Bookends Part 3: Or Family Values

The police came in a very timely manner; mysterious dead ponies aren’t the norm for a community like Ponyville. They’d sent a message by Pegasus courier to Canterlot to request a medical examiner. Except for a few accidents, Ponyville never needed one.

When the pony, Dr. Bones, arrived he took measurements, some hair samples and photographs. Then he had his assistants to carefully and respectfully collect the remains for transfer to the lab back in Canterlot. Afterward, he went to talk to the ponies who had discovered the remains.

“So you moved a large boulder and discovered the remains, is that correct Miss Lulamoon?” asked Dr. Bones.

“Remains is so cold,” said Trixie, “it was some pony’s baby!

And yes, I moved the boulder away from the large pile. That’s when I saw something didn’t look right. I set the boulder down and went to look. What I saw shocked, sickened and saddened me.”

“Did the moving of the boulder, disturb the rem…

The pony?”

“No.”

“Did you touch or move the pony?”

“Celestia no!” exclaimed Trixie, “why the Tartarus would I do that?”

“I’m not implying anything,” said Dr. Bones, “I’m just verifying the position of the body was as it lay when uncovered, Miss Lulamoon.

Mr. Pie, I assume you or your daughter didn’t move the body as well?”

“No doctor,” said Igneous Rock, “I made sure nothing was disturbed until my daughter brought the police back.”

“I see,” said the medical examiner, “well, from what I can see, It appears to be a case of a pony being in the wrong place at the wrong time. I don’t believe there were any criminal issues involved.”

“What can you say about the pony?” asked Trixie, she looked very concerned.

“It’s too early to say,” replied Dr. Bones, “I’ll have to do a further exam of the body and review the photos. Plus the lab will have to test the hair and tissues before I’ll be comfortable to say anything. There’s also research that’ll have to be done, once it’s determined how long the pony lay there, we’ll have to go through missing pony reports.

It’ll take days, perhaps weeks.”

“Wilt thou let us knowest what thou findest?” asked Cloudy Quartz.

“Being the pony was found on your property,” said the doctor, “we’ll be in touch. Will you be available to answer any other questions that may come up?

“Of course Doctor,” said Igneous Rock, “anything to help thee.”

After the police left, Igneous Rock suggested that everypony take the rest of the day off to get over the shock.

Trixie lay in her room in the Pie house; she couldn’t get the poor creature out of her mind. The body was badly decayed and desiccated, but something about the remaining hair bothered her, as if she’d seen the pony before, and recently.

“Where have I seen a pony like that before?” Trixie said aloud.

It was still running around her brain as she drifted off to sleep.

Trixie dreamt of a poor little pony cut down before her life had really begun. But in her dream it was as if the pony had come back to life and was there to love her and help her through the sorrow. It was so real.