Behind Closed Doors

Dim candle-lights lit up the ominous dark hallway out of her bedroom as the young unicorn filly inched forward, a cold chill in the air from an opened window of her bedroom only adding to the unsettling feeling in the room as it ran through her curled light-pink and purple mane.

…She could’ve sworn that the Carousel Boutique didn’t seem this creepy at night before…not even when she went to the filly’s room at night! There shouldn’t have been anything wrong…

…But something WAS wrong lately. It was all that talk of missing ponies going around; nopony could get a good night’s sleep with creepy pony-nappers on the loose!

…Maybe that’s why Rarity was always insistent on her staying by her side or with her other crusader friends…but it’s not like they were allowed to DO any crusading lately…

…It just wasn’t fair. She’d NEVER get her cutie mark with this going on…!

Sweetie Belle bit her quivering lip as a wave of nervousness consumed her, pristine white pony ears twitching at the catch of a howling sound as it resounded through the walls, muffled and hidden from view.

It scared her.

“AH!” The unicorn filly squeaked for just a second as she ran further down the hallway and hid herself in the layers of the many mannequins that decorated the front of the boutique, the dark violet drapes only hiding the pale moonlight from view as they were shut for the night and covering the large windows that normally allowed sunshine through.

…As if to say, “There’s no salvation here”…

Sweetie Belle shook her head frantically. She couldn’t run away back to her room now…but that sound she heard was enough to paralyze a filly, and even the mannequins gave little comfort in their fancy dresses, making the filly feel that maybe she intruded on a ghost’s masquerade ball…

…And she’d be the menu if she didn’t get away from there, fast.

Slipping away from the dress mannequins in a hurry, the filly suddenly felt unsafe around them as she flinched and froze into place, another howling sound resounding through the desolate room, dragged out and haunting to the ear as it sent shivers all through the little one’s body.

“G-Ghost…!” She whimpered as she faced where the sounds might’ve been coming through, the walls, the grounds, outside…!

…It was everywhere…!

“Rarity…!” Sweetie Belle cried as her eyes darted around the room. “Rarity, where are you…?!” The small filly slumped in the darkness as she felt a sense of hopelessness consume her, her curly tail wrapping around her small figure as she wrapped her hooves around it for dear comfort.

Normally she’d try to find at least a little fun in getting scared if she was with her other crusader friends…but she was alone.

…This was nothing like the cockatrice in the Everfree…

“Rarity…!” The unicorn filly continued to cry, the howling in the air growing louder and more prolonging, almost as if a voice was begging to be freed from something, and she had no way of doing so…and yet it still kept persisting, breaking, haunting her with its every being…!

She had never felt so alone before…!

“…RARITY!!! SCOOTALOO!!! APPLEBLOOM!!! …MOM!!!” The filly began to shout at the top of her lungs, frantically shaking her head as she starting beating herself constantly with her hooves, tears falling from her frightened face and matting her white coat.

“Darling, whatever is the matter?! Do you not know the time?!” A large rectangular hole in the floor of the Carousel Boutique was forced open suddenly, and the young filly could see a pristine white unicorn with a fine purple mane, her usual curls seeming more rugged than usual as she rushed up the stairs with the most surprising scar across her left eye, and a white petticoat with a purple ribbon at one side wrapped around her. “…Sweetie Belle…?!” The unicorn’s sapphire eyes widened as a reddish glint of anger flared just barely noticeable through all the blue concern she held for the poor filly.

“R-Rarity…?” Sweetie Belle blinked away the tears with a sniffle, a sense of confusion taking over her. “…What…what happened to you…? Where did you get the petticoat from? Why haven’t I seen you wear it until now…?”

…In fact, the white petticoat looked all too familiar to the filly, but…she just couldn’t grasp it…

Rarity bit her lip before she faced her sister with a softer expression, almost full of guilt, even. “…Never mind that now, Sweetie Belle…It’s late, and you should be off to bed. You have school in the morning, and I want you ready to go as soon as I’m ready to take you.”

The unicorn filly frowned. “Y-you’re taking me AGAIN…? I never get to walk on my own anymore…” She muttered; her voice still shaky from moments ago.

“And it’s for good reason, too. Just tonight, a walk through the house frightened you!” Rarity wrapped her warm hooves around the filly, allowing her face to be smothered by the mare’s coat. “With so many ponies disappearing, I can’t possibly let you run off and get hurt!”

“Mmff, Rarity, you’re…!” Sweetie Belle grunted as she struggled to pull her muzzle away from the other mare’s chest, succeeding only after the older unicorn released her grip around the filly. “Ugh, crushing me!”

Something seemed wrong. A stench…it didn’t smell right, but…from what the younger unicorn could tell, it was coming from that mysterious opening in the ground….and it smelled foul, whatever it was.

…Rarity smelled foul, too.

The pristine unicorn mare gave a nervous laughter. “I’m sorry, Sweetie Belle, just…you should go to bed now. I have something to finish tonight, and then I will also be heading to bed. It’s dreadfully late, darling, and you have school tomorrow!”

Sweetie Belle nodded slowly as she picked herself back up, with little sound.

“…Okay.”

Without another word, the unicorn filly turned away from her sister and started her journey back towards her bedroom, leaving the older mare in the creepy darkness, where the basement was, apparently.

…When did they even have a basement?

Rarity wasn’t always that weird…nothing was THAT weird before…and where in the world was Opal lately? Not once that day did she trip over that cat, or at all the past week! Shuddering, the filly continued her walk, her muzzle shut tight yet filled with countless questions.

Questions she didn’t know how to get answers to, but…

There was only one thing she knew for certain…

…Something was definitely wrong with her sister.

And she needed to talk to somepony about it.

Jokes, flying, stunts, and speed…

…Being awesome…

The orange pegasus giggled excitedly as she followed a bigger winged figure through the wide cloudy skies, her purple mane blowing through the constant winds and flying every direction.

…She always longed for this moment.

Flapping her wings in a graceful movement, the younger pegasus slowly gained on the winged figure, its many colors becoming more distinct and radically awesome as it spread its own two sky-blue wings, the entire visible spectrum flowing through its super cool awesome mane.

…Rainbow Dash.

“You’re getting better, Squirt! Keep on coming!” The rainbow-maned pegasus called to the other orange pegasus as she laughed, the distance between the two pegasi slowly becoming more narrowed and closer than before.

The orange pegasus beamed at the sound of the other mare’s awesomely raspy voice. “I’m coming, Rainbow Dash!” Orange wings danced through the wind as its currents surrounded the younger pegasus, taking her up to new speeds and practically beside the other.

She was beside Rainbow Dash. She…

…Beside Rainbow Dash! The best of the best and most awesome pony in the history of all of Equestria and beyond!

Her awesomeness exceeded that of even Celestia, and…even Time itself!

The orange pegasus gushed silently as she felt her cheeks heat up in excitement, being next to her hero who was sporting the most awesome grin as her mane became one with the wind, her wings one with the sky!

Rainbow gave a small chuckle. “…That’s cool and all, Scoots…but, can you top this?!” Without another word, the orange pegasus was thrown into a twist she couldn’t control as the most awesome pony shot through the sky with momentum beyond that of the world, a huge display of colors splashing all over the sky in the most awesome way as she pulled what no other pegasus could do EVER.

…The Sonic Rainboom...!

The younger pegasus knew when she was defeated. No matter what, she could never top the legendary Sonic Rainboom or its creator.

…Rainbow Dash CREATED awesome.

…And the sound of her alarm clock, apparently. Like, the exact one she used to get up for school, but…how did she even manage to make her alarm clock? Or alarm clocks in general…?

…Wait.

BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!

Lavender eyes fluttered open to a poster of Rainbow Dash on the wood-paned of her bedroom, the captions “20% cooler” written on it with red marker writing. It was one of the many posters she created for the Rainbow Dash fan club, where she proudly held the title of president. Each decoration that sat on her shelf, she made with her own hooves, the awesome pony of her dreams always close to her when she wasn’t showing off her sweet moves.

…It was the closest she could ever get to her when she wasn’t tripping over herself all the time.

“Aww man, it was an awesome dream, too…” The orange filly groaned, her wings back to the tiny things they were, incapable to handling her weight in flight. All her life she had longed to fly beside Rainbow Dash…

…And she was constantly teased each time she went to bed.

“Just you wait, Rainbow Dash! I’ll be flying with these babies before you can even SAY awesome!” She yelled, her scratchy voice bouncing all over the place. No matter what, she wanted to fly, and someday…

…She’d like Rainbow Dash to be her honorary big sister.

“You’ll be flying with the reddest flank in Equestria if you don’t get out of that bed!” The orange filly jumped as the door slammed open to reveal a purple-maned mare with a huge wrench clenched to her teeth, her blue eyes glaring at the filly.

Uh oh… Mom…

Scootaloo grunted as she quickly jumped from the bed onto the floor, her hooves straight and planted to the ground. “I’m wide awake!”

The mare gave a laugh and sighed as she put the wrench down and pulled the orange filly into a noogie-hug. “Aww, I’m just messing with you! …But you better get to school as fast as you can, ‘cause that’s the umpteenth time your alarm has gone off!”

The filly’s eyes widened. “…Huh? I-It has?”

…A peek at the clock.

“Oh my gosh, I’m gonna be late!” Scootaloo quickly rushed herself out of the bedroom, her hooves already grabbing hold of her trusty scooter and an apple for the road as she threw herself out the door and into the bustling crowd of Ponyville’s morning sale rush, leaving her mother behind in the suddenly peaceful environment of their house.

To be honest, she didn’t understand why Sweetie Belle’s and Applebloom’s sisters were so paranoid. Her mom really wasn’t… Not much actually happened around Ponyville, and when something did, Rainbow Dash and the gang would just take care of it!

Scootaloo tightened her hold on the scooter, setting it to full throttle as she started to blaze past the other bigger ponies in the market.
There really was no need to worry…right? She wouldn’t end up missing or something, would she?

The filly laughed at the thought. Of course not, that’s what Rainbow Dash was there for! She’d have this mess taken care of in 10 seconds flat, no doubt!

Her short purple mane danced with the momentum as she held her muzzle shut, her eyes concentrating on the dusty road ahead, the school house just in the distance not far from where she was. As always, no better way to travel than by scooter or by flight…

The orange filly grinned.

…Yup, nothing to worry about. Rainbow Dash would take care of it, and then they’d be able to go crusading like old times! In the time they’d be apart, her mind had been brewing with new ideas, but they weren’t allowed to try them out with ponies going missing…

…She could share them at least, couldn’t she?

The Ponyville schoolhouse was bustling with activity as filly and colts of all shapes and sizes squeezed through the doors, each of them eager (or not) to begin the day’s lesson as they worked their way into their assigned seating. Sounds of murmuring and uncertainty filled the area as there were many guardians who remained for a small time in order to ensure their children made it to their classes, more so than usual.

…It was all thanks to the whole ‘missing ponies’ fiasco. Everypony was scared for their younger ones.

Sweetie Belle felt her muzzle getting scrunched into her sister’s desperate grasp as they sat in front of the school building, surrounded by many other unsettling emotions as each parent released their children to go to school around them.

“…R-Rarity…you’re crushing me…” The unicorn filly gasped as her muzzle was filled with the scent of roses, delicately applied all over the pristine older mare’s body. It was nothing like the scent she caught the night before. It wasn’t as…weird…Rarity had a habit of putting on perfume, sure, but was it usually so strong?

…Was what happened last night just her imagination?

The graceful mare nuzzled her dear sister for a second longer before she released her. “Mmm, do be careful, Sweetie. I don’t know WHAT I’d do if you ever got hurt. And with those missing ponies lately…just take care of yourself!”

Sweetie Belle grunted as she slipped away from her sister forcefully. “…I’ll be fine, Rarity! If you keep nuzzling me like this, I’m gonna be late!” She gave a small smile before running up the stairs into the schoolhouse. “I’ll be fine!” She yelled out into the air before heading in.

“Oh, but Sweetie…!” Rarity’s voice faded into the crowds as the unicorn filly’s ear was filled with laughter and giggles as little ones interacted with each other as friends.

...She didn’t see her sister’s expression as she entered inside the building.

Sweetie Belle let out a deep sigh as she looked ahead towards her seat; where she knew her fellow Crusading friends were gonna be. It seemed like she was the first one there, surprisingly. She thought Rarity’s nuzzling caused her to almost be late. Ignoring the rest of the crowd, the filly silently slipped into her seat, her thoughts going back to the events that haunted her sleep.

Did she really imagine that? Those smells from the basement and on Rarity…that howling sound…she didn’t eat anything funny beforehand, did she? At least, she believed she didn’t, unless Rarity slipped something in. As much as she loved to help, she was starting to grasp from Rarity’s expressions that she couldn’t cook to save her life. She let out a deep sigh.

‘…What am I gonna do? Should I tell somepony about this?’ She pondered to herself as she pressed her front fore-hooves into her cheeks, a feeling of stress making things seem heavier than they should be, or something like that…she wasn’t really sure, to be honest…but talking to the other Crusaders probably would at least do some good for her. Sitting upright in her seat, the small unicorn filly glanced back towards the doorway, waiting for any sign of her other friends.

She didn’t have to wait long before Scootaloo made her way into the classroom, her stance full of determination and a smile on her face. “Hey, Sweetie Belle! How’re you doing?” She grinned as she lifted a hoof to greet her unicorn friend. “It’s getting kinda crazy out there with the parents, right? I mean, Apple Bloom’s getting buried by her sister out there.”

Sweetie Belle let out a small giggle. “I doubt she’s going to be in a good mood during class then. You and I BOTH know just how much she hates being babied, after all! How come your Mom lets you run around Ponyville so freely even with the whole missing ponies thing happening?”

The orange pegasus filly shrugged as she walked over to settle into her seat. “Dunno…but I think she believes in Rainbow Dash – she’s so awesome after all! If there was any kind of trouble, I’m sure Rainbow Dash would be there to help me out! So, that’s why I’m not afraid!” She beamed, her wings flittering in excitement.

The light pink-purple maned filly blinked. “…So, you could tell Rainbow Dash anything…and things would be okay?” Wow, she knew Scootaloo was practically obsessed with her sister’s friend, and she HAD helped them out on multiple occasions as well as saved the world at least a dozen times…

…Maybe she could tell her about what she saw last night. If she told Rainbow Dash about her problems, maybe she could help her understand what’s wrong with Rarity… “…Hey, um…do you think you could help me talk to Rainbow Dash after school today? I kinda have something I wanna talk to her about.”

The purple-maned pegasus frowned as she gazed in the other’s wavering eyes. “…Sweetie Belle, are you okay? You’re not troubled or anything, are you? I can totally arrange for you to talk to Rainbow Dash, but I’m also kinda curious. What’s going on that you need help from Rainbow Dash so badly? Is it something I could help you with?”

Sweetie Belle parted her lips as the sounds of multiple hoof steps could be heard bouncing along the halls. The other students were going to be here soon, and this wasn’t really something she could share in public…talking about her sister acting weird was considered mean if she told the whole school about it…

Along with the crowd of young fillies and colts, a young yellow-coated earth pony filly with a red mane and pink bow stepped into the classroom with a sigh. “…Guh…mornin’, everypony.” She gave a smile, but the exhaustion could be heard in her voice and her shaky posture. “…Ah never thought she was gonna let me go…”

Scootaloo laughed at the earth pony’s state. “…Sheesh, your sister was extra clingy today, wasn’t she? How’re you doing, Apple Bloom? Anything new happen lately?”

Apple Bloom shook her head as she slumped in her seat. “…Only the most dumb safety measures ever created! Mah sister’s got me on a harness if I play in the yard, and Ah always gotta be where she and Big Mac can see me! Ah ain’t got no life!” She whined into her desk, causing the other two to drop their shoulders.

Sweetie Belle gulped. “Geez…that’s actually pretty rough. Rarity’s constantly hanging on me extra harder than usual, but she hasn’t put me through anything like that yet…” And honestly, she’d be fine if she didn’t ever put her through those measures. It wasn’t fun to have your life controlled for the sake of your well being – there were too many things ponies got away with using that reason with their children. “…Anything you can do to loosen your family’s paranoia?”

The red-maned filly groaned, her voice muffled by her desk. “…Ah just wish this whole ‘missing ponies’ thing will stop and we can go back to our crusadin’ again….Ah hate bein’ babied like this all day…it’s worser than ever before in mah life now!”

The classroom door slowly shut as soon as the teacher, Miss Cheerilee, entered the classroom. “…Alright, everypony. Now, before we start class today, we’re going to go over some safety measures, understand? I’m sure you all know how unsafe it is to wander on your own in the streets of Ponyville now, and we don’t want anypony to get hurt. So, for starters, we’re going to be assigning buddies for all of you. No pony, especially during recess, should be alone during this troubling time.” Her voice was kind but stern with a sense of foreboding – a symbol of just how disrupted their peace had become in such a short time.

Sweetie Belle frowned at the sight. Just what they all needed…more safety rules and regulations. If things continued like this, then all of the fillies and colts would eventually become like Apple Bloom, or even worse…no pony would be able to have privacy.

…Somepony had to stop this.

A drawn out yawn filled the skies just above the Ponyville Weather Team’s current work zone as a prismatic pegasus shoved a fluffy cumulus cloud back into place. As fun as yesterday’s birthday was, it was a pain to put all the snow clouds together…but now it was time to deal with putting everything back and resetting the area for summer like the rest of Ponyville.

…Personally, such a feat could be WAY easier if she was able to get some proper sleep without skipping out on meals. Ever since Pinkie brought forth that research Twilight had, her free time was sacrificed on seeking for clues and working the Rainbow Factory. It really was awesome but horrible at the same time to be the supervisor at both jobs. Rainbow Dash shook the drowsiness from her eyes in a swift motion as she hovered in mid-air, the formation of clouds before her seeming pretty satisfying.

Good, maybe that meant she could slip in a much needed nap. Not wanting to waste any more time, the prismatic-maned pegasus let her body sink into one of the fluffy clouds, dubbing it as of now her ‘napping cloud’, and she was determined to get in a good nap after all that work!

…Absolutely nothing was going to bother her!

“…Hey, Rainbow Dash! Are you currently busy at the moment? Sweetie Belle wants to talk to you about something!”

…Except when it had to do with Scootaloo. Letting out a tired groan and shaking the sleep from her eyes, the sky-blue pegasus peeked down from her napping cloud toward the two fillies. “…Mnn, hey, Scoots. You said that Sweetie Belle wanted to talk to me about something?” Of course, it was kinda strange that Sweetie Belle was going to talk to her as opposed to Scootaloo herself…what was going on? “…Anything I can help with?”

Scootaloo grinned and waved a hoof. “…Alright, Sweetie Belle, let me know when you both get done or if you come up with a solution! Don’t be down in the dumps all day, okay?” She faced up towards the prismatic pegasus. “Rainbow Dash, I’ll be leaving the rest to you, okay? Mom’s not following me everywhere or anything, but I kinda have a curfew, so…”
Rainbow lifted a hoof with a grin. “It’s cool, Scoots. The Rainbow Dash has got this handled. You best head on back to your Mom.”

Sweetie Belle gave a small smile as she watched her friend leave the area, her scooter’s engine rumbling and letting out a loud hum that rang in her ears until it eventually faded into the horizon. It wasn’t until the two were left in silence that the unicorn filly glanced back up at the sky-blue pegasus. “…Um, hi, Rainbow Dash. Do you mind coming down? I’m not sure about speaking to the clouds like this.”

Rainbow Dash blinked. “Um, sure thing.” So, it was something personal – she didn’t want others catching wind of their conversation. With a quick movement, she lifted her body from the napping cloud and gently glided down to the ground, her light hooves sinking into the dirt. “…Okay, how’s this? You need anything else?”

The young unicorn bit her lips as her eyes grew downcast – was it really okay to tell her sister’s friend like this? “…Um…what I’m about to say…you can’t tell Rarity anything, okay? You can’t.”

Rainbow’s eyes widened a bit before raising an eyebrow. Clearly this was something she didn’t want her sister knowing about…but what could she gather from listening to Rarity’s sister? “…Alright, I won’t tell Rarity anything. Is everything okay?” Her voice grew more firm as her eyes softened.

…Maybe it would’ve been better to go to Twilight…but if Scootaloo truly believed that Rainbow Dash could fix her problems, then…she’d trust in her friend’s judgement. “….Well…it’s…something’s…” She started, her mouth starting to go dry. “…I think…something’s wrong with Rarity…”

“…Something wrong with…Rarity?” The sky-blue pegasus repeated, trying to process the information. What was wrong with Rarity? Last she saw her was at the party, and she seemed just fine then, didn’t she?

“…Mmhmm.” Sweetie Belle nodded slowly. “…Last night…I saw something…I smelled something strange about her. Something different than she usually is…” Her eyes wavered as she closed in on herself. “…What I saw last night…I’m not sure if Rarity was Rarity back then…”

Letting out a sigh, Rainbow Dash kept her composure as she knelt down. “…Sweetie Belle, I need you to listen to me. Tell me in full detail what you saw last night. It’s going to be okay.”

With a sniffle, the young unicorn moved a little closer to create more security. “...I wasn’t able to sleep last night…so then I…I decided to go to the filly’s room…but it was so scary in the boutique at night. I kept…I kept hearing this howling sound, like something was trying to get out, or…maybe in pain? I don’t know…but I got scared…so then I started to scream for help.”

‘…Howling sound? Something in pain? Somehow, this is seeming more and more suspicious…’ The prismatic pegasus pondered as she listened to the young filly’s story, trying to pay as much attention to detail as she could.

Sweetie Belle gulped as she thought back to the previous night’s events. “…I screamed…and then a hole in the floor opened up. It smelled really awful and sickening in there…and then Rarity came out of there, with her mane all messy, and she had a fluffy petticoat with a purple ribbon draped over her…and her left eye had a scar. I…I didn’t know what was going on, but Rarity said she had business to take care of, and then she’d be heading to bed…but she acted really weird and hugged me really tightly…and the next day she had a lot of perfume and hugged me tightly.” The young unicorn lowered her head. “…I was wondering…if you’d help Rarity come back to the sister I knew.”

Rainbow Dash kept silent for a bit before letting out an inward sigh. “…I’ll look into it for you. Probably nothing big, but y’know…I can’t exactly leave you hanging. Just…don’t worry about it from here, alright? Leave everything to me.” She gave a confident grin as she placed a hoof on the other’s shoulder. The warmth from her hoof alone caused the younger to feel more relived.

…With this…everything was going to be okay? Rainbow Dash was going to help Rarity? Letting out a sigh of relief, Sweetie Belle gave a smile. “…Okay. You should probably look into it tonight, since I’m going to be with my parents for the rest of the week starting tonight. Rarity will be the only one in the house, and you can talk to her about it.”

…Scootaloo was right. Rainbow Dash really WAS a hero.

The prismatic pegasus nodded. “…Got it. You should head to your parents about now, then. It’s starting to get pretty late.”

With a beaming smile, the unicorn filly turned away and started a dash towards the horizon, where she knew that Rarity was going to be helped. Rainbow Dash was going to take care of things, and when she came back, everything will be all better!

…It just has to be.

Once Sweetie Belle left the area, Rainbow Dash let out a long sigh before taking a glance towards a tree just nearby. “…You can come out now, Pinks. We got the information we needed.”

A mane full of pink peeked from behind the tree, a mischievous grin on her face. “…Wow, so…Rarity’s been doing fun things behind our backs, without inviting me? That’s really not cool.” Pinkamina approached her partner slowly, her eyes filled with devious thoughts. “...So? What’s the plan? Obviously we’re going to investigate her tonight, right? We don’t exactly wanna fall behind Twilight, after all.”

The Superior Supervisor nodded. “…Obviously. And in order to do that, we’ve gotta figure out who her next target is. Thinking about Rarity’s general tastes, she’s probably the one going after all the noble ponies. In that case, we’ve found a suspect murderer for at least half of the disappearances. But that doesn’t relate to who the other one is.”

The pink menace gave a wide smile. “…Well, at least we can start by checking out what Rarity’s got to hide. I think I have a way to find out who her next target is.”

Rainbow Dash blinked. “…Alright. Let’s head somewhere more private to continue this conversation – I don’t like standing in the open like this, even if it’s starting to get pretty late.”

The earth pony rolled her eyes. “…Oh, you. For somepony who lives in the fast lane, you sure are cautious when it comes to your occupation, huh?”

Her partner’s eyes narrowed. “…Absolutely. Come on – we’ve got an invasion to plan for.”