A purple magical field floated around the locks on the door of the safe. The field abruptly turned dark red, then faded away.

"You were right, Phillip," Twilight said. "Somepony opened the back door and the safe by using their magic to manipulate the tumblers."

Phillip nodded, still thinking. "This pony must have unusual talent for opening locks."

"What about his partner?" Twilight asked.

"There is no partner," Phillip stated.

"But the tracks—" Twilight started to say.

"The set that was on top was unusually deep in the toes and there was dirt sprayed backwards," Phillip explained. "That indicates that it was the same pony walking backwards over their tracks to make it look like there were two ponies. The tracks indicated a male pony, which we now know is definitely a unicorn, about three and half feet tall, slightly overweight."

"That narrows it down, but not by much," Flash observed.

"No," Phillip said as they exited Town Hall. "I'll need to do some more work. I—"

He stopped suddenly, his head snapping up and his eyes narrowing.

"Bon Bon's," he said, already following his crime sense alert at a fast trot. Flash and Twilight were right on his tail.

"Has something bad happened?" Twilight shouted in concern.

"Don't know, but it's urgent!" Phillip said, taking a shortcut by climbing up Berry Punch's house and leaping from rooftop to rooftop, Flash and Twilight flying overhead. Reaching Sweet Street, the pegasus and alicorn flew in for a landing while Phillip leapt down, tucking and rolling as he hit the ground. Sprinting to Bon Bon's Bonbons, they pulled the door open to find Lyra and Bon Bon standing over the counter.

"Lyra! Is everything okay?" Twilight called.

Before Lyra could answer, Bon Bon looked up, revealing a livid face. "No, everything is not okay!" she spat. "That (she used an adjective that made Twilight very glad that Spike was not here) was in my home!"

She showed the letter that she'd been bending over to them. It was typewritten, and the message was chilling.

"JUST DROPPED BY TODAY. YOUR CANDIES ARE STILL AS GOOD AS I REMEMBER. BUT YOU SHOULD GET A BETTER LOCK, ESPECIALLY IF YOU WANT TO KEEP YOUR FAMILY SAFE FROM ME. SEE YOU LATER."

Phillip studied t the lettering. Romano type 13, O key misaligned, E and T faded. Same pony.

"He broke in here when I stepped out to the market," Bon Bon said. "I found this envelope on the counter when I came back." She indicated an envelope, which also had "SWEETIE DROPS" typewritten on it.

"How long ago was this?" Flash asked.

"About half an hour ago," Bon Bon replied.

Phillip bent his head in thought for a moment. "Twilight, use that spell again on the back door."

Twilight closed her eyes in concentration, her horn lighting up. The lock around the back door was surrounded by a lavender field, which turned red before vanishing.

"It's the same magical field," she said.

"You're certain?"

"Every unicorn has their own unique magical energy signature," Twilight explained. "It—"

"Right," Phillip interrupted. "Flash?"

"Neighborhood canvas, see if anypony saw anything," Flash said, heading out the door.

Twilight walked over to Bon Bon, who had buried her head in her hooves and was quivering. "Bon Bon, it's going to be okay."

"N-no it's not!" Bon Bon said, raising her head to reveal her tear-streaked eyes. "You don't know him."

"But you do," Phillip said. "Bon Bon, this is somepony from your past, somepony that you're afraid of. That much is obvious." He stepped in close to her. "Who is it, Bon Bon? Who's scaring you so much?"

Bon Bon looked back at him, chewing her lips as if tasting the words in her mouth before speaking. Her wet blue eyes considered him with hesitation. He recognized that look: it was the look of somepony who was so scared and hopeless that they considered help impossible, somepony who considered their suffering the status quo.

He hated that look.

"Why'd you come here anyway?" Bon Bon asked throatily.

"I asked them to come," Lyra said.

Bon Bon turned to Lyra, her eyes suddenly blazing. "It was none of your effing business! You shouldn't have gotten them involved!"

"I thought—" Lyra stammered, cowering a little as her wife's rage washed over her.

"I didn't ask for their effing help!" Bon Bon shouted. "I don't need their effing help! Just leave me alone!" And with that, she lowered her face onto the counter again, shaking with fresh sobs. Her whimpers were the only sound in the candy store, everypony still shaken from the candy mare's tantrum. A tantrum, they all realized, that was born of fear, not anger.

Slowly, cautiously, Lyra approached, as if her wife was a firecracker that had failed to go off. Bon Bon did not react to her presence. "Honey, please," she said, laying a comforting hoof on Bon Bon's shoulder. "We just want to help."

"You can't help," Bon Bon muttered, her normally melodic voice a resigned monotone. "Nopony can help me."

"You're right," Phillip said to everypony's surprise. "Nopony else can help you unless you help yourself."

"Mom? Mama?"

Everypony looked up. Tootsie Flute, having just returned from school, was standing at the door, looking with confusion at the group in the store.

"Why are Princess Twilight and Mr. Finder here?" she asked, entering. "Is something going on?" She caught sight of Bon Bon's face and her eyes widened. "Mom? Were you crying?"

Bon Bon sat up, wiping her face. "It's all right, honey," she said as Tootsie trotted around the counter and gave her mother a hug.

"Was it some big meanie, mom?" Tootsie asked.

Bon Bon didn't answer for a moment. "Yes, dear. A very mean pony was bothering me."

"Why are you letting him bother you, mom?" Tootsie asked, in that innocent way that younglings have. "Are they here to help you?"

Bon Bon looked up at Lyra, who returned her gaze with a pleading look, as if saying, Bon Bon, please. Think of her. Think of our daughter.

Bon Bon nodded. "Yes, they are, dear." She kissed Tootsie's forehead and set her. "Why don't you and Mama go upstairs and play while we talk?"

"Okay!" Tootsie said, already heading upstairs. Lyra play-chased her upstairs, giggling.

Once they were gone, Bon Bon turned back to Twilight and Phillip.

"When I was living in Detrot, years ago, back when my name was Sweetie Drops, I had a...coltfriend," she said, spitting the last word out as if it left a bad taste in her mouth. "His name was Lockpick. He was charming when I first met him, but..."

"It changed," Twilight finished, nodding sadly.

"He became controlling, always wanting to know where I was, following me, getting angry when I talked to anypony else. And he was a thief, always hanging out with crooks. I finally had the courage to get up and leave. I ran away here, to Ponyville, changed my name. I married Lyra, had Tootsie..." Bon Bon smiled, but a fresh tear fell down her cheek. "I honestly thought he'd leave me alone."

"What does he look like?" Phillip asked.

"He's a unicorn. About three and a half feet, heavy build, blue eyes, black mane, silver coat. Cutie mark of an open padlock: his talent was using his magic to open locks," Bon Bon recited, with the face of somepony who is forced to recall something unpleasant.

"Let's get the town looking for him," Twilight said.

"I'll call in some favors in Detrot, see if I can get anything useful about Lockpick," Phillip said.

At that moment, Flash returned. "Nopony saw anything," he said, shaking his head. Bon Bon frowned.

"Don't worry, Bon Bon," Twilight said. "I promise, we won't let anypony hurt you, or Lyra, or Tootsie. You don't have to be afraid of him anymore."

Bon Bon managed a weak smile. "I know. Thank you."

The three ponies exited the candy shop and went out into the streets of Ponyville. A brisk wind was winding it's way around the town, between the cottages, businesses, parks. Somewhere, in some part of this town, a potentially dangerous thief and stalker was waiting, watching, searching for his next target.

They had to find him.

Author's Notes:

We find out who our stalker and our burglar is.

Now we just have to find them.