It was an unusual day for the Pie sisters. They had all risen at the crack of dawn as was always expected of them, so that they could begin their chores for the day, when suddenly their father came by and told them they would be having a day off. The four girls were sure they had misheard their father. A day off? In the middle of the week no less? It was unthinkable, but then again, after yesterday’s incident with Pinkamena, it sort of made sense to them.

Normally they only have a day off on Sunday; Saturday as well if they had worked hard the rest of the week, as such they spent most of the morning struggling to decide what to do with their newfound freedom. Inkie and Blinkie, practically inseparable as twins left with their mother to travel into the nearby town of Ponyville for some groceries, that left Pinkamena and Maud at the farmhouse.

They had been asked to stay out of their father’s way while he spoke to the nice stallions from Canterlot who had come to enquire about yesterday’s incident, so they sat together in the kitchen, Pinkamena at the table while Maud cooked up a batch of her famous rock candy. Pinkamena had been unusually quiet all morning, she had never been a talkative filly, but Maud knew yesterday’s incident had really shaken her. Maud never liked to see Pinkamena upset, it always struck her deep in a way that nothing else ever did.

It was times like this she was thankful for her sister’s sweet tooth. Making candy she could do, but empathising was difficult for her. Leaving the candy in the pot to heat, she stepped away from the stove and sat opposite her sister who was staring glumly at her hooves.

“Do you want to do something later?” Maud asked after a long stretch of silence. “We could go play outside.”

“I don’t feel like playing today,” Pinkamena replied glumly, not looking up.

Maud just stared at her, expressionless. What was she to do? How would she make her sister feel better? Why did she have to be so bad at this?! She loved her sisters; by Celestia’s name did she love them! And yet even with them she struggled to express herself. As Maud watched her sister, she found her mind drifting back to a brief moment so many years before.

Her father had stepped out of the room to go check on mother, leaving Maud alone, staring down into the crib at her new-born sister. As Maud’s blank gaze met the bright inquisitive eyes of the tiny foal, she was struck with a sudden thought.

She’s all alone…

At the time Maud could still remember how Inkie and Blinkie had clung to each other constantly during those first few weeks. They had each other, they would always have each other, but this filly came into the world alone. True she would have her family, maybe even some friends as time went on, but ultimately she was alone… and Maud realised that only five years earlier, she had been alone too. It resulted in a feeling that Maud had never experienced before, one she would never forget.

Maud climbed into the crib and wrapped her forelegs around the foal who snuggled up against her, she brushed her tuft of mane as she whispered into her ear.

“You’re not alone…” she soothed. “And neither am I, not anymore…”

“Maud?” Pinkamena said, snapping Maud back to reality.

She was still sitting at the kitchen table; her sister was staring up at her, a look of deep concern in her young face.

“Why are you sad?” she asked.

Maud was confused. While she couldn’t see her own face, she was sure it was as neutral as ever, and she certainly wasn’t crying. So how did Pinkamena know… when even Maud hadn’t realised?

After a minute of staring at one another, Maud stood up from her seat and walked slowly around the table to her sister. Pinkamena didn’t say anything as Maud pulled her into a hug. It was a stiff, awkward hug, but Pinkamena felt the emotion behind it, the feelings Maud had struggled to let out. Pinkamena wrapped her own forelegs around Maud, returning the hug as she tucked her head into the nape of her sister’s neck.

You’re not alone… and neither am I, not anymore… We’ll always be together, Pinkie.

Day 14, 00:41

Silence reigned in the enclosed space as Pinkie lay in a crumpled heap beside her sister’s body, the other three looking on solemnly. Pinkie hadn’t heard Octavia arrive on the scene, she wasn’t even aware of Rarity or Fluttershy leaving to get her. Perhaps the Mastermind had announced their location, if he had Pinkie hadn’t been aware.

Silence reigned for a long time, broken only by the soft hoof steps as one of the others approached Pinkie and leaned down beside her.

“She’s gone Pinkie,” Octavia said in an odd voice. “You have to let go.”

Pinkie felt her hooves slip away from her Maud’s cold body, almost automatically. She shuffled back slightly, looking down once more at her sister’s form, at the blood soaked navy dress with the sacrificial knife protruding from her ribs, and the broken purple jewels scattered around her amidst the shattered pieces of wood. Her attention was only drawn away from Maud when a set of orange hooves marched into view.

“Ah’m real sorry Pinkie,” Applejack said, taking off her hat and holding it against her breast in respect. “She really loved you… and ah know the feeling was mutual.”

Pinkie nodded absently as the illusion faded away as quickly as it arrived. Pinkie turned to look at the other three, still very much physically there. Octavia was still standing next to her, watching her with concern while Rarity and Fluttershy stood near the archway, both looking at her with a mixture of sadness and apprehension.

“How long… do you reckon we have?” Pinkie asked quietly, not meeting any of their eyes.

“A few hours I imagine,” Octavia replied uncertainly.

Pinkie nodded again, her eyes unfocused as she struggled to form a coherent thought.

“We should get started,” she said at last, her voice still devoid of emotion.

“Maybe you should sit this one out Pinkie,” Rarity proposed. “You shouldn’t be expected to do this yourself.”

“No, I… I have to,” Pinkie said, trying and failing to inject some determination into her voice.

“Well, maybe one of us should stay here with you while the other two start investigating elsewhere,” Fluttershy suggested quietly.

“Sure,” Pinkie replied, not really sure what she had agreed to.

Pinkie waited as the other three stepped off to the side and began discussing in a hushed tone. Pinkie didn’t try to hear what they were saying, still intent on staring blankly at a random point in space that was gently flickering back and forth between two realities. Eventually Rarity returned to Pinkie’s side while Fluttershy and Octavia departed through the archway, each casting a last worried glance back at Pinkie Pie.

“Are you absolutely sure you want to do this?” Rarity asked again, sounding slightly desperate.

“It should be me,” Pinkie replied. “I promised to get everypony out of here safely; I let her down just like the rest.”

“Pinkie…” Rarity began forlornly, but Pinkie just turned and shuffled back over to her sister’s body.

Rarity crouched down beside her, following her gazed to the jewel encrusted hilt of the knife.

“Weren’t you keeping that knife?” she asked curiously.

“I was…” Pinkie began, a slight edge to her voice. “But my room got raided yesterday.”

“It was?!” Rarity exclaimed.

“Yeah, but Maud and I didn’t want to say anything,” Pinkie continued. “Especially after someone took the gu… We were just worried one of you was responsible.”

“I suppose with so few of us left, it’s difficult to trust anyone,” Rarity agreed miserably. “But… I just don’t believe Fluttershy or Octavia would do… this.”

“Or you,” Pinkie whispered low enough that Rarity wouldn’t hear before raising her voice. “You were pretty eager to accuse Octavia of killing Rainbow Dash just a couple days ago, what changed?”

“Well… I had some time to think about what I said,” Rarity answered awkwardly, not meeting Pinkie’s gaze. “As well I spent some time with her yesterday, ironed things out between us…”

Pinkie didn’t press Rarity’s explanation, instead returning her attention to the knife.

“It looks like it’s stabbed straight into the heart,” Pinkie commented, feeling her own chest as a reference.

Without warning, Pinkie reached out and pulled the knife free from Maud’s chest. No more blood poured out of the wound as Pinkie set the now scarlet blade to the side.

“Can you help me?” Pinkie asked.

Rarity hesitated for a second before nodding slightly reluctantly. Together they managed to remove Maud’s dress, which Rarity too to the side and held out with her magic, which she examined while Pinkie’s turned her attention to the body.

“There doesn’t seem to be any other injuries,” Pinkie commented so Rarity could hear her. “Besides the knife wound I mean, and it looks pretty clean, as if she didn’t struggle.”

“Well we do all trust each other,” Rarity replied. “Could this have been another… well, suicide?”

“I don’t think so…” Pinkie muttered. “Ingesting poison is painless, that’s why Rainbow was able to do it, but I don’t think anypony could push them to perform this kind of act upon themselves.”

“Ponies are capable of many things,” Rarity reminded her. “Isn’t that what you yourself told us?”

“Something along those lines,” Pinkie acknowledged. “Still, if it was self-inflicted, that doesn’t explain all this destruction.”

“But then you also said the wound was clean,” Rarity argued. “As if there was no struggle, which still raises the question as to how all this happened.”

“I suppose these crates could have been broken earlier in some unconnected circumstances,” Pinkie reasoned, standing up and looking around at the state of the small courtyard. “Could you maybe use your spell?”

“Oh, uh, sure,” Rarity replied, her voice suddenly sounding off.

With her horn lit up, she lowered her head to the ground and began walking around scanning it. Pinkie watched as various blotches of colours came into focus before fading away as she continued to walk. After a few minutes she finally stood up straight and turned to Pinkie.

“I’m sorry darling,” she said, sounding sincere. “It’s no good; it’s as if somepony has run circuits around this area, obscuring anything and everything that could have been of use.”

“Do you think it was intentional?” Pinkie asked, narrowing her eyes.

“I have no idea,” Rarity replied before quickly seeming to notice something else. “What about that trail of blood from outside?”

Pinkie glanced back at the blood smear that had led her here in the first place, stretching through the archway over to where Maud lay.

“If the murder took place elsewhere and Maud was dragged here from somewhere else, why would any of this place be like this?” Rarity questioned.

“I… I don’t know,” Pinkie admitted, slumping slightly.

Rarity placed a comforting hoof on her shoulder.

“It’s okay, we’ll figure this out.”

As soon as the words left her mouth, a crack of thunder sounded, a rift splitting open in the sky giving a second long view of a stark white sky filled with ominous black stars. The lightning was gone as quickly as it came, leaving the sky as pitch black as always.

“The real question is, can we figure it out before it’s too late?” Pinkie corrected warily as she scooped up the knife and walked out of the courtyard.

Day 16, 01:12

As Pinkie walked over the shallow pool in the centre of the courtyard, no longer caring to avoid it, she stared up at the clock face staring back down at her. The clock no longer seemed to radiate the stark white light it once had, the gold details dulled down, a brand new spider web of cracks covering it. As Pinkie looked at it, she noticed movement from the corner of her eye, she looked over at one of the castle towers in time to see it break away from the rest of the building, only to begin flickering and glitching in mid-air and reassemble itself.

“Most depressing,” a voice uttered behind Pinkie, a familiar accent behind it. “To see this place, so dear to me, reduced to this vile corruption.”

Pinkie turned to see Fleur standing a few metres behind her, her back turned to Pinkie so that she was looking out over the town spread out below.

“It’s fixing itself though,” Pinkie replied, causing Fleur to face her. “The Canterlot you knew will come back.”

“True,” Fleur agreed solemnly. “But then what will happen to this place? To us?”

Pinkie didn’t answer; Fleur stepped around her and approached the statue of Celestia.

“When she told me the truth…” Fleur began sadly, “it destroyed me, knowing that the one I idolised and revered as a mother had been responsible for my suffering and the suffering of those I had come to consider as friends… I was lost for a long time, disillusioned. I wanted nothing more than to forget about it, to live as if nothing had ever happened… but then she came. She forced me to relive it, to spill every detail of my suffering while I was forced to watch the love of my life suffer.”

Pinkie was absolutely still as she listened to Fleur talk, slightly horrified at hearing her perspective on what happened.

“I told her everything, everything she needed to pretend to be me,” Fleur continued. “All in the hopes that she would spare Fancy, that he would live… but when she had everything she needed, she killed him anyway. My heart and soul died then and there, but my body had yet to see the worst she could offer. In the end, when I was finally granted the mercy of death, I thought about you…”

Pinkie’s eyes widened at that, Fleur turned to face her once more.

“I…” Pinkie began, her voice slightly croaky.

“Pinkie?” a voice cut in.

Pinkie turned and looked towards the castle gates where Octavia was walking from.

“Who are you talking to?” Octavia asked, sounding concerned.

Pinkie glanced back to where Fleur had been standing, only to find the statue of Celestia and nothing else.

“Nobody,” Pinkie lied, walking over to meet Octavia.

Octavia just watched Pinkie, she knew full well that Pinkie had seen something she wasn’t letting on about, but she chose not to speak about it.

“What did you make of the crime scene?” Octavia asked instead as the pair began walking towards the castle gate.

“It’s confusing,” Pinkie replied. “The state of the scene along with her broken belt suggests a struggle took place, but she only had one injury which seemed fairly clean cut. She even looked rather peaceful when we found her. This wouldn’t be so complicated if it wasn’t for the fact that the blood trail suggests her body was dragged to that area from another location.”

“That does indeed sound confusing,” Octavia agreed as they stopped at the base of the entrance hall staircase. “Although you should be mindful that the killer may have intentionally disrupted the crime scene in order to throw us off.”

“I had considered that,” Pinkie agreed, “but then we’re left wondering which factors are true and which are fabricated to distract us.”

“We’ll figure it out,” Octavia assured her. “What else did you discover? What was the cause of death?”

“As far as I can tell, it was a simple stab straight to the heart,” Pinkie explained. “Using the knife we found in the chapel.”

“Did you lose it or something?” Octavia asked, raising a curious eyebrow.

“My room was raided yesterday,” Pinkie answered, leading the way up the staircase towards the residence tower.

Octavia followed in silence as they navigated towards Pinkie’s bedroom. As Pinkie turned the handle and allowed the door to swing open, Octavia’s eyes went wide at what she saw.

“We didn’t bother to tidy up after,” Pinkie explained, gesturing to the room that had been torn apart.

“When exactly did this happen?” Octavia asked as she edged into the room.

“I think it was around… midday,” Pinkie replied uncertainly. “I had been here earlier, but an incident regarding a nightmare chased me half way across the castle, leaving my saddlebags and all its contents here. When Maud and I got back and found the room looking like this, we searched for my bags' contents, but…”

“Was anything else taken besides the knife?” Octavia asked, propping up the desk chair that had been lying toppled over.

“Pretty much everything,” Pinkie replied bitterly. “All of Twilight’s documents are gone… so is the gun.”

The last part had been an afterthought, but it would adequately explain the guns disappearance should it come up without Pinkie having to admit to her slip up the other day.

“This… this is bad,” Octavia said hesitantly, pointing out the obvious. “We need to find those documents.”

“Don’t you think Maud and I already searched for them?” Pinkie asked rhetorically. “We searched this place top to bottom and found nothing.”

“You should have told me,” Octavia said sternly. “I could have helped.”

“I know,” Pinkie replied coolly, turning back to the door. “Well now you know, so if you come across them… Now what have you and Fluttershy found?”

“We were searching Maud’s room,” Octavia explained, walking past Pinkie and starting up the inclined corridor to said room.

Pinkie followed Octavia around a few corners until they arrived at an open door. Upon looking inside, Pinkie saw Fluttershy searching through the drawers, looking uncomfortable.

“Well, I’ll go and start looking for… that thing,” Octavia whispered, her eyes flicking briefly to Fluttershy before marching out of sight.

“Anything?” Pinkie asked dully as she stepped into the room.

“Well…” Fluttershy began awkwardly, glancing over to the bedside cabinet which was sitting with its drawer wide open.

Pinkie walked across the small room, tried to ignore the portrait of Maud and looked inside the drawer, seeing a pair of flight goggles lying inside them.

“Are these…” Pinkie began, lifting them out.

“I… I think so,” Fluttershy clarified tentatively.

“I can’t remember, was Rainbow still wearing these before she disappeared?” Pinkie asked, Fluttershy flinched at the mention of it.

“I don’t know,” she admitted. “When that… thing took her, I didn’t really pick up on it.”

Pinkie gave a curt nod, depositing the flight goggles in her saddlebags before giving a quick walk around the rest of the room. Nothing else seemed to be out of the ordinary, she looked up to ask Fluttershy if she had discovered anything else, but she found that Fluttershy had disappeared at some point.

“And there I thought friends were supposed to be there for one another,” a bored voice said.

Pinkie spun to see a familiar white unicorn stallion, standing next to the window, sneering at her.

“Maybe she’s not your friend after all,” Blueblood continued.

Pinkie turned away from him and marched out of the room, only to find herself face to face with the exact same apparition.

“What’s the matter Pinkie? Are you not happy to see me?” Blueblood asked in the most condescending voice he could muster. “And there I thought you felt something for me.”

Pinkie gritted her teeth, turned and stormed away up the corridor, trying desperately to ignore the shouts from behind her. Reaching the top of the tower she entered Rainbow’s old room, finding it completely bare for all but a giant hole dominating the floor. Pinkie peered down the hole, seeing not the bedroom below, but instead an endless dark void. A faint memory of a pitch black claw smashing up through the floor, long crooked fingers like spider legs wrapping around Rainbow Dash’s body, dragging her into the darkness leaving only a dark hole sucking all the furnishings into oblivion.

“How does it feel?” Blueblood asked, sounding mere inches behind Pinkie. “To know that you failed them all? To know that everyone you ever loved is either gone or will be soon?”

Pinkie had enough, Spinning around she slapped Blueblood as hard as she could in the face. He barely reacted, like he hadn’t felt it at all, but then he wasn’t real to begin with, something Pinkie had to keep reminding herself. Blueblood grinned sadistically at her.

“You can tell me I’m a monster for trying to have you all killed in exchange for my freedom,” he continued. “But I had the right idea and you know it. You tried to play the hero and save everyone, look where that got you. Who did you even save in the end? No, in the end we only have ourselves. If you’d accepted that sooner you could have saved yourself so much pain. Still, better late than never…”

Pinkie shut her eyes and stormed forwards, feeling the illusion of Blueblood dissipate around her. Without waiting to see if he would come back she began sprinting down the corridor.

Day 16, 01:50

Pinkie found Octavia picking through the wreckage of the orrery, scattered acorss the observatory floor.

“You were here when it got destroyed, weren’t you?” Octavia asked when she saw Pinkie walk up behind her.

“Yeah… There wasn’t anything I could do,” Pinkie replied.

“It’s for the best,” Octavia said as Pinkie stood next to her, sounding more like she was trying to convince herself than Pinkie. “This whole experience is proof that Equestria isn’t ready for this kind of power.”

“What if someone rebuilds them?” Pinkie asked in a neutral tone. “What if they find Twilight’s notes on them?”

Octavia pulled the designs from her saddlebags and stared at them, chewing on her bottom lip.

"I don't suppose you found the rest of the documents yet?" Octavia asked, Pinkie shook her head. "Well you can keep these ones, whatever you choose to do with them... I'm sure you'll make the right choice."

As Octavia passed by Pinkie, she gave her the stack of papers before stepping out of the observatory. As she did, the heavy metal door swung shut of its own accord, the valve handle spinning, locking it. Pinkie heard the faint banging of Octavia on the other side, as well as the distant sound of her calling Pinkie’s name. After a futile attempt at turning the now stiff valve, Pinkie turned and examined the room for another way out. It could have been her imagination… it was probably her imagination, but Pinkie could hear voices coming from above her.

Ascending the metal mesh ramp, stashing the documents in her saddlebags as she did, she passed the closed door to the battlements and continued towards the telescope platform. When she reached the top, she found herself not on the top floor of the observatory, but outside on a grey, pixelated hill topped with a grey pixelated tree. Curious, Pinkie walked up the hill to where a picnic was laid out, untouched. There were also four ponies standing there, all wearing grey flight suits, all chatting amiably.

“I’m really sorry Soarin,” Fleetfoot began awkwardly. “For the things I said at the Gala, if I’d known then what you’d been through… I’m just sorry.”

“It’s okay Fleetfoot,” Soarin replied sheepishly. “I never wanted you to understand what I went through, not like this.”

“Well it’s over now,” Spitfire said jumping in. “No harm was done, and as soon as Surprise is back on her hooves we can try the routine again.”

“One of us is going to have to lend her our goggles though,” Soarin explained. “She lost hers when I collided with her.”

“I’m sure we can manage that,” Fleetfoot assured him. “Now if we’re gonna be doing the routine again, shouldn’t we do a practice run?”

Spitfire nodded and began running through the warm up drills.

“Here, you guys go on ahead,” Rainbow Dash said. “I’ll catch up in a minute.”

Spitfire nodded and along with Soarin and Fleetfoot she took off, leaving Rainbow Dash alone on the hill with Pinkie.

“Sorry Pinkie,” Rainbow said suddenly, turning to look at Pinkie. “I know it was pretty uncool of me, taking the easy way out and leaving you girls all high and dry.”

“No, I understand why you did it,” Pinkie replied, slightly taken aback. “And I don’t blame you.”

“No, you wouldn’t,” Rainbow said, suddenly giving Pinkie a piercing stare. “I trust you Pinkie, but are you sure you know what you’re getting yourself into?”

Pinkie just stared back at Rainbow, her mouth open slightly, unable to form a sentence. Rainbow just sighed as she strapped her own goggled up, obscuring her rose coloured eyes from Pinkie.

“Can you at least do one thing for me?” Rainbow asked.

“Of course,” Pinkie replied.

Rainbow turned to Pinkie and opened her mouth. Suddenly Pinkie’s ears were filled with a loud humming, and despite seeing Rainbow’s mouth move, she couldn’t hear a word she was saying.

“… She deserves to be happy,” Rainbow finished as the humming ceased, turning away.

“Rainbow wait!” Pinkie called, but it was too late.

Rainbow shot off the ground; flying up to meet the others where together they flew off into the grey expanse, becoming nothing more than specks before disappearing entirely. Pinkie turned and began shuffling back down the hill, once she reached a certain point the grey hill dissolved around her, reforming into the main floor of the observatory. Where Pinkie stood, she could once again see the wide open bulkhead door.

Day 16, 02:35

“Do the maths, do the maths, do the maths…” Filthy Rich said from where he sat behind Kibitz desk, over and over again.

“Um…” Rarity began, starring in confusion at him.

“He’s been doing that for ages,” Pinkie explained. “I saw him yesterday and he was just saying the exact same thing repeatedly.”

Rarity reached out and closed the door to Kibitz office, cutting out the sound of Filthy Rich’s mantra.

“So what did you want to show me?” Pinkie asked, snapping Rarity out of her daze.

“Oh yes, I found something rather interesting which I think you should see,” Rarity explained as she led Pinkie into Celestia room.

Following Rarity into Celestia’s bedroom, Pinkie looked around for whatever Rarity may have found to be out of the ordinary. To her surprise Rarity led her over to a large vanity where a jewellery box sat open. Peering in, Pinkie found it bare but for a single object, a circular pendant bearing a purple jewel hanging from a delicate chain.

“Is this…” Pinkie began, picking up the necklace.

“Maud’s necklace,” Rarity confirmed. “I never forget accessories.”

“I didn’t even notice she wasn’t wearing it,” Pinkie admitted.

“No, it hadn’t occurred to me either until after you’d left,” Rarity agreed. “It was pure luck that I came across it here.”

“How did it even get here?” Pinkie muttered suspiciously.

“Actually…” Rarity continued awkwardly, “there is one other thing.”

Rarity approached the latticed window and Pinkie followed. Using her magic, Rarity opened the window.

“I didn’t know the windows could be opened,” Pinkie said, sounding faintly surprised.

“Strangely enough, this appears to be the only one that can,” Rarity pointed out. “It overlooks the main castle courtyard as well as the gate into the town.”

“That’s what you wanted to show me?” Pinkie asked, a little confused as to what this had to do with anything.

“No, I wanted to show you this…” Rarity said, stepping back from the window and pointing at it with her hoof.

Pinkie stepped forward and peered at the open window, quickly seeing what Rarity had meant. Hanging limply from the iron handle, were several long, black hairs.

“Needless to say there is only one of us with hair that colour,” Rarity stated, a slight edge in her voice.

“I thought you said you didn’t suspect Octavia anymore,” Pinkie reminded her, straightening back up.

“I’m not saying I think she’s responsible just because her hair is caught in this window,” Rarity said quickly. “I’m just stating a fact that it could only be hers.”

Pinkie bit her lower lip as she stared down at her sister’s necklace.

“Let’s just keep looking,” she said at last, turning to leave the room.

The moment Pinkie stepped into the foyer outside Celestia’s room she knew something was different, the fact that the floor, walls and ceiling were covered in ice were a dead giveaway. Instantly her breath began frosting in front of her and teeth began chattering.

“It’s so cold…” a quiet voice mumbled.

Pinkie turned and saw a figure sitting curled up, shivering in the corner near Luna’s door. She was a powder white Pegasus with pink and green stripped mane.

“So cold…” Blossomforth muttered again.

Pinkie opened her mouth to speak to the Pegasus when Rarity suddenly reappeared behind her.

“Is something wrong darling? You’re shaking.”

Rarity sounded perfectly fine, as if she couldn’t feel the chill at all. Pinkie reminded herself that she might not; she might not even see the ice or Blossomforth lying there.

“It’s nothing,” Pinkie tried to say without letting her teeth chatter too much.

Before Rarity could question it any further, Pinkie started walking towards the central chamber, shivering all the way.

Day 16: 02:59

Pinkie froze just outside the archway leading back to the crime scene as she heard a faint shuffling from inside. Peering around the edge she saw Fluttershy stepping back from the bare wall at the opposite end of the courtyard, apparently staring intently at it.

“Looking for something?” Pinkie asked, announcing her presence.

Fluttershy muttered something Pinkie couldn’t hear before turning to face her. “I was wondering if there’s was something we couldn’t see, something that might give us a clue as to what happened.”

“Rarity and I already searched this area,” Pinkie reminded her, walking up and placing herself between Fluttershy and the exact section of wall she had been examining. “Did you find anything else?”

“Yes actually,” Fluttershy said, suddenly sounding quite bright. “I noticed something about Maud’s dress.”

Pinkie followed Fluttershy over to said dress where it lay folded on the ground beside Maud’s body.

“What about it?” Pinkie asked.

“Well, ignoring the blood stains, it’s very clean,” Fluttershy pointed out. “It even smells of some kind of detergent.”

“So… what?” Pinkie said, not picking up on what Fluttershy was getting at. “Maud got her dress washed, is that so strange?”

“Not in of itself,” Fluttershy replied. “But it gives us an idea where Maud’s been at some point, including who she’s been hanging around with.”

“You mean Rarity?” Pinkie questioned. “Maud could wash her own clothes.”

Fluttershy gave a small shrug. Pinkie watched her closely, before finally returning the shrug.

“Fine, let’s go search the wash room.”

Day 16, 03:13

Pinkie opened one of the many cupboards in the wash room, giving it a quick scan before slamming it shut again. Turning around she saw Fluttershy examining a wash basin left out in the centre of the floor.

“Someone was definitely using this recently,” she reported. “It’s still damp, and you can smell the same detergent used on the dress.”

“Keen observation,” Pinkie complimented, walking out the door into the shower portion of the wash room.

Walking down the line of cubicles, Pinkie opened each one and scanned them carefully, looking for anything out of the ordinary. Once she was a few down Fluttershy approached her.

“Can I help?” she asked.

“Sure, start from that end,” Pinkie instructed, gesturing to the far side of the room. “The killer might have come here to get cleaned up.”

Fluttershy nodded and stepped away, starting her own search. After a few minutes both ponies met in the middle and were crammed awkwardly looking into the same shower cubicle.

“Does that drain look slightly stained to you?” Fluttershy asked, edging to the side to give Pinkie more breathing space.

Leaning in closer Pinkie saw it did indeed have a faint pink tint to it, not nearly as prominent as the shower Shining Armour has used which was still heavily stained, but still noticeable. Pinkie checked the drain and rest of the shower thoroughly for any more ‘hair monsters’, but didn’t find a single stray strand. Either they were barking up the wrong tree or someone had been meticulous in their cleaning.

“Not a thing,” Pinkie stated, standing back up. “Are you sure you didn’t find anything in the other cubicles?”

“Nothing,” Fluttershy confirmed. “Could they have used the same one Shining used? We wouldn’t know the difference if that were the case.”

“No, that shower hasn’t worked since that night,” Pinkie explained, recalling her heroic feat of vanquishing the hair monster. “I noticed early yesterday during a flooding incident.”

“Oh yeah, I walked by here once that was all over,” Fluttershy commented. “At least Rarity is okay.”

“Yeah,” Pinkie agreed before turning and heading towards the exit.

Once outside, Fluttershy departed without a word towards the entrance hall, leaving Pinkie walking the opposite direction on her own. Her brain was filled to the brim with thoughts, each one screaming to be heard over the others. It was only when she heard voices coming from the banquet hall that she snapped back to the present. The door was ajar, and she could definitely hear a number of voices inside.

Edging closer she slipped just in time to avoid Braeburn hurrying forward and wedging a chair against the door, successfully preventing it from being opened.

“So is this it?” Trenderhoof asked, sounding hysterical. “We barricade ourselves in here and hope for the best?”

“I don’t expect a door to hold off nightmares,” Cheese Sandwich muttered. “We just need a moment to catch our breath…”

He then turned to face the others in the room: Braeburn, Trenderhoof, Coco Pommel and Fleur Dis Lee.

“And talk,” he finished.

Pinkie frowned as she observed this all take place, as all the actors took their seats just as they had the other day.

“Talk about what?” Coco asked, raising an eyebrow.

“About who the Mastermind is of course,” Cheese replied, taking a seat opposite the others.

“If we knew that we wouldn’t still be here,” Trenderhoof muttered.

“True, but that doesn’t mean we don’t have ideas,” Cheese pointed out. “So, what do we know so far?”

“The Mastermind had to have been someone at the Gala,” Fleur began. “They needed to be there to start up the machines.”

“They also stole that horn,” Braeburn added. “Which the letter in Celestia’s room said had been moved to the vault.”

“The same one the Elements of Harmony used to be kept in,” Trenderhoof finished.

“So who do we know who could fit that criteria?” Cheese asked.

There was a long pause, finally broken by Coco.

“Discord?” she suggested.

“But Discord is trapped outside just like the princesses,” Braeburn reminded her.

“Yes, but Discord was a statue twice before,” Trenderhoof began. “If anyone would know about it, it would be him.”

“It’s not Discord,” Cheese and Fleur said at the same time.

Cheese glanced at Fleur, slightly surprised at her speaking up in Discord’s defence.

“Discord doesn’t kill ponies,” Fleur pointed out. “It’s not his style.”

“But he’s a master of trickery,” Coco insisted. “And this is well within his powers.”

“Exactly,” Fleur continued. “Discord could have pulled all this off with a snap of his claws, he wouldn’t need the machines.”

“I’m surprised to hear you speaking out against Discord,” Trenderhoof said suddenly, looking at Coco with a raised eyebrow. “Weren’t you two friends?”

“Well yes, but that doesn’t put him above suspicion,” Coco replied. “Well if not him, who else? The captain who moved the horn?”

“Iron Sight?” Braeburn recalled. “The letter only said he was delivering it to Celestia, it would be her who actually locked it away.”

“Still, if he was in charge of protecting it, he would have known how to breach its defences,” Coco argued.

“That sounds like a fair point,” Trenderhoof acknowledged. “But why would the captain of the Royal Guard want to do all this? What does he stand to gain?”

“What does anyone stand to gain from all this?” Coco retorted.

“That’s an interesting point,” Fleur said, looking over at Cheese. “Regardless of who the Mastermind is, why exactly are they doing this? What are they trying to achieve?”

“Well they do have the Princesses as hostages,” Braeburn reminded them. “They could be trying to take over Equestria.”

“If that were the case they would have just killed them,” Cheese stated. “They’d have no reason to lord them over us and go through all this if that’s all they wanted.”

“They may be trying to choke the life out of Equestria by stopping the sun and moon from cycling,” Fleur suggested. “But again they could have achieved the same thing just by killing the princesses.”

“I’m pretty sure there’s some failsafe for raising the sun and moon should anything happen to the princesses,” Trenderhoof mentioned. “Unicorns of old used to be responsible for it; perhaps they could do it again.”

“So again, what purpose does any of this serve?” Fleur repeated.

“It’s to do with us specifically,” Cheese stated. “What exactly, I’m not sure yet. Although I’m curious as to what role the princesses actually play in it all.”

“What do you mean?” Coco demanded. “The Mastermind is blackmailing us with their safety.”

“Seems risky and unnecessary,” Cheese pointed out. “If just one of them escaped or was set free, the Mastermind’s plans could fall through the roof. It would have been far safer for him to kill them at the beginning.”

“But he needed something to push us into killing each other,” Trenderhoof pointed out.

“Did he?” Cheese asked rhetorically. “Think about it. Spitfire killed Filthy Rich accidentally over his threat of blackmail, Derpy murdered so she could see her daughter again, Chrysalis killed without remorse for her own freedom, Shining killed in a fit of madness, and Rainbow killed herself. No one actually killed in order to save the princesses; we turned on each other without that incentive.”

“So what are you saying?” Braeburn asked. “That the princesses serve a different purpose?”

“Perhaps…” Cheese began, but before he could continue a loud crash was heard as the doors to the banquet hall shuddered.

“Now what?” Trenderhoof asked, looking panicked.

The door shook again as whatever it was smashed against it a second time.

“That chair won’t hold,” Braeburn pointed out. “Not against that.”

A third smash.

“Then I’ll be quick,” Cheese said, turning back to them. “In all our searches of this castle, we have yet to come across the Mastermind, and yet the fact that they stole the horn right out from under us means they’ve been able to travel freely around the castle. Who has been able to traverse this castle freely, and was present at the Gala?”

There was a brief moment of silence as the others stared at Cheese, trying to deduce the meaning of his words, when the doors smashed open. A huge gust a wind blew in, turning the ponies gathered around the table to dust, leaving Pinkie standing alone in the now deserted banquet hall.

“All of us,” Pinkie muttered, finishing the sentence she had left hanging.

Day 16, 04:17

“Maybe if we knew what happened better we could figure it out,” Rarity insisted as the group walked down the entrance hall staircase.

“Understanding what all happened yesterday would be wonderful,” Octavia agreed “Shame it was nothing but insanity from dawn until dusk.”

“Well I know Maud was there when we got trapped in the wash room,” Rarity continued. “And Pinkie said she was with her when they found her room had been ransacked.”

“She was also there when Rainbow was taken,” Fluttershy added quietly.

“She was in the library with me when the hourglass gave out,” Octavia informed them. “We tried to stop it, but after the clock and the orrery both broke there wasn’t anything we could do to prevent it.”

“Well which of those things happened last?” Rarity asked. “If I knew, I could go there and use my spell.”

“If there was too much interference at the crime scene, surely all those locations will be much worse,” Pinkie pointed out. “But if you really want to, it wasn’t the two you mentioned as they both happened relatively early.”

“It was in the library,” Octavia answered. “She told me what happened to Rainbow Dash when I found her there.”

“Alright, I’ll start looking from there,” Rarity said, hurrying off.

“Uh, I’ll come with you,” Fluttershy called after her, running to catch up.

Pinkie glanced at Octavia before starting towards the castle gates.

“Perhaps if we both look at the crime scene,” Octavia began. “We’ll figure out whether there was a struggle there or if the body was moved from another…”

Octavia was cut off as Pinkie kicked her hard in the chest with both her back legs will simultaneously propelling herself forward. As a result Pinkie landed several metres ahead of the gate and Octavia landed back inside the entrance hall, neither getting crushed by the heavy portcullis that had come hurtling down on top of them.

Pinkie heard Octavia mutter something; despite being heavily winded Pinkie could swear she said ‘damn Earth Pony way’. Glancing back she confirmed that Octavia had been thrown clear of the portcullis and was now stumbling over to it.

“Thanks,” Octavia wheezed. “That hurt but thanks none the less.”

“It would have hurt a lot more if I hadn’t kicked you,” Pinkie pointed out.

“Still, how did you see it but I didn’t?” Octavia muttered in an odd voice, Pinkie noticed she continued to mumble something to herself that she couldn’t hear before at last she looked up. “How do we get this thing open?”

“The mechanisms on either side,” Pinkie explained. “But it takes two of us on this side, and they’d need to be pretty strong.”

“I don’t think there’s a way of opening it from the inside,” Octavia said glancing around. “We could wait and hope they’ll disappear on their own during the shift back to Canterlot, although there's no guarantee that will be done before the trial starts. I could always…”

Octavia fell silent, a faraway look in her eyes.

“Um, Octavia?” Pinkie said, waving her hoof through one of the square gaps.

“Huh? Oh, don’t worry about this,” she said, a slight grin forming on her face. “I think I know what to do.”

With that she galloped off up the main staircase and turned right on the balcony, heading towards the residence tower and the central chamber. Pinkie was left silently wondering what Octavia was about to do. Turning back towards the Courtyard, Pinkie frowned as she noticed somepony very familiar standing just beyond the twisted gate.

With a flick of her spikey, sapphire tail, she began walking away, heading into the town.

“Wait!” Pinkie called after her, sprinting towards the direction she disappeared in.

When she screeched to a halt at the exact spot the mare had been standing, she looked around wildly for any signs of her. A flash of purple drew her eyes much further down the street where the pure white unicorn was stepping into a side street.

Not wanting to lose her, Pinkie raced off after her. As she turned around the corner she had disappeared through and began galloping down the puddle heavy alleyway, she became faintly aware she was travelling along the route to Twilight’s parent’s house. Pinkie slowed to a trot as she entered the familiar plaza, looking up at the house which had once again transformed. No longer was an industrial terrace house with its neighbours cut off, or the same house after a hurricane had hit it.

Now it looked true to its original form, a quaint, cosy, upper class home in typical Canterlot style of being constructed from white masonry with gold framed windows and blue embroideries. It wasn’t the new design of the house that caught Pinkie’s eye however, but the filly and colt outside, giggling as they played together.

As Pinkie drew closer she saw Shining Armour pull Twilight Sparkle into a head lock before delivering the dreaded noogie. Twilight squealed half in pain, half in delight. As Pinkie got close, a muffled voice called out from inside the house, catching both siblings attention. Releasing his sister, Shining began running for the front door, Twilight quickly giving chase. Quite quickly both had rushed through the front door and out of sight, leaving Pinkie to stare at the outside of the house.

Curious, Pinkie made her way up the front steps to the still open front door. Upon entering the house, she found herself in a familiar hallway with a familiar staircase at the end, only this time the interior of the house was much more richly decorated, with dozens of family photos lining the walls giving it a much warmer feeling. As Pinkie walked forward, she passed by a number of open doorways, peering into each showed her a different scene.

Through one she saw Twilight and Shining ripping open their Hearth Warming presents in the parlour while their father watched on from his armchair, cradling a steaming cup and smiling warmly at them. Through the next she saw Twilight and Shining standing next to the kitchen counter, the former standing on an upturned basement so she could see over the edge. In front of them was a bowl of cake mix, although most of it was plastered over the walls, floor, counter and even themselves. However that didn’t stop them licking more of the mixing spoon even as their mother entered and stared in horror at what they had done to her kitchen before breaking into a fit of laughter.

Leaving the kitchen behind, Pinkie reached the foot of the stairs. A quick glance confirmed that the basement door found it to be sealed with a padlock. Ignoring it for now, Pinkie began making her way up the stairs, following the sound of voices coming from above.

“Come on Twily!” Shining whined. “What’s the password?”

“I’m not saying,” Twilight answered in a sing song voice as Pinkie reached the upstairs landing.

The voices were coming from the room at the end of the hallway, the same room Pinkie had found the picture on her first visit here. As she started walking forwards the voices continued to speak.

“Well give me a clue at least,” Shining insisted.

“It’s the name of my best friend,” Twilight answered, Pinkie could hear the smirk in her voice.

“Smartypants!” Shining declared.

“Nope!” Twilight replied happily.

“Mister Smartypants?” Shining tried, sounding less sure this time.

“No,” Twilight said again, laughing.

“Well who then?” Shining demanded, sounding frustrated.

“If you can’t guess then I’m not saying,” Twilight answered, a hint of annoyance in her voice. “I keep only the most important things in this box; I’m not just going to give away the password.”

As Pinkie reached the door, the filly Twilight rushed out, passing right through her. Shining Armour followed quickly behind, Pinkie heard the pair laughing together as they disappeared down the stairs. Entering the room, Pinkie quickly realised it must have been Twilight’s bedroom when she was living here, the books, toys and tiny bed with pink covers gave it away. But it was the large blue chest with gold trimmings that sat in the corner of the room that caught Pinkie’s eye.

As she approached it and noticed the elaborate locking mechanism on it she figured this must have been what Twilight and Shining were talking about. As Pinkie looked at it, she vaguely remembered seeing this in Twilight’s bedroom back in the Ponyville library. Crouching down Pinkie saw that the latch appeared to have five wheels on it, each baring the alphabet. After a little fiddling Pinkie realised she was supposed to input a word, but what?

Twilight had said it was the name of her best friend, who was Twilight’s best friend as a child? She had always said she had no time for friends growing up, well, except her brother, but Shining Armour was too long. Maybe Shiny…

Then it clicked with Pinkie, BBBFF!

Entering in the letters and praying she was correct; Pinkie tried to open the latch and was met with success. The chest opened to reveal an abundance of contents, at the top of which was Twilight’s liberated Smartypants doll. The rest however seemed to be things from her time in Ponyville, there was her coronation crown missing the gemstone that returned to the Tree of Harmony, the tickets for the Grand Galloping Gala, her Winter Wrap Up vest, her medal from the Running of the Leaves, her Gala dress, the umbrella hat Pinkie had given her, her letter of acceptance into Celestia School for Gifted Unicorns, an eye patch, her Mare Do Well costume, Zecora’s doorstopper, the list went on.

With each item Pinkie removed, she was flooded with memories of how it came to be there. By the time she reached the bottom of the chest and pulled out the Journal of the Two Sisters, she became vaguely aware of the tears running down her face. Setting the book to the side, she reached out, preparing to close the now empty chest, when she noticed something that had been covered by the journal.

Peering in she noticed a number a sheets held together with a paper clip, reaching in she took them out and stared at them. The writing was unmistakable as being Twilight’s own, and Pinkie knew exactly what the content was referring to. The pages she held had detailed accounts of numerous ponies, noting their relationship to Pinkie Pie herself, the likelihood of them committing a murder and what their execution would be if so. These were more of Twilight’s documents, but whether they were new ones she hadn’t had to begin with, or if they were some of the old ones she hadn’t got around to reading she didn’t know.

As Pinkie skimmed through the pages, she picked out each and every pony that had been a player, both in the last game and this one, including many who hadn’t been involved in either such as Big McIntosh, Cheerilee, Zecora. The list was expansive, taking into every factor the pony might have on Twilight’s overarching plan of testing Pinkie. Occasionally some names were crossed off altogether with a brief note in the margin explaining her decision for ruling them out. Their friends Rarity, Applejack, Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash were all on the same page, with the scribbled heading reading ‘only as a last resort’.

No, something was wrong. As Pinkie flicked back and forth, reading through the names and picturing faces, something niggled at the back of her mind. It felt as if something was missing, but it was only when she scanned through it roughly a dozen times that she picked up on it. There was one pony missing, the one pony she had never had any prior connection to before the game…

Octavia wasn’t listed here.

“It’s t… t… time,” the Mastermind announced, sounding just as damaged as the last time Pinkie heard it speak. “Report to the courtyard in front of the castle for the f… final tri… i… ial.”

Pinkie stood up slowly, still staring at the documents before her. It was the creaking of floorboards that made her spin around, to come face to face with the pony that had led her here.

“Hey Pinks,” Vinyl Scratch said in a cool voice, a winning smile on her face. “Did ya miss me?”

Author's Notes:

Well, here we are, the ending is just around the corner. It's always a great feeling to finish something, and Bullet Point was one of the few stories I ever did finish, so the fact that I'm now close to seeing its sequel through is truly bliss.
I wasn't going to publish this part until tomorrow, but I'm almost finished writing the third part (much sooner than I had expected) so I thought 'why wait', hopefully everyone who's interested is keeping up to date.
The third part will be released on Friday at the earliest. While I'll definitely be finished it in time, I want to give people as much time to read this part and put in any theories. As this is the last one I encourage everyone to have a go, even if you're not sure just throw anything out there, even if you're not completely correct I may give shout outs to theories that I personally find good (and probably wish I had thought up myself).