The White Phoenix

Chapters

Prologue
Rediscovery
Home Base
The Old Gang
One Too Many
Return to Manehatten
The Case Begins
CSI: Manehatten
Friends and Family
Going it Alone
A Personal Twist
Casing and Questioning
The Ugly Truth
Fresh Developments
Recap
Escalation
The Heat Increases
Hot Pursuit
Burnt Out
The Final Overture
The Real Phoenix
The Phoenix's Final Flight
Embers
Epilogue
Manehatten Boutique
Friends in the Right Places

Prologue

Ponyville
September 14th, Year 1 under the Four Princesses

The night air was alive with energy, a marked change from the usual sense of calm that blanketed Ponyville at this time of day. The heart of this vigour was based just outside of town, the site of the Helping Hooves Music Festival, an event set up to help raise awareness for Equestria-wide causes. Anypony who had been present tonight couldn't deny that the first night had been an unmitigated success, even as the final act was wrapping up the stands were still at near full capacity. Ponies were starting to make their way home by now though, right now another group were just leaving, a trio of blank flanked fillies minded by family.

"You sure we can't just stay to the final song?" Apple Bloom asked, looking up at Big Mac as innocently as she could. The stallion looked back down at her and chuckled before shaking his head.

"Nnnope."

"I know I would have stayed for the whole show but, when a filly's done, you gotta be done with her." The second stallion in their group added, a brown pegasus with a dark purple mane, a spark in his green eyes and a megaphone cutie mark. His name was Fever Pitch, but the others knew him better as Scootaloo's father. Scootaloo herself was draped over his back, fast asleep, Fever's wings extended slightly to keep her from falling off.

"Exactly. We can't have our little superstars missing out on some of their beauty sleep, especially when they'll be dreaming about it as soon as they're asleep." Rarity finished, ruffling Sweetie Belle's mane to try and distract from the pleading look the little unicorn was wearing. Sweetie held it for a minute before finally relenting and turning to go.

The sound of rushing hoofsteps behind them gave the group pause and look back, seeing a familiar earth pony coming up to them, light aquamarine of coat with shining green eyes, curled mane and tail and a cutie mark of five colourful notes around a star. It was none other than the headliner of the whole festival, Coloratura, or Rara, as everypony was calling her now. As she reached them she stopped and took a quick breath, looking like she'd been running for a while.

"Oh good, I was worried you might have left already." Rara said as she got her breath back.

"What's wrong, Rara?" Sweetie asked, watching as she looked back at the filly and smiled softly.

"I was hoping to talk to you while I had a chance, Sweetie Belle. Now would be the best time, since I'm going to be swamped with all my managerial work from tomorrow."

"Oh, okay." Sweetie Belle nodded and turned back toward Apple Bloom. "I'll tell you about it at school tomorrow, promise."

"O-okay." Apple Bloom replied, unable to hold back a yawn as she started to head back toward town with Mac and Fever. Rarity stayed in place as Rara sat down in front of Sweetie.

"I just wanted to say that, I've heard a lot of fillies and colts sing at your age and you, you definitely have some genuine talent."

"Oh..." Sweetie looked away nervously and tucked herself behind Rarity's tail. Rara looked at her in surprise before looking up at Rarity.

"Sweetie Belle normally struggles with singing in front of crowds. Poor dear just can't summon up any confidence." Rarity explained, patting Sweetie's head reassuringly. Rara nodded and moved down to be eye to eye with the filly.

"Sweetie, listen to me. When I was your age, I was scared to sing in front of others too. When me and AJ were at Camp Friendship together, do you know many ponies were too many for me to handle without her supporting me?"

"I...No." Sweetie answered slowly, poking her head out slightly. She'd been too caught up in the rush of what had happened earlier to let her fears take hold then but now, she felt like she couldn't open her mouth in front of a group. Yet here she had the biggest pony pop star in Equestria saying that she had been the same, how bad had she had it?

"Ten," Rara smiled gently. "I needed the support of a good friend for just that many. You had two in Apple Bloom and Scootaloo back there, but even then I could see the shine in your eyes, the look of a filly who genuinly enjoyed what she was doing. In front of hundreds of ponies no less. I honestly think you have a talent for this, maybe even a cutie mark in the near future."

"You, really think so?" Sweetie asked nervously, her crusader side giving her the drive to come out again and look up at Rara, who was still wearing the most reassuring look possible.

"I do, all I ask is that you give it some thought. I'll let you go for now though, have a good night."

"You too darling." Rarity said happily as Rara stood up again and moved to head back into the festival grounds, waving farewell as she went. Sweetie Belle waved back to her before she and Rarity started back toward town.

The filly's mind was racing as she walked, dispelling any tiredness she had been feeling. Much as she had tried to keep from thinking about it, she couldn't deny that it hadn't been as bad as she'd feared when first told she could do it. Cutie Mark Crusader Singer had always been something she'd tried to avoid due to never believing she could do it, but everypony seemed to have faith in her ability, now including one who knew about such skills better than anypony. Maybe, even if she didn't feel up to it yet, it could be something she really did have a genuine talent in.

Maybe it was really was worth a shot at getting her cutie mark in.

Rediscovery

Breaker Field, Manehatten
December 16th, Year 22 under the four princess

Even under a light blanket of snow and night, Manehatten was as restless as ever. From the cultural district along the south bank to Celestial bridge in the northwest that connected the city to the mainland, the whole city was filled with an ever present hustle and bustle that could only be found in the major population centres of Equestria. With Hearth's Warming just around the corner, there was an extra sense of goodwill in the air, helped by the fact that there were several seasonal events going on throughout the city at any time of day or night. Right now, the most notable of these events was the Sounds of Unity Concert, a gathering of musicians from every corner of Equestria, playing every variety of music as a cultural showcase of what ponykind could do.

This year, the concert was based at Manehatten's biggest venue; Breaker Field. Ordinarily a hoofball stadium based in the heart of the city by day, it's central location and huge capacity made it a regular choice for major events by night, tonight was no different. The stadium was packed with tens of thousands of ponies and the air inside was currently filled with the sound of the Canterlot Philharmonic Orchestra at work. The music carried through to the backstage areas, where dozens of organizers, stagehoofs and performers were setting up for upcoming acts, checking everything was going smoothly or simply taking a few minutes to relax while they could. Off to one side, a trio of those set to go on stage soon were circled around a barrel, passing the time with a combined game of blackjack and truth or dare.

"Come on, Deep Note, it's your round." Sweetie Belle said happily as she adjusted the cards held in her pale green magic. No longer the filly who couldn't bring herself to sing alone, she had grown up into a beautiful mare. Her body was sleek and elegant, reminiscent of the type more commonly seen in Canterlot, her mane vibrantly styled, yet looking as if she didn't need to do a thing with it, a silver microphone adorning her flanks for her cutie mark. At her words, a green pegasus stallion sitting back against the wall chuckled and checked his own cards.

"Okay okay, hit me," Deep Note replied, brushing gold coloured mane out of his light blue eyes and taking another card from the deck, nodding slightly at what he'd got. "As for the truth or dare...Truth."

"Is your accent from south Equestria?" The third in their game asked, carrying a slight Trottingham accent of his own. He was another pegasus stallion, light brown with a striped red and orange mane, white muzzle and hooves and a flaming guitar cutie mark. Despite his distinctive colours, the most notable thing about him was the case of heterocromia in his eyes, green in the left, blue in the right.

"Yes, Burning Axe, from the southeast coast to be specific." Deep Note replied, stretching his wing slightly and moving a hoof down to get an itch on his cutie mark, a bass clef. Burning grinned and nodded as he took a card and held it down before he could look at it.

"Thought so. Truth."

"Do you really have a home in the Everfree forest?" Sweetie Belle asked, hoping to get an answer to one of the most common legends among musicians.

"It's, more of a cave fixed up to feel like a house," Burning Axe admitted before finally looking at his card and dropping his hoof onto the barrel, showing a two, a five, a six and a ten. "Bust...I'm done. Thanks for that, I should probably see how the rest of the band is doing though."

"Alright, we catch up tomorrow and see how the show went?" Deep asked as Burning got up, the two of them hoofbumping as Burning nodded and headed off to find his band. Deep took advantage of the extra space round the barrel to stretch his wings properly as Sweetie lifted her fifth card from the deck.

"Hmmm, how about...Dare."

"I dare you to sing something that doesn't involve so much rock." Deep said with a grin, which slowly faded as he realised that Sweetie was wearing a sly smile in response to that challenge.

"Actually, that was the plan tonight. The attempt at harder music put my career in the gutter so I'm going back to what I know...Honestly, I doubt I'd be here tonight if I hadn't made that choice." She looked down slightly at the memories of poor performances, being utterly savaged by the newspapers and that one night her and Deep had spent on the town. That was all past now though, tonight was a fresh start.

"Well, that's a brave choice and I'm sure it'll pay off." Deep said reassuringly, his smile giving her enough of a boost to regain her composure.

"Thanks. Considering what I've got planned for tonight, I'm hopeful." Sweetie smiled again, back to her usual cheery self, as Deep took his next card and looked them over.

"Okay, truth...I think I'll stand this time." He commented, putting his own five cards face down. Sweetie gave a slight squee at the opportunity and leaned forward slightly in anticipation.

"What're you doing for Hearth's Warming?"

"Me? Oh err, well...I was actually planning on spending it in Ponyville. I have a pen pal that lives there and I wanted to surprise them. What about you?"

"Actually, I was going to do the same. My family and best friends still live there and it's been months since I had a chance to visit."

Deep opened his mouth to reply, though any attempt to say anything was cut off by the sound of the nearby PA system crackling to life. Both of them immediately looked up at it, knowing it was being used to announce the performance order for those going on stage tonight.

"Next performer, Sweetie Belle, please make your way to the singer entrance."

"Shoot! I'm up, you'll have to tell me the result later." Sweetie said as she stood up quickly, dropping her cards back on the barrel and stepping back before closing her eyes. She'd checked out the entry point earlier for just this moment, focusing hard on holding the mental image of it as her horn glowed brightly.

A flash surrounded her and she opened her eyes again, staggering slightly from the drain on her magic as her mental image had become her physical location. Teleportation was a very handy spell and she was lucky enough to have had Princess Twilight Sparkle help her learn such advanced magic when she was growing up and that she had proven capable of controlling it. A decade ago, a move like that would knocked her flat for an hour, but now she enough control to keep going. She shook her mane slightly and focused again, realising the organiser next to her was so focused on their notes that they hadn't even seen Sweetie arrive next to her. The security guard standing by at the entry point had though, tensing up slightly at her sudden appearance before relaxing as she recognised her.

"Whoa! How'd you do that?" They exclaimed, green eyes full of awe. Sweetie giggled slightly at the reaction, her own eyes glancing to the pony's body just to confirm who it was. While most of it was covered by white protective panels and her head was similarly covered, she could see and hear enough to settle any doubt in her mind.

"Oh, that was just a little something a princess taught me years ago. How things going for you? All good tonight?"

"You know it. Good luck out there." The guard replied, looking out at the stands. Sweetie followed her gaze, silently hoping that not too many of them were going to be against her being out there.

She was vaguely aware of the announcer building up his spiel to announce the next performance, elements of the orchestra staying on stage to perform with her. The organiser signalled for her to head out and she swallowed her nerves. Time to do what she did best. As Sweetie stepped forward she looked toward a case filled with instruments just out of sight of the audience, all laid out neatly and labelled by their owner. Fortunately for her, she still had enough magic to perform a telekinesis spell for several minutes right now. Her own silver coloured microphone was gripped in her magic and brought over to her as she stepped out of the exit point and the spotlights turned onto her, ears ringing as tens of thousands of ponies reacted to her arrival.

As feared, she could hear a few boos coming from the nearest crowd members, though the cheers almost drowned them out completely, the vast majority of the audience did indeed seem to be on her side. Her smile grew and she put her hoof up to wave to the crowds as she approached the stage set up in the centre of the field, turning on the spot to make sure everypony in the audience had a chance to see it. By this point most of the musicians had left the stage, leaving only several members of the strings section, their conductor and a pianist. That was all she needed to back her up tonight.

"Thank you everypony!" She called to the audience, getting some more cheers in response as she stepped onto the stage. "I don't have words for how much this support means after everything that's happened this year. Reimaging myself for harder music hurts too much when I stumble into it as hard as I did. I think it's a safer bet for me and your ears if I stayed with something softer."

She knew it wasn't the best joke she'd ever made but at least one or two of the other musicians were trying to stifle a giggle, enough to make her smile to herself. Once they'd regained their composure she looked to the pianist and nodded, watching as they started to play a familiar melody, the stadium practically going silent as the audience ponies recognised it.

"So tonight, I'm performing a classic by the pony who inspired me to be a singer in the first place. This one's for you, Rara." Sweetie swallowed the last of her nerves down and lifted her microphone up, her inherent talent gathering in her voice as she took a breath and hit her cue.

"I'm here to show you who I am
Throw off the veil, it's finally time
There's more to me than glitz and glam, oh-whoa
And now I feel my stars aliiign"

That feeling inside her, that sense of belonging, that she was doing what she was born to do. After months without it, Sweetie Belle was beginning to feel that she was back in her element. She could hear the rest of the musicians starting to join in with their parts, the silence around them of thirty to forty thousand ponies watching and listening. Nothing, not the chill in the winter air, not what anypony around her might be thinking of this change, not even the past few months of worry that her career had completely tanked, could distract her from putting her soul into this song.

"For I had believed what I was sold
I did all the things that I was told
But all that has changed and now I'm bold
'Cause I knowww"

This was her moment.

"That I am just a pony
I make mistakes from time to time
But now I know the real me
And put my heart out on the line!"

The crowd was starting to wake up to the song by now. Sweetie could only see a few faces from her position but each of them seemed to be enjoying the show so far. Seeing those smiles was what made it all worth it. Sweetie's own smile grew as the stirring in her heart grew, the emotion in her soul ready to go all out.

"And let the magic in my heart stay true-uu-uuu
Whoa-oh oh-oh
And let the magic in my heart stay true-uu-uuu
Whoa-oh oh-oh
Just like the magic inside of you"

Her ears twitched as the sound of voices became more prevalent in the crowd, it didn't sound like the usual murmurs of ponies talking to each other though. It took a moment with how varied they were, but she realised that hundreds of them were starting to steadily join in. The experience was only getting better and she wasn't going to let it ease up now.

"And now I see those colours
Right before my eyes
I hear my voice so clearly
And I know that it is right"

Those lyrics had never rung truer for her, singing hadn't felt quite this good since she'd got her cutie mark. The crowd singing along was steadily growing, their voices mixing with her own as she raised her head to the snowy night skies, singing her heart out and loving every moment of it.

"I thought I was weak, but I am strong!
They sold me the world, but they were wrong!
And now that I'm back, I still belong
'Cause I knowww"

She knew alright, this was who she was meant to be.

"That I am just a pony
I make mistakes from time to time
But now I know the real me
And put my heart out on the line!"

By now it felt like half the stadium was singing along, embracing her return to her classic style. She was embracing it just as hard, putting her very soul out on the line in her passion. For herself and for everypony listening out there, she was ending on a high note.

"And let the magic in my heart stay true-uu-uuu
Whoa-oh oh-oh
And let the magic in my heart stay true-uu-uuu
Whoa-oh oh-oh
Just like the magic inside of youuuuu"

She brought her head down again and put a hoof to her heart as the music started to die down, slowly spinning in place to sing her closing line to everypony present.

"Just like the magic inside of yooouuuuuuu"

The stadium exploded in cheers and applause the moment the song ended, numerous ponies getting up and giving a stomping ovation. Sweetie lowered her microphone as she took a needed breath, blushing slightly at just how much of a reaction she was getting. She knew she wasn't as good as the original had been and yet everypony had loved it, including her. Her hoof went back up, waving to the crowd, turning every which way to make sure those with cameras got a clear shot.

"Thank you everypony, that felt incredible! I hope you enjoy the rest of tonight's acts as much as I enjoyed that one." With that, she turned and headed for her exit point, a chorus of cheers following her in.

As soon as she was inside she was met by a storm of applause from dozens of performers and stagehoofs who had gathered to listen. She steadily made her through the gathered crowd, shaking hooves and nodding at each compliment to her performance as she headed toward an area where she could put her microphone away and check out. Much as she loved the show atmosphere, with the combined magical fatigue and waning adrenaline starting to pile up on her, her mind was rapidly drifting toward simply heading home and getting some sleep. She had another job to do in the morning and it wouldn't do the stay up as late as she used to.

Author's Note

You are now imagining Claire Corlett singing The Magic Inside, have fun with that.

Honestly though, this was a fun chapter to do, showing just how motivational Rara was and sneaking a cameo by a fun reactor (and fellow Brit), BronyBurningAxe, hope he doesn't mind. :twilightblush:

Also, probably goes without saying, but Deep Note belongs to, well, Deep Note.

Home Base

Ponyville
December 18th

If the coastal cities of Equestria were it's shining stars, the towns nearer the centre of the country were the hidden gems. With the current blanket of snow over the land, each one sat silent amidst the land, as if waiting for somepony from out of town to discover it's secrets. This held just as true even in the most well known of them all; Ponyville. Some of the heaviest snow in the country had fallen over the town and yet it's residents had still be able to shake off the harshness of winter and fall back into the spirit of the season, finishing up the preparations for Hearth's Warming. Wherever one might look, festive decorations and celebrations had been set up for the several thousand ponies that called the friendliest place in Equestria home.

Near the center of town, just north of the market district, Carousel Boutique was similarly adorned with silver tapestries depicting the founding of Equestria. The store was still closed for now, opening later at this time of year to let ponies spend more time with their families before going out was commonplace in Ponyville, thanks to the example set by none other than Rarity. The Element of Generosity was still able to strike a delicate balance between maintaining her network of shops, continuing to create her fabulous new fashions and assisting anypony who needed her help. Of course, dealing with so many responsibilities, coupled with the fact she had just turned forty years old, meant that signs of her age were starting to catch up on her sooner than she'd like. Nothing a stylish pair of glasses couldn't hide for now though.

Inside, Rarity was just finishing up her morning routine. As an artist, she needed to make sure that everything was just as she'd left it, especially during those times when she was in the middle of a brainwave design session. With the checks for the day completed she headed down into the kitchen and made herself a hot drink, adjusting the long slim frame of her red glasses as she sat down at the table. As much as the quiet of days like this let her make progress with her work, a small part of her missed the general messiness and noise that used to greet her in the morning. It had been five years since her little sister had moved to Manehatten and not one went by where she didn't think of her. Sweetie Belle had always been the lively one among them, even after getting her cutie mark she had thrown her everything into her passion for life and singing. It may have resulted in more than a few arguments during those times they were under one roof, yet Rarity wouldn't have traded them, or her, for anything in the world.

Her eyes glanced to the side, realising that she'd left yesterday's newspaper out on the table. She hadn't had time to read it before and fetched it over before skimming through the headlines. While it was mostly uninteresting law news, announcing a ruling by the princesses that ponies that were proved to be subject to mind control magic were not directly culpable for crimes, the details of the crime in question drew her attention. What little had been included in the report indicated that the possessed pony responsible had been stopped by the combined efforts of Discord and Pinkie Pie. Rarity had heard the whole story from Pinkie herself though and knew the pink party pony had spent pretty much the whole incident recovering from being choked out. All the hard work she'd been credited with had actually been done by Apple Bloom.

It was hardly surprising though, over the years the Equestria Today had developed a tendency to either look upon the former Cutie Mark Crusaders of Ponyville with either a constantly negative air, or just refuse to comment on them entirely. More often the former, considering Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo were big names in their respective career paths. More than once Rarity had needed to comfort Sweetie after a particularly scathing article on her and no matter how many complaint letters she had sent it never changed. Just what was going on in those media offices?

Her thoughts were interrupted by somepony knocking on the front door. On any other day, she most likely would have gone and politely told whoever it was to come back later. Today though, she got up with an excited squeak and rushed to the door, opening it quickly. Standing on the other side was a familiar grey pegasus, kitted out in a mailmare's uniform, delivery bag and a pair of snow goggles, all of which seemed a little insufficient with how much snow there was on the ground.

"Morning, miss Rarity!" Derpy said happily, seemingly completely ignoring the snow around her. "Got a lot of mail for you today."

"Just as I hoped. Thank you, darling." Rarity replied warmly, looking down and noticing the day's newspaper had been delivered as well. She picked it up with her magic as Derpy rummaged through her bag and started bringing out thick letters.

"Let's see...From Baltimare, Whinnyapolis, Manehatten...Ooh, Canterlot, Vanhoover, Crystal Empire, another Manehatten..."

Rarity paused at that last one, doubt flashing across her features. She had only expected one letter from Manehatten today, who could be sending her another one? The thought remained with her until Derpy had finished fishing the dozen or so letters out and offered them to her, at which point she decided to look at it afterward and took them.

"Are you handling the snow alright? I'm sure I could get you something warmer, maybe something in blue and white to go with your outfit?"

"Thanks, but I couldn't. I kind of used my last pay for Dinky's Hearth's Warming gift." Derpy smiled a little more but Rarity had seen her giving this somewhat forced look before. It was no secret Derpy was a single mother, though few if any ponies knew the circumstances, and she'd never really stopped looking out for her daughter the whole time. As touching as it was, it did tend to leave her short on bits. Rarity's horn glowed a little brighter and she bought out a set of chequered blue and white socks, insulated against the cold.

"Oh don't worry about paying dearie, I can always make another." Rarity said happily as she offered them to her. Derpy hesitated for a moment before smiling properly as she took them and slipped them on.

"Thank you miss Rarity, I-I promise I'll bring them back after work, save you some time."

"There's no hurry dearie. As long as they help you out." Rarity smiled more as she gathered her mail up again and glanced through them.

"Of course, I'll see you later." Derpy said as she finished putting the socks on and waved farewell as she took off to continue her rounds. Rarity waved her off before heading back inside.

Within moments all her mail was laid out on the kitchen table and she was opening them up quickly. Today was the day she received reports from the managers of her other stores, their notes, input and results would help shape her ideas for the coming year. Eleven thick, multi-page letters rose from their envelopes and started to float round her for easier reading. She was focused, driven, one hundred percent in the zone as she started reading quickly. Just because she had aged somewhat didn't mean her eyes and mind had got any slower.

"Canterlot...As I thought, Sassy Saddles is probably doing better than me," She mused to herself, making a mental note to thank her first manager for all these years of support. "Vanhoover...Down a little. Well, the Spirits of the Future line was always a gamble. Now, Manehatten. Can't expect a repeat of last year after poor Coco's heath issues but WHAT?!?"

The magic around the rest of the papers disappeared and they dropped to the floor as she grabbed one and read through it intently. It was the financial report for Manehatten Carousel and no matter how many times she read though it, no matter how much it looked like the store had turned a profit, there was a deficit totalling thousands of bits. She couldn't place where it had started, where it had gone or even any clue of who might be responsible, yet it was all here. If that wasn't bad enough, the numbers simply weren't sustainable. At a guess, if this went on at this rate, Manehatten Carousel would be bankrupt within four months.

Rarity slammed the paper down on the table and buried her face in her hooves, her horn glowing as she gathered all the dropped papers and arranged them in front of her. Her mind was working overtime in an effort to figure out what she could do short of sending Market Match an angry letter, but that wouldn't help the situation. Maybe she could let her assistant take over here for a few days and head to Manehatten herself to get to the bottom of this. The more she thought about it though, the more she realised that a solution would have to wait for now, the shop was opening in a few minutes and she needed to chin up before that. Her eyes went to the other letter from the big city and she opened it up, figuring it couldn't be any worse than the last one.

Dear Rarity,

I know it's been too long since I wrote last but everything's been moving so fast. I hope getting this here through overnight delivery makes up for it.

I did it though! I finally managed to get a place in a major show. Not just any show either, only the Sounds of Unity at Breaker Field! Everypony probably saw me going out there and probably expected more of the heavy stuff that, you know, ruined my career. I came out with a classic by Rara though and by the time I was done at least half the stadium was singing along. It felt incredible as well, like the day I got my cutie mark all over again *squee*. I had so many ponies coming in to see me in the shop today and almost all of them were positive about my performance. I say mostly because, well...Please tell me you haven't read the Equestria Today. They were less than polite about my part that night.

More importantly for now though, I'll be on the morning train back to Ponyville on the 21st. I also sent letters to let Apple Bloom and Scootaloo know so don't be surprised if I end up trying to say hi to everypony at once. I can't wait to see you all again. Taking in Ponyville with the crusaders and spending time with the best big sister ever, just like old times!

Love you sis,
Sweetie Belle

P.S. Yes, I wrote a squee down. I was just that excited.

As Rarity lowered the letter down, she glanced back at the newspaper and made a mental note to cancel her subscription to them...Again. Still, the letter had definitely cheered her up enough to take on whatever was going to come by day. The thought that her superstar little sister was coming home could never have failed to brighten her mood. Rarity got up and finished her now lukewarm drink, quickly cleaning it up before heading to open up shop for the day. It may have been cold as a windigo's heart outside but her own heart was fired up as strong as ever.

The Old Gang

December 21st

Sweetie Belle stretched herself out along her seat and gave a soft sound of content. She'd never realised just how comfy the train seats were, but after a few minutes of meet and greet with the other ponies lucky enough to be in the same carriage as her they felt extra good. It had been the same story over the last few days, when she hadn't been rushed off her hooves helping in the boutique she had been approached with offers to perform in just about every corner of Equestria. She'd taken each proposal and promised to give them thought, but for now she was simply going to make the most of her Hearth's Warming break, relaxing and seeing her family and old friends. Manehatten may have been where she lived, but Ponyville would always be her home.

At least the weather was holding up as she took a look out at the view. The snow was a lot heavier out in the countryside but the skies were clear for now. Sweetie had never been the biggest fan of the snow, not after she had tried playing hide and seek one winter when she was still a filly and ended up being found hiding in a snowdrift two hours later. The other crusaders had made it up to her though, once she'd recovered from her cold. That was what she liked most about Apple Bloom and Scootaloo, no matter what happened between them they always made sure things would be smooth afterward. As many friends as she had, those two would always be her best and in just a few minutes she was going to see them again.

"Is this seat taken?" A familiar voice asked behind her. Sweetie looked back and saw Deep Note standing there, grinning softly. She smiled back and shifted up to let him clamber onto the seat next to her.

"Hey pal." She said happily, moving round to lean back in her own seat.

"Hey to you too, mate," He replied. Neither of them could remember why they'd adopted those greetings for each other but it had been going on for so long that using anything else just felt weird. "So, I got some good news, bad news and somewhere in the middle news."

"Okay, your choice on which one first."

"Bad news, I maaaay have accidentally let slip we were on this train and there's a chance that there's going to be a flood of paparazzi and fans waiting at the station."

"Somehow, I'm not surprised." Sweetie stretched her legs out and checked her saddlebags that she'd stored under the seat. Deep had always been the type who enjoyed the limelight and even if he hadn't intended for it to happen, he was probably set for it. She'd brought some of her autograph pictures from Manehatten as well, just in case.

"Good news, I know I'm not meeting anypony there so, if it helps, I could go out first and get their attention while you slip past and see anypony waiting for you."

"That would actually help, since I'm meeting friends and family there. Thank you, Deep Note," Sweetie smiled warmly at the offer, getting a friendly smile back from Deep in response. "And the in the middle news?"

"Oh, yeah. We both had a twenty," Deep commented nonchalantly, looking over Sweetie raising an eyebrow in confusion. "That card game at the stadium, we both ended up totalling twenty."

"You sure about that?" She asked, giving him a good natured nudge as she did.

"Come on, would I lie to you?" He replied with a knowing grin. Before Sweetie could reply they were both lurched forward slightly as the train started to slow down on it's approach to Ponyville.

The two of them both moved to the window and watched as the train passed through the outskirts of the town. The station was just about in sight and even from here they could see the platform was packed with ponies, most likely the crowd that Deep had anticipated. The two of them were silent for a moment before he grinned and offered his hoof, she took the hint and hoofbumped him before getting up and lifting her saddlebags onto her back. Deep nodded his farewell and headed into the next carriage up the train while she headed for the next one further down. If she could slip out the back, find her friends and get away from the station quickly, odds were the rest of her trip would be calm enough.

She reached the furthest door just as the train came to a stop and hesitated. There was only one other pony in this carriage and they'd elected to use the other door. A few moments later the sound of dozens of ponies and cameras indicated that Deep had stepped off the train and was drawing the crowd's attention. She opened the door up and stepped out, looking up the platform to check she was in the clear. Most of the gathered ponies were indeed distracted by Deep's presence but a trio nearby were looking straight at her, an orange pegasus, light yellow earth mare and...A walking fur coat, though given the presence of the other two she had no doubts who it was.

At that moment, something deep inside Sweetie just, clicked. The reality of the moment set in at the sight of her big sister and closest friends there waiting for her, the first time they'd seen her in about eight months. Words were failing her at just how good it felt to see them again and only a squeak of joy escaped her as ditched her saddlebags without thinking and ran over to Rarity, hugging her tight. She hadn't realised just how much she missed her, missed all of them, until now. Her hoof went out and made a misguided swipe before managing to get it round Apple Bloom and Scootaloo and pulling them into the hug as well. The feeling was almost overwhelming as she held the moment, feeling the slightest hint of happy tears in her eyes.

"Oohhhh I missed you all! I was going to get gifts but I got a rush at the store so I thought you wouldn't mind me getting something local." She gushed, so excited that her voice squeaked slightly as the others hugged her in return, Rarity slipping a caring nuzzle in as well.

"I already have the best present I could ever get." Rarity replied softly, tightening her hug a little bit. Though she was trying to keep a level head for this reunion, the hints of emotion creeping into her voice showed just much she'd been waiting for this moment.

"We all have." Apple Bloom added as she and Scootaloo managed to extract themselves from the hug and let the two sisters have this one. After what felt like a small eternity, they finally brought themselves to break the embrace and step back. Sweetie looked at the other two and grinned slightly as she remembered the act the trio had promised to make if they were ever separated for more than six months at a time. Scootaloo quickly caught on and put her hoof out, Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle doing the same as they gave each other a three way hoofbump and called out as one.

"Cutie Mark Crusaders, reunited!"

The moment lingered for a moment as each of the crusaders silently savoured it. Sweetie glanced around her friends to see if any of the crowd there before had spotted her yet but thankfully they seemed to be following Deep Note iyt and the rest of the platform was regular commuters for now. Satisfied that they were in the clear, she brought her hoof back down subtly motioned toward the exit. All of them caught the hint and they moved out, Rarity tailing behind once she'd picked up Sweetie's saddlebags.

"So what've you been getting up to back here?" Sweetie asked, figuring that the others knew well enough what she'd been doing, either from her letters or the news.

"Where do you want to start, my high intensity training or Apple Bloom's adventure to the south?" Scootaloo answered with her own question, grinning eagerly at the chance to tell the tale.

"Actually, it was more south-east," Apple Bloom commented, getting a look from Scootaloo in response. "What? I was stressing out, I'm gonna fumble details in that situation."

"Stressing over what?" Sweetie asked innocently, though to her surprise, Apple Bloom looked away without replying for several seconds.

"I'll, explain later."

"I'm sorry to interrupt but..." Rarity suddenly said as she caught up, glancing round to make sure nopony else was around as they exited the station. "I think it might be best if you had some sort of disguise while you were in town initially, just to make sure you're not disturbed unduly."

"That's, a good idea. Thanks sis." Sweetie stopped and waited as Rarity took off her fur outfit and handed it over. Despite looking like it would be too small for her, the outfit managed to adjust relatively well for her different body shape as she put it on, stretchy but not clingy, the fur itself clearly fake up close (something Sweetie found a surprising amount of relief in) but looking real enough from a moderate distance.

Once she'd manage to wriggle comfortably into it the group set off again, Rarity still content with carrying her sister's bags considering they'd already agreed to head for the boutique and it wasn't far. Thankfully the pathways into town were clear of snow due to the regular hoof traffic and Sweetie was able to focus on the sights. Manehatten had been loaded to the brim with Hearth's Warming decorations, but the ones in Ponyville had a certain elegance that couldn't be found in the big city and she knew which she preferred. Beyond that, it still looked just as she remembered it.

"So, what's new around town?" Sweetie asked even as she tried to take everything in around her. Rarity stepped up next to her, umming and ahing as she tried to think of anything.

"Well, you'll never guess who won the mayoral election." Apple Bloom interjected, getting a chuckle out of Scootaloo and a look of realisation from Rarity as she remembered what most ponies in town considered mundane by now.

"Wait...Caramel actually lost? To who?" Sweetie asked in surprise, the last time she'd been in town, the mayoral election was coming up and everypony was expecting Mayor Caramel to earn another term, Night Shade had been an outside contender but the only pony that had a realistic chance was...

"Diamond Tiara. Though as you can see, 'Mayor' Tiara's been doing pretty good." Rarity concluded. As much as she didn't like the mare for how she'd treated Sweetie Belle in the past, she couldn't deny that Ponyville had been doing pretty well for the months that she'd been in charge.

"But, doesn't she have a filly to look after? That can't be easy with such a serious job." Sweetie said after a moment's thought.

"You can ask Scootaloo about that one," Apple Bloom replied. "She's the one who's friends with DT and Stellar Nova. Right Scoots?" She looked back expecting an answer, only to see that Scootaloo had fallen back slightly, her expression deep in thought. The others stopped and looked back as well as the pegasus silently blinked and looked up at her friends again.

"Hey, I'll catch up with you all at the boutique. I got something I need to do." Scootaloo said, waving to the others as she headed off with a driven look in her eyes.

"Well that was...Unexpected." Apple Bloom finally remarked.

"Sounded important though." Sweetie Belle said, letting the issue go already. They could always ask her about it later after all. For now, she was about to get moving again when an ice blue filly trotted up to her. Sweetie knew that it was one of Big Mac's foals but hadn't been acquainted enough to learn her name. From the look on her face though, she seemed to have caught on to who she was already. That was just something else she'd missed in a strange way, another part of the old atmosphere of Ponyville that she couldn't help smiling at.

As crazy as home was, it was good to be back.

One Too Many

December 25th

Hearth's Warming Eve was here once again. All across Equestria, ponies were celebrating the foundation of their homeland and reaffirming the bonds they shared. Ponyville was no exception, half the town seemed to be shut down as ponies simply spent the day with their families and loved ones, the other half seemed to be at Pinkie Pie's 'Happy Hearth's Warming Eve Party'. It was only two in the afternoon and the party was in full swing, having already spilled out of Sugarcube Corner and onto the nearby streets. The ground may still have been covered in snow but nopony felt the cold, not when they had so many ponies about to share their warmth with.

Sweetie Belle smiled to herself as she watched the festivities from a bench set up near the edge of the party, sipping at a cup of warm cider that had been at one of the buffet tables set up nearby. By now, most of the town's inhabitants that had realised she was in town had recognised why she was here and were letting her have some peace. The only pony around her right now was Scootaloo, settled on the other bench seat with her own drink, a pair of Hearth's Warming presents by her side. The pegasus had been doing well since they'd last seen each other, having a steady flow of work as a freelance stunt pony and looking into what seemed to be a promising lead into finally being able to fly. Sweetie usually tried to avoid the sensitive subject completely but considering how much more confident Scootaloo was about it at the moment, she felt safe in airing her thoughts.

"So, I know you said you didn't trust this Quick Fix guy, but I'm guessing you're actually getting somewhere if you're still going with it?" She asked, waiting as Scoots stretched her wings slightly and sat up more.

"Sure is, and I've got Trixie backing me up in case he does turn out to be up to something. It's really been working though, I've not tried anything completely under my own power yet but...I've got plans," She grinned and gripped her cup a little tighter before downing the rest of her drink. "Speaking of which, I should probably get going."

"Okay, do you want me to walk with you? I promised Rarity I wouldn't spend too long at the party." Sweetie lifted the two presents in her magic as Scootaloo got up and opened her wings enough for them to be placed where she could keep a good wing grip on them.

"Sure!" Scootaloo waited for Sweetie to finish her drink and get off the bench to join her. Her hooves had barely touched the ground before she felt somepony tugging on her tail. She looked round expecting to see another filly hoping for an autograph, they were both recognisable names after all. Instead, it was none other than Pinkie Pie with a hoof wrapped round her tail.

"You sure you want to call it a day so soon? I was about to bring out the Chancellor Puddinghead Pudding." Pinkie said as she let go of Sweetie Belle's tail and jumped over the back of the bench to stand next to them.

"Well, I did promise Rarity we'd be spending the holiday together." Sweetie replied, looking a little embarrassed at being caught having to leave early.

"And I'm going to be celebrating with my parents. Kind of a big deal since, you know, only the second time I've seen them in over thirteen years and the first time was four days ago." Scootaloo admitted, scuffing her hoof on the ground slightly. From the look on her face it still hadn't been easy to admit it so openly.

"Ah, I understand. Have fun you two! Now, where've you got to Bloooomie?" Pinkie said in a sing-song voice as she trotted back into the party, leaving them to wave a quick farewell to her and head off toward the east edge of town. With nopony else around right now the journey was quick and uneventful, the only sound from either of them being a few happy giggles from Scootaloo as the reality of what was doing set in.

"It's so nice to see you enjoying yourself," Sweetie commented. "I was worried with me at Rarity's and Apple Bloom spending the day at Pinkie's party, you weren't going to have anypony to be with. I was going to invite you to join us before you told me you'd managed to reconnect with your family."

"Yeah, I can hardly believe it either. I gotta say, thank you for your part in this, Sweetie Belle."

"My part?" Sweetie asked as they stopped outside a house.

"Well, seeing you and Rarity bonding so strongly, at this time of year and all, it was part of what made me think, made me want to do this."

"Oh, well, you're welcome then," She smiled more as Scootaloo nodded and turned to go. "Happy Hearth's Warming."

"You too!" Scootaloo called back before heading for her parents' house. Sweetie waved a farewell before heading for the boutique, a fresh spring in her step. She'd missed everything about events in Ponyville, sure the ones she'd been to in Manehatten were grandiose and she had friends to share them with but none of them had the atmosphere that her home did.

By the time she reached the boutique she was practically skipping with joy in anticipation of the rest of the day, it probably looked ridiculous to see a mare of her style like that but she didn't mind in the least. Though the shop was closed for the day, the door was unlocked as she entered and looked round. Many of the displays that normally decorated the interior were missing, already put away and waiting for the big fashions of next month. Rarity was sitting at the counter, looking over what looked like a financial report, looking every bit her age without her glasses on. On hearing the bell over the door go off she looked up quickly and rushed to grab her glasses, only to relax when she saw who it was.

"Ah, Sweetie Belle. I hope you enjoyed yourself today." Rarity commented, lifting her glasses over at a more casual pace and settling them on her muzzle. Sweetie smiled outwardly but alarm bells were going off in her head. Rarity's tone wasn't quite as cheery as it should be with those words, she was in business mode.

"I did...Is something wrong?" She asked calmly, waiting as Rarity sighed and got up, bringing the report she was holding with her.

"Tell me, look at this and let me know what you think it means." The report was passed over and she looked over it. While Sweetie Belle knew enough to be able to handle her own contracts, the kind of numbers that Rarity was able to bring up were beyond her ability to follow.

"I, don't know sis. You were the one who had the head for business."

"I'll tell you then," Rarity sounded a little curt in her response but she was doing her best to hold it in. "Despite Manehatten Carousel doing very well this year, and thank you for your part in that, it has turned the single biggest loss of any of my stores in Equestria. Big, and consistent enough, that we have until April to find the reason or the store runs the risk of going under."

"Wh-what?!" Sweetie felt her jaw drop and her voice crack as the news hit her. It couldn't be right, it didn't make any sense. She'd seen with her own eyes how many sales had been made between Market, Coco and herself, how could things be this bad?

"Exactly. Whoever's doing it is frustratingly smart too, I can't see a way to trace where the bits went. I've been trying at the Ponyville bank for days but I'm being stonewalled so much...Ugh! Could this get any worse?" Rarity exclaimed as she put her hooves on her temples and massaged them in exasperation.

"Hmmm. Three, two, one..." Sweetie paused before looking round at the silent room around them as her composure returned. "Huh, normally that's the point whe-" She was cut off by somepony knocking at the door. "Called it!"

"Oh for the love of Celestia!" Rarity groaned and rubbed her head more, fighting the urge to snap at whoever was outside before speaking through gritted teeth. "Sweetie Belle, could you be a dear and answer that please?"

"Err, sure thing sis." Sweetie went to the door, hearing Rarity heading upstairs before she could open it. She'd expected a late shopper hoping to get a last second gift, instead she was greeted by the sight of Derpy in her full mailmare outfit, a letter in her hoof and the look of a mare who had been rushing over at full pelt.

"Oh, hi Sweetie Belle. Is miss Rarity in?" Derpy asked, panting a little but trying to be professional at the same time.

"Errm, yeah, but she's a little busy at the moment. Can I help?"

"If you could just give her this and these," Derpy handed the letter over before reaching into her mailbag and bringing out the chequered snow socks she had borrowed from Rarity before. "You know, I read about your performance in Manehatten last week."

"You, did?" Sweetie's grin became more nervous than happy at that, silently dreading another pony ripping into her for that poor review.

"Yeah, I wish I'd been there. Rara's an amazing songwriter and with your voice...You must have been amazing, the Foal Free Press did a full page feature about how good the show was with you involved."

"Oh. Well...Thank you, glad you approve."

With the tension of the moment before dissipated, Derpy handed over the snow socks, tipped her hat to the unicorn and headed back toward town. Part of Sweetie wondered why she was working on today of all days but a glance down at the letter answered that. It had a stamp that marked it for super express delivery and a look at the return address showed that it had been sent by Coco. She must have sent it last night, possibly even this morning, which could only mean it was highly important. Sweetie took the letter in her pale green magic and headed up to Rarity's bedroom, knowing she was most likely attempting to unwind up there.

The door was open as she looked in and gently knocked on the frame. Rarity had sat herself down on her bed, a paper and piece of charcoal in her magic, looking like she was doing some design sketching to relax. To be fair, she looked a lot less frazzled than she had before. She looked up at the sound and smiled softly before putting her work down and getting up.

"I'm sorry I was short with you back there. I just never anticipated something like this happening and I don't really know what to do right now." Rarity said, pushing her mane out of her eye.

"I understand. Here, this might cheer you up, it's from Coco." Sweetie offered the letter as Rarity came over and took it in her magic, opening it up and reading quickly. Any hope that it might have helped her mood was put down as her left eye started twitching within seconds. Sweetie slowly moved round and read it over her shoulder.

Dear Rarity,

I'm sorry I haven't written in so long. I'm sure Sweetie Belle's told you how busy things have been at the boutique and despite my being a bit behind, we're managing to keep up with demand. I imagine if Market Match was writing this, he'd go on about all the plans for the rest of the winter season events. I'll just say that we'll be ready for each of them in time.

Actually, that brings me onto what I needed to tell you. We have some extra time to work with since, the fashionistas exhibit at the Hoofeller Centre on the eighth has been cancelled. Apparently the restaurant on the floor above was struck by The White Phoenix during the night, a lot of damage was done and they don't know how well the floor, well, roof for us, would hold. I know that it's an important event but I'm sure we can make up the difference, thanks to Sweetie Belle drawing in fresh crowds.

Hopefully I'll have something better to tell you the next time I write. Though if we're lucky we can see each other in person before then. I'll try my best to see you soon one way or another.

Your friend,
Coco Pommel

P.S. Sorry if this comes across as rushed, I thought you needed to know quickly with everything that's happening.

As she finished reading, Sweetie Belle made a mental note to check on Coco once she got home. First though, she had to make sure Rarity was handling this latest development, though so much as a glance at her showed that she wasn't. She was shaking slightly in anger, the letter in her hooves looking like it was going to be ripped to shreds any second now. She slowly lowered it and let it slip out of her magic, her face unreadable but her eyes showing that this was one step more than she was going to be able to put up with. Eventually she spoke up, her voice sounding far too focused.

"This, this may sound crazy but, this all feels connected. Too connected..."

"Well, maybe a little but-"

"I'm not standing for it!" Rarity suddenly snapped, clearly too agitated by the cascade of bad news to care right now. "First the money theft and now the Phoenix? Even if these aren't related, they are both problems for my business and I have no intention of letting them both interfere again. Sweetie Belle, find my book of contacts and look up my list of backup assistant ponies!"

Sweetie Belle could only watch, trying to take this outburst in, as Rarity went to one of her larger closets and opened it up, a determined grin on her face as she swung round with a thick jacket in her magic.

"Detective Rarity is back, and going to Manehatten."

Author's Note

And with that moment of insanity, the plot finally gets going.

Minor random fact, this was the first chapter where I wrote and ended up modifying a previous story for. Normally I try to match my writing up to the original, which probably explains some of the shoddier moments of writing previously.

Return to Manehatten

December 27th

"You're absolutely sure you've got everything you brought?" Rarity asked for the sixth time as she darted around the boutique, checking that she'd gathered everything she needed for the three suitcases sitting near totally packed.

"Yes sis." Sweetie Belle replied with good natured weariness for what felt like the seventh time, rolling her eyes as she looked back at the saddlebags she was wearing. A small part of her was glad that the bad news had come on Hearth's Warming Eve considering the way Rarity had been moving for the rest of the day, organizing everything needed for the boutique to handle her being away for up to several weeks. Briefing her assistant, Blue Bobbin, on running the store, a rush of ideas to look over when she got back, even preparing as much of her next season's line as possible. Hearth's Warming itself had seen her cool off slightly and enjoy the holiday again, though by nightfall she had been out booking their tickets for a train back to Manehatten.

"Okay, okay. Good, I think we're ready," Rarity commented, closing the suitcases up and passing Sweetie a black trench coat and matching black trilby hat with a wide brim and purple band running round it's width. "You'll need these."

"...Why?" Sweetie asked slowly as she took the clothes and looked over them closely. Rarity stared at her for a moment before chuckling softly.

"Sweetie, darling, we're going into the dark underbelly of the glorious city of Manehatten, us against the mean streets and whatever they may hide. We have to keep up an aura of mystique, maintaining our cover for as long as possible. The White Phoenix and the pony draining our bits will both be expecting somepony to come after them, we cannot allow them to find out that we're on their tails until we are close enough to strike, bring their machinations to an end, and secure a brighter future for the greatest city in all Equestria!"

By the time she finished speaking, Rarity had gone into full dramatic mode, complete with flourishes and fitting tone of voice. She held her final pose of holding her hoof out in a sweeping motion, grinning with determination, before stopping and looking back at Sweetie Belle, who was trying her best not to laugh.

"Sis, you've been reading Shadow Spade again, haven't you?" She finally asked, making Rarity blush and hurriedly attempt to regain her composure. "It's fine, as long as we stay on task then I can work with the great Detective Rarity."

"Thank you," Rarity replied, smiling softly as Sweetie Belle put her hat and coat on. "Could you nip down to the station and make sure the train is still on time? I'll just do a final check here and be right there."

"Of course. I'll see you soon." Sweetie adjusted her saddlebags underneath her coat and set off, heading out onto the Ponyville streets.

There had been some more snowfall during the night and the pathways were covered by a thin layer of snow with some icy patches. Sweetie carefully padded her way through the more treacherous sections near the edge of town and headed for town square, figuring the paths would be clearer there and thus be a quicker route. Most ponies were still at home even if it was midday, staying warm and with family. With things as quiet as they were, it wasn't long before somepony noticed her and came over quickly. It was Scootaloo, looking rather cheery and fluttering her wings regularly, as if extending her steps with a constant small hover. As far as flight went, it was more than Sweetie Belle had ever seen her manage and she couldn't help but smile at the sight.

"Hi Sweetie Belle!" Scootaloo called as she reached her friend, putting some extra flap in to hop over the back of the tall unicorn and land on her other side, just about avoiding slipping. A small part of Sweetie wondered just how effective her appearance was at disguising her identity but dismissed it in this case since it was one of her oldest friends, it was hard not to be noticed by somepony who knew you better than you knew yourself.

"Hey Scootaloo, your lessons are really coming along huh?"

"You know it! I managed to hover at flag height for a few seconds the other day." Despite the pride in her voice, Scootaloo was panting slightly as she said it. Even that much effort to keep airborne was taking more out of her than she cared to admit.

"Seriously? That's amazing! I really hope this ends up being the breakthrough you were hoping for."

"Me too, it's been hard not to just tell everypony in town. Speaking of, have you seen Apple Bloom?"

"Hmmm," Sweetie Belle stopped and tapped her chin with her hoof for a moment, raking her brain for the actual last time she had seen the other crusader. "No, not since the Hearth's Warming party. I wish I'd had a chance to say goodbye to her as well."

"You're going home already?" Scootaloo asked, stopping and looking at her with disappointed surprise.

"Yeah. Sorry, Scootaloo." She replied as apologetically as she could, judging that it might be best not to explain how bad things were until it was under control. "We've had...An emergency come up. Me and Rarity need to get to Manehatten post-haste."

"Okay. Well, it was good to see you again," Scootaloo cracked a small grin and put her hoof out, Sweetie quickly returning the hoofbump. "Cutie Mark Crusaders for life."

Sweetie followed up the hoofbump with a quick hug before waving farewell and continuing on her way toward the train station. It felt weird only getting to see her fellow crusaders for such a short time and she made a mental note to have a proper get together with them the next time she was back in Ponyville. It was a quiet trip the rest of the way there and before long she entered the station, checking over a billboard that listed the train times as she did. The Manehatten train was due in about fifteen minutes, right on time. All that was left to do was wait for Rarity to arrive and hope she wasn't so tied up with last minute details that she missed the train. The platform was deserted as she made her way out there, another small bonus since she didn't really want to deal with too many fans noticing her before she even got back to the city.

Several minutes later, Rarity arrived with her suitcases. She had taken a similar outfit to the one she'd offered, a persian blue fedora with a silver band round it and small cutout at the front for her horn, along with a dark red gannex coat. While she had never read the Shadow Spade books herself, Sweetie Belle was sure that her big sis was the spitting image of the titular pony. Both of them were silent for some time, keeping to their thoughts about just what was waiting for them when they started getting serious. Before long the train to Manehatten arrived and they boarded, settling down in the middle carriage and getting comfy, it was going to be a few hours trip.

As their train wound its way through the snowy Equestrian east, Sweetie soon finished the book she'd brought for the ride, got bored and wandered off to find the food cart, maybe sign some autographs if anypony on the train recognised her. Rarity leaned back in her seat once she was alone and stared out the window, a small part of her regretting the fact that she was doing this alone. Well, not totally alone with Sweetie here, but this was her first visit to Manehatten in a long time without having one of the other Elements of Harmony for company. She made a quick mental note to look at a few libraries while she was there and then make a day of it with Twilight Sparkle sometime next year. For now, she just had to relax herself and get into the zone for her big investigation.

I've seen some things in my time, many of them pleasant, but when things get bad enough that I need to bring my investigative skills out, it never ends well for somepony. It's been twenty-one years since I last brought the coat and hat out, saving the career and dreams of my friend Rainbow Dash, this time...The stakes are even higher. Manehatten is being held hostage by a mastermind known only as the White Phoenix and, just as bad, my business within the city is being robbed blind by some deviant. Call it a hunch but, I think the two are related.

This will doubtless be the most difficult case of my life. I wont be alone in the matter though, my sister Sweetie Belle will be dipping her hooves into the life of an investigator with me and she has...contacts. I have a lot more to work with, more than enough to get to the bottom of one of these cases. No matter if I find the bit thief or the arsonist first, that culprit will lead me to the other soon enough. I may be more of an old mare than I was back in the day, but my mind is still sharp, my eyes can still catch detail and my drive is sure this case will be solved. Or my name's not-

"Rarity?"

Rarity jumped slightly as she snapped back to reality, looking away from the window. Sweetie Belle had returned with a soft drink and was watching her with an air of wariness as she sat down again.

"Oh err, yes dear. Just mentally preparing myself."

"O...kay," Sweetie shook her head slightly, shrugging it off. "So, I was thinking we should get a carriage to my house with all the suit cases you've got. You want me to handle the bits?"

"Oh nonono, I'm not personally short, Sweetie," Rarity shifted slightly awkwardly as she fished for another reason not to take advantage of her sister again. "I'll handle all the funds while we're here. Consider it another make up for my insensitive moments when you were growing up."

"Hmmm...Well, I suppose I can consider this even for the Winsome Falls camping trip." Even if she looked like she was trying not to remember, the good natured tone of Sweetie Belle's voice made it clear she didn't hold it against her sister. Rarity chuckled softly and nodded, looking out the view again as Manehatten began to come into view. Already her mind was going back to how she was going to approach her investigation, but she'd have to see just what exactly was waiting for her in the big city before coming up with a full plan.

The arrival at Manehatten Central Station had gone smoothly enough, as had finding a taxi carriage considering it was still mid-afternoon. They'd needed to leave themselves noticeable for several minutes and only two ponies had stopped Sweetie Belle for an autograph, one had even asked Rarity for one. As they managed to get a taxi and clambered in, the driver pony looked back at them, eying them up for a moment.

"Hey, you're Sweetie Belle ain't you?" He asked, waiting until she nodded in affirmative. "I read about your concert show. I mean I know it's a classic but come on, you could have done a better job with it. Then again, you're no Rara anyway."

"Oh..." Sweetie replied quietly, looking away.

"You wouldn't have happened to read about it in the Equestria Today would you?" Rarity replied, eyes narrowing slightly as he nodded in reply. "Hmmm...Number five, Hayway Road, please."

Sweetie gave a weak sound of confirmation as she rested her chin on her front legs, looking rather bummed out at such blunt criticism. It always stung so much worse to hear it in person. Rarity placed a supportive hoof on her back and rubbed gently, trying to help her out of her funk. The trip was made in silence, the only sound being of the driver's hoofsteps and the carriage wheels beneath them. Despite Rarity's best efforts, Sweetie still looked rather depressed as they reached Hayway Road, a notable spot in Manehatten for actually having two story houses instead of apartment blocks.

The carriage stopped outside the indicated house, a simple red brick construction, and Sweetie hopped out quickly, lifting all their bags out the back while Rarity paid the taxi pony. That done, they took their things and trotted up to the door, Sweetie digging the key out from her saddlebags and unlocking it for them. The entrance hallway they stepped into was simply decorated with a small cabinet by the door for mail to be placed on, doorways to the living room and kitchen on the left side, the stairs to the next floor on the right. Sweetie picked up the letters that had arrived while she was gone and went through to the living room while Rarity went upstairs to unpack in the guest room. No doubt she'd be using it to compile all the details of her upcoming investigation as well.

Sweetie placed her saddlebags down on a hanger in the living room and flopped down on the sofa, glancing down at the plush carpet before looking through the letters she'd received. While two or three of them were bills, the rest looked like they were fan mail from fillies and colts in the city. She flipped one open and started reading, a small smile coming back to her face as she read through it as she saw it was overwhelmingly positive. A sudden thought came to her, ultimately, all these ponies who looked up to her singing as a source of happiness, none of them were totally safe as long as The White Phoenix was out there. Sure the mysterious figure had limited their attacks to unoccupied buildings so far, but what was to stop them from letting ponies get hurt, or worse. In that moment, she knew she'd made the right decision in coming back to help Rarity bring them to justice.

"So," She heard Rarity asking from the door, looking up to see her sister had deposited her coat and hat somewhere. "Oh, good to see you smiling. I was just thinking, what should we do first? You know the good city in it's current state better."

"Well..." Sweetie thought for a moment as she stretched out slightly and opened another piece of fan mail, ignoring the disapproving tut she got from Rarity over how she was taking up three seats. "It'll be sunset soon, though most shops will still be open. I say we just go shopping for some basics for now and get started on our plans tomorrow."

She broke into a small grin at what she could do to speed things along, first thing in the morning.

"And I know just where to start."

The Case Begins

December 28th

As we set out to begin this most vital case, I can't help but wonder what kind of pony would be driven to commit such acts. The bit thief could be for any number of reasons, for all I know it's just some poor homeless pony trying to fund needed medical treatment. The White Phoenix though...It takes something much, much worse, a sinister mind to do something like they do. Serious property damage is bad enough but ponies are being put in danger by their actions. There's only one place in this city for us to start and what it may lack in artistic flair, it more than makes up for inspiration.

This is how it begins, we much beseech the Manehatten police for any information they can spare on the phoenix and start our investigation faster than you can say-

"Another detective's monologue?" Sweetie Belle asked, giggling as Rarity snapped out of her somewhat vacant look and looked round her surroundings quickly.

"Well, yes. It would be nice to finish one though." Rarity replied, doing her best to regain her composure without anypony else noticing that slip. Fortunately that was relatively easy with how few ponies there were about, the air was still cold and a light drizzle was blanketing the city this morning. Uncomfortable as such weather was, it meant getting through the city streets was that much easier.

Deciding on their course of action over dinner last night had been relatively straightforward. On their own, they had no leads on either case. Going after the bit thief first would be going after the lesser crime, since they still had several months before things became more serious on that front and the stakes were a lot lower. Losing Manehatten Carousel would sting badly, but focusing on that would just be running down the clock before somepony was seriously injured, or worse, by the Phoenix's actions. Sweetie said that she still had her friend on active duty in the MPD, who hopefully could help them gather enough information to start, so that was where they were heading. In a weird way, Rarity couldn't help but be looking forward to flexing her mental muscles again.

"So, Sweetie Belle. I'm not sure why I didn't ask this sooner but, do you feel ready for this?" Rarity asked as she looked at her little sister, quietly gauging her reaction.

"Well I get to hang out with you, do some good for Manehatten, and I'm pretty sure my magic is back up to speed. Yeah I'm ready." She replied, shaking her neck from side to side slightly and looking disappointed that she didn't get any cool sounds out of it.

Satisfied with the response she'd gotten, Rarity simply continued trotting along the sidewalk. A small part of her wondered why Sweetie had talked Princess Twilight into teaching her to teleport when it took her about a week for her magic to be capable of doing it again. Still, it was one of those things that was better to know and not need. She put the thought aside for now as they reached their destination, the east precinct of the Manehatten Police Department. It was something of a small complex, taking up half a block with the main building a full four stories tall, though the need for such a presence was necessary when this building was responsible for the safety of a quarter of the city and third of the waterfront, as well as the main route in and out of the city.

"So just a thought here," Sweetie continued as they approached the front entrance. "Maybe we should loosen the detective look when we go in, at least until they know what we're trying to do?"

"Oh pfff!" Rarity half-snorted in response, looking over her detective outfit. "What self respecting policepony wouldn't look at this and see an investigator at work?"

"One that would look at this and see somepony shady looking?"

"Hmm..." While Rarity didn't sound happy about it, she did push her hat back so her eyes could be seen past it, even if it looked kind of silly with her horn sticking out at the front. Sweetie did the same and unbuttoned her coat slightly so that it wasn't done up to her neck. With that sorted, they headed inside.

The entrance area was bustling with activity as they looked round, even more so considering that the sizeable room had effectively been split into two receptions. The reception left of the central dividing wall looked more tailored for officers booking in criminals, more streamlined, slightly colder looking with it's simple paintjob of white with a blue stripe running the length of the walls at floor level, coupled with the fact that there were two desks, both of which had policeponies on both sides of them at the moment. The right side was more for civilians coming in for various reasons, lighter colours of yellow and silver adorning the walls, chairs set out with various tables and a water cooler, giving the feel of a calm waiting room. Most of the ponies in this area were here, either settled on one of the chairs while waiting or talking to the receptionist.

"So, how're we going to convince somepony to see us?" Sweetie asked as she looked at her big sis, watching Rarity blush her mane out of her eyes and magically adjust her glasses.

"The straightforward way, just follow my lead." She replied, her voice having the familiar charm coming back to it as she stepped forward into the waiting area on the right. More than a few heads were turned at their presence, though it seemed everypony had enough on their minds to keep from bothering them right now. After a minute the queue at the reception cleared and they made their way to the desk being manned by a light green earth mare with a frizzy orange mane.

"Good morning an-...Oh, Miss Rarity and Sweetie Belle," They said with surprise, recognising them instantly. "What can I do for you two today?"

"We're here because we'd like to talk to somepony about the White Phoenix case." Sweetie answered. It may have been her imagination but she could have sworn the atmosphere in the room had gotten a little tenser as she said that.

"I, see. Do you have information that could provide a new lead in that case?" The receptionist asked in equal parts caution and optimism.

"Actually, we were hoping to join the investigation ourselves," Rarity interjected, continuing before she could get a reply. "I do have criminal investigation experience, on a case involving the Wonderbolts no less. Sweetie Belle knows one of the officers here as well, she can vouch that we know what we're doing."

"Or she could be biased to take your side," The receptionist countered, Rarity looking a little surprised that it hadn't been that easy before adjusting her glasses, the familiar look of a pony who was about to pour on the charm coming through.

"I understand dearie, you have to play it safe in this kind of situation," She said softly, her voice disarming even at this age. "I can tell that everypony here wants it resolved soon though. I'm sure everypony would appreciate the extra help and the sooner the Phoenix is stopped the better. Are you really going to turn down a chance to end this sooner?" She waited for a moment, the look she was getting betraying that her words had got through.

"...However, if we had another pony present to oversee, it could be allowed. Who's your friend anyway?" The receptionist finally decided to finish with. Sweetie looked over at Rarity at the question and grinned. They had their in.

As the two of them made their way up the stairs further into the building, following a steel grey pegasus stallion dressed in the standard azure polo shirt of the MPD, both them were silently wondering at how this might go. Sure, they had managed to secure a meeting with the mare that Sweetie Belle had known since she was a filly but they hadn't had a real chance to be around each other for months, possibly years. She might not be the same either, the pressures of being a policepony AND a mother would be enough to adversely affect anypony no matter how much help they had. It was pretty much the only lead they had at this point though, they just had to hope that they could receive the support they were hoping for. They reached the third floor and headed through the quiet hallways, the stallion eventually leading them to a closed office door and knocking on it.

"Officer, you have ponies to see you." He called through, waiting a moment for a response.

"If it's Fresh Catch, tell him I'll be by for the oatcake when I have a day off." A mare's voice with a distinctive Manehatten accent replied.

"Actually they're from Ponyville, and one of them is Rarity."

"Rarity?...Send them in." The pegasus nodded and opened the door, stepping back to let Rarity and Sweetie step into the room.

The office itself didn't exactly stand out, a potted plant in one corner, a bookshelf in another, a desk along one wall and a collection of training certificates and medals on the opposite wall next to the window. Of more interest was the pony sitting at the desk, watching them enter with dawning happiness. An orangey-brown earth mare with observant green eyes, her mane was light red with pink streaks and styled back into a short ponytail and bangs. Her muzzle was slightly crooked to the left, broken in a fight while on duty years ago. As she stood up her cutie mark became visible, a round, white shield with a blue, four point star at the center. While Rarity didn't really recognise her immediately, Sweetie trotted forward with glee in her eyes and threw a hoof out in greeting.

"Hiya Babs!"

"Sweetie Belle!" Babs Seed replied with equal happiness, quickly trotting over and hugging her old friend. "If I'd know a crusader was coming I'd have made this place presentable. I'd ask how you've been but, I saw how."

"I know, me too." Sweetie chuckled, remembering seeing her all kitted out in white at the stadium that night.

"Yeah, I was singing along with the rest of them out there. I dunno what the Equestria Today was thinking when they slammed your performance," All three of them paused slightly, letting the awkwardness of that moment pass before Babs shook her head slightly. "So, what brings you here?"

"They want to brought onto the White Phoenix case as, well I guess they'd be private investigators," The pegasus officer answered, shutting the door behind him as he came in. "We're to judge if it should be allowed."

"Okay, cool." Babs quickly slipped back into her professional attitude and stepping back behind her desk. After a moments rummaging in one of the drawers she brought out a folder and opened it up, taking a quill from the inkpot on her desk and starting to write down details while the pegasus stepped up next to her.

"Okay, so first question. Do either of you have any prior experience?"

Sweetie sighed to herself as Rarity started answering. The paperwork was always the most boring part and even with her joining in at times, this was going to take a while.

With the impromptu interview over and the results being looked over. Rarity and Sweetie Belle had been moved to what looked like a briefing room on the first floor. It was incredibly dull to wait in and reminded Sweetie a lot of the Ponyville Schoolhouse, with a dozen or so desks that reminded her a lot of her fillyhood one facing toward a blackboard and main desk. She was even passing the time in a similar way, trying to see if she could settle on one of the chairs and fall asleep in the same positions she used to in class. Rarity watched as she did, torn between scolding her for her behaviour and simply appreciating that she was trying to ease the wait.

"So," Rarity finally said, giggling slightly as Sweetie acted like she'd been shook awake before looking at her big sister. "What do you think we should do if we don't get any help here?"

"Wait until the Phoenix strikes again and hope that we can reach and study the scene of the crime before the police do?" She answered, her tone not making it clear if she was kidding or not. Rarity looked down for a few seconds, trying to think of how to respond to that, when the room door opened and Babs stepped in. She was now wearing a leather bomber jacket, carrying another folder under her arm and looking more cheery than ever.

"So, good news and better news. Which do you want first?" Babs said as she placed the folder down on the front desk and waited for the other two to come over.

"Good news, puts you in a good mood for the better news." Sweetie replied, adjusting her hat so she could see better.

"Good news, the powers that be have decided to take you onto the case," Babs paused as Sweetie gave a whoop of joy and hoofbumped Rarity's shoulder, knocking the older mare a step sideways in surprise. "The better news, I've been assigned as your liaison officer."

"Well that's, good." Rarity said as she regained her balance, watching as Babs looked like she was barely containing her glee.

"Good? It's fantastic! I'm finally getting to do some real police work again, and with you two to boot! I always get stuck with either office jobs or some posting so safe I may as well not be there."

"Oh dear, why in Equestria would they do that to you?" Rarity asked, not knowing the same details that Sweetie Belle did.

"Because of the time I took on three ponies at once while I was pregnant. Chief doesn't like me taking risks anymore." Babs replied, tapping her crooked muzzle as she did. She didn't seem to mind too much as she opened the folder up.

"Right, so, to business. What are we looking at?" Sweetie asked to try and get things back on track. Babs pushed several papers and a pair of photos over to them.

"About a dozen fires over the past few months, all over the city, no pattern as far as we could see yet. Both the fire department and us didn't think there was any method to it until the seventh incident when we found this," She moved the first photo forward more, showing it was of a crude painting on a slightly burned wall, despite the sloppiness it was unmistakably in the shape of a phoenix rising in flight and all done in white paint. "Our investigators on the previous scenes realised that damaged versions of this had been seen at previous crime scenes, though nopony is quite sure how far back it goes. That was how we ended up with the White Phoenix."

"Hmmm," Rarity took the picture in her magic and studied it carefully. "Has the paint been analysed for its brand?"

"Yeah, Durlock. Doesn't help though, there's at least eight stores that sell it in east Manehatten alone."

"So...Can you make anything out?" Sweetie asked, letting Rarity apply her keen eye for detail as best she could. After a few moments she put it down again and pointed intently.

"Look at the way this paint is laid. It's rough and patchy, no precision whatsoever. Speaking from experience when I was renovating the boutique, this likely means that it was done by hoof. In other words, the White Phoenix is most likely an earth pony or pegasus."

"Maybe, but that's not enough to rule a unicorn out entirely," Sweetie Belle interjected. "If it was done by hoof on a wall, wouldn't it leave something that would give it away? Or the pony could be spotted in the area with white hooves?"

"They accounted for that." Babs said, bringing the last item out from the folder. It was an evidence bag containing half a sock, the lower half burned away. Clearly the Phoenix used various hoof covers to keep from leaving DNA on the crime scene. Sweetie looked at it with some degree of confusion.

"But, wouldn-"

"We got nothing from it, they must have worn something underneath that as well."

"So in other words. We're working against somepony who knows what they're doing and have practically nothing to go on...So what do we do now?"

"At a guess," Babs looked over all the evidence and sighed slightly. "Bring you along the next time the Phoenix strikes and see if you can find something we've missed." She looked up at the sound of sudden giggling, seeing Sweetie doing her best to try and stifle it. Rarity looked at her younger sister with some confusion.

"Sweetie Belle, are you psychic?" She finally asked, getting an equally confused look from Babs for it. "Sweetie Belle said before you came in that we'd basically be doing that if you wouldn't help us." She explained, watching as Babs glanced over at her friend before chuckling herself.

"Yeah, I'd probably be wondering that too."

Sweetie smiled to herself at how this was going. They had a lead, and a friend to help them make something of it though. As she watched Rarity lift all the papers and photos up in her magic, holding them close while she studied each one, a small part of her was worried. She'd seen this glint in her sister's eye before, a drive to fix her problems before it got out of control. The trouble was, this could take a lot longer than the ones she was used to, and somehow it was doubtful that her focus was going to wane over time. Sweetie could only hope that they came up with something new soon.

Author's Note

So, this was actually the first chapter I wrote after completing I Knew Him and realising I actually could do something more with my writing. Chapters are probably going to be a little slower from now but I feel like I can do more with length and quality. Thoughts?

CSI: Manehatten

Author's Note

Before you ask, no, there are no moments worthy of bringing The Who in during this chapter. You may relax/accept my apologies as needed.

CSI: Manehatten

January 9th

"You seem troubled, Sweetie Belle."

She wasn't wrong, Sweetie thought to herself as she opened her eyes. Despite the swirling clouds overhead and wind blowing around, she felt pleasantly warm, though that slowly faded as she realised she was lying on her back on something metal. She rolled onto her side and looked round, jaw dropping slightly as she realised that she was on top of one of the towers of the Celestial Bridge. The fear of being hundreds of feet up without protection aside, the view from here was actually breathtaking as she steadied herself and took it all in. To the north she could see the plains and woodland along the coast before the cloud line descended into fog at the base of the Patchwalk Mountains. To the east, the highest skyscrapers of Manehatten were the only minor impediments to the endless blue of the Celestial sea that separated Equestria and the Griffon Territories, or whatever it would be called once the on-going reforms there made it a nation again. To the south was, a face full of blue fur as she turned straight into somepony's chest.

"Yipe!" She gasped, lucky that her reflex made her jump rather than back up off the tower. It still put enough space between them for her to get a good look at her unexpected companion and she relaxed as she saw a familiar blue alicorn standing before her, giggling slightly at the reaction to her appearance. "Oh, Princess Luna. It's just a dream then, thank...err, you."

"I hope my sudden appearance did not disrupt you," Luna said in her dulcet voice. "But I could sense a weight on your shoulders."

"Well, you probably know about the whole thing with The White Phoenix and Rarity's boutique," Sweetie said as she sat down. Luna nodded as she stepped into place next to the unicorn, the two of them looking out over the city. "I'm a little worried about Rarity though. It's been nearly two weeks and we've had nothing new to work with. She's been very focused on making any kind of progress and the longer we've waited, the more...Obsessive she's got."

"Yes, some of her dreams have carried intent beyond what one would consider normal. But we have spoken on how such fixation never leads to a happy end. I have struggled with this too."

"Well, yeah, true. But at least you more than made up for your past actions as Nightmare Moon." Sweetie commented, looking up at the alicorn. To her surprise, Luna was looking away to the south, her expression unreadable from this angle.

"I speak of more than Nightmare Moon. There was another event, now consigned to memory for many millennia...Hopefully one day it will be lost even to that for good," Her voice had a slightly harsher edge to it as she said those words, as if those memories she had hurt her with their mere presence. She shook her head slightly and turned back toward Sweetie Belle, managing to look like her old self again. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't trouble you with such things."

"It's alright, princess. Weird as it sounds, it did help take my mind off things." Sweetie replied simply. Part of her was still curious as to what Luna was talking about but she knew that if the princess was unwilling to say, she wouldn't get an answer.

"You are welcome, I wish you luck in your work and will always be here if you need me." Luna said, looking like she was readying to move to another dream. Sweetie thought for a moment before sitting up and tugging her mane gently.

"Before you go, your highness, one thing. Have my co-worker's dreams been alright? Maybe they know something we don't."

"I'm afraid there isn't much I can say," Luna said as she flexed her wings. "Market Match's dreams are about making headway at the bank. It would seem he is having the same problems with them as your sister. As for Miss Pommel...Her nights have been silent for some time. I wish I could do more, but without a dream to enter...."

Sweetie looked down slightly, taking this in and realising that she likely wasn't going to get much more than that. A small rush of wind to her side indicated that the princess of the night had taken to the air and she looked back, only to see nothing there in the skies, she had left in a hurry. The unicorn was left to sit beneath a steel sky, hearing an incoming roll of thunder around her, a droning beat that steadily grew in intensity until it felt like the air itself was charged with energy. As she closed her eyes to try and shut it out slightly, she didn't know what else she could do, now that her thoughts were being drowned out by the thunder knocking against her mind. All she could think to do now was...

Sweetie Belle's eyes snapped open to the sight of darkness, the sweet shroud of sleep rudely snatched away from her. She slowly raised her head as the worst of her drowsiness was evicted from her mind and lit her horn, lifting over an alarm clock she kept on her bedside table. Her brow furrowed as she saw that it was twelve-thirty two, still the middle of the night. At that point she heard a rather insistent knocking coming from downstairs, making her groan in frustration. Buying that door knocker that could be heard anywhere in the house so it wouldn't be missed had seemed like a good idea at the time but now...Well it explained the dream thunder at least.

Another thud from the door, straight into her groggy mind, put paid to any more thoughts of getting back to sleep. She slowly pushed the covers off and clambered out of bed, stumbling slightly as she rubbed the sleep out of her eyes and made for the door, not even bothering to flip any lights on. A small part of her was thankful that she didn't have to go to work at the boutique in the morning and while she did have a new singing spot booked, it wasn't for another few days. Right now, she was more focused on choosing if she wanted to act tired or irate when she opened the door, expecting some lone fancolt who had forgotten the concept of personal time as soon as they found out where she lived. It wouldn't be the first time after all.

As she descended the stairs, Sweetie became aware of further sounds coming from upstairs, a momentary clattering following by some rather un-ladylike sounds of discomfort. At a guess, Rarity had also been woken up and had less luck in making her way through her room in the dark. Hopefully she'd be able to settle down again quickly, once whoever this was had been sorted out. She took the doorknob in her magic as she reached the front entrance and opened it up. All her expectations on who was on the other side were completely wrong as her eyes fell upon Babs Seed, who was shivering slightly in the chill of the night even with her jacket and a set of green snow socks on.

"Oh, Babs. Is something wrong?" Sweetie asked as she stepped forward slightly, waiting as her friend failed to stifle a yawn.

"'Fraid so, Sweetie Belle," Babs answered, sounding like she hadn't been awake for long either. "I did say we'd be bringing you along next time, and fireponies at a blaze in the south docks earlier tonight reported seeing the mark of The White Phoenix."

Sweetie blinked as her brain caught up with her ears, the grip of her tiredness weakening further as the significance hit her. She could still hear the sounds of her big sister being awake upstairs and quickly turned her head to call up the stairs.

"Rarity, get your costume on!"

Ponies often said that the winter air of the east was sharp enough to freshen up anypony, yet at half-one in the morning on a snowy night it didn't seem to be working at all. Sweetie Belle had needed to poke herself at least five times in order to stay awake during the carriage ride to the crime scene. Babs still looked drowsy at first but steadily woke up the longer it went on, while Rarity spent the whole trip staring out the window looking completely focused. Clearly she was itching at the chance to make some actual progress. As soon as the carriage stopped, Rarity opened it up and hopped out, Babs followed her out a moment later while Sweetile finished another yawn before being the last one out.

A scene of barely controlled chaos met them. The entrance to the docks had been blocked off with light roadblocks and police tape, several police officers were guarding the entry, dozens more police, fire crews and various other ponies handling various tasks inside. Sirens still filled the air, though fortunately this was a more industrial area so they wouldn't be disturbing too many ponies' sleep. Most disconcerting though, was the smoke still gently drifting over the bay, clearly visible with all the lights in the area. There was no strength behind it, meaning it thankfully wasn't from a live fire, more likely just smouldering remnants of one. The sight was more than Sweetie Belle had expected, enough to shock her into focus. This was the real deal now, she had to do a good job. Babs let them have their moment to take it in before motioning them forward, the trio setting off toward one of the roadblocks. The stallion officer on duty there saw them coming and moved forward, holding a hoof up to motion them to stop.

"This is an active crime scene, I need to ask for either your verification or departure." He said quickly, though his voice clearly showed that he appreciated having something to do now.

"Officer Seed with Outside Investigators Rarity and Belle. Site verification is Trot Equis dash Twelve." Babs replied as she pulled her ID card from her jacket and passed it over. The officer looking it over before nodding and passing it back.

"Glad to see you out here Babs, maybe something'll happen now. Miss Rarity...It's an honour. Sweetie Belle, lemme just say the Equestria Today was talking a load of nonsense about you at the Sounds of Unity, I was there and singing along that night."

"Thanks, that means a lot." Sweetie replied with a small smile. The guard nodded and stepped aside, waving them through. The trio made their way through the open gates and further into the dockyards. This first area was mostly administrative buildings and staff areas, nothing to hold their attention as they kept walking, occasionally nodding a greeting to anypony that acknowledged their presence.

"So, how exactly would the Phoenix get in this far. Are there no guards here?" Rarity asked as they moved into the second area of the port, primarily warehouses now with the dockyards and waters just visible beyond.

"There were some on night watch but..." Babs shook her head slightly. "Nopony expected something like this, this is the first time the Phoenix has gone for anything like this. Preliminary reports we got suggest our Phoenix got in and out at the edge of the waterline, they could slip around the fence there if they were very careful."

"Really? No kind of deterrent whatsoever? Did the port owner not feel like springing for an extra foot of fence?" Rarity deadpanned in response.

"Well you'd be spotted instantly during the day and clearly they thought nopony would be crazy enough to try it in the dark."

"So we're dealing with a crazy pony too. Great." Sweetie finished as they rounded a corner and reached the scene of the crime.

They could all imagine that just a few hours ago, it had been just another warehouse, a two story, light metal construct like any of the others nearby. Now it was nothing more than a fire-gutted wreck, a gaping hole in one side that weakly poured smoke like a wound that let them glimpse inside. What they could see of the cargo floor was covered in wet ash and the occasional piece of burned wood. Whatever might have been here was no more and both Rarity and Sweetie Belle internally balked at the thought of what could easily have happened here, how it could have been so much worse. This was why they were here though, to make sure such worst case scenarios never happened. Shaken but undeterred, they followed Babs over to another pony by the building, dressed in similar attire to Rarity but lacking a hat and with their coat carrying a silver trim.

"Rarity, Sweetie Belle, this is Chief Inspector Gleaming Truth." Babs said as she stepped aside for them to see. On closer inspection, they could see she was a bright amber pegasus that looked to be somewhere in her early thirties, with a sleek pink mane with gold stripes, a matching tail in a coiled style and focused dark blue eyes.

"Pleasure," Gleaming Truth said in introduction, her voice making it clear she was a task oriented pony. "I trust Officer Seed briefed you on the way here?"

"Actually Ma'am, I imagined that you would prefer the honours." Babs replied somewhat nervously as Truth looked at her, silent for a minute before the pegasus finally cracked a smile.

"I appreciate it," She said with a lighter tone before motioning for Rarity and Sweetie to follow her over to the burned warehouse. "So, the warehouse was owned by EquestriaNet Transport Company, not been affected by The White Phoenix until now. The cargo inside was several tons of various grains and food imported from Trottingham, of course it's all dust now. Patrolling guards noticed the fire inside at about ten fifteen, fire crews had managed to contain it by ten fifty-one, one of those who was inside double checking structural damage in the aftermath found the Phoenix's calling card in a raised office that was comparatively undamaged by the flames."

"Is it safe to enter and investigate?" Rarity asked quickly, practically jumping at the chance to make progress now. Truth frowned slightly as she looked in through the door that took up most of the east wall.

"That's the thing, they ruled the stairs up there too weak to go up again. The rest of the building is still structurally sound but we're going to have to wait until dawn at best before anypony can get out here to strengthen it."

"Maybe not..." Sweetie Belle spoke up, stepping inside and heading through the ash covering the floor. Truth followed her in curiosity, Rarity coming a little slower as she tried to shake the mess off her hooves every few steps, Babs bringing up the rear. Sweetie glanced up at the office built into the raised section of the warehouse, surrounded by a metal catwalk on two sides and the walls on the others. The connecting stairs looking rather warped by the fire, she certainly didn't fancy going up that way. Good thing she had another ready to go. She focused on an undamaged section of the walkway by the door up there before her horn glowed and she teleported up there, managing not to damage it any further in the process.

"What the?! How did you...?" Gleaming Truth exclaimed at the sight, taking a step backward in shock.

"My sister learned under Princess Twilight in her youth, picked up some useful spells." Rarity explained, watching with more than a small sense of pride as Sweetie pushed the door to the office open and stepped inside.

"Told you that she was worth bringing on." Babs commented, watching her friend at work for a moment before glancing round to make sure the rest of the building was holding up. Thankfully by this point, most of the lingering smoke inside had been filtered out through the hole in the wall. It wouldn't cause them any problems if they didn't hang around for long.

"So, there's an open window in here, big enough that I could climb through. Could somepony check it from the outside?" Sweetie Belle called out to the others as she stepped forward slowly, taking everything in. The heat and flames hadn't left it unscathed, though there was so little inside that it hadn't caused that much damage either. Just a desk, a metal cabinet, the window, and the mark of The White Phoenix next to it. She studied it carefully, slowly tracing a hoof above it as if mimicking the movements that would have painted it. Her eye for detail was not quite like her sister's but it was enough to know what she was looking for. "You're right sis, this was definitely hoof done...And if I had to guess from everything you've told me about how different ponies work, this was most likely the work of an earth pony."

"Interesting," Truth's voice came from outside. Sweetie looked round to see her hovering just outside the window, studying it while listening. "That might explain this then. The drainpipe out here looks like it was climbed on recently. No sign of forced entry on the window out here though."

"No, but maybe, forced exit?" Sweetie countered, moving over to the window and opening it more to let her see. The latch on the inside had been broken, in a place too low down to have been down by yanking the window from outside. Truth flapped closer and took a look, brow furrowed.

"Hmmm...Possible that the Phoenix was caught out when they started the fire and had to retreat this way. If that's the case, then yeah, positive we're not dealing with a pegasus at least. They would have just flown off."

"Okay...Speaking of pegasus, could you give me a lift out of here?" Sweetie asked, waiting as Truth rolled her eyes and reached in, helping her through the window before holding on and heading back down to the ground. Rarity and Babs had moved round to under the window in the meantime, Rarity taking down as many notes as she could carry. Truth landed after she put Sweetie down and started comparing notes with Rarity on what they'd learned this night. Sweetie brushed her coat off, despite being unable to see if there was any ash on it, and looked over to Babs. "So, I'm guessing now we just pass things off to the main investigators. How's it feel?"

"Honestly," Babs looked back at her fellow crusader and grinned. "As quiet as this was, feels like we made some progress. I'd say it feels dang good to be back in action."

Friends and Family

January 15th

After what felt like months of chill, winter was finally beginning to draw to a close. The Manehatten weather ponies had started to clear the snow out from the area and a pleasantly warm morning was now breaking over the city. The general atmosphere had steadily been feeling better as well. Despite the latest act of The White Phoenix, the MPD had announced that developments from the crime scene had allowed them to start narrowing down suspects, something that ponies were happy with since it sounded like much needed progress after months of silence. They were that much closer to bringing the Phoenix to justice and securing the safety of Manehatten once again. Yet for some, it still wasn't enough.

Rarity tutted to herself as she paced round her bedroom. It had been nice of Sweetie Belle to give her the second bedroom but it could have been a little bigger, she couldn't fit all her latest inspiration for fashion designs and her case notes in here at once. She had already filled one wall completely with the details of the investigation, a massive web of connected details, theories, suspects and speculation on how any of this might be connected to the bit thief. It was easily a match for anything the police would have set up and yet, she just couldn't see anything that might lead to a breakthrough. It was infuriating, feeling like she had been making progress only for it to be brought to a screeching halt just like that. She gave a frustrated sigh and sat herself down on her bed, staring at the wall intently through narrowed eyes.

When I took on this case, I knew that it was going to be difficult, but I had no idea just what I was letting myself into. The White Phoenix is far cleverer than I anticipated, leaving minimal trace. All the same, nopony is smart enough to make themselves completely invisible. I have one lead, not enough to count as evidence, I'm not even sure I felt it yet but...It's something. When I revisited the warehouse scene the day after, I felt a trace of magic there. A unicorn was there that night and Gleaming Truth confirmed that it wasn't from any officers or the guards. The strangest part is, I feel like I've felt it before...

I'll need to investigate this further. For now though, I just need to focus. There has to be some little detail I've overlooked, something that will bust this case wide open and give my friends the help they need.

"Give it up sis, there's nothing new we can learn on there."

Rarity shook her head up slightly at Sweetie Belle's voice and turned to see her standing in the doorway with an unimpressed look on her face.

"Oh. Did I say that one out loud?" Rarity asked, rubbing the back of her neck before getting up again.

"No, you've just been thinking about the same thing for the last few days." Sweetie replied, stepping into the room as her sister started pacing again.

"Yes well, somepony has to keep on task until we solve this thing." Rarity said simply, still staring at the wall. Sweetie frowned more at that, not getting the reply she'd been hoping for.

"Come on Rarity, you need to take some time to relax as well. Do you even remember who you came to Manehatten to help?"

"Coco? Of course, I went to see her when we arrived. What's the problem?" Rarity retorted, still not even looking at her.

"...That was nearly three weeks ago!" Sweetie snapped, turning away in frustration. "You haven't spoken a word to her since then and I invited her over today and made arrangements specifically so you two could just spend a casual day together. Are you really so tartarus-bent on this that you want me to go back downstairs and tell her that her best friend didn't want to see her?"

Rarity paused mid-step, almost frozen in place as her sister's words sunk in. She hadn't taken any time to think about it but now that she was, it was staring her in the face so blatantly that it hurt. It was true, she'd been putting everything she had into this case, to the point that she had been completely overlooking everything and everypony else in the way. There was having drive and there was going completely overboard like she had been since...Since Hearth's Warming at least. She sighed and slowly looked back toward Sweetie Belle, who was still keeping her back to her, standing silently.

"...No...Never. I-I'm sorry, Sweetie Belle. I lost my head in all this, got carried away. Plus I'm not going to do anypony any favours if I burn myself out." She finally said, turning and stepping closer to the doorway. Eventually she saw Sweetie relax and step aside to let her out.

"Don't worry about it, we all get swept up in the moment. Just go out there and enjoy yourself."

"Thank you. Will you be coming with us?"

"I didn't plan on it. Babs has a day off as well so I was going to go see her and Solo. Besides, what I got booked for you isn't really my style." Sweetie smiled slightly as Rarity passed her and made for the stairs, only to stop and look back at her.

"Wait. What exactly did you set up for us?"

"You'll see." Sweetie commented, still sounding a little rough.

"Is, something else wrong?" Rarity finally asked, not moving from her spot in the meantime.

"Hmm? Oh, right. Not for me. Just the Equestria Today was taking more shots at Scootaloo today." Sweetie finally replied, clearly looking like she didn't want to dwell on it. Rarity nodded and finally headed downstairs, still wondering just what she was in for today.

To most ponies, the cultural district in the south of Manehatten was a melting pot of everything that brought Equestria and it's neighbouring lands together, rivalled only in spectacular scale by the Crystal Faire. From the fashions of Yakyakistan to the cuisine of the Griffon Territories, the literature of the Mintoris Isles to the artwork of the Crystal Empire, it was impossible for a pony to go through the area without learning something new about their world. Those that dug a little deeper would find how these various lifestyles could blend together, many of the establishments were able to combine their various styles into something elegant and catchy. Rarity had been here several times in the past but it was Coco Pommel's first visit to the area and she couldn't stop turning her head, looking over everything.

"Breathtaking, isn't it?" Rarity asked, making sure to match her friend's slow walk. Personally she felt like she could be going all over the place right now, being full of energy and not needing to put on a serious act today. She needed to restrain herself due to her friend's still undiagnosed issues though.

"I know. If I had any idea I would have come here sooner," Coco replied, looking over at a bookstore styled with pillars made of griffon marble. "I'll have to put some time into exploring later, it's all beautiful."

"I'm sure we can find some time for that once we're done here. Now, Sweetie Belle said that it was on Grande Way and...Ah! There we are." Rarity said as she pointed out a spa partway down the street they were on. A small part of her missed her regular spa sessions back in Ponyville, but it wasn't the same without Aloe and Lotus Blossom. The staff there these days still did good work but none of it compared to the gentle touch that her old friends were capable of.

"Ooh, I've always wanted to try a spa day." Coco said happily, looking a bit more energetic as she moved to go in.

"Well, you're with the right pony in the right place then," Rarity said as she snapped out of her thoughts and trotted forward. "It is just the most relaxing thing and by the time we're done here, you'll be taking a much needed break from your problems."

Coco smiled more and pushed the front door open, stepping in and holding it for Rarity. Once she'd entered as well they both took a moment to take in the surroundings. The lobby had clearly been styled after the architecture of the Crystal Empire, stone and gems cut into elegant mosaics along the walls, a shining floor, even the statue placed by the reception looked like it had been lifted straight from the city. It was quite a marvellous sight, though one they couldn't let distract them for long. The two friends finally remembered why they were here and moved forward to the reception desk, manned by a silver unicorn mare.

"Good morning dear, we have an appointment booked for two. Rarity and Coco Pommel." Rarity said as they reached the front desk, waiting a moment as the receptionist checked it and nodded.

"Ah yes, the Full body Deluxe Pamper session. You're very lucky, that's almost constantly sold out. Just head through the door on the left, somepony will be there to see to you."

"Sounds lovely," Coco commented as they made their way toward the indicated door. "It'll be nice to just relax for a little while."

Rarity glanced over at her, silently wondering how she was actually feeling. Coco was one of the gentlest and sweetest ponies she knew, sure the last six months hadn't been easy for her but just how bad were things going if she felt constantly tense? She silently decided to spend more time closer to her in future, make sure that she was going to be ok. For now, they stepped through the door into the main spa area, taking in the sight of a wide hallway to the various activities available. A pair of spa workers were waiting off to one side, a green earth stallion and a light red crystal pony. On seeing the two mares coming in they straightened up and trotted over to them.

"Miss Rarity, Miss Pommel," The crystal pony said as they came up, sounding like she was rather awed at getting to meet them. "I'm Cherry Blossom and this is Tension Point, we'll be tending to you for as long as you wish your stay to be. Is there anything particular you'd like to start with?"

"Thank you both," Rarity said happily before looking over at Coco. "Coco darling, do you have any preference?"

"Well, a massage does sound nice right now." She replied after a moments thought. Tension Point nodded and motioned for them to follow him, the four of them heading down the hallway a short ways before reaching a door marked 'Massage Parlour'. He opened it up and let them inside. It was a simple setup, a number of massage benches with foam mattresses on top for customers and a cabinet with a wide variety of oils to enhance the experience.

"Make yourselves comfortable, do you have any preferences for your time in here?" Tension asked, his voice carrying a slight Saddle Arabian accent that only added to the aura of calm in the room.

"Something gentle please." Coco answered as she clambered up onto on of the tables and settled herself in place.

"Surprise me," Rarity added as she did the same, glancing over at Coco, who already looked to be enjoying herself as Tension began to massage down her shoulders and back. "By the way, Cherry Blossom, any relation to the Blossom twins of Ponyville?"

"I get that a lot. Maybe I am on some level." Cherry chuckled, fetching a bottle of vanilla scented oil and carefully pouring some on Rarity's back before starting to rub it in, working her muscles carefully in the process.

Rarity sighed softly in content at the feeling, snuggling down into the mattress. Foam was one of those little wonderful advances in technology over the last few years, she thought to herself, very comfortable and mouldable, possibly something to incorporate into her designs. She glanced back over toward Coco, only to see the mare was even more relaxed than she was. She looked like she'd actually fallen asleep mid-massage. Rarity smiled to herself at the sight and let it be, knowing that her friend was in for the most relaxing day of her life. As she settled herself down, her mind wandered slightly, wondering what the rest of her friends were up to. Hopefully something as pleasant as this.

'Why do there have to be so many stairs?' Sweetie Belle thought to herself as she reached the fourth floor of the Harmony's Rest Apartment block, checking the room listings on the wall as she did. It had been a bit of a trek on hoof to get here and while she could have just teleported up here sooner, she preferred to save that magic until it was really needed with the investigation going on. Besides, she'd still have to go back down by herself.

The building itself didn't stand out in any special way, a seven story piece built to comfortably accommodate the large number of ponies that lived in Manehatten. The significant thing about it was that it was also home to the city's Cutie Mark Crusaders. As Sweetie made her way down the hallway, counting door numbers silently, she reflected that all six members of the original two CMC groups had never met, to say nothing of the five members of its second generation. That was something they'd have to fix once her investigation was over. For now, she found the correct apartment and knocked on the door. After a few moments it opened, standing on the other side was a cobalt coloured pegasus stallion with a short cut, windswept, charcoal coloured mane and tail, energetic dark green eyes and a cutie mark of a cloud being split by a lightning bolt. It had been some time since they'd met but they recognised each other instantly.

"Sweetie Belle! It's been way too long." The pegasus said with a grin, throwing a hoof out in greeting.

"Good to see you too, Sky Breaker," She replied, smiling back and hoofbumping him. He may have been a little...Wild, but he was a good stallion, at the least he lived here to take some of the pressure off Babs due to the third pony that lived here. "Are the others here?"

"You know it! Squirt, Chippy and Watcher are hyped for this as much as I am. We-" Sky Breaker paused at the sound of small thundering hooves behind him and took off slightly, letting an earth pony filly dash through where he'd been standing. She was only about seven years old, scarlet coloured with white patches on her left shoulder and flanks, a light pink mane and tail, orange eyes and no cutie mark yet. She was also wearing a red cape with a faded blue and yellow emblem that Sweetie Belle instantly recognised as Babs' old CMC cape.

"There you are, Solo Act!" She exclaimed happily as the filly bounded up and hugged her leg, laughing softly as she hugged her in return. Solo Act hadn't had the easiest start in life, considering she didn't know her father and the risks of her mother's job. Having the other crusaders around had been enough to help raise her right though.

"You made it Aunt Belle! Mom said you'd be coming and you did! Sky! Sky! Can you get a picture of me and Aunt Belle together?" Solo's enthusiasm was boundless as she was lifted up and nestled into Sweetie's chest. It was a welcome relief to the unicorn to see this, Solo was happier about just seeing her again rather than the fact she was meeting something of a celebrity. The fact she always called her aunt also put a happy warm feeling in her heart.

"Sure thing Squirt, come through and we'll get it set up." Sky replied, landing again and heading back toward the main room of the apartment. Babs was watching from just inside the apartment as he passed, smiling softly as she watched her daughter and her friend bonding as if they saw each other every day. Sweetie smiled as well and magically lifted Solo onto her back, making sure she was settled and clinging on before following him through.

The main living space of the apartment was one of those living room/kitchen combos, decently, if somewhat sparsely, furnished. Sitting on the sofa as they came in was a brown earth stallion, his mane and tail black with a grey streak, yellow eyes and a wine glass cutie mark. Sweetie Belle recognised him as Wood Chip, the final member of the Manehatten Cutie Mark Crusaders and the calmest head among them too.

"Hi, 'Chippy'," She teased, getting him to give a good natured tongue poke in response. "How've things been with you?"

"Pretty good, pretty good." Wood Chip replied with a deep voice that caught most ponies out the first time they heard it. He got up and joined the others as Sky Breaker fetched a camera out of a cabinet and brought it over.

"So, what'd you think Solo, want to let your mom and the others in this pic as well?" Sweetie asked the filly as she felt her clamber up and poke her head out next to her horn.

"Sounds great! I can't wait to show all the fillies at school how awesome all my family are! A cop, a weatherpony, a drinksguy and a singer, they're gonna love it!" Solo squeaked happily, clinging on as Sweetie took the camera in her magic and waited for Sky to join her, Chip and Babs.

As she levelled it and focused on getting the shot right, Sweetie couldn't help but smile to herself. This was the kind of thing she was working to help Manehatten for. She may have thought it before but it didn't ring any less true now, keeping ponies like this safe and happy, that was her current calling. For now though, she thought to herself as her magic took the photo, she could just take a little time to relax with some good friends.

Author's Note

Yeah, I know this chapter wasn't the best. I've got no excuses, I just couldn't quite keep up with the motivation and quality of previous chapters. Sorry about that.

Going it Alone

January 26th

Dawn was rising over Manehatten, Celestia's light breaking through the gentle cloud cover that the city's weather team were moving into place. Most ponies were still in bed at this point, making the most of the warm peace that sleep brought. Not everypony was quite fortunate enough to have this luxury for as long as others at the moment though. The Manehatten PD was bustling with activity after another fire had been reported during the night, the implication that it was the latest attack by The White Phoenix. Rarity and Sweetie Belle had been up since five o'clock and were now waiting outside Gleaming Truth's office, waiting to see if they had the go ahead to head for the scene and investigate. Babs Seed had been with them earlier but had gone to try and find something to eat, leaving them to their thoughts for now.

"So, why'd you think it's taking so long?" Sweetie finally asked as she looked over at her sister, who was sitting back in her seat by the door, eyes closed in focus.

"If I had to guess, it's because they're less convinced that this actually is the Phoenix," Rarity replied, opening her eyes and looking over at Sweetie. "I had another, calmer look at the previous incidents and noticed there actually was some form of connection there. The first fire that could be linked to the case was in a bakery. The second, a café. It keeps going just like that, restaurants, catering firms, even the warehouse. All of them are linked by-"

"Food," Sweetie finished. "You think the Phoenix is going after the food industry? Why?"

"That is the question now, though we shall have to see if the answer is simply another clue to lead us to the Phoenix or a reason that we learn when we ask the pony ourselves. Add in the fact this report seems to be about a theatre and the fact there was apparently a witness...You see why this particular one is taking so much time, they're making sure since it doesn't match up."

Rarity sighed slightly as she got up from her chair, both of them knowing that it wasn't much to go on but it was something new all the same. Before they could discuss it further, Babs returned carrying a tray in her mouth that bore toast and coffee. She set it down on an empty chair and took one of the cups, simply taking a breather while the other two joined in. Sweetie stayed out of the way a little, feeling a little bit of an outsider here since she was the only one of the trio who didn't like coffee, letting Babs and Rarity discuss their latest findings on the case quickly. It seemed like the other investigators on the case had started to pick up on the same details that Rarity had, though it would still take a little time before they could start using this information to try and anticipate the Phoenix's movements and targets. After several minutes the office door opened and Gleaming Truth stepped out.

"False alarm everypony. We got eyewitness testimony from the officers on scene that a clumsy janitor accidentally started the fire." Truth announced to the others. Sweetie simply nodded, thinking to herself that this was the first time she'd seen the investigator's cutie mark, a magnifying glass with a glint of sunlight reflecting off it.

"Okay...I'll see you later for my shift. Rarity, Sweetie Belle, I'll see you soon." Babs replied, sounding a tiny bit annoyed at having got up this early for nothing as she finished her drink and headed for the exit. The others could understand, she'd probably had to give up Celestia-knows how many hours with Solo Act over the years due to her duties, even if Sky Breaker was there to look after the filly in the meantime.

"If you don't mind us, we should get out of your way as well," Rarity said afterward, unable to keep from yawning. "All these early mornings don't do a lady any favours."

"Sure, I'll contact you when something new comes up," Truth replied, looking down in thought for a minute before looking up again. "Actually, Sweetie Belle, could I ask you something quickly before you go?"

"Of course. I'll catch up with you outside, sis." Sweetie said, watching Rarity go before turning back toward Truth, who looked, for the first time, somewhat uncertain.

"So, this might sound a bit weird, but you grew up in Ponyville at the end of the Celestial Era. Did you know a pony called Dinky Hooves, by any chance?"

"Yeah, she was a friend at school actually. Why?"

"My work in Manehatten doesn't really leave me any time for travel. I imagine you'll be back in Ponyville soon enough, could you give her a message for me the next time you're there?"

"Of course, as long as it's nothing risqué. I'd rather not get a reputation for my sexuality." Sweetie commented with a chuckle, getting a small grin out of Truth in response.

"No, just something simple she'll understand. Tell her that Red Moon's family are sorry for his decision," She waited for a moment as the unicorn turned to go before adding something. "And Sweetie Belle, I may not know you as well as I could, but I really appreciate you doing that. I owe you one."

"I'll keep that in mind." Sweetie teased before heading off to follow her sister's way out, trying not to wonder what the meaning was behind Truth's words.

It was almost strange, having a day start off with such potential for something major and then ending up back in normality just like that. Rarity had gone straight home for a nap, or 'To fill the gap made in her sleep requirements' as she put it. Sweetie Belle had gone straight on to the boutique for the day's work, figuring that she could just go to bed earlier. The day had gone by rather quickly for her, though for whatever reason the store had been relatively quiet despite how much business had gone up in the wake of her singing career improving. As the business day came to an end, she decided to invite Coco over to her place for a little hanging out time, the fact she readily accepted was a welcome plus.

As the two of them reached Sweetie's house, they were both separately imagining having a classy evening in with wines, Rarity and a general good time. As they stepped into the house though, those thoughts were put to one side by the scene awaiting them. A suitcase had been placed by the door and Rarity was darting about from room to room, mumbling something to herself and really not looking like she was any more relaxed at all. On seeing the other standing in the doorway in total confusion, she stopped and quickly trotted over to them.

"Sweetie Belle, Coco, good to see you both. I wish it was under better circumstances." Rarity said as if it explained everything, her voice still rather flustered.

"Wh-what exactly are you doing?" Sweetie asked once she felt her jaw working again, watching as her sister stopped and looked over at the various letters set out on the side.

"Well, after I woke up I came downstairs and saw that the post had been delivered. I sorted it for you, bills, fan mail, what looked like a new job offer."

"You get all the interesting mail." Coco commented, getting a small chuckle out of Sweetie before Rarity continued.

"There was one addressed to me though, I think you should read this." She fetched a letter out from the pile with her magic and passed it over. Sweetie took it in her magic and started reading through it, letting Coco look at it as well while she did.

Rarity,

I hope that your time in Manehatten is serving you well and I apologise that this will detract from it, but I'm afraid that unseen circumstances have forced my need to contact you.

I regret to say that on the twenty-first, in your absence, I received a message from your contact with the Diamond Dogs that stated that their gemstone exports to your boutiques were being halted, effective immediately, due to a change in policy among their leadership. As the acting manager of Carousel Boutique, I made an attempt to negotiate some form of compromise on your behalf. Progress has been minimal though, they're a very stubborn race and I lack your tactful charm. I wish that I didn't have to ask for your assistance in this but this embargo affects your entire chain of stores, your managers in Canterlot and Vanhoover have already contacted me asking for why their high-demand gems have stopped coming. If possible, I request your return to Ponyville for assistance in clearing this matter up.

I apologise again for this disruption to your business in Manehatten and hope that this matter may be resolved quickly so that you may return to your focus within the city.

Your acting manger in Ponyville,
Blue Bobbin

"That's, concerning." Coco commented as she finished reading.

"It's bad." Sweetie corrected as she finished moments later.

"It's a disaster!" Rarity exclaimed, her overdramatic flair on full display. "I put all this effort into saving one boutique and now all of them are in trouble? Why does fate keep having to complicating things like this?! Why? Whhhyyyyyy?"

"Ok sis, time out," Sweetie interjected, holding her sister's shoulders and keeping her still until she managed to recompose herself and take a number of calming breaths. "Now, I'm sure I know what you're planning already, but could you fill us in anyway?"

"Alright, well I simply couldn't let a problem like some stubborn puppies mess with my livelihood, especially since I'm going to all this effort for you, miss Pommel. I already booked a seat on the next train back to Ponyville and was hoping you would return home before I had to leave so I could tell you myself."

"B...But what about The White Phoenix? You're dropping the investigation for this?"

"Sweetie Belle darling, I'm well aware of how important finding the Phoenix is. But I'm not the only pony capable of doing this," Rarity put a hoof on Sweetie's shoulder as she spoke reassuringly. "Between you, Babs Seed and Gleaming Truth, there's more than enough investigative talent to unravel this mystery, maybe even before I return."

"Wow. You really think so?" Sweetie asked, quietly surprised that that much faith was being put in her eye for detail. Rarity simply smiled and nodded in response.

"I do. For now though, we shouldn't dally here, my train leaves in just under an hour."

The journey back to Manehatten Central Station had been straightforward, not enough to justify needing an hour on it's own. The use in setting off so early became clear after Rarity and Sweetie Belle were stopped for autographs again, both of them getting more attention due to their location and the time of day. Eventually though, they managed to untangle themselves from the crowd, find Coco again and make their way over to platform three for the evening train to Ponyville. Surprisingly it wasn't that busy on the platform itself, likely because everypony had already boarded the train.

"Well, hopefully this won't take too long...I hope I'm not doing the wrong thing here." Rarity said, sounding somewhat uncertain about her choice in action now.

"It's fine sis, we can look after things here. Besides, not much point trying to save one store if you lose all of them in the process." Sweetie replied reassuringly.

"It's not as bad here either," Coco followed up. "We've actually been getting more orders since Sweetie Belle's music career got going again, enough to offset at least some of the lost income. You'll have time to deal with this and have some extra for fixing the problems at the boutique afterward."

Rarity nodded, looking somewhat more reassured, before giving them both a hug and nuzzle. Nothing else needed to be said between them, they all knew that they trusted each other to do what they were setting out to do. Rarity took her suitcase and boarded the train, quickly finding a seat where she could lean out the window and wave to them as the train began it's departure from the city. Sweetie and Coco waved back until she was out of sight, at which point Coco was unable to contain a yawn and sat down for a quick breather, getting a concerned look from Sweetie at how her fatigue problems seemed to be getting worse.

"You're going to struggle to keep up, aren't you?" She finally asked.

"Aren't you?" Coco replied, getting a small nod from her in response. They knew what they had to do, but doing it wasn't going to be any easier.

A Personal Twist

February 18th, Year 23 under the Four Princesses

It was a warm but windy day in Manehatten, now cleared of the winter snow that had blanketed the city since late November and giving way to a light dampness from the previous day's rain. It had done nothing to extinguish the spirits of the local ponies though. The Equestrian new year had arrived two days ago and the celebrations had been grand, a marker of another year of peace under the rule of Celestia, Luna and, to a lesser extent, Twilight. They did their part for their land, once the day was over everpony else had to do the same. Most ponies would agree that the MPD were certainly doing theirs, there hadn't been any sign of The White Phoenix making any new movements in over a month and most ponies seemed content to credit the police with the new sense of calm it had brought to Manehatten, though officers had repeatedly stated that they were increasing their state of alert to ensure that they would catch any new signs of activity.

It had left Sweetie Belle with a lot less to do though. Without having to work on the case she had a little more time to focus on where her life was going now that her singing career was on track again. She wanted to make the most of the opportunities it brought her, use it to help other ponies as much as it had helped her, though the current police stance on the Phoenix case meant that anypony connected to it had to remain in the city, hampering her options considerably. A chance had finally come up though, one of her latest offers had been to do a school talk in central Manehatten. The offer had appealed to her even more since the topic was cutie marks, a chance to share her story with a new generation that may well be inspired to go on and do even greater than she had.

That was how she found herself here now, in the main hall of the Unified Equestrian School of Manehatten, standing on a simple wooden stage before at least a hundred fillies and colts, possibly two , all aged between six and nine and the majority of them blank flanked. She couldn't help but smile a little inside at the fact that she'd seen Solo Act among them as she came in. There'd probably be time to talk to her afterward, for now she was telling her own cutie mark story, her time with the Cutie Mark Crusaders followed by how she'd started to overcome her worries about her singing talent after Rara's encouragement and begun to do something about it.

"It wasn't until May of Year two that my chance came," Sweetie said, by this point having shaken off the worst of her nerves about talking in front of a crowd. She wanted to do a good job for youngsters after all. "It was the school's talent show and I decided to enter on my own. The other crusaders were...Disappointed at first but they understood once I'd explained, especially when they remembered how well all of us singing together went," She giggled slightly at the memory before noticing a hoof going up in the audience and seeing it belonged to a gold coloured unicorn colt with a black mane, blue eyes and no cutie mark. "Yes, young colt?"

"Crescendo, Miss Belle," The earth colt answered nervously, even though Sweetie had already fielded several questions and had said from the start that she liked knowing the names of ponies she was answering. "Did you have any ponies at school who made fun of the fact you didn't have a cutie mark?"

"Excellent question!" Sweetie replied, using her enthusiasm to mask any tenseness she felt welling up at that particular memory. "And yes. A pair of fillies called Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon who...Well they were pretty relentless when it came to bullying those without cutie marks. They weren't bad ponies though, just misguided. DT's actually the mayor of Ponyville now and doing well at it. Silver, we'll get to that in the story. It was due to them though that we founded the Cutie Mark Crusaders in the first place though, so it wasn't all bad."

"So, you're saying bullies can be reasoned with?" A blue-grey, blank flanked pegasus filly that hadn't given her name yet blurted out, sounding like she expected there to be repercussions for what she was saying when classes ended. Sweetie Belle frowned slightly at that and decided to go off-topic for a second. Well, not entirely, she was still speaking from personal experience.

"They can, and it doesn't have to be anything big or flashy. Bullies enjoy the sense of control that it gives them, that by picking on somepony weaker they can gain a sense of self-worth that their own lives deny them fully. The most important thing I found in ending that peacefully is to show them that you're not scared of them, you can be something better than just a chew toy for them to unleash their stress on, that you can be a friend to them that gives them what they've been missing in a better way."

She didn't realise the way that her voice had steadily grown more confident during that tangent, speaking from the heart on an issue she had struggled with for years. Her posture had shifted as well, standing closer to the edge of the stage and making sure to look at everypony as she spoke. There would be fillies and colts on both sides of the issue in this crowd and she hoped that her words had spurred at least one of them to think about how to change what they were going through. Her eyes glanced to the back of the hall and met those of one of the teachers, an older earth stallion. While he looked like he appreciated her stance, he was also giving her a silent indicator to return to the original topic. She shook her head slightly and stepped back again, thinking how she could segue from this back into the story.

"I couldn't let myself be scared, even though I was terrified to go out there and sing alone in front of a crowd. There were less ponies there but I knew each of them. Close friends spurring me on, family watching proudly, those same two fillies who would make sure I'd never hear the end of it if I messed up, especially after their attempts to unnerve me in the days before. I couldn't afford to get this wrong for so many reasons, but I knew in my heart that I wouldn't. I was going to show everypony what I could really do. I sang 'The alicorns watch' out there, you may need to ask your parents about that song but it's slow and soulful. I was too focused on my voice to worry what anypony was thinking mid-song, but when I finished the entire audience was silent, rendered speechless. For several moments I wondered if that was a bad thing, until I heard a single pair of hooves clapping. Anypony want to guess who it was?"

She stood there for several seconds, waiting to see if anypony would try to answer. When none did, she simply smiled softly, closing her eyes for several seconds as the memory came back to her like an old friend missed for far too long.

"Silver Spoon. The same filly who had seen me as nothing before, was now the first pony to applaud my performance, before my parents, my sister or any of my fellow crusaders. As others started to join in, she reached a hoof up to her face and I realised her eyes were damp. She had been moved to tears by my performance and I don't think she was the only one," She smiled more, remembering the rush of joy she had felt as she stood before that crowd decades ago. "Despite how much everypony enjoyed it, I was still surprised to be called back up to the stage for the awards. It turned out that by a clear vote, including some of the other performers, I had been declared the best act of the whole thing. I just remember standing there, realising that I had done it. I had conquered my fears, turned them into my talent and standing before that cheering crowd, realised it really was what I wanted to be...And that's when it happened."

She turned slightly and looked back at her cutie mark, smiling more at the memories. Several of the foals in the audience broke into applause of their own, including, she couldn't help but smile at, the worried sounding filly from before that had now pushed her long amber mane out of her green eyes to watch more closely. Maybe she should have been a speaker, she seemed to have gotten through to at least some of them despite her concerns.

"So..." The pegasus filly started before realising she hadn't given her name yet. "Oh! Err, Stratus, miss. So, what happened when you realised what had happened?"

"Personally? It took longer to sink in for me than anypony else there," Sweetie admitted. "But, it was one of the best feelings I've ever had, realising that I finally had my cutie mark. The audience had gone wild for my moment in the spotlight and next thing I knew, Apple Bloom and Scootaloo had jumped up on stage and were hugging me like my life depended on it. That's something else important about getting your cutie mark, your friends are still gonna be there for you even if you get yours a little sooner or later than them. There's no right time for it to appear, I mean it took Scootaloo nearly another year to get hers and yet the Cutie Mark Crusaders remained as close as ever during that time and even afterward."

"Even now?" Crescendo asked quickly, getting an approving nod from Sweetie in return.

"Even now, twenty years on and they're still my best friends. They're not the only ones I've known for that long though. After the show ended, me and the other crusaders were starting for home when Silver Spoon came up to me, she didn't look like she wanted to pick a fight with us this time, she just looked...Happier. I remember her saying to me 'Thank you, for the inspiration.' and left again. Next day at school, she sat down next to me at lunch time and explained that she'd never heard something as beautiful as my voice, that I had such talent and ability to move ponies. She actually wanted to learn how to do something like that in her own way, I just told her that she needed to look at what she wanted to do instead of what Diamond Tiara wanted her to do."

"Did she?" An earth colt asked, one that Sweetie recognised from an earlier question as Axe Grinder.

"At first, I wasn't sure. A few years later though, I saw her talking to a musician that lived in town, sounding like she was getting advice on what instrument would be best for her. I never learned if she chose anything directly, since her family moved to Baltimare not long after. She wrote to me though and we've stayed in contact that way. Turns out over the years she's learned to play the clarinet and now takes it round that city both for work and to play to those she feels need some more joy in their lives. She's not really famous, but she gets by and she's happy." Sweetie smiled happily and glanced up at the clock above her in the hall. "Well, I think I'm out of time to keep speaking. I'll be here during break time though, if anypony has questions or wants a photo with me."

There was a loud round of cheers and stomping applause from the fillies and colts in the audience as she made her way off the stage just as the bell for the end of classes rang. She waved to the crowd and fetched the saddlebags she'd brought out, checking the camera she'd brought was working alright. A small part of her hoped there weren't too many questions forthcoming, after an hour speaking her voice needed a rest and she wouldn't be able to take one for at least another twenty minutes.

As the bell rang to mark the end of break, Sweetie Belle let out a silent sigh of relief. There was so much satisfaction to be found in talking with these schoolponies but it was rather taxing on her throat by now. Quite a few of the blank flanked youngsters had come to her asking if they could become Cutie Mark Crusaders, though Solo Act had remained nearby and happily fielded a lot of answers about that for her. Crescendo and Stratus had shown a lot of interest and Sweetie couldn't help but think that the Manehatten CMC would have a full second generation before long. That was something to look forward to in future though, right now she had a cool drink to look forward to.

The last little ponies made their way out of the hall, a signed photo of them with the unicorn star carefully clamped in their mouths. Sweetie waved them off before turning and rubbing her throat, moving over to a small table that had a pitcher of water, a glass and a newspaper on it. Thankful that something had been left for her to wind down with, she picked up the glass, filled it and took a long drink, the sensation of her dry throat being rehydrated more welcome than she could have imagined. She poured another glassful and took the newspaper in her magic, looking at the day's headlines. It was fortunate that she didn't have any water in her mouth at that point, otherwise she would have spat it all over the paper as she saw the headline, quickly grabbing the paper and reading the story.

Below the Bar

Last night saw the main round of new years celebrations in Canterlot take place in the city's Royal Equestrian Arena. This year's celebrations had a focus on Princess Twilight Sparkle, told via a number of illusions maintained by skilled unicorns Delusion and Trixie, backed by performances from some of Equestria's best talents such as Perfect Tone and The Wonderbolts. The talking point of the night though is how the show was marred by one performer who simply proved not good enough for an event of this scale.

At the climax of her part in the performance, stunt rider Scootaloo collided with a metal ring in mid-air and crash landed in full view of the audience, suffering several head injuries and forcing the show to be halted while she was removed from the arena. Scootaloo was unresponsive to medical ponies on-site and quickly moved to Canterlot Central Hospital for further evaluation and treatment, though doctors there refuse to elaborate on her current condition. After an hours delay, the decision was made to end the celebrations early as word of the potential severity of the incident spread throughout the stadium.

Questions remain over just what happened, most principally, why it happened. Reports from backstage suggest that Scootaloo was unfocused prior to beginning her routine and had been struggling with her scooter control, suggesting that she was, performance-wise, unfit to be included in such a premiere event. Coupled with fresh accusations that she has been faking her inability to fly for some time, the biggest question may just be how her career can survive such a disastrous turn of events. Story continued on page 4.

It took several seconds for Sweetie Belle to realise that her hooves were shaking in a mixture of heartfelt worry and burning anger. One of her closest friends had been badly hurt doing what she loved, and she couldn't do anything to support her, not even leaving Manehatten to go check on her due to the MPD's current alert stance against The White Phoenix. Just the thought that Scootaloo was currently stuck in a hospital bed, suffering through Celestia-knows what while the...She glanced up the paper and growled slightly when, as expected, she saw it was the Equestria Today that was shunning aside details of what might have happened in favour of tearing the pegasus apart, again! Did they not have any concept of tact? Honesty? Basic pony decency?

Sweetie set the paper down and sighed, letting her frustration bleed off while there was nopony around to inadvertently take it out on. She took the filled glass and had another drink while she thought about what she could do about this. Because something had to be done now, she could have taken the hostile stance of theirs before but attacking a helpless pony was one step too far. Luckily, she remembered that the newspaper's central offices were based in Manehatten. A small grin broke out on her face as she remembered that they had invited her there for an interview some time ago as well.

Now seemed as good a time as any to take them up on that offer.

Author's Note

It's a bit weird to me that for all my focus on the CMC in my main stories so far, it took until now to even think about what Silver Spoon would have got up to. Hopefully it all sounds about right though.

Something else about myself I learned in this chapter, I seem to have a problem with overusing OC names that begin with an S. Also, I cannot do journalism titles to save my life.

Casing and Questioning

February 22nd

I should get some kind of neckwear for my outfit. Rarity would probably suggest a cravat or...Oh, yeah. Stay focused Sweetie Belle.

If somepony had told me several months ago that I would be a singer-slash-shopkeeper by day and a private investigator by night, I'd have told them that they had a neat idea for a book. Turns out I'm living that book though and time to finish it does not feel on my side right now. While The White Phoenix may have settled down for now, I have a new, more personal case in the meantime. The Equestria Today has crossed the line with it's attacks on me and my friends, all I need is evidence to prove there's a personal motive behind it. I have an idea how I can get it though.

I've offered them an exclusive interview on the upturn of my music career and they accepted eagerly. I've spruced myself up and prepared for any attempts to undermine me they may have prepared. They wonder what I get out of this. I get the chance to look around their offices a little, see if I can see or hear anything that might give away a hint of their motivations. It isn't going to be easy, but then it never seems to be. All that matters is I can make sure my friends are no longer under pressure from this hounding enemy.

...Hmm, I can see why Rarity enjoys doing these detective's monologues. They're actually pretty fun.

Sweetie Belle set those thoughts aside for now and focused again. She needed to be on top of her game today, going in to be interviewed by what amounted to her worst enemy in all Equestria right now. Negotiations to make this happen had been surprisingly quick and in her favour however, including giving her the right to veto any segments that appeared unfairly biased. If it was an attempt to get her to relax her guard though, it wasn't working, she was still wary of what they might be hiding behind such niceness. For now though, she just had to make her way there.

The Manehatten streets were in something of a lull at the moment, that brief midday calm as ponies almost collectively decided to break for lunch within the same three quarters of an hour. It was still busier than the average day she'd seen back in Ponyville but Sweetie was used to both types of activity level. As she made her way up toward her destination just off the city's north edge, she idly thought that the general atmosphere, down here on the streets, definitely felt a lot calmer than when she had arrived nearly two months ago. Originally the ponies she had seen on the streets betrayed a sense of tension, worry about the greater threat they seemed to be under. Now though, she could see them looking more optimistic as they made their way about, the snippets of conversation she heard were just about everyday life again. Granted, their sense of safety was being paid for by the extra pressure on the likes of Babs and Truth, but it really did feel like they were all making a difference.

Before long she reached her destination. The main offices of the Equestria Today looked rather unassuming at a glance, a seven-story building with the company logo fitted above the double door entrance in a deep blue. She couldn't help but notice that the walls actually had a small silver looking trim along their edges, an inconspicuous move to increase their flair, possibly to look more imposing to those entering. Sweetie shook the thought and entered, looking round the entrance lobby that was surprisingly welcome looking in comparison to outside. After a moment to take it in she stepped up to the reception desk, manned by a white earth stallion.

"Hello there, I'm here to be interviewed, Sweetie Belle." She said, waiting as the receptionist checked his notes and nodded.

"Pleasure to see you, head up to the third floor where somepony will be waiting for you." He replied with a demeanour that seemed to indicate his professionalism was barely containing his enthusiasm at getting to meet her, motioning to the doors just to the right of the desk.

Sweetie nodded her thanks and headed through the indicated door, finding herself in a stairwell that seemed to run all the way up the building. Silently cursing the stairs for their seemingly constant need to tire her out, she made her way up to the third floor and stepped through the door there. From the looks of it, she'd stepped into the main center of operations. The setup reminded her of her days working on the Foal Free Press, only more professional and with individual working spaces for the dozens of ponies placed in here. Standing nearby was a middle aged unicorn stallion with a tan body, russet coloured mane and tail kept short and kempt along with some matching stubble, orange eyes and a cutie mark of a quill writing on a newspaper. He turned on hearing her enter and broke into a smile that, to Sweetie's confusion, didn't have any sense of hidden motive behind it.

"Miss Sweetie Belle, it's an honour," He said, offering his hoof for her to shake, continuing as she did. "My name's Ink Slinger and I'll be interviewing you today. Do you have any questions about today? Anything you require?"

Sweetie knew from years of dealing with Diamond Tiara when a pony was acting up their niceness and had only been half listening while she tried to ascertain if that was happening here. To her surprise, he didn't seem to be hiding anything in his body language or voice. He genuinely seemed to be a nice stallion. She looked over the offices of the other ponies, not seeing any hints that any of them were against her, even the ones that kept newspaper clippings of reports they wrote didn't include anything about her. There was always the possibility that either they were deliberately hiding clues or that it wasn't one of these ponies slandering her. She'd have to look into it a little later, for now she simply nodded in response to the questions.

"I'd just like to know how this is going to go."

"Alright, if you'll follow me." Ink Slinger motioned toward a room nearby and the two of them moved for it. "It won't take too long. I'll try and keep it about your music as best I can, though the editor-in-chief probably added one or two more questions that I'm duty bound to ask you, due to not reading my contract well enough. You'll be able to look through my writing once we're finished and anything you indicate you want unpublished will be so, as promised."

"Thank you." Sweetie replied simply as they entered the interview room, looking like it was a boardroom that had been hastily rearranged for todays use. Most of the tables had been pushed up to the walls, leaving a pair in the center of the room with seats for both ponies either side. One of the walls had been left clear, it's full size window giving a clear view out to the north of Manehatten. The two of them took their seats and Slinger brought out a box containing a stack of parchment, a pair of quills, a red highlighter and two ink bottles, one black and one blue.

"The black's just for casual comments between us so I don't lose my place," Slinger explained, checking the ink was ready for use. "Any questions and answers will be in blue, the highlighter is all yours for checking over. Anything else or are we ready to start?"

"Go for it." She replied, doing her best to match his casual friendliness. Even if he was just really good at faking it, there was no reason to be unpleasant herself. Slinger nodded and took a parchment and both quills in his orange magic, making sure the ink was wetting them properly before beginning to write as he spoke.

"Well, Sweetie Belle. First off, thank you for joining us here today and congratulations on your improved fortunes over the past weeks. How does it feel to be one of the biggest pony song stars in Equestria again?"

"Well..." Sweetie mused for a moment, looking out of the window view as she actually gave it some thought. "I wouldn't call myself one of the biggest, there are names that deserve that title a lot more. Being a famous name again though, it's actually kinda nice. Mostly because it means ponies pay attention when you say you want to do something to help them. When my career was in its downward spiral, they tended to either ignore me or respond rather negatively to me...No thanks to your paper's comments." Her voice had come out a little harsher than she meant it to there, feeling bad as Slinger folded his ears back and looked away.

"Yeah, sorry about that." He apologised quietly, taking a few moments to recover his composure. "Well, I won't go into that territory again. For now, tell me about the turns of events that helped your career pick up again."

Sweetie nodded, resting her chin on a hoof as if in thought, though in reality she was trying to mask her slightly frustrated expression. No matter how much it helped her out, she still could never enjoy being questioned by anypony. As she began to explain the various influences that had first motivated her to try again, she hoped that she wouldn't have to spend too long on this interview.

An hour and a half later of questions and looking through the two dozen sheets of parchment later, they were finally done. Sweetie Belle sighed slightly as she put the highlighter down and pushed it and the last paper of questions and answers back over to Ink Slinger. She'd done her best not to cut out too much, limiting to a trio of questions that, judging by their attempts to put both her and the other Cutie Mark Crusaders down, had been the ones the editor included as well as a few comments of hers that came across worse without the context a voice provided.

"That should be everything. Thank you for taking the time to do this." Slinger said as he gathered up everything and placed it in the box by his chair.

"No problem, hopefully it provides an interesting read." She replied as she got up and stretched slightly.

"...You know, you're a good mare, so I'm going to be honest with you," She looked up at those words, seeing that Slinger was looking at her with a rather weary look on his face. "Odds are, you're going to be disappointed when this is published tomorrow. The boss tends to go over any articles involving you herself and it rarely turns out flattering."

"Why though? Who are they?" Sweetie asked, waiting as he folded his ears back and looked away, a sense of regret practically radiating off him.

"I...I want to tell you, really, but we're not supposed to tell you anything that could benefit you. The boss has...connections, I could get in trouble even for mentioning this much. She slipped all this into my contract and as I said, I didn't read it thoroughly enough so...I'm kind of stuck. I-I should get this interview moved into production."

"Ok...I'll see myself out." Sweetie replied, suddenly feeling very uneasy as she shook Slinger's hoof in farewell and made her way back toward the ground floor. Part of her wanted to just teleport home right there but that would probably look suspicious at a time she really didn't need it.

She'd learned more than she'd expected to during this little fact finding trip and yet she felt so much worse than she had anticipated about doing so. She now knew the pony responsible for giving her and her friends so much flak was powerful, influential and really hated the CMC, especially Scootaloo. There weren't any obvious suspects anymore since she was still good friends with Silver Spoon and Scootaloo was the same with Diamond Tiara. Who else could they have upset that much? As she finished making her way down the stairwell and reached the door she froze in place, making a possible connection in her mind to who it might be. She hadn't heard anything about them in years though...It couldn't be, could it?

"The Sweetie Belle interview, brought straight up as requested." Ink Slinger said as he placed the papers on the desk before him. He'd gone straight up to the top floor and to the editor-in-chief's office there as soon as she had left the interview room. Now he stood there, waiting for either a reaction or dismissal.

Sitting on the other side of the desk was an earth mare in her late fifties. Pink of coat with her mane done up in an attempt at modern styling, its two tones of moderate and dark purple faded slightly, piercing turquoise eyes and a sneer that barely veiled her contempt at hearing the unicorn's name. She took the papers and a quill and started going through the written version of the interview quickly. Slinger already knew what she was doing, scoring out any comments that showed Sweetie Belle any sympathy, casual or otherwise, as well as adding in points where she felt less lenient wording needed to be included. On seeing the highlighted questions and answers she gave a small, dark chuckle before moving on. Before long she finished going through them and passed them back over, letting him take them in his magic.

"Start shaping this up according to my editing, disregard anything she may have put down." The editor ordered, her voice eloquent but undeniably snobbish as she turned her muzzle up slightly.

"Ma'am, with respect, she had a signed contract that allowed her to veto any statement she wished." Slinger reasoned, withering slightly under the glare she gave him in response.

"If she tries to kick up a fuss over it, who do you think ponies are more likely to side with. A degenerate lowlife from a backwater town who got lucky with her voice or a pony who knows enough ponies in the right places to help them open their eyes to the truth?"

"...You," He replied with a sigh, biting back a retort that opinion and truth were totally different things. "If I may ask though...Why do this? Sweetie Belle is-" Any further attempts to make a case were stopped as a furious pair of hooves slammed into the desk, making him jump a foot in the air.

"Because that mare and her 'innocent' club of blank flank scum took my daughter from me!!! Especially that talentless, flightless pegasus that Equestria would better off without!! All of them need to pay in kind for what they did to me and my family. Now get out of here before I give you a hooves on example, and that article'd better be perfect!"

Slinger backed out of the office quickly, keeping his head down until he was safely away and had the door shut. His back pressed against the wall and he took several deep breaths as he got his heart back under control. He'd never seen the boss so angry before, a small part of him considered it lucky that she'd been in too much of a rage to punish him outright. All the same, he was probably going to pay for it later somehow and he couldn't do a thing about it since his contract kept any freedom of activity here wrapped around her hoof. As he steadily got back up and set off to begin editing the story, he managed to keep his sole thought to just that rather than spitting it out where she could hear it.

'Curse you to Tartarus, Spoiled Rich.'

The Ugly Truth

February 25th

For all the energy that Manehatten radiated during the day, it was when the sun went down and the world was blanketed under Luna's light that the city really came alive. No matter where one went, there was a near endless choice of activities. From the city's renowned dance clubs to Bridleway, any number of options to kick back and unwind were available. This was certainly something of a plus to Sweetie Belle right now. As Ink Slinger had warned, the interview that had been published in the February Twenty Third edition of the Equestria Today had run completely counter to what she had been promised in writing and come across as another attempt to tear her down as an arrogant, self-centered mare with a vendetta against the newspaper. She had elected not to mess with the potential hornets nest in this case and simply told the media the truth that the article was in breach of a signed deal between her and them, complete with showing them the contract itself. Now she was just trying to relax herself again while the inevitable reaction blew over.

Singing always helped her relax.

Fortunately she still had several performances scheduled for the coming weeks, enough to tide her over while the public reaction to the interview occurred and she had to decide what to do next. Tonight was one of those performances, part of a variety show at the Ember Hall in central Manehatten. It was one of the more prestigious concert halls in the city, seating thousands and accepting ponies from all trots of life. Right now such a crowd was seated and enjoying another of her performances, at least she hoped, when she was in the zone the world faded around her and she put everything into her music, every little muscle movement tuned to deliver a rendition that flowed like water from her soul to the world. She didn't see their reactions, didn't hear any murmurs they might be making. Right now her world was just the music around her and her voice joining with it in harmony.

As her song came to an end she dropped into a bow and took a breath she didn't realise she'd been lacking. She started to feel the wood of the stage beneath her hooves again, the gentle pulse of magic running through her horn as it lowered her trademark silver microphone, even the slight increase in temperature from so many ponies being in the room. Her ears twitched as her brain caught up with them, ringing slightly at the sudden rush of noise as hundreds of hooves applauded her. It was a little quieter than she was used to, indicating that there probably were a number of ponies out there who'd bought into the twisted words written against her. Overall though she was still getting a positive response though, that ponies were enjoying themselves made it still worth it.

"Thank you everypony. Have a great evening." She called to the audience as she made her way offstage, getting some extra applause for that. As she made her way backstage a number of stagehoofs and other performers joined in, looking like they'd enjoyed the show as well. She'd handled any meeting and greeting prior to going on stage though and settled for nodding her thanks to everypony as she passed. As much as she loved spending time with other ponies like that, she just wanted to get home and rest up right now. Spending more of her free time on alert in case something with The White Phoenix came up had left her rather worn out. As she reached the performers' cloakroom and carefully placed her microphone in her saddlebag, she looked up on hearing somepony else entering.

"Sweetie Belle? You here?" A familiar voice called moments before Coco Pommel entered the room, perking up on finding her friend there.

"Coco?" Sweetie asked in surprise, managing to keep herself from asking what she was doing here. She'd managed to secure a backstage pass for the dressmaker earlier and asking that now would just be weird.

"Oh good, I thought you might have left already." Coco said as she trotted over. There was a definite spring in her step and she seemed outright perky compared to her rather drained look over the last few months. Neither of them knew exactly why but her health had improved over the last few weeks, her legs were still aching but her chronic fatigue had almost completely gone. She'd been able to make the most of this upturn and resume her dressmaking almost as good as she used to.

"How'd you know I was leaving straight away?"

"Oh, I know what a pony who just wants to go and get some sleep is like," The earth pony gave a small chuckle before stepping forward and bringing out a small box. "I had some spare time and made you this, as thanks for making sure I didn't have any extra issues to deal with while working through my health problems."

"I, didn't really do that much." Sweetie replied in slight confusion as she took the box in her magic. All she'd really done all this time was making sure neither Rarity or Market Match knew the full extent of her problems and buying her the spa day. She didn't think that would justify getting a gift but Coco had always been a pony who highly appreciated her friends. She opened the box and looked in, jaw dropping slightly as she did.

Resting inside the box was a purple silk scarf, perfectly matching the rest of her detective outfit from the same shade as the band on her hat to be being small enough to fit into her coat without being too obtrusive. She lifted it up and looked it over closely, smiling warmly before putting her coat on, keeping her saddlebag underneath it, before fitting the scarf, tying it at the front and letting a little drape over her chest. It was definitely quite snug and yet breathable at the same time, something she'd be able to keep wearing on cooler days until summer came around. She smiled more at the feeling before stepping forward and hugging Coco in thanks.

"Sometimes I forget just how good you are at your work, and at being a friend. Thank you." She finally said, stepping back and putting her hat on. Coco smiled more and nodded, rubbing her leg in slight embarrassment at the praise.

"You're welcome, and it's the least you deserved." Coco finally replied, giving that small, slightly awkward grin that her friends couldn't help but think was cute.

"Thanks, Coco. Once I've had a proper rest I'll think of something for you in return. For now I'll let you return to enjoying the show, apparently the Whinnyapolis juggling act is fantastic."

Coco nodded and made her way out, back toward her backstage viewing area. Sweetie smiled to herself and put her hat on before making her way out of the building. A light rain had started to fall as she came out, combined with the time of night and the fact she had exited onto a side street, it meant there weren't any other ponies about at present. She adjusted her coat slightly to keep the rain out better before setting off. There was a taxi carriage stand a few streets away, she could get one easily in this weather and be home in half an hour if everything went smoothly. She instantly regretted thinking that since it meant that any moment now...

"I'll admit, your voice is impressive for a commoner."

Sweetie paused and turned toward the voice, her expression currently unreadable. Standing in the shadow cast by the nearby streetlight ahead of her was Spoiled Rich, flanked by a pair of stallions in business suits, one of them holding an umbrella for her. The two of them simply stared each other down for a minute, memories of their last encounters coming back to the fore. For Sweetie Belle it was a rather benign thing, back when she was a filly and simply thought the older mare was super mean for being president of the school board and yet allowing Diamond Tiara to keep pushing everypony around like she did, though that was before she learned of their family connection. Spoiled Rich, on the other hoof, was simply putting a lot of effort toward keeping herself from punching the unicorn in the face right now.

"Spoiled Rich, it's been a long time." Sweetie finally said, trying to sound civil and neutral at the same time.

"Less than you think, though I suppose you wouldn't know. You weren't allowed to see me after all." Spoiled replied, eyeing her with unmistakable distain as if she would rather be having this discussion from a hundred feet away.

"Okay...I'm guessing from the presence of your 'friends' that this isn't a social call," Sweetie glanced over at the stallions, sizing the situation up in the event things went bad. She probably couldn't take on either of them on her own, though she could easily teleport out before things got violent if she needed to. "Though if you want them to join in, you should probably know in advance that I do have friends in the Manehatten police."

"Oh that's cute, you manage to be nice to a blue collar nopony and think it actually improves your social standing," Spoiled smirked slightly and brought a hoof up, condescendingly patting Sweetie's cheek. "Plus you just made it even easier for us to have a scapegoat in the event that The White Phoenix starts going too far. Aren't you just full of surprises?"

"Us to...You're involved with the Equestria Today?!" Sweetie exclaimed as she took a step back, really wishing that the street wasn't deserted. Any kind of witness would be really nice right about now. Spoiled simply chuckled coldly and closed the gap again, practically going nose to nose.

"I AM the Equestria Today. As editor-in-chief it's my word that gives everypony in Equestria the chance to read the truth about you and your little 'blank flank' friends." The venom in her voice hit a new high at the mention of that old insult, clearly wanting to say worse but making a laboured attempt to remain civil.

"...Okay, first things first, Apple Bloom and Scootaloo both have their cutie marks and-"

"Don't you dare mention that faux-pegasus so lightly!" Spoiled snapped, making Sweetie recoil in fear. This was more than just some longstanding dislike, this was deep rooted hatred. "She ruined my whole setup for Diamond Tiara by getting her to be another confused fool who turned her back on the life she could have had, deserved to have."

"...Really?" Sweetie Belle replied flatly as she straightened up again, her patience for the older mare starting to wear thin as she recovered from that outburst. "So Scootaloo saves your daughters' life in front of the other crusaders and shows her the way to a life that currently sees her as a happy, well balanced mare with a lovely daughter, as well as becoming the popular mayor of Ponyville...And you decided to disown her and hate all four of us for it, because it's not exactly what you had in mind?"

"If she had stuck to my intent she would be one of the most influential ponies in Equestria! She could have had the world in her hoof right now and she threw it away for a trio of insignificant filth who went on to make nothing of themselves. It's bad enough that you and that apple pony were accessories to this crime, but the fact the pony responsible should have been abandoned to her fate as soon as her parents realised she couldn't fly...It shows just how far this land has fallen if they think a flightless pegasus deserves to make it this far."

The silence following that statement hung between them for several seconds, broken only by the constant and steadily building sound of rainfall. There had been no ambiguity in those words whatsoever. Sweetie Belle stood rooted in place, trying to process just what she'd heard. Her eyes narrowed slightly and her expression dropped into a dark glare, punctuated almost perfectly by a distant roll of thunder. She normally wasn't one to go for any kind of aggression but being told that one of her friends didn't deserve to live because of who they were sparked something hidden deep inside her. She didn't care about the odds against her anymore, the only reason she was restraining herself now was that Spoiled Rich probably did have the ability to ruin her life unless she went further than even this anger would let her.

"You, sure you want to continue this line of thought?" She said with a growl, which unfortunately didn't sound very good coming from her voice.

"That's why I settled for leadership of Equestria's leading newspaper," Spoiled Rich continued, as if she hadn't even registered that comment. "So I can put all of you back where you belong. In your case, that's just making everpony realise how worthless you are when they look past your voice and ending your music for good. That would be getting off lightly for the pegasus though, she needs to be broken, ridiculed, seen by everypony as I do until she realises all she can do is-"

"Okay, no," Sweetie snapped, legs shaking slightly in anger. She had a good idea where that statement was going and it was unforgiveable. "You think this is justified? Ruining ponies lives because you disagree with what they said to your daughter?!"

"...It IS justified. Speaking of which, I know you're thinking of telling ponies about this little discussion. I wouldn't, not unless you want to become public enemy number one within twenty four hours..." Spoiled smirked softly and turned away. It was almost scary how quickly she can regained her composure after the earlier outburst. "Oh, and I don't bluff either. Enjoy your night."

Sweetie stood rooted in place as the trio of ponies in front of her made their way to a carriage hidden in the shadows further down the street and left the area. Her mind was racing to handle the revelations it had just been witness to, her body struggling to move on its own from a mixture of shock, anger and being freezing cold in the rain. Without thinking about it her horn flared up and she teleported straight back into her house. Unable to think of anything else at the moment, she headed upstairs to try and get some sleep, wondering just what she was supposed to do against a pony that very likely wasn't bluffing about holding every advantage here.

I wish I could say I had been prepared for something like this.

But no, the one responsible for the slanderous writing against me and the others coming up to me, admitting it and being in a position where I just couldn't stop them...That's something they don't train you to deal with. I think, is there something in detective school for that? I wish Babs had been there, we could have probably taken them together and stopped this whole thing tonight. Or failing that, I should have had some way of recording it...Ugh! Why did I have to overlook learning that spell during Twilight time? Why did Twilight stop it before I could learn? Ok, getting off topic. Maybe the MPD has something just as good, something that will let me expose her for what she is. Here's hoping, otherwise I'm completely sunk.

Ok, first thing tomorrow, I'm calling in that favour.

Fresh Developments

March 2nd

Another day was drawing to a close in Manehatten. Sweetie Belle had been doing her best to just get through the last few days as quietly as possible, keeping her head down and working at Manehatten Carousel. Thankfully things had been getting busier in the store, meaning she didn't have time to dwell on her discussion with Spoiled Rich. The morning after learning the truth about the Equestria Today and spending a sleepless night convincing herself it wasn't futile, she had gone straight to Gleaming Truth and made her case for trying to do something about it. The investigator had been understandably cagey about going up against a pony as influential as Spoiled was but had promised to take it up with her superiors and see what she could do. For now they just had to stay out of trouble until a decision was made, something Sweetie was quite good at doing on her own.

"Hey, Sweetie Belle, are you doing ok? You've been pretty quiet." Market Match asked as he finished checking the store over as part of closing up for the day.

"Hmm? Oh, yeah, just a lot on my mind right now." Sweetie replied as she put dresses away, trying not to make eye contact. A lot was a bit of an understatement.

"I understand, that interview was...Well they were just savage. Anypony who knows you knows you'd never say something like that."

"Yeah..." Sweetie closed up the storage cabinet and glanced away, doing her best not to comment on it. She knew Match was on her side but didn't feel quite as confident about the same being true of ponies out on the street, or elsewhere in Equestria.

"If it helps, while you were handling the stockroom we had a number of ponies come through who said they had stopped reading the Equestria Today after that interview. I can't speak for the wider Equestria, but I don't think your popularity took any major knocks here.

"Oh, well that's a plus." Sweetie perked up slightly as she heard that, relaxing a little and adjusting her silk scarf. She'd been wearing it during the day as a mixture of both product promotion and a small measure of comfort after the last few days. It had helped more than that, Coco always looked a little happier when she saw it being worn.

With the necessities to close up the boutique finished, the two of them waited for Coco to come down from her workplace before making their way outside and locking the store up. They had made plans to go out to a bar tonight, try and ease the various tensions that all three had had to deal with recently. The sight outside put paid to those thoughts though. A police wagon pulled up just outside the boutique just as they were starting to leave, a smaller cart that only needed a single pony to pull and seated two. The door opened on it and Babs Seed stepped out, dressed in her full patrol uniform, looking round for a second before spotting the group and trotting over.

"Sweetie Belle, good to see you. You too Mr Match, Miss Pommel." She said happily as she reached them, familiar with Coco and Match through discussions with her friend.

"You too Babs," Sweetie replied, noticing the look in the earth pony's eyes. "This is a business call though. isn't it?"

"''Fraid so. Gleaming Truth wants to see you right away, something about your personal case."

"Dangit..." Sweetie muttered to herself, hoping the others didn't hear her little curse before she recovered her composure and looked over at the other two. "I'm sorry, but I really have to go deal with this."

"Oh it's alright, what you're needed for sounds very important." Coco replied, unable to hide the tinge of disappointment in her voice.

"We'll be able to do it again another day, and we'll have a great time then." Match added, putting a reassuring hoof on Coco's shoulder.

Sweetie nodded and turned toward the cart, following Babs as she got in. It was lucky that she was good at withholding her emotions when she needed to because for once she really wished that she could make this wait. Despite her best efforts, she had been neglecting her friendships recently more than she'd like thanks to dealing with both The White Phoenix and Spoiled Rich. Hopefully though, one way or another, this would be a major step toward ending her involvement with the latter. Once she was in and seated the cart driver set off back toward the MPD precinct, both passengers wondering just where this meeting was going to go.

For all the times she'd been here, Sweetie Belle felt a little strange as she walked through the corridors of Manehatten's police command center with Babs. Maybe it was the fact she only had her scarf and not the rest of her detective outfit, or that she didn't have any explicit idea of just what she was doing here. She'd feel better when things were clearer but for now she simply kept walking, exchanging greetings with ponies they passed. That was another strange thing to think about, she'd been here so often that she was starting to become familiar with the other ponies that worked here, not to mention that she could probably find her way around half the facility on her own if not for the fact she'd probably get in trouble for doing so.

"So, does Truth normally have meetings round here?" She asked, looking over at Babs and trotting a little faster to keep up, since this was one of the areas she hadn't really been to.

"Not really, the armoury doesn't rank all that high on the list of meeting rooms." Babs replied, sounding just as clueless herself as to the reason behind the decision to go there.

Sweetie actually stopped for a moment before continuing on as she processed that. She'd never expected to be allowed anywhere near the police armoury considering she was just a civilian, yet she had been explicitly summoned there now. Maybe they had something only she could use? The sudden thought surprised her, buying into such ideas so easily was more Scootaloo's thing. Then again, despite her best attempts to claim otherwise she did seem to have some degree of skill, she'd never met another unicorn who knew how to teleport after all. Managing to put those thoughts aside for now, she remained silently following Babs until they reached the armoury entrance and entered.

It was pretty much exactly how she had imagined it. A dozen spacious, secure lockers lined three walls of the room, most of them locked up tight right now. The one open one she could see was loaded with what appeared to be riot gear, all reinforced armour pieces and batons that she couldn't imagine seeing use in even the less harmonious parts of Equestria. Two ponies were sitting on a bench that ran the length of the free wall next to the door, Gleaming Truth was one of them but she didn't recognise the pony next to her. An amethyst coloured pegasus stallion that sported a windswept ruby mane and tail with a trio of scarlet streaks, dark blue eyes and a cutie mark of a distant cloud in vivid detail. As she focused on them she realised he also had a small cut barely visible on the back of his neck.

"Sweetie Belle, glad you made it," Truth said as she saw the unicorn come in and got up, offering a hoofbump to her and Babs that they both readily returned. "I've got good news, we've got a green light to proceed with investigating you-know-who."

"Really?" Babs asked in surprise, getting an affirmative nod from Truth. "Didn't think it'd be that easy."

"Me neither, but the higher ups are taking this seriously enough to start putting a search warrant together. Social engineering with intent to inflict emotional abuse and proxy to worse...Yeah, she has to be stopped."

"It's still not as easy as all that," Sweetie pointed out. "All you've got to go on is my testimony and that's not going to do much good against somepony who could probably get off scot-free by discreetly coughing at the judge."

"Exactly, and solid evidence would normally be a lot harder to come by. Which is why we have somepony who knows just how we can get it." Truth motioned for the pegasus to come up and join them. "I'd like you to meet one of our friends from the Canterlot guard."

"Pleasure to meet you both. Name's Sky Eye, but you can call me Oka." The stallion said with a grin, again sounding more pleasant that he appeared. He actually looked to be around the same age as Sweetie Belle, give or take a few months since she had no idea.

"Oka?" Babs asked, both her and Sweetie curious about that. It sounded exotic, like from the languages of the lands south of Equestria.

"Focus on the task at hoof for now, please." Truth interjected before they could get sidetracked. ".Anywho, Sky Eye was working with the Canterlot Institute of Development recently, helping test some magic based doohickey that...You know what, it'd probably be easier to let you do the talking for this."

"It's a prototype device from the Institute's studies into portable magic. There's a lot of technical stuff they understand better than me, the point is that it gave us this." Sky said as he went to the open locker and reached into the back of it, fetching out a package hidden back there and bringing it over.

Setting it down on the bench, he opened it up and let the others see. Inside was what looked like a black brick made of carbonado, a small round section on one of the larger sides was thinner than the rest, a gentle white glow visible through it. Attached to the sides were a pair of straps that seemed designed to wrap round a pony's body and the top end had a rubber wire that curled round for several meters before ending at an approximately tooth sized microphone. Sweetie, Babs and Truth all stared down at it, trying to make sense of what they were seeing. There was something eerie about it, a strange sense that it shouldn't be. Whether that was simply due to the idea of how far the Institute was pushing Equestria toward a new future or something worse was unknown, which didn't really help.

"So...What is it?" Babs finally asked, looking up at Sky.

"They called it a wire tap, probably after the pony who made it," He explained. "The simple version is, that glow is coming from a recording spell that's been separated from its source of magic, it just exists there right now, sitting dormant. When it's attached to a pony, it activates again, being powered by the natural magic inside the pony, and starts working. It works with earth ponies and pegasi, I had that thing on for an hour and it keep going the whole time, but it works best with unicorns due to their natural affinity for magic. Apparently the finished version will be seeing some kind of use within the Equestria Defence Force but for now, when one of Gleaming Truth's bosses called them, they let me take it out of the lab and bring it here for its first field test on this case. How's that sound?" He looked at them with a grin before dropping it as he realised they were all staring at him.

"That was the simple version?" Truth asked, raising an eyebrow that was half sceptic, half confused as she tried to make sense of that.

"When you've listened to Institute Chief Moondancer giving an explanation that lasts for ten minutes and uses even more complex terminology, you'd think so, yes."

"I think I get it," Sweetie mused, feeling the brick with a hoof and being pleasantly surprised at how warm it was. "This'll record anything around it, including voices. So all we have to do is get Spo...Our suspect, to say anything that reveals her motives close to it and we've got our evidence, even her word can't go up against her word."

"Precisely," Sky confirmed, watching her for a moment. "Why didn't you say the name though? I've still not been told who you're investigating."

"Because it feels like she could probably hear us right now. Trust me, you'll know soon enough."

"Right..." The moment hung a little awkwardly between them before he continued "So, we have our method, now we just need a plan."

"Well, I took the liberty of making sure we had a room spare for that," Truth interjected, getting up and flexing a leg slightly. "I'll take you two there to get started. Babs, did we leave the testimony papers in your office?"

"I think so, I'll go check and then grab something from the cafeteria for while we're working," Babs replied, moving to the door before stopping and looking back at Sky. "Hope you like coffee, we get through a lot here."

Sky chuckled and nodded, while Sweetie gave a quiet sigh of disappointment before starting to follow Truth. In all honesty though, she couldn't really see it as a problem with all these positives coming to her now. She now had a genuine means to take the fight back to Spoiled Rich and a pony that could show her how to make the most out of it. Combined with both Babs' and Truth's experience and Manehatten know-how, she was certain that they could come up with a plan to end this vendetta against her and her friends. If that meant having to be around a few cups of that drink for a few hours to do so, she could handle it. Probably.

Author's Note

Sorry if this chapter felt rushed. I realised a little late that I would be dropping Sky Eye and the wire tap into the story with little explanation if I didn't include it so, hopefully it's not too bad.

And before you ask, carbonado is a real mineral, it's a 10 on the Mohs Hardness Scale. *This factoid has been approved by leading Equestrian Geologist Maud Pie*

Recap

It didn't take long for word of Spoiled Rich's arrest to spread throughout Manehatten. Within hours everypony within five miles of the city knew that something had occurred and had their own opinions of just what had happened, though details had still not been released by the MPD. Sweetie Belle had little idea about just how quickly things had escalated though, the rest of her day was spend in the Equestria Today building, gathering evidence from Spoiled's office. She wasn't sure if she should be impressed or shocked to find out that not only had she been serious about trying to blame her for being The White Phoenix, she had evidence about it that even the police didn't have. The idea that she had been willing to withhold something so important for either blackmail or framing somepony had finally been one to many to go unshaken by though. She'd done her best to keep working but by early evening she couldn't manage much more.

"I just...You ever have those moments where you think you've seen the worst and then...Pow, it escalates just like that?" Sweetie said to nopony in particular. She was leaning over Spoiled Rich's desk, staring at the evidence she'd uncovered, doing her best to commit it to memory so she could update Rarity's investigation board at home. Her hat lay to one side, feeling somewhat stifling with how worked up she was.

"Actually, yeah," Sky Eye replied as he gave the room another sweep for anything that the other investigators might have missed. "I kind of didn't have the easiest time in school back in Canterlot, the kind of pony that got picked on for being too smart, you know? One day when I was twelve, I was getting more of it despite thinking I could get away at a weekend. Got so bad I ended up running to a royal guard for help. Despite how busy he was, he let me stick with him on his patrol to make sure I didn't have any more trouble. I'd found some measure of safety and an idea of what I wanted to be when I grew up, thought I might have a way to be past the worst."

"And what happened?" Sweetie asked, looking up at him with curiosity.

"All this happened on the planned day of Shining Armor and Princess Cadance's wedding," Sky shuddered slightly at the memories. "One minute we were trotting through the residential district and discussing how I could join the guard, the next the shield over the city collapsed and we were running for our lives from a dozen changelings falling like meteors. Everything was in chaos, we just kept running, hiding, running more. They had us cornered and looked set to cocoon us before the shield came back up and repelled them."

He looked up at her and paused, tensing slightly by the sight. Sweetie was rigid, staring forward blankly, her breathing slowed almost to a crawl. She had her own memories of what had happened that day, memories she'd hidden away for decades...

Canterlot Castle
September 30th, Year 1000 of the Celestial Era

"You think this is safe enough?" Apple Bloom whispered, doing her best not to quiver in worry. The Cutie Mark Crusaders hadn't know what to expect when they had been invited to take part in the wedding of Princess Mi Amore Cadenza, but it was pretty likely that going from flower girls at the ceremony to hiding for their lives from an invasion of the capital wasn't supposed to happen. The three of them had fled upon the first appearance of the monstrous Queen Chrysalis and had currently bunked down in a small alcove, behind a statue that stood just next to the castle library. They could hear the sounds of fighting throughout the city outside, and coming from within the castle itself.

"It's gotta be, I didn't see any better options." Scootaloo commented quietly, huddled down against the floor and making herself as small as possible.

"I want my mommy." Sweetie Belle whimpered, curled up on herself and sounding like she was going to burst into tears at any moment. The combination of being the most sensitive member of the crusaders and only being six years old meant the shock turn of events was taking its toll on her harder than any of them.

"Hey, I'm scared too," Scootaloo whispered, gently placing a hoof on her shoulder. "You're with us though, and we're Cutie Mark Crusader Camouflage Experts right now. We just gotta wait until Rainbow Dash, Applejack and Rarity save the day like they always do."

"Exactly, we're getting through toget-" Apple Bloom's attempt at reassurance died in her throat as they heard rapidly approaching hoofsteps.

"D-dad? Sis?" Sweetie squeaked before the others could stop her. They held their breath for a moment and she dared to raise her head before somepony...No, something came into view no more than three feet away. From their gap between the statue and the edge of the alcove it looked so much like a unicorn but, so wrong at the same time.

Covered in a rough, dark blue carapace on its top half that gave way to sleeker but no less unpleasant black bone plates that covered its head and underside. A horn curved forward like a scimitar. Sharp blue eyes that seemed to glow slightly and faded into a soulless white where the pupils should be. Faded, transparent, chitin wings and a pair of razor sharp fangs that seemed to be coated in a putrid green substance. A changeling from this close was the creation a filly's nightmares. Then it stopped and noticed the trio of fillies, trapped against the wall with no way out. Its mouth opened and gave a dark hiss, spittle flying through the air between them as a porous hoof reached toward them for who knew what purpose.

Scootaloo gave a yell of fear at the sight, freezing up in place. Apple Bloom was shaking like a leaf but still tried to put herself between the changeling and the others. Sweetie Belle shrieked in terror and tried to pull herself away, desperately pounding at the stone wall behind her as if she could break through to safety. Time seemed to hang eternally before the sound of another pair of hooves made themselves known, coming from the same direction. The changeling was blindsided by a silver unicorn guard and tackled out of sight further down the hallway, adding to the chaotic sounds around them.

"Oh no. We gotta move!" Apple Bloom called to the others, glancing out from their hiding spot through a nearby window and wincing at the sight of the on-going battle outside. Sweetie Belle gave a sob and sunk back to the floor, the other crusaders looking at her in shock.

She couldn't do this, she couldn't escape. Her body curled up again and she buried her head in her hooves. She couldn't think, could barely breathe. This was an unending nightmare for her more vulnerable self and the fighting taking place just meters away was one shock too many for her to cope with anymore. She could only hear her own breath rattling around against her legs, numb to the hooves trying to pull her back into motion, her mind locking down as her friends voices rang out above her.

"Sweetie Belle, come on! We can't stay here...Sweetie Belle, please! Sweetie Belle!!!"

"Sweetie Belle?"

"Gyah!" Sweetie Belle felt a hoof on her shoulder and snapped back to reality, staggering backward and nearly tripping over a chair as she looked round quickly. The office around her came back into focus as she steadied herself, the same as she'd been in before zoning out. Sky Eye was standing next to her with a concerned look, a hoof raised to try and rouse her before that momentary snap.

"A-are you...?"

"Tell me you're not one of them, please!" She panted, shaking slightly as she fought to get herself under control again. Sky stood for a moment before letting his hoof drop and ears fold back as the realisation set in.

"Not a...Oh. Oh sweet Celestia...I'm sorry." He said softly. The awkward moment hung between them before being mercifully broken by the sound of Babs Seed entering the room.

"Everypony alright? I heard a yell from downstairs." She asked quickly, steadily calming down as she saw everything seemed in order here.

"Yeah, just...Bonding over bad memories." Sweetie answered quietly, looking down and scuffing the floor slightly with her hoof. Sky looked away from them both, downright ashamed of himself for letting this happen.

"Oh...I err, I was gonna come up anyway since we need to wrap up for the day. Sweetie Belle, you want us to give you a lift home?" Babs waited for her friend to give a sullen nod and recover her hat before trotting over to her. "Hey, come on, just breathe. You're going to be okay, promise. Oka, can you bring any evidence left back to lockup?"

"Yeah, no problem. See you both later." Sky watched the two of them go and shook his head slightly, deeply disappointed in himself for being so careless with his words. While most ponies would be willing to shake it off or be content with his apology, his zebra heritage expected fitting atonement for wounding another's spirit. He only hoped he would have time to do so before he had to return to Canterlot.

The trip back to Hayway Road was quiet at first. Sweetie Belle was still rattled by her memories but with time to calm down, and Babs' unique style of reassurance, she was most of the way back to her old self by the time they reached their destination. Her hoofsteps were steadier and she was making eye contact again as she thanked the carriage driver. The sun was just beginning to dip below the horizon as she stepped up to her house, casting a gentle orange glow over the street. Babs was about to head back to the police station when she noticed that her friend had stopped just in front of the door, not going in. She got out herself and trotted over, catching up quickly.

"Sweetie Belle? What's wrong?" She asked softly, knowing that she was still likely a little tender despite being in a better place than before.

"The lock," Sweetie replied quietly. "I know I locked up before leaving today, but it's been opened up, still unlocked too. Rarity has the spare key but she'd have said if she was returning anytime soon."

"The door doesn't look forced though...Lockpicks aren't that common but..." Babs waved the carriage off and put a hoof to the door. She slowly pushed it open and peeked inside, taking the lead as they carefully moved in, keeping it quiet.

The interior of the house was cloaked in a light shadow without any lights on right now. The downstairs was uncomfortably silent, though even worse was that there were clear sounds of life coming from the floor above. Somepony was still there. Babs looked back at Sweetie and nodded, their expressions sliding back into a professional look as they both acknowledged time to unwind would have to wait. The two of them went to the wall and steadily made their way up the stairs, making as little noise as possible with each step. Whoever was there didn't seem to hear them coming and they kept following the noise to its source, the guest bedroom. That fact only set off more alarms in Sweetie's mind, since that was where Rarity had been keeping all their investigation notes on the Phoenix.

They stacked up against the ajar door and peered in. The lights were off in there as well, the light coming from the window shining onto Rarity's investigation board while leaving a long shadow over the room itself. A figure was shrouded in this darkness, its figure difficult to make out through the clothing they were wearing. It paced alongside the bed in the room, completely focused on the board. Babs and Sweetie glanced at each other, both making the same assumption. One of Spoiled Rich's goons, trying to exact some kind of misguided revenge by breaking in here? It seemed all too likely considering everypony in the city had at least heard a rumour about what had happened. On the plus side, it was something to focus on, go in hard and bring them down. The were no words needed, they both knew what to do.

Babs backed up slightly and charged, shoulder barging the door open and using the time granted by the shock value to let Sweetie follow her in. The figure jumped with a gasp at the door slam, the voice indicating it was a mare. They clipped the bed as they came back down and lost their balance, falling down out of sight. Sweetie charged round and planted a hoof firmly on the intruder's chest, grinning at how easy that had been.

"MPD Missy! You just stepped into the...Wrong...Oh." Her proclamation degraded into embarrassed muttering and she stepped back to let the mare up, her white coat and now dishevelled purple mane much more visible up close.

"Well that's no way to say welcome back, is it?" Rarity replied in irritation.

"I said I was sorry." Sweetie Belle said for what felt like the hundredth time, looking down at the cup of hot cider she held in her magic rather intently.

"Sweetie Belle, precious star, it was a simple mistake." Rarity said reassuringly, smiling softly and taking a sip from her own cup. She'd recovered from their surprise reunion quickly and the two of them were sitting on the spare bed now, simply letting the atmosphere warm up again. Babs had left once the misunderstanding had been cleared up, saying she'd promised Solo Act that she'd be home on time today.

Rarity had explained that she had been intending her return to Manehatten to be a surprise, which explained why the lights had been off, after managing to finish up her business in Ponyville. It turned out the Diamond Dogs really had taken a more isolationist stance and she had been forced to abandon her gem imports from them entirely, turning to the dragons for an alternate source. Thankfully it was a relatively painless transition due to her previous contact with Dragon Lord Ember and she had even been able to make the most of the extra time she had while the deal was secured to do some investigating outside of Manehatten. She had results as well, results she planned to share with her sister as she put her cup aside and moved over to her investigation board, clearing some space on it next to her note about the magic at the warehouse.

"Alright sis. I'm guessing you want to get back to it then." Sweetie remarked, a little surprised at the drive being shown but silently thankful that the issue of before had been dropped.

"I was able to pull a few strings with some friends in Canterlot and they had a look into the magic I felt at our first crime scene," Rarity started, going to the bedside table where her new outfit was placed, a burgundy coloured milford coat with a black belt along with a phthalo blue slouch hat that sported a sleek, light grey band, both easy enough to be hidden in the darkness of the room before. She pulled a notebook from one of the coat pockets with her magic and looked through it quickly. "In summation, they think they have a name."

"Really? Who?"

"...Sunset Shimmer." Rarity paused and looked back at her sister, likely for dramatic effect. It worked. Sweetie froze up slightly and stared back, gobsmacked. Sunset Shimmer was only the personal student of Princess Celestia, or to be more accurate, had been. She'd disappeared without trace from the public eye over a year ago, nopony knew exactly why but the most common stories involved a pony with mental health issues and a diplomatic incident with the Crystal Empire.

"But, what would she be doing there? And how would she get there? Is she actually the Phoenix?"

"Sorry darling, but that was all they were able to find. Hopefully we'll be able to find out ourselves." Rarity took a paper and quill placed by the board and wrote Sunset's name with a question mark by it before pinning it to the board.

"Well, at least we both found something then," Sweetie commented, pausing herself for dramatic effect as Rarity waited for her to continue. "Odds are you'll see my source in the headlines tomorrow, but turns out somepony did a bit of the work for us and was holding out with it for their own gains. Their notes indicate two new confirmed facts. All the acts of The White Phoenix have been between eleven and three o'clock at night, and that the first case that was definitely down to them took place on the ninth of July."

Rarity nodded and wrote those facts out on some more paper, adding them to the board. It wasn't much, but it was more than she'd had to go on an hour ago.

"So if we could only look for ponies who are only about at night, or seem tired during the day...Speaking of which, how is Coco by the way?"

"She's doing a lot better actually."

"Good. I'll have to see her tomorrow," Rarity pinned the new notes to her board and stepped back, picking up her cup again. "Well, we're making some progress now. Though I didn't see anything in the news about the Phoenix making any new moves while I was gone...Maybe we're lucky and they've decided to make an end to it."

"Yeah, here's hoping." Sweetie replied, shifting nervously in place. She couldn't really tell why, intuition, gut feeling or just being a plain cliché, but she couldn't shake the sense that they were far from done.

Author's Note

One of the problems with bringing up canon events in these stories, the timeline of the Quickverse means that the entirety of S1-3 takes place over about 8 months, so things might seem a little close together.

Anywho, the majority of the clues are in place now. Place your bets on the identity of The White Phoenix now!*

*Bets are purely for fun and there are no prizes for correct answers, winners will be announced upon the reveal.

Escalation

Author's Note

First off, I'm really sorry about the delay with this chapter. My motivation slipped onto a 'brief' idea for another story of mine which spiralled into a 5,000 word piece. Add in extra shifts at work and illness once that was done and, yeah. This isn't my best as a result, I hope you don't mind.

Escalation

March 10th

I should have known it was too good to be true.

In my line of work, I've seen a lot of bad deeds done. Well, most of them weren't actually when I was being a detective, but that's beside the point. I've seen a lot in my time but the White Phoenix defies all my previous experiences. The Diamond Dogs were dir...Subterranean hoarders, Suri Polomare was an unscrupulous, pig-headed glory hog, Wind Rider framed my friend and ruined ivory scarves with reckless abandon. But all of them had a motive that was at least somewhat comprehendible. There doesn't seem to be any reason for why the Phoenix is doing what they do, what do they gain by trying to burn the Manehatten food scene? And why? Just what kind of mind would want this?

Well, with any luck my first crime scene since returning will hopefully have something new to work with.

Rarity brushed her monologue, and her mane, to one side as she entered Manehatten Central Station. Sweetie Belle had gone in just ahead of her and Babs Seed was to her side. Normally it would have taken them several minutes to get anywhere inside the central hub for Manehatten's rail connection to the rest of Equestria. Ponies were still milling about, heading to and from the platforms but it was still a lot quieter due to a mix of it being ten past midnight and a section of the station being cordoned off due to a fire at a café in the waiting plaza, the scene of the latest White Phoenix attack.

Police tape had been tied to a number of benches nearby, ending at the connecting shops to form a perimeter that a pair of officers were also manning to make sure nopony wandered in. Gleaming Truth was next to the café entrance talking to a firepony all clad in protective equipment and looking rather concerned about something. As the trio of newcomers made their way over to the crime scene and let Babs handle their clearance, Sky Eye made his way out from checking inside the café and trotted over to them.

"Huh, thought you'd be back in Canterlot already." Babs commented as he came over.

"Well, I already sent the wire and reports back to the Institute and that pretty much wrapped up my involvement with them so, I got permission to help with this investigation," Sky explained, looking back at one of the burned out windows. "Never saw anything like this in Canterlot though."

"I never saw anything like this in Ponyville either," Sweetie Belle added, leaning against a bench. "And weird things seemed to happen there every week."

"Sounds like my kind of place." He commented, getting a small chuckle out of her.

"Ah, you must be the lovely fellow that Sweetie Belle told me about." Rarity said as she took Sky in, noticing that his gaze remained on her sister but deciding not to comment.

"Hmm? Oh err, yes. My name's Sk...Oh." Sky stopped and bowed slightly as he realised just who he was talking to. "Miss Rarity. It's an honour to meet an Element of Harmony in person."

"It's a pleasure to meet somepony from Canterlot who actually recognises me for that." Rarity replied, smiling a little more.

"Really? I mean I know you're well known there for Canterlot Carousel, but the Elements of Harmony are some of the most famous ponies alive. How could anypony not recognise you?"

"You'd be surprised." She answered simply, glancing aside as Sweetie barely managed to stifle her laughter at that observation.

"Ok fillies, we can catch up later," Babs interrupted, though she was also smiling and hadn't used her more professional police tone yet. "Oka, what've we got?"

"Pretty similar to all the others I read up on," Sky started, pausing as Rarity had to be quickly taken to one side and have the whole Oka thing explained to her. "Though a bit more worryingly, the fire was reported only fifteen minutes after the café had closed. The fireponies that responded to it would have just thought a worker there had gotten careless during closing up if they hadn't found the Phoenix's symbol round the back."

"Nopony around saw it starting?" Sweetie asked, studying the burns from behind the tape, watching as Truth went inside to investigate herself.

"No, pretty much everypony working in the waiting plaza had already gone home and there weren't any trains in. In fact the fire was actually reported by passengers from a late train arriving from Whinnyapolis."

"Hmmm...That's strange." Sweetie rubbed her in thought, the others looking over at her. "There should have been at least one witness here. Even if there was nopony waiting to greet a passenger, I know for a fact that that train had a shipment of nylon on board due to be delivered to Manehatten Carousel tomorrow morning, I requested it from Rarity's store there and handled all the shipping information myself. So why wasn't there anypony here to take delivery of it?"

"A little off topic, but I agree, that's so strange," Rarity commented. "And what exactly are you using so much nylon on anyw-" Her questioning was cut off by a shocked yelp that echoed from inside the burned café.

All of them looked over, ready to move in, when they saw Gleaming Truth backing out, shaking slightly, her expression neutral but clearly masking a look of fear. She turned quickly and said something inaudible to the officer nearest her, who nodded and moved out from the barrier, escorting ponies who were still lingering around toward the exits. She quickly trotted over to the assembled group, panting slightly as she fought to get herself under control. The fact that the normally cool, analytical pony was under such distress was more unnerving than anything.

"We need to evacuate the station immediately. Extend the security cordon to the entire block and stop any further trains coming in. I need to contact Long Walk, nopony enters the building until he gets here. Move out." She said to them, sounding as shaky as she looked as she ducked under the tape and headed back toward the main entrance.

"O-okay, you heard the mare. Outside, now." Babs said after a few seconds. Her own voice was tensed and her ears were folded back against her skull. Sweetie had never seen her friend so perturbed before, the sight enough for her to make her way out without a word of argument.

By the time all of them had reached the street, the evacuation was almost completed. Police ponies were currently covering every entrance to the building until they could be sure it was empty and Sky Eye had taken to the air to ensure it remained clear up above. There was a more significant crowd around as word had begun to spread about what had happened and ponies were hanging around to try and get a glimpse, though thankfully they were keeping their distance which made it easier to extend the police barriers out. Sweetie Belle promptly made her way back toward the crowd and what she imagined was a safe distance from whatever was going on. Rarity hung back for a minute, next to the still nervous Babs who was now helping man the security at the entrance.

"Alright, How bad is it?" She asked simply, letting the officer take a few breaths to calm herself down again. Babs managed to compose herself a little more and looked the older mare dead in the eyes, giving off a sense of justified worry.

"Long Walk leads the bomb squad."

The atmosphere surrounding the entire city block was tense for several hours. There was no disguising just how serious things were from the public when a pony clad head to hoof in blast resistant armour was seen heading into the station, though it did help keep the crowds away. Most of the police manning the perimeter were keeping their distance as well. Sweetie Belle had only seen a handful of others during the last hour or so, the clock set into a nearby shop showing it was two in the morning now. She didn't even have to be out here anymore but she wanted to keep Babs company, it was cold and her leather jacket didn't seem to be cutting it right now. They had set up their post at a roadblock at the end of the street to keep carriages out. The silence hung between them awkwardly and she decided that saying something, anything, would be better than this as they stood at the hastily established barricades that closed the street off.

"So..." She finally started, shifting slightly in place. "What's been happening with Spoiled Rich? I didn't really get a chance to check."

"Oh she's still berating anypony who walks by her cell," Babs replied with a chuckle. "Doing her best to try and wrangle her way out, though bail was denied for those charges and even if she gets a good lawyer, it's either not gonna be enough against the evidence or get tied up in court. Either way, if you're worried about her causing any more trouble, forget about it."

"Well that's a relief, imagine if I still had to deal with that as well as what's going on in there." She nodded back toward the station, silently hoping that she wasn't going to get another appropriately timed occurrence due to her choice of words.

"Yeah, I'd rather not," Babs shivered slightly and glanced round, watching the traffic further down the long road. "Say, wasn't Rarity supposed to be back by now?"

"Oh, she's probably just inspecting the perimeter and coming up with new ways to improve the MPD's fashion choices." Sweetie commented. The two of them shared a laugh at the thought before looking round at the sound of approaching hoofsteps behind them.

"Well I had to find some way to pass the time," Rarity said as she joined them. She'd clearly overheard that remark as she poked a hoof at Babs' jacket as soon as she was close enough. "Speaking of which, seal brown blends with your coat awfully. I'm sure I could dye this a much more pleasing colour or-"

"Alright, I'll look into something else once this is done." Babs interrupted before she could go off on a tangent. Rarity looked rather miffed at that but before she could comment, another distraction came up in the form of Gleaming Truth coming over.

"Ok, good news," Truth said quickly as she joined them. "We've got an all clear from the bomb squad so, Seed, begin packing up at this post. Rarity, Belle, come with me."

Rarity and Babs exchanged quick glances, wondering just what was going on now. They couldn't really question it though, Truth was the lead investigator on site after all. The two unicorns followed her back into the station, seeing things were still pretty much as they'd been before. The bomb squad pony was waiting for them in the plaza, their protective headgear now removed to reveal a yellow unicorn mare with lilac eyes and a trimmed cobalt mane underneath. She tensed up slightly at the sight of the trio coming in, eying them warily.

"Take it easy, Long Walk, they're here to help." Truth said quickly, smiling slightly.

"Right, sure, if you say so." Long Walk replied, sounding remarkably unconvinced. Rarity looked a little put off but Sweetie Belle tried not to be bothered by the mare's attitude, figuring that she had been under a lot of stress with what she'd had to do.

"I do. Now, they're doing to help with tracking down the maker so, would you mind showing them the bomb?"

"Fine, not like they won't understand it. I tell you, built by a freaking amateur." Long's horn glowed, her aura the same as her eyes as she brought the bomb over. It was very simple looking, about the size of a newborn foal and coated in a thin sheet of iron with what looked like a gas valve on the top.

"Fascinating, never thought I'd see one of these things myself," Sweetie commented, getting down and observing it up close, putting a hoof out toward the valve. "Is it safe to touch?"

"Yeah, it's completely disarmed. By which I mean I just let the gas out. That's all it was, gas goes in at the top, placed at the arson site, fire heats the metal up until it ignites the gas inside. In this case the fire was put out before it reached the canister. Not saying it wouldn't have been effective, but it's so...primitive, I mean a unicorn could have bui-"

"Okay, let's not go there," Truth interrupted, gritting her teeth slightly. "Stay on topic, how hard would it be to get everything needed to make this?"

"Harder than you think. Gas valves aren't that common since everypony just uses magic, I mean most ponies aren't even aware of the kind of power natural gas provides. Only place in Manehatten I can think of that uses them is a pest control company, there's probably more though. Point is that you're not likely to just find one out on the street."

The silence hung between them for several seconds, the only sound being the gentle scrape of metal on stone as Sweetie adjusted the canister slightly. The implications both good and bad were worrying at best. On one hoof, the idea that the White Phoenix was using rare but identifiable methods now really narrowed down the places and ponies they would need to search. On the other hoof, the use of such methods meant that Manehatten was in a lot more danger than before. While they thankfully hadn't seen how much damage this makeshift bomb could do, it was easy to assume that it could be a lot more significant that anything they'd seen so far. If somepony was too close...They needed to end this before such an incident happened again and they weren't so lucky. After being silent this whole time, Rarity rubbed her chin and stepped forward, the others looking over at her.

"So, how quickly can we get a list of places that you could get your hooves on these items? The sooner we know, the sooner we bust this case."

The Heat Increases

March 14th

They had said four days, four days to get the list together. She was just anticipating it happening today, that had to be why she was so unfocused.

Sweetie Belle sighed slightly as she finishing seeing to another group of customers at Manehatten Carousel and glanced up at the clock. It was ten past one, just past the beginning of her lunch break. It figured that her busiest patch would be just when she was free to stop for a while, rather than being able to avoid dwelling on the investigation throughout the morning. It was likely that even now, Rarity would be down at the MPD headquarters, getting the list of suspect locations where somepony could get the materials for the makeshift bomb. The events of that night kept running through her head, like a fly buzzing around close to her but never close enough to swat away. Not that she swatted flies, Fluttershy would never forgive her.

She just couldn't get to grips with the change in method she'd seen. Was there not enough damage being done quickly enough for the Phoenix's liking? Did they just get tired of being sure ponies wouldn't get hurt? Whatever their reason, she couldn't let it happen. She'd seen explosions happen before, far bigger ones than than gas could have managed on its own. She'd been holed up on the top floor of Rarity's boutique in Ponyville back when Lord Tirek had returned all those years ago, the windows up there giving her an excellent view of the moment he stopped holding back. She shuddered slightly at the old memory, still remembering feeling the world shake around her and her fearful cry as she watched the Golden Oak Library disappear in a wave of superheated fire, releasing a breath she didn't know she'd been holding on realising that Princess Twilight was still alright, throwing herself down as she saw the magic battle erupting...

No, no dwelling on that either. That wasn't like Canterlot. Nopony had been badly hurt and everything worked out in the end. She managed to push those dark thoughts aside and stepped back behind the counter, bringing the staff log up from a nearby shelf so she could clock out and go for a calming drink. Just as she was finishing jotting her name and time down, the familiar tingle of the shop bell rang out from the front door. She glanced up momentarily, only to double take when she realised it was Rarity coming in, minus her detective outfit.

"Ah, Sweetie Belle. Are Coco and Market Match here?" Rarity asked immediately, looking and sounding rather grim. Normally Sweetie might have tried to crack a crotchety old mare joke but the look in her sister's eyes was unmistakable. She was on the warpath today.

"Of course, sis. You want to see all of us?." Sweetie replied, waiting a moment to make sure there was a nod of confirmation before heading up to the staff room. Coco and Match were both up there, planning to take a few minutes to unwind before going out for lunch. On seeing Rarity come in after Sweetie they both got up to greet her, only to stop quickly at the look on her face.

"Hello everypony, we need to have a staff meeting. Please, sit." Rarity said flatly, waiting for the other three to do so before taking a seat herself.

"Okay, what's going on boss?" Match asked as soon as he felt it was safe to do so.

"I've been doing some digging." Rarity started, eyeing each pony present, her expression unreadable.

"Errm, why?" Coco asked, noticing the look the others were giving her after a few moments and looking away, grinning sheepishly.

"It's just an expression, Miss Pommel." Match clarified, chuckling slightly at the blush she got from that.

"If you would let me finish," Rarity interjected, waiting for everypony to look back at her before continuing. "I was doing some investigating about that nylon delivery. Sweetie Belle, can you confirm you actually got that shipment?"

"Oh, yes, we did," Sweetie answered. "It did arrive a few hours late and several strips of the white dyed materiel were missing. The delivery company claimed it was lost in transit and paid compensation for the missing material."

"Yes, well. I actually went to the Equestria Crossing Delivery Co myself earlier. They told me that an order had been dropped off, from this store, requesting that their picking up the shipment from Whinnyapolis be delayed by an hour. By the time the transport pony got to the station, the whole place had been locked down due to the bomb threat. The form had been taken to their offices earlier, I examined it and saw that not only had it been written the day it was delivered, the order was signed for by none other than Sweetie Belle. I was with her for the whole day, which means that somepony forged it!"

Oh, sweet Celestia no...If somepony has my signature down, am I going to be hit by identity theft? Maybe, but, keep your priorities right, Sweetie Belle.

I thought that I was starting to get a proper idea of just who the White Phoenix might be, but with this...I-I don't know anymore, this opens up more options than I would have liked. With the gas valve we just have the list to go off of, hopefully. If the Phoenix, or somepony working with them, can get their hooves on one of our order forms...I really don't want to think about the implications of that. Oh this is more Rarity's speed, she's much better at working out these kind of details, or at least she can focus on them better.

"Sweetie Belle? You still here?"

Sweetie snapped back to reality at Coco's words, looking round and noticing the looks the others were giving her before nodding. They seemed to shrug it off quickly and the focus of the conversation quickly shifted back to Rarity.

"Well then, if we work quickly, I'm sure we can find whoever's responsible for this before any further damage is done," Rarity said, sounding like she was wrapping up. "Coco, Match, if you go through all the records of the past few weeks, I'm sure you'll find out just how this happened. Sweetie, you're with me, Sky Eye is going to meet us on the way, so let's get moving."

"Oh, err, alright." Sweetie replied as she got up.

Her inner monologue meant she'd managed to miss pretty much everything Rarity had been saying for her plan, but she could hopefully pick it all up as they made their way to, well, wherever they were going. Still, it sounded like she had a lead again, they really needed one after what happened at the station. As the two unicorns made their way out, Coco and Match were left sat in place, wondering exactly they were going to do for the moment. After a minute, Match shifted in place and looked over at Coco thoughtfully.

"So...Want to order some takeaway while we check the records?"

"Actually, that does sounds good."

There was a sense of agitation in the air and not all of it was down to the gathering storm off the coast, Sweetie Belle thought to herself as Rarity and herself made their way into east Manehatten. News of the last White Phoenix attack was widespread by now, including how a bomb squad pony had been deployed to the scene. The brief peace that the city had felt before had been shattered and an aura of fear was taking hold again. She felt like she needed to hurry and bring this case to an end more than ever. She still had some confidence that they could do it though, Rarity was by her side and between the two of them, they had enough brains to figure it out. Plus they had some of Manehatten and Canterlot's finest with them.

As Rarity had said, Sky Eye had joined them en route. He was in the basic MPD patrol gear today, an azure polo shirt with the police crest on the left lapel, matching peaked cap and a black equipment bag wrapped round his chest that contained the basic tools of the job and doubled as some protection. He'd claimed it was to blend in on the streets but Sweetie suspected he just wanted to try out the outfit. Still, with him there the sisters were in better spirits as they made their way toward their destination, the Free Block Pest Control company building. Based near the eastern waterfront of the city, it was the first place on the list of gas valve users and there was no time to be wasted in finding out if the one the Phoenix had used came from here.

"Okay, how do you want to handle this?" Rarity asked as the building came into view round the street corner. It was very similar to Canterlot Carousel, three stories and rather unassuming, only done up in green and light blue and sitting on the edge of its city block.

"Well, we have an officer of the law with us, so how about we just walk in and ask to see their supplies?" Sweetie suggested, grinning until she noticed that Sky Eye was chuckling at the idea, at which point her look changed to a slight pout. "Hey, I'm serious."

"I know, but..." Sky broke down into a few moments of barely restrained laughter. "Sorry, but your face then was just so-" He tried to finish before backing up slightly at the look she was giving him, her horn alight with magic.

"Go on, call me cute, I dare you."

"I, was gonna go with...silly?" He nervously stared back at her for several seconds before she gave a good natured snort and looked away.

"Sure. Ok mister capital city cop, how would you say we handle this?"

Hmmm," Sky studied the building for several seconds before nodding toward a side exit that had just opened up, a yellow unicorn stallion stepping out. "I say we check him out."

"Why would we do that?" Rarity queried, having been doing her best to not pay attention to the little spat the other two had been engaged in before.

"Because he's carrying a gas valve and a canister of what looks like paint." Sky pointed out. The other two looked over and saw that he was indeed carrying such items in in his blue magic. A small part of Rarity was glad that neither her or Sweetie Belle had had time to get their detective outfits before setting out on this endeavour. Two detectives and a marked officer would look rather suspect if they approached him.

"I'm sure I've seen him before..." Sweetie mused before gasping slightly. The yellow unicorn had gone to a bag that had been hidden behind a trash can in an alleyway next to the building and pulled out a set of white socks to make space for his other goods. Even from across the street, she could recognise the material. "That's, roughly the same amount of nylon that was missing from our shipment!"

"What?!" Rarity exclaimed, just about managing to keep her voice under control as she stared at their suspect, grinding her teeth together slightly.

"Ok, new plan," Sky said. "You two tail him to wherever he's going and contact an MPD officer once you know. I'll head inside and ask about the materials he had."

They nodded and the trio moved out, heading across the road. Sky moved away from Rarity and Sweetie, toward the pest control building while they made to look as though they were heading down the street. As they made their way past the spot that the unicorn had been he made his way out from the alleyway and passed them, looking tense but composed as he pressed the bag closer to himself. Sweetie looked back at him to check his movement and realised he was glancing back at her as well. Now that they were up close she could get a good look at him. Yellow coat, silver mane and tail, blue eyes, rat trap cutie mark. It had been hazy at first but seeing from this distance, she recognised him now.

The dawning recognition must have shown in her eyes, which backfired on her badly. The stallion flashed a look of paranoia and sped up quickly, not looking where he was going and almost walking straight into Sky Eye. On realising a police pony was right in front of him, paranoia gave way to full blown panic and he backed up with a yelp. His horn flared up and he fired a warning shot of magic into the air before turning tail and bolting, shoulder barging past Rarity and Sweetie Belle as he did.

"Hey!" Sky snapped, whipping his cap off and into his equipment bag before taking off for the chase. "Come on, after him!" He called down to the other two as he passed over them. Rarity was still recomposing herself from the knock but Sweetie nodded and turned on her hooves, taking off down the street at a gallop.

"Copy that, we're in pursuit."

Hot Pursuit

It had been a long time since Sweetie Belle had needed to run properly. Now though, tearing down the sidewalk, something inside her that she hadn't felt since she was a filly was waking up from a long period of dormancy. A gentle rush of adrenaline that started to flow through her body in greater strength as her heartbeat sped up, the rush of wind that blew her mane out from its natural curls and out behind her slightly, even the thump of keratin on concrete beneath her every time her hooves smacked against the pavement. For a few glorious moments she felt like this was all she needed, just the wind, a clear path and the grin on her face as she started going at full speed.

It would have been quite liberating, if the situation that required it wasn't so serious.

Her eyes narrowed slightly as she focused in on her target, the yellow unicorn was that darting and weaving through the afternoon rush of ponies on the sidewalk. He seemed to simply be trying to get some distance and lose himself in the crowd. Unfortunately for him, his coat kind of stood out and she had no problems keeping up with him due to the fact she could just move onto the edge of the road and skirt the crowd, which is exactly what she did. If they gave any disapproving looks, she didn't see them, not that she cared right now. All that mattered to her was the rush of the chase, bringing her target to heel.

As the crowd thinned out at the edge of the city block she hopped back onto the pavement and skidded to a halt. A quick glance up confirmed that Sky Eye was hovering overhead, his eyes fixed on the crowds below to keep track of the suspect. She simply had to wait here, he'd come out and end up face to face with her with no easy way out. As anticipated, the unicorn burst out of the crowd and tried to backpedal at the sight of her. She hadn't expected him to fire off another burst of magic straight at her hooves though. Sweetie gasped in shock and yanked her front hooves up, managing to avoid the shot as it impacted the ground underneath her. It kept her off balance for a second though, enough time for the unicorn to move back into the crowd, or try to since the shot had startled them and a lot of ponies now simply trying to get some distance from the scene as quickly as they could.

With that avenue of escape rapidly closing off, the unicorn bolted sideways, making the most of the fact his attack had also halted any carriages nearby to cross the street and go for an alleyway. Sweetie brought her hooves back down and quickly resumed the chase. A glance to her side confirmed that Rarity had taken the time to catch up and was now right on her tail, the two of them keeping up the pursuit on the ground while Sky moved to maintain his aerial tracking.

"Sweetie Belle," Rarity panted, not quite as good at running as she used to be. "You can teleport, right?"

"Hmmm, oh! Yeah!" Sweetie commented, never taking her eyes off the unicorn as he turned out of the alley again, hooves skidding slightly as he rounded another street corner and moved deeper into the city.

"So, why not use make use of it now?"

"Because in this situation, it's basically a one chance use that takes a lot of magic. I fail to block him and I'm out of the chase." She replied, rounding the same corner with a better grip than her target. 'And because I want to keep running a little longer' She thought to herself as she pushed herself harder. Every breath she took sent another rush through her body. Manehatten was a place where you either walked, took a carriage, or in her case, teleported. Running just didn't happen normally and she had never realised how much she missed the feeling.

'I suppose I understand, but I'd really appreciate it if you or Sky Eye could be a dear and end this already!' Rarity thought in turn, falling behind slightly at her sister's turn of pace. She wasn't unfit, in fact she was in quite good shape for a unicorn her age. That was the problem though, she wasn't a young mare anymore, coupled with the extra stress she'd put herself through running the boutiques over the years. Then again, she did have an advantage that many ponies didn't, whenever she'd needed to run when younger she been trying to keep up with the likes of Applejack or Rainbow Dash, and unless they had gone all out she had generally kept pace. It may not have quite been the same now, but the fact she was still keeping up gave her a small boost.

High above them, Sky Eye watched silently, his gaze locked onto the suspect unicorn as they kept moving toward central Manehatten. He wanted to move in but the unicorn had already made it clear he would fight back if somepony just tried to block him, they had to make sure he couldn't do anything to retaliate before they stopped him. He dropped his altitude and pushed ahead as he realised the suspect was heading toward a group of skyscrapers, the taller buildings heavily restricting his ability to keep following so easily. Part of him relished the challenge compared to the guard work in Canterlot, yet another hated that he had to clash so firmly with another to get that challenge. The thought was shoved aside for now, he had to focus for now.

The chase moved into another alleyway, this time between two skyscrapers. As fun as it was, Sweetie Belle realised her body was starting to flag and her air support was temporarily out of the chase. They needed to end this around now rather than later, since sooner had already long gone. Her horn flared to life and she fired a warning shot of her own, the thin beam of pale green magic skimming past the unicorn's left side and impacting the wall with a scorch mark. The stallion yelped in surprise and looked back, darting past a stack of crates that had been piled up next to a doorway on the right. His own horn came to life and a shot of blue magic was fired back, blasting the crate at the bottom of the pile and sending them tumbling into the path of his pursuers.

Sweetie gasped as she realised what he was doing, but she knew he had to risk it. If she stopped and let the crates block her, the suspect would have a real opportunity of slipping into a building or crowd and getting away before Sky could get eyes on him again. She lowered her head and pushed her hooves harder, doing her best not to wince as the first crate crashed down next to her. A second crate was coming down in front of her, forcing her to slow and weave, just about managing to keep out of its way. The one above it caught her out though, catching her flank hard enough to knock her off balance and trip, leaving her sprawled out sideways on the floor. Rarity had been far enough behind to stop before she reached the crates but she couldn't get past quickly enough to keep going.

"Now?" Rarity asked as her horn lit up, one of the boxes being taken in her light blue aura and slowly being lifted out of the way.

"Alright, now." Sweetie replied with a grumble, focusing her view on the other end of the alleyway as she got up.

The world flashed around her and she teleported to the far end of the alley, no more than fifteen feet in front of the fleeing stallion. He didn't have time to react, she barely had time to brace herself. The two collided hard, crashing down to the ground and rolling several feet in a heap. As soon as Sweetie's world stopped spinning she realised that she had ended up just off to one side of the stallion, who looked a lot more disorientated by the impact than she did. She scrambled closer and wrapped a hoof round his horn before he could react, curtailing his ability to use magic and following it up with a firm hoof on his hind leg to keep him from getting up. His bag had been thrown off in the collision and lay at the edge of the alley, the canister inside broken and leaking what was unmistakably white paint.

"Well well well, last time I saw you, I didn't think you were capable of this," Sweetie said breathlessly, the rush of the ended chase leaving her tired but triumphant. A rush of air behind her that indicated Sky Eye had arrived and the hoofsteps of Rarity just afterward. "Nice to see you again, Vexation. Or do you prefer, White Phoenix?"

"Wh-what? No I'm not..." Vexation whimpered as his brain caught up with his ears, struggling against the hooves pinning him down.

"Don't play games with us, mister!" Rarity snapped as she came up. "Why else would you be trying to sneak away with the same device that the Phoenix used for their bomb?"

"Oh it's more than that," Sweetie commented, a dawning realisation in her eyes. "I gave him an autograph several months back, that's where I recognised him from because he made me feel a little uneasy at the time. If he'd had several months to work on it and, he's also the prime suspect for the pony who forged my signature on the changed order, preventing a certain witness for what he did at the station!"

"Okay, that's enough you two," Sky Eye stepped forward, his voice carrying an authoritative air and his gaze matching the glares the two sisters were giving him without backing down in the slightest. "We're not going to learn anything that'll hold up if you throw speculation around and terrorise a confession out of him."

"I...Right. Sorry." Sweetie sighed and stepped aside, letting Sky take some hoofcuffs and an inhibitor ring out of his equipment bag.

"Vexation, you're under arrest on suspicion of fourteen counts of arson, as well as theft, forging documents and crafting an improvised explosive with intent to destroy property." Sky continued, fitting the hoofcuffs to Vexation's front right and rear left hooves, leaving him unable to run and unable to cast anything once the ring was placed on his horn.

"I'm telling you, you've got the wrong pony!" Vexation blurted out, being ignored by Sky who was writing up a request for a police carriage. As he finished up and watched the scroll disappear, Rarity managed to calm herself down and looked back over at her younger sister.

"You really think this is the pony?"

Honestly..." Sweetie glanced up at what little sky she could see between the two urban behemoths around them. The clouds were covering the sky and she could hear a low rumble of thunder over the sounds of the city. A storm was coming closer and it felt the same as she did right now. She looked back at Rarity and shook her head.

"I think we both know it's never as simple as that." Rarity looked less convinced but her gut feeling was that something about this whole thing didn't sit right with her.

The journey back to the police precinct was quiet. The two ponies pulling the carriage brought to take Vexation in hadn't said anything but the looks they'd been giving made it clear enough. If Rarity and Sweetie Belle were involved with this arrest, then it had to be connected to the White Phoenix case. If it was connected to that, they wouldn't be bringing anypony in unless they were sure it was their pony. If only they knew it was never that simple. The two unicorns wanted to believe it themselves but as easy as it would be to do so, something about doing so didn't feel right, even moreso now that the adrenaline of the chase had worn off. Sweetie in particular was happy that Sky Eye had been there to keep their accusations in check.

As the carriage stopped outside the station, the two sisters stepped out, trying to ignore the rain that had started to fall on the trip back. Sky had been in the back with their detained stallion and soon hopped out, escorting Vexation and making sure he kept walking as best he could in cuffs. The yellow stallion seemed to have lost any fight he had left and now followed compliantly, the police pony leading him inside while the two investigators walked at his flanks, making sure nopony got too close. Thankfully the entrance lobbies were quiet at the moment and they were able to move to check him in without drawing too much attention to themselves. Just as they were preparing to move Vexation to a holding cell, Gleaming Truth entered the lobby on her way to somewhere else in the building. On spotting them she stopped and trotted over quickly.

"What's he doing here?" Truth asked immediately, pointing at Vexation.

"Well, darling, he's currently our main suspect for..." Rarity started to explain before stopping as she caught a small detail. "You recognise him?"

"Well, yes. I'd never forget those eyes. He was the firepony I was talking to at the station before I discovered the bomb. I thought there was something off about him but, he's the Phoenix?"

"There's enough evidence to support it," Sweetie replied, holding up the paint stained bag in her magic. "At least catching him was actually pretty fun." She added, getting strange looks from the others in response, even Vexation.

"You're a strange mare, Sweetie Belle." Truth eventually commented.

"You say that like it's a bad thing." Sky replied with a small grin as he led Vexation away. Sweetie just shook her head slightly and passed the bag of evidence over to Rarity. Right now, she just needed a little time to collect herself and gather her thoughts.

Finishing her shift at Manehatten Carousel seemed like as good a place as any to do so.

Author's Note

For those of you wondering how the scroll Sky Eye had worked, it's covered in a Quickverse Chronicle chapter but for ease of access:

'One of the items everypony on the force kept in their bag was a scroll, enchanted so that it would be sent to the nearest police dispatch when written on. It was a handy way for ponies on patrol to report active or prevented crimes quickly so that a response could be deployed,'

Also, you know that feeling when you get to an important plot chapter and then make a total hash of it? Yeah sorry about that.

Burnt Out

March 20th

Despite the success it represented, the arrest of Vexation was not made common knowledge to anypony over the next few days. While publicly announcing that the White Phoenix had been caught would raise the spirits of Manehatten's ponies more than anypony could imagine, Gleaming Truth had made the decision to hold off on doing so as she still was not entirely convinced. She'd been through enough criminals to understand their psychology a little and his didn't match what she knew. He'd been questioned half a dozen times over either being the Phoenix or his involvement with such and his silence hadn't been down to any kind of defiance or desire to protect something. He just seemed...Empty, mired in doubt himself, as if anything he might have to say wouldn't be worth the effort for either side. Even Rarity's legendary silver tongue, cajoling and most alluring dresses had been unable to get anything more than the most basic of personal details out of him.

They couldn't give up yet though. If Vexation really was the White Phoenix, then they needed him to come clean of his own accord. If he wasn't, and it was starting to look that way, then there was a good chance he worked directly with the Phoenix and had information they needed to stop any more attacks. The trouble was they had no idea what it was going to take to convince him, especially after Rarity ultimately had to be escorted out of the questioning room while ranting about his 'insufferable rudeness toward a lady'. There was only one pony left who had any new ideas to try and get him to open up. While they refused to elaborate on just what they had in mind yet, Truth was willing to give it a shot. After all, Sweetie Belle was a strange mare but maybe her unique style was just what was needed right now.

"Would you belieeeve, that I've always wished I could be somepony else." Sweetie sang to herself as she dangled her front hooves off the edge of the chair she was sitting on. In all the times she'd visited the MPD precinct, this was the first time she'd been inside the locker room on the ground floor. Hopefully it would be the last too, because it was really boring. Just exactly what you'd expect, lockers along all four walls as well as a dividing row of them down the center of the room. The only reason she was in here was because Babs Seed was there too, fetching some items she considered too valuable to leave in her unlocked office.

"Huh, didn't take you for the type to like Neighvana music." Babs commented idly as she sealed her locker up and placed a bit purse and small photo book in a pocket of her jacket.

"To be the pony I wanna be..." Sweetie finished, blinking and sliding back to reality as she looked over at her friend. "Hmmm? Oh, yeah, I actually did a cover of that song while my career was in a slump last year. Probably the best song I did during that time."

"Really? Surprised I didn't hear anypony comment on it."

"Well it was only at a few small clubs around the city, I was struggling for work at the time."

"Well, at least we both know it won't get that bad again," Babs said with confidence as she finished locking up and headed back toward her friend. "Come on, Gleaming Truth wants to see us."

"What? I thought we were done for today." Sweetie commented as she got up and followed her fellow crusader, heading back into the hallways.

"Me too, but apparently she's got one more thing planned for us. No idea what though." The two of them kept trading ideas for what it might be until they reached the entrance to the cell block. Considering it held dozens of criminals, the choice of silver paint for the walls made it surprisingly refreshing to walk though. It was a quick trot through though to the questioning room on the far side where Truth was waiting for them.

"Alright, so I'm guessing we're here for a prisoner themed party to celebrate a job almost well done?" Sweetie commented, getting a chuckle from Babs for the optimism on show.

"Well, you're partly right. It is prisoner themed," Truth replied with an affable smile. "The powers that be pushed Vexation's next questioning forward. He's in there now and they want you to handle it, Sweetie Belle."

"Me? I mean, sure I said I had an idea but, already?" Sweetie asked, getting a more concerned look in response.

"Search me. Maybe they're just as desperate for a straight answer as I am. Anyway, Babs, you're in the chamber with Copper Top during the questioning. He's already in there so, whenever you two are ready."

"Of course, good luck in there." Babs said as she walked up to the next door down the hallway and entered. Sweetie moved to enter the nearer door but stopped and looked back at Truth.

"Has, anypony been pressuring him in there?"

"Maybe I did a little, not hard though, Rarity did lose her temper a bit...Okay, more than a bit, as in she's not allowed back in here right now. Does that affect how you're going to do this?"

"A little. I know what I have to do though."

"Alright. Well good luck, I'm right out here if you need help."

Sweetie nodded and moved to the door, taking a final moment to make sure she was ready. She still wasn't even sure why she was going to do what she had in mind, just a gut feeling that it was what was needed. Taking the handle in her magic, she opened the door and stepped inside. The questioning room was rather lacking in, just about everything, nothing but a table with a chair on either side and a one-way mirror along the wall to her right. Vexation was sitting on the far chair, his inhibitor ring still fitted, cuffed front hooves resting on the table, his gaze down at the floor. There was something about the sight that Sweetie just found incredibly sad, especially with her doubts about him. She slowly trotted over and took the open seat opposite him, doing her best to look sympathetic.

"Hey, Vexation. Can I call you Vex?" She asked softly. He just kept sitting there, blinking silently. She took that as a no. "Ok then. So...How're you feeling today?" More silence, his head turning away slightly. Sweetie sighed slightly, she hadn't expected it to be easy but the way he had just given up on everything hurt to watch. She decided to step up her plan slightly and see if she could get through to him, sliding into the friendliest, understanding tone she could muster.

"Look, Vexation, I know we kind of really had a bad previous encounter. I was scared at the time though, scared of what the White Phoenix might do if I couldn't stop them soon. I, everypony, jumped to the wrong conclusion though. Looking at you, I know you're not the Phoenix."

Babs smiled to herself as she watched the unfolding scene through the other side of the mirror. The observation chamber, as the MPD staff tended to call it, was even smaller and less furnished than the room it watched. At least the questioning room had a light. Still, it served its purpose of letting officers get a written record of questioning suspects without being disturbed. She was just making sure everything went smoothly today, Copper Top was handling the transcript. A light grey earth stallion with, appropriately, a copper coloured mane and tail, hazel eyes and a bronze coloured police badge cutie mark, he was at the lone table in the room, doing his best to keep up with Sweetie Belle's side of the discussion.

"Trying to cosy up...Does this pantywaist even know what she's doing?" Copper muttered as soon as he got a break in the writing, dropping his pencil and eying the mare through the glass disapprovingly.

"You don't know Sweetie Belle like I do," Babs replied quietly, never taking her eyes off her friend the whole time. "She may not be the smartest mare I know but she has a lot of common sense. When she has an idea, she knows what'll make it work."

"It's simple enough," Sweetie Belle continued. Vexation still hadn't said anything but his ears had flicked slightly at that last statement. He didn't want to show it but he was listening. "The Phoenix has proven that they don't care about other ponies after what happened at the station, who knows how many ponies could have been injured, or worse. It takes a twisted kind of pony to do something like that. You're not even a bad pony."

"...How do you know?"

Sweetie's ears twitched as she looked back at him. Vexation was looking back at her, still carrying that same defeated air and his voice was quiet, lacking that slick attitude of the past. But his eyes had a fresh look behind them, a drive once again. She decided to risk pushing it a little, letting him explain.

"What do you mean?"

"I'm not one of the lucky ones who has enough to spare that they can look out for other ponies at the same time. I've spent most of my adulthood focused on just keeping my own flank above water, I didn't have space for other ponies in that. I knew what I was doing, working with the White Phoenix, but I kept going because...Well the bits they paid were enough to make me think I could spare enough to get myself into a better spot, make some friends, find a decent life. Now it's all out here though, I've got nothing to gain by trying to escape what actually happened. Yes, I forged your signature on that document. Yes, I broke into a train and stole the nylon. Yes, I stole the gas valves from my workplace, though I never knew they would be used for such things, I swear! And yes, I aided and abetted a major criminal for months. Why I did all those things? Because I'm a bad pony!"

Sweetie could only watch as Vexation planted his hooves on the table with a clank and buried his muzzle in them, her mind racing. She hadn't quite expected that outpouring from him, especially the way his voice had started to crack near the end. It confirmed her suspicions about him though. She could see what he really wanted to do, all she had to do now was convince him that it was still possible. Her hoof went to his and rested on it gently, a small sign of reassurance that she wasn't going to overreact. She waited for him to glance up at it and then up to her face, knowing that he'd expect disbelief at best and some kind of anger at worst. Instead he was getting a gentle, caring smile from her, a look of genuine support on her face.

"Right there," She said softly. "If you were a bad pony at all, you wouldn't want to do better for yourself in a way that let you do better by others too. As for friends...Well, you've got a pony right here who'd be willing to take you up on that," She paused to let that sink in, reading the look in his eyes. "Yes, really. I just want to ask one thing to be sure and I need you to be honest. Do you know who the White Phoenix is?"

"I..." Vexation glanced away in thought for a minute, myriad emotions and thoughts flashing behind his eyes before he raised his head and looked back at her, doing his best to look and sound professional. "I swear by Celestia, Luna, and Twilight. I do not know who it is, and it is not me. On the ninth of July when the first case took place, I was in the town of Stirrup that week. I still have the hotel receipts as proof. As for after that..."

"What is she doing?" Copper Top hissed in frustration, so caught up in his irritation at the scene unfolding before him that Babs had needed to take over writing duties. She could understand his thoughts, most officers wouldn't be happy to see what, to the unknowing, looked like Sweetie helping their lead suspect clear his name and putting the case back several weeks. As she kept jotting down what was being said though, she knew they were really on the verge of a breakthrough.

"I was short on bits at the time, so when I saw a flyer in my apartment block advertising easy work with guaranteed pay, I probably sent an application to the address on it quicker than I should," Vexation continued, shifting in his seat, clearly a little put off by discussing this so openly. "It seemed simple enough, just buy a can of paint and deliver it to a set point, with a promise of future work if done quickly. I didn't think about it at the time, but I was participating in dead drops for the Phoenix, the paint used in each attack in exchange for bits and other necessary supplies."

"That's, surprisingly complex," Sweetie replied, finding herself silently impressed at how much effort had been put into this. "Long shot but, did you see any signs of how the Phoenix was funding all this? I mean, paying you constantly and buying everything else needed to set all this up can't have come cheap."

"I actually did try asking one time, leaving a note with the eighth can. I figured it was worth the risk since I wanted to be sure I would keep getting paid. They simply replied that they were being funded by a very 'fashionable' source."

"Oh, Rarity's going to have a field day with this," She muttered to herself, able to understand the implication. Either the Phoenix was, or was working with, the bit thief after all. "Wait. What kind of supplies were you getting?"

"Don't get the wrong idea, it wasn't anything that helped me. The last drop I picked up contained a firepony outfit and an order form with instructions on what to do with them. I didn't want to risk anymore questions, I still needed the bits. So I...Yeah, I did forge your signature, delivered that form and switched to the firepony outfit before going into the station after the Phoenix started the fire there. No, I didn't see any clues there to who it might be but...Hmmm..."

Vexation looked away again, tapping a hoof against the table, though it was impossible to tell if it was just in thought or if he was debating something more significant. Sweetie Belle simply let him for now, feeling a little proud of herself. He'd just got swept up in the hope of making something more for himself and just gone down the wrong path a little. The fact he was being so cooperative at the chance for a friend was welcome, but she had to make sure she backed up her words after this. After a minute he gasped slightly and looked back at her.

"Actually, there was something scribbled on the back of the instructions, not sure how much it means but...It just said 'Check new supplier at Low Meet.'"

Babs dropped her pencil at those words and glanced over at Copper Top, who was similarly dumbstruck. Both of them were all too aware of the implications of what he had just said and both knew they needed to get this to their superiors as soon as possible.

"Ok, and...Sorry but this is bugging me a little. The gas valves?"

"Oh, yeah, I...Kind of slipped them out from work, left documents claiming they'd been loaned to other companies outside the city. It worked pretty well, made sure there was enough red tape to keep anypony from catching on. I slipped dozens out that way."

"Dozens? Wh...why?"

"I...Wish I knew now. I just kept leaving them in the dead drops like instructed...Oh I'm so going to prison for all this." Vexation tensed up again and looked down at his hooves. Sweetie Belle knew that he was taking all this harder now that he was seriously thinking about it. She thought about what she could do to help him and decided that he deserved her best. She got up and moved round the table, placing a reassuring hoof on his shoulder.

"I won't lie, I doubt you'll be able to just walk away from this. But you've done a lot more good here, I promise. We've got a real chance at finding the Phoenix and helping a lot of ponies now. All thanks to you." She glanced aside at the mirror, hoping they would back that up on the other side, before focusing on him again. To her surprise, he looked up at her with a small but genuine smile on his muzzle.

"Okay...Thank you, Sweetie Belle."

"There we go," She replied happily, booping his nose slightly. "That smile there, that made it all worth it for me."

"Heh, yeah," He chuckled, making her smile more. "That's all I know, I swear. Sorry I couldn't be more help."

"You've helped more than you know. And once our parts in this whole Phoenix mess is completely over, we'll find some time to hang out and help you make some friends. I promise that one, Vexation."

He nodded, thinking for a moment as she got up and started to head for the door, clearly finished up with the questioning. As she put a hoof on the door he got up quickly, enough to get her attention.

"My, friends, can call me Vex." He said, smiling nervously at deciding to try and use the term himself.

"Ok, Vex." She replied with a friendly grin as she left.

"She's done?" Babs asked in slight surprise, normally these interrogations lasted at least ten minutes longer.

"She is, how'd she even do that?" Copper said as he sifted through the completed transcript. They didn't have time to dwell on it though. He gathered up the papers and left the observation chamber, Babs right behind him.

The two of them headed back down the hallway toward the questioning room door, where Gleaming Truth was still standing, now talking to Sweetie Belle. As soon as Copper got close he passed the transcript over to her and pointed out the mention of the low meet. As soon as she saw what was written down, Truth took the paper, holding it with a wing as she read intently. Sweetie was left to one side, silently wondering just what was going on.

"Copper, escort Vexation back to his cell. Seed, gather everything we have on the low meet." She ordered quickly, never taking her eyes off the papers.

"What's the, low meet?" Sweetie asked as the other two left, Babs rushing off to do her part.

"Until five minutes ago, it was a rumour," Truth explained. "For years we've heard whispers among some of the more, dangerous inmates about a top secret black market site within Manehatten itself, always referred to as 'The Low Meet'. We've never made any headway in finding it though and I thought it was some kind of myth. From the sound of Vexation's testimony though, not only is it real, it may well be where the White Phoenix has been getting most of their supplies from. We find it, and we have a chance to prevent another attack, maybe even find a hint to the Phoenix's identity."

"Oh, really? I kinda focused on how I thought he deserved better than that look he was wearing initially and just went from there." Sweetie commented. The conversation paused for a minute as Copper brought Vexation out and past them. She couldn't help but smile more at how cooperative he was being, glancing back at her with a small smile before they headed back into the cell block.

"Well, you still ended up doing some real good work, Sweetie. Thank you," Truth smiled warmly and stretched her free wing out. "You should head off and rest up for now. The chief's going to want to put everypony spare we have on finding the low meet in the meantime. Hopefully we can find it soon and then, I think we're going to need you and Rarity more than ever."

Author's Note

In which I prove I cannot write emotion or mystery to save my life. Though oddly enough I'm still really happy with this chapter. :rainbowhuh:

The Final Overture

March 31st

Compared to the usual sounds of life that emanated from the city, Manehatten was practically silent. There wasn't anything unusual happening, it had just been a regular spring day. It was as if everypony was waiting with baited breath, knowing that something was coming but with no idea when. Sweetie Belle was feeling it as much as anypony. Every day since she'd questioned Vexation, she'd been on tenterhooks at the possibility that it would be the day that they had their lead about the low meet and hopefully a chance to learn the truth about the White Phoenix. Every day so far she'd been wrong and had to deal with her tension the only way she knew how, finding the quietest spot in her house and belting out some of her favourite songs, hoping the neighbours didn't mind too much.

She still had her place at the boutique to keep her busy during the day though, the workload only increasing as more ponies came by to get a chance to meet her. Between her steady music bookings over the past few months and the now relatively common knowledge of her involvement with the Phoenix case, her popularity seemed to have hit a new high. For all her desire to keep her mind occupied right now, she almost welcomed the quiet patch that came from closing up for the day. Right now she was just taking care of the end of day routine by herself. Market Match had already left since Rarity was here, going through everything he and Coco Pommel had put together for her, hoping to spot something new about the bit thief in the various files and folders.

"So, do you have any plans for this evening?" Coco asked as she came down the stairs, a spring in her step.

"Me? Nah, I doubt I'll get a proper night off until the investigation's over," Sweetie replied, managing to keep herself sounding optimistic. "I'm guessing that you do?"

"Oh, yes. Match invited me out to dinner and then we're going down to the waterfront. Apparently there's going to be some fireworks display at Celestial Bridge later." She sounded remarkably happy at the former part, a point that hadn't been lost on her friends over the last few weeks.

"Coco, this is going to sound weird but, do you have a crush on him?" Sweetie asked, unable to resist grinning a little as her co-worker was flush with embarrassment within moments.

"No. I mean, maybe. I mean, he has a crush on me?" She stammered, blushing even more and glancing away. The moment hung between them before Sweetie chuckled and trotted over to her.

"Hey, don't worry about it. Market Match is a nice guy and I've seen the way you two click when working on something together. If you think there's something there, go for it. You'll still be friends even if it doesn't work out."

"Thanks. Wish me luck and see you tomorrow!" Coco chirped as she made her way out of the boutique, clearly still embarrassed but still happy about her evening.

Sweetie waved her off and sighed slightly, her thoughts drifting as she finished shutting up shop. For everything that she'd had both before and after becoming a star, romance was something she'd never had with either. As a filly, the colts at school had never caught her fancy, nor her theirs, not helped by the fact she spent most of her spare time either with the Cutie Mark Crusaders or learning from Princess Twilight. By the time she had managed to get her life in order enough to start thinking about so much as a coltfriend, she had already started her rise to fame and many ponies seemed to think her out of their league. Sky Eye had been the first 'regular' stallion in years who seemed to have no problem talking to her like a friend would. He was nice too, but she still hadn't spent any time with him outside of the investigation. He did basically call her cute though...

Her thoughts were interrupted by the sound of somepony knocking quite firmly on the front door. She shook her head slightly and put away her autograph photos, figuring it was just somepony who was focused on a chance to meet her and had missed the closed sign. It wasn't exactly uncommon, she'd been going for twenty minutes after closing time yesterday.

"I'm sorry, but it's past six o'clock and Manehatten Carousel is now closed for the day. Our services will be available again at half past nine tomorrow morning." She said with a tone that hinted just how often she had needed to say those exact words.

"You didn't even ask who it was, some host." Sky Eye's voice came from the other side, clearly kidding. It was enough for her to quickly head over and open up the door. Sky and Gleaming Truth were on the other side, both without any police gear on for once.

"Oh, sorry, didn't expect it to be you," She said quickly, stepping aside to let them in. "Is this police business?"

"It is, though it's rather good news for once," Truth replied as she entered the boutique, looking round at the décor. "Hmmm, interesting design...Anyway, do you happen to know where Rarity is?"

"She's here, just going through some documents. Probably in the staff room next floor up, follow me," Sweetie put a little extra spring in her trot as she lead them up to the second floor, doing her best to make up for the attitude she had shown before. "We have some basic drinks up here, either of you fancy a coffee?"

"Really?" Sky asked in surprise. "You can make it? I thought you hated the stuff."

"When you're regularly around ponies who enjoy it, you quickly learn to make a mean 'Cup of joe' regardless." She turned and made air quotes with her front hooves to accompany her choice of words. That was another thing she didn't get about it besides the taste, why ponies gave it such weird nicknames.

"Hmmm. In that case, I'll just stick to something cold please." He replied, getting a surprised look from her in return, though this time he managed to keep from making any comments on her expression.

"I'll, just have a basic cup, please." Truth finally said to break the tension.

Sweetie nodded and led them into the staff room, heading over to the drinks setup they had in the corner and prepping Sky's cup. Rarity was settled on one of the chairs off to the side, a dozen financial sheets that Coco and Match had gathered for her held in her magic around her, studying them intently. She didn't even notice Truth and Sky initially, mumbling something to herself and adjusting her glasses as she pored over the paper in front of her. Everypony knew better than to interrupt her when she was in the zone, as it were, so for now they simply waited while Sweetie fixed up their drinks. Coffee for Truth, clear cider for Sky. After a few minutes of waiting, drinking and small talk, Rarity sighed to herself and shifted her paper aside.

"No, still no clues there. If I could just...Oh! Gleaming Truth! Sky Eye! I didn't hear you come in." She said quickly, placing her papers aside and getting up to greet them.

"Quite alright, you seemed to be in the middle of something important." Truth replied as she took her cup and tried a sip, raising an eyebrow. Sweetie Belle hadn't been kidding when she said she knew how to make a good cuppa.

"Yes, still attempting to figure out where all our bits keep going," Rarity said, rubbing her forehead. "I know by this point that profits have improved to the point that it's almost a non-issue...But this is business! I keep looking but there's just nothing to suggest who keeps moving them. It's as if the money just vanishes between the sale being made and it going into the till!"

"Maybe you should take some time off it to clear your head. Besides, we've got something important we need to talk about." Sky said as he fetched his cider that Sweetie had just finished prepping. Rarity stared at him for several seconds before sighing and conceding the point.

"Alright, what's happened?"

"Simply put, we've found the low meet," Truth stated, smiling a little at the surprised look the two sisters gave her and flexing her wings in response. "I know, I'm surprised too."

"Well, yeah. Already? I thought we'd be stuck on that point for weeks." Sweetie commented, sounding impressed.

"Me too. Turns out the MPD's quite efficient when we really set our minds to the task."

"So, what's the plan now?" Rarity asked as she sat down again, watching as Sky bit his lip slightly.

"That's the thing, from all the intel we could gather they seem to have a lot of contingency plans for if we went investigating. In short, it looks like we couldn't get a police officer or detective within two blocks of the place without being noticed...That's where we bring our ace investigators in though. You two could make your way in and find out anything you can about the White Phoenix there."

"Hmmm, an intriguing idea. But one with a problem," Rarity remarked after a minutes thought. "How are we supposed to get there without being recognised ourselves? It's not exactly a secret we're involved with you."

"Yeah, plus we're not exactly discreet ponies." Sweetie added. Sky simply took a sip of his drink and smiled.

"You'd be surprised how easy it'll be. Ladies, get your coats."

Darkness had completely fallen over Manehatten by the time their carriage stopped on a side street, still several blocks away from their destination. Rarity and Sweetie Belle would have to go the rest of the way on hoof to avoid setting off any warning to anypony that would be on the lookout. Their detective outfits were worn tight and would be done up as much as possible once they got closer, manes fully tucked under their hats and tails under their coats. Sweetie had been given sunglasses to cover her eyes and Rarity a tinted black variation of her usual eyewear, once she'd been convinced that they didn't need to be spruced up a little.

"It sounds crazy, but from all we could gather, that's all you'll need to get in without any attention being drawn to yourselves. Hotel Caribu doesn't get many ponies hanging around normally so you'll have a clear path as well." Sky Eye explained, doing his best to sound reassuring. Sweetie simply nodded and placed her sunglasses in her pocket before adjusting the zip of her coat so it didn't cover her muzzle just yet.

"I hope so." Rarity replied simply, adjusting her new glasses slightly, the old ones left safe at the boutique.

"I'm afraid we have no idea what to expect on the inside so, if any trouble happens..." Gleaming Truth started, only to be stopped by a raised hoof from Sweetie.

"I can teleport us out if it gets dicey."

"Are you sure you can manage both of you at once?" Sky asked, sounding concerned and impressed in equal measure.

"Well with how often I've been using it recently, it's been getting less of a strain to do so. I think I can at a push."

"Alright, but no risk taking all the same," Truth followed up. "If you can find anything out that's great, but we'd prefer having you back to tell us about it. I've, kind of gotten used to working with you two by this point."

"Thanks for the vote of confidence, but I plan on coming back in one piece too." Sweetie replied, getting a satisfied nod from Sky in response.

"Right, well, if there are no further details, we should probably get to this." Rarity said, opening the carriage door and readying to step out.

"Just one more thing," Truth said, sounding even softer than normal, enough to make all three of the others look back at her. "I just want to say that regardless of how well this goes, we'd never have gotten this far in the White Phoenix case without your help. So...Thank you both for all your support." The moment hung between all of them for several moments before Sweetie Belle cleared her throat.

"Sky helped out too."

"Oh, err, yeah...Sorry?" She smiled weakly in embarrassment, getting a dismissive but good natured flip of his wing in response.

"Ok, let's do this." Rarity finally said, stepping out of the carriage. Sweetie nodded and followed her out, pausing for a moment as the door shut behind her. They were on their own now.

A quick look round at the nearby landmarks confirmed they were in northeast Manehatten. Hotel Caribu was still about four blocks away so they set off at a brisk pace. The silence was somewhat mitigated by the steady sounds of the city around them, but neither said a word to each other for some time. It was little more than a gut feeling but they both felt it. Come what may, this was where their investigation was going to come to its conclusion. Tonight was a night for endings.

"Are you sure you're ready for this?" Rarity asked with a touch of concern as they reached the Hotel Caribu, a simple looking ten-story yellow brick construction that took up about half the block, most likely a three star establishment at best.

"I'm ready sis." Sweetie answered simply, taking her coat zip in her magic and pulling it up to her chin, trying to ignore how uncomfortable it was getting to keep her normally luscious curly mane contained under her hat.

Rarity nodded and lead the way inside. The hotel lobby was rather sparsely laid out with little in the way of decoration. There wasn't even a pony behind the reception desk at this time of night. Neither of them minded though, it meant less distractions and they already knew just where to go. A quick turn left put them toward a staff only door that they passed through without a moment's hesitation. A right down the next hallway, second left after that. Their quick walk lead them to a slightly dilapidated storage room that looked rather unassuming at a glance. A quick look round the room found their target though, a more well maintained stairway that led downward to parts unknown. They both knew what it was though, their entrance point for the low meet.

"Somehow, I didn't actually expect it to be underground." Rarity remarked as she adjusted her outfit, doing her coat up to her muzzle and tilting her glasses back to cover as much of her face as possible.

"Me neither. Still, the truth's gotta be buried somewhere down there..." Sweetie took her sunglasses out in her magic, flicked them open and put them on with a small grin.

"We just have to dig it up."

Author's Note

Yes, that ending was awful. No, I'm not sorry. :derpytongue2:

The Real Phoenix

"...Please don't do anything like that again. Ever." Rarity commented flatly.

"No promises, getting to make the snippy comment was kinda fun." Sweetie Belle replied as made her way down the stairs, zipping her coat up enough to cover her jaw.

Rarity sighed to herself and did the same before following her down. The stairway seemed to go into total darkness since there were no lights set up in there and the two sisters constantly needed to watch their step. Partway down they heard somepony coming up the stairs and pressed against the right wall, hoping they were inconspicuous enough in the dark. Thankfully the stallion passing them, since his size was pretty much the only thing they could make out from the silhouette, didn't pay them any attention either. With that done they kept moving, Sweetie walking into the wall briefly as the stairway levelled out and turned a corner. Beyond that there was a definite light that marked an exit and sounds of life were audible at the far end. Quite a lot of them too, judging by how quickly the sound was building up.

"Fascinating," Rarity murmured. "If I had to guess, this tunnel follows the streets above."

"And to be set up this well for so long, it must be as old as Manehatten itself." Sweetie said with amazement, the comment met by silence as Rarity ran a few numbers through her head.

"I think it's been here for a bit less than twenty six hundred years, darling." She finally replied, glancing aside as her sister looked away a little and buried her face further into her coat, suddenly intrigued by the now visible hardwood that made up the tunnel walls.

"Oh, yeah..." Sweetie's voice was muffled slightly now but she held her head in place as they exited the tunnel and stopped at the sight before them.

The low meet was nothing like they had expected. While neither of them had seen anything like it before, Rarity could vaguely imagine this was what those 'conventions' that Rainbow Dash had been to when she was younger had been like. The area was approximately ninety feet wide, two hundred and fifty feet long and thirty feet high. All the walls were set in concrete with small holes cut near the ceiling every dozen feet for what was presumably ventilation purposes. The roof was reinforced by a dozen steel girders evenly spread around the area and fitted with large firefly lamps to provide some light, though most of it came from lamps at ground level. Spread across the ground area were dozens of tables, stalls and various other means of selling wares that seemingly hundreds of ponies were examining, purchasing or selling. Every single pony present seemed to have taken measures to keep their identities hidden from anypony looking at them but beyond that, the general atmosphere almost felt more suited to a late-night community centre meeting than a black market.

"Well, at least we don't stand out." Sweetie Belle remarked, her eyes following a pony who seemed to be wearing a full hazmat suit to keep themselves covered.

"I don't like this," Rarity whispered as she took it all in. "I have no idea who any of these ponies are but every single one makes me think they'd turn on us for the most insignificant reason."

"Well we're not here to cause trouble, so we don't have any reason to give them at all," Sweetie said reassuringly, adjusting her glasses. "We just look like we're browsing, buy something if we need to, and see if we can find anything out here."

Rarity nodded, took a breath and set off into the low meet, her sister right beside her. Considering how many ponies there were down here, it was fairly easy to lose themselves in the crowd. For many of the ponies present, their coat colour was the only thing they could make out as they trotted past the various displays. The items on sale were the main reminder that this place was dangerous in reality, as practically nothing they could see could have been acquired legally. At one point the two of them passed a stall selling emergency services outfits. While neither of them wanted to imagine what most ponies here might use them for, the fact they were there only backed up the idea that the White Phoenix had been through here.

After several minutes of wandering they came to a booth that had a variety of medical supplies laid out for sale. The pony on the other side was a mare of indeterminate race, thanks to the mix of a dark brown cloak, black balaclava and snow goggles that only left their shamrock green muzzle exposed. Sweetie took several seconds to study the various bottles and boxes on display before picking up a small bottle that the label said contained Condusin, a salve developed for horn injuries. Keeping the bottle in her hoof, since she felt using her magic might be a giveaway, she looked it over before glancing up at the selling pony. Not that they'd know due to her sunglasses, nor would she know if they were even looking properly at her in return.

"Everything has it's labelled contents inside. The Condusin's forty bits." The seller stated in a strong Baltimare accent, possibly the Pren district.

"Hmm...You never know..." Sweetie said to herself, the muffle provided by her coat covering her muzzle keeping her voice from being too obvious. She fished the necessary coins out from a pocket and handed them over.

"Thanks. Nice to see somepony interested when I'm out of my usual gear." Seller, as Sweetie had already silently nicknamed her, commented. Though nopony could see it, Rarity raised a slight eyebrow at that.

"And what would that normally be?"

"Canisters of natural gas. It's easy to extract from the southern swamps and a has lot more uses than most ponies realise. I've already got a regular buyer too, cleared out the last two dozen I had and I'm stuck in Manehatten for a few days before I can get more, hence what I've got here tonight."

"You're awfully open about all this." Rarity commented. Seller looked over at her before grinning slightly.

"You must be new here," She remarked, as though Rarity had simply compared the weather to elsewhere in the world. "There's nothing to hide about what we do. Anypony who goes forward to the cops is basically admitting their own guilt in being here so, we don't know who anypony is but it's all open otherwise."

"So you don't have any problem talking about your buyer?" Sweetie asked in a slightly hushed tone, resting a hoof on the edge of the booth.

"It...Sounds like somepony we've needed to talk to for some time." Rarity clarified.

"Not sure how much I can tell you," Seller said simply, still sounding oddly relaxed. "Wasn't much to look at after all, being covered up. Just some very light coat visible. I mean, borderline beige. Kinda ironic that I kept remembering that bland colour."

"So, you've seen them for a while?"

"Well yeah. I mean I'm not at every meet, but I've seen that pony there enough times over the last few months. Especially when they started buying off me and we got talking. Had a weird voice too, sounded like a mare but just so...Dull. It was like trying to have a stimulating conversation with a changeling. I didn't question the bits she had though."

"They wouldn't happen to mention any indication of where they were getting the bits to afford all this, did they?" Sweetie asked, knowing she was grasping at straws but figuring it couldn't hurt to try.

"That was something else weird," Seller replied after a moment's thought, tapping her chin with a hoof. "Most ponies here operate on the basis that the other pony doesn't care what they say beyond the price. She just kept talking while she was loading up, all about how she kept slipping funds from her workplace and horded it at home before buying."

Rarity and Sweetie looked at each other, both thinking the same thing. With all they knew beforehand, this was merely the final confirmation that the bit thief and the White Phoenix were one and the same. It did explain why Rarity had struggled so much to find any kind of bank trail for where the bits had gone though. After all, there was no trail in the first place, simply the Phoenix lifting bits straight from the till at Manehatten Carousel. In the same vein though, that effectively narrowed down the suspect list to more of a shortlist. They just needed a little more to confirm it.

"I see. Sounds like our pony but, if there's anything more you remember...?" Rarity said, her ever familiar charm present even through her somewhat disguised voice.

"Hmmm...Well there was that one time she was rushing, even with that same dull voice..." Seller thought for a minute, her expression unreadable. "I noticed a mane clip sticking out from under the hat she had. Just a little red, pink and purple flower but I asked if it had a price, just figured it'd be something easy to hawk on the streets. She looked straight at me with a stare that I could feel more than I could see and said 'There's nothing that would match its worth.' with more emotion than I'd ever heard from her, before carrying on as if nothing had happened."

"That's..." Sweetie started before stopping as she looked at her sister. She could see Rarity's expression from this angle and she was clearly doing her best to keep from looking completely gobsmacked.

"That's exactly what we needed to know. Thank you very, very much!" Rarity said simply as she practically started pushing Sweetie Belle away from the stall and back toward the exit.

"No problem, hopefully I'll see you again." Seller said with only the slightest hint of confusion, waving them off.

As soon as they were some distance away, Rarity let her go and simply motioned back toward the way they had come in, leading at a brisk walk. Sweetie took a moment to check she still had the bottle in her pocket before following. Everypony around still paid them no mind and they were able to make their way to the staircase and through the dark path back into the hotel without any complications. Once they reached the storage room, Rarity led the way back to the lobby, figuring that it wouldn't be a good idea to be caught in a staff only area. By the time they reached the lobby without being spotted she was starting to look agitated as she undid her coat and took a breath. Sweetie did the same, removing her sunglasses and pocketing them quickly.

"What's wrong, sis?" Sweetie asked uncertainly.

"It's all clear to me now..." Rarity removed her glasses with her magic and looked her sister dead in the eye. "I know who the White Phoenix is."

"I, have my suspicions too...I just...I don't want to believe it." Sweetie folded her ears back in worry as she lifted her hat up in her magic, giving a small sigh as her mane fell into place again.

"I don't like it either, but everything we've learned is irrefutable," Rarity lowered her voice as she did the same with her own mane. "The Phoenix only works at night to either buy supplies or make her arson attacks, funding everything through bits all but certainly taken from Manehatten Carousel. And from everything we've seen and heard, most likely an earth pony."

"And...We only know one earth pony who could get to the finances of the boutique that regularly...And has been suffering from fatigue for months...And wears a flower mane clip like that seller described...All for long enough to match the time of every attack...It has to be..."

Sweetie squeezed her eyes shut and looked down, unable to bring herself to finish the sentence.

As hard as it was for her too, Rarity nodded.

"Yes...Coco Pommel."

The silence hung between them for several of the longest seconds of their lives. The idea, no, the fact that their friend; sweet, mild mannered, innocent little Coco was actually one of the most notorious serial criminals in living memory was very tough to take in. The fact that she seemed willing to seriously hurt ponies in the process was even worse. Rarity only needed those seconds before she was able to compose herself again, fully aware of what needed to be done. Sweetie was still looking straight down, the small whimpers coming from her making it clear she was taking it a lot worse. The younger mare was a pony who deeply valued her friends and this must have felt like the worst betrayal she could have possibly been hit by.

"Darling..." Rarity said softly, gently placing a hoof on Sweetie's shoulder and holding still as she got a distressed muzzle in her own shoulder. She simply held her little sister, stroking her mane reassuringly. She felt just as bad on the inside but there would be time to vent later. "I know, I know it's hard. But we have to see this through to the end. A lot of ponies are counting on us keeping going, now more than ever."

"I know..." Sweetie finally replied, pulling herself back and steeling herself, supressing the worst of her emotion for now. "We have to stop her."

"Yes, we do. Now it's going to take a little while but if we can inform the police and reach Coco's apartment quickly, we can do what we need to." Rarity stepped back slightly and moved toward the hotel exit, sounding more confident than before at having a plan to work with.

"She's not there," Sweetie said quickly as she followed Rarity, legs shaking slightly, a small sign she was still struggling. "She said she had plans this evening. By now, she's probably at the waterfront near Celestial Bridge. Something about a fireworks show."

"Fireworks..." Rarity mused as they stepped back onto the streets before stopping in place. "Vexation said that the Phoenix had dozens of those gas valves, and the seller back there said she'd bought so many canisters. If she has dozens of those makeshift bombs..."

"Oh sweet Celestia," Sweetie looked down before shaking herself out of the oncoming stupor. "The north district MPD station isn't far from here. You raise the alarm there, I'm going to go get Babs. Meet at the bridge and see what we can do."

She didn't even wait for a reply before taking off at a run. It wasn't too far to the Harmony's Rest apartments and she knew that Babs Seed had had the day off. If nothing else, she wanted another of her friends by her side for this. Rarity took a few moments to process her words before turning and setting off at a similar pace. She could see the sense in that call, the station was closer for her and they'd need all the resources they get their hooves on. As they disappeared round opposing street corners, their thoughts were the same.

'This is it...Please let us make it in time.'

Author's Note

And there you have it. As many of you likely guessed, Coco Pommel is indeed the White Phoenix. As the only reader to name it to me though, Menti Ardenti wins the bet. Please message me to discuss your winnings.

P.S I know you got it earlier, Deep Note, but you get to read my less subtle drafts. Plus I told you.

The Phoenix's Final Flight

As her hooves skidded to a halt on the sidewalk, Sweetie Belle took the briefest of moments to catch her breath before heading inside the Harmony's Rest apartments. She was tired already but there wasn't any more time to lose, which made her wonder why she hadn't simply teleported here. Then again, they still had to face Coco herself and even if it was easier to cast now, she'd still need several days before she could do it again, it would probably be useful to keep it for when they confronted her. Besides, if it meant getting some extra help, she could take on a few more flights of stairs. Thankfully nopony was around at this time of night and she was able to charge up the stairwell without interruption.

By the time she reached the fourth floor her legs were aching, her breath ragged, but her commitment unbowed. She quickly made her way to Bab's door and, taking a moment to compose herself as best she could, knocked gently in case Solo Act was in bed already. The moments she stood there waiting seemed to drag on forever with nothing but her own body's complaining at how she had pushed herself to listen to in the meantime. After what felt like forever but was only about ten seconds, the door opened and Sky Breaker appeared on the other side.

"Sweetie Belle? Bit late for a social call but, what's up?" He asked, doing his best to hide how tired he sounded.

"Long story, no time to explain, is Babs here?" Sweetie replied, managing to her breath under control enough to appear respectable at least. Sky nodded, judging that whatever she was here for was important before heading back into the apartment. After a minute of quiet talking inside, Babs came up to the door, rubbing her eye to try and shake some of the drowsiness.

"What's going on, Sweetie Belle? You have any idea what time it is?" She asked, looking more like she'd just been woken up.

"I know who the White Phoenix is and where they are. Rarity's alerting the others, we're going to need every hoof available though and you've done more for us in this than anypony."

"...Ok, brief me on the way," Any semblance of tiredness Babs had seemed to dissipate at those words and she stepped back to grab her jacket. "Sky?"

"Of course, I'll keep watch on little Solo." Sky affirmed. Babs nodded her thanks before rushing out, Sweetie right behind her.

The only sound coming from either of them was the clatter of hoofsteps as they rushed back downstairs. The momentary break had provided little respite for Sweetie's energy though and she was pretty much exhausted by the time they reached the ground floor again. Babs looked back at her with some concern at how hard she was pushing herself but the unicorn waved it off and stepped outside, looking round for a taxi or anything else they could use to get moving on. To her dismay, the street was completely deserted.

"So, where're we headed?" Babs asked as she stopped beside Sweetie, who had sat down for a breath, at a loss for what else to do.

"Celestial Bridge, but I don't..." She started, only to stop and look round when she realised that Babs had run off to who knew where. She didn't have the energy to search right now, no energy for anything really. After a minute, she glanced up at the sound of an approaching carriage, hopeful that this might be the break she was looking for. As it approached from up the street, she first noticed that it was a taxi, then as it pulled up just a few feet away she saw that Babs was in the back and motioning for her to get in. "How'd you do that?"

"Taxi rank on the other side of the apartment and MPD authority," Babs explained, offering a hoof that Sweetie took to help her clamber into the spare seat. Once the unicorn was settled she turned back to the driver pony. "Celestial Bridge approach please, quick as you can."

As her hooves skidded to a halt, Rarity took a moment to make sure nopony had seen that rather inelegant stop she'd made. The dash to the Manehatten Police Department's north precinct had been a quick one and while she had managed to keep herself looking presentable, the pace she'd kept due to the urgency of the situation left her needing a moment to catch her breath. With that breath taken, she adjusted her hat and stepped into the front entrance, taking in the lobby for the first time. There wasn't much to hold her focus here, being a single reception lobby in blue and white with several chairs for waiting. As she crossed the length of the lobby, the same thoughts kept running through her mind.

They say that those who are the closest are the ones who can see the least. I only wish that could have turned out to be false. For all that I've found, how much of this case I've unravelled, there's still one or two things that still elude me. Why is Coco doing this? And what does she stand to gain by going after Manehatten's food industry? Hopefully we can answer these questions when...If, we catch up to her.

Rarity snapped back to focus as she reached the front desk, manned by a charcoal earth stallion. Hopefully he wouldn't give her too much hassle, it was relatively well known across the MPD that Sweetie Belle and herself were both prominent figures on the case by now. Fortunately the look in his eyes made it clear he recognised her through the outfit.

"Evening, miss Rarity. What can we do for you?" The stallion asked cheerfully.

"I need officers sending to Celestial Bridge immediately. The White Phoenix is there right now and a major attack is imminent!" She stated, glancing aside to check if there were any directions to dispatch visible.

"Wh-what?!" The stallion tensed up, caught off guard at the statement before straightening up, knowing she wouldn't say such a thing if she wasn't serious. "Dispatch is in the left hallway, sixth door on the left."

Rarity nodded and set off that was at as quick a walk as she could. She reached dispatch quickly and stepped inside without a second thought. A pair of unicorns were manning a set of desks that reports from on duty officers presumably came in to. The other three quarters of the room looked more like a staff room where at least a dozen night shift officers were on standby. Before she had a chance to stay anything, one of the dispatch officers looked up as a scroll teleported in in front of her. The officer took it in her cyan magic and read through before standing up quickly.

"Ok, we've got a report of a stolen boat at the northwest waterfront, seen heading toward Celestial Bridge. Suspect is a very pale yellow earth mare, light blue mane and eyes, feathered hat cutie mark. We'll need pegasi on this one." The officer called out to the assembled crew.

"You'll need everypony!" Rarity announced, removing her hat and glasses so that everypony that looked her way recognised her, and her authority on this matter. "That suspect is the White Phoenix. Send every available officer to Celestial Bridge and close off all routes approaching the bridge on both sides. I repeat, the White Phoenix is there!"

The effect was immediate. Every single officer in the room scrambled up, the ones nearest the other door rushing out calling for any support they could get. Rarity grinned to herself before putting her hat and glasses back on, that had gone better than she'd expected. As the last of the waiting officers left a thought came to her and she turned to the dispatch officer.

"Can you call for support from the other precincts?" She asked, getting a nod of affirmation. "Get everypony you can, there needs to be a significant perimeter set up on both sides." With that she went to follow the deploying officers. She needed a lift to the scene after all.

"So yeah, we may have gone an...Unorthodox route, but that's how we figured it out." Sweetie Belle finished explaining as the taxi came to a halt. The trip had given her time to get her energy back and she was ready to get going again.

"Right, not entirely sure how legal that was, but we'll deal with that after." Babs replied, looking outside to see what the situation was. They were on the main road that lead carriages toward Celestial Bridge before it dropped underneath the train lines for the bridge itself. Already she could see other police ponies setting up a barricade across the road, which had the unfortunate side-effect of starting to draw a crowd.

The two of them dismounted and thanked the driver for the ride before heading forward. The sound of wingbeats made them both glance up, seeing pegasi officers moving toward the scene, likely the first response units from other precincts. They opted to avoid the crowds for now and made their way down the side streets to get to the waterfront. Things were only getting busier the further they moved down, with more ponies trying to see what was going on and more officers moving in on crowd control as a result. Thankfully the police perimeter was set up far enough away from the bridge that they were able to reach it quickly enough and pass through the security cordon with little more than a flash of Babs' badge. As they reached the docks, Sweetie felt less reassured by the sight of Market Match waiting for them with another police pony, an orange earth mare.

"What happened?" She asked as they trotted up, more to Match than anything.

"Well, me and Coco were walking down here, just a walk under the stars with the city lights for backdrop," He started, looking down at the dock. "I was just finally asking why she'd chosen to wear socks when it wasn't that cold when I realised that she was staring at the bridge. Just, staring silently, when I looked at her face I saw she looked really...I don't know how to describe it, vacant? I asked her what was wrong and she just shoved me away before running toward one of the docked boats. Before anypony could stop her she took one and started off for the support island for the bridge at full pelt."

"That...Doesn't sound good," Babs commented before turning to the other officer. "Ardent, what's the situation now?"

"The suspect started scaling the bridge using the maintenance walkways before we lost track of her movements. We've managed to lock down the bridge, stop all trains and set up checkpoints on both sides. She's got to still be on the bridge." The officer explained before glancing behind Sweetie and Babs. They looked back to see Rarity approaching, flanked by Gleaming Truth and Sky Eye.

"Glad you made it. Didn't expect to see you two though." Babs commented.

"We flew over as soon as we got the call that the Phoenix was here. Rarity filled us in." Truth answered. Match's jaw dropped slightly at that but before he could make any comment all seven present were distracted by a sudden glint of light coming from atop one of the bridge's nearest towers. An orange glint.

"We're out of time, we need to get up there! Pronto!" Sweetie exclaimed, ears folded back and pupils shrunk in worry.

"How'd she even start a fire up there...?" Sky commented before shaking his head slightly and eying up the tower. "Never mind. Gleaming Truth, how strong are you?"

"I'm, err..." Truth started as she looked up at the tower and then back to the others, a small glint of recognition for his plan in her eyes. "Strong enough."

"Great. Take us up to the train line. Any closer and we might be spotted." Sweetie said with determination, spreading her legs out further and bracing herself.

"Wait, what's happe-" Rarity started before Sky grabbed her and took off, leaving her to finish the sentence with nothing more than a strangled gasp.

Sweetie Belle glanced back as Truth did the same to her and took to the air moments later, the flyers heading for the bridge as fast as they could while hauling a unicorn cargo. Her eyes narrowed slightly as she focused in on the flame, trying to figure out just what she was going to say to her 'friend' once they'd caught up with her. She glanced over at Rarity and couldn't help but chuckle slightly at the sight of her sister trying to cling to Sky Eye despite her hooves being in the completely wrong place to do so. Hopefully she'd have her composure back by the time they landed, though between the four of them, surely it would be enough to bring the White Phoenix down once and for all.

As she watched the others depart. Babs' eyes went back up to the glare of light coming from the tower. She could already start to hear the increased murmurs of the crowd as they noticed the what was most likely flames. They were the lucky ones though, thinking that this was just a regular, if seemingly misguided, White Phoenix attack. She had heard what seemed to be really going on from Sweetie Belle though, and it terrified her on the inside. She managed to remain looking unfazed on the outside however, as she looked back at the other two ponies remaining next to her.

"We should probably move back to the safe distance." She commented, waiting for their agreement before leading them back toward the police cordon. As she took one final look back toward the bridge she silently mouthed her thoughts.

'Good luck girls...For everypony's sake.'

Rarity gave a sigh of relief as her hooves felt solid ground again and Sky Eye let her go. Sweetie Belle landed next to her a moment later and they took stock of their surrounding. As intended, they were on the train tracks, right next to where one of the maintenance walkways joined the main bridge. The tower that Coco was on stood tall above them, looking a lot more intimidating from this angle. Both had faced worse though. As Sky and Truth landed just behind them, their attention was drawn to the part of the walkway that connected to the bridge. Sitting there, almost innocently on its own, was another of the gas canister bombs. As they trotted closer they could see another on the stairs higher up, and another further down. It was likely that all the canisters that Coco had made were laid out all along the walkways for a chain reaction.

"How long did all this take to set up?" Sky panted, sounding a little worn out from the trip. Truth didn't look too much better.

"Maybe we can ask Coco once we catch up to her," Rarity replied, eying their route up. "All the same, it might help if one of us did something about all the canisters...Just in case."

"I'll take care of that," Truth said after a moment, looking back at the others as she moved forward. "Let's be honest...I'm probably the worst negotiator among us. I mean Rarity's charm is legend, Sky Eye, you always come across as likeable and Sweetie Belle, I've seen what you can do first hoof. One way or another, I trust you three to handle this."

"Alright, good luck yourself." Sky replied as he headed for the stairs, keeping on his hooves on the ground for now. Truth watched them go before grabbing the canister and looking round for somewhere to safely place it in the meantime.

"Alright so...How ARE we gonna handle this?" Sweetie asked as she followed Sky up, Rarity right behind her. "Rarity, you're Miss Pommel's best friend, any thoughts?"

"You know Coco just as well as I do, darling." Rarity replied, wondering why she wasn't using her name until she saw the slight glare she was getting from her sister.

"I thought I did..." Sweetie said quietly, unable to hide a hint of bitterness in her voice.

"Well...Maybe you should go up to her first, Sweetie Belle. From what I heard about your talk with Vexation, you're good at getting the best out of ponies." Sky Eye interjected, shifting another of the canisters aside as they neared the top, eying a trail of smoke now just about visible in the night sky.

"Alright, I'll try and get some answers out of her...And if I keep her focused away from the stairs, you two can jump her from behind. No time to waste, if she has a canister on that fire..." Sweetie moved past Sky and headed for the last set of stairs, silent except for the clank of hooves on metal. Rarity and Sky looked at each other and waited, giving her a little time to move her plan into action.

Sweetie poked her head over the edge of the tower top, quickly surveying the situation. Flat concrete construction, about fifty square feet. Coco was sitting in front of the fire, facing sideways from the stairs but too focused on throwing what looked like the socks that Market Match had mentioned into the flames. The fire itself seemed to have been set on a saddlebag, likely filled with flammable materials for it to be going so strongly. Most distressing though was the gas canister sitting in the dead center of the flames. It couldn't have been there for long but any time at all was too long. Seeing it all with her own eyes was almost too much for her to handle and she took the last few steps quickly, stepping onto the tower top.

"You..." She said coldly as she faced down her friend, though now she could only see her as the White Phoenix. Coco stood up to face her quickly, catching the gas valve on the canister slightly and knocking it just out of the fire. While what was left of the saddlebag straps kept it from rolling away completely, it wasn't going to keep heating up as quickly.

"You found me?" Coco asked in return, her body illuminated by the hellish glow of the flames to her right. This was the first time they'd seen each face to face and it was enough to make Sweetie pause.

Coco looked...Off. Her eyes were locked straight onto the unicorn yet at the same time they were completely unfocused. Her head was tilted slightly to the side and the rest of her body looked rigid, too rigid to be normal. If there were such things, she looked like what Sweetie imagined a real zombie pony looking like. Just...So wrong. Any anger she'd been feeling bled away at the realisation, she had no idea what she was looking at but this wasn't the actions of Coco herself, she could feel it. Had she been like this all the previous times too? Was somepony else involved with her behaviour? What in the name of Celestia was going on?...Questions for later, right now she needed to put an end to this, and not in the way she'd planned.

"I did, the police figured it out and there's nowhere to go now," Sweetie stepped onto the concrete fully and circled round the fire, watching Coco keep her eyes locked on her. "Take a look out there."

"Good, an audience." Coco said without any hint of emotion. Less than any emotion, somehow she was putting less emotion into her voice than Maud Pie. Come to think of it, she'd done the same with her earlier question.

"Come on, Coco, this isn't you at all. Why're you doing this?"

"You wouldn't understand her plan. Equestria will benefit from this though." Coco kept following Sweetie's movements, by now facing completely away from the stairs. Rarity and Sky Eye could just be seen observing from over there, now able to move in when ready.

"Her plan? You...You're going to go up in flames for somepony else's deluded plan?"

"Deluded...?" Coco turned and walked toward one of the edges of the top, knocking the canister into a slow roll with her leg by accident. It was now possibly far enough to be safe. The heated metal had burned her leg slightly from the contact and yet she didn't even flinch.

"Seriously, what do you gain from all this? Aside from knowing what it feels like to lose everything?" Sweetie asked, lifting her hat off and putting it aside before loosening her coat. It felt like it was getting in the way now and even if Coco wasn't herself, she still wanted to try and get through to her, face to face.

"I..." Coco looked back at her and for a moment she seemed to get a little more focus in her eyes before they faded again. "You know nothing about losing everything. But then, you don't know how to gain everything back. I will with this."

"I err...Who am I even talking to?" Sweetie asked, starting to feel more than a little uneasy. She also had to keep fighting the urge to glance aside to watch the others progress, even though she could see Rarity steadily sneaking closer, Sky right behind her.

"Me. Who else?"

"Okay then," Sweetie rubbed the side of her head in confusion, trying to think of a new tactic. "Well...If that's all...I'd, like something to remember you by after this so...How about you hand over your hair clip and-"

"No!" Coco snapped, finally putting emotion back into her voice. "Nopony's touching it! I need that if I'm going to keep from slipping. It's part of me!"

"Yes, it is, but this insanity isn't."

"It's..." She looked out toward Manehatten and winced. If that was reacting to the burn, then maybe she was starting to feel more normal. Despite her eyes still looking as weird as tartarus, she sat down and simply stared at the skyline. Quietly, the canister finished its slow roll toward fate and fell over the edge, toward the dark waters below. The bridge was saved, now the pony needed to be.

"Coco, I know you can hear me in there. Just relax, put the fire out and come with me. I know we can explain this, you've clearly had somepony messing with your head." Sweetie glanced over at Rarity and Sky, who were only about five feet away from Coco now and looking back at her, waiting for any kind of silent confirmation of what to do.

As they all tried to judge their next move, Sweetie tensed slightly. She'd felt something weird in that last breath of wind, unidentifiable, but yet she felt like her magic reserve had been momentarily blunted. She could see the same reaction from Rarity. Coco however, was clutching her head in her hooves, panting hard as her back hooves scrambled for purchase as she stood up. She smacked her muzzle on the floor as she got up fully, stomping her hooves and whimpering.

"C...Coco?" Rarity finally asked nervously.

"Not that room, get her away from me!" Coco shouted, shaking her head wildly and spinning round. None of the other three had the slightest idea what she was talking about but Rarity was first to notice that her hooves were still dangerously close to the edge. She moved forward to try and pull her back, managing to get a hoof round her shoulders.

Coco yelped and backed up slightly, swinging her hoof out and managing to grip Rarity's foreleg as she backed up in panic. Sweetie realised what was happening a second too late and started to rush forward, only to see Coco's back hoof miss the edge of the tower and overbalance her. Rarity was caught in the momentum and the two of them had only the briefest of moments for what was happening to set in before they plunged over the edge, their terrified shrieks coming moments later.

"Sky! Come on!" Sweetie Belle called to the pegasus as she rushed to reach them. It was only then that her brain caught up with and realised what her body had just done.

She'd thrown herself off the edge after them.

Her panic was only momentary as she remembered that she could still teleport, the question was if she could fall fast enough to catch up with either Rarity or Coco before they reached the waters below. Based on her rough knowledge of the Celestial Bridge and how far they'd dropped already, she had about two hundred and fourty feet. Her hooves pressed up against each other and she pressed her muzzle into her front legs, trying to minimise her wind resistance. Even so she could feel the rush of air to her right as Sky Eye dove next to her, naturally faster in the air.

Two hundred and ten feet.

She couldn't tell if she was gaining or not, they were still ahead and flailing too much, their cries adding a piercing tone to the wind that that buffeted her constantly. A small part of her felt even worse for the two of them, Coco had been confused even before she started plummeting to her doom and Rarity was in this situation for at least the fourth time in her life. She silently prayed that neither of them would have to do this again, for the right reason.

One hundred and eighty.

She was closing in but Sky was ahead of her now. He was going for Rarity from the looks of it, who had calmed down slightly now that she had her bearings and seem them coming, though her hat and glasses had been lost in the fall. That was the least of their issues right now though, especially since her coat billowing out slightly was slowing her down. That still left Coco to grab and she was still getting closer, though her window of opportunity was rapidly getting smaller.

One hundred and forty.

What if she couldn't live up to the claim she had made as well? It was only just setting in that her whole plan now hinged on getting hold of Coco and teleporting them both to safety, something she'd never done at the best of times. Freefalling toward a water surface that would be about as soft as the sidewalk to land on was far from the best of times. On top of everything, she was becoming acutely aware of the sounds of panic coming from the waterfront, likely the crowds having caught sight of what was happening. Considering where they were on the bridge, it was likely too far for any of the pegasi on crowd control to reach them now and Gleaming Truth could only have reacted in time if she saw the fall much earlier. This was all on her now.

Ninety.

Her horn glowed and she yanked her coat zip right up to her chin, desperate for any advantage. Sky had reached Rarity and was securing his grip on her now, their slowed fall meaning she was level with them again. Coco seemed to have given up any control he had left and was now falling limply. She was getting closer though, she could probably reach her back hoof at a stretch. That wouldn't be enough though.

Sixty.

Sky finished getting a solid grip on Rarity and his wings shot open, shearing off speed and sending the two of them shooting past Sweetie Belle with a major draft of wind.

Fifty.

The speed of the fall was making her eyes water and it was getting harder to keep her focus. She had to do this now. Her hoof reached out and managed to wrap itself round Coco's. She needed to still be closer though.

Forty.

She pulled herself in closer, managing to get her head to about the same level as Coco's stomach before wrapping her other hoof around her friend's body and looking up at the riverbank. There was a clear spot of the waterfront carriageway there, the same one she had met the others at earlier. It would have to do...Assuming she could do it.

Twenty five.

Her horn lit up, glowing brighter than ever before as she did her best to visualise the spot before pouring all her energy into the spell. Her eyes squeezed shut as she focused, then the world around her exploded in a flash of pale green. In that brief moment, she realised that she was still holding onto Coco. Then she felt wind and gravity kicking in again, dragging her down not headfirst anymore but sideways and back first.

She hit the ground upside down, Coco landing on top and driving the air from her. Her grip loosened before she felt them bounce at speed. Her world span rapidly and her friend vanished from both grip and sight. A second later she hit the ground again on her right flank, gritting her teeth as she felt the friction tear through her coat and scrape at her body for a moment before a second bounce. Her vision became another breathless blur of sky, road, sky, building, very close road. She came down on the right side of her neck, her momentum sending her into a low roll before it could take any real damage. For another second she couldn't focus on anything until she felt something very solid slam into the back of her horn, followed by her back that brought her to a halt. Any pain she felt from the landing was almost immediately overridden by a sudden cutting pain lancing through her horn and into her head, like a spiking headache in the deepest reaches of her brain.

Despite it she weakly lifted her head to try and see what had happened. There was still a glint of flame from the bridge tower but it was dying down quickly. Coco had come to a halt about fifteen feet back up the waterfront, unmoving and similarly banged up, but breathing. Even as Sweetie watched, her eyes slowly opened and she glanced up. Her pupils were shaking slightly, but they looked normal again, whatever she had gone through up there was over. Sweetie smiled slightly and let her head drop back down, the knocks the rest of her body were catching up with the pain in her horn by now and her everything was hurting. After a few moments the sound of hoofsteps became apparent behind her, as well as several voices.

"Is that her? The White Phoenix?"

"It has to be, Sweetie Belle got the scumbag!"

"That's amazing, she's gotta be-"

"Focus you three! Mandate, get us an ambulance over here! Ardent, make sure there's a clear path for it! Terra, secure miss Coco Pommel. Go!"

She recognised that last voice. Even in her current state, she managed to crack a small smile as Babs Seed briefly came into view, checking her over with concern.

"Damn, that ain't good...Alright, sorry about this Sweetie Belle, but...This is gonna suck." Babs said as she moved back out of sight. Sweetie had a few moments to wonder what she meant before she felt a hoof pressed against the spot where her horn had hit something.

"Rrrghhh!!!" Sweetie hissed as the pain reached a near unbearable crescendo before fading to little more than a dull ache. "Gah! What the hay was that?!"

"You, chipped your horn when you hit a lamp post during your landing," Babs explained, keeping her hoof pressed on. "It's not too big though, maybe two centimetres tall and three deep. I've tried to put it back in but, I don't know anything about how bad these things can be."

It's bad," Sweetie said simply, trying to keep from moving. She'd learned a little about horn injuries, how the disruption to the natural channels within it could leave her magic unrestrained, how in the worst scenarios it could all discharge into the nearest conduit, typically the injured pony themselves. Her eyes widened slightly as she remembered the scant details about first aid. "Check my lower left pocket."

Babs did as asked and pulled out the bottle of Condusin, slightly cracked in the landing but surprisingly in one piece. She looked down at her friend for a moment, silently asking how she got her hooves on this, before checking the instructions, opening the top and spreading some of the white salve onto the chipped section. After a moment several sparks of energy danced across it and the salve shifted colours to the same green as Sweetie's magic. It would help keep her magic in check until she could get some real help.

"We'll have to talk about that later. How're you feeling for now?" Babs asked as she moved back round to the front.

"Probably as good as you did after your muzzle got broken." Sweetie replied, getting a moments silence followed by a small chuckle from her friend.

"Hurting like mad but proud of what I'd done? Sounds about right."

"Exactly...We, really did it." She glanced over toward the bridge again, just about able to see the silhouettes of Sky Eye and Rarity heading their way. They'd all done it.

The sound of further hoofsteps behind her heralded the arrival of the medical ponies and she let herself relax. With one small, final nod of confirmation to Babs that she was alright, she exhaled and simply tried to shun the aching across her whole body. As two of the medics lifted her onto a stretcher and began carefully carting her toward a waiting ambulance carriage, her gaze drifted over toward the cordon, visible further down the waterfront. She could see dozens, likely hundreds of ponies watching her behind a line of barriers and officers. Despite her condition, she raised a hoof to them, signifying she was alright. The response was rapid, every one of those ponies cheering her and stomping their hooves, celebrating her success. The sight brought a larger smile to her face. The past few months had been tough on so many and she was ending it with both her and Coco on their way to hospital. But to see all these ponies realising that they were free of the threat of the White Phoenix, that Manehatten was truly theirs again. To see them all smile like that...

It was all worth it.

Author's Note

I know the opening's a bit scrappy (I had another chapter focused on just those events but merged it here when it looked like it'd come up short.) but overall this is the proudest I've felt about a chapter in a long time. :twilightsmile:

Embers

Charity Kindheart Memorial Hospital
April 11th

While the events at Celestial Bridge had blown by so fast that most ponies could barely keep up, the following week had dragged on for an eternity for Sweetie Belle. The following hours had, despite the beating taken by her crash landing, required her to stay awake while the city's best keratologists examined her damaged horn and performed the surgical treatment needed. Beyond that she had been confined to bed rest with nothing more than periodic check-ups to look forward to. She wasn't allowed visitors at all because it was very likely that she'd end up mobbed for hours if she did, she was a local hero now for her direct actions in uncovering the White Phoenix, as well as saving Celestial Bridge. The doctors had been willing pass along some letters of thanks from ponies though, which had made for welcome reading in the meantime.

Once the doctors were satisfied that her body hadn't taken any serious or lasting damage from the landing, she could get up and move about. The days passed a lot quicker when she could stretch her hooves and spend her free time visiting other patients. Considering she'd been in the same situation as them, having to stay in bed with nothing to do, it only felt right to try and cheer them up. She found that she was surprisingly good at it, just her presence had an uplifting effect on many ponies and she enjoyed the conversations they struck up so much that more than once she had to be reminded by the nurses that she had her own check-ups to attend. Mercifully, progress had been good thanks to the efforts of the doctors and she didn't have to spend as much time with them anymore.

"So, how's it looking?" Sweetie Belle asked as her horn specialist, an olive coloured unicorn mare by the name of Channeler, carefully undid the bandages around her horn and examined the damaged spot.

"Well, not sure if anypony's mentioned it yet, but you having that Condusin at hoof was very lucky, kept things stable for us," Channeler commented, sounding professional but chipper as she studied what were now merely thin cracks around the surface of the formerly chipped spot. "As it is, you'll still need to avoid any heavy magic use for several months to avoid exacerbating the area but the rest of that is down to your own body's healing now. And yes, you can still hold your microphone."

Sweetie chuckled as she moved in front of the room's mirror and waited as Channeler brought up a smaller one behind her to let her see it for herself. She had no idea how the professionals knew what to look for or how they'd fixed it, but she was thankful they did. Her horn looked almost good as new from a distance. While she could see the hints of the chipped spot from where she was standing she knew that it could have been a lot worse too. As Channeler moved back round to the front she placed the hoof mirror down, waiting for her eye matching cyan magic to disappear from it before motioning toward it. Sweetie understood and gripped it in own magic, blinking at the slightest hint of an ache in her horn before it faded a second later, leaving her to lift the mirror up and levitate it around. After a minute of doing so, complete with a little twirl of it in mid-air, she put it back down and looked back at Channeler.

"No problems?" She asked, getting an affirmative shake of the head from Sweetie. "Alright, well they said they'd let me give the good news if that was the case so...Sweetie Belle, you're cleared to be checked out of the hospital today. I'll be pencilling you in for a check-up to see how things are going about two weeks from now but if you follow the guidelines the Baltimare doc gave you, you'll be back up to normal in no time at all."

"All right!" Sweetie couldn't help herself and punched the air in glee. With how long she'd been stuck in here, she couldn't wait to just get some time to herself, some quiet to get everything back in order and focus on her own life again. She darted out of the examination room to get back to her ward and start packing, leaving Channeler standing there dumbfounded for a moment.

"...You know we need to finish this session right?"

Three hours and one finished check-up later, Sweetie Belle was ready to go. Wincing slightly as she finished attaching her saddlebags, having forgotten that her flank was still bruised, she double checked that she had everything and took one last look round her ward. It was part of a private wing that ponies who needed to recover away from even the hustle and bustle of the hospital were treated in, so it was reserved for more severely injured patients. She had been its only occupant for the last few days, which had only helped drive her to go talk to patients elsewhere. As she was finishing up, her attention was caught by the sound of hoofsteps coming into the ward. She thought it was likely just a doctor with a last minute change to her plan, so she gave it a minute before turning back toward them. As soon as she saw who it was, she stopped in place.

Staring back at her was Rarity, without her detective's outfit on and back with her regular red glasses on. The two of them simply stood at each other, letting their little reunion soak in. Sweetie Belle had already been carted off to hospital by the time Rarity and Sky Eye had landed back on the waterfront and the blanket ban on visitors had included her own sister. This was the first time either of them had seen each other safe since they had stood atop Celestial Bridge. The same thought crossed their minds at the same time and they both rushed forward, meeting midway and embracing each other simply as sisters who'd finally been allowed to alleviate their fears.

"I'm sorry I couldn't see you sooner," Rarity said simply, hugging Sweetie Belle a little tighter. Her eyes were squeezed shut and from the sound of her voice, she was barely fighting back tears at seeing her little sister was alright. "Was it...As bad as they're saying?"

"Several sprains, one scuffed flank and a horn chip. So, probably...I'm ok though."

"Good...Good." Rarity whispered as she hugged her a little tighter, stopping when she heard a small grunt coming from Sweetie.

"I'm okay," She reaffirmed before breaking the hug and stepping back slightly. "How's...How's Coco?"

"She's still being held, mostly for her own safety at this point. Enough ponies saw her and, the public isn't happy. It's taken a lot to ensure proper damage control for the poor dear. Though between the testimonies of me and Sky Eye, as well as everything she's told us, I'm hopeful we can soon have her pardoned and released on grounds of mind control. We can go visit her if you want."

"That sounds good, and I'm all done here." Sweetie shifted her saddlebags forward so they didn't rub on her sore spot and followed Rarity toward the ward exit.

As they passed through the doors she came to a halt, staring in surprise. Waiting for them just outside were Babs Seed, Gleaming Truth and Sky Eye. She had no idea how they'd all been gathered at such short notice but she appreciated it all the same. Getting a good look at Sky though, she remembered that night. How he'd followed her into the dive without hesitation, saved her sister since there was no way she could teleport all three of them out. She'd never had the chance to even show her gratitude and before she knew it, she'd run over and hugged him as well. Sky looked down at Sweetie Belle in surprise at the action before gently returning the hug. Babs chuckled slightly at the sight while Rarity and Truth just watched in relative confusion.

"Thank you, for all your help at the bridge." Sweetie managed to say as she looked up at him, getting a small smile in return.

"Dla ciebie wszystko," Sky replied in Zebra. "It was no trouble." He followed up in Equestrian before she could question it. Truth eyed him for a moment, picking up on something none of the others had but deciding not to comment.

"Still, for all that, I think you've earned a lifetime pass to my shows at least." Sweetie replied, pulling off the hug and taking a step back.

"Well, I don't know how much time I'd have for them. The White Phoenix case is officially closed and I'm heading back to duty in Canterlot later today."

"Ah...Well, I'll just have to come by when you've got a day off and make sure you get to see a performance."

"Sounds good." Sky's smile grew at that offer and he gave a small chuckle, his eyes shining slightly as he glanced up, imagining it.

"Actually, I also want to take the time to thank you, thank both of you again," Truth said as she stepped forward, smiling at Rarity and Sweetie. "I get the distinct impression that without you two jumping in to help us. We'd have been kicking our hooves and making no progress on this case until it was too late. As it is, you saved a major landmark of the city and probably a lot of lives in the process."

"And we wouldn't have made all those discoveries without you three helping. So thank you for all that," Rarity replied with a smile of her own. "You three really deserve some more credit for your parts in this."

"Every story has its unsung heroes. Besides, you two may be the big names the media's singing all the praise about, but we've been getting notice from the top brass all the same. Hopefully now I can get a bigger office at least." Babs commented. She looked over at Sweetie and raised her left hoof, smirking slightly. Sweetie stepped forward and did the same, hoofbumping her friend before they each wrapped their hoof around the others pastern and pumped their leg down, pulling each other into an embrace. They didn't need words to thank each other for their parts, their crusader bond said it all for them.

"I hate to break this up but, we should probably get moving if you two are going to see Coco before visiting hours finish," Truth told Rarity. "Plus, I think I've got an idea." Sweetie heard her and nodded, pulling herself free from Babs' hold and following Truth and Rarity down the hallway. Sky and Babs followed them up shortly after.

"Duch przewodnika pokojowego jestes, Kochanie Pieknosc." Sky said as they walked, quietly and seemingly to himself. He kept staring at Sweetie Belle the whole time though, a fact Babs caught onto as she walked beside him.

"Something you're not telling us, Oka?" Babs teased, nudging her temporary colleague. Sky blushed slightly at being caught out, still not taking his eyes off her.

"...Maybe."

Coco Pommel shifted slightly in her cot, staring straight forward at the cell wall. It was all she'd done since she had woken up today, or any day really. One minute she had been on the Manehatten waterfront, debating on asking Market Match if their time together counted as a date, the next she'd lost all coherence and was in freefall, only taking long enough to register that before blanking out. When she'd come to, she was in this cell. She hadn't been able to get many of the police to even speak to her, though what she had learned scared her even more than the silence the others had given her. The idea that she had been the White Phoenix...She shivered slightly at the thought again and curled up on herself, praying that she might wake up from this unrelenting nightmare.

Her ears twitched as she heard the cell door opening, though she didn't look back at it. It was probably just a warden bringing her food again. This was the only real break in her routine now, she didn't leave the cell for so much as exercise since she felt that if somepony like her went out of her cell and the other inmates realised who and what she was, she wouldn't be coming back. Her ears twitched again as she picked up more than one set of hoofsteps coming into the cell, though it still wasn't enough to make her turn around. She didn't want to hassle anypony by giving them the wrong look or something.

"Miss Pommel?"

She recognised that voice slightly. One of the officers who'd been willing to talk to her, one of the nicer ones about it too. Gleaming Truth? Was that the name? It didn't matter, she likely was here because she was in trouble. Maybe if she looked like she was asleep, Truth would just let her be, let her stay safe with her worries for company.

"Miss Pommel, we need to talk to you."

Ok, that wasn't going to work. She couldn't help them though.

"I've said everything I knew," Coco said quietly and dejectedly, folding her ears back, still staring blankly at the wall. "I...I may be the White Phoenix, but that wasn't me. Starlight Glimmer brainwashed me. I swear..."

"That's not what we're here for, Coco."

Wait, that second voice...It couldn't be. Coco slowly rolled herself over and paused at the sight. Gleaming Truth was indeed there, flanked on her left by the second speaker. It was indeed, Rarity. On the right side was Sweetie Belle, smiling reassuringly at her. Despite everything, all the fear she felt, Coco couldn't help but crack a small smile at the sight of some friendly faces. That smile only grew further as Sweetie opened her mouth.

"Actually, we've got some good news."

Author's Note

Yes, I used a real language for Zebra, it's not an African dialect though. If anyone out there happens to be a native speaker of it and sees this, I'm very sorry for my butchered attempts at writing it.

In more positive news, the final chapter will be uploaded tomorrow. :twilightsmile:

Epilogue

Ponyville
May 2nd

Compared to the intense urban atmosphere of Manehatten that she had been subject to for the past few months, being back in gentle, sunny Ponyville had almost come as a shock for Rarity. Still, she had every reason to be back now, both her reasons for donning her detectives guise had been fulfilled and fun as it had been, she had her own boutique to run again. Still, she could always find a day out from that to help her friends and family. Today she was helping both, at least, she would be as soon as Sweetie Belle was able to get a few minutes away from her fans.

Stopping for a moment to wait for her to catch up, Rarity gave some thought to the aftermath of the case. Just before returning home she had checked if anything Coco Pommel had said after becoming herself again had been looked into. It turned out the mention of Starlight Glimmer, AKA Equestria's second most wanted pony had sent both the higher ups at the precinct and local security into a fervour for several hours. That had quickly abated several hours later, the reasons why had been classified but Rarity had found out on her own that Pinkie Pie had somehow been connected. She had been told the situation was resolved though and for the time being she was making sure that a certain pony or two made the most of their fresh peace.

"I'm, still not sure this is a good idea." Coco said quietly as she stayed close to Rarity. All things considered, the earth pony had gotten off lightly, released without charge and the knowledge that she had been the White Phoenix largely contained to Manehatten itself. All the same, the reaction from most ponies within the city had been less than welcome, enough that Rarity had quickly decided to bring her friend to Ponyville and let her keep working at Carousel Boutique.

"Don't worry darling. Even if the odd pony here found out, this is still the friendliest town in Equestria. You'll fit in just fine once we've got you a place of your own." Rarity reassured her. She'd been looking at houses for sale for several days and now they were heading to finalize the purchase of her choice. Coco would be safe there and as a bonus, Sweetie Belle could stay there whenever she was in town, like right now with her next show just a few days away.

"I hope so...But I trust you. Thank you, Rarity," The two of them stopped and looked back, hoping that Sweetie was going to catch up with them soon. They both needed a moment to register what they saw though. "I err...What's Sweetie Belle doing?"

"She's..." Rarity watched with understanding as her sister stood nearby, talking to a light violet unicorn with a blond mane and foal's schoolbook cutie mark. She couldn't hear Sweetie's words from here but after a few moments, she could see Dinky Hooves crack a sad smile and mouth her thanks. "...Just keeping a promise she made."

And that's the last little detail from the case that needed to be wrapped up. As much as everypony played their parts in this, I can't help but feel like Sweetie Belle put even my investigative skills to shame. She went into this case expecting me to take charge and end whatever blight we faced. Instead she ended up taking the lead where I couldn't, forged ahead and not only uncovered the truth, but helped out many more ponies than we thought in the process. I may be the veteran investigator, and an Element of Harmony, but when it came to facing the White Phoenix, my sister was more of a hero than me.

I couldn't be prouder of her.

Author's Note

Phew...That's a wrap. I didn't expect this to clock in at over 70,000 words when I started, or that it would end up with a 100% positive rating at completion (There are no words for my thanks to you all) but I think it was a major step forward for my writing ability. It's been almost a year since I started writing the Quickverse stories and the fact everyone seems to keep enjoying them all the while is a major boost for me. Thank you all so so much!

I've got some short stories to upload during planning for my next major story. Whichever you choose to check out, thank you again and stay awesome until next time!

Manehatten Boutique

December 17th

Compared to the energy of the night before, Manehatten seemed downright peaceful as morning light covered the city. There was less carriage traffic than usual due to the snow and despite the number of ponies still walking the streets, none of them seemed to mind the weather in the slightest. It only took a little extra to be as warm as normal and by now everypony was prepared and either making their way to work, doing some sightseeing of the snowy city or simply making the most of the chance for a snowball fight. There was a sense of fellowship in the air, community and friendship. Sweetie Belle couldn't help but think that even after all these years, they had her sister to thank for that.

She hummed to herself as she walked, making her way down a street on the west side of the city not far from Bridleway. She was set up against the cold, wearing a set of light green snow socks that Rarity had made for her a few years back. Even with the cold there was still plenty of ponies about, many of them tourists who stopped to take a photo of her when they realised who it was. Sweetie always made sure to wave back when she noticed them, no matter how many celebrity ponies there were in Manehatten, she wanted to make an effort to show her appreciation for them focusing on her. With her music career in a prime position to take off again she expected it to start happening a lot more often as well, it was important to never lose that desire.

"Ermm, excuse me?" A voice from behind made her look round, seeing a rather slender unicorn stallion with a thick yellow coat, sleek silver mane and tail, piercing blue eyes and a rat trap cutie mark. Something about him and his slick voice made Sweetie Belle think on reflex that he was the kind of pony who ran a phoenix oil scam. "Hi, miss Belle, I was wondering if could trouble you for an autograph?"

"Oh, sure. Who's it to?" She replied, noticing the paper and quill held in his blue magic and taking them into her own.

"Vexation." He replied with perhaps a bit too much pride in his voice. As soon as she had signed it he gave his thanks and went on his way. Sweetie couldn't help but think that by the end of the day, that autograph would have been sold on for quite a few bits. At least it was only something petty like that, instead of something illegal.

Crime in Manehatten may have gone down in general over the years, but that space had been filled by a number of arson attacks over the past few months, all believed to have been performed by the same figure that the media had collectively dubbed 'The White Phoenix' due to a graffiti mark the perpetrator left during their actions. Part of Sweetie wondered how hard it could be to start tracking whoever was responsible, though she knew she had no idea what the Manehatten Police were going through with so much pressure on them.

She shook the thought from her mind as she rounded a corner and brushed some snow out of her mane. Right now she had a day job to do and the store was now in sight; Manehatten Carousel. Rarity's fashion career had taken off hard enough to reach orbit over the last two decades, her shop here was now one of a dozen spread across every major settlement in Equestria, and it's protectorate state, The Crystal Empire. Sweetie Belle had learned enough on her own to be qualified to work as the assistant manager, though the two sisters both knew that having her on staff brought extra customers in hoping for an autograph and sometimes staying to buy clothing. 'Come for the star, stay for the quality' as Sweetie had jokingly suggested making the store's tagline.

The shop itself was standard three story building, adorned with the light blues and purples that made Rarity's stores stand out so well. She stopped outside and lifted a key out from her sock, unlocking the door and stepping into the store. Normally her boss arrived first but the snow was probably slowing them down and she knew the routine well enough to handle it herself even without magic. After ten minutes the store was mostly set up for the day and she was just bringing out the clothing displays when another pony stepped into the store. An earth stallion with an olive gold coat, orange mane, blue eyes and a market stall cutie mark.

"Morning, Market Match!" Sweetie Belle said happily as she noticed him.

"Sweetie Belle," Market Match replied cheerfully as he trotted behind the counter. Just because he was the manager of the boutique didn't mean he wasn't friends with his co-workers. "How'd it go last night?"

"It was amazing! I haven't felt so good about singing in forever!" Sweetie couldn't help but bounce slightly in excitement at the memory, taking a full minute to calm down enough to focus herself while Market checked the store over and brought out a newspaper, laying it out on the counter and flicking through it until he reached the entertainment pages.

"I don't doubt you sounded amazing as well, I decided to wait until we got here before seeing for myself," Market put a hoof on the article reviewing the Sounds of Unity and stepped aside to let Sweetie look at it as he skimmed through. "Hmm...General high quality...Outstanding performance by Seviors...Ah! Sweetie Belle performing The Magic Inside, that's a real classic combo."

"It...Was," Sweetie's face fell slightly as she read. "Definitely a quality performance, though how much of that is due to the energy of the musicians carrying a shaky singer performance is debatable. Sweetie Belle said prior to starting that she was returning to lighter music like this, it could have got off to a much better start...Again?" She groaned, getting a puzzled look from Market in response.

"Again?"

"If this is the..." Sweetie flipped the paper back to the front cover and looked at the title. "The Equestria Today, yeah. They've had it in for me for years. Soon as my change in musical direction started to slip up, they pounced on it and started the publicity landslide that made last year go straight to Tartarus. Come to think of it, they've never had a kind word to say about Scootaloo either."

"Weird. Why would they do that?"

"I wish I knew...." Sweetie sighed slightly and shook her head as Market took the paper and binned it. Any further discussion was interrupted as the front door opened quickly and an earth mare stepped in. Cream coloured with a light blue and white mane and tail, cyan eyes and a feathered hat cutie mark. She looked tired and cold, like she'd been running all the way to the shop. Sweetie's eyes widened slightly at the sight of her. "Coco? What's wrong?"

"N-nothing, sorry I'm late." Coco Pommel panted, managing to sound soft even when tired. Market Match glanced up at the clock and frowned slightly.

"It's only twenty past nine, we open at half past."

"You normally want us here at nine."

"Yes but, the snow held us all up," Market took a look round the store and moved up to Coco, placing a reassuring hoof on her shoulder. "Why don't you take some time out to warm up? We're probably not going to be busy in this weather."

"Thanks, Match." Coco smiled and headed for the staff room on the second floor. Sweetie watched her go before deciding to follow her up, despite her demeanour, the two had worked together long enough to know when the other was feeling rattled.

By the time she got up there, Coco had sat herself down in the staff room with a small cup of coffee. Sweetie couldn't stomach the stuff herself but considering it had only been invented a few years ago she wasn't going to complain about others enjoying it. The unicorn sat herself down next to her friend and waited, knowing they'd talk when Coco was good and ready. For a minute they simply sat there, shivering slightly from the cold outside, the only sound coming from Coco's gentle sips of her drink. Soon enough she sighed slightly and put her drink aside, instinctively moving closer to Sweetie for warmth.

"I didn't want to mention it in front of Match but, I was late because I overslept again."

"Oh Coco..." Sweetie put a hoof round her in a supportive hug. This wasn't the first time Coco had slept in and been late for work recently. She'd been trying to hide it from Market Match, worried that he might think her work was affected. It would never be enough for her to lose her job of course, she was still arguably the best dressmaker in Manehatten and good friends with Rarity. She had never quite lost her worrisome tendencies after all these years though.

"I don't understand it, I've been getting more sleep, making sure not to overexert myself. Nothing seems to be working though."

"Maybe you should see the doctors again, it could be something from...Whatever happened."

The two of them shifted a little awkwardly, trying not to touch upon that subject. Back since the summer, Coco had been starting to struggle with her physical health more. She had no memory of what might have triggered it, only that she been suffering from mounting fatigue and a constant soreness in her legs since. While doctors hadn't come up with anything serious, she still went for more regular checkups in case whatever had happened to her had resulted in something lingering. For now, Coco simply nodded and rubbed her leg.

"I will, when I can. For now, I just don't know what to do." She said as she leaned back in her seat.

"We'll think of something, we always do," Sweetie smiled down at Coco and hugged her a little tighter. "For now, let's just focus on getting through today, alright?"

"Okay, thank you Sweetie Belle."

"No problem," The two of them simply sat and enjoyed the warmth of the room for a minute before Sweetie perked up again. "Hey, I've got an idea, I've got a few letters I need to write during lunch, want to help put ideas to parchment when I do? Just for something to take our mind off things." It had been a spur of the moment thought but the look on Coco's face showed it had been a good one. She looked a lot more relaxed as she finished her drink and got up.

"I'll be look forward to it, but I should probably make a start now."

"Alright, I'll see how you're doing later." Sweetie got up and followed Coco out of the staff room, heading back downstairs while her friend went to her workspace on the first floor. Market had already opened the store for the day as she returned to the counter and fetched out a stack of photographs she kept ready for the autograph hunters that came to the store. From the look in the eye of the first customer coming in she was going to need them, as usual.

Author's Note

From the previous chapter to this...Yeah even I'll admit it feels flat. This is still the establishing chapters sure, but I just couldn't get ideas to the screen this time. It'll pick up soon, promise.

Friends in the Right Places

March 5th

"Are you sure this is going to work?"

Sweetie Belle didn't know why she was asking that, this was her idea after all. Maybe it had something to do with the fact that she now had a small, potentially magically explosive rock ready to be strapped to her left side and magic conducting wires running round her barrel and up to her neck where the microphone was nestled between her scarf and coat. Right now she was holding the wire tap close in her hoof but not putting it on yet, her plan was going to subject it to a lot of magic as it was. If it was active when she did that, she felt it would likely backfire and go off in some rather unpleasant way. Sky Eye had claimed it had been stress tested vigorously, she was holding him to that but still opting for caution regardless.

She tried to get her thoughts off what might happen there and onto something else related to this moment. She settled on the fact that just as she had needed to make something like this happen, the tools to do so had become available to her. That had been quite a handy coincidence but then again, they happened so regularly back in Ponyville that she didn't even draw attention to it anymore. It was no less of an adventure than when she was a filly though, considering now she was sitting in a plain carriage next to the Equestria Today offices, trying to keep her wire tap in place while keeping it all inconspicuous. As she finished double checking the microphone between her coat lapel and scarf, she glanced up at the other two occupants of the carriage for an answer.

"Well given all the information that came with that thing, I'm about eighty percent sure this plan'll work. Plus you're the one that chose it." Babs Seed replied, doing her best to sound professional while still ribbing her friend. She was kitted out in a full body compression fabric that went up to her neck where it had the identifying emblem of the MPD, letting her be fast and agile while also taking a hit if needed. She'd opted for it since Sweetie's discussion with her about Spoiled Rich indicated that even with a week and a half to cool off, she was going to react badly to even the implication that somepony was moving against her. That was why it wasn't just the two of them going in for this one.

"Just try not to worry about it, we're gonna be right there if things go south," Sky Eye reassured her, kitted out in the same outfit as Babs with some extra space for his wings and a utility belt with the basic police equipment on. "Assuming the wire tap doesn't break before you get what you need, it'll be fine. That said, it'll be drawing off a lot of your magic, so spells will likely be more taxing that normal."

"Hmmm, love your optimism." Sweetie commented, getting a good natured smile out of him in response. This may have been her plan they were working on, but his input in the planning had been invaluable, even if he had a tendency to overthink the details. The hard part had been keeping him going once he realised who they were dealing with, he'd heard of Spoiled's reputation but thankfully he was still willing to proceed.

"Ok, think we need one last run through the plan just to be sure?" Sky asked, glancing out the carriage window to make sure the street was quiet enough to not draw attention to them. Babs shook her head as she shifted in her seat, stretching her back legs slightly.

"It's not that hard to remember, you go in," She pointed to Sweetie Belle. "Then me and Oka go in an-"

"Okay I'm sorry but, seriously. Why Oka?" Sweetie interrupted, looking at Sky Eye in confusion. He stared back at her for a moment before twigging on that she wouldn't be fully focused until she got an answer.

"Alright, Oka roughly translates to Eye in Zebra. I sort of adopted it as a nickname, because of my eye for detail, and the fact I'm actually about a quarter zebra myself."

"Huh," Sweetie mused, suddenly missing the visits to Zecora she and the other crusaders used to make before they had to grow up. "So...Nevermind, I'll ask later. Where were we?"

"You go in, we go in," Babs continued. "We make sure that Spoiled Rich doesn't know you're coming and then join you. Any questions?"

"No, I think I can do this." Sweetie took a breath to keep herself steady. She was nervous, no denying that, but she couldn't let it get in the way, not now.

"Alright then, deploy when ready. And good luck." Sky Eye attempted to sound professional and supportive at the same time, not quite managing to pull it off but Sweetie appreciated the effort nonetheless.

"See you two on the seventh floor." She said to them as she finished adjusting her coat and scarf, put her hat on and focused. Her horn came to life and she teleported out of the carriage. The other two sat there in silence, watching the spot where she'd been moments before. Babs eventually looked at Sky Eye and poked his leg to break his focused stare.

"So...How many unicorns do you think can do that?" He asked, sounding impressed.

"Later. The sooner we move the better the odds this whole thing works." She replied, opening the carriage and stepping out, heading for the front entrance with him following right behind.

Sweetie Belle took a breath as she reappeared in a flash, a quick look round confirming she was on the third floor of the stairwell inside the Equestria Today offices. Figuring that noise from her entrance would have alerted somepony, she quickly darted up to the fourth floor and paused, taking a few seconds to recover from the teleportation once she got there. As suspected, a pony poked their head out from the third floor officers into the stairwell for several seconds before going back with. Believing she was in without being detected, she checked the wire tap over. It looked like there had been no change inside or out so she took it in her magic and fitted the straps to herself, keeping the thin side pressed against her body. A brief but intense rush of her magic was all she needed to know that it was active and working.

Thankful that things hadn't gone wrong straight off the bat, Sweetie started making her way further up. Nopony else was present and she reached the seventh floor without further complications. It was a lot flashier up here with decent carpets and various pieces of artwork adorning the walls. There were less rooms as well, letting her make her way to Spoiled Rich's office quickly. All she had to do now was stick with her plan and make a decision on how to go in. Deciding to use the classy approach in in this situation, she knocked before entering.

Babs pushed the front doors open and headed through the lobby of the Equestria Today offices. Her stride oozed confidence and determination, a necessary trait from years of hoof patrols on the then-rougher streets of Manehatten. Even if she wasn't expecting trouble, having an air of being in charge could work wonders. She could tell that Sky was doing the same without even having to look round at him, Canterlot saw it's own fair share of trouble and the guards there needed to walk the walk as well. It seemed to be doing the trick, the receptionist pony already looked somewhat cowed by their presence as the stepped up to the front desk.

"Hello, can I...Help you?" The receptionist asked, still trying to do his job even when he was this nervous.

"Officer Seed, MPD," Babs replied, adjusting the fabric at her neck so he could see the emblem properly. "We're here to see Spoiled Rich." She could practically see the colour drain from his face at that, likely having orders to make sure exactly that didn't happen at the moment.

"I...See. I'm afraid that unless you have a meeting already scheduled then-"

"We have a search warrant for Mrs Rich's office." Sky Eye countered, bringing it out where it was tucked under his wing and presenting it to the receptionist, who looked even more flustered and stumbling over his words as he tried to think of another excuse to overrule this. It suited them for now though, he hadn't alerted Spoiled yet and they needed to let a little more time pass while Sweetie did her part.

Sweetie paused slightly as she took in the office. Elegantly styled in the colours of the Rich family, pink and black, and filled with cabinets and art that managed to give the feel of a news office without clashing, the whole setup managed to feel benign while giving off a sense of intimidation at the same time. Spoiled Rich herself was seated at the desk in the center of the room, looking over a paper and completely failing to notice that she had even entered, likely another display of indifference toward what she probably thought was just another employee. She glanced up for a moment and went back to her reading, only for her mind to catch up with her eyes a moment later. She did a double-take and shot up with such force that the desk was knocked an inch or two away, staring down her visitor with a mix of disbelief and malice.

"You!" She snapped, any pretence of pleasantries lost without time to plan them out. "How did you get in here?!"

"I asked really nicely." Sweetie Belle replied with a small smile. It wasn't entirely untrue, she'd asked the police if she could come in after all. Spoiled Rich stared her down for a moment before managing to break into a small grin.

"That receptionist is so much trouble when I'm done here. Now though, I'd heard that you might be a bit slow up there but, really? Coming back here after I made myself clear before what would happen if you showed your face in front of me again," She got up and made her way round to the front of the desk, leaning against it with a quietly returning confidence. "Why did you even come here?"

"Because of your breach of our agreement regarding the interview. My rights toward the published version were completely ignored, and I still have the written proof." That wasn't really a lie either, she would have been coming back to protest that before the recent developments. Now though she was using it to keep the talk going and trust that her opponent would talk herself into a corner. Spoiled kept her gaze fixed on her several seconds before giving a low chuckle and visibly relaxing further.

"Reaallly slow. You know, I was actually debating giving your insignificant life a chance to turn things around and go back home on your own. Now though, you don't seem to learn when you should stop bothering your betters, so here's the deal. You have two days to get out of this city and find yourself a nice hole befitting your miserable status before I set everypony in Equestria against you."

Spoiled's voice was dangerously calm. She'd clearly been planning for this eventuality and wasn't holding back anymore. It meant little now though, that statement had further shifted the situation in Sweetie's favour. She'd got her talking, now all she had to do was keep her talking until Babs and Sky got here. She just had to act like she'd been put on the defensive, stay on topic and maybe bring up her friends at some point, that should be enough for the wire to record. Managing to keep her hope held on the inside for now, her ears folded back and she took a step backward, playing surprised and hurt on the outside.

"Isn't that an overreaction?" She asked, managing to inflect some pleading emotion into her voice.

"Oh, are you just now figuring it out? Sorry, but I save my ability to care for ponies that mean something to anypony of note. Now, which sounds worse for you. Embezzling from your own dear sister, or being The White Phoenix?"

"Look, sir, I understand and I assure you that we're not interested in going through any corporate secrets, but you're starting to risk being charged with obstruction of justice." Sky Eye said with a weary sigh. He shouldn't have given the receptionist that opening about procedure, he hadn't budged on the matter since.

"I know," The receptionist rubbed his head with a hoof. "Between you and me, I'm stuck no matter what and my hooves are tied. Spoiled Rich would have me out of here and ensure I'd never find work again within seconds if she found out and I really, really need this job."

"Well between you and us," Babs replied, leaning against the counter slightly. "If we can go through and do our job, we could probably find enough evidence that backs up the testimony we had to have her arrested on the spot." She waited as he blinked at her, running it through his head.

"...Seventh floor, end of the hallway on the left. Good luck."

The two officers nodded their thanks and headed through to the stairwell, Sky flying ahead to ensure the way was clear while Babs ran up after him as fast as she could, hoping the delay hadn't cost her fellow crusader too badly.

"Ok, are you just making this up now? It really sounds like you're making this up." Sweetie Belle asked, still doing her best to sound neutral but sweating bullets under her hat. How did she know about the problems at Manehatten Carousel?

"Far from it. I happen to be on a first name basis with the manager of Manehatten's branch of the Bank of Equestria. I know he wouldn't mind me checking your accounts every now and then for the greater good. Whoever's bleeding your sister dry is good, even my contacts in Equestria can't track it down. It still shouldn't be too hard to pin it on you though," Spoiled Rich grinned at that comment before switching back to her dark look and her voice dropped an octave. "Now, I've been nice up to now. You have five seconds to get out my building before decide to make tomorrow's headline about how you're responsible for both options."

"Wow. And I didn't even do anything this time," Sweetie commented, starting to struggle to take this over-the-topness seriously. "I mean, how would you have reacted if I'd brought Scootaloo with me?"

She grinned slightly herself at that, which proved to be the wrong move to make. Spoiled gave up any pretence of restraint and lunged forward with a low, almost primal growl. Sweetie stepped back slightly and her horn flared up, aiming to pull a statuette she'd seen next to door in front of her for defence. As soon as she had it gripped and in the air though, she felt the effects of the wire tap's drain on her magic more than ever. She barely had time to try and adjust before a sudden throbbing headache, a familiar sign of magical over-exertion, left her reeling. As she dropped the statuette and tried to recompose herself, she felt Spoiled's hooves press into her chest and horn, nullifying any further magic use, before pressing her against the wall and leaving her squirming as the headache was joined by the wire tap painfully digging into her side.

"I'd be wringing that...Thing's neck and doing everypony a favor. Maybe you'd like a demonstration, of what the faux-pegasus deserves and what happens to those who interfere with a pony who has the right friends to ruin you!"

Sweetie struggled to gain some purchase against her aggressor. For all her age, Spoiled Rich was still an earth pony and her natural strength would be enough to pose a challenge even without the additional pain that was tipping the scales further. Just as she felt the hoof on her chest move up to her neck, the sound of running hooves outside caught both their attention. Moments later the door burst open and Sky Eye stormed in, followed by a slightly winded Babs Seed. Sweetie had never been so happy to see a pony interrupting in her life and she glanced back at Spoiled with a small smile.

"You were saying?"

"Sorry we're late, stairs." Babs panted a little, getting a small understanding nod from Sweetie as Spoiled relinquished her grip, thinking nopony had seen what she was doing.

"Officers, excellent timing. I want this commoner arrested now!" Spoiled snapped, pointing an accusing hoof at Sweetie, who was discreetly using a little magic to undo the straps on the wire tap and letting it fall away from her body slightly, cutting out the spell and easing up her headache.

"Yeah, that's not why we're here," Babs replied, waiting a moment for the realisation to set in on Spoiled's face before continuing. "Spoiled Rich, you're under arrest on suspicion of assault, social engineering with intent to inflict emotional abuse and conspiracy to commit murder by proxy."

"You...WHAT?!?" Spoiled recoiled as Sky took some hoofcuffs off his belt and moved forward while Babs restrained her before she could react.

"You have the right to remain silent, though it may harm your defence if you refuse to answer any questions asked, anything you do say may be given as evidence," Sky said, keeping it professional as he cuffed her.

"Bu...I...Th-This can't be happening! You have no right to-Get your hooves off me!" Spoiled struggled as Sky put his hoof on the back of her neck and started escorting her out, passing the warrant papers over to Babs as he did. "You'll rue this, all of you! You hear me Sweetie Belle?! You and your filthy friends will pay for this!"

"Well then, I've got nothing new to worry about when I testify in court." Sweetie countered, watching as Spoiled was taken away with nothing more than an enraged cry.

"Well...Glad that worked out," Babs commented, sighing slightly as Spoiled's rage gradually got quieter. "Sorry we took so long to get here, you alright?"

"Could've been worse, thanks to you." Sweetie replied, rubbing her side where the wire tap and been and noting not to lie on that side for a while. As her headache diminished further, her horn glowed again and she unwrapped the wires from around her body, bringing the wire tap out and passing it over to Babs.

"No problem, busting jerks is what I do. Now, I should probably go make sure Spoiled Rich doesn't try anything funny. You can check for evidence up here until backup arrives." Babs passed the search warrant over with a small wink and headed out with the wire tap. Sweetie smiled to herself and glanced round the room, taking a few moments to just let the sense of satisfaction sink in. It may not be why she had come to Manehatten this time, but she had managed to put a stop to the slander against her and her friends. That was certainly a victory, hopefully one that had done some good for more of Equestria. Plus it meant she could devote herself fully to dealing with the Phoenix now.

If nothing else, she couldn't wait to see what the headlines tomorrow had to say about this.

Author's Note

And with that, this strange little subplot that stemmed from a throwaway 'Where are they now?' moment in Rising Above comes to it's conclusion. Normal A-Plot activity with resume next chapter.

As an aside, Sky Eye's question is up for you as well. How many ponies know how to teleport in this world?