Back on Duty

Thanks to his impromptu nap during the cartoon, Gregory wasn't in the least bit sleepy, however late it was. Blossom was fine, being cuddled by Fluttershy, and with Celestia and Luna right in the next room, he had time to catch up on paperwork. Despite the crisis, he still had a job to do and this could be a welcome change away from the slightly-too-clingy mare. He could understand Blossom's attachment, especially after being attacked the previous day, but it wasn't a good idea to let her become too dependent on him.

Greg was halfway through his document when there came a quiet knock at his office door. "Huh? Come in!" he called out.

One of the guards poked his head inside and gave Gregory an apologetic smile. "Visitor, sir."

"Oh. What? This late? Let them in."

Celestia had insisted he keep a couple of Castle guards around all the time. It was understandable after the previous day, but Greg didn't have to like it. It smelled too strongly of paranoia and baseless fear. He forgot that line of thought when Star Bright walked into his office, glancing nervously at the two stolid, impassive guard ponies on either side of the door.

"Bright? You're here late," Greg commented in surprise. "Shouldn't you be at the observatory?"

The stallion had never been too dedicated to his job. It was just a temporary thing his parents had made him do for bragging rights. He heaved a forlorn sigh and shook his head. "I should. I'm missing a meteor shower, b-but... I need your help, Greg."

This seemed concerning and Greg stood up, paperwork forgotten for the moment. "Shut the door."

Star Bright did so with a casual flick of his magic, then he looked around the room as if looking for something to talk about. His tail was swishing nervously and his left ear twitched every now and then.

"What's wrong? You can tell me, Bright."

"Um..." the unicorn said, not quite meeting Greg's gaze. "Thing is, I dunno who to tell. I'm- I'm a bit freaked out right now."

Gregory took a closer look and saw that Bright's hind legs were trembling a little. He hurried forward and crouched down in front of the pony so he could lay a hand on his withers. "What happened?!"

Now that he felt safe, Star Bright finally focused on Greg and his lower lip trembled. "I- I think I m-might quit, Greg. I can't t-take this!"

Surely Nutmeg wasn't driving the poor colt too hard, was she?

"Look, if you have too much work or crazy deadlines just tell me and I'll help you work something out. If Ms. Nutmeg-"

Bright shook his head, closing his eyes. "It's not t-that..."

"Then what?"

It took some effort for Gregory to remain patient, but Star Bright looked like he was in shock. His rump hit the carpet and he put his face in his hooves to hide. "I sh-shouldn't be telling you this. I'm s-sorry, I'll just go. I shouldn't."

"You mean it's something personal? Did you get your marefriend in trouble or something?"

Bright shook his head again, but didn't remove his hooves from his face. "No. J-Just forget it. Forget I said anything. I shouldn't tell you." His shoulders were shaking as he fought back sobs.

Greg made a judgment call and slid further down to his knees so he could hug the poor colt. Bright went stiff at first, but soon melted into the embrace. His hooves slid away and he buried his muzzle in the nape of Greg's neck.

"Hey, it's gonna be okay. Just tell me what's wrong," Greg cooed quietly.

Bright sniffed once but managed to keep himself under enough control no speak. "T-They said they'd g-go after Mom and D-Dad..."

It was Greg's turn to stiffen in shock. That sounded very ominous. He gently lifted the colt a little so he could peer into his face. "Bright? Who is this 'they'? Has someone been threatening you?" It had to be related to the situation with Blossom, there was no way this was a coincidence.

Star Bright looked at the man in horror for a few seconds before his gaze darted away. "I- I'm... they s-said-" he choked out, but couldn't get any further.

"It's okay. You'll be safe. Your parents will be okay too, we'll make sure. Just tell me what happened."

Luckily Star Bright believed it and he managed to meet Greg's eyes. He sniffed again, then spoke, his words halted and fragmented: "Came to-today... wanted to see me. T-They asked ab-about Blossom..." The stallion shuddered and whispered: "They had a k-k-knife."

That confirmed it and Greg's lips pressed together in frustration. Whoever was behind all this seemed very well organized. "How many?"

"T-Two. They asked about y-you, too!"

That meant they had at least four ponies acting in Canterlot and probably more. Unless it were the same two who attacked Blossom. After all, neither Fluttershy nor Rainbow had been able to identify them.

"Earth ponies? What colors?" Greg asked.

Bright looked around the room as he searched his memory. "Earth pony and a pegasus. One of them - the earth p-pony - was v-violet or s-something, with white patches, umm, gray and brown mane, short. T-The other, like blue? I think..."

"You think? Didn't you get a good look at them?"

Star Bright shook his head. "H-He stayed behind me m-most of the time. They were k-kinda scary..."

Gregory committed the descriptions to memory, then gathered up the colt in another hug. "That's good, you're doing good. What else did they say? You have to tell me everything, okay?"

Wiping his nose with a fetlock, Bright nodded against Greg's shoulder. "I'll t-try. I'm s-scared, Greg. What's happening around here?!"

"That's what we're trying to find out. Don't worry, the Princess will make sure your family is safe. You did the right thing to tell me," the man assured him. One other question popped into Greg's mind and he pulled away from the stallion. "Quick, how long ago was this?!"

Now the stallion blushed and lowered his gaze to the floor. "M-Morning," he whispered so quietly that Greg had to strain to hear. "I h-hid in the bath-bathrooms until n-now." He looked up at the man and reached out a hoof as if in supplication. "I was just so s-scared! I h-heard you come in..."

"It's okay," Greg said, relaxing. "I wish you'd have told us sooner. They're probably out of Canterlot by now, or in hiding. Damn."

Fresh tears threatened to escape Star Bright's control and he sniffled a little. "I'm s-sorry... I'm just a coward."

Gregory sighed, but went back to hug the colt some more. It had been a very traumatic experience and he couldn't blame him for being scared. "Okay, you're safe now. We'll go up to the Princesses and tell them everything, okay? Think you can do that for me? Everything they said and everything you told them."

The colt went stiff. "Princesses?!" he squeaked in a tiny voice.

"Don't worry, I'll be right there with you, deal?"

It took a minute or so, but finally Star Bright nodded.

"Good boy. Would you like a cup of cocoa? I need you to remember as much as you can, so just try to relax. It's over."

Another nod.

Greg considered letting Bright go so he could ask one of the guards to fetch the beverage, but the stallion felt... 'brittle'. He could go to pieces at the slightest thing.

"Um, Bright!?" Greg raised his voice.

It made the colt flinch and he quickly patted him on the back.

"Sorry, sorry. Not you. Bright Beam!"

The door opened and the pegasus guard poked his muzzle in. If he thought the scene in any way strange, his muzzle didn't show it. "Sir?"

"I don't want to presume, but would you be so kind to fetch a cup of hot cocoa from the kitchen? It's just around the corner..."

"Of course, sir. No problem!" Bright Beam chirped helpfully.

"Thanks! I really appreciate it!"

The guard just inclined his head. "Absolutely no problem, sir. Um, sir?"

"Ask."

"Everything, um, okay in here?"

Gregory almost told the guard what he'd just learned, but thought better of it. Bright Beam hadn't been through Celestia and Luna's interview. If he was in on the conspiracy - well, he probably assumed Star Bright had told Greg everything, but he didn't have to confirm it.

"It's fine. Just a really bad boss. I'll go talk with Celestia right away," he lied.

"Sorry to hear that, sir," the pegasus said. "I'll fetch the cocoa now."

The door closed gently and Greg was left wondering whether the pegasus was on his way to tell someone that Star Bright had blabbed. He shook his head. If there were any corrupt guards left, there couldn't be that many. Most ponies were trustworthy and honest, Gregory reminded himself. There was no reason to start doubting everyone just because of what was happening. That was how you got paranoia and started flinging around baseless accusations. It was a dangerous path to tread.

Still, he had to hurry and get Star Bright to Celestia and make sure his family was protected. They now had at least partial descriptions, which was more than they had before.

Eventually Star Bright got his cocoa and settled down with Fluttershy and Blossom to watch yet another Disney cartoon on the iPad. The mare had been a bit tense at seeing a unicorn, but she recognized Bright and soon relaxed.

Gregory left them to it and went to check on Celestia and Luna's progress with the interrogations. "Any luck?" he asked as he took a seat on the couch.

"Most of them are trustworthy," Luna announced, scanning the paper before her with a quill held in her magical grip. "Two are suspicious and we will look further into their past."

Celestia added: "There are six more to interview. Would you like to sit in?"

"Yeah, why not. They were asking Star Bright about me, so I guess it concerns me too."

Luna called for the next guard on the list and soon after a rather pudgy unicorn walked in. She didn't have her helmet, but her golden chest piece was immaculately polished. The mare was vaguely familiar to Gregory, but he didn't recall her name or recognize her military rank, so he just waited for the Princesses to address the newcomer.

"Thank you for joining us, Spring Morning," Celestia greeted. "Please have a seat."

The guard shook her head. "Prefer to stand, ma'am!"

Celestia glanced at her sister, who gave a tiny shrug. Then they both smiled. "As you wish, Sergeant Major," Luna said. "You were born in Las Pegasus, correct?"

"That is correct, ma'am!"

"Hold on," Gregory interrupted, "I thought you said you were nearly done. Spring Morning is near the end of the alphabet, no?"

If Celestia was annoyed at the interruption, she didn't show it. "Spring Morning was on patrol in Canterlot city until now, Gregory."

"Oh. Okay. Sorry."

The Princess just gave him a nod and returned her gaze to the waiting guard. The mare was standing stiffly, staring straight ahead and refusing to meet either of the Princesses' gazes. Was that suspicious? Gregory couldn't tell, so he didn't bring it up. Doubtless the sisters knew what they were doing, especially Celestia with her long experience.

Luna, glancing down at her paper, went on: "Trained in Baltimare under, hmm, Silent Vigil. Commendation and a promotion to Canterlot Castle guard. Tell me, Spring Morning, did you want to come to Canterlot?"

The guard replied smoothly, without having to think. It sounded like she'd rehearsed the question beforehand: "Never thought about it, ma'am. I only wanted to serve."

"Commendable," Celestia said with a small smile. "What do you know of spies in the guard? I find my ponies being threatened and coerced. Have you ever heard about somepony offering bribes to the Castle guards?"

Spring Morning shook her head and opened her mouth to deny it, but then she thought better of it. "There are... r-rumors, ma'am."

Both Princesses were instantly alert and Spring Morning seemed uncomfortable under their stares.

"Do you have names?" Celestia asked at last.

"Sorry, ma'am. Just rumors that somepony was offering bits in exchange for... information."

Luna jumped in and demanded: "What sort of information?"

Spring Morning shook her head again. "Sorry, Princess. I just heard somepony talking about it. I wasn't approached myself, or I would have taken it to Fire Fly immediately."

"Who was talking about it?" Gregory burst out, unable to help himself. He immediately blushed, but neither Princess reprimanded him.

Then again, Spring Morning didn't answer him either, not until Celestia repeated his question: "Who was talking about being offered a bribe, Sergeant Major?"

The mare shuffled a little on her hooves and her facade of professionalism slipped for a second. She looked nervous.

"Answer the question, Sergeant," Luna commanded.

At last Spring Morning found her courage again, but she lowered her voice as if afraid she would be overheard: "L-Lemon Slice and, um, Azure Wings, ma'am."

The news made Gregory sit up straight and open his mouth for a followup question, but Celestia beat him to it.

"In what way were they talking about it?" the Princess asked.

"Ma'am?"

Celestia tried to explain herself a bit better: "Was Lemon Slice offering Azure Wings a bribe, or did she say she was being offered one? Or was it Azure Wings, who was offering Lemon Slice a bribe? Tell us exactly what you heard, Sergeant Major."

Spring Morning swallowed a lump and nervously looked around the room. She stared at the door to the hallway for a few seconds, then brought her gaze around to peer at Gregory.

"Do not worry, Spring Morning," Luna said, "whatever you say here will be entirely confidential."

This helped and the guardsmare nodded. Her ears went completely flat and she lowered her gaze down to her hooves, then she finally replied: "I t-think, um, Azure- Azure Wings was offering Lemon S-Slice a bribe, P-Princess. He was asking about- um..."

"Go on, Sergeant," Luna prompted.

"About Princess Celestia and Gregory. A-And the new mare - Blossom."

Celestia and Luna looked at each other and then they both looked at Gregory. He stared back at them, then shrugged a little. They were already highly suspicious of Lemon Slice and now they had another lead.

"Has Azure Wings been interviewed yet?"

Greg asked his question at the same time as Celestia hers: "When was this, Sergeant?"

"Y-You can't," Spring Morning answered Greg's question, then blushed when they all looked at her. "Um, sorry, P-Princess. You can't interview Azure Wings because he's sick. He's been off work today."

"Really?!" Celestia asked. She checked the paper again and frowned a little. "Captain Fire Fly never mentioned it. It says here Azure Wings was supposed to be on the main gate duty this evening, together with Longstride."

Again Spring Morning shook her head. "He asked to be relieved on account of his illness. He sent word that he has a bad flu and would like to stay at home for a few days."

The two Princesses looked at one another, then Celestia repeated her question: "When did you overhear this, Sergeant?"

Spring Morning looked even more uneasy and she went back to staring at her hooves. "Yester-Yesterday morning, ma'am."

"Interesting," Celestia said and Luna nodded in agreement. "Thank you very much, Sergeant Major, for telling us this."

The mare still looked uneasy about the whole thing and she asked nervously: "M-May I go now, ma'am?"

"Just this last question," Luna said. "Are you lying about Azure Wings to avoid suspicion yourself? You must know that we already suspect Lemon Slice. I know how guards gossip, Sergeant Major."

Spring Morning almost visibly flinched at the accusation and she began babbling in panic: "No! Of course not, P-Princess! I'd never take a bribe! I'd come and tell you right away if somepony offered me a bribe!"

"Yet you failed to report to the Captain when you overheard one guard pony offer another a bribe?"

The mare began backing away. "I d-didn't think much of it! It- It sounded like paparazzi were asking about you and Gregory for a story! I never suspected it was part of a plot!"

Her eyes were darting between the two Princesses and her breathing was faster as Spring Morning waited for the verdict.

It was Luna who spoke up: "Next time if you hear bribes being offered, or so much as discussed, no matter how benign they sound, you will report it to your superior, or to Captain Fire Fly, immediately!"

"Y-Yes, P-Princess!"

"Good. You may go."

The mare scurried out of the room and fled down the corridor without a single word to the group of guards waiting outside. She forgot to close the door behind her, so Celestia did it with her magic. "Thoughts, Sister?" she asked Luna.

"Sounded mighty suspicious to me," Gregory added his two cents.

Luna, however, shook her head. "Keeping rumors of bribes to herself was a foalish thing to do and Spring Morning knows that. I think her fear was simply the result of realizing it. I do not think she is part of this conspiracy, otherwise she would have said nothing at all."

"Yes, I agree. I don't think she was lying."

Gregory frowned in confusion and opened his mouth to argue, but Celestia headed him off: "Remember - I am a good judge of character, Gregory. Yes, Spring Morning was nervous and afraid, but I believed her when she said she was not a part of this plot. This really is as simple as Luna says. She had neglected to report something as serious as guards taking bribes and was afraid of the consequences."

Greg shrugged a little and settled back into the couch. Of course he had complete faith in Celestia, he reminded himself. She'd held her throne for over a thousand years, so she knew what she was doing.

"We should, however," Celestia continued, "send some guards to find Azure Wings and have a word with his neighbors. I wonder if he really is as ill as he claims."

"I will arrange it," Luna promised.

Celestia gave her a grateful nod and looked down at the paper again. "Shall we call for the next one?"

This time it was Luna's magic which opened the door. The ponies outside knew the routine, so she didn't even have to say anything for the next candidate to walk in.

It took another hour, but there were no more surprises, at least in Gregory' opinion. After it was finished, a very tired-looking Celestia accepted his hug and proclaimed she was going to take a very brief shower and then straight to bed.

"Hold on, let me check on Blossom and I'll join you."

This brightened her smile beautifully, so Greg hurried into the other room where the three ponies were now all asleep, the dark iPad lying where it had slid out of Blossom's hooves. The only one awake in there was Rainbow Dash, who was sitting on the writing table and staring out the window mournfully. Greg guessed she missed the freedom of flying and was bored after being still the entire day.

"How's it going?"

Rainbow didn't look around, but one of her ears turned to track the man. "You know," she said in a fed-up voice, "it's kinda boring, now that you mention it."

Gregory decided to be magnanimous: "Okay, how about I ask Luna to keep an eye on Blossom tomorrow and you can go out, stretch your wings, stuff like that?"

She turned her head and stared at Greg in surprise. "You'd do that?!"

"Sure! You're no use to anyone if you're bored out of your mind, after all."

"Well, that's true, I guess."

Gregory reached the pegasus and laid a careful hand on her back. After a moment of stiffness, Rainbow leaned back into his touch.

"You'll sleep here tonight? With Blossom and Fluttershy?" Gregory asked.

"Yeah."

"Mind if I get a night in a real bed?"

"Go ahead. Between the magic around this room, me, and the guards outside, I don't think anything's gonna happen."

"Did Blossom say what the secret was? The one they threatened her for?"

Rainbow Dash just shrugged. "Maybe she told Fluttershy, but I don't know."

Greg slid his hand up Rainbow's back and through her mane until he reached her ear. She leaned even more heavily into his scratch: "Mmm, gotta get me some of this," she remarked with her eyes closed and a happy little smile on her muzzle.

"I'm sure that can be arranged."

The smile slipped and was quickly replaced with a blush as Rainbow Dash jerked suddenly away. "Um- I didn't mean- I just think it might be nice, is all. As a friend!"

Gregory remembered her question to Celestia the other day, but didn't push the topic. "Sure. Having friends is nice. Hopefully after I finish my work we'll have more tourists in Equestria. The wonderbolts could do a show or something and you'd be bound to meet some human fans."

This made the mare brighten up immediately. "That'd be cool, I guess. I'll mention it to Spitfire!"

"You might even get to do a tour on Earth, if we can get basic pony rights pushed through."

"Sweet!"

"Okay, lemme just quickly speak with Blossom and Fluttershy and then I'll leave you guys to get some sleep."

Rainbow Dash just nodded and went back to staring out the window.

The other two mares were awake and looking at Gregory, but neither of them spoke. They seemed quite comfortable as they were, cuddled and half-covered with the blanket. Star Bright was still asleep, undoubtedly having been worn out by his encounter with the bad guys and his hiding in the toilets the whole day. Greg couldn't blame the stallion, really. It looked super comfortable between Blossom and Fluttershy.

"So, you're no longer afraid of unicorns, I see?" he asked Blossom.

The mare shook her head, then paused and shrugged. "I... guess," she admitted. "Ju-Just the Bosses."

"You mean the unicorns in the mines who made you do things and threatened you?"

Blossom nodded to this and her ears flattened while Fluttershy gave Greg a slightly cross look.

He sat down on the edge of the bed and laid his palm against Blossom's cheek. "Sorry, I didn't mean to bring up bad memories."

"'s okay."

Star Bright still didn't wake up and Gregory didn't have the heart to do it. The stallion had the cutest little smile on his lips and he was apparently holding on to Blossom with all four legs.

"Is he bothering you?"

Blossom shook her head and Greg made a quick decision.

"Let's just leave him then. If he starts bothering you, just kick him out and tell him to sleep on the couch, okay?"

"With you?" Fluttershy asked, giggling a little bit.

"Actually, I'll sleep in my own bed tonight."

Blossom cast him a fearful look and opened her muzzle to object, but Greg put his other hand on her muzzle to forestall her. "Shh, it's going to be okay. You've got Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy, and there's magic keeping the room safe, and a bunch of guards outside. Nothing bad is going to happen, I promise." His eyes slid to the sleeping unicorn and Greg smiled. "Besides, you've got your own unicorn now to keep you safe!"

Blossom pulled her muzzle free from Greg's grip and looked at Star Bright, scrunching up in thought. She must have reached a positive conclusion, because she smiled and leaned down to give the unicorn a quick nuzzle. "Okay," she said when she looked back at Gregory. "I like him. He gave me muffins."

"That's right. Star Bright is a good guy."

Perhaps talking about him was making the stallion wake up, because his ear flicked at the mention of his name.

"You'll make sure there's nothing... untoward, right Fluttershy?"

The pegasus gave Greg a firm nod and he relaxed. Even with Blossom's concerning habit of trading sex for favors, surely nothing would happen with both Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash in the room. Besides, Star Bright looked too comfortable and moving him would be an absolute sin. Even more, Greg thought and suppressed a chuckle, he would be able to tease him with this for weeks to come. Fell asleep between two beautiful mares. He could have at least bought them dinner, first.

That settled, Greg's mind returned to another, less pleasant thing. He cast a wary look at Fluttershy and decided to push a little. They needed answers.

"Blossom, sweetie? Would you mind if I ask you a few questions?"

The mare seemed a bit apprehensive, but she trusted him and so she nodded.

"You said you heard something in the mine and they threatened you if you ever told anyone, right?"

Her ears folded down and she lowered her gaze to look at her hooves. Despite all that, Blossom gave a slight nod.

Gregory cupped her muzzle in his hand and lifted it up so she was looking at his face. "I promise that's not going to happen. You're safe here. Both Princesses are keeping their eye on you."

Blossom inhaled slowly, but then she gave another nod.

"Can you tell me what you heard? It'll really help us find the bad guys and put them in prison, so they won't be able to hurt others."

Fluttershy opened her mouth to complain, but Greg reached out his free hand and booped her nose to keep her quiet for a few more seconds.

Blossom's eyes were filling up with tears, but she blinked them away, sniffed, then nodded. Greg's heart started racing. Finally, some real answers!

"T-The- The big boss..." Blossom spoke, haltingly. Her eyes flicked to Star Bright's horn, then she swallowed a lump. Greg used his thumb to stroke her cheek and leaned closer.

"It's okay. You're safe here," he repeated.

Blossom took a deep breath and gave Greg's fingers a lick, as if to reassure herself that the man was real. "B-Big boss c-c-came and one- one of the h-horns..." she continued.

Gregory wanted to tell he to hurry it up, but that would be very counterproductive, so he took a firm grip on his impatience and curiosity.

This time Blossom licked her own lips before plunging forward: "He c-c-called the big b-b-boss by his n-name and I heard it!"

Fluttershy's eyes went wide and Greg had no doubt his were just the same. A name of someone high up in this slavery business could be the clue that broke this case! No wonder they were trying to kill Blossom, especially if this 'big boss' was someone important in Canterlot. That would agree with Celestia's assumption that they were panicking!

"Do you remember the name, Blossom?" Gregory asked. He glanced surreptitiously at Star Bright, but the stallion was still out cold, it seemed. Even so, maybe it wouldn't be a good idea to let him hear this. The unicorn wasn't one of the bad guys, Greg was sure of that, but knowing this could put him in more danger. "Just whisper it in my ear, okay?"

Blossom nodded and he leaned closer to her. She brought her muzzle right up against Greg's ear, until her fur tickled him. She whispered: "S-S-Silver Mane..."

Gregory froze. It was one of the nobles, pretty much what she and Celestia had suspected, but it still came as a shock. "Silvermane?!" he whispered back urgently and Blossom nodded.

They were one of the wealthy families in Canterlot! Greg didn't know too much about them - there was a unicorn and his wife, who was a pegasus, but their first names slipped his mind for the moment. Parents were dead, something to do with a tragic flying carriage accident, Greg thought. He had to bring this information to Celestia as soon as possible! Except he first had to do something else. He gave Blossom a wide smile and kissed the tip of her nose.

"Good girl! Thanks for telling me! I'll go tell Princess Celestia right away and we'll put them all in prison for what they did." This brought out a faint smile, but Blossom still looked worried. Gregory glanced over to where Rainbow Dash was watching them from the table and gave her a nod. "Don't worry, you're the safest you can be anywhere in Equestria. That's the Rainbow Dash, don't you know?"

From the slightly confused look Blossom was giving him, Gregory figured she probably didn't know. It would make sense if she'd spent her past five years or so at the bottom of a mine.

"Well, she's the most famous athlete in Equestria and an Element of Harmony. For that matter, so is Fluttershy! Trust me, nothing is getting to you while those two are around!"

Blossom turned wide, admiring eyes on the pegasus next to her. She didn't know what 'Element of Harmony' meant either, but it sounded pretty impressive.

"R-Really?" she asked.

Fluttershy blushed modestly, but she didn't deny it. "Yes, really. I promise we'll keep you safe!"

This seemed to clinch it and the mare relaxed a little. She looked down at Star Bright, who was starting to stir a little from all the movement and commotion around him.

"Remember, kick him out if he gets too forward, right?"

Blossom frowned a little in thought, then nodded at Gregory. He tousled her mane quickly and stood up.

"Sweet dreams."

This time both mares smiled a little and he left them to it. He made himself take slow, measured steps, but he really wanted to run to Celestia and tell her. Since it was a noble and wealthy family it would be tricky business to bring them in for questioning, but he had no doubts that Celestia would handle it perfectly. Finally, some real progress! They might have just uncovered the leader of the whole sorry affair! The Princess would be so proud!