Twilight, Mare of Power

by Banops

A Detective in Ponyville

What a monumental life decision I had made. Quitting the force already! Was I out of my dumb-bucking mind? I knew I was only six years short of retirement and with the salary I had been making I was able to make a decent savings. But money like this had a habit of dwindling when one was unemployed. These next few years would easily test the limits of my savings, especially since I would begin by using it to fuel my single-minded obsession in getting to the bottom of this… this whatever it was.

There were moments when I considered my obsession with this mystery excessive. There were moments when I considered dropping the case altogether. I mean, I shouldn’t concern myself with this. Should I? It wasn’t any of my business, especially now that I wasn’t on the case anymore. I wasn’t even a cop anymore.

But when I thought about the chief saying, “You’re off the case.” I knew why I was ignoring orders. It was the case of my life and it was taken from me. He had been talking to the “higher ups.” Who the hell were the “higher ups?” The royal guard? It had to be. They were the ones who handled treason. But we never dealt with them. Never. So why would they try to cover up a murder like this? Even for our brain dead royal guard, this was a messy cover up, like they didn’t have the time of day to think anything through. There was conclusive evidence pointing to the Twilight broad being the killer. Why couldn’t they just nail her for both treason and murder? That would land her in the dungeons even faster, wouldn’t it? None of this was adding up. This made me wonder what the true nature of the crime was. I wasn’t about to assume anything was true just yet, but from what had happened so far, it seemed as if our esteemed royal guard USED me to capture their criminal and just tossed me aside while they worked to achieve their own ends.

And then of course there was the matter of finding Cherrie. That is, if she was still alive. It seemed unlikely that she would be alive, having been at the hooves of this killer. The Chief er… Blueshield said the guilt would fall on her as the killer. Now whose goddessdamned idea was that? A suspect of convenience if I had ever heard of one. Well who ever thought that was a good idea probably assumed that Cherrie would be dead anyway. I guess if she were dead, then she would make the perfect scapegoat. She wouldn’t be able to defend her case…

But, if I could do anything about it, she wasn’t going to be convicted of this heinous crime. No, I was determined to get the bottom of this clusterbuck.

So what did all of this make me? I wasn’t a detective anymore, so I wasn’t just being insubordinate. Was I a vigilante then? Maybe I was. But, there was one thing I was through and through. I was a loose end, as loose as they came, and I would be the thorn in the side of the government if I had to. I planned on milking any leverage I could out of this situation.

Because I wasn’t a cop anymore, there was no reason to do anything by the book. No reason to do this any way but my way. So I decided on my first course of action. I would find out what I could about Twilight Sparkle. My mind had been made up. I would stay here in Ponyville for several days. This would be a better place than any to start finding out what I could.

***

I had spent my first night in a hotel near the center of Ponyville. After that, I had spent most of my second day in Ponyville sight seeing, not that there was much to see here in this small town. Though there was a quaint little spa, which I visited.

As I strolled through the town market late in the afternoon, I took in the fresh air and predictably nice weather. The market was filled with ponies. There were dozens of them, stallion and mare, working stalls, buying and selling produce. I also had the impression that most, if not all of these ponies, knew each other. Everypony chatted away with each other as they moved from stand to stand, carrying on small talk, sharing the latest bit of gossip or talking about their weekend. I rather enjoyed the small town feel of this place. Actually the East Equestrian border town I was from was much smaller than this was, maybe half the size. This place was just large enough to have a well-developed community and small enough to still know everypony that lived here. I had to admit, this was a nice town. All the ponies here seemed friendly enough.

As I walked, I passed by a particular stall that caught my attention. Nailed to the wood planks that made up the stand were stalks of tobacco among other plants. I walked closer to the stall, enticed by the green that hung before me. I stopped right in front of the stall and scanned through the different herbs and plants for sale. I put my hoof on a stock of tobacco, feeling the smooth lining of the plant. My hoof traced upwards until it reached the large palm leaf. This must have been where the rookie got my chewing tobacco. I removed my hoof from the leaf and searched for a pack of chew.

There it was, sitting on the corner of the stall, a rack of smokeless tobacco tins labeled “6 bits ea.” Just looking at them made my cravings flare up. Honestly, I found it disgusting, but I was still addicted to the stuff. I relished the thought of sticking another hunk of it in my mouth and pressing it against my cheek. That would help ease some tension and it would help me focus. I had been growing rather irritable because of my withdrawal from the stuff.

I unconsciously reached out for the tin rack, hoping to buy my fix. But rather than pick up one of the small containers of chew, I reeled back my hoof.

Damn it! I craved it so bad. But I wasn’t about to break the promise I had made to myself. No I took these self-made promises very seriously. I still needed to be chewing something though… a stick of gum maybe. Yeah that would do. I searched the stall frantically for a pack of gum but to no avail.

“Are you alright sir?” the question came from a mare, which happened to be working this stall. I hadn’t even noticed her through my single-minded fixation on the tobacco. I guess she must’ve been trying to get my attention the whole time I had been at the stall because they way she had asked her question seemed to penetrate my head.

I threw out my response. “Oh what? Umm. I’m fine. Say umm… Where can I find something sweet?” I had really meant to ask where I could find some gum, but I figured her answer would lead me to the same place.

Instead of getting her answer, another pony spoke up. Her voice trailed off behind me as if she were trotting my way from somewhere else. I turned to see whom had spoken to me.

A vivacious young earthmare skipped towards me as she spoke. She was intensely cute. Not cute in the physically attractive sense, though she was plenty of that. But rather she bounced from side to side as she made her way towards me in a way that I could only describe as a Sunday morning cartoon character would. She was a solid pink mare with clouds of cotton candy for a mane. Her face held two piercing blue eyes. The way her hips bounced from side to side as she moved allowed me to get a look at her cutie mark. Three party balloons, two of them blue, one yellow.

“OH, PICK ME! PICK ME! I KNOW!” She squeaked as she skipped merrily my way. Even when she had stopped in front of me, she continued to bounce in place not knowing how to be still. She seemed to be waiting for me to ask her the question, as she didn’t say anything after that. She just stared at me, bending her legs and straightening them making it look like she was jumping with out actually leaving the ground.

After a second of me fumbling through my words and looking confused, I said to her, “Oh… yes I was just looking for something sweet.”

“Well you won’t find anything like that over here silly.” She said. Her voice, by Celestia, her voice, she sounded so cheerful it made me want to rip off my own ears.

“Um yeah well I’m new in Ponyville.”

“Of course you are! I know everypony here and I don’t know you by the way my name is Pinkie what’s your name?” She said, all in one long run-on sentence. She sure was a lively broad.

“Oh… My name’s Hartigan.” I answered.

“Heart… AGAIN?!” she sounded perplexed by my name, “That’s a funny name! Does that mean you have more than one heart? I guess that’s not as weird as this one pony’s name I once met. Now what was his name?”

“I umm…” I wasn’t sure how to respond to her. She continued to bounce as she spent an uncomfortably long time trying to recall some pony’s name. After giving up she continued trying her best to help me… the crazy mare.

“Follow me, I know where all sweets are. Come on, I’ll get you just what you need to fix that sweet tooth of yours.

I didn’t protest, instead I followed her as she hopped around town. I figured, maybe, I could find out more about Sparkle. Miss Pie did say she knew everypony from here.

As we made our way over to way to… where ever it was she was taking me, Pinkie struck up conversation.

“What brings you to Ponyville, mister?” In any ordinary situation, I would tell somepony like her to mind her own business, but this wasn’t an ordinary situation, and being an ex-detective, I could milk this mare for all she knew about my object of obsession. I felt around my coat pocket to make sure I still had my badge. I felt comforted when my hoof felt over the leathery fold that held my badge, wedged between some bits and my pocket watch. I would only pull it out if I had to, to intimidate her into talking. I was fully aware of the consequences of impersonating a cop, but what did I have to lose besides either a few years of my life, or a hefty number of bits? I’d maybe miss a few sessions with my shrink. So nothing really.

“I’m looking for two friends of mine.” I responded gruffly.

“HEY, I know everypony! Maybe I could help you!” She rolled off cheerfully. I got the impression that she actually wanted to help me. Not just in the way that somepony wants to do a good deed to make them feel better about themselves, but rather, she seemed to genuinely care about helping me. “Who are you looking for?”

“Do you know a Cherrie Redberry?” I asked.

“Nope can’t say I do, and that’s weird ‘cause I know EVERYPONY around here. Who’s the other pony you’re looking for?” I was a little disappointed that she didn’t know who Cherrie was but I wasn’t surprised.

“Twilight Sparkle.” I said. I barely was able to finish the name.

“Oh my gosh! I know her!” She said turning around to look at me. We stopped walking for a moment. She started jumping up and down while she talked. “I KNOW HER I KNOW HER!”

Yeesh, I kinda hoped she’d calm down. I looked around me and saw that we hadn’t drawn anypony’s attention. We started walking again.

This was great. She knew her. My first lead into information perhaps. I would have to pick at her to see what she could tell me.

“Oh but she’s not here in town right now, I think you just missed her. She went to… oh where was it she went to again? Hmmm. Where did Spike say she went?

“Spike?” I thought out loud.

Pinkie Pie gasped. I wasn’t sure why until she spoke again and when she did, she spoke in run-ons again.

“Spike?! You know, Twilight’s cute little assistant although he’s not so little anymore you should see him now he’s like as tall as me…”

She kept talking and talking about how much Spike had grown over the past few years. I had no clue who Spike was. Well, actually, now I knew that this pony was Twilights “assistant” whatever that meant. It probably meant that he was close to Twilight though, which would mean he could tell me all about her. He seemed like the perfect pony to interrogate. I began to fantasize about interrogating whoever this was. Since I wasn’t a cop anymore, I could do it my way. I wouldn’t have to play nice, like we were taught in the academy. I could play bad cop if I wanted to.

“Oh I’m sure Spike can tell you where Twilight is.” She said after we stopped outside what looked like a giant elaborately decorated gingerbread house. Out front hung a sign, which aptly named the building “Sugarcube Corner” which I could guess was the sweets store that miss Pinkie Pie was taking me to. Pinkie and I entered the building.

“Hiya’ Mrs. Cake!” Shouted Pinkie.

A mare with a pink mane and light blue coat stood behind a cash counter, waiting to greet customers as they walked in. “Oh hey Pinkie. Helping out ponies as usual I see, even on your day off.” She said with a smile. Then she turned her head to face me. “Hello sir, what can I get you?”

***

I ended up walking out of Sugarcube Corner carrying much more than just a pack of gum. I swear those Cakes were the best sales-ponies. Or it could be that I was hungry and all those cakes and pies looked amazing. I carried a complimentary saddlebag, which I had draped over my back. The bag was crammed full of pie slices and cupcakes, must of which were chocolate, which I was partial to.

Oh, and that crazy pink one told me she would take me to Spike. She told me that she had already promised Spike she would take some ice cream to him. This pony was way too trusting for her own good…

She took me across town again this time with two large tubs of ice cream perched up on her back. I found it strange how they never fell off of her back, even though she seemed to hop around. We eventually reached a large tree house, which Pinkie told me used to be the Ponyville library.

She proceeded to raise a hoof and knock on the door. After gingerly hoofing the door several times she looked at me, still bouncing in place as usual, she asked me a question.

“So how do you know Twilight?” She asked curiously.

What was I to say? What lie should I use? “Oh, I’m an old friend of her parents…” I waited to see if she would buy it. It seemed like a fail proof lie.

She bought it.

“Oh really?! I’ve only met her parents once though, Mr. and Mrs. Sparkle. What absolute gems they are!” she shouted excitedly.

I nodded my head, putting on a fake smile. I hoped she wouldn’t get into any details that might paint me as a phony.

“I can only imagine how proud they are of her!” she continued.

“Oh?”

“You know what with her being Celestia’s very own student and all.”

And just like that, a whopper of a puzzle piece fell on me. Celestia herself actually taught her? I had heard that she had taken on a student in recent years. But this had sounded absolutely crazy. This cold-blooded killer just so happened to be the star pupil of our very own Princess Celestia. I took what Pie had said with mountains of salt, yet I couldn’t shake the feeling she was telling the truth.

What could this possibly mean? I didn’t know what to do with this clue. What did it tell me? Well, for one, it told me that she had a connection with Celestia herself. So, maybe it made more sense why she was being dropped from the murder investigation…

“Oh yeah, that.” I responded as convincingly as I could. Hearing myself say it, I cringed. I would have called anypony out for lying if I had heard them say it like that, but Pinkie didn’t seem to notice.

Through our talking we had barely noticed that it had been taking Spike an unusually long time to answer the door. Before Pinkie could say more, I gestured to the door with a hoof.

“Oh yeah silly me.” She said cutely. She promptly turned her head and knocked on the door harder.

Silence.

She knocked harder yet, “SPIIIIIKE!” she called out, “SPIKEY WIKEY, I got your ice cream!”

Then I felt it. A strange pulse of energy shot through me. It was very subtle but it was definitely there.

“Oooh woah what was THAT?” chuckled Pinkie Pie. “That wasn’t my Pinkie sense, was it?” She had felt it too.

I somehow recognized that sensation…

Pinkie didn’t seem to pay it much more attention though. Instead, she turned to me and said, half giggling, “Well I guess he must have forgot I was coming. That little silly billy must’ve fallen asleep. I’ll go inside and leave his ice cream there for him.”

She surprised me by opening the door. She just opened it with out permission. The callousness of this pony didn’t cease to astonish me. I facehoofed. I guessed friends like this trusted each other that much.

When I removed my hoof from my face, I looked back up at Pinkie. She wasn’t smiling. This confused me, because I hadn’t once seen her today without a smile plastered on her crazed pony face. Instead she had a look of growing shock. I also noticed that she had ceased to bounce in place. Only now did the two buckets of ice cream fall off her back and onto the ground leaving a mess of vanilla and strawberry ice cream.

I tilted my head trying to figure out what was wrong. Then I turned my head and realized what was troubling her. It was what she was looking at that drew this almost cartoonishly dramatic response from her. I too shared the shock when I looked inside the tree house.

The one thought that went through my mind: “What in the BUCK happened here!”

Comments

[Banops]

Sorry for taking SO long on this one. Class and everything, ya know and other convenient excuses.

Please let me know what you think! It's what keeps me going...

[Fallen Knight]

You should rename yourself to Cliffhanger.

[Banops]

1336171
I'll try not to leave ya hanging too long from this cliff.