My Little Investigations: Wonderbolts Under Fire

by Metool Bard

Memory Lane

January 15, 11:20
Ponyville
Town Square
***

As Rainbow Dash continued to lead me around Ponyville, I couldn't help but notice just how much energy was put into this festival. I'm serious, they had something for everyone. Food; games; live music. You name it, it was there. Whoever organized this thing must've spent a fortune.

"So, you think this Ghastly Gorge Gauntlet is really gonna become part of the Equestria Games?" Rainbow Dash inquired.

"Maybe," I said with a shrug. "Ambassador Honor Bound said that both the Wonderbolts and the Proud Pride have to approve it. Not quite sure how that's gonna work."

"Man, it would be awesome if it did become an event," said Rainbow Dash with a wide grin. "It sounds like a lot of fun."

"Well, we'll see," said I. "So, have you been keeping up with your training?"

"Heck yeah!" said Rainbow Dash proudly. "I've even used Ghastly Gorge as a training course. I always keep myself in tip-top shape, ma'am!"

"Good to hear," I said. "I wouldn't want one of the best fliers in the Academy to get complacent."

"You don't have to worry about that, ma'am," said Rainbow Dash. "Hey, you getting hungry?"

I paused to think for a moment. "Well, I guess I am a bit peckish."

"Alright then, hang on a sec," said Rainbow Dash, taking a look around. "Ah, there she is. Hey, AJ!"

She was waving over to an orange Earth Pony running what I could only describe as an apple stand. I recognized her as one of Rainbow Dash's friends, but we never were fully acquainted. After getting the pony's attention, Rainbow Dash and I made our way over to her.

"Howdy, partner," said the salespony with a tip of her hat. "You enjoyin' the festival?"

"Immensely," I said with a grin. "This must've taken a lot of work to put together."

"Well, that's jus' how we do things 'round these parts," said the salespony. "So, whatcha hankerin' for? Apple fritters? Apple fries?"

"We'll take two samples of Zap Apple jam, please," said Rainbow Dash. "Trust me on this one, ma'am."

"Comin' right up!" said the salespony, taking out two slices of bread and a jar filled with a rainbow-colored substance. "You're very lucky, miss. We jus' finished up our Zap Apple harvest, so our jam is guaranteed fresh."

"I'll take your word for it," I said, mainly because I couldn't think of much else to say without sounding awkward. Yeah, I have absolutely no idea what a Zap Apple is. Sue me.

"Well, RD. You managed to get one of the Wonderbolts to hang out with ya after all," said the salespony with a smirk as she spread the rainbow substance on the bread. "Looks like you win the bet."

"Bet?"

"Oh, it was just a little something between me and Applejack here," said Rainbow Dash sheepishly. "No need to look into it any further."

"I was figurin' that all you Wonderbolts would be gettin' mobbed by fans left an' right, an' y'all would be too busy," said the salespony with a shrug.

"Okay, that's enough, AJ," Rainbow Dash growled. "I'm not gonna let you embarrass me in front of Spitfire."

"It's fine. I don't mind," I said with a giggle. To be honest, I could understand a bet like that. "So, you're one of Rainbow Dash's friends, I take it?"

"Yes, ma'am," said Applejack. "Name's Applejack. I help run Sweet Apple Acres; the premier apple orchard 'round these parts."

Big surprise there. "Well, it's nice to meet you, Applejack."

"Pleasure's all mine," said Applejack. "Here you go: Two samples of Zap Apple jam."

"Thank you," I said. "Um, I'm afraid my uniform doesn't have a place for a wallet. Just tell me how much I owe you, and I'll have my secretary write you a check or something."

"Oh, don't you worry 'bout that none," said Applejack with a smile. "It's on the house."

"Oh. Well, thank you very much," I said, picking up my piece of bread and taking a bite. Let me tell you something; whatever a Zap Apple is, it's delicious. Seriously, I've never tasted anything like it.

"Good, right?" said Rainbow Dash with a smirk.

"Mmm," was all I could really say. Trust me, if you were tasting this, you'd have the same reaction.

"Oh, Rainbow Dash! Fancy seeing you here."

An elegant voice got my attention, and I turned to see who it came from. It was another one of Rainbow Dash's friends; a unicorn named Rarity. I took in a sharp breath through my teeth. I had a bad feeling that this was going to get awkward.

Now, I'm not really the kind of pony to hold a grudge. I know that's hard to believe given how I've been reacting to this assassin prick trying to kill my team, but that's a special circumstance. I'm certainly not going to hate somepony if they hurt me by accident. I bring this up because I have a bit of a history with Rarity. And to be frank, it wasn't a proud moment for either of us.

See, at the Best Young Flyer competition I told you about, Rarity was one of the competitors. Some unicorn magic'd her up a pair of wings (not entirely sure why), and she was flaunting them all over Cloudsdale when somepony suggested that she entered. So she did, and she ended up vaporizing her wings in the middle of her performance. Apparently wings made out of magic have the same consistency of tissue paper. Go figure.

So, of course, I tried to save her. Problem was that she was having a panic attack as she was falling. Because of that, she actually knocked me and my wingponies out by accident (for the record, she has a mean left hook). Honestly, we all would've been dead if Rainbow Dash hadn't come in and saved us at the last minute.

Now let me make this absolutely clear. I've put that incident behind me. There's no need for me to dwell on what could've happened. Besides, from what little I understand, Rarity got what she deserved anyway; and she learned a valuable life lesson as well. So really, I bear no ill will towards her. I was just hoping that Rarity knew that.

"Hey, Rarity! Yeah, I was just showing Spitfire here the awesomeness that is Zap Apple jam," said Rainbow Dash.

"Ah, I see," said Rarity pleasantly. "Well, I do hope you're enjoying yourself, Ms. Spitfire. We all worked very hard to make this a festival worthy of commemorating such a prestigious event as the Ghastly Gorge Gauntlet."

Oh, thank Celestia. It seems like she let bygones be bygones, too. I swallowed my bit of bread before addressing her.

"I most certainly am," I said. "Rainbow Dash was kind enough to show me around town."

"Oh, have you shown her the spa yet?" asked Rarity.

Rainbow Dash tilted her head. "I, didn't know the spa was open today."

"Oh, but it is. Lotus Blossom and Aloe have a special treatment lined up for the Wonderbolts and the Proud Pride," said Rarity. "Fluttershy and I overheard them talking about it yesterday afternoon."

"A special treatment?" I asked.

"But of course," said Rarity with a nod. "After all, this is going to be a major milestone in pony-griffon relations. Anyone would get stressed out over that."

"C'mon, Rare! This is Spitfire we're talking about! The captain of the Wonderbolts!" said Rainbow Dash. "She doesn't get stressed out!"

I sighed inwardly. If only she knew what I had been through the past few days.

"Actually, a trip to the spa doesn't sound like a bad idea," I said. "Truth be told, I haven't been getting much sleep lately."

"Staying up all night training, huh?" said Rainbow Dash with a grin.

"Something like that," I said. "Anyway, I figure it could do me some good."

Rainbow Dash shrugged. "Well, I guess if you want to, that's fine. How 'bout we meet up at Sugarcube Corner later? I hear that Pinkie Pie has something extra special planned later this afternoon."

"Sure, sounds good," I said. "When is it?"

"I think she said it was at one o'clock," said Rainbow Dash.

"Thirteen hundred. Got it," I said with a nod. "I'll be there."

"Thirteen what-now?" asked Applejack, looking more than a bit confused.

"It's a Wonderbolt thing," I said with a shrug.

"I'll explain later, AJ," said Rainbow Dash. "Anyway, see you then, ma'am!"

With a salute, she dashed off.

"Now then, let me show you to the spa," said Rarity. "This way."

I shrugged and followed her, giving Applejack a quick wave goodbye as I left.

***
January 15, 11:45
Ponyville
Spa
***

"Hey, Sis!"

It seemed like Blaze had the same idea I did. When I got to the spa, she was already getting a deep massage from one of the attendants.

"Hey, Blaze," I said. "Just a sec, let me get out of my uniform."

After a quick change, I laid down on the table next to her as another attendant got to work on me.

"Ah~. That's it, right there," said Blaze. "Mmm. Just what the doctor ordered."

She certainly wasn't wrong there. I felt a good portion of my stress melt away as the masseuse rubbed my back and shoulders.

"They really went the extra mile for this festival, didn't they?" said Blaze. "I'm almost afraid to ask how much it cost to set all this up."

"I'm sure Honor Bound provided most of the funding," I said. "After all, this is meant to promote the Ghastly Gorge Gauntlet."

After a vigorous massage, we were led to the steam room. Once there, I was greeted Rarity and another one of Rainbow Dash's friends, Fluttershy. They seemed to be in the middle of some sort of conversation. I cleared my throat.

"Mind if we join you?" I asked.

"Oh, not at all, darling," said Rarity sweetly. "Please, do come in."

We did as she asked and situated ourselves on a bench. I gave Fluttershy a smirk.

"So, how's Rainbow Dash's number one flier doing these days?" I inquired.

Fluttershy hid her face behind her bangs. "A-alright, I guess," she muttered.

To be perfectly honest, I don't know why she was so embarrassed. The reason I called her that was because she showed a lot of guts and made a large contribution to one particular session of rainwater collection. I thought it was something to be proud of. Guess I just don't know Rainbow Dash's friends all that well.

"Sorry about that. I didn't mean to embarrass you," I apologized.

"I-it's fine," said Fluttershy.

"So anyway, as I was saying," said Rarity, continuing the conversation. "I still have no clue who placed that order. I'm telling you, Fluttershy, I think this is probably my strangest order to date."

"I'm sure you'll figure it out eventually," said Fluttershy. "After all, how hard can it be to find somepony who has that Mare-Do-Well costume?"

My ears perked up. "Hang on a second. Did you say Mare-Do-Well?"

"Um, yes," said Fluttershy. "What about it?"

I had to be careful here. I didn't want to reveal anything about the attacks on the Wonderbolts.

"I, just thought I heard the name somewhere before," I said. "Can't remember where, though."

"Oh, I doubt you'd know anything about it, Ms. Spitfire," said Rarity. "That was something between us and Rainbow Dash."

"Rainbow Dash?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.

Rarity rubbed the back of her head sheepishly. "Well, it's a bit embarrassing. Promise you won't tell Rainbow Dash, alright?"

"Wonderbolt's honor," I said solemnly. "Right, Blaze?"

"Huh? Oh, sure. Mum's the word," said Blaze. She then leaned over to my ear. "You sure you don't want to tell them?" she whispered.

"The Wonderbolts are in enough trouble as it is, Blaze. I am not roping anypony else into our mess," I whispered back.

Blaze simply shrugged and turned back to Rarity and Fluttershy. "So, tell us about this Mare-Do-Well."

"Well, it's like this," said Rarity. "There was a time when Rainbow Dash was, rather full of herself. Well, she still is, but she once took it too far. She started performing these acts of heroism all around Ponyville and bragging about it."

"So to teach her a lesson, we created a hero known as the Mysterious Mare-Do-Well who was modest and humble, and we all played her at different times," continued Fluttershy. "She, didn't really like that."

"So, what happened?" I asked.

"It got to the point where nopony was paying attention to her," said Fluttershy. "After that, she got fed up and chased Mare-Do-Well down. When she found out who she was, she was finally able to learn her lesson about conducting herself with grace and humility."

"I see," I said, furrowing my brow. It was an interesting tale, and I suppose it gave me some insight into Rainbow Dash's inner growth. But it didn't give me any information on this particular Mare-Do-Well who was stalking me. I knew for certain that this Mare-Do-Well was a pegasus, and the only one of Rainbow Dash's friends with access to the costume who would fit that description was Fluttershy. Judging by the way this Mare-Do-Well conducted herself, either Fluttershy was a really good actress, or I would be barking up the wrong tree by accusing her. Plus, it didn't explain how she knew so much about what was going on. I needed to look into something else.

"You mentioned before this strange order you got," I said to Rarity. "What's that all about?"

"Oh, well, I was the one who designed Mare-Do-Well's costume," said Rarity. "And just last week, I got this peculiar order asking for it. I still have no idea who it was from."

"Then, how were they supposed to pick it up?" asked Blaze.

"The order asked me to leave it in the boutique unattended," said Rarity. "Sure enough, I left it out one night, and the next morning, it was gone. And in its place were a pile of bits and a thank you note."

Ah-ha~. So that's why Mare-Do-Well didn't want me to ask around about her in Ponyville. This is where she got her costume. That order and that thank you note were my best bets to figuring out who she was. There was just a small problem. How was I going to get them?

"Who else knows about this?" I asked.

"Just me and Fluttershy," said Rarity. "Oh, and I mentioned it to Twilight as well. She's doing what she can to help."

Then that was who I had to talk to next. "Well, that's quite an interesting story, Ms. Rarity. I, hope you find your mystery client."

"I hope so, too," said Rarity. "I suppose it doesn't matter in the long run, but this has just left me baffled. Oh well, c'est la vie. Anyway, do enjoy the rest of the festival, darlings."

"Oh, don't worry. We will," said Blaze with a huge grin. "It was nice talking to you."

"Likewise," Fluttershy said meekly.

With that, the attendants led me and Blaze to the next leg of our spa experience. After finding out about that big clue, it was much easier to relax. But even as I was getting the special treatment, I still kept on the alert. The assassin had yet to strike, and I knew in the back of my mind that he would. It was just a matter of how and when...

Comments

[MariusIoannesP]

So, how's Rainbow Dash's number one flier doing these days?" I inquired.
Fluttershy hid her face behind her bangs. "A-alright, I guess," she muttered.
To be perfectly honest, I don't know why she was so embarrassed. The reason I called her that was because she showed a lot of guts and made a large contribution to one particular session of rainwater collection.

"Hurricane Fluttershy"!

[Godiswithus3]

I very much enjoyed the interaction Spitfire had with Rainbow Dash, Applejack and Rarity. The callbacks were quite interesting to read, especially from Spitfire's POV. Fluttershy is my least favorite of the mane six. Her timidness annoys me and it showed in this chapter.

So, Spitfire and the reader has some interesting new information about the Mysterious Mare-Do-Well. She's not one of the element bearers (obviously) but is most likely from Ponyville. And she got the costume RECENTLY. Meaning apart from Rarity, Twilight and Fluttershy, SPITFIRE was the first one to discover the existance of the masked vigilante. Maybe the person who is the caped crusader had discovered the assassination plot and then put on the mask in order to help Spitfire solve the mysteries. Question is why is she being cryptic about it and can't solve it herself. Hmmm.