Broken Apart, Fixed Together

by Mapbird

Rating: everyone
Tags: Adventure, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Cutie Mark Crusaders, Fluttershy
Length: 7765

Curiousity killed the cat, didn't it? Three little fillies were spared, but it was at a large price

Note: This takes place before 'Read it and Weep'

Three little fillies became way too curious for their own good. And as you know, curiosity killed the cat (or pony in this case). Fortunately, curiosity spared the little fillies and they weren't killed for their mistake, but they still had a price to pay. That price was; the amount that were harmed became four, instead of the three it should've been.

Now, faced with cryptic riddles and puzzles, they must work together utilizing everypony's abilities to solve them, bringing them ever closer to the end. But do they know what will lie at the end? Will they even want to know?

By the way, this is my first story.
(Just thought you'd like to know.)

Published 2012-10-01 02:00:01 UTC
Last updated 2012-12-12 07:43:10 UTC

A Morning for Disaster

Apple Bloom woke up in her bed, drenched in droplets of sweat.

She bolted upright and looked around her room, her heart still racing from her nightmare. Her apple-shaped clock told her it was 6:00 AM. She scanned the room, searching everywhere for that black thing, whatever it was. she looked everywhere she could think of. After seeing it wasn't anywhere in the room, she cautiously got up out of bed, ready to run if she needed to. She headed over to her dresser and peered into her mirror. Her beautiful, thick dark red mane was all tangled and messed up, she couldn't go outside looking like a wreck! She made an attempt to use her black manebrush, but every time she looked at it, she couldn't help but remember that black thing and how horrifying it was. How bone-chilling the roar it made was, how its big blue eyes seemed to say two things at once "'I'll protect you" and "I'll kill you". How she was trapped in a completely empty, white slowly shrinking room with it as it chased her, getting closer and closer, it's large teeth twisted into a scary, yet comforting grin.

She gave up on brushing her mane and decided to just put her bow on instead. She peered into the mirror one more time to see how she looked, she looked good. Her mane didn't even need to be brushed at all! It had slowly settled into her regular style, which was a big relief for her, she wouldn't have to go outside looking like a mess. She trotted out of her room and descended down the stairs and entered the kitchen, keen on having something to eat; she was starving.

In the kitchen, Applejack was busy cooking up a storm. A lot of ponies thought the only things Applejack ever cooked were apple-related treats, but she cooked a lot of non apple-related things for breakfast; and on special occasions, lunch.

"Morning." said Applejack.

"Morning to you too." Apple Bloom replied, pretty much automatically.

"How are you this morning?" Applejack inquired, placing a bowl of porridge in front of the filly. She started eating right away, ignoring the question as she plowed through her breakfast.

"Are you gonna talk to me, or are you just going to pretend I'm not here?" Applejack said, a little louder than before.

"Yes" said Apple Bloom, automatically replying. She was too deep in thought about how her, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo were going to try and earn their cutie marks today. Applejack was confused, but took it as a 'Yes, I'll talk to you,'

"O...k then, are you going to see your friends today?" Applejack asked.

"Yes" Apple Bloom replied.

"Are y'all gonna go crusading today?" Applejack asked with a slightly concerned tone, she knew how much danger they put themselves in sometimes, just for a cutie mark.

"Yes" Apple Bloom repeated, almost instantly after the question had been asked.

"Are you going to stay home today, and work in the fields all day?" Applejack said, hoping to catch her sister out. But Applebloom had snapped out of her state when she heard the word 'work' and quickly replied

"No way!" Applejack sighed and took away her now empty porridge bowl.

Applebloom began to head out the door but Applejack stopped her and said "You be safe now,okay?" and pulled her into a hug.

"OkaythenbyeApplejack!" Applebloom said breaking free from the hug and tearing off towards the tree house.

"She never has, and probably never will, listen to a word I say." Applejack said, slowly closing the door behind her.

We've Got Her In the Bag

Apple Bloom needed some time outside of the tree house.

She slowly walked out the door, feeling confused. Her friends didn't fight often, the concept of them fighting felt alien to her. More importantly, they never held grudges against each other for longer than a minute,but they'd been sitting in their spots for around an hour, tossing insults back and forth like a game of tennis. It had just proved too much for her. She descended down the ramp and walked over to a tree. it was an old tree, fully grown and one of the best producers too. It was one of the green apple trees which there weren't many of. She felt as alien as the tree would, completely surrounded by red apple trees. Her thoughts were cut short by a loud "ow!" and then a crash from behind.

She turned to see Time Turner, or as he was usually addressed, Doctor Whooves. He got that name from a TV show for young fillies and colts in which the main character looked just like him, even the cutie mark was the same! The show was called Doctor Whooves. Of course the main character was not him, they just happened to look identical.The name has stuck ever since. He was lying on the ground,a sack lying just a few meters away. "What's in the sack?" she thought. "Maybe, I should have a look inside."

Applebloom carefully and quietly inched over to the sack and stuck her head inside. she could see a black box inside the sack. "I should take this box! There could be anything inside!" She stuck her front hooves in the sack, desperately trying to grab the box, but it kept slipping out of her grasp. she crawled in further, pretty much almost all of her was in the sack now. She finally managed to wrap her hooves around the box. "Yes!" she thought, but just then, the sack was lifted and she completely fell in. She saw the top of the sack being sealed and she realized she was being taken, along with the box.She was very afraid of what could happen to her so she screamed hopelessly "Help! Help!" but nopony could hear her cries, the material was too thick. She was trapped inside the sack!

Apple Bloom had been in the sack for a while. She had been jostled around, and had been hit by the box a lot of times. She had lost count of all time, and the sack was almost pitch black inside, she could barely see. If she was blind it would've made pretty much no difference. All she could hear was the heavy breathing of the Doctor as he ran and the sound of his quick hoofsteps along the tightly packed earth. "Where could he be going?" she thought, suddenly imagining a whole different bunch of bad scenarios to be in. She tried to calm down, but there was nothing she could think about to calm herself down.She was in a sack, going to Celestia knows where, how could she be calm?

She could hear his hoofsteps getting slower, which meant he was walking, they were nearly at his destination. Applebloom was relieved, she could finally get out of the sack and go home! But she was wrong. The sack opened, she could see stars in the sky, it was night. She was about to crawl out but then the sack was tipped and she slid out into a hole. She was about to scream "Get me out of this hole!" when a whole bunch of dirt fell on top of her, she was being buried alive!

What Happened Next

Fluttershy laid in her bed, trying to get to sleep.

Her mind was racing at a million miles an hour, new memories and thoughts surfacing in the dark, quiet room. She decided to get up and do something else for a while, before going to her bed and embracing Dreamland. She descended down the stairs and headed toward her front door to go outside. She slowly and quietly opened the door and a chilly wave of air blasted her in the face. She felt like going back to her bed, but she quickly dismissed that thought, knowing only more thoughts would run through her head, driving her to get up again. She stepped outside into the cold night, closing the door behind her. She felt unsafe, so she looked around for any signs of danger. But there were none, so she closed the door behind her and went over to the chicken coop, to check on her chickens.

All the chickens and chicks were all fast asleep. Occasionally one would wake up and look at her, but it would soon bob its head and go back to sleep. Watching them sleep calmed her down a little, which helped her forget that she felt unsafe. She was ready to go back inside when she heard a click; it was faint but she had definitely heard one. She left the chicken coop and carefully listened out for any other sounds. A loud scream emitted from the forest, the voice sounded familiar. She ran into the forest. Her mind was fixated on who the pony was that screamed. Suddenly the answer came to her, as if it was just casually walking to her brain. That voice was Apple Bloom's! "Hold on Apple Bloom, I'm coming!" she cried as she ran further into the forest.

Apple Bloom was scared. She was going to die. All because of a box! She uselessly tried to shuffle the dirt away so she could breathe, but the rate of the dirt being put in the hole was too fast for her. All she could hear as the sound of a shovel tipping dirt into the hole. She wished that her friends hadn't fought right in front of her. She didn't want them fighting to be her last memory, but it sure looked that way. She curled up into a ball and tried to think of good things, but all she could think about was her friends fighting. The dirt felt warm around her, she felt like she was in her bed, with the cover pulled over her head. The sound of the shovel pouring earth in the hole became fainter. She could faintly see something within arm's length, so she reached for it. It was the box. She wrapped her hooves around it and pulled it towards her, finding solace in it. She closed her eyes, hoping her friends would forgive each other, and fell unconscious.

Sweetie Belle was frantic. Rushing around the Everfree forest was always never a good idea for two fillies, let alone one; but only one thing was on Sweetie Belle's mind, her accidentally foalnapped friend, Apple Bloom. Scootaloo was rushing after her, trying to keep up with her distraught friend as she raced through he forest looking anywhere for a sign of her friend.

"Sweetie Belle! Slow down!" Scootaloo said through a few deep breaths. She couldn't believe that Sweetie Belle was faster than her, but at the moment she was worried Sweetie would run off and get lost.

"Are you joking?" Sweetie Belle began "The slower I go, the more Apple Bloom could be in danger, and I will not let anything happen to one of my friends!"

"Well, blindly running around won't help!" Scootaloo shouted. The gap between them was getting bigger and she was desperate to get her to stop or slow down.

"But Apple Bloom could be in danger!" Sweetie Belle replied while speeding up. It was no use, she was too panicked to try talking to. She must be pushing herself into overdrive thought Scootaloo. The size of the gap between Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle was very large by now and Scootaloo was panicking, she couldn't keep this up for much longer.

Suddenly, she tripped over a root and tumbled headfirst into some mud. "STOP!" she screamed at the top of her lungs, trying to wipe the mud out of her eyes. By the time she'd wiped the mud out of her eyes, Sweetie Belle was gone and she was all alone.

"Hello?" she said, all her courage gone. She trembled as she walked, trying desperately to find someone. "Sweetie Belle? Apple Bloom? Anypony?" If there was one thing she couldn't stand, it was being alone. She walked the way they'd been going until she came to a fork in the road. "I DON'T KNOW WHICH WAY TO GO! COME BACK SWEETIE BELLE!" She screamed, before collapsing on the ground in tears. The daring, adventure loving Pegasus, had been reduced to a frightened, lonely filly by the forest.

The Pegasus heard a noise coming from her left, through some trees. It sounded like a shovel, scooping up dirt and tipping it into a hole. She got up and tried to peek through the trees but she collapsed onto the ground feeling tired. She tried again to peek through the trees and succeeded. She saw a stallion standing in a clearing with a shovel in his hooves burying something. She began to walk forward and was going to ask him for help when she stepped on something. It was a sack,the one that had stolen Apple Bloom! She tried to remember the memory of Apple Bloom being taken by the stallion, which she saw through the window she was sitting in front of. Finally it came back to her.

================================================================================

"Dumb sissy!" she shouted at Sweetie Belle. She was beginning to get bored, so she began looking out the window. That's when she saw Apple Bloom. "Hey is that Apple Bloom?"

"I bet it isn't you dumb liar!" Sweetie Belle said moving over to the window she was siting at. She shuffled over so she could sit down.

"What's she doing? Why is she crawling into that violet sack?" Scootaloo wondered.

"That's clearly a lavender sack. Hey, Doctor Whooves picked up the sack. WAIT A MINUTE SHE'S STILL IN THERE!" Sweetie Belle cried.

She and Sweetie Belle had bolted out the door and had started chasing him.

================================================================================

That man was going to pay.

Whole Once Again

Fluttershy had been running for a while now.

Her legs were sore, she was tired and she didn't really know where she was going, but she was too concerned about Apple Bloom to care. She ran non-stop, carefully searching for the filly. thought she was lost, another scream was heard and she used it to get back on track. The forest had trees all over the place and often she would have to duck and weave through branches, being careful not to get caught by them. She had been running for a while when she realized that she could just use her wings. What am I doing? Apple Bloom could be in danger and I'm running around like a madpony! She unfurled her wings in order to take off, but it was as if the forest was waiting for her to say that; ready to pull a cruel joke on her. She sped up, trying to gain as much speed possible for the take-off, when she caught her hoof on a root sticking out of the ground. She not only fell over, but she went soaring through the air. If she had been lucky, she would have landed on the grass, but she didn't. She was slowly spinning through the air, finally slamming into a tree while upside down, before falling onto the ground. When the Pegasus stood up, she instantly knew her left wing as broken. Having plenty of experience from nursing sick and hurt animals, it was pretty easy for her to tell when she was hurt.She decided to get back to looking for Apple Bloom and listened out for another scream, but none came.

Scootaloo knew she had to act fast, there was no telling what stallion could do to her if he caught her! She picked up the lavender sack and ran up behind the Doctor. "HI-YAAAH!" she screamed; jumping up, ready to slip the sack over the Doctor's head. He screamed and turned around, shovel in hoof; giving Scootaloo a face full of dirt. He threw the shovel into a nearby bush and ran off into the forest. "YIKES!" Sweetie Belle shouted as she darted out of the bush, obviously having the daylights scared out of her.

"Sweetie Belle!" cried Scootaloo.

"Scootaloo!" cried Sweetie Belle.

"I thought I'd lost you!" they both said in unison, before hugging.

Scootaloo wasn't really one for mushy stuff, but she was so relieved she didn't have to be alone anymore.

"I wonder what he was burying?" Scootaloo said, while dragging the shovel out of the bush. She began furiously digging, passing the shovel onto Sweetie Belle when she was too tired to carry on. They went on like this for a few minutes before Sweetie Belle hit something yellow. "A-A-Ap-p-p-ple B-B-Bl-loom?" she stuttered, afraid of the possible truth that loomed.

She began scraping away the dirt around Apple Bloom's body; until finally, she was completely unearthed. Apple Bloom was facing to the left, a huge smile on her face, it didn't feel right. Sweetie Belle rolled Apple Bloom onto her back, it felt wrong to just touch her. She was holding a black box in her hooves, a box that had brought misery to her. It began to rain, a light drizzle at first, gathering into a small rainstorm as Sweetie Belle stared at Apple Bloom's unmoving body.

"Sweetie Be-" Scootaloo began, but was interrupted by Sweetie Belle, who had been brought out of her trance.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM!' Sweetie Belle screamed before crumpling into a ball and sobbing loudly.

"Y-y-y-y-es?" a familiar, yet weak sounding voice said. "APPLE BLOOM!" Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo both shouted in unison. Scootaloo jumped down into the hole and was involved in a group hug that lasted for several minutes. This was not the first time that night, that the filly had done something unusual for her.

"About that box, what's in it?" Sweetie Belle asked, after the hug had broke.

"I don't know! Let's open it!" shouted Apple Bloom, with her usual energy. It was almost as if the incident hadn't happened at all, because they had all returned to normal after the hug. They were excited to shout their famous shout, with three members instead of two.

"CMC MYSTERY SOLVERS, YAY!"

Broken Seals

Now that she was out of the hole, Apple Bloom could finally have a good look at the box. The box was being held shut by a padlock that was old and rusted, it looked like it could've broken off at any moment. The box was made from some strange material, alien to her. It looked smooth, but it was actually very prickly to the touch and it would tickle her hoof if she ran it along the box. On the top of the box in big, red, hastily scribbled letters were the words Never Open.

"Let's open this thing!" Scootaloo said, eager to see what was inside.

"I don't know..." Sweetie Belle began, uncertain to whether or not to give in to her curiosity. "We don't know what could be in there! What if it's a snake, or a spider, or a monster or a-"

"Calm down! You're thinking waaay too much!" Scootaloo said, interrupting Sweetie Belle. "Let's just open it and get it done with! That way we won't have time to think about it!" she continued, picking up the box as she spoke.

"I suppose you're right." Sweetie Belle said, a determined look in her eyes "LET'S GET THAT BOX OPEN!"

"Wait what about m-" Apple Bloom began, but never finished due to the loud sound of the box being thrown at the ground and a cracking noise. Apple Bloom quickly scooped up the box, checking to see if the lock was broken; it was. Finally! We can open this thing, and get it done with! Apple Bloom thought, taking the lock off and tossing it behind her.

"Soooooooo, who's going to open it?" Apple Bloom asked, placing the box on the ground.

"I will!" Scootaloo shouted, full of excitement. She quickly lifted the lid, ready to see what was inside. Suddenly, turquoise smoke burst from the box, quickly surrounding the fillies, until they couldn't see anything but the smoke. Apple Bloom saw something, a pair of eyes, a pair of blue eyes that seemed to say two things at once, "I'll protect you" and "I'll kill you", slowly heading towards her. She tried to run, but she couldn't move! She only had time to do one thing before the eyes would come too close, so she screamed as loud as she could, hoping somepony would hear her.

Apple Bloom closed her eyes, scared of the monster, hoping it would go away if she ignored it. She could hear the same noise, continuously repeating.By now, the smoke had cleared, leaving behind a turquoise dome around her. She could see Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo standing to the left and right of her, they were lined up in a row. That wasn't the only thing she could see though, the thing she had been frightened by was standing right in front of her, looking right at her. It's black, scaly, mist-like body, it's eyes, located on what seemed to be a head, made out of the same black, mist-like scaly stuff. She felt scared, being so close to a monster so she tried to scream, and it worked. She was frightened, but determined not to let the beast get another reaction out of her.

She yelled out "What are you?" in the slim chance it would understand English.

"Me?" it said slowly, in an almost soothing voice. "I'm Curiosity." it voice was void of emotion, deep, and sounded male so Apple Bloom assumed it was male. It didn't seem to have a mouth, but Apple Bloom could hear everything clearly, as if he was standing right next to her.

"Haven't I seen you before?" Curiosity asked. Apple Bloom was too frightened to speak, which gave Scootaloo a chance to speak instead.

"Let us go!" She shouted, instantly regretting it.

Curiosity moved over to Scootaloo, his body swirling and twisting around the Pegasus, surrounding her with black mist.

"Now, why would I do that?" Curiosity said. Scootaloo was trembling, she could hear his voice as if he was standing in front of her, but his eyes were all the way up the top. Apple Bloom had been studying him carefully, and had noticed something was wrong with him.

"Where are your teeth?" She said, recalling that he didn't have a mouth when he first appeared.

Curiosity moved away from Scootaloo and went back to his normal shape, before a set of silver teeth appeared underneath his eyes.

"My, my! How delightful you are my little pony." He said, while his shape changed. He moved closer to Apple Bloom causing her to scream again, and placed what appeared to be a claw on her head. "How I'd love to have you as a pet." he continued, stroking her mane. His 'claw' felt like a cold breeze. Apple Bloom looked over at Sweetie Belle, who had been unnervingly quiet since the smoke came out of the box, she was trembling, and looked ready to cry.

"What are you looking at, my little pet?" He said, turning his head to look at Sweetie Belle. "Goodness, haven't you been quiet!" he said moving over to her. She trembled even harder, and a few tears rolled down her cheek. "How are you, my little pony?" he asked, putting out a 'claw' to stroke her mane. As soon as he did Sweetie Belle screamed until he took his hand away. She sniffled and began to cry, all the while Apple Bloom looked on, feeling sorry for her friend.

Apple Bloom decided to speak up and do something, she couldn't let him torture Sweetie Belle like that!

"Stop it!" she shouted, feeling more frightened than she did before.

"What did you say?" Curiosity inquired. "I suppose you're right..." he began, causing Apple Bloom to think, Yes! He's letting us go! "...I should probably do what I wanted to do in the first place." He finished, causing Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle to go pale.They were lifted into the air up to Curiosity's, so called face. All of a sudden, Apple Bloom felt herself being turned and she eventually was standing on her two back hooves; she felt like she was chained to a wall. The dome of turquoise smoke dispelled, the noise faded and the Everfree Forest was once again, visible.

"Now," Curiosity began. "A good pet doesn't talk.' he said, looking at Apple Bloom, making her shiver with fear. "and since you didn't answer my question, you mustn't need hearing." he said looking at Sweetie Belle, just causing her to spring into tears. "Now, I can't just leave you out, can I? So I suppose I will take your sight since it's the only one left, and since you spoke so rudely, I'll take your wings as well." He cast a spell and began to focus, red crystals began to appear. They were lightning shaped and there were three for each filly, all pointed at the respective filly. Suddenly, a voice could be heard.

"APPLE BLOOM! APPLE BLOOM!" it was Fluttershy's voice. She ran into the clearing.

"FLUT-" Apple Bloom began but never got to finish. When Curiosity heard Fluttershy's voice, he lost his concentration and the spell messed up. The crystals started spinning and fired randomly, in different directions. One hit each filly, square in the chest. Two flew straight up into the air. One hit the ground and vanished. One flew straight at Curiosity, hitting him perfectly in his left eye. The last two headed straight for Fluttershy, she dodged the first one but didn't see the second one and got hit right in the back. The three fillies and Fluttershy felt immense pain. Electricity flowed through their bodies, and they all started glowing red. Curiosity, also glowing red vanished and the fillies fell to the ground with a thump.

"Are you girls okay?"

Note: Music by Kevin MacLeod (Deep Noise)

Side-Effects May Include

So it was, that a pony by the name of Fluttershy trudged into Ponyville in the dark cover of night. She was tired and felt weak, but she was determined to get the three unconscious fillies on her back to safety. Three houses, three worried ponies, three thank you's and three you're welcome's. All leaving behind one very tired Fluttershy, who slipped into her bed and slept like a rock.

Sweetie Belle awoke, nice and warm in her bed. Her memories of last night were fragmented, and she couldn't help but wonder if everything she'd experienced had been a dream. She got out of bed and headed downstairs. She could feel that something was stuck in the back of her mane and she reached a hoof over to pull it out. She didn't manage to grab it but the object seemed to have fallen out of her mane, so she was satisfied. She was about to see what it was when she was interrupted.

"Sweetie Belle? Is that you?" A familiar voice said. Sweetie Belle trotted into the kitchen and said "Yes." Or at least she tried. When she tried to speak, nothing came out. She tried again "Yes! It's me!" No sound. She went over to the table and sat on one of the chairs, feeling a little sad.

"What do you want for breakfast?" Rarity asked. Sweetie Belle just sat there. "What do you want for breakfast?" Rarity repeated, slightly louder than last time. on receiving no reply Rarity turned around and said "Is something wrong? Just tell me if there is." The words 'just tell me' hit Sweetie Belle like bullets.

Why did she have to say that? Sweetie Belle thought. Sweetie Belle got off the chair and headed towards the front door of her sister's boutique.

"Sweetie Belle, where are you going? You haven't even had breakfast yet!" Rarity said but Sweetie Belle ignored her and kept going. She spied a note on the floor and picked it up.

"Sweetie Belle, answer me! I need to talk to you about last night!" Rarity shouted. Sweetie Belle quickly put the note in her mane, getting the idea from that thing that was in there when she got up and headed out the door. When she got outside she bolted towards their clubhouse, tears in her eyes; Just tell me, answer me! playing on a loop in her head.

When she got to the clubhouse, Apple Bloom and Scootaloo were already inside. Apple Bloom seemed to be guiding Scootaloo around the clubhouse.

"Huh? Who's there?" Scootaloo asked. It was strange, Scootaloo should know it was her. Nobody answered. "Sweetie Belle? If it's you, say something." Sweetie Belle fought back a few tears. Apple Bloom turned around to see what Scootaloo was talking about and saw Sweetie Belle. She walked over to her, guiding Scootaloo with her hoof towards Sweetie Belle as well.

"Hi, Sweetie Belle!" Apple Bloom shouted very loudly. Sweetie Belle covered her ears with her hooves. "Sorry, am I being too loud?" Apple Bloom said, much quieter than last time.

"Oh, so it is you Sweetie Belle! Why didn't you say anything?" Scootaloo said. Sweetie Belle had a feeling this was going to be a depressing day for her. "You're probably wondering what's going on, right?" Sweetie Belle nodded. "Well, I've gone blind somehow, and Apple Bloom seems to be deaf." After Scootaloo said that, Sweetie Belle's memories of last night began piecing themselves together.

Something about curiosity? Something black? She thought. She tried to remember more about last night, but she couldn't. "I don't know how or why it happened, but i think it has something to do with last night because my mum gave me a whole lecture on not staying out after dark and I didn't understand what she was talking about."

"I think maybe-" Scootaloo began, but was interrupted

"Hello? Is anypony in here?" A familiar voice asked. It was Fluttershy's voice. Fluttershy stepped into the clubhouse and walked towards the three fillies. "I need to ask you girls some questions. Can I?" She asked

"Yes, you can." Scootaloo answered. Sweetie Belle nodded and Apple Bloom copied her, not really knowing what to do.

"Why were you girls in the Everfree Forest last night?" She asked.

Suddenly, Apple Bloom piped up "Fluttershy, where are your wings?"

"What are you-" Fluttershy turned her head to look, and saw that her wings were gone. "WHERE ARE MY WINGS? WHERE ARE THEY?" She screamed before sitting down on the floor of the clubhouse and taking deep breaths. "Okay Fluttershy, calm down. Your wings couldn't have just vanished could they? Ha ha, of course not!" Fluttershy said. All the while, the fog surrounding Sweetie Belle's thoughts was growing thinner and she began to remember more about last night. A box? A monster? Wait, wasn't the monster's name Curiosity? Maybe it was Qreocity? I can't remember. She thought. She began to move over to a corner of the clubhouse when the note slipped out of her mane. She saw it and picked it up. She hadn't gotten a chance to read it yet, especially not after that scene this morning. The note said:

Solve this riddle (If you can):
A question mark for a non-public eye,
The way the bat turns,
South When it's North,
Written in,
A can top.

-Curiosity

Sweetie Belle didn't understand it at all. She read it again, trying to make sense of it, but she couldn't think of an answer. Who was this Curiosity? She decide to show the others, so she turned around and stopped. Right there on the floor of the clubhouse was a black box, the black box Curiosity came from and stole their senses. She realized she would have to tell the others, but how? The answer was obvious, write it! She picked up a pencil she that was lying on the floor, flipped the note over, and began to write a message. When she was done, she looked over the note one more time, just to make sure she had gotten it right. The note read:

Dear Apple Bloom, Scootaloo and Fluttershy,
Please read this note aloud because Scootaloo can't see.

Do you remember last night? I do. Remember Curiosity and the box? Do you remember how he was going to take our senses away? Do you remember how he wanted you to be his pet Apple Bloom? Remember how his spee spell got messed up by Fluttershy? It still must've worked even thog though it got messed up, we must've just gotten the wrong sense taken from us. I can't speek speak because of Curiosity, so I'm writing you this note.

From,
Sweetie Belle
P.S Please turn the paper over when you are done.

She didn't understand why she had written it like it was a letter, but she didn't really want to change it. She handed the note to Fluttershy and waited until the note had been read. She trotted over just in time for Fluttershy to turn over the note.

"It's a riddle!" Fluttershy said.

"What does it say?" Scootaloo asked. Fluttershy read the riddle out to her. "I don't understand! The way the bat turns? Curiosity probably just made this up on the spot!" They thought and thought trying to figure it out until the sun set, but they couldn't think of anything.

"Oh my! It's already dark and I haven't looked after my animals at all today!" Fluttershy exclaimed. "You girls better get back to your houses."

But, I don't want to go back. Sweetie Belle thought. She quickly grabbed the note and wrote something in a space she found and handed it to Apple Bloom.

"Fluttershy, Sweetie Belle says it would be better if we stuck together for now, so we should sleep here tonight. Could you let our parents know?"

Fluttershy thought for a moment before replying with a smile "I guess I could do that."

"Thanks." Sweetie Belle wrote on the note and handed it to her with a smile.

I'm glad someone can help. Sweetie Belle thought.

Insomnia

That night, Apple Bloom couldn't sleep.

She got up and headed over to the window of the clubhouse and stared out into the sky. The moon was nice and bright in the sky tonight, illuminating the clubhouse well. Will we ever get my hearing back? What about the others? She was so deep in thought that she hadn't noticed a certain other pony had come over to join her. She looked over to see Sweetie Belle who was also staring out of the window.

"You can't sleep either, huh?" Apple Bloom whispered. Sweetie Belle nodded and turned her head back towards the window. "Maybe we should try working on that riddle." Apple Bloom said. Sweetie Belle nodded again and headed over to where they had placed the paper. Pretty soon they were sitting on the floor under the moonlight, examining it intently.

"A question mark for a non-public eye? What in the hay does that mean?" Apple Bloom said. "Well... Non-public means the same thing as private, so we can cross non-public out and change it to private." Apple Bloom found it was a lot easier to think when it was quiet. Sweetie Belle grabbed a pencil, crossed out non-public, and wrote private above it. The note now looked like this:

Solve this riddle (If you can):

Private
A question mark for a ~~non-public~~ eye,
The way the bat turns,
South When it's North,
Written in,
A can top.

Sweetie Belle eyes lit up when she read the first line again, she quickly wrote 'a clue' next to the first line and smiled, she had solved it. "Oh...a private eye is a detective... question mark is a clue..." Apple Bloom mumbled under her breath. She was a little upset she hadn't solved it but she wasn't going to hold a grudge. Plus she needed to help solve the riddle, so she didn't have time to stand around and be angry. "The way the bat turns?" Like a tennis bat?" Apple Bloom said, hoping to get something right.But Sweetie Belle shook her head and wrote the word 'racquet' on the back of the paper. "Oh yeah! It's a tennis racquet, not a tennis bat." Apple Bloom said, feeling a little upset that she'd failed to help again.

"Will you keep it down!" Scootaloo shouted. "I'm trying to get some sleep over here! Sheesh!"

"Sorry..." Apple Bloom said, frowning as she spoke.

"What are you even doing anyway?" Scootaloo asked.

"We're trying to solve the riddle Curiosity gave us. We're stuck on the line that goes 'the way the bat turns'. Could you help us?" Apple Bloom answered.

Bats are cool! Once I helped Fluttershy look after them. They have rubbery-like wings and they're completely black! I bet you didn't know that they always turn left when they exit their caves!" Scootaloo rolled over, and pretty soon, soft snores could be heard from her.

Sweetie Belle looked for a good place to write on the back of the note (it was becoming extremely cluttered) and wrote the word 'useless' on the back. All the while, thoughts were swirling around in Apple Bloom's head. She began to piece them together, in hopes they would lead to a conclusion. Finally they all added up and she grabbed the pencil right out of Sweetie Belle's hooves and wrote 'left' next to the second line. Score 1 for Apple Bloom! she thought, feeling proud that she'd finally helped out.

"Clue, left, something, something, something." Apple Bloom said. "Well the next one is pretty obvious! If you're north, Where's south? Behind you!" She wrote the word 'behind' on the page. "Alright! Next line! Written...in?" The filly was getting tired and had almost fallen asleep after 'written'. "That's a...fancy way...of saying...en...g..."

Finally, the filly fell asleep and collapsed into a heap onto the floor. Finally! thought Sweetie Belle I couldn't even hear myself think with her going on and on and on! Now lets see... Written in? What could that mean? Maybe it means writing in a certain way. Cursive? No, that doesn't make sense! Wait, maybe written in is being literal! That would mean it would be written in to the object! It would be engraved! She grabbed the pencil out of the now sleeping Apple Bloom's hooves and wrote 'engraved' next to the fourth line. Okay! One more line and I'm done! Let's see...It...must....be...th....I...really should open the window! The cold air might help keep me awake long enough to solve this. She tried to open the window but it got jammed a quarter of the way. Darn it! I guess that will have to do for now. A can top...that sounds funny...Come on, stay awake! So...any...way.....I really shou.......ld.......

Finally, the young unicorn fell asleep. That night, it was windy, with the occasional gust of wind blowing through the window, having no effect on the sleeping Sweetie Belle, Apple Bloom or Scootaloo. At around 1:03, a particularly strong gust of wind blew through the window, snatching the note out of the sleeping Sweetie Belle's hooves. That same gust of wind took the note out of the window with it, leaving the three sleeping fillies blissfully unaware that the only clue they had so far was getting blown away.

Foalnapped?

It was morning.

Scootaloo was the first to wake up. She stood up and felt around the clubhouse trying to find Apple Bloom or Sweetie Belle to guide her around. She frowned as she thought about the fact that she got the short end of the stick. Why did I have to lose my sight? It isn't fair! She thought. As she was walking around she tripped over something. The thump that resulted woke Apple Bloom who quickly looked around just in case it was an intruder. She saw Scootaloo on the floor and quickly drew a conclusion. "Are you okay?" Apple Bloom said to which Scootaloo replied "Of course I am! I don't bruise that easily!"

"Whoops, forgot I can't hear you." Apple Bloom said before helping Scootaloo (who wasn't paying attention to what she just said) up off the ground.

"What did I fall over?" Scootaloo asked. Apple Bloom just stood there staring at Scootaloo with an annoyed look.

"Oh, forgot you can't hear." Scootaloo said, blushing.

Apple Bloom felt something poking her leg and turned to see Sweetie Belle who was laying down. Sweetie Belle got up, looking around for the paper so she could write something down, but when she couldn't find it, a look of panic settled on her face. The paper! Sweetie Belle thought. Where could it have gone? I didn't put it somewhere else, right? She was pacing around the room, trying her hardest not to freak out, she'd need a level head to figure out where the paper had gone. Apple Bloom was watching Sweetie Belle, trying to figure out why she looked so panicked when she spied the open window. "Hey! Who left the window open!" she shouted causing Sweetie Belle to stop in her tracks. The window! It was windy last night...Wait that means...it could be anywhere in...Ponyville...right now... I really wish I could scream right now. She knew what to do, but how was she supposed to tell the others? She was really getting fed up of this 'no talking' thing and really wanted to punch Curiosity in the face, but he was some sort of mist-like creature, so that probably wasn't possible. She poked Apple Bloom in the ribs and pointed towards the door before bolting out of the clubhouse. "Follow me!" Apple Bloom said before bolting out the door, stopping and coming back "Sorry Scoots." She said before guiding Scootaloo out the door.

Apple Bloom guided Scootaloo around the market. She weaved in and out of busy ponies going about their lives. Sweetie Belle was still ahead, but she had slowed to a trot. Apple Bloom wasn't sure where she was going, but was content to follow her until she got to her destination. She was so caught up in thinking about things that she almost guided Scootaloo into another pony. "Hey! Watch were you're going!" the pony shouted, but the words fell on deaf ears. Where on earth could we be going? Apple Bloom thought looking at the seemingly confident Sweetie Belle. Suddenly Sweetie Belle stopped. She appeared to be looking at something but there were ponies in the way of whatever she was looking at. Apple Bloom was about to go over to see what her friend was looking at, but a stallion quickly moved his stall in front of Apple Bloom, blocking her view of Sweetie Belle. "Hey! Move out of the way!" she shouted before running around the stall, leaving Scootaloo behind. When she got to the other side of the stall, Sweetie Belle was gone. Apple Bloom headed back around the stall to go get Scootaloo. " Hey Scoots, Sweetie Belle is-" Apple Bloom began, but stopped when she noticed Scootaloo was missing as well. "Huh?" she thought, beginning to panic. "Look out!" Somepony behind her shouted causing her to turn around. She saw that the stall was going to fall on her! Ponies were running away from the stall and she started to run too, but she was kicked in the face by another pony which caused her to fall over and clutch her head.

Suddenly, the stall collapsed.

Ponydora's Book

When Apple Bloom arrived at the tree house, Her friends were already there. Sweetie Belle looked very excited and was wearing her brand new saddlebag, designed by Rarity just for her. It was blue and the clasp was a red quaver. Cheerilee had taught them that word when they were learning about music at school. Sweetie Belle had taken interest in music ever since that day, so it would be obvious the clasp would have something do with music. Once they were inside the tree house Sweetie Belle spoke up. "I have a great idea on how to get our cutie marks!" she yelled excitedly, making Apple Bloom and Scootaloo put their hooves over their ears.

Sweetie Belle produced a book for her saddlebag and placed it on the floor. Apple Bloom had never seen this book before. She stared at the book; it looked old with it's orange cover and big black letters on the front at the top. The pages were all yellowish and the book looked very thick. Surprisingly, it was in great condition, knowing of Sweetie Belle's bad luck with keeping things in good condition. The title of the book was The Complete Collection of Fetlock Pones.

"What's this?" Scootaloo had beaten her to the punch and had asked first.

"This....is an amazing book I got from Twilight!" she said, a huge smile on her face, jumping up and down on 'amazing' and 'book'.

"Where did you get it?" This time Apple Bloom asked first.

"Well..." she began. "Rarity has always been trying to get me to read books. She'd say things like 'Reading is fun!' and 'A book can take you to places you've never dreamed of!' but I didn't believe her. One day while we were at the library, Twilight picked out this book for me to read and told me to a least try reading it, so I did. By the time I had read the first chapter I was hooked! I read the whole day until bed time and then then read some more after bedtime under the covers."

"Why did you bring it?" Back to Scootaloo. "Are you trying to make me into a dork?"

"No! I'm not!" yelled Sweetie Belle "I just thought maybe we could be detectives! LIKE HIM!" Sweetie Belle pointed at the book,she was getting angry.

"Detectives?" Scootaloo said, puzzled at what she'd just said.

"YES, DETECTIVES!" she paused "AND READING DOESN'T MAKE YOU A DORK, YOU..." She paused, searching for the right word. "DUMBO!"

"HOW DARE YOU! I'M NO DUMBO,YOU'RE THE DUMBO!" Scootaloo retorted. They both moved to opposite sides of the tree house and sat facing away from each other, leaving poor Apple Bloom feeling stuck in the middle.

"Stupid Sweetie Belle! She always says too much! Sometimes I just wish she would stop talking." Scootaloo muttered under her breath.

"Stupid Scootaloo! Sometimes I wish she would stop always looking down on others. I wish she would go blind so she couldn't look down on other ponies anymore!" Sweetie Belle also muttered under her breath.