Rainbow and the Gem Theftby GreatandPowerfulTrixieChapters1: Shit happens2: Of Sugar, Salt & Pepper3: Shades'n'Shadows1: Shit happensThat's what Rainbow Dash thought as a plate with remains of last night's dish fell to the ground. No breaking sound could be heard; much to her relief. She was up late last night again... with a big pizza,... extra red pepper. There was a Daring Do marathon. Maybe she slept in? The young pegasus mare was still lying in bed. Rainbow narrowed her eyes as she peered over the edge and caught sight of the mess on her floor. The mare let out a little growl, then decided to continue with sleep. Something has been nagging at her mind though. Today was a special day. But what was it? Rainbow scratched the back of her head. Nothing. She scratched again. Still nothing. She flipped over the plate on the floor. Her stomach grumbled. She dipped her hoof into some sauce and put it inside her mouth. 'Yes. Delicious... wait!' Rainbow slowly rolled over the other edge and fell onto the cloudy ground of her home. 'I can almost remember!' She stretched out her hooves for an open bottle of cider, which was standing right in front of her, and quickly gulped down whatever was left. 'Nope. Still nothing.' The mare now finally stood up and lazily moved to the door. She stepped outside, spread her wings and took off. Rainbow Dash was headed towards Ponyville. ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ Meanwhile Fluttershy and Rarity were trotting along the path to the Golden Oaks Library. Both sighed. "So I take it you were busy too the past few days?" Rarity asked, only receiving a nod from her companion. "WELL, last night I almost thought I'd pass out after I had done another attire." "Oh, that's awful. I really think you should take a break from time to time or you might over-stress yourself." Fluttershy sounded genuinely concerned about the dressmaker's working life. "Hah!" Rarity spat with disbelief. "I'm sorry dear! But I simply can't just take a day off or two. The world is spinning around tirelessly and if I don't keep up with my work, WHO KNOWS? Maybe some other fashionista gets the jobs to do and the bits to earn. I cannot allow this to happen!" Fluttershy, who knew the unicorn way too well, put on a frown. Rarity rolled her eyes. "Fine," she sighed. "maybe even I could have some holiday, BUT surely not before I've done everything for M&C's latest order!" The pegasus nodded approvingly. Rarity couldn't help but smile. "Anyway," the unicorn began again. "What have you been troubling... Oh my." Fluttershy followed Rarity's gaze, just as Rainbow Dash landed beside them. "Hey Guys." - "Darling, whatever happened to your mane?" - "Huh?" Rainbow put a hoof onto her hair. "Don't tell me you haven't showered yet!" The unicorn said, slightly disgusted by the sports-pegasus appearance. "Nah, didn't feel like it." Rainbow yawned. "Where are you two going?" - "We ar-" "We're on our way to Twilight. She has something awfully important to attend to, and she's going to leave town for a bit, together with Pinkie Pie and Applejack." Rarity explained. Rainbow raised an eyebrow. "Wait! What about us?! What about me?!" - "Pardon?!" Before the two others could say anything the pegasus flashed forward along the path. "Rainbow! Wait!" Fluttershy called out. "Well, there goes that," Rarity huffed. ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ "Spike?" - "Here." The little dragon handed over a scroll. He had his arms crossed and was glaring at her expectantly for a while now. "Alright, let's see." Twilight seemed completely oblivious to his attitude. She was focused on checking the preparations for their depart. Spike coughed a little. Not because he had a cold, but to gain the unicorns attention. After a few seconds he tried again. "Ahem." The shuffling of her hooves were the only thing audible. "Twilight?" She instantly turned her head. "What?!" Spike jumped back a bit. "Geez!" The unicorn looked confused. The little dragon slowly took in his previous stance. A sore expression. "Do I really have to come with you?" Annoyance in his voice. "Yes." As fast as she responded, Twilight put her attention back to the desk. Spike groaned. "Why?!" Without taking her eyes off the paper she opened her mouth and said. "Because... I don't want to leave you on your own for a whole month." "Why not??" She took in a small breath. "Because I don't want to leave you on your own for a whole month." "You said the same thing twice." Spike stated blankly. "Did I?" Twilight smirked. "Just tell me!" He bellowed. The unicorn sighed and turned to face the baby dragon. "You're too young to be left alone for so long, Spike." "Then just let Rarity or Fluttershy watch over me! Or Rainbow! Or-" "Spike. They..." Their argument was disrupted by a loud crash. A cyan blur had bursted through an open window and landed into some bookshelves. Both were surprised at this sudden intrusion. Twilight's expression turned into a deadpan one. "Rainbow Dash." "Heya Twilight. How's it going? I see you got yourself some more books! Heh." There was a knock at the door. "Spike, could you?" "Already on it." He opened it. "Come in." First came Applejack, tipping her hat. "Howdy y'all! Twilight, ya ready for the trip?" "Yeah!" Pinkie Pie chimed in. "I can't wait to get there and see their cheerful faces when they taste our delicious treats! I bet they're going to be SUPER happy about it! Ooh! I'm so EXCITED!!" "Calm down, will ya? This ain't gonna be one of yer... uuh..." The farm-pony looked confused. "What you doing there, Dash?" "Me? I'm just chillin' here." Rainbow was lying comfortably on a pile of books. Twilight rolled her eyes and turned back to the desk. "I was just about to check if I got everything; give me a minute." "Ladies." Rarity and Fluttershy had joined the little gathering as well. Spike closed the door. "Rarity! You gotta help me out!" The dragon entreated, clasping his claws around the dressmaker's hooves. "I don't want to leave Ponyville for so long! I wanna stay here! With you guys!" He threw his best puppy-dog eyes at her. Rarity wasn't able to give a straight answer. "Oh Spike... I'm currently very busy and I don't know if I'll have enough spare time to... tend your needs..." The young dragon's eyes became watery. Rarity looked desperately at Fluttershy, who awkwardly shuffled her hooves. "I'm sorry." She then looked even more desperately at Rainbow Dash. "I don't even know what's going on." The pegasus responded, shrugging. "Oooh..." Hopelessness clearly audible. She turned her face back to Spike. "I... I... alright." "Yess!" He hissed in a pose of triumph. "But only if Twilight's okay with it!" - "Twilight?" - "Nope!" Rarity sighed in relief and wiped her forehead. Spike melt down in defeat, his face meeting the ground. A muffled groan emerged. "Oh come on, Spikey!" Pinkie threw in, bouncing up and down a few times. "It's not gonna be that bad! Maybe you'll make some new friends!" He kept laying there; motionless. "If that's not enough to cheer you up, I have some of your favorite MUFFINS!!" Spike glanced up with widened eyes. "Cherry with gold-sprinkles, filled with cream and ruby-bits?" - "Uhuh!" "Cool. When do we go?" - "Well," Twilight joined in. "I'm ready. We can head off. But first: Rarity, Fluttershy, Rainbow?" The three turned their attention to the librarian. "We'll be off to the south-west. Princess Celestia has asked us if we'd be able to help out there. It appears that they have had some major weather problems and lost most of their crops. Me, Applejack and Pinkie Pie will be there to support a temporary food-drive, which gives out provisions to ponies until they manage on their own again. "This will roughly take a month, we'll be sent back as soon as transports from the east arrive. You three will be staying here, for your skills didn't seem... fitting enough. Please look after the village while we're gone, I- we all trust in your abilities. "And If something happens, please don't hesitate to inform the Princesses!" "Of course, Twilight, don't you worry." Rarity said nonchalantly. "Aye! You can count on us! We'll buck off any problem that comes our way!" Rainbow boasted. "I'll help too." Fluttershy added softly, smiling. They went out the door and said their goodbyes to each other. In the end, the only ones left were the two pegasi and the dressmaker. "Hey! I'll go grab some lunch. Anybody coming with me?" Rainbow suggested. The other two nodded and followed her. Soon after they'd find themselves in a little cafè. 2: Of Sugar, Salt & PepperThe waiter arrived with the plate for Rainbow Dash, who already licked her lips as she received the fine scent of her ordered meal. Something was missing though, she looked to the other side of the table; there it was. "Can you pass me the salt?" Fluttershy leaned forward, cautiously stretching one hoof out. Right as she was about to grab the little shaker a bluish glow appeared; Rarity absent-mindedly levitated it over, while reading the local newspaper. "Thanks." Disappointed, Fluttershy retracted her hoof. Rainbow let out a small chuckle. "What's so funny?" Rarity asked, who still didn't look up. "Muthin'." Rainbow answered, spitting some crumbs. The unicorn laid down the newspaper and raised an eyebrow. Dash took another hearty bite. She glanced over to the opposite side of the table as she chewed contently. She gulped. "What?" Rarity only sighed in response, observing the room with an empty face. Rainbow put down the burger, deadpanning. "What?!" "Nothing, Dear!" The unicorn answered. "Carry on." Her counterpart looked at Fluttershy, then shrugged and continued it's meal, but she couldn't stop glimpsing over. "Alright, this is getting annoying!" Dash snarled. "You're not the only one with such an opinion!" Rarity lashed back. "Girls, please be kind!" Fluttershy shushed. "What did I do wrong?!" "Everything." Rarity stated blankly, steering her attention back to the paper. Fluttershy, who sat in the middle, worriedly switched her gaze between them. She tried to change the subject: "Uhm, so... is there something interesting going on?" "It seems that there had been a few break-ins, the..." Rainbow's munching tuned in again, making the unicorn stop, but as soon as she noticed Fluttershy's frown, she continued, looking slightly unnerved. "The E.P.U. assumes that the same culprit was responsible for them." "E.P.U?" Dash asked, after gulping audibly. "Equestrian. Protection. Unit." Rarity recited. "There were thefts in Fillydelphia, Manehatten and most recently one happened here in Ponyville." She took a sip from her coffee. "They have no clue who or what it was." "Huh?" Rainbow stopped eating, much to Rarity's surprise. "Here? In Ponyville?" "Oh. You didn't know? It happened at the museum a few days ago." Rainbow blinked in bewilderment. "Ponyville has a museum?" 'There would have been a long silence. A silence so pure that one could have heard a hollow wind piping through the sports-pegasus ears' Rarity thought as Fluttershy pointed out, that there indeed had been a museum standing in Ponyville for quite a while now. The building wasn't very big, nor impressive, but it had some of the finest artwork, that had been forged throughout the history of Ponyville. "Alright.. so what was stolen exactly?" Rainbow asked "I think it was jewelry, right Rarity?" The question brought the unicorn out of her secluded state. "Excuse me? Oh...uh...yes, but I don't think there will be another theft here." Rainbow squinted her eyes "How do you know?" "It's simple, what other places are there around?" "What about your boutique?" Fluttershy interjected. "Hmm? I don't have that much anyway, most of my valuable accessories are stored safely in a bank in Canterlot. I don't like to have too much on my bare hooves, so to speak." "Well, then." Rainbow yawned. "Seems like there ain't gonna be much to happen then." The pegasus mare suddenly froze, her pupils twitching in little circles. Without saying anything, she dashed out the restaurant. "Hey. HEY! You haven't paid yet! MA'AM?!" The waiter cried after her. "It's alright Sir, I was going to pay this round anyway..." Rarity sighed. After a short while Rarity and Fluttershy left as well. Rainbow though was nowhere to be seen. Since both of them had still a lot to do, they departed home. It didn't take long until the dressmaker arrived in front of her boutique. She opened the door, revealing a huge mess. Rarity gasped and quickly walked in to see what had happened. Cloth was lying around everywhere; ripped apart. The unicorn picked up some blue veil that looked awfully familiar to a part of the dress that she had prepared yesterday. There was something off. An empty socket. As realization hit her, Rarity ran upstairs. In her room was a chest. She opened it. Empty. All the gemstones were gone. "This cannot be. My work. They destroyed my work AND took my supplies." She mumbled, still not believing it. "Madam. I can't help you if you don't answer my questions..." - "Right. I apologize." The officer sighed. "I can understand that you're worked up about it. I's alright. We'll get to it somehow. Now, please. Repeat what happened exactly when you got home." "Well, First I didn't think much of it, I thought Opal might have been responsible." "Opal?" "My Cat... But after I saw that an emerald was taken out of it's frame I suspected that it must have been something else." Police-stallion Graham was taking notes as Rarity spoke. He was maybe in his mid-thirties. A young Officer. The unicorn eyed him rather amazed. After a second of awkward silence, she remembered. "Oh. Yes. After that I ran upstairs and..." Rarity couldn't stop looking at him. "And I..." "Yes?" Graham smirked. She bit her lower lip. "I.." The door behind them bursted open. "Rarity! You okay?!" Rainbow cried into the the room. The unicorn slumped down, embracing her face with both front hooves. "Rainbow Dash." Graham leaned back into his chair. He smiled. "Excuse me Ma'am, but this is a private consultation. You can talk to Miss Rarity when she's done giving the details, that we need. Now please, get out." "Huh? Oh... Heh." A raspy female voice followed suit. "Sorry about that Gray... You can't just rush through a police-office like that!" Rainbow got immediately drawn out of the interrogation-room. "HEY! No wait! I want to-" The door closed shut. "No need to be so rough... geez." The police-mare gave her a deadpan look. "You are on E.P.U-Property. Here the rules might be a little different than in your house. I must ask you to leave." Rainbow made a silly face while mockingly repeating. "E.P.U-Property. Nyeh! We protect stuff! Very serious business here!" She got shoved out of the building. "I'm too old for this crap. Go annoy someone else." The pegasus stretched her tongue at the officer, who had already turned around. 'What now?' Rainbow took off to the sky and aimed for Rarity's boutique. Whatever little time she had left to make her own observations, she wanted to use it, before the place would be cramped up with detectives and whatever else they'd send. 3: Shades'n'Shadows'Dammit' There was a uniformed stallion in front of Rarity's Boutique, guarding the entrance. Rainbow Dash swiftly flew around it to see if there were any more ponies. After making sure that he was alone, she descended down on to the backyard. She tried opening a few of the windows, but they didn't move. 'Weird' There seemed to be no way into the house from back here. Something sparkled. There in the grass. She picked it up. It was a tiny gemstone. The thief must have dropped this one. Rainbow started looking for more. Eventually she found another one a bit further away, but there was nothing to be seen. Just plain grass, some trees, a mountain in the distance, Canterlot. There was another spark coming from a row of bushes. As she pushed them aside, a hole in the ground revealed itself. It seemed big enough for her to fit, but after taking a peek inside Rainbow considered getting a flashlight first. 'Even though I'd love to just dive into it and face the terrifying dangers this darkness could hold, of course.' She went back to the boutique. ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ 'Damn this is boring.' Stanley thought as he kicked a few pebbles. 'Why do I always get the lame jobs?' His stomach grumbled. 'Great.' After a while, a little cloud appeared above him. Stanley cut his eyes at it. "Don'cha dare!" He growled. As on cue the cloud moved a bit further ahead. "That's right. No messin' with me, buddy." The stallion firmly stood in front of the door. Then to his surprise the cloud dropped a doughnut onto the ground. After looking left and right to see if anybody else just witnessed what had happened he approached it slowly. Stanley sniffed at it. It was a vanilla one with chocolate sprinkles. He loved chocolate sprinkles. The stallion took another look around, then quickly munched down the little pastry. 'Sweet Celestia. It has cream inside!' Soon he looked up at the cloud again and poked it. "You got more of these, little buddy?" The cloud, like last time, moved a bit further ahead and dropped another one. Stanley almost sprinted when trotting up to it and devoured the doughnut. Suddenly it dawned on him, he looked back to the boutique. "No. I must get back in position!" But the cloud dropped several donuts at once and Stanley couldn't resist. 'Eh... I'm just a few hooves away.' He thought and turned around. Meanwhile Rainbow Dash was already on the way out. She got what she needed; the flashlight that was sitting on top of a wardrobe inside Sweetie Belle's room. She saw it earlier through a window when trying to get in from the other side. The pegasus quickly flew back to the hole she had found before. With the flashlight alight in her mouth Rainbow tucked her head into the underground path. Dirt. Nothing but Dirt. Suddenly something warm touched the mare's plot. Startled, she let out a gasp, dropping the flashlight into the dark pit. She groaned. "What are you doing there Dashie?" Rainbow turned around to see a familiar grey-coated blond pegasus mare. "Oh. Hey Derpy... Me? I'm just checking something out." She sighed. Derpy curiously looked at the hole. "I think you dropped something." Rainbow rolled her eyes, turned back to the pit and tried to crawl into it. The other mare watched her silently. "Almost." She was now mid-through the hole, her legs and tail wavered around while crawling deeper into it. Then Rainbow got stuck. She couldn't move any further. Derpy could hear her growl. "Can I help?" There was a long silence, which was then broken by a muffled groan. "Alright. Can you give me a little push or something?" Derpy nodded with a self-content smile and put her hooves on Rainbow's hip. She pressed firmly. When that didn't help she used her whole body-weight. Even started jumping on it. But the mare didn't budge. "I got an idea." - "Alright." After a while Derpy could be heard again. "ARE YOU READY?" "Uhm, yes?" Rainbow was puzzled to hear her friend scream, she must have been pretty far away. As realization hit her, she cried back. "NO! WAIT!" In an instant, Rainbow got rocketed through the pit, crashing onto the ground beneath. She stood up coughing from all the dust. "You okay Dash?" "I'm fine! Good job Derpy." Rainbow picked up the flashlight and shone around. There was only one way to go, so she started walking along with the path of light. Deeper and deeper the young mare ventured into the darkness. Luckily for her the tunnel kept a straight direction and didn't divide up into more pathways. Sometimes, there were tiny little gemstones on the ground and walls, sparkling. Rainbow turned off the flashlight. She thought she heard something. Obviously, it would come from whatever was ahead and she didn't want to get spotted. The mare stood still and waited until her eyes adjusted. Once she was able to receive the dull shapes of her surroundings, Rainbow slowly continued the approach, her right front-leg sliding lightly along the wall. As she went forth the halling sounds turned into muffled voices; soon she'd confront them. The dirty thieves who made a mess in Rarity's house, destroyed her work and even ate all the cookies in the cookie-jar. 'Damn them! I wanted those too.' Rainbow thought as she remembered the disappointing feeling when she opened that jar. The mare froze. "Myah! Twas a fine deal." - "Think we could have gotten more?" "What more would you want? We'll be off soon and that without anybody on our tails." Another voice joined in: "Hey! What's this bag here?" - "Got it today... heh. It's full of shiny stones... OW!" - "Idiot! Where did you get it?" There was a short silence. "Ah. *sigh* Alright, doesn't matter right now. Is all our stuff over at the other side?" "Yes, boss, just as you wished it to be." Rainbow finally arrived at the big hall, she was slowly creeping forward while listening to their conversation. At least here she could see a bit more, thanks to some holes in the ceiling. There were three silhouettes. She wondered what 'deal' they were talking about. The mare wanted to put the flashlight back into her mouth, but instantly froze in place. "Quiet! I heard something." One of the silhouettes became bigger. "What is this smell?" - "Huh?" Suddenly there was a loud crash. The ground shook, dust was flying around everywhere, all four were coughing, though Rainbow quickly stood up and backed off a bit. "How the hell did they find us?" - "How would I know? Quick! Let's go!" They all ran away, except one. Rainbow wasn't sure what to do or expect. "What you waiting for?" - "But my bag!" As she realized what he was going for she leaped onto it. "You ain't taking this!" She snarled. The dog jumped back, shocked. "My... my bag!" Then he got dragged away. They escaped. Rainbow took the bag and wanted to leave, but there was the sound of hooves stomping and it grew bigger. She was the only one down here now, together with a bag of jewels. What was more likely to happen? Her being accused of thievery or them believing, that the real thieves were already gone with all the stolen goods and she just happened to be here. Unsure of what to do she was completely panicking. The stomping got louder and louder. It could even be felt through the ground. Dozens of light rays pierced through the dusty air. Just before they came around the corner, one screamed: "E.P.U. Special Forces! On the ground!" But there was nobody there. One of them further behind, took off his helmet: "Ugh, I told you that using that spell would be a stupid Idea." "But you must admit... it was pretty bad-ass!" - "Well..." A female voice emerged from a suited pony: "I found it very exciting!" "But the thieves..." Another guy walked up to the first one. "It's okay Larry. We'll get them someday. We'll get them..."
1: Shit happensThat's what Rainbow Dash thought as a plate with remains of last night's dish fell to the ground. No breaking sound could be heard; much to her relief. She was up late last night again... with a big pizza,... extra red pepper. There was a Daring Do marathon. Maybe she slept in? The young pegasus mare was still lying in bed. Rainbow narrowed her eyes as she peered over the edge and caught sight of the mess on her floor. The mare let out a little growl, then decided to continue with sleep. Something has been nagging at her mind though. Today was a special day. But what was it? Rainbow scratched the back of her head. Nothing. She scratched again. Still nothing. She flipped over the plate on the floor. Her stomach grumbled. She dipped her hoof into some sauce and put it inside her mouth. 'Yes. Delicious... wait!' Rainbow slowly rolled over the other edge and fell onto the cloudy ground of her home. 'I can almost remember!' She stretched out her hooves for an open bottle of cider, which was standing right in front of her, and quickly gulped down whatever was left. 'Nope. Still nothing.' The mare now finally stood up and lazily moved to the door. She stepped outside, spread her wings and took off. Rainbow Dash was headed towards Ponyville. ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ Meanwhile Fluttershy and Rarity were trotting along the path to the Golden Oaks Library. Both sighed. "So I take it you were busy too the past few days?" Rarity asked, only receiving a nod from her companion. "WELL, last night I almost thought I'd pass out after I had done another attire." "Oh, that's awful. I really think you should take a break from time to time or you might over-stress yourself." Fluttershy sounded genuinely concerned about the dressmaker's working life. "Hah!" Rarity spat with disbelief. "I'm sorry dear! But I simply can't just take a day off or two. The world is spinning around tirelessly and if I don't keep up with my work, WHO KNOWS? Maybe some other fashionista gets the jobs to do and the bits to earn. I cannot allow this to happen!" Fluttershy, who knew the unicorn way too well, put on a frown. Rarity rolled her eyes. "Fine," she sighed. "maybe even I could have some holiday, BUT surely not before I've done everything for M&C's latest order!" The pegasus nodded approvingly. Rarity couldn't help but smile. "Anyway," the unicorn began again. "What have you been troubling... Oh my." Fluttershy followed Rarity's gaze, just as Rainbow Dash landed beside them. "Hey Guys." - "Darling, whatever happened to your mane?" - "Huh?" Rainbow put a hoof onto her hair. "Don't tell me you haven't showered yet!" The unicorn said, slightly disgusted by the sports-pegasus appearance. "Nah, didn't feel like it." Rainbow yawned. "Where are you two going?" - "We ar-" "We're on our way to Twilight. She has something awfully important to attend to, and she's going to leave town for a bit, together with Pinkie Pie and Applejack." Rarity explained. Rainbow raised an eyebrow. "Wait! What about us?! What about me?!" - "Pardon?!" Before the two others could say anything the pegasus flashed forward along the path. "Rainbow! Wait!" Fluttershy called out. "Well, there goes that," Rarity huffed. ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ "Spike?" - "Here." The little dragon handed over a scroll. He had his arms crossed and was glaring at her expectantly for a while now. "Alright, let's see." Twilight seemed completely oblivious to his attitude. She was focused on checking the preparations for their depart. Spike coughed a little. Not because he had a cold, but to gain the unicorns attention. After a few seconds he tried again. "Ahem." The shuffling of her hooves were the only thing audible. "Twilight?" She instantly turned her head. "What?!" Spike jumped back a bit. "Geez!" The unicorn looked confused. The little dragon slowly took in his previous stance. A sore expression. "Do I really have to come with you?" Annoyance in his voice. "Yes." As fast as she responded, Twilight put her attention back to the desk. Spike groaned. "Why?!" Without taking her eyes off the paper she opened her mouth and said. "Because... I don't want to leave you on your own for a whole month." "Why not??" She took in a small breath. "Because I don't want to leave you on your own for a whole month." "You said the same thing twice." Spike stated blankly. "Did I?" Twilight smirked. "Just tell me!" He bellowed. The unicorn sighed and turned to face the baby dragon. "You're too young to be left alone for so long, Spike." "Then just let Rarity or Fluttershy watch over me! Or Rainbow! Or-" "Spike. They..." Their argument was disrupted by a loud crash. A cyan blur had bursted through an open window and landed into some bookshelves. Both were surprised at this sudden intrusion. Twilight's expression turned into a deadpan one. "Rainbow Dash." "Heya Twilight. How's it going? I see you got yourself some more books! Heh." There was a knock at the door. "Spike, could you?" "Already on it." He opened it. "Come in." First came Applejack, tipping her hat. "Howdy y'all! Twilight, ya ready for the trip?" "Yeah!" Pinkie Pie chimed in. "I can't wait to get there and see their cheerful faces when they taste our delicious treats! I bet they're going to be SUPER happy about it! Ooh! I'm so EXCITED!!" "Calm down, will ya? This ain't gonna be one of yer... uuh..." The farm-pony looked confused. "What you doing there, Dash?" "Me? I'm just chillin' here." Rainbow was lying comfortably on a pile of books. Twilight rolled her eyes and turned back to the desk. "I was just about to check if I got everything; give me a minute." "Ladies." Rarity and Fluttershy had joined the little gathering as well. Spike closed the door. "Rarity! You gotta help me out!" The dragon entreated, clasping his claws around the dressmaker's hooves. "I don't want to leave Ponyville for so long! I wanna stay here! With you guys!" He threw his best puppy-dog eyes at her. Rarity wasn't able to give a straight answer. "Oh Spike... I'm currently very busy and I don't know if I'll have enough spare time to... tend your needs..." The young dragon's eyes became watery. Rarity looked desperately at Fluttershy, who awkwardly shuffled her hooves. "I'm sorry." She then looked even more desperately at Rainbow Dash. "I don't even know what's going on." The pegasus responded, shrugging. "Oooh..." Hopelessness clearly audible. She turned her face back to Spike. "I... I... alright." "Yess!" He hissed in a pose of triumph. "But only if Twilight's okay with it!" - "Twilight?" - "Nope!" Rarity sighed in relief and wiped her forehead. Spike melt down in defeat, his face meeting the ground. A muffled groan emerged. "Oh come on, Spikey!" Pinkie threw in, bouncing up and down a few times. "It's not gonna be that bad! Maybe you'll make some new friends!" He kept laying there; motionless. "If that's not enough to cheer you up, I have some of your favorite MUFFINS!!" Spike glanced up with widened eyes. "Cherry with gold-sprinkles, filled with cream and ruby-bits?" - "Uhuh!" "Cool. When do we go?" - "Well," Twilight joined in. "I'm ready. We can head off. But first: Rarity, Fluttershy, Rainbow?" The three turned their attention to the librarian. "We'll be off to the south-west. Princess Celestia has asked us if we'd be able to help out there. It appears that they have had some major weather problems and lost most of their crops. Me, Applejack and Pinkie Pie will be there to support a temporary food-drive, which gives out provisions to ponies until they manage on their own again. "This will roughly take a month, we'll be sent back as soon as transports from the east arrive. You three will be staying here, for your skills didn't seem... fitting enough. Please look after the village while we're gone, I- we all trust in your abilities. "And If something happens, please don't hesitate to inform the Princesses!" "Of course, Twilight, don't you worry." Rarity said nonchalantly. "Aye! You can count on us! We'll buck off any problem that comes our way!" Rainbow boasted. "I'll help too." Fluttershy added softly, smiling. They went out the door and said their goodbyes to each other. In the end, the only ones left were the two pegasi and the dressmaker. "Hey! I'll go grab some lunch. Anybody coming with me?" Rainbow suggested. The other two nodded and followed her. Soon after they'd find themselves in a little cafè.
2: Of Sugar, Salt & PepperThe waiter arrived with the plate for Rainbow Dash, who already licked her lips as she received the fine scent of her ordered meal. Something was missing though, she looked to the other side of the table; there it was. "Can you pass me the salt?" Fluttershy leaned forward, cautiously stretching one hoof out. Right as she was about to grab the little shaker a bluish glow appeared; Rarity absent-mindedly levitated it over, while reading the local newspaper. "Thanks." Disappointed, Fluttershy retracted her hoof. Rainbow let out a small chuckle. "What's so funny?" Rarity asked, who still didn't look up. "Muthin'." Rainbow answered, spitting some crumbs. The unicorn laid down the newspaper and raised an eyebrow. Dash took another hearty bite. She glanced over to the opposite side of the table as she chewed contently. She gulped. "What?" Rarity only sighed in response, observing the room with an empty face. Rainbow put down the burger, deadpanning. "What?!" "Nothing, Dear!" The unicorn answered. "Carry on." Her counterpart looked at Fluttershy, then shrugged and continued it's meal, but she couldn't stop glimpsing over. "Alright, this is getting annoying!" Dash snarled. "You're not the only one with such an opinion!" Rarity lashed back. "Girls, please be kind!" Fluttershy shushed. "What did I do wrong?!" "Everything." Rarity stated blankly, steering her attention back to the paper. Fluttershy, who sat in the middle, worriedly switched her gaze between them. She tried to change the subject: "Uhm, so... is there something interesting going on?" "It seems that there had been a few break-ins, the..." Rainbow's munching tuned in again, making the unicorn stop, but as soon as she noticed Fluttershy's frown, she continued, looking slightly unnerved. "The E.P.U. assumes that the same culprit was responsible for them." "E.P.U?" Dash asked, after gulping audibly. "Equestrian. Protection. Unit." Rarity recited. "There were thefts in Fillydelphia, Manehatten and most recently one happened here in Ponyville." She took a sip from her coffee. "They have no clue who or what it was." "Huh?" Rainbow stopped eating, much to Rarity's surprise. "Here? In Ponyville?" "Oh. You didn't know? It happened at the museum a few days ago." Rainbow blinked in bewilderment. "Ponyville has a museum?" 'There would have been a long silence. A silence so pure that one could have heard a hollow wind piping through the sports-pegasus ears' Rarity thought as Fluttershy pointed out, that there indeed had been a museum standing in Ponyville for quite a while now. The building wasn't very big, nor impressive, but it had some of the finest artwork, that had been forged throughout the history of Ponyville. "Alright.. so what was stolen exactly?" Rainbow asked "I think it was jewelry, right Rarity?" The question brought the unicorn out of her secluded state. "Excuse me? Oh...uh...yes, but I don't think there will be another theft here." Rainbow squinted her eyes "How do you know?" "It's simple, what other places are there around?" "What about your boutique?" Fluttershy interjected. "Hmm? I don't have that much anyway, most of my valuable accessories are stored safely in a bank in Canterlot. I don't like to have too much on my bare hooves, so to speak." "Well, then." Rainbow yawned. "Seems like there ain't gonna be much to happen then." The pegasus mare suddenly froze, her pupils twitching in little circles. Without saying anything, she dashed out the restaurant. "Hey. HEY! You haven't paid yet! MA'AM?!" The waiter cried after her. "It's alright Sir, I was going to pay this round anyway..." Rarity sighed. After a short while Rarity and Fluttershy left as well. Rainbow though was nowhere to be seen. Since both of them had still a lot to do, they departed home. It didn't take long until the dressmaker arrived in front of her boutique. She opened the door, revealing a huge mess. Rarity gasped and quickly walked in to see what had happened. Cloth was lying around everywhere; ripped apart. The unicorn picked up some blue veil that looked awfully familiar to a part of the dress that she had prepared yesterday. There was something off. An empty socket. As realization hit her, Rarity ran upstairs. In her room was a chest. She opened it. Empty. All the gemstones were gone. "This cannot be. My work. They destroyed my work AND took my supplies." She mumbled, still not believing it. "Madam. I can't help you if you don't answer my questions..." - "Right. I apologize." The officer sighed. "I can understand that you're worked up about it. I's alright. We'll get to it somehow. Now, please. Repeat what happened exactly when you got home." "Well, First I didn't think much of it, I thought Opal might have been responsible." "Opal?" "My Cat... But after I saw that an emerald was taken out of it's frame I suspected that it must have been something else." Police-stallion Graham was taking notes as Rarity spoke. He was maybe in his mid-thirties. A young Officer. The unicorn eyed him rather amazed. After a second of awkward silence, she remembered. "Oh. Yes. After that I ran upstairs and..." Rarity couldn't stop looking at him. "And I..." "Yes?" Graham smirked. She bit her lower lip. "I.." The door behind them bursted open. "Rarity! You okay?!" Rainbow cried into the the room. The unicorn slumped down, embracing her face with both front hooves. "Rainbow Dash." Graham leaned back into his chair. He smiled. "Excuse me Ma'am, but this is a private consultation. You can talk to Miss Rarity when she's done giving the details, that we need. Now please, get out." "Huh? Oh... Heh." A raspy female voice followed suit. "Sorry about that Gray... You can't just rush through a police-office like that!" Rainbow got immediately drawn out of the interrogation-room. "HEY! No wait! I want to-" The door closed shut. "No need to be so rough... geez." The police-mare gave her a deadpan look. "You are on E.P.U-Property. Here the rules might be a little different than in your house. I must ask you to leave." Rainbow made a silly face while mockingly repeating. "E.P.U-Property. Nyeh! We protect stuff! Very serious business here!" She got shoved out of the building. "I'm too old for this crap. Go annoy someone else." The pegasus stretched her tongue at the officer, who had already turned around. 'What now?' Rainbow took off to the sky and aimed for Rarity's boutique. Whatever little time she had left to make her own observations, she wanted to use it, before the place would be cramped up with detectives and whatever else they'd send.
3: Shades'n'Shadows'Dammit' There was a uniformed stallion in front of Rarity's Boutique, guarding the entrance. Rainbow Dash swiftly flew around it to see if there were any more ponies. After making sure that he was alone, she descended down on to the backyard. She tried opening a few of the windows, but they didn't move. 'Weird' There seemed to be no way into the house from back here. Something sparkled. There in the grass. She picked it up. It was a tiny gemstone. The thief must have dropped this one. Rainbow started looking for more. Eventually she found another one a bit further away, but there was nothing to be seen. Just plain grass, some trees, a mountain in the distance, Canterlot. There was another spark coming from a row of bushes. As she pushed them aside, a hole in the ground revealed itself. It seemed big enough for her to fit, but after taking a peek inside Rainbow considered getting a flashlight first. 'Even though I'd love to just dive into it and face the terrifying dangers this darkness could hold, of course.' She went back to the boutique. ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ 'Damn this is boring.' Stanley thought as he kicked a few pebbles. 'Why do I always get the lame jobs?' His stomach grumbled. 'Great.' After a while, a little cloud appeared above him. Stanley cut his eyes at it. "Don'cha dare!" He growled. As on cue the cloud moved a bit further ahead. "That's right. No messin' with me, buddy." The stallion firmly stood in front of the door. Then to his surprise the cloud dropped a doughnut onto the ground. After looking left and right to see if anybody else just witnessed what had happened he approached it slowly. Stanley sniffed at it. It was a vanilla one with chocolate sprinkles. He loved chocolate sprinkles. The stallion took another look around, then quickly munched down the little pastry. 'Sweet Celestia. It has cream inside!' Soon he looked up at the cloud again and poked it. "You got more of these, little buddy?" The cloud, like last time, moved a bit further ahead and dropped another one. Stanley almost sprinted when trotting up to it and devoured the doughnut. Suddenly it dawned on him, he looked back to the boutique. "No. I must get back in position!" But the cloud dropped several donuts at once and Stanley couldn't resist. 'Eh... I'm just a few hooves away.' He thought and turned around. Meanwhile Rainbow Dash was already on the way out. She got what she needed; the flashlight that was sitting on top of a wardrobe inside Sweetie Belle's room. She saw it earlier through a window when trying to get in from the other side. The pegasus quickly flew back to the hole she had found before. With the flashlight alight in her mouth Rainbow tucked her head into the underground path. Dirt. Nothing but Dirt. Suddenly something warm touched the mare's plot. Startled, she let out a gasp, dropping the flashlight into the dark pit. She groaned. "What are you doing there Dashie?" Rainbow turned around to see a familiar grey-coated blond pegasus mare. "Oh. Hey Derpy... Me? I'm just checking something out." She sighed. Derpy curiously looked at the hole. "I think you dropped something." Rainbow rolled her eyes, turned back to the pit and tried to crawl into it. The other mare watched her silently. "Almost." She was now mid-through the hole, her legs and tail wavered around while crawling deeper into it. Then Rainbow got stuck. She couldn't move any further. Derpy could hear her growl. "Can I help?" There was a long silence, which was then broken by a muffled groan. "Alright. Can you give me a little push or something?" Derpy nodded with a self-content smile and put her hooves on Rainbow's hip. She pressed firmly. When that didn't help she used her whole body-weight. Even started jumping on it. But the mare didn't budge. "I got an idea." - "Alright." After a while Derpy could be heard again. "ARE YOU READY?" "Uhm, yes?" Rainbow was puzzled to hear her friend scream, she must have been pretty far away. As realization hit her, she cried back. "NO! WAIT!" In an instant, Rainbow got rocketed through the pit, crashing onto the ground beneath. She stood up coughing from all the dust. "You okay Dash?" "I'm fine! Good job Derpy." Rainbow picked up the flashlight and shone around. There was only one way to go, so she started walking along with the path of light. Deeper and deeper the young mare ventured into the darkness. Luckily for her the tunnel kept a straight direction and didn't divide up into more pathways. Sometimes, there were tiny little gemstones on the ground and walls, sparkling. Rainbow turned off the flashlight. She thought she heard something. Obviously, it would come from whatever was ahead and she didn't want to get spotted. The mare stood still and waited until her eyes adjusted. Once she was able to receive the dull shapes of her surroundings, Rainbow slowly continued the approach, her right front-leg sliding lightly along the wall. As she went forth the halling sounds turned into muffled voices; soon she'd confront them. The dirty thieves who made a mess in Rarity's house, destroyed her work and even ate all the cookies in the cookie-jar. 'Damn them! I wanted those too.' Rainbow thought as she remembered the disappointing feeling when she opened that jar. The mare froze. "Myah! Twas a fine deal." - "Think we could have gotten more?" "What more would you want? We'll be off soon and that without anybody on our tails." Another voice joined in: "Hey! What's this bag here?" - "Got it today... heh. It's full of shiny stones... OW!" - "Idiot! Where did you get it?" There was a short silence. "Ah. *sigh* Alright, doesn't matter right now. Is all our stuff over at the other side?" "Yes, boss, just as you wished it to be." Rainbow finally arrived at the big hall, she was slowly creeping forward while listening to their conversation. At least here she could see a bit more, thanks to some holes in the ceiling. There were three silhouettes. She wondered what 'deal' they were talking about. The mare wanted to put the flashlight back into her mouth, but instantly froze in place. "Quiet! I heard something." One of the silhouettes became bigger. "What is this smell?" - "Huh?" Suddenly there was a loud crash. The ground shook, dust was flying around everywhere, all four were coughing, though Rainbow quickly stood up and backed off a bit. "How the hell did they find us?" - "How would I know? Quick! Let's go!" They all ran away, except one. Rainbow wasn't sure what to do or expect. "What you waiting for?" - "But my bag!" As she realized what he was going for she leaped onto it. "You ain't taking this!" She snarled. The dog jumped back, shocked. "My... my bag!" Then he got dragged away. They escaped. Rainbow took the bag and wanted to leave, but there was the sound of hooves stomping and it grew bigger. She was the only one down here now, together with a bag of jewels. What was more likely to happen? Her being accused of thievery or them believing, that the real thieves were already gone with all the stolen goods and she just happened to be here. Unsure of what to do she was completely panicking. The stomping got louder and louder. It could even be felt through the ground. Dozens of light rays pierced through the dusty air. Just before they came around the corner, one screamed: "E.P.U. Special Forces! On the ground!" But there was nobody there. One of them further behind, took off his helmet: "Ugh, I told you that using that spell would be a stupid Idea." "But you must admit... it was pretty bad-ass!" - "Well..." A female voice emerged from a suited pony: "I found it very exciting!" "But the thieves..." Another guy walked up to the first one. "It's okay Larry. We'll get them someday. We'll get them..."
