Lyra Screws Up Big Time

“Listen, girls, everything is going to be okay,” Octavia assured the two distraught mares. All of them were in the kitchen, with Lyra and Bon Bon slumped in the chairs. “As long as you didn't tamper with the crime scene,” Octavia added.  Both Lyra and Bon Bon’s faces turned white. Octavia look back and forth between the two ponies and narrowed her eyes. “You didn't tamper with the crime scene, did you?” Both mares were silent. Octavia leaned towards Lyra’s face, but she refused to look her in the eye. “Did you?” Octavia pressed. Lyra whimpered and put her face in her hooves.

Lyra wiped all of the tables with cleaning supplies and Bon Bon vacuumed all of the dirt. Lyra then used her magic to put all of the papers and trash into a few garbage bags. When all was cleaned up, both mares put Creech back into his chair, only to have him fall down again.

Octavia straightened up and groaned. “I can’t believe I’m saying this,” she sighed. “But we’re going to have to go back in there and assess the situation. I have to see this for myself.”

That morning, the three mares stepped out of the elevator and into the hall. Both Lyra and Bon Bon were now cleaned up. When they looked towards the direction of Mr. Creech’s office, they were dismayed to discover that the area was crawling with police.  Lyra gasped, and ran back into the elevator rapidly pressing the buttons. Octavia quickly ran after her and dragged her out. “No, no, Octavia, nooooo!” Lyra wailed. The musician ignored her, and dragged her back beside Bon Bon.

“That’s it,” Octavia hissed. “You are going to come clean!”

Bon Bon rapidly shook her head. “No, no, no, Octavia, we can’t do that!”

Octavia scowled. “This is not a discussion!”

“Hey!”

The trio turned to see their friend Carrot Top walking over to them. “What are you guys doing here?” She asked. Bon Bon mentally kicked herself. Carrot Top was a part time detective for the Ponyville Police. How could she have forgotten something so important?

Octavia swallowed. “Um, Carrot Top, there’s something that—“

“We would like to give to you!” Bon Bon interrupted. “It… it is a small gift… but it’ll have to wait, because…” She turned to the crime scene, and her mouth hung wide open. “What is going on here?” She said over-dramatically.

Carrot Top looked over her shoulder and turned back to her friends. “Oh, that. Well…Lyra, since you work here, I guess you have a right to know. Come on.” The girls follow Carrot Top to Creech’s office, all fully aware of what they would find.

Octavia rushed up to Carrot Top’s side. “Carrot, a moment of your time,” she panted. “I think the girls… would like to tell you--“

“WHAT?” Lyra gasped loudly. She rushed ahead and looked through the window of her Boss’s office where Creech’s body was in plain view. “Dusty Creech is dead?!” Bon Bon and Octavia rolled their eyes. “Oh no,” Lyra moaned, almost mockingly. “Oh no. Oh no!” She turned back to her friends to get their reaction. “Oh…” Bon Bon and Octavia shook their heads slightly. Carrot Top looked confused. “…No.” Lyra finished subtly.

Carrot Top’s eyebrows furrowed. “You work on this floor?”

Lyra nodded. “Yes… he was my boss.” She turned her head to look at Creech again. “Life is so fleeting,” She said with a trembling lip. “One day you see a pony alive…yesterday…and then today without seeing him at all in between…he’s dead.” She faked a sniffle. “Hark, the herald angles.”

“Wow,” Bon Bon said flatly. “I’m sure his family would appreciate this heartfelt and descriptive tribute.” Lyra put her hooves up defensively.

Carrot Top turned to Bon Bon. “What happened to you last night? I called to see if you were still up, but it went to the answering machine.” Both Bon Bon and Carrot Top often had trouble sleeping at night, so they usually talked on the phone to keep each other company.

Bon Bon thought fast. “That’s a good question,” she said with a nod. “I disappeared. I had to take Tavi here…” She put a hoof on Octavia’s shoulder. “…I had to take her to the hospital… because she was having severe chest pains and delusional memory loss, not to mention a Charlie-horse.” Carrot Top gasped. Bon Bon gripped the musician by the shoulders. “Tavi, it’s me,” She said loudly. “It’s Bon Bon, don’t you remember?”

Octavia shook her off. “That is ENOUGH!” She shouted furiously. She turned to Carrot Top.

“Carrot, there’s something the girls aren’t—“

“Miss?” A police officer came out of nowhere and placed a hoof on Octavia’s shoulder. “Your face is beet red, and your brow’s abnormally sweaty.” He said earnestly.

Octavia blinked and wiped her eyebrows with her hoof. She turned to look at the others. “Are they sweaty?”

Bon Bon nodded. “It is very sweaty.”

The Police officer nodded and began to drag Octavia away. “Yeah, your friend’s right, you should come with me.”

Octavia shook her head and tried to drag her hooves on the floor, but to no avail. “No, wait! Bon Bon!” she yelled, as she was pulled into the office.

“Go with him, sweetie,” Bon Bon called soothingly. “Put your head between your knees!” Carrot Top scurried in after them. Lyra looked at Bon Bon with a flat expression on her face. The earth pony merely giggled.

“Allright, our victim has multiple stab wounds to the back,” A detective named Canine Lassiter stated. “Whoever we are dealing with… they are and expert.” He looked around the room. “The scene has been wiped clean as a whistle.”

Lyra and Bon Bon did a subtle hoof-bump.

“Very little evidence of foul play,” the detective continued. He walked over to where Creech lay. “Also note the victim’s socks have been removed, but the shoes are still on. Could be some sort of sicko murder ritual.”

Lyra and Bon Bon glanced at each other.

Lyra and Bon Bon cleaned the area where Creech lay mercilessly. “Your blood is still on his socks!” Lyra screamed over the sound of the vacuum. They quickly pulled the socks from his feet. “Oh no, Oh no…”  Lyra sobbed.

Both mares stared straight ahead.

“We’re going to keep this hush hush,” Lassiter added.  “Princess Twilight and the other bearers of harmony are away on business at Rainbow Falls, and we don’t want to cause a panic.”

“Detective,” a unicorn said, entering the room. He was bald, but he had hair on the sides. He was also a bit on the short side, and a little pudgy. He also wore a suit. “Don’t let me interrupt; I just wanted to introduce myself. I’m Leslie Sally, head of security, Ponyville Pharmaceuticals."

Lassiter’s eyebrows furrowed. “You said you name was Leslie Sally?”

“Leslie Valerie Sally, yes.”

Lassiter smirked. “Well, uh Sally, this is sort of Adult Swim type of situation, so why don’t you and your blazer run along and solve the mystery of, I don’t know…” He pointed to a pony outside of the office. “Who stole Blackberry’s lunch?”

Lyra leaned her head toward Bon Bon. “I stole Blackberry’s lunch, Bon Bon!” She whispered.

“Well, let’s bag and tag everything on this desk.” Lassiter said.

“Sorry detective,” Sally said. “You may have noticed a slight trill in my voice. I have a minor fear of speaking in public, but I wanted to note that each executive office is issued a waste basket with a liner.” He pointed to a nearby wastebasket at the desk. “That liner is missing.”

Lassiter looked at the waste basket and smiled. “Gosh!” he exclaimed. “That is a great tip, junior “G” pony!”

Bon Bon, however, was looking at a broken vase from across the room. “Lyra,” she whispered. “That vase wasn’t broken when we left.”

Bon Bon carefully placed the vase on the round table before exiting the office. “Let’s go, Lyra!”

Lyra’s eyes widen in realization.

“Detective?” Sally repeated.

Lassiter whirled around. “Why are you still here?”

Sally pointed at Creech’s body. ”You might wanna check the victim’s hoof,” he advised.  “He seems to be holding on to something.” Everyone looked at Creech’s hoof, which was tightly curled up, and looked back at Sally. He smiled. “Then again, this is my first murder case, what do I know?”

Detective Lassiter frowned. “I was gonna check the hoof.” He said defensively. Lyra and Bon Bon looked on in dismay as the detective pried a sliver of paper from Creech’s hoof. “Part of a note,” he said as he stood back up. He held it up, and tilted his head. “‘ R a Jer ‘… smiley face.” He read.

Bon Bon threw a sideways glare at Lyra, who looked in the other direction. Sally smiled smugly. “Beginner’s luck!” He grinned. “Detective, this morning on the way to work, I had a V8, which may account for how sharp I’ve been. I’ve also accounted for all 17 trash receptacles. Each one has its liner except one.” Everyone in the room hung on to every word. “Down the hall from this very office,” He smiled darkly. “And here’s the interesting thing. The trash has not been picked up from last night.”

Lassiter smirked. “Get out,” He said mockingly. “Are you sure your title isn’t Chief of Trash Receptacle Liners?”

Sally turned to address the room. “Perhaps you’d all like to join me in the hallway?”

Lassiter scoffed and wrote something down. “That’s not gonna happen Sally.” When he looked up, half the room had gone out into the hallway. “Hey!”

Lyra and Bon Bon looked at each other worriedly and followed everyone else out the door.

The police staff, lead by Sally walked down the hallway while Lyra and Bon Bon trailed behind. Sally pointed out a trail on the floor while following it. “Here, soda dropped from the bottom of the waste bag.” He turned a corner. “I believe the killer took this route to dispose of the trash.” Bon Bon gulped.

Lyra and Bon Bon dragged the huge bag of trash across the floor with effort. “This way, Bon Bon!” Lyra panted as they turned a corner. “This way, follow me!” Bon Bon felt like she was going to collapse any minute. “I-I don’t… this is so narrow!” She gasped.

“Lyra! Bon Bon!” Octavia hissed, trotting behind them. “This has got to stop! You guys have got come clean and turn yourselves in!”

“Shh!” Both mares said.

“Don’t make me take you back to the hospital,” Bon Bon warned. “You’re a part of this lie now too. Besides, none of us killed the guy.”

“You stole his socks!” Octavia cried. “What kind of sickos do that?!”

Lyra shook her head. “Octavia, your heart!” she sang.

Octavia’s face turned bright red. “Lyra, I will choke you out!” The three mares stopped walking.

“Octavia, calm down,” Bon Bon said. “Seriously, why do you wanna sound off alarm bells before Lyra and I had a chance to find out who did this?”

Lyra nodded. “Yeah, have a little faith in us!”

Octavia shook her head. “You know full well that’s too dangerous. Besides, you’re floundering. You don’t even have a suspect!”

Lyra thought hard.

Paper scoffed. “Are you kidding me?” He snorted. Then his expression turned dark, looking almost comical. “I fantasize about killing that pony every day.”

Lyra looked at her friends. “Oh, yes we do.” Later, the three friends caught up with the team of police in the parking lot.

“There,” Lassiter panted. “This is where the trail ends.” He looked around. “And our killer made his getaway.” He said with finality.

Bon Bon pretended to be upset. “Aw, that’s too bad. He got away clean as a whistle.”

Sally spoke up. “Nopony should be whistling just yet,” He said mysteriously. He pointed in the other direction. “This way, folks.” They all went about two carts down and went over to an empty space with a coffee cup holder on the ground. Both Lassiter and Sally crouched down to get a better look.

“It’s just a theory.” Sally said.

Lassiter pulled on his gloves. “Well, it’s not the dumbest thing I've ever heard.” He admitted.

Carrot Top shook her head. “What kind of a psychopath stabs a pony to death and then drinks a cup of coffee?”

Bon Bon blinked.

Bon Bon and Lyra ran through the parking lot while lugging the enormous bag of trash on their backs. “Pick it up, Lyra, come on!”  What Bon Bon failed to notice was that her coffee cup had slipped from her saddle sack, and hit the ground as they galloped off into the night.

Lyra threw an angry glance at Bon Bon. “With any luck, this bad boy will yield some prints.” Lassiter said, holding the cup.

Sally’s horn glowed. “Let’s have a look, shall we?” He shined a beam of light on the coffee cup, and hoof prints were all over it.

Lassiter grinned. “Well, looky there.” Octavia looked glanced at the two mares that were looking back at her with anxious expressions.

Octavia groaned inwardly. “Oh, don’t tell me.”

Bon Bon nodded. “That’s my mug.”