"Okay," I say to Withers. "Where do we start?"

The old stallion stretches and sighs. "We start by finishing up the investigation here. Only here, since you were directly involved with the crime scene, you are not permitted to help, so I suggest you find a way to keep yourself entertained while I wrap up. Also, I'll need you to wear this."

He holds a metallic-looking ring and attempts to attach the thing to my horn. I instinctively back away. "What is that?"

"This," the old Stallion nods, "Is pretty state of the art. If you attempt to take it off, I'll know. If you attempt to use magic, I'll know. If you attempt to teleport away, I'll know the exact coordinates as to where."

My heart sinks and I let him put it on me. "You really believe that I did this, don't you?"

Withers lifts himself up for a moment before clamping the thing on me. He bores me through with his tired eyes. "Princess, I've been doing this far too long to allow myself the liberty of making those kind of judgments early. Either you did it or you didn't, and until I have the evidence I don't know. But until I know, I have to treat you like you did do it."

I nod understandingly. Withers resumes his investigation. "For what it's worth, though. I really hope you didn't. You seem like a real down to earth pony. It would be a shame."

I'll take what I can get. "Thank you, Withers. Well, I'm not going to go back into the room where Spike is. Can I wait in my library? A little reading may help calm my nerves."

"Of course. Between the device on your horn and our perimeter, I have less to fear from you trying to run off."

I search my library for a book that will calm my nerves. Comfort books, if you will. I initially think a good Daring Do adventure would help me relax, but my eyes slowly drift over to a different book. One that I read several times when I was a young mare. "Unsolved Cases of Missing Ponies."

I turn open the page. "There have been many unsolved cases of ponies disappearing in Equestria, as far back as the discovery of Equestria itself. Some believe there to be a common thread to these disappearances, a supernatural element, while others attribute more common means, such as killers and traffickers. However, few discover the truth because of the nature of these crimes and very few clues are left at the scene. There have been stories of fillies and mares, and yes, some stallions disappearing from locked rooms and other such places where a kidnapper should not be able to access. It makes one...wonder..."

My eyelids get heavy. I'm still tired I guess. I drift off again...

At first, it seems like a normal rest. No static this time. I dream of purple clouds in the air. It seems like eternity since I last had a normal dream. Then, something happens to the clouds. Luna's face appears through it.

"Twilight, Listen to me. You have to destroy the anchor. The anchor is your relation to P-P-P-" Her face suddenly starts twitching violently.

"Luna! No! Please!"

She breaks free momentarily as dark claws seem to hold her and draw her back. "The anchor, Twilight. It's not what you think it is! Don't let yourself be deceived! There's another-"

The claws succeed in dragging her back. The purple clouds swirl chaotically. "Luna, please! I don't even know what the anchor is! Luna!"

I jolt up with the pages of the book stuck to my face. I get up and pace. "Anchor, anchor. Think Twilight, think! What anchor? What could she be talking about?"

I turn to be startled by Withers. "Oh! Oh my! How...how long was I out?"

"A few hours," he snorts. "You okay?"

"Yeah..." I look distantly.

"Well, I'm finished here. All the evidence has been collected and sent to be processed. We can move on to Evening Light's house now. I suspect it's abandoned, given what you've deduced. If he was home, he would have been there at the time Rarity arrived there, unless he's a serious night owl."

I shrug. "It does seem to run in the family."

"Let's hope it's the only thing that does, yes?" His face smiles but his eyes show a serious undertone.

A simple walk across town and we arrive there in short order.

"Withers?" I ask. "When all of this is over, when I'm cleared of any wrongdoing, I hope we can be friends."

Withers nods and says, "If you're cleared, then yes, I would like that too. However we would have to be friends at a distance. Being friends with a princess could compromise my identity, and put my family in danger. You understand."

"Of course," I nod. "And Withers, thank you."

The old stallion laughs at that. "Whatever for? I clamped a tracking device on you, and I haven't exactly treated you nicely."

"You have, actually," I said. "When I was a filly, the CRIA sent two agents to investigate me for Misty's disappearance. One of them was really cruel. Left me in tears. Practically yelled at me, just the way Evening Light had."

The old stallion sighs. "When you're a younger agent, you tend to be that way. More headstrong. More willing to jump to conclusions. When you're a young agent, you're eager to make a name for yourself and yes, make things right, so when something comes along that doesn't fit your worldview, something that makes no sense, then yes, you lose it a little. Agent Saddle is a little like that, though he wasn't as bad as me."

"Oh come on," I say, "You couldn't have been that rough."

Withers sighs again. "Twilight, you really don't remember, do you?"

"What do you mean?"

"There's another reason I wanted to be part of the investigating team. That young stallion who was so hard on you...that stallion was me."

I jump back. "What?" It couldn't be. Behind his grey features though, I begin to recognize him now.

"You were that pony? How could you? I was just a young mare. I didn't do it! I didn't..."

I cry on his shoulder. I don't know why. He should be the last one I'm crying on, but nopony else is there.

"There, there, Twilight. I really hope you're innocent. He looks at me with understanding. This is going to be really hard if you aren't. And I'm sorry I was so hard on you."

I sniffle. "Thanks, for what it's worth."

We both look at the open door. "Well. Shall we?"

Immediately, I'm knocked back by the stench of old kitchen food, before I even get through the door. Rarity was not exaggerating. The fridge has an awful stench emanating from it.

"Please don't open that," I say. He opens it anyway.

"Part of being an investigator is being thorough, and killers love nothing more to stash stuff in their fridge."

"I think Light is a little smarter than that," I say. He's in it for the long game. He's not going to just leave clues lying around to get convicted."

"True," Withers says, "But it looks like he left in a hurry. He didn't have time to tidy up. Normally, I only get one shot at these kind of investigations, so I need to find everything we need to convict him for crime now."

Withers peruses the fridge but only turns up week old yogurt, rotten vegetables and the like. Nothing useful. "It appears in this case, you're right about the fridge, though."

I move toward the bedroom. "I want to see this hate shrine Rarity was talking about."

"That's an odd thing to want to see?" Withers raises an eyebrow.

"What can I say? I'm a curious one." I smile. Somehow, the presence of this CRIA agent puts me more at ease. It's nice feeling like you can trust someone. "Here's the book she mentioned, Make Yourself Known. Such an odd title." I open it and press the button. I feel the draft in the closet. Sure enough, the shrine is there, plain as day. I see a single unlit candle, a book laying on the desk, two drawers which appear to be locked, and the creepiest part...the pictures on the wall. All of my friends around me, threads connected to each. The threads connecting Pinkie and Spike are cut and their pictures crossed out. Withers pulls out a 9 mm camera and takes a picture of the wall, then begins bagging up the evidence.

"Well," He says, "Rarity wasn't lying. This here, is pretty strong evidence if I've ever seen it."

I reach over toward the book. "I wonder what that book says," I stop myself. "Something's not right. Withers, did you already collect Rainbow Dash's picture?"

"No, why?"

"It's not here."

"What?"

We both stare at the mural of hate dumbfounded. "He must have Dash's picture with him," Wither supplies.

"Then that must mean...He's not after me at all. He's after Dash! Scootaloo is...bait." My face pales for what seems like the hundredth time today.

Agent Withers flips open a phone and attempts to call Saddle. "Hmm. He's not answering. He pulls out a device with a little red dot on it.

"What is that?"

"Each of us has a watch with GPS embedded directly in it. If one of us goes missing, we can use it to track him. A similar tracker is on that device on your horn. He's been stationary for ten minutes."

"Oh my God, what if he's dead? We have to help him."

Withers waves away the thought. If he has been attacked, we won't get there in time. We have to focus our investigation here so we can use anything we find to catch him, put a stop to him, and make sure he doesn't walk."

"You're just going to leave him there to die?"

"Of course not," He pulls out his phone and dials another number. All agents in the area of central Canterlot please convene on the following coordinates. X 750 y 320. Suspect has a telescope for a cutie mark..."

I listen to him rattle off the orders but I can't stand to wait around. "I'm sorry Withers, but I can't stand by while my friend is in danger."

I prepare myself to teleport. "Twilight, wait! You don't want to-"

Too late, I think. I begin using my magic to teleport but instead a light shock travels through my body.

"Eeaah!"

I twitch on the ground for a few minutes before recovering.

"I'm sorry, Twilight."

"You little! Why didn't you tell me it would do that?"

"Because if I told you, you wouldn't let me put it on you, would you?"

"Still, I rub my head. You could have told me afterwards."

The old agent shrugs. "Sorry, I forgot."

"You have to let me go. I can't let him get Rainbow Dash."

"No. I'm sorry but no."

"You can't do this to me! Dash is in danger!"

"I know, but I'm not about to put you in danger by going to rescue her. We have an entire squad sent to the location. Dash will be okay. You have to trust us."

"I guess I don't have much of a choice, do I?"

"Well, no. I guess not."

"Fine. But don't act like I'm going to be focused. I still think it's wrong."

I reach out to the book with my magic. "Looks like a diary."

"Hmm." He says. "Now there's something we could use." Let's bag it.

Thankfully the device doesn't interfere we me levitating things. "Anything we can do about this locked drawer? I don't see a key."

"He probably has it on his person. I wonder if he has that machine stored in there."

"Maybe. The drawer does look deep enough."

A moment of awkward silence.

"Look, I'm sorry," Withers says. "This is for your own protection too."

"I know," I sigh. "I'm just worried."

Withers' phone rings.

"Yes? Thank goodness you're alright! What's the status?" He nods a few times. "I see. We have agents triangulating on your position. You're in good hands, Saddle."

"Well?"

Withers looks at me. "Agent Saddle has sustained severe injuries, but he's alive. They found Scootaloo, but then they were attacked...Applejack is okay, but they...don't know where Rainbow Dash or Scootaloo are."

I burst into tears. "You stupid Stallion! You should have let me go! I could have used my magic! I could have saved them!"

"You wouldn't have arrived in time,"

"Well we have to go there now. We have to find Evening Light."

"You won't have to. He's coming back here."

"Oh? And what makes you think he would do that?"

"He has a shrine to complete."

I stop in my tracks. "Huh. He does, doesn't he?"

"And when he arrives, we'll be waiting."

Author's Note

Huh. Two chapters in one day. That's got to be a new record.