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Smudge on the Record

A MLP:FiM fanfic by Kao1214

Prologue

        Coal Tweed frowned and turned to look up at the sky. Snorting at the sight of a layer of grey clouds stretching across the sky, he turned back around and continued to slowly trot down the road. Celestia had raised the sun hours ago, and Ponyville was almost as dark as night. Tweed snorted again. The Pegasi were getting lazy. He paused for a second at that thought before thoughtfully nodding to himself and continuing along the road. He guessed they could be forgiven for that. The town was in mourning right now, wasn’t it?

Not liking the uncomfortable thoughts building up in his head, Tweed gave it a brisk shake, sending his dark green mane whipping about his eyes from under the tweed hat he wore. Feeling the hat that was his namesake slip out of place, he frowned and reached up with one hoof to readjust it. Misalignment was something he could not tolerate. Back at the central station in Canterlot, he often received jokes from coworkers about his obsession with order and neatness. More than once he had been told he would be the perfect match for some Unicorn named Rarity. He had met her once, since he had been dispatched to Ponyville. Couldn’t really say he cared for her. Much too noisy and emotional.

He gave a soft ha-rumph and sped up slightly. He had an interview to conduct with a person of interest in the case, and he had a feeling he was already late, though most of the town was still asleep. Unacceptable. Timeliness was just as important as order. Suddenly very worried, and sped up a bit and sighed with relief as he rounded a corner. His destination stood before him in the darkness of the morning, a soft light illuminating the windows.

It was a small house near the town square, that he had quickly turned into his base of operations. Sure, there had been some objections from the pony living within, but they had to understand. This was the law they were talking about here, they all had to make sacrifices! Nodding in satisfaction at this thought, he glanced across the square towards the ashen wreckage that had once been Town Hall. He winced at the sight of it, absolutely hating the big black scar on the earth. The self-satisfactory nod turned into a pitying shake of the head before he turned around and entered the house. They all had to make sacrifices.

As Tweed entered the building, he blinked a few times at the sudden change in light, trying to adjust his eyes. The house was practically pitch black. The glow from the windows had been vastly disillusioning. The only lights were a candle or two spread across the room, one of which sat on a table in the middle. In fact, the table was the only furniture in the room, he had personally made sure to clear the house of all unnecessary furnishings, to the owner’s outrage. It was as he had said before. Sacrifices!

His eyes now adequately adjusted, he stepped forward to take in the suspect he had been presented with. A Unicorn mare with a violet coat sat despondently at the table, staring downward with hollow, unfocused eyes. He scrunched his nose in distaste as the sight of the large burn that streaked across one of her shoulders. Unsymmetrical. Unacceptable.

Sighing, Tweed continued forward and sat down on the other side of the table, rummaging through the files he had been presented with. Pulling one out, he quickly scanned over it and began talking as he did so.

“I take it you know why you are here, and the crimes you have been accused of, Miss Spar...” he trailed off in shock. “Sparkle? You’re THE Twilight Sparkle?” he said in disbelief, nearly whispering. The Unicorn made no reaction, only continuing to stare silently downward. Coal Tweed stared at her for a few more seconds with his mouth hanging open slightly.

Twilight Sparkle, the mare was a legend in Canterlot! She had practically been this town’s police force before he had arrived. They still told stories of how she had defeated that insane creature Nightmare Moon and rescued Princess Celestia! Tweed slowly closed his mouth as he felt his expression harden. And now she was being accused of being involved in the biggest act of unlawful conduct since that whole fiasco. He heard a distasteful snort rip from his throat. It was just a sign of the times, good ponies going bad left and right, simply unacceptable!

Regaining his composure, Tweed sat upright and continued to scan the papers, silently now. Twilight Sparkle remained silent throughout his examination, hardly moving outside of gentle breathing. With a rustle of paper, he tapped tapped the files against the table until they were in a perfectly aligned stack before setting them aside. He fixed Twilight with a hard stare for a few seconds before leaning forward, sliding his hooves across the table. “Talk to me, Miss Sparkle.” he said quietly. “I don’t want to believe this is your fault, but all I have to go on right now is what other ponies have told me.”

No response came from her. Letting out an agitated sigh, Tweed leaned down again and picked up another bundle of papers and began to spread them out on the table, in perfect rows. Twilight’s eye seemed to move a fraction of an inch as they were revealed to be photographs. They all seemed to show one of two things: either various magical energies swirling through the air, or a building engulfed in flames. Tweed then set down the final picture, showing one that had a different subject than the others. It looked to be an old stage poster, with cartoon stars and moons flowing across the bottom to highlight a name that had faded with time to point that it was illegible. A powder blue Unicorn with a purple wizard’s hat covering her silvery mane graced the front of it, grinning arrogantly at the camera. Tweed leaned forward once again as Twilight’s eyes raised to snap to attention on the poster. He raised his hoof and slapped it down on the poster.

“Where is she, Miss Sparkle? I know you know.” he said in an accusatory voice.

Twilight’s face suddenly hardened and she whipped her head away, a sudden fire in her eyes. She stared at the wall for a few seconds before turning to glare at Tweed. “Is any of this really necessary?” she spat at him.

Tweed felt himself stand before he even thought of it. “Yes, Miss Sparkle, it is completely necessary!” he yelled, his voice turning shrill at the end of the sentence.

The law, she’s deliberately hindering the law! Princess Celestia’s own personal student, reduced to this?! Unacceptable. Completely UNACCEPTABLE! The thoughts raced through his head as he stood panting, glaring at her. Swallowing, he lifted his hat and ran a hoof through his mane, trying desperately to calm himself. Finally, he sat down again and fixed her with a serious gaze. Twilight was back to staring downward, only now her face was contorted in anger.

“Yes, this is necessary,” he said with forced calmness. “A pony has died here, Miss Sparkle, and you’re being accused of having been involved.” He took a breath to continue, but Twilight’s head snapped up once more.

“So now I’ve killed somepony? That’s a bold statement detective, as I have eyewitnesses who can attest to the fact that I had nothing to do with it.” She was breathing heavily now, glaring daggers at Tweed.

He inclined his head slightly giving a thoughtful nod towards the table. “No, I never said you had killed anypony.” He raised his eyes to stare into hers. “But there is no doubt in my mind that you are involved with the prime suspect. The only reason you’re here is on charges of knowingly sheltering her, am I correct?”

Twilight opened her mouth to reply before closing it again. Her eyes raced across his face before she bowed her head again. Tweed nodded in approval. “Good, now we’re getting somewhere. Can I take your response to mean you don’t deny these charges?”

The Unicorn remained silent. Tweed allowed a groan to escape his lips as he began to massage his temples. “Please don’t start with this again, Miss Sparkle.”

“Buck you.” came the quiet response.

Tweed couldn’t help himself. A quick laugh, almost a giggle, ripped from his mouth as he stared at her with an astonished smile. “Really, Miss Sparkle? That’s all you have to say for yourself?” When she remained silent once more, he started to feel himself get worked up again. He decided to go with it this time. “Honestly, I expected much more from Celestia’s prized pupil. What ever happened to the reports I heard of you being the smartest pony down here in Ponyville, somepony who could’ve replaced Mayor Mare if she had put her mind to it?”

Twilight looked up to stare at him in shock, eyes shining with indignation. “Oh I’m sorry. That’s still a sore subject down here, isn’t it?” he deadpanned. Twilight quickly looked away, staring at the wall now. Tweed silently stared at her for a few seconds longer before standing up. He grabbed the poster and moved around to stand directly in front of her face. He shoved it at her, making her take in the Unicorn on it. “You know what? I’m starting to believe you really did have something to do with this. You’re awfully hesitant to answer my questions.”

“It wasn’t her fault!” Twilight blurted out. She instantly looked as though she regretted that statement and spun away from Tweed.

“Wrong, Miss Sparkle.” he said softly. “You claimed to have eyewitnesses that could claim your innocence. Well, I have some of those too. Only they can prove it WAS her fault.”

Twilight bit her lower lip, eyes squinting in an attempt to stop the tears that were now flowing down her face. “Trixie never meant to hurt anypony...” she whispered.

Tweed set the poster back on the table and circled back around to take his seat across from her once more. “Accidental equicide is equicide just the same, Miss Sparkle.” he murmured. Twilight closed her eyes as the tears continued to fall. Tweed leaned forward for emphasis on his next statement. “Even if she wasn’t responsible for this tragedy, I have reports of her openly attacking you in town square, even you yourself have confirmed this! What reason could you possibly have for protecting her?” He pointed a hoof at the burn on her shoulder. It was obvious that it would leave a large scar in time. “She gave you that, am I correct?” Twilight raised a hoof to tenderly touch it, obviously reliving a memory. Tweed stood up and spun around to display his haunches for her. “See this?” he said, indicating his cutie mark. A slate grey magnifying glass sat on his haunches, casting a wide yellow searchlight from its lens. “It means I get to the bottom of things. I will find out what information you know, Miss Sparkle, one way or another.”

Twilight gave no response. Tweed sucked in a quick breath, feeling his agitation rising. Thoughts of the law and how unacceptable the whole situation was began to cycle through his mind once more. “I am quickly tiring of this, Miss Sparkle. Why is it so hard to be cooperative? Do you realize how bad it is that one of the very Elements of Harmony is being detained for a crime like... this?”

He quickly stood up when he was only met with more silence. “Well, I can’t help you like this, Twilight Sparkle. You’re the Element of Magic, magic yourself up a way out of this.”

He spun and exited the building in a haze of indignity. Pausing to look back through a window in the house, he saw the Unicorn collapsed on the table, shaking in what were apparently sobs. One last snort ripped through his nose as he stared. The gallows. That’s what uncooperative ponies who refused to get out of the way of the law deserved, the gallows.

Tweed realized his flanks were heaving as he stood rooted in place, glaring through the window. Apparently more time had passed in there than he had been aware of, as ponies now populated the streets. He swallowed and glanced about him when he saw several of them stopping to stare in surprise. Reaching up to straighten his hat, he turned and began to trot away.

He didn’t get far before he spotted the familiar shape of a red stallion coming his way. A smile of relief crossed his face as Big Macintosh slowed at the sight of him. Now here was a pony he liked. A good, reliable, hardworking pony who knew his place in the world. If he had a little more ambition, Tweed wouldn’t have been surprised to hear of Macintosh getting far in life. The stallion had come to him early on in his stay in Ponyville, seemingly eager to help end all the chaos that had engulfed this town recently. Acceptable, incredibly acceptable. If there was a stronger word of praise in his vocabulary, he wouldn’t hesitate to bestow it upon him.

Big Mac bowed his head to Tweed, a slight smile appearing from around the stalk of hay clenched firmly between his teeth. “Howdy there, Mr. Tweed.” his deep voice rumbled out. Tweed nodded briskly to him, suddenly changing the direction he was walking.

“Walk with me, Macintosh.” he said quickly. A small hint of confusion played across Big Mac’s face as he altered his course to join Tweed.

They made an odd pair, a huge muscle-bound stallion ambling along beside a much smaller pony, who had to break into a canter every now and then to keep up. They stayed in silence as they walked, until Big Mac realized they were headed towards the center of town. He glanced down at the quick moving pony, shifting the stalk in his mouth in preparation to speak. “If Ah may ask, where exactly are we-?”

Tweed cut him off. “You know Twilight Sparkle personally, correct?”

Big Mac stayed silent as he thought, before slowly replying. “Well, Ah don’t know about personally, but she’s one a’ my sister’s good friends, and we’ve shared a word or two.” Now that he thought about it, Big Mac hadn’t seen Twilight yesterday...

“Hrm.” came Tweed’s curt reply. They fell into silence once more.

Big Macintosh wasn’t a pony who was easily fazed by much, but he felt his heart sink as they reached the town square and the sight of the burned Town Hall came into view. Tweed stopped them in front of it. He looked up at Big Mac’s face, silently scanning it for a second.

“You know, I was just here a few minutes ago.” he said. “Interviewing a person of interest in this case.”

Big Mac’s eyebrows arched in surprise. “Do tell. Get any worthwhile information?”

Tweed turned to stare at the wreckage before responding. “What I need, Macintosh, is the entire story. Since I’ve arrived here, all I’ve heard are snippets. I’ve yet to hear every small detail.”

Big Mac let out a repressed sigh. “Welp, Ah suppose Ah could try and fill you in. Ah’m not savvy to every gritty little detail, but Ah could get you started.”

Tweed nodded, a self-satisfactory smile stretching onto his face. “That’s good enough for me.”

To be continued...

Smudge on the Record

Part One

        The Great and Powerful Trixie ran. The sound of her hooves pounding on the ground echoed through the forest like so many gunshots, ricocheting off the trees to come back to her as the phantom hoofsteps of her pursuers. Her breath tore from her lungs in the form of panicked gasps that ripped past her ears as she continued to run as fast as she could. As she fled, her thoughts raced through her head even faster.

        Thoughts of how something like this could have happened, how it couldn’t have. It wasn’t her fault, she hadn’t meant for it to happen, it was nothing but a freak accident, oh Celestia- wait, no, that wasn’t right at all. Her thoughts suddenly calmed as the memories came flooding back.

        That was right, that particular goddess had already forsaken her. Trixie heard a maddened little giggle flutter out her mouth. Her goddess had turned her back on her! A goddess! Was there a higher power in Equestria than Celestia? Trixie couldn’t say she had ever heard of one, if there was.

        A crack sounded over that of her maddened flight as her hoof struck a rock and promptly cracked. Her mind barely registered it, as it was more interested on the current tangent it was flying down.

        Celestia may have been the highest power, but she wasn’t the land’s only goddess, right? There was that other one, Luna, the one that had gone insane and been banished, right? Trixie would just have to pray to her, she seemed like the kind of pony who would understand when somepony made a stupid mistake, RIGHT? You know, speaking of Luna, when was the last time she had had a coherent-

Trixie spun around on the spot and reared in the air, before bringing her head down and smashing it against a tree trunk. She stood there silently with her head against the tree, eyes clenched shut. Her thoughts immediately all took that chance to shut up as she felt the thin bead of blood slide down her forehead from above her horn. Finally, when she felt she had calmed herself sufficiently, she raised her head to look back the way she had come.

Trixie grimaced at the sight of smashed branches and flattened grass and twigs, all forming a perfect path leading right to where she stood now. Staring down it, she realized how silent the forest had become. No animals could be heard, no birds singing or smaller mammals going about their business in the undergrowth. That only made sense, her insane gallop had probably frightened them all off. But that wasn’t the only thing about the silence that gave her hope.

There was no sound of anything following her. Trixie sighed with relief, her entire body relaxing. It was then she noticed how much the hoof that had struck the rock hurt. Eyes tearing up at the sudden pain, she bit her lip before her horn began to softly glow. A purple aura surrounded her injured hoof, and the pain instantly receded. Realizing her lip was still tightly clenched between her teeth, Trixie slowly released it and gave an experimental shake of her hoof. She had by no means healed it, she didn’t have time for such a complicated spell. But at least this would dull the pain until she did. Hopefully. Trixie suddenly realized that she had no idea where she was going, or where she was.

She paused as the all too familiar gaps in her memory resurfaced. Come to think of it, who was she running from earlier? What exactly was the accident she had been so desperately trying to convince herself wasn’t her fault? One of the holes in her mind chose that moment to fill itself in. They were still coming.

Head jerking up, she stared down the path she had created with wide eyes. Spinning around, she looked the way she had been heading and saw only more foliage. They were still coming and there’s a path leading right to you. RIGHT. TO. YOU.

Feeling her heart begin to pound in her chest again, she clenched her eyes shut as her horn flashed. When she reopened them, two magical sparks floated on either side of her, seemingly awaiting her commands. Trixie nodded in satisfaction before her horn flashed again and the sparks took off in opposite directions on a horizontal tangent to the way she had been running. As they flew, they swerved about and began to smash into tree branches, breaking them down and flattening the grass they passed over. Trixie looked down both of the new paths before nodding again. A sufficient set of decoys, there was no way they’d be able to-

There was blood running down her face. Trixie heard a moan of horror escape her mouth as she watched the line of blood slide off her face to drip onto the ground below. Why was there blood on her face?!

Panicking once more, the Great and Powerful Trixie ran, her thoughts racing through her head even faster.

It wasn’t her fault, she hadn’t meant for it to happen, it was nothing but a freak accident, oh Celestia- wait, no, that wasn’t right at all.

        ____________________________

        Four days earlier

        The Great and Powerful Trixie ran. She jumped the fallen tree in front of her without missing a stride and flinched at the sound of it being smashed behind her. A flurry of splinters flew past her face as she chanced a glance over her shoulder. Yes, it was still there. The bear was still rampaging after her.

        Why is it always BEARS?! she thought to herself in exasperation. This chase had gone on long enough, and it was obvious the bear wasn’t tiring out any time soon. Grunting in annoyance, she dug a hoof into the ground and whirled on the spot. Lowering her head, Trixie stared down the angered bear. It wasn’t stopping. Suddenly rearing upward, the unicorn’s horn flashed and an explosion of magical fireworks burst into life behind her.

The bear immediately back-peddled, a startled growl bursting forth from it. Grinning in triumph, Trixie landed back on all fours, slamming her front hooves into the ground. A sheet of smoke burst upward between the two, and when it cleared, Trixie was greeted with the tail of thoroughly disconcerted fleeing bear. Her grin widened at the sight, and she could feel a laugh of victory rising in her throat. The only thing that could make this event even better would be to strike a pose, with her cape blowing in the-

The grin disappeared in flash, as did the feeling of victory welling inside her. She spun on the spot, desperately trying to catch a glimpse of her back before falling down on her haunches. A sigh escaped her mouth as she stared at the ground of the forest. That was right, she didn’t have a cape. Not anymore, it was back in... there, that place... with all her other belongings.

Trixie frowned at that thought. What had its name been? There had been a town... something had happened there, something that had resulted in her running into the forest.... Her frown deepened as another thought struck her. She had said something about bears earlier, why had she said that? And why had that bear even been chasing her? Groaning, Trixie lay prostrate on the ground, hooves covering her eyes. She didn’t care enough anymore, those missing memories could go off and forget about her, for all she cared. After all, it looked like they already had.

Another sigh slid from her mouth as she squeezed her eyes closed. This had been happening for a while now, memories coming and going as they pleased. She didn’t know how long she had been in this forest, only that she was tired of it. She grunted as her thoughts hit a brick wall. She couldn’t even remember what was causing this memory loss. That was possibly the worst part, that she could remember having the memories, but couldn’t remember them themselves. Though if things continued in the manner they had been, odds were it would magically come to her sooner or later. A frown creased her face as she continued to think. What had happened in that... town?

She didn’t know how long she lay there, blocking out the world with her hooves. Her back was cold. So was her head for that matter. She missed her regalia. Where was it, again?

Ponyville the voice said. Trixie’s frown deepened beneath her hooves. Twilight Sparkle the voice continued. Lifting her head, Trixie looked about. That voice... why did it seem so familiar? Her head stopped turning as something caught her eye. She was on the edge of the forest, right on the treeline. In fact, she could see the town from here. Comeback tour the voice said, a hint of triumph within it. Trixie felt a small smile slip onto her face at that. Whoever the voice belonged to, it was making a lot sense, now. She wondered if those two unicorn foals were still living in Ponyville, she had actually quite liked them. Ponyville... that was its name.... Feeling her confidence growing, she got to her hooves and started towards the outer buildings she could see in the distance. Comeback tour, she liked that idea. Maybe she’d be able to find her cape and hat again?

____________________________

Rainbow Dash spun through the air, letting her legs dangle loosely about her as she spiraled. Enjoying the wind rushing past her face she allowed herself to angle downward slightly, beginning to spiral toward the ground. Stopping her spin, she tucked her legs into her body and immediately sped up as she nosedived. Feeling a smile of exhilaration creeping onto her face, as if the wind was reshaping her features to suit its mood, she stared the ground down. Craning her neck forward, she felt herself accelerate slightly before snapping her wings outward. Suddenly slowing, she quickly re-angled them to curve back upward. Closing her eyes to savor the feel of her descent, Rainbow Dash reopened them...

        ...and found her vision filled with a field of grey fur. “Gah!” Dash cried out, wings flaring as she furiously back-peddled. The blonde-maned pegasus mare in front of her made no attempt to get out of her way, only staring at her in wide-eyed amazement. “Ditzy!” Dash yelled once she had worked herself into a stationary hover. “What are you doing?! I almost smashed into you!”

A wide smile spread across Ditzy Doo’s face as she stared back. “That was amazing Rainbow Dash! How come you’re such a good flyer?” Ditzy tilted her head at Dash as she asked the question.

Dash grimaced. Normally, she would never hesitate to boast to anypony who seemed willing to lend an ear. But with Ditzy... one question would always lead to another, and then another, each making less and less sense than the last one. They all seemed to end up including something to do with muffins, too. No, with Ditzy, the shortest answer was the best answer. “Lot’s of practice, I guess.” Dash muttered, before beginning to turn away.

Ditzy swerved in the air to suddenly be in front of Dash again. “Do you think I could ever be as good a flyer as you?” she asked, her eyes shining in hope.

Rainbow Dash groaned inwardly. Now she was starting to sound like Scootaloo. “I dunno, Ditzy, maybe if you practice like...” Dash trailed off as she realized Ditzy wasn’t paying attention anymore.  “Ditzy, what are you looking at?”

The grey pegasus’s wall-eyes were famous throughout Ponyville, but Rainbow Dash had never seen them in action till now. One of her eyes had begun to slide off-focus till it was now staring at something to Dash’s left. Dash tilted her head in confusion as she realized neither of Ditzy’s eyes were focused on her anymore. Her good eye was now firmly staring behind her, giving the mare an overall thoroughly disconcerting appearance.

Ditzy shook her head at Dash’s question, as if clearing her thoughts. Her eyes, however, remained determinedly staring in opposite directions. “Hmm? Oh, nothing, Rainbow Dash. Just trying to decide if I know that pony or not...” she said distractedly.

“Huh? What pony?” Dash immediately looked to her left, scouring the area Ditzy’s eye was staring in. She had been practicing toward the edge of town, but all she could see were trees below.

“No, not that way, THAT way.” Ditzy said, indicating with a hoof the way her other eye was staring. Dash gave her a flat stare.

“Okay, that’s just too confusing.” she muttered as she turned again to stare in the indicated direction. Her eyes immediately widened at the sight that greeted her, however.

A powder blue unicorn was slinking out of the trees below, head low and constantly looking about her nervously. She was lacking her trademark cape and hat, but Rainbow Dash still recognized her. “Trixie...?” she said in amazement. A sound of triumph came from behind her as Ditzy clopped her hooves together in excitement.

“That’s who it is! Trixie!” Her eyes drifted a bit farther apart as the smile slipped off her face. “No, nevermind. In that case, I don’t know her.”

Dash ignored her as she quickly jumped back into a dive, angled at Trixie. The unicorn didn’t notice her until she was practically breathing down her neck, and jumped in surprise as Dash pulled up in front of her. “What are YOU doing here?” Dash demanded, feeling anger welling up inside her as memories of the last time she had seen Trixie came to the surface of her mind. The unicorn had come to Ponyville for the sole purpose of showing up every single pony she came across, ended up destroying half the town after causing an Ursa Minor to go on a rampage, and now she had the gall to show up this close to town again?

Trixie backed up as Dash landed, legs spread and glaring her down. The unicorn was staring at her with the oddest expression, as if trying to remember who she was as she continued to back up. “You... you were the one with the rainbows, weren’t you? You made the rainbow out of the rain...”

Dash raised her head to stare at Trixie in confusion. “Yeah, that was me, so what? Then you made the rainbow attack me, remember?” Rainbow Dash’s eyebrows arched higher as she took in Trixie’s appearance. Up close, she looked much worse for wear. She had obviously been through some hard times since she had last seen her fleeing Ponyville. Aside from the obvious missing cape and cloak, Trixie’s once shining silver mane now hung limp and grey around her face, obviously in need of a good washing. In fact, her entire coat seemed to need a wash, appearing more grey than blue. Her ribs shown clearly through her scraggly coat, and her hooves were badly chipped. Dash stepped forward hesitantly, feeling her previous anger being replaced with concern for Trixie’s well-being. “Trixie... are you okay?” she asked concernedly.

Trixie didn’t respond, only continuing to stare at the pegasus in front of her. Then suddenly, she jumped forward and fixed Dash with a penetrating stare. “Your name is Rainbow Dash, is it not?” she demanded.

Dash couldn’t help but quail under the ferocity of Trixie’s look. By Celestia, she could rival Fluttershy with that stare! “I... what? Yeah, I’m Rainbow Dash, what do you care?” she asked after finding her voice again. Trixie leaned in even closer, an almost frantic look appearing in her eyes.

“Where is Twilight Sparkle?” she said. Her voice was quiet now, but incredibly firm. Rainbow Dash stared at her in shock for a few seconds.

“She’s... wait, why do you want to know?” she finally asked.

“Where. Is. Twilight. Sparkle?!” Trixie said again, practically shrieking.

“She... she’s probably at the library, I don’t know!” Dash replied, her concern for Trixie being replaced with the undeniable feeling that something was wrong with this scene. Trixie’s eyes unfocused for a second, as if in thought, before suddenly whipping around and beginning to gallop away. “Hey!” Dash yelled after her.

She lifted back into the air and took off after Trixie, easily overtaking her. “Where do you think you’re going?” she yelled as she bit down on Trixie’s tail and began to fly backward, trying to drag the unicorn with her. Trixie’s head whipped to side to stare over her shoulder, eyes wide. Rainbow Dash only had a second to take in her suddenly manic appearance before an invisible object slammed into her. Dash immediately let go of her tail as the wind was knocked out of her and she collapsed on the ground, sliding a few feet. Gasping for air, she lifted her head to see Trixie galloping out of sight, horn still glowing. She didn’t move her stare as Ditzy suddenly swooped down to hover next to her in concern.

“Rainbow Dash, are you okay?” she asked frantically. Dash broke off her stare at the cloud of dust Trixie had left behind to look at Ditzy. Her eyes were still facing different directions.

“Come on, Ditzy, we have to get to the library.” she said as she dusted herself off and flapped her wings to propel herself into the air. Ditzy looked at her in confusion.

“Is that where that pony who hit you is going? Does she know she’s going the wrong way?” Ditzy sped up to follow Dash, who was flying off on a tangent to Trixie’s flight.

“I doubt it, Ditzy. Something’s wrong with Trixie. She attacked me, I don’t want to know she’s planning for Twilight.”

________________________

A/N: Hey everypony, Kao1214 here, and let me start by just saying how sorry I am about how late this is. It’s been... what, two months? As a certain detective pony would say, UNACCEPTABLE. Unfortunately, I made the choice to start this project right before school work started pile-driving me, so I’ve been a bit wrapped up in that (not to mention the fact that I’ve been writing seven, yes SEVEN, other stories in my spare time). But it seems like I’m entering a lull in the work currently, so hopefully a normal update schedule will attempt to make itself visible. Next chapter, some action’s going to happen, plus some of that oh-so-frustrating mystery will be resolved. Stay tuned!

--Kao1214