Something Sour at Crystal Prep

by Stratocaster

Rating: teen
Tags: Mystery, Comedy, Equestria Girls, Sunset Shimmer, Anthro, Main 6, Dark, Other, Drama
Length: 8160

A murder has occurred among the Shadowbolts! And Twilight's friends are the first under the lamp!

An unfortunate circumstance at Crystal Prep! The Shadowbolts are shocked as they wander through school and come upon a body. The body of Sour Sweet! The signs are all there. She's been murdered! But by whom? As the Shadowbolts call upon their old friend Twilight Sparkle for help in uncovering this disaster, tensions run high. And it is not long until the Wondercolts fall under suspicion! But Twilight sets out to find the truth. Who killed Sour Sweet?!

(A story idea by Short Stories, collaborated by Short Stories and Stratocaster)

Published 2016-05-11 21:10:01 UTC
Last updated 2016-05-11 21:10:01 UTC

J'accused!

Something Sour at Crystal Prep

by Short Stories and Stratocaster

Chapter 1: J'accused!

Sunny Flare curled up with bugged eyes in the cushioned chair, still reeling from the grizzly sight. The scene was even more haunting illuminated by the glow of the moonlight from the tall lounge window, as rain tapped against the glass. No lights were turned on inside as she refused to get any better of a look. Fortunately she was not alone, or else she would never know how to react.

The other Shadowbolts mimicked her actions, each having a big, comfy chair of their own. Lemon Zest, who had stopped the rock ballad she was listening too, seemed the most freaked out compared to all the rest. Sour Sweet’s lifeless arm stretched towards her chair, as if she were trying to crawl forward before being attacked.

“This...this can’t be happening.” Sunny stammered, hugging her legs. “I just saw her this morning.”

Indigo Zap, though considered the toughest of the group, looked like she was about to puke. “We had g-gym together…” she stammered, “the last period of the--the day. I thought she was right behind me as we were le-leaving…”

Lemon Zest knelt down to prod at the body. “Come on, Sour. Joke’s over.” She said, in denial. “It’s not that funny anymore!”

Sugarcoat got out of her chair and stood over Lemon, letting her try to wake Sour from her deadly slumber for a few more moments before speaking up. “It wasn’t funny to begin with. If you thought it was, that’s messed up.” Her voice began to waver, so she looked away from the crime scene. “She’s obviously not joking, Lemon. She’s dead. Anyone with eyes can see that.”

“How could this happen?!” blurted Indigo. “Why would Sour just...end up...like this right here!” she tried to avert the words die and death.

All of the Shadowbolts were left clueless, unable to ask Indigo’s question, though it was something they all wondered themselves. “She could have been poisoned... “ Sunny suggested, though knew that was unlikely, consider the blood all over the floor. “...Then stabbed to death…” she added in a whisper.

“I think it would probably help if the lights were on.” Sugarcoat said, going over to the lightswitch. She got screams of “no” almost instantly, making her pause a little too late.

The lights of the lounge flicked on, revealing the gruesome sight of Sour Sweet lying lifeless in the carpet. A wave of gasps were contracted from the living girls. Indigo finally ran off to vomit, but failed to reach the bathroom and instead settled for a potted plant.

“Sugarcoat!” Lemon yelled angrily, “we told you to stop! Why’d you turn the lights on anyway?!” She backed away from Sour’s body, about ready to advance on the blunt Shadowbolt.

“Someone was going to eventually.” Sugarcoat shrugged. “The real question is, who would want to murder a student at a prep school? Granted, Sour Sweet could be a little, ahem, harsh, but even this seems very extreme.”

Sunny seemed alarmed at what Sugarcoat had said; if anything, she was the one who was harsh, but she kept to herself. “True,” She agreed anyway, “she does have a nasty habit of being sarcastic. I can’t think of anyone who would want to kill her, though.” She winced at the last two words, taking a deep breath, to try and calm her stomach down. “Does anyone else have any ideas?”

Lemon Zest continued to stare anxiously at her deceased friend. But then, a thought suddenly struck her, and her expression turned into a bitter scowl. “Wondercolts!” she hissed. “Those little ingrates! They probably did this to Sour to make sure she would never bother them again! Oh they are gonna pay!”

The rest of the Shadowbolts agreed with Lemon simultaneously; they had never fully forgiven the friendship-loving freaks after they had beaten them at The Friendship Games...or after they got their own Principal fired….or after they took Twilight away from them. They say that Twilight chose to transfer to their school, but they all could see through the Wonderbolt’s lies. “We can’t just go over there and accuse them, though.” Sugarcoat mumbled, “even though they probably did do it, we’d be on their school grounds and they could have Celestia kick us off. Maybe we should call Twilight and she can help us decide how to confront them.”

Indigo returned from her upchuck, her face a bit pale green. “But how do we know Twilight will even help us out?” she asked. “She seems pretty happy over there mingling with those jerks.”

Lemon wrinkled her nose, getting slightly more angrier by thinking about the rivals. “She’s still our ‘friend’, or whatever, isn’t she?” She grabbed her headphones and her iPhone, seriously needing the moral support of music at this moment. “She’d still help us, as long as we don’t call out those idiots right away.” Lemon figured the music could wait, so she unplugged her headphones and dialed Twilight’s number, putting it on speaker phone.

One ring. Two rings. “Hello?”

...

“Ha! Take that, AJ! That’s five rounds in a row!” gloated Rainbow Dash as she raised her controller in victory. She had been focused on Super Battle Lizards 4 the entire sleepover.

“That ain’t no fair!” Applejack cried, “you were cheatin’! I saw y’all lookin at somethin’!” She leaned over to try and see what Rainbow had been looking at, but the blue-skinned girl snatched the paper off the floor and hugged it close to her body. Applejack sent her a remorseful look before turning to Twilight. “Was she cheatin’, Twi?” She asked innocently.

Before she could answer, Twilight’s phone vibrated on her nightstand. “Hold on, Applejack. I have to take this.” She stood up from her bed and took the phone out into the hall. “Hello?” She asked.

“Twilight!” Lemon yelled, “Sour Sweet’s been murdered!”

Twilight looked a bit confused, looking back into her bedroom and hoping the other girls weren’t listening. “Huh? Lemon, what are you talking about? Is there something you need to tell me?”

She heard some groans in the background and a small slap. “Sour. Sweet.” Lemon said, much more quietly and slowly this time. “Has. Been. Murdered. I don’t know how else to it.”

The purple girl paused for another moment with a blank expression. “...Lemon if this is another one of your prank calls, it’s not that funny. I thought you were over that.”

Louder groans sounded again. There was a slight argument, then Sugarcoat’s voice floated through the speaker. “Are you really that dense?” She asked, making Twilight instantly regret answering the phone. “Lemon said Sour was dead. She wouldn't joke about something like this. Do you want me to text you a picture?”

The oddity of the situation was suddenly beginning to turn into reality. Twilight could hear the desperation in her former friends’ voices. Her stomach grew heavy. “Oh no,” was all she could muster. “Uh...hold on, I’ll be right over!” Twilight hung the phone and began to leave anxiously.

Rainbow, Applejack, and the rest of the six immediately noticed Twilight scrambling for her jacket, shoes and backpack, along with Spike trying to scoot his way in. They exchanged glances, each wondering what she was doing and why. Sunset eventually walked to the frantic girl and touched her shoulder lightly to get her attention. “Twilight…?”

Twilight snapped her head to her quickly. “Oh! Sunset! Uh, I just, um...I have to step out for a bit.”

The girls, excluding Twilight, became more concerned than curious at this response. “Are you sure everything’s okay?” Sunset asked.

“Yes! Of course!” replied Twilight, trying to think on her feet. She hesitated to mention the girls from the Shadowbolts to Sunset, considering her grudge. “I just realized we...are all out of milk and need to go to the store to get more!”

“I already brought some!” Pinkie piped up, lifting two jugs of milk out of her duffel bag. “You never know when someone will eat a really spicy pepper and needs milk really fast .or they’re mouth might burst to flames!”

Fluttershy stared at her erratic friend for a moment. “Um, Pinkie, that milk is expired. How long have you been carrying those jugs around?”

Pinkie looked at the expiration date on the milk, squinting a little to see the faded numbers clearly. She tossed them behind her, which made them bounce off Twi’s bed and land perfectly on Twilight’s homework desk. “Before 5/5/14.” She responded.

After shaking her head at Pinkie, Rarity turned to Twilight. “Why do you look so worried, Twilight?” she asked. “You’re practically pale as a ghost!”

Twilight knew she didn’t really have any excuses, and she was a terrible liar; it was pure luck that they bought her milk lie, yet she had no idea what to tell them now that they had brought up her current appearance. “I--I---I…really need fresh milk?” She tried, but when she saw the looks on her friends faces, she knew they weren't buying it. With a small sigh, she lowered her head so she wouldn't be able to see their anger. “I need to go to Crystal Prep.” she said reluctantly, “The Shadowbolts kind of need me there.”

The other six exchanged looks before Rainbow finally responded. “The Shadowbolts? You still talk with them after that whole mess with the Friendship Games?”

Twilight nodded reluctantly. “Why?” Applejack asked, “they didn’t seem ta be very nice ta ya, from what we saw of ‘em. What if they’re just messin’ with ya, and they somehow hurt ya when ya get there?”

“But we’ve made up since then,” replied Twilight. “And I can’t help coming to someone if they need my help.”

“We understand that you’d like to help them, Twilight.” Sunset assured, “we just don’t want you to risk it. They did seem pretty cruel.”

“I’ll be fine, Sunset,” Twilight touched her shoulder. “And if there is any trouble, which I’m not saying there is, I’ll be sure to call you.”

Applejack rose from her spot on the floor and started packing up some of the things she brought as well. “Ah don’t like the feelin’ of this. Ah’m comin’ with you, whether ya like it er not.” She finished packing in record time, the rest following suite. Twilight felt like she couldn't do anything as they grabbed the necessities they felt they needed.

“I’m coming too, Twi,” said Sunset in earnest. “I’m willing to look past what happened.”

Knowing there was no way to convince them otherwise, Twilight sighed, grabbed her bag, gave Spike a goodbye pat and held the door open for her pals. “Just be careful okay?” She warned, “they seemed more….uh...meaner….than usual….”

“Eh, how bad could they be?” shrugged Sunset. “It used to be I wasn’t any better, right?”

During the short three months Twilight had transferred to Canterlot High, she had caught wind of what Sunset used to be like more times than ever thought possible, especially from this group, who seem to bring it up whenever one feels like their world might cave in on them. “I guess…” Twi mumbled, “I just----I’d still be careful around them, okay? They don’t know your coming and probably won't forgive you for a long...long time…”

“Don’t worry, Twi!” said Pinkie enthusiastically. “We’re in this together! How bad could it be?!”

...

Sunny Flare took one look at Twilight’s posse and groaned for the third time that night. “Why did you bring them?” She asked, “We specifically asked for you. Nobody else.”

“I couldn’t exactly leave them back in my room all night, Sunny.” Twilight said as she stood at the doorway of Crystal Prep. “Plus they simply care enough to help out.”

Sunny wrinkled her nose in disgust. “You’re just too much of a pushover….some things never change.” She scoffed and did a half-hearted wave to the six girls that stood behind Twi, then turned her back to them. “Welcome to the crime scene, I guess. Please, don’t hesitate to leave at any time...now would be nice.”

“Crime scene?” queried Twilight, as she followed her into the school lounge. “What are you talking about? What exactly hap…” She immediately froze. There in front of her was the corpse of her former foe, her purple eyes still open as if she had just fallen. Twilight remained speechless.

Sunset gently pushed her way to the front, wondering what happened as well. “Is everything okay, Tw--” She, to, stopped dead in her tracks at the scene before her. The smell of old blood hit her strong and she rushed to a plant to vomit.

“Sweet needle in a haystack!” shouted Applejack as she got a look as well.

“Oooooh! How horrid!” shrieked Rarity.

Fluttershy started to cry while Rainbow winced and started for the door. Pinkie knelt down towards the body, now wearing a Sherlock Holmes uniform; one she definitely didn’t have a moment ago. “Was she like this when you came in?” She asked, surprisingly the only one who wasn’t freaking out about the whole thing.

Indigo looked at her as if she had sincerely asked what the moon was. “Of course she was like this when we came in! Do you think we made her look like this?!”

Pinkie stood up, brushing invisible dust off the long, plaid coat. “Maybe not. Maybe she got attacked during the day. Maybe seconds before you were all here. Maybe she was even alive when the first Shadowbolt entered and was dead when the second one came in...don’t you feel that’s a possibility, girls? Hmmmmm?” Her friends were too busy trying to not look at the late Sour Sweet to hear, let alone, agree with the perky girl.

Lemon Zest approached Pinkie with a sneer. “Are you implying that one of us killed our friend?!”

“Denial is one of the obvious signs of the murderer.” Pinkie retorted, shrugging innocently. “I didn’t make the rules.”

Applejack looked over at her friend quizzically. “Since when did you start gettin’ all Sherlock?”

Pinkie knew, in a way, Applejack was trying to break up the fight before it began. She took off the jacket, kept the hat on, and began ‘investigating’ around the crime scene. “Since a few years ago.” Pinkie responded, “I had a dream where I was a pony and was helping pony-Twilight with this train mystery and have been helping people with mini-mysteries ever since.”

“Pinkie, that wasn’t a dream.” Rarity discerned. “The pony universe is real. You knew that! Have you not been paying attention these past couple of years?”

Pinkie blinked, giving a side glance to the Shadowbolts, then back to Rarity. “Oh, right.” She gave a nervous chuckle, giving another side glance to the Shadowbolts. “I blanked out for a second.”

Twilight knelt down beside the body of her former comrade with disbelief. The scene would have been sadder if Sour Sweet’s eyes weren’t crossed. “Who could have done this?” She spoke.

“Why do you think we called you?” Indigo snapped, “we thought you’d be smart enough to find out, but apparently, you aren’t.”

“You thought I could solve this?” Twilight looked up at her in half-confusion, half-disgust. “It’s one thing to unravel the mysteries of magic, but this...this is just a whole different playing field! I’ve never had to deal with murder before!”

Sunny threw her hands in the air and stomped her foot, clearly agitated. “How were we supposed to know that?!”

Applejack stepped in between the annoyed Shadowbolt and Twilight, who was flinching at Sunny’s angry words. “Now, now...let’s just calm down, y’all.”

“I agree,” said Sugarcoat. “All this bickering won’t get us anywhere. And I think it’s pretty obvious who the culprit is.” She stared at the Wondercolts suspiciously.

Rainbow, who had her arms folded, and was leaning against the doorframe, noticed Sugarcoat staring at her, out of all the other Wondercolts, and quickly straightened herself up. “What are you staring at?” She snapped.

“What’s the matter, Wondercolt?” Indigo Zap taunted. “You seem awfully defensive.”

Rainbow moved closer to Inigo, still trying to avoid the mess in the center of the room. “I only seem defensive because that bloodhound you have keeps staring at me.” She growled, pointing to Sugarcoat.

“Who are you calling a bloodhound, you crazy-haired motormouth?!” Sugarcoat hissed, unusually.

Fluttershy, who was now huddled down, hiding her face behind her hair and whimpering, stopped due to all the noise. “Can’t we just get along and try and solve this peacefully?” She whispered. Unfortunately, nobody heard her, and the shouting grew louder.

“There’s one class where Sour isn’t with us, and that’s fourth period Science.” Indigo said. “I happen to know that the Wonderbolts have a free period during that time.”

Rainbow took a step back, freaked out by her knowledge. “How did you know that?” She asked.

“It’s a wonder what you can do with the Canterlot High School website and a Hacking For Dummies book.” Sugarcoat said simply.

“You’ve been spying on us?!” Rarity gasped. “Please don’t tell me you found pictures of me in gym class! Those horrid shorts and jerseys make me look terrible!”

“No one is lookin’ at ya in gym class, Rarity.” Applejack pinched her brow.

“Well why not?!” Rarity whined.

Sunset rolled her eyes and gave a slight sigh. “That’s not important right now, Rarity.”

Indigo started to pace in front of all the girls, something that helped her think. “One of you must have left the school during your free period, came over, and killed her.”

“Didn’t you say you have gym with her? The last period of the day?” Sunny asked.

“Okay, they must have ran over and killed her before we got here.” Indigo said, slightly annoyed. “Everyone knows she always arrives fifteen minutes earlier than anyone else for practice.”

“This is just malarky!” Applejack glared. “Yer really gonna accuse one of for murder?”

“Just because you’re all so lovey-dovey about friendship doesn’t mean you’re not hiding cruel intentions.” Lemon sneered. “If you freaks could kill a trio of sirens then who’s to say you wouldn’t come and kill our friend?”

“What?!” Pinkie gasped. “Why would we kill sirens?! That would be really bad for the fire department! What are they gonna do without sirens?!”

“Pinkie, she’s talking about the Dazzlings.” Sunset corrected. “Remember? Those three girls who were really evil serpents trying to hypnotise everyone?”

“Sunset, please, you think I’d remember something like that!” Pinkie rolled her eyes.

“You know what I think?” Indigo glowered. “I think they used some of that magic from that crazy pony dimension or whatever! They put a spell on Sour to kill her!”

“Ugh, really!” Rarity scoffed. “Even if we wanted to do something as cruel as murder, against someone who we already forgave, why would go to such drastic lengths?!”

“You know what?” Rainbow huffed. “Forget these ungrateful jerks! We don’t need to stand here and get the third degree. We’re out of here!” She stomped off in anger along with Applejack, Rarity and Pinkie.

“Guys, wait!” Twilight called to them. “I thought you wanted to help me!”

“I’m sorry, Twilight,” said Fluttershy, remorsefully. “But those girls obviously still don’t trust us. It’s better if we just leave and not get in the way.” She joined the other four sadly as they exited the prep school.

Twilight sorrowfully watched her dear friends leave, before turning to her former ones in great disgust. “I can’t believe you girls are suspecting one of us of killing Sour Sweet!” Twilight glowered. “And now we find that you’ve been spying on us online? After all we went through, you seriously have no trust in us?”

Lemon Zest folded her arms, putting on a bored expression. “It’s not that we don’t trust you; it’s just---”

“We don’t trust you.” Sugarcoat finished.

Lemon sneered at her friend’s bluntness for a second and then shrugged. “Yeah, pretty much.”

Twilight, usually a calm sort of person, was seething. “And why is that?!” She yelled, trying hard to restrain herself.

“You want to know why we don’t trust you, Twilight?” Sunny spoke. “Because you left us behind! We all had something great together and you suddenly became friends with these nobodies like we didn’t matter! We may have acted forgiving, but really we were stewing inside! And Sour took it the hardest! So don’t be surprised if we still have a little bit of a grudge!”

Twilight looked at the Shadowbolts with uncertainty, wondering how to go about this situation. If she came on gentle, the Shadowbolts might think she wasn't taking it seriously. If she came on harsh, the Shadowbolts might think that they were being blamed for being in the wrong. Twilight lowered her head, letting out a small sigh. “You're right,” she said, taking the Bolts by surprise. “And I’m sorry.”

“You're just saying that so you’ll look good in front of your friends.” Sugarcoat blurted, even though she knew her friends were already gone.

“No, Sugarcoat, I’m serious.” Twilight continued. “My friends literally just left. I understand you still feel betrayed after I transferred to Canterlot. And to be honest, I still miss certain times when we were friends. But you have to understand that none of us want any bad blood. We all forgave you after the Friendship Games, and you have no excuse to blame us for something this horrific. I’m sorry for how you feel. Especially Sour. But this not the time to be holding any grudges! Do you understand?”

“We--” Sugarcoat started.

Twilight stepped forward, arms folded, eyebrow raised. “You all wish to continue to pick a fight and not let things go?” She asked, using Sugarcoat’s bluntness against her. She shook her head in disappointment and dropped her arms to her sides. “I can try and help the best I can,” Twilight said to the other Shadowbolts. “I’m going to need a DNA sample of her blood and you girls to collect whatever clues you can find.”

Sunny smiled mockingly, gestured towards the floor. “There’s plenty here.” She said. “And if you need clues, you’ll just have to wait on them.”

“Then I guess you’ll just have to wait on me helping you.” Twilight retorted. She took a small eyedropper and a jar out of her backpack nonetheless and collected a sample. When she got haughty smiles from the rest, she added in a defensive manner that blood dries quickly and would be difficult to do experiments on if it were no longer wet. She stalked towards the door, slamming it behind her.

The Shadowbolts briefly exchanged remorseful glances with one another, Lemon taking a step forward towards the door. Sugarcoat held her back by gently touching her arm, shaking her head. “She’s a pushover.” Sugarcoat said, “she wants to help. She’ll come back.”

Author's Note

Hey gang! This is my first published collaboration story! While you're sitting there painting an image of Sour Sweet's bloodied corpse in your mind, go and check out Short Stories's's's's's page! She has plenty of stories in a variety of genres and also goes by the ponysona Summer Melodie. So go and give her a follow why dontcha! And also be sure to check out my measly stories as well! Enjoy! And remember, don't be a Crystal Prep student alone in the middle of the night! Crapfully yours, Stratocaster! :yay:

D n' A

Chapter 2: D n' A

Twilight stormed into her room, all her friends sitting where they were before, as if nothing happened. They’re eyes immediately went to her and the blood sample and they immediately asked what happened.

“Twilight, you still agreed to help those bimbos?” Rainbow raised an eyebrow. “Why should we be concerned about them? They still hate us!”

“Even though they’re holding a grudge against us--me, specifically--doesn't mean we should hold a grudge against them.” Twilight replied. “Treat others how you wish to be treated, Rainbow.”

“Well did you have to bring that...uh...blood over here?” Fluttershy quivered. “I think I’m going to be sick.”

Twilight mentally face-palmed herself for not shoving the sample in her backpack on her way over and quickly hid it under her desk. “Sorry, Fluttershy,” she mumbled, “I forgot to put it in my backpack beforehand.”

“So what do you plan to do with that blood anyway?” Sunset asked Twilight, standing beside her. “Do you even know how to analyze DNA?”

Twilight nodded proudly. “My great great great great uncle Holmes was a detective.” She said dismissively. “I got one of his journals for my 10th birthday. Taught me everything I know about this kind of stuff.”

“Still, it just seems so farfetched to me.” Rarity said, braiding Fluttershy’s hair. “Who would have any motive to senselessly murder a student? Obviously it wasn’t any of us, but could anybody still have a grudge against the poor girl?”

Twilight nodded, gingerly placing her backpack under her desk. “It’s possible,” she said, “Sour was...pretty sour, for lack of better terms…She could have gone to far with her sarcasm and hit someone where it hurt.”

“You don’t think it was anybody at Canterlot High, do you?” asked Fluttershy, a bit nervy.

“Honestly?” Twilight responded, giving the jugs of milk back to Pinkie, “I can’t say ‘no’ to that. It could have been someone at Canterlot High, but it also could have been someone from Crystal Prep. It’s hard to say.”

“Well, whoever did it,” said Applejack. “What do ya think takin’ Sour’s blood will prove?”

“This blood might contain traces of the murder weapon.” Twilight explained, “then, maybe, I can somehow connect that to the murderer.”

“Then let’s crack to it!” Pinkie said determinedly as she donned her detective cap again. “The scoundrel shall be apprehended post haste!”

Sunset chuckled slightly at Pinkie’s enthusiasm. “Let’s let Twilight analyze the sample first,” she said gently, taking Pinkie’s hat off her head and setting it on Twi’s bed. “We would look even worse if we were to go back to that stuck-up high school and not have anything to show them.”

Twilight proceeded to her closet and threw open the folding doors. Her friends marvelled at the arrangement of scientific instruments sat upon the shelves, from microscopes of varying sizes to vials of dubious chemicals of many colors.

“Um, Twilight,” said Rarity. “Normally people use their closets for clothes?”

Twilight was barely paying attention, she was so excited to use her scientific equipment. She hadn’t used it since she transferred to Canterlot High, for her new friends had constantly kept her busy. “Hmm?” She mumbled, “Oh, yeah. Uh...I put my clothes under my bed and in my nightstand drawers...”

With a stretch of her arm, Twilight grabbed a curious device from the top shelf, a small metal box with several dials and meters on the side. Setting the device on the table, she carefully opened the tube of blood and poured the contents into an opening on top. A few of the dials on the machine twitched and flashed as she waited patiently to analyze the results of what she had gathered.

The rest of the seven gathered behind her, watching the dials quietly and somewhat patiently. After a few minutes and impatient sighs from Pinkie, the device finally dinged. “What’s it say, Twilight?” Pinkie asked immediately, shoving her way so she could be next to the science girl. “Tell us! Tell us now!! I can’t wait a moment longer, just tell us already!”

Twilight stared for another suspenseful moment longer.

Pinkie, irritated, took the paper from Twilight’s hands and read it silently to herself. She gasped and nodded and gave a few ‘mm-hmm’s’ before being interrupted by a very annoyed Twilight. “Since you already have the paper, Pinkie…” she said, “why don’t you tell us what it says? Aloud?”

Pinkie looked at Twilight guiltily and apologetically, handed the paper back to her. “I didn’t understand what it said.” She confessed, “I was just looking at the squiggly line at the top.”

Twilight sulked. “If you knew what that meant, you would know that there is no trace of foreign substance in Sour’s blood.”

Her friends all breathed a grunt of disappointment.

“According to the data, it dosen’t show any trace of any DNA that would go back to a murder weapon…” Twilight sighed, “I guess this sample isn’t any good to us now.”

“So, um, can we please, ugh, get rid of it?” asked Fluttershy, feeling queasy.

“Oh! Right! Of course.” Twilight mumbled, quickly scrambling to throw it away in her already full wastebasket.

“Well then, I guess that means Sour Sweet’s murder will never be solved.” Rainbow shrugged nonchalantly and sat back down to play video games. “How tragic. She will be missed. Blah blah blah blah blah.”

Applejack elbowed Rainbow in the side. Hard. “Rainbow Dash!” She hissed, “that ain’t how ya’d treat a friend, now, is it? Ah understand they still don’t like us and we might not like them, but imagine if Sour was….was Sunset!” Sunset took a small step towards the door as soon as Applejack mentioned her being murdered. “Would you just brush off Sour’s--ah mean Sunset’s murder case so easily, too?!”

“Jeez, AJ,” Rainbow rubbed her side. “Just a minute ago you were steamed about those Crystal Prep girls just as much as I am.”

“Ah know…” Applejack mumbled, blushing a bit at Rainbow calling her bluff. “I just got ta thinkin’, is all….”

“I think we’re all just getting a little antsy.” Sunset said, laying a hand on Twilight’s shoulder. “It’s been a hectic night. Why don’t we all just head to bed for now? I’m sure we can get back to solving this tomorrow.”

“I guess,” Twilight sighed; on one hand, she was beyond tired and really wanted to get to sleep, knowing she’d have a more focused mind in the morning and things wouldn't be so muddled. On the other, with the drastic events the night had brought them, she doubted she’d get any sleep anytime soon. “It has been pretty tough for everyone, has it?”

Pinkie Pie was already slumped over Twilight’s bed sideways, sleeping with a loud, nasally snore. It was a surprise after her energetic romp the entire night.

Rainbow stared at the party girl with bewilderment, wondering if she was just acting so she could pull a fast one once everyone was asleep, or was truly tired. “Yeah…” She said, “I’ll stand guard...just in case the ‘murderer’ sneaks into the house tonight.”

Fluttershy gave a small squeak and pulled the top part of her sleeping bag over her face so only her eyes showed. “Y-you don’t think they’d r-really come in here, w-would you, Rainbow Dash?” She stammered, visibly shaking.

“Who knows?” shrugged Rainbow. “We’re somehow tied to Sour Sweet so we might be next on their list.”

“Rainbow would you stop?!” scorned Twilight. “You’ve been watching too many crime shows.”

“Well I don’t think you’ve watched enough!” Rainbow turned away in a huff.

“Would you please be quiet?” Pinkie yelled from her position, her eyes wide open. “Can’t you see I’m trying to sleep?” With that, she closed her eyes and resumed her snoring. The rest passed confused looks and small eye rolls before heading off to sleep themselves.

Game Sunset Match

Chapter 3: Game Sunset Match

Under coat of moonlight, Sunset stalked the sidewalk with the hood of her coat pulled over her head. She walked without much of a sound from Twilight’s house toward the dorms of Crystal Prep. It felt naggingly guilty to her to leave her friends abruptly as they slept, but somehow she couldn’t sleep without thinking about Sour Sweet’s murder. Something about Twilight’s analysis just didn’t quite add up with Sunset, and she felt compelled to investigate further on her own.

Every now and then, she considered turning back and waking Twilight so the two could go together. There was safety in numbers, after all. Yet Sunset felt she’d feel even more guilty, or even trapped, in a way, once Twilight was up and started asking her questions--or, even worse--her friends woke once Twilight started speaking. So, Sunset continued to trudge on, attempting to ignore the nagging feeling inside her, or the creepy feeling that she was being followed.

Soon, she came upon the front door of the prep school. It suddenly occurred to her that she had no idea of how to break in, since it was most definitely closed at this untimely hour. Sunset wished she could use a bit of magic to manifest herself inside, but that was a road she did not want to go down again. Half-heartedly, she grabbed the door hand and gave it a turn, surprised that it was even open. Sunset questioned the level of security of the school as she discreetly entered.

Her feet softly padded across the tile floor, reaching for the small flashlight she had tucked into her pocket before she left. She flicked it on, the area she had been facing suddenly illuminated by a small circle of light. It isn’t much, she thought as she slowly waved it around to get a better view of her surroundings, but it’ll do.

Sunset tried to remember the path to the lounge where Sour’s body lay. She had deeply hoped that her living friends weren’t still there panicking over the crime seen; she was in no mood to take any more insults from the prep girls. Fortunately, she found the door to the lounge, and as she opened it, she found no one else inside. But her good luck so far was not enough to deter her from the grizzly sight of the bloodied corpse.

The second she stepped inside, the door slammed behind her. She jumped and shone her flashlight to the door, wondering if the Shadowbolts were waiting behind it like the creeps they were. When she didn’t find anybody, a shiver ran up her spine instinctively, hoping no one awoke from the loud slam of the door. She turned back to the corpse, hoping the door was just one of those doors that closed automatically.

For the next few minutes, Sunset scoured the area around Sour Sweet’s husk, searching for any missed clues. She shone her light underneath the chairs and couches hoping to find a murder weapon, but nothing was to be found, just more smatterings of blood across the carpet. Then, she lightly slapped herself over neglecting something. It occurred to Sunset that she could simply check the footage on the school’s security cameras.

“Come on, Twi, why can’t you think of these things?” she shook her head.

She stepped out of the room, making sure to gently close the door behind her. She headed down the hallway, towards the security room, when she heard murmuring and a small tapping sound. Sunset turned around to see if any of the Shadowbolts were trying to freak her out but, again, saw no one there. She attempted to shrug it off and continued her way to the security room. Thankfully, the trip wasn’t as long as she thought (a sign that said “Security room helped her a ton), but once her hand touched the doorknob, her flashlight began to flicker a few times then burnt out.

Sunset shook the torch angrily. “Ugh, really?!” she whispered. She unscrewed the flashlight’s handle to inspect the battery, not sure what she would hope to accomplish with that. But as she stood there in the eerie dark, a rush of cold air breezed against her legs.

She immediately looked around the best she could to see if a window was left open or if she was near an air vent. She sighed in annoyance--she thought this ‘mission’ would be a lot easier than this, and attempted to ignore the cold just as she had ignored the other strange and creepy stuff that had happened to her that night. Instead, she focused on getting into the security room.

Jiggling the doorknob, she discovered it was locked. It was strange that they had kept the front door unlocked but locked this one. She was about to jiggle the doorknob again when the murmuring that had been following her grew louder. “I wouldn't do that…” it whispered, an icy breeze brushing against her face, “...if I were you…”

“AAAAAAAAAAHHHH!!!”

Without hesitation, Sunset bolted away from the security room and down the front hall again. But before she could reach the front door to freedom, she tripped and fell to the floor with a thud. She looked up and around with a grunt, but found no object that could have made her fumble like that. It seemed like she was losing her mind.

The room turned freezing cold, and the same voice that had scared the stuffing out of her was as loud as ever. “Don’t worry, little one,” it said in a strangely soothing way. If it weren't for the situation she was currently in, Sunset could have honestly said it comforted her. “This won’t hurt a bit.”

Something sharp and cool stabbed her chest. She screamed again, wasting her last breath of life; her vision was speckled with black dots and she fought to keep her eyes open, but it proved to be impossible. The last thing she saw was Lemon Zest running down the stairs, pure shock etched on her face.

...

Twilight sat on the front steps of her house the next day, reading under the sunlight. The previous morning had been one of confusion when she and her friends had awoken to find Sunset missing with her sleeping bag and clothes left behind. She had been wondering if Sunset suddenly rushed home for some reason and was simply waiting to hear anything from her.

Her phone began to buzz in her pocket. She became hopeful, thinking it was Sunset, but when she looked to see who was calling, she groaned in disappointment. It was her prep friends; the one’s she wasn’t to eager to talk to based on how they acted last night. She slid the screen to the left, choosing the “ignore” option and went back to her book.

“Howdy, Twi!” came a familiar voice. “Still a little peeved about Sunset takin’ off?” asked Applejack as she sat next to her.

“A little,” Twilight sighed, “it would have been nice if she left a note so we knew where she was.”

“I’m sure she had a good reason.” Applejack shrugged. “It’s not like she went and turned back into a demon thing or somethin’.” She tried to joke to get Twilight into a better mood.

Twilight offered a smile, knowing what AJ was trying to do. “I guess…” she mumbled, “I’m mostly worried nothing bad happened to her.”

“I know what’ll make ya feel better.” Applejack stood up. “Why don’t we head on down to the Shake Shack? Pinkie says their mixer’s on the fritz so they’re givin’ away as much as they can.”

She sighed, quickly placing a bookmark in her story, closed it, and held it against her chest. “I suppose,” she said, pushing her glasses up her nose, “it has been awhile since I’ve been there….i-it would be nice to visit again.”

As Twilight stood up to leave, her phone rang once again in her pocket. She checked the caller I.D. and was right to assume that it was Lemon Zest again. Without hesitation, she ignored the call and walked off with Applejack.

“Did Sunset call?” Applejack asked, hoping the reply was a ‘yes’.

“No,” Twilight said, shaking her head. “Just Lemon Zest, probably trying to make fun of us again.”

“Ah, forget those harpies.” Applejack said. “What could they possibly want now?"

...

Lemon Zest stared at her phone with a mix of shock and rage. The only thing going through her head at the moment was Why won’t she pick up?

“Don’t get so mad, Lemon,” said Sunny Flare, meekly. “Maybe she’s just busy with schoolwork.”

Lemon raised her eyebrow, putting her phone away. “I guess that’s possible,” she muttered, “that still doesn't mean she can’t shoot us a text or something that says ‘I’m busy; TTYL’.”

“Agh! Brain freeze!” cried an erratic voice.

“Pinkie what did I just warn you about?!” came a more familiar voice in the same direction.

“I know…” Pinkie mumbled, “but it’s just so good! How can I not slurp it fast?”

Lemon Zest spun around in her seat, almost snapping her head in a one-eighty. “What the frick?!” She blurted as she spotted Twilight, Applejack and Pinkie sitting at a table nearby, also at the Shake Shack.

She turned back to Sunny Flare, who looked at the Canterlot High students the second Lemon Zest blurted. “Homework, huh?” Lemon asked her with a sarcastic tone, her eyebrow raised once more. Sunny Flare shrugged innocently, went back to her Blueberry Blitz smoothie.

With an enraged sneer, Lemon approached the three Wondercolts and slammed her hands down on the table. Twilight and Applejack looked up at her awkwardly. Pinkie continued to stuff her face.

“Oh….hi…..Lemon…” Twilight muttered awkwardly as she pushed her glasses up her nose, trying to pretend that she hadn’t ignored the Shadowbolt’s calls all day. “How’ve you been…?”

“About ready to smack a b-”

“Lemon take it easy!” Sunny joined next to her, taking her arm.

“Shut up, Sunny!” she continued. “I know you’ve been ignoring me, Twilight!”

Twilight sighed. “Look, Lemon, I know you want me to help solve Sour Sweet’s murder, but so far you’ve just seemed to reject it. Help me help you, Lemon.”

“It’s more than just that, Sparkle!” seethed Lemon. “Have you seriously not listened to any of my messages today?!”

“I admit it was pretty rude of me, but-”

“Sunset Shimmer is uh-dead!” she spat.

Twilight and Applejack froze--even Pinkie stopped on her slurpee to pay attention to the conversation. “What?!” Twilight asked, not caring if the customers nearby were starting to stare. She’s dead?! How is this possible? Do you know what happened?”

“We have no idea!” said Sunny. “We were just walking to class when we found her lying dead in the front hallway. It looked like she was stabbed, just like Sour!” she cringed.

Lemon seemed hesitant to agree, rising Twilight’s suspicions a little more. “Lemon, what did you see? Something tells me there's...something more…”

Lemon scoffed, folded her arms. “Not that it’s important,” she scowled, “I heard her scream twice in the middle of the night; one that woke me up and the other lead to me heading down the stairs to see what was wrong. I saw a knife by her side and literally saw the life leave her eyes.” She shuddered, recalling the gruesome event. “It was something no one should never needed to see, yet I was the ‘lucky soul’ who saw it.”

“She must’ve been heading off to Crystal Prep to look more into Sour’s murder!” pondered AJ.

Twilight looked down in disbelief at the loss of her newest friend. “How could this happen?”

“Why do you think I was trying to get a hold of you, genius?” Lemon asked, “so I can ask you what shade of red looks good in Sunset’s hair?”

“There’s already red in her hair!” Pinkie exclaimed.

“That’s not the point!” Lemon took a deep breath, trying to recollect herself. “The point is that we still need Twilight’s help now more than ever. Who knows what could happen if we don’t do something?”

“Now wait a minute,” objected Applejack. “Why do you care so much about Sunset anyway? You were just as mean to her as to the rest of us!”

Sunny intervened again, pulling up a chair to sit down. “We may not have cared about her,” she said as she absently mindedly played on her phone, “but we aren't heartless.”

“Yeah,” sneered Lemon. “One of our friends croaks and now one of yours too. So it looks like we’re all obligated, aren’t we?”

Applejack sighed, managing to roll her eyes without them noticing. She decided to try and change the topic just slightly so she wasn’t the center of focus.“Sunny Flare, did you hear the screamin’? Or was Lemon Zest the only one that heard it?”

“We didn’t hear anything from her.” Sunny said. “I was walking into school because I forgot a book the other night, when I just found her there! She must have been killed overnight.”

“She was.” Lemon sighed, “weren't you paying attention?”

It was Sunny’s turn to raise an eyebrow and cross her arms. “I was over there,” she said, pointing at the table the two had been sitting at minutes before. “How do you expect me to hear a conversation that’s three feet away?”

Twilight stood up. “I’ve heard enough.” She said sternly. “I want to see Sunset for myself. Just going by your word alone isn’t enough. If my friends can’t trust you then why should I?”

The Shadowbolts exchanged a glance of annoyance before Sunny stuffed her phone in her pocket and headed towards the door, Lemon following. Applejack, Pinkie Pie, and Twilight all stared at them curiously, wondering what they were doing.

Sunny looked over her shoulder to see the three standing there, clueless. “You coming or not?” She asked them.

...

Twilight, along with Applejack, Pinkie, Lemon and Sunny, hurried over to Crystal Prep, anxious to get a look at Sunset’s allegedly murdered body. But their path to the front door was immediately interrupted by the sight of police cars lined up in front of the building. A mixed crowd of officers, teachers and students scattered around the entrance, especially by the back of an ambulance.

Twilight raised up on her tip-toes, trying to see what was happening. After failing twice, she turned towards Pinkie, who was still slurping on her drink. “Pinkie, could you give me a boost?” she asked her.

“Sure!” Pinkie approached behind Twilight, grabbed her in a tight hold and tossed her friend over the dense crowd. Twilight yelped as she was hurled and landed in front of a police officer, who noticed her immediately.

“Uh, Miss, I’m gonna need you to step back.” The cop spoke unenthused.

She nodded, obviously intimidated by the officer’s size and weaponry attached to his belt. Twilight attempted to take a step back, as he instructed, but the crowd pushed her forward, nearly knocking her off balance.

It was then that she noticed a clear view of the parked ambulance. Her body became chilled for a moment at the sight of two black body bags being hauled into the vehicle. Lemon’s words were true. Another victim had been claimed, and one that was even closer to her heart than the first. Twilight knew she had to overcome the dread and press on. She approached the cop trying to think of the right question.

“Miss, I believe I asked you to step back,” Officer James said the moment he saw her take a step forward towards him. His fingers twitched, a small yet sure sign he was starting to get irritated.

“Please, Officer, I’m a friend of both of the victims.” Twilight said innocently. She tried not to give away any indication that she had known about the murders the night before. “Is there anything you may have found that might’ve led up to what happened to them? Is somebody really out murdering students?”

“I doubt there’s a murderer going around and killing students, young lady,” James explained, “My boss checked the security footage and found that pink haired girl breakin’ into the school lounge room of yours last night. Before he could figure out what she was up to, there was some kind of power surge that made the camera show nothing but static. He spent a full minute trying to get the image to show again and, when he finally did, the girl was dead.” He shrugged, as if he didn’t know what else to do. “We rewinded that tape to try an get the static out so many times, I’ve memorized the whole thing.”

Twilight took a small step forward, more interested to know about Sunset’s death than Sour’s. “What about Sunset?” She asked nervously, “what happened to the red and yellow haired girl?”

“Huh? Oh yeah.” Officer James said almost absent-mindedly. “It’s the strangest thing. We couldn’t find any evidence of her murder, even though we found her in bad shape. The security footage just showed her falling and dying for no real reason. Basically we got two girls who were killed the same way, but no substantial evidence of either murder. I’m sorry, Miss, but we can’t seem to do much more.”

Twilight nodded, a little disappointed from the lack of evidence--and footage. She mumbled a thank you as she turned away and pushed her way back to her friends.

“Well now what?” asked a concerned Applejack, Lemon skulking besider her.

Twilight looked up at her with a stoic look. “I think it’s time we got some outside help.”