah, right, your famous magic, well another of my tricks is a complete immunity to magic. Of course, I could be lying, but we both know how easily you can prove that and we both know I’m not stupid enough to assume you won’t blast me.” He grinned charmingly.
Rainbow Dash lowered her wings, glaring.
“Ah yes, well, I was hoping we could become friends, Miss Dash. You have been looking into my affairs for some time now, trying the past few weeks to convince ponies to crackdown on Ponyville and lessen my activities. But see, I bring something to Equestria desperately needed: harmless excitement! Reports of my exploits are known far and wide across Equestria, and they are quite popular! Everypony knows my name and loves to speak it and hear it! I am the talk of Equestria! And unlike an Ursa or a Manticore or even Nightmare Moon, I do it all without a shred of property damage or injury, so what’s the harm in letting me continue?”
He gripped her cheek with his hoof, a little more harshly than needed, pulling her close to his face.
“Just cooperate with me and who knows, maybe I’ll give you a cut on the more monetary portions of my heists, I don’t care for riches after all.” He twirled his hoof in the air. “We don’t NEED to be enemies here Rainbow Dash, and that is all I wanted to speak about when I came here earlier. Bygones?” he blinked in realisation. “Oh, you can speak now.”
Rainbow fumed, and did the only logical thing in this situation. “Spike! Grand Heist came back!”
A dark look spread across his features before quickly taking on a more disappointed look. “I see. Enemies it is then. See you around, Rainbow Dash.” A green glow surrounded him as he vanished just as Spike entered the room.
“Where is he!?” The tiny dragon said, his eyes burning in righteous anger.
“He just left. Again.” Rainbow sighed, slumping. “Twice. He invaded my home TWICE.”
Spike walked over to her, petting her back. “Don’t worry, I’ll stand guard all night from now on.”
“That’s not it Spike!” Rainbow snapped. “He didn’t just sneak in when your back was turned! I covered this house in so many alarm spells and wards that there is no way he could’ve gotten in uninvited without either of us knowing, but still he got in anyway! That...that at the very least should be difficult to do! And they are still up so he didn’t dispel them!”
Spike gripped her muzzle and pulled her face down to his, looking serious. “Calm down Rainbow. You’re stronger than this, and smarter. You just need to figure it out. Don’t let this jerk intimidate you.”
“But how can we even begin to deal with him!? We have no idea who he is or even where to find him, all we can do is wait for him to come and find us, and I do NOT want to be at that guy’s mercy!”
“Then make a plan. DON’T become a victim, fight him, if no one else can or will.” He gave her a smile. “You’re a hero Rainbow Dash, you faced worse than some loser in a stupid costume.”
Rainbow sighed, visibly calming down. “Right...you’re right....let’s stand watch for the night, make sure he didn’t steal anything, and then we’ll think of something in the morning.”
Spike nodded and the two of them scoured the room and the rest of the house for any signs of theft or damage. They found nothing amiss. Rainbow Dash wasn’t sure whether that was reassuring or disturbing.
As they searched, Rainbow saw an old comic book of Spike’s lying on the floor. As she picked it up and glanced at the cover sporting a costumed hero, and something tugged at the back of her mind, some key piece to the puzzle was just on the edge of her periphery, she just needed to figure it out...
------------------------------------------
Days passed, and with no further sign of Grand Heist, Rainbow Dash relaxed, but was still on edge. Today she had decided to check on Applejack and see if she needed any help with anything; this was mainly to give something for Rainbow Dash to do to get her mind off things.
“Ah’m sorry Rainbow, but between Applebloom and Strong Heart, Ah really don’t need any help, and it’s not like Ah have any outstandin’ orders, really most of my is spent standing here and waiting.” Applejack explained, smiling sheepishly.
“Oh, that’s fine Applejack, I’m just looking out for my friends, that’s all.” The Pegasus replied hastily, flashing a reassuring smile. “I’ll...just get out of your hair then...”
“Oh darling, don’t worry about it! Ah’m always glad to speak to a friend, especially one as photogenic as yourself! Not that Ah’m implying Ah only like you because you look good!”
Rainbow shook her wing. “Nah, it’s cool Applejack, as long as you’re sure you’re fine.”
There was a noise behind them, the two mares blinking in surprise. Rainbow Dash held up her wing, gesturing at the other mare to stay put as she stepped into the back room, where Applejack kept her spare supplies.
Rainbow saw Grand Heist, the room more of a mess than it usually is (mainly cause Applejack is a stickler for tidiness), and a familiar, golden figure searching through everything, several fabric rolls tucked under his forelegs.
Rainbow Dash’s vision went red as she charged at the thief. There was no way she was going to let this creep get away now, not after last night, and certainly not when he was trying to rob her friend.
Grand Heist expertly feel flat, ruining the pegasus’ momentum as she tripped over his prone body, unable to move her wings fast enough before crashing into some fabric and getting entangled. She grunted and struggled as she tried to get free, Grand Heist chuckling.
“Oh do calm down, Rainbow Dash, Madame Applejack shan’t be missing these any time soon, you really are becoming QUITE obsessed with me.” The thief laughed jovially before his expression turned sour. “I am serious, stay out of my way, it’s not like you can catch me anyway, I’m too quick for you!”
Once again he vanished in a green flash, Rainbow fuming as Applejack stepped into the room. “Darling, whatever happened in here? Are you alright?”
“Yeah...just...fine.” Rainbow panted, giving up as her friend stepped forward to help, the Pegasus herself ruminating on her failure. Grand Heist WAS too quick for her, seemingly able to do impossible things, and she needed a way to catch on HER terms rather than his, get him to come to HER rather than happen onto him by convenience. It was no longer a matter of simply doing the ethical thing; Grand Heist had made it personal.
As Applejack removed the fabric, Rainbow dimly noting the fashionista was trying to coax an explanation out of her, the Pegasus saw herself in a spare mirror to her left. She saw herself, the fabric over her face in JUST the right way, and thoughts whirled through her mind.
The comic book. Grand Heist. How he reacted when they interacted on the train. His presence in Ponyville. His outrageous thefts. His own description of himself.
It all fell into place. Not just Grand Heist’s motives, but also the method she could use to catch him, since nopony else seemed to care.
“Applejack,” Rainbow began, “I will explain everything, but first, I want you to help me with something.”
Applejack gave her a half-lidded gaze. “Oh, and what would that be, and WHAT does it have to do with the STATE this room is in? Ah mean, it almost looks like a good deal of my backup stock is MISSING!”
“Yeah, and there’s a reason for that, and don’t worry I DO intend to pay you.”
The fashionista’s eyes narrowed suspiciously. “Pay me for what.”
Rainbow smirked. “I am ordering a new outfit, designed by scratch, though the design itself may be a little...unoriginal.”
---------------------------------
A stallion roof fixer stood on top of Sugarcube Corner, affixing the tiling when his hooves slipped. Dropping his hammer he tried to get his footing back but that only caused him to tumble further until there was no longer a building, let alone a roof, separating him from the hard ground.
He screamed in fear, covering his face with his forelegs as he fell....only for him to feel a pair of hooves grab him and a rush of air as the figure leapt to the ground with him and set him down gently on the ground. The stallion blinked and looked up at his saviour, smiling gratefully.
“Th...thank you! Thank you so much for saving me!”
The hero nodded curtly, clad in an outfit similar to Grand Heist’s except with dark blue and purple colouration, and then flew up into the sky.
“look up in the sky! It’s a bird!” a townspony cried out.
“No it’s a cloud!” another argued.
“It’s a well!” Snails proclaimed.
“A well!?” Everypony around him exclaimed in exasperation.
The costumed figure chuckled and spoke to the populace below her. “Neither bird nor cloud nor even well, just a friendly mare to do well.” The figure seemed to flinch at the clumsy rhyme, but the populace accepted it eagerly as she vanished into the day.
“Does anypony know who that was?” A stallion asked a mare.
“I think they said they’re called ‘Mare-Do-Well’.”
“But who is she? And why is she dressed like that?”
“Who knows?”
------------------------
A frightened filly stood in a shallow area of the Everfree Forest, answering a dare for some friends. She shivered, cold and frightened, then yelped as she saw a pair of scary looking eyes. She turned and fled, as a small reptilian thing chased after her.
It hissed and snarled at her, only to be knocked aside as a blast of magic struck it and rendered it uncoconcious. The child froze, perplexed as a figure clad in purple stood in front of her.
“Do not worry you are safe now, no harm has come to your face.” Mare-Do-Well said warmly and reassuringly. “Take my hoof and I’ll lead you out of this dangerous place.”
The filly sniffed and took the pony’s hoof. “Th-thank you...”
“It is no problem, I am here to help.”
---------------------------
Grand Heist sat in his study, smirking as he unfolded the paper. He had laid low for a while, but if his recent theft of Applejack’s unused items didn’t garner any attention, his theft of the Saddle Arabian princess’ jewels should be causing a stir about now. Though he was mildly disappointed Applejack didn’t seem to have what he was looking for, at least the fabric would prove useful for his greatest heist.
He frowned as he spied the front page. Instead of yet more news of his exploits adorning the front page as usual, instead the title read “WHO IS THE MYSTERIOUS MARE DO WELL?” with a photo of a figure in the distant horizon underneath. He raised a brow but paid it no mind. He turned the page, frowning further as more news of this ‘mare-do-well’ filled the page. With each flip of the pages, he became more and more irritated. FOUR ARTICLES, all about some upstart super hero! The jewel theft was reduced to the back page, and no mention of Carousel Boutique anywhere!
He threw the paper aside and picked up another. Then another, and another. Each and everyone, Mare-Do-Well dominated the headlines!
After more careful reading, he managed to find an article sporting the upstart’s visage, standing beside a filly outside the everfree forest. His vision turned red: this fool dared to steal everypony’s attention, but his costume too!? He spent weeks designing that look!
He threw the papers down in disgust, breathing deeply as he calmed. It’s okay, he told himself, this is only some idiot’s five minutes of fames. In about a week everypony will forget this ‘Mare-Do-Well’ and focus on what truly mattered, the great thief Grand Heist. Perhaps a couple more trips to Prance and Canterlot will help cement his status, just in case....