Chapter 8: Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood

Graceful Melody was the first of the trio to be conscious again – rather, he was the first to be awakened by a gruff officer who had apparently been one of very few to volunteer entering the “haunted” holding cells. The maroon-coated unicorn glared down at the bleary pegasus, his violet mane shaved down in a militaristic style. “You, Graceful Melody, correct? You are to come with me for questioning in the charges brought against you and Riffraff.”

The periwinkle pegasus stifled a yawn and got to his hooves, arching his back and slowly stretching his wings before blinking as he realized his head wasn’t sore as he’d expected – the blow he’d suffered hadn’t been gentle. He absently reached up to poke at his skull while the officer continued to look down at him emotionlessly. “Um. Oh yeah, so. Right. The charges of attempted murder, or me simply tryin’ to give one of your stallions a good time?”

The unicorn’s expression hardly changed, his response curt. “The charges solely against you have been dropped. Now, will I need to chain you up to get you to the interrogation rooms, or will you behave respectfully?”

Graceful pouted and glanced toward his still-unconscious companion. “Well...what about Riffy, you gotta wake him up to bring him, too!”

“He will be questioned separately.” The male’s horn glowed soft blue and he took a step backward while gesturing to the now-open cell door. “This way.”

Upon hearing that the larger pegasus wouldn’t be joining him, Graceful lost his bounce rather quickly. He lowered his pierced ears, rubbing a hoof against his muzzle and giving another longing glance to the crimson stallion before nodding silently and heading obediently in the indicated direction. “Okay.”

When the unicorn led the slender male through the processing area, several officers leaned away with half-terrified stares as if expecting him to once again dash around trying to touch each and every stallion in ways nopony should ever do, public or otherwise. Yet their horrified expressions soon changed to confusion upon seeing that the feminine pegasus slunk along with his head low as if somepony had extracted every ounce of energy from the hyperactive male. Every pair of eyes present followed the periwinkle pony and the silent unicorn at his flank until the two disappeared around the corner to enter one of the dimly lit rooms marked “Interrogation Room B”.

The reddish-purple unicorn pulled one of the metal chairs back with telekinesis, pointing toward it wordlessly. Graceful nodded silently and glumly sat down with his hooves crossed on the table, staring across it at the mirror which obviously served as a one-way window. He fidgeted when the unicorn left, scratching one hoof against the other limb while looking around the mostly-empty room. The pegasus had been hoping to have his partner nearby when this portion of the arrest procedure happened, though he figured he still might as well cheer up and make the most of it until he was rejoined with Riffraff.

A few minutes passed in silence before a young stallion strolled in, wearing a slightly different star around his neck, somewhat more detailed than those bolstered by the regular officers. The aquamarine pegasus pulled back the chair across the table, and then sat down with deliberately slow motions, slamming a manila folder onto the metal surface. “Good afternoon, Graceful Melody. Can I call you Grace?”

The slender male licked his lips, feeling his energy steadily surge back through his system as he leaned forward slightly. “There’s a whoooole long list’a things you c’n call me, cutie pie.”

The detective seemed taken aback, blinking and slowly rearing his head back. “Uh, of...course. Now, what can you tell me about last night at 88 Pleasures?”

“Mmm, I’d say I could give you at least half those before it even gets dark out,” Grace purred, stretching out a rear leg beneath the table and sliding his lower hoof slowly along the other pegasus’s inner thigh. “In fact, I have twenty-six reasons why you should tell the guys behind that mirror to start filming things in here...” His hoof nudged lightly against the detective’s crotch, and the young stallion immediately slid backward, his chair nearly toppling over as he scrambled back against the wall, eyes wide with horror. “Oh come oooon, I’ll be gentle!” Graceful insisted, kicking his own chair away and ducking under the table to creep toward the other pegasus a few inches off the ground, his silver eyes glowing with a mixture of cheer and mischief.

“Get him away!” the detective cried out, ignoring the unopened folder and bolting for the door to burst through and then slam it behind him with an audible click, the sounds of his hooves thundering down the hallway visible even through the thick walls of the interrogation room.

Graceful giggled, glancing up at the mirrored glass and then standing on his rear hooves to press his muzzle against the smooth surface, breathing hard and fogging the glass around his nostrils. “Who’s next?!” He could hear muttering behind the glossy surface, grinning at his own reflection and then tilting his head back and forth somewhat, glancing at the rings and studs pierced along his lower jaw before sticking his tongue out and ensuring he’d put the silver stud back into place properly.

When he heard hooves once more approaching the door, he quickly leaped back across the table, sliding across it and neatly landing in his chair once more, obediently crossing his front limbs across the table again. The door slammed open violently and a brawny earth pony shoved his way into the room, dark blue eyes burning. He had a band on one of his forelimbs signifying his rank and it stretched with each step forward. “That’s it, you little flaming fleabag, I have had ENOUGH of this!” He quickly approached the table and Graceful blinked, leaning back slightly when the muscular pony slammed a hoof into the table with enough force to dent it. “LOOK at these pictures, tell me why you and your lover decided to beat this poor performer half to death?” he snarled, flipping the folder open and sliding several pictures of the beaten and bruised unicorn pianist across the table.

Graceful glanced down at a few of the detailed photographs, making a face and leaning back slightly again. “He really isn’t much of a performer, you should know. Also, do you work out? ‘Cause like.” Graceful spread his wings suddenly, grinning. “Well, my wing-boners should tell you plenty, am I right?”

The earth pony wrinkled his muzzle before snarling, shoving the table back against the pegasus and roaring, “Enough! You WILL take this seriously, and you WILL stop harassing my offic--”

He was cut off, however, when the slender male easily slid up and out of his chair, kicking off the back of it and flapping his wings hard once to flit across the table and wrap his slender legs around the earth pony’s neck, forcing his muzzle against the other stallion’s for a deep, unexpected kiss. The enormous pony’s eyes bulged and he stumbled backward, tripping over his own chair and tumbling onto his back, then flailing wildly at the feminine pegasus as a studded tongue twisted into his muzzle while a tangibly aroused crotch ground firmly along his muscular stomach. The shocked and infuriated stallion eventually managed to shove Graceful away, yelling in horror and wiping at his muzzle before grabbing his toppled chair and holding it up threateningly while backing slowly toward the door. Graceful grinned toothily and fluttered his wings while strolling after him, ducking under a wild jab of the chair while the ranked officer yelled incoherently before reaching the door and quickly escaping through it, abandoning the chair in favor of locking the pegasus safely away once more. He pouted and quickly returned to the window, wings beating slowly to give him lift as he shoved his partially-aroused member against the window while pawing at it with his front hooves and pressing his face against the surface as well. “Heeey, bring him back! I liked him a lot! I think we were really hitting it off!”

He eventually dropped back to his hooves again, sniffing and then trotting back to his metal chair to complacently sit once more. Several minutes passed this time and he eventually sighed and glanced down at the pictures with a grimace. The damage done to the unicorn’s body was admittedly far worse than he’d noticed the first time he looked. He wrinkled his muzzle and slowly pushed them away, then glancing up with a grin as the door opened once more...and then immediately flattening his ears and hissing loudly when a female unicorn strode into the room. She reared back slightly at his reaction, blinking and tilting her head. “Do you have an issue with mares?”

“They have COOTIES!” he shouted childishly, pouting and covering his head with both forelegs and stomping his hooves on the floor. “Go awaaay, I wanna see more stallions!”

She smiled primly, picking up the upturned chair left by the bulky earth pony and placing it back across the table to sit down. Her horn glowed briefly, a notepad appearing from the simple suit jacket she wore over her nearly-white hide. She produced a pencil as well, tapping it against the table while studying the impetuous pegasus, still hiding his face under his forelegs. “I’m afraid that none of the male officers or detectives are willing to step hoof into a room with you, Graceful. You’ll be answering questions with me, is that understood?”

“NO!” he yelled immaturely as he shook his head wildly against the table, chin jutting out. “Not fair!” His cerulean tail flicked angrily and he began to pout again, refusing to look past his slender forelegs.

She shrugged and jotted a few notes on the yellow lined paper, glancing down at the pegasus for a moment, then continuing to scratch across the paper for several seconds. Silence spiraled out between them, filled only by the sound of her pencil continuing to move along the notepad. Eventually, Graceful huffed and slowly lifted one leg to look up at her distrustfully...though his eyes betrayed his curiosity. “What...what’re you writin’?”

“Oh, don’t worry. Just making a list,” she replied easily, looking over the pad at him again.

He blinked and lifted his head a bit. “What...what kinda list?”

“Just a list of all the stallions you can have if you cooperate, honey.”

Graceful stared for a moment, then suddenly leaped to his hooves and half-declared, half-shouted: “It wasn’t me an’ Riff, we were kicked out after Riffy played his really long, really awesome solo, and it wasn’t even really his fault, it was ‘cause he hadn’t smoked, he hasta smoke or else he gets real sick so we made that stupid assbutt Keyes angry because he likes to be a stupid stagehog who doesn’t let me even SING more than a whisper and he makes poor Riffy play like super-quiet, so his own POO-BRAIN MUSIC is the only thing the audience hears, and it’s STUPID and isn’t FAIR but we left, we went back to the motel we were stayin’ at before the show even ended and we had sex!”

She stared at him, apparently unaware her trick would work so easily on the childish pegasus. “You and...Riffraff?”

“Ewww, yes!” he replied angrily, glaring back up at her. “I wouldn’t even give Keyes a hoofjob, he’s gross and poo-brain!”

“Yes, you’ve mentioned that,” she responded carefully, quickly jotting down actual notes on her pad of paper. “Can anyone corroborate your alibi? Did anyone see you and Riffraff--”

“Having sex? No, unfortunately. I wish he’d let ponies watch more often, though, I really like showing off! You should see how much better I am when ponies are watching, I c’n make him scream! It’s really awesome, an’--”

“No, no, I mean...leaving the bar, and going back to your motel,” the unicorn interrupted gently, tilting her head and setting her pencil down but remaining respectfully across the table so the pegasus didn’t panic at her proximity. “Is there anyone we can...talk to, perhaps, and...find out if you’re telling the truth?”

“I know what corroborate means,” he shot back, his voice suddenly mature. “The motel clerk saw us come in. I dun remember the time, but hopefully he remembers, ‘cause me an’ Riff didn’t DO this!”

She studied him for a few seconds, then used her horn to gather the pictures together with telekinesis before placing them back in the folder and out of sight. “Then are you able to tell me who might have done this? Because what we have heard so far is that you two and the pianist were at odds from previous evenings’ performances as well.”

Graceful Melody scowled and crossed his forelegs while glaring off to the side. “Sure, sure, but can you even blame us? He was a...a total flank-face. He thinks he is some musical genius an’ me an’ Riff just wanted to play some good music, make some money...’course ponies are gonna say we seemed at odds. He wanted us to basically sit there and make background noise! He was rude.” The pegasus pouted again, then mumbled, “But we didn’t lay a hoof on him. We aren’t stupid. This isn’t even a real prison, I can’t have a whole lot of fun at shower-time at a place like this.”

The mare looked pointedly across the table again, lowering her head slightly. “I honestly cannot tell whether you are truly that...physically-needy, or if you simply have the need to try and rile up everypony who tries to get a straight answer out of you.”

“Ain’t nopony ever gonna get anythin’ straight out of me,” Graceful replied promptly before propping his cheek on an upturned hoof, peering back at her. “And I’m not needy. I’m cuddly.”

“I’m sure you are,” she said reassuringly, trying not to let herself be swayed by the innocent, child-like features and expressions of the stallion. “But just for the record, until we have witness statements from those who were present at the scene, do you not agree that your tenuous relationship with the musician Keyes, who seemed to be the deciding factor in terms of what you and your partner were paid, would have given you two the potential motive to seek harm against him?”

Graceful regarded her with a dour expression, then muttered in a once-more serious tone: “Riffraff taught me to understand lawyerspeak. So nice try, but I ain’t gonna give y’all even an inch of rope to hang us with. We’ll happily hang out in jail ‘til y’all get some witnesses.” He paused, then tilted his head slightly while still locking gazes with her, revealing the distinctive bruise visible just beneath his ear. “We may even have some of our own witnesses to call.”

The unicorn frowned – either she hadn’t been found out about the violent intercession of the three cops, or the detective was less than pleased that the pegasus knew enough about the legal system that somehow proving police brutality nearly guaranteed a walk. She studied him for a bit longer before nodding slowly. “Very well. I appreciate your cooperation. I’ll take you back to your friend, now.”

“He’s my coltfriend,” he replied defensively, bristling slightly and then hopping out of the chair to prance to the door with his nose in the air. “And I can find my own way back, thank you very much.”

“Yes, but I imagine the ten or twelve officers ready to bludgeon you into mush may not take kindly to you strolling through the department freely again,” she retorted mildly, her horn glowing as the pencil and pad were tucked back into her smooth suit jacket. As she approached the door herself, the pegasus scowled and backed away with a wrinkled muzzle and lowered ears. She did her best to avoid rolling her eyes, knocking twice to signal the officer on the other side of the now-locked door. They hadn’t really wanted to take any chances with Graceful considering the way he’d sent the lieutenant scrambling away.

But he followed her with grudging obedience as they moved back through the processing area and past many of the ponies who had experienced some degree of unintentional familiarity with his fast hooves. He met their glares with teasing leers, licking his lips now and then and occasionally lifting his tail tauntingly with well-timed swishes of his hips. Many of the stallions twisted their heads away in disgust but as always, Graceful had no issue spotting the few who couldn’t tear their eyes away from his sinuous movements on the way back to the holding cells. He smiled to himself, shaking his messy mane back from his features. So silly how everypony wants to always hide their desires. No wonder everypony’s so cranky all the time.

When he had been led back to his cell, he found Riffraff conscious and smoking a cigarette while slumped on the bench, muttering softly as if holding a conversation with someone. The female detective blinked and then asked dryly, “You do realize that’s technically not allowed in here, correct?”

“It’s a condition,” Riff and Graceful replied simultaneously before the larger pegasus glared at the empty half of the bench. “Oh shut up. Don’t make me sic Grace on you.” A few moments of awkward silence. “Yeah, you say that, but I’ve seen him dig out a penis from a two-pony Nightmare Night costume in under ten seconds. He’d find yours before you could do your explode-into-smoke routine, I promise you that.”

Graceful beamed and waved at the far corner of the cell. “Hi, Dusey!”

“He’s. Right next to me.”

The pegasus turned and waved to Riff’s opposite side. “Hi, Dusey!”

“No, on. The goddamn bench, sweet Celestia, are you that low on your male fluid intake?”

The jacketed mare cleared her throat loudly before Graceful could respond. “Riffraff, you will be questioned shortly. I’ll have one of the officers who was at the scene bring you by when we are ready.” He grunted and gestured idly with the smoldering cigarette, which she took as a positive response. She couldn’t help but glance momentarily at the spot next to him on the bench before shrugging and leaving the holding area, her horn gleaming briefly to lock the cell door behind her.

“Is Dusey really here, or are you just goin’ for an insanity plea?” Graceful asked curiously, slowly approaching the bench as his eyes screwed up in concentration as if squinting would allow him to see the demon’s bulky form.

“Inform him that you are going crazy.”

Riffraff sighed and flicked the ashes from his cigarette onto the masked creature, Amdusias flinching and then scowling as several of them landed across his arm and chest, quickly brushing them off. Although Graceful heard nothing, he couldn’t miss the suddenly-redirected flecks of ash, blinking and sitting down with a half-smile. “Are you gonna break us out?”

“Inform him that he is infuriating me.”

The crimson pegasus grumbled and looked up at the demon sourly. “No. Why are you still here?”

“Remember, I do not merely seek the benefits of a well-composed symphony or carefully-crafted dream. I savor mortal embarrassment and failure. And I most certainly have no qualms over watching one of your simple mortal minds steadily crumbling away into so much dust and shattered bits.” The scaled entity trailed off as Graceful slowly inched closer to the space he occupied, looking almost amused and standing up at the last moment to carefully move to Riffraff’s other side, his tail twisting lightly mere inches above the slender pegasus’s cocked head. “It is much like watching a child figure out how to piece together a basic puzzle. Very entertaining.”

“Please don’t get him too excited,” Riffraff mumbled, rubbing at his forehead and then taking a final puff of the cigarette before mashing it out against the concrete wall and flicking the extinguished butt across the cell and through the front bars. “My...everything still hurts. What did you do?”

“I gave you two an easy way out of this,” Amdusias replied calmly, a smug expression marking his features as he crossed his muscular arms, then glanced to the right to focus on the two stallions who had apparently decided to ignore Riffraff’s inane rambling. “The skinny one robbed a convenience store to feed his addiction. The other one nearly killed another male who had been fornicating with his mistress. Observe my prowess.”

The crimson stallion watched with an interest he cursed himself for, his eyes following the invisible demon as Amdusias briefly shifted into a plume of smoke to slip between the steel bars only to immediately reform in the adjacent cell. The pegasus’s ears told him that Graceful had once again struck up awkwardly sexual conversation with the two ponies still conscious in the other neighboring cell and he figured his companion would be fine as long as he didn’t try and initiate oral sex through the dividing bars. At least not unless I’m watching. His eyes remained focused on the muscular reptile, leaning back against the wall as he observed.

Amdusias glanced meditatively between the two stallions before him – the pale yellow pegasus still slouched on the bench, eyes sunken and flicking around anxiously while one hoof rubbed slowly at the opposite foreleg where the demon spotted a few tell-tale pockmarks. Pacing idly along one wall was the other male, the powerful earth pony giving occasional glares toward the door of his cell as his thoughts drifted into the demon’s mind as easily as if the pony was announcing them. Grinning slightly, the scaled male rubbed his hands together and then approached the larger stallion and dropping to a squat and leaning in close as the mortal turned to pace in the other direction. Riff could see the demon whispering rapidly, causing the grey pony to freeze in place and stare ahead vacantly for a moment while at the same time, Amdusias’s long tail snaked across the cell toward the sallow pegasus. The two sharp ivory spikes flicked up and then lightly tapped the winged pony’s temples as a spark of demonic energy passed between them. Reptilian eyes glowed bright amber, his pupils wide as if expressing excitement over his own meddling; he continued to mutter softly to the earth pony and withdrew his tined tail a few seconds later before quickly standing up with a sharp, toothy grin. He glanced back at Riffraff haughtily, then turned his head back to the two mortals as the ashen pegasus began to breathe hard while staring at his cellmate with more than a touch of insanity in his features. “Hey, hey, dude, you’ve...had the stuff the whole time, and you weren’t gonna share?” he panted, jumping down to his hooves as a bit of drool fell from his gaping muzzle. The grey earth pony blinked in confusion and narrowed his eyes slightly. “Don’t deny it, I can see the stash right behind you, you’ve been hiding it from me all day, it isn’t fair!” His wings fluttered rapidly as his eyes widened, pupils mere dots amongst the crazed, jaundiced irises.

The well-built stallion snarled as his own eyes seemed to lose focus for a moment, then suddenly sharpen as he took a step toward the twitching pegasus. “You! You little shit, you think you can make moves on MY mare and get away with it? Your flank is mine!” He leaped at the smaller male with a roar, swinging a hoof in with a wild swing that connected firmly with the pegasus’s muzzle. But the scrawny stallion shoved back with both forelegs, then lunged forward to bite viciously at his cellmate’s shoulder. His dull, unhealthy teeth sunk into flesh and muscle and the grey pony howled in fury and pain, beginning to pummel the other male wildly in the back of the head with his free hoof. The pegasus yelped and released his grip, but rather than continuing to fight, he only darted past the muscular stallion and pounced some non-existent object behind him, gripping it in both hooves and shouting in victory as he made the motion of jabbing a needle into his foreleg only to shriek a moment later when the earth pony spun around and grabbed his knotted tail to forcibly drag him backward and then twisting around to slam the pegasus violently against the bars of their cell with an infuriated shout.

“Look how easily you morons are influenced and transformed into the savages you truly are!” Amdusias crowed, clapping his hands together and laughing aloud. Riffraff blinked, tearing his shocked stare away from the tussling stallions to realize that the demon had returned to stand before him once more. “It truly is a wonder how any of you have survived this long, considering the near-standstill of your own evolution!” Riffraff rolled his eyes, then winced as the earth pony savagely twisted one of the pegasus’s wings, snapping it audibly near the base as the skinny male howled in agony and flailed back with all four limbs as both stallions bled from their muzzles and – in the earth pony’s case – several bite marks along his forelegs and neck. “Now this is suitable entertainment when there is no tolerable musical performances around to enjoy!” Amdusias declared, grinning down at Riffraff. “Do you not agree, soul-peddler?”

“I think. They’re going to kill each other,” Riff replied slowly, then looking almost relieved as the door into the processing area slammed open. Several officers rushed in, shouting to the two stallions to cease their scuffle before quickly opening the cell and forcefully tearing the snarling males apart. The pegasus continued to squeal wildly, begging to be given “just one more hit!” while the earth pony snarled and swung crazily at the air as three officers attempted to pin him and get manacles on his legs.

Eventually the sickly pegasus was dragged out with similar restraints above his hooves, the officers attempting to maneuver him out of the holding area to be healed but finding it difficult considering that even despite his injuries, the winged pony was extremely determined to sate himself with the imagined pile of narcotics in the corner of the cell. Amdusias scowled at this, glaring as the literally-frothing earth pony was chained to the bench before an officer informed him of the additional charges that would be brought against him. He still struggled angrily against the multiple restraints, deaf to the world and hellbent on breaking both the pegasus’s wings off and “shoving them up his cowardly ass”, as he continued to rave to the small group of officers. Once they assured he was securely bound, however, they left him to snarl and shout furiously alone in the cell as one of the uniformed ponies muttered about cabin fever.

“They should have allowed things to play out as nature intended,” Amdusias opined grumpily, his tail flicking irritably. “It is far more interesting to see which basal emotion defeats the other.”

“You are twisted,” Riffraff replied dryly while flopping back against the wall. “I liked it better when you threatened to burn me alive and forced me to have visions of Graceful exploding.” He paused, then slowly leaned sideways to peer past the towering demon and at his companion before widening his eyes slightly and groaning loudly. “Grace, come on, SERIOUSLY? Could you not wait until TEN minutes after the violent altercation next door?”

Amdusias turned around, his curiosity getting the best of him. But the demon immediately made a noise of disgust and twisted his head away, a muscular forearm covering his eyes as he said loudly, “Please order him to stop!”

Graceful peered over his shoulder curiously, his studded tongue still hanging out of his muzzle with a long string of drool still connected to the very erect member of the blushing earth pony in the next cell, looking awkwardly at Riffraff as he leaned against the bars, his front hooves resting above his head with his rear legs spread slightly, his aroused malehood poking between the cell division. “We...we should stop, shouldn’t we?” he stammered, his cheeks flushing brightly as Graceful Melody slowly reached through the bars and then gave his dangling testicles a firm squeeze, the embarrassed stallion giving a sharp yelp as his cellmate snorted amusedly and Riffraff only mumbled and regretted ever coming to Manehattan. “He started it!” the earth pony added hurriedly, quickly dropping down to all four hooves and backing away a few steps, causing the slender pegasus to pout and glare through the bars at him.

“I’m well aware,” Riffraff replied drolly. “He’s good at that.” He glanced over at Amdusias, adding mildly, “You can look again.”

“Is Dusey’s penis showing yet?!” Graceful inquired excitedly as he turned around eagerly and sniffed at the air. “I wanna see it, I wanna see it!”

The demon stared morbidly down at the energetic pegasus before glaring at Riffraff as if his companion’s behavior were somehow his fault. “I don’t understand how his love for male reproductive organs can outweigh even the tremendous fear and respect he should have for a great being as myself.”

Riffraff nearly answered with an obvious explanation, but he then paused and looked thoughtfully up at the massive creature. “Well. I wonder too, sometimes. I mean. What DOES your junk look like?”

Amdusias made a horrified face and grit his teeth. “You mortals, absolutely disgusting! I cannot even threaten to show you one day, because now apparently you both find some awful fascination with the subject, whereas most souls are TORTURED by such methods in Helheim.”

Riffraff snorted. “I ain’t as bad as Gracie...but damn, you realize we are NOT the two candidates for that, right?”

Graceful perked his ears and bounced closer to Riffraff. “Riffy, what’d Dusey say?!”

“Order him to stop calling me that!”

“Dusey said we’re gonna get raped in Helheim.”

“STOP CALLING ME--”

“Yay!”

Amdusias groaned and slapped a hoof against his face, eventually flopping down onto the ground next to the bench and giving the larger pegasus a grouchy look. “I’m going to begin your eons of torture by chopping off your precious malehood and sealing up all your orifices.”

Riffraff grimaced. “Not cool. Noooot cool,” he mumbled before grunting in surprise as Graceful flapped his wings and flitted over to promptly sit in his lap. He smiled despite himself, wrapping his toned forelimbs around the smaller male and doing his best to ignore the fact that his companion’s hooves almost immediately began to lightly fondle his crotch – he admittedly tried to avoid pulling Graceful away from any...physical activities while still in progress. It tended to leave the feminine stallion somewhat wanting. But considering the nearly endless insanity of the last couple hours in the cell, the blood-red pony found a strange serenity in sitting with a grumbling demon on one side and his overaffectionate partner in his lap, doing things to his crotch that no decent pony would dream of doing where anypony else could so easily observe.

The gruff mare who had been there at the arrest showed up shortly after, preventing Riffraff from enjoying the skilled ministrations of his companion’s hooves beyond a point of no return. He’d awkwardly tried to recompose himself as Ruby had made a face but stonily led him to the interrogation rooms. Amdusias had, of course, followed curiously while making idle comments to the embarrassed stallion about how justice in Helheim basically depended on which demonic entity could spin the most convincing lie. “Naturally, the few times I was involved in a case – which was rare mostly because, as a grand lord of Helheim, many rules simply do not apply to me – I won single-handedly every time. My story-telling skills are undeniably legendary even by Helheim’s standards.”

Not wanting to seem mentally insane on top of being in league with a nymphomaniac, Riffraff closed his eyes and thought about his response as hard as he could: That would explain why your soul-contracting skills are undeniably the worst in all of the universe.

Amdusias growled, reaching down and lightly tapping the stallion’s ebony emblem. The pegasus winced and then swallowed thickly as a rush of panic bolted through his frame. He stumbled slightly, then glared over his shoulder at the demon, who now seemed pleased again. “Dammit...” Ruby glanced back at him with a cold expression for a moment, then shrugged and shoved open the door to the interrogation room. She gestured at the chair on the other side of the desk.

“Sit,” she ordered icily. “The detective will be with you shortly to take your statement and question you about the incident.” Before Riffraff could even offer the civil response he intended to make, she let the door shut and walked briskly away.

The masculine pegasus pursed his lips, then grumbled and shrugged before reaching beneath his wing and plucking a cigarette from the pouch he’d already slid back into place. He fumbled for the lighter a moment later, but Amdusias leaned down politely, his smile visibly feigned. “Allow me.” Riffraff rolled his eyes but pulled his hoof back and tilted his head to the side so any curious eyes in the window wouldn’t see the sudden, brief stream of flame that the demon leisurely exhaled to light the tip of the stallion’s smoke.

“Gee, thanks,” Riffraff mumbled, drawing slowly on the cigarette before releasing a bluish plume into the reptilian male’s face. Amdusias scowled and leaned back slightly while the stallion added moodily, “Considering you gave me the goddamn urge. Cheating bastard.”

The demon narrowed his eyes and then inhaled deeply before leaning forward and breathing out a massive stream of much-darker, thicker smoke, a glow visible in the back of his throat. Riffraff blinked and then flailed wildly as his entire upper body was engulfed in the heavy cloud of smoke while Amdusias crossed his arms smugly and leaned back against the wall before glancing up as a unicorn stepped through the door. Riff squinted through the smoke, then looked embarrassed as he stopped swinging his forelegs around, clearing his throat. “Unfiltered.”

She only stared at him for a moment, slowly producing a pencil and notepad with her horn’s abilities and then replying flatly, “Smoking is bad for you, and I would appreciate it if you didn’t do so in here.” Her horn glowed briefly again and a quick gust of air blew past the pegasus to clear the heavier smoke away. He blinked stupidly, then grunted in appreciation before lifting his cigarette to his muzzle and pulling slowly from it. She watched incredulously and then threw a hoof in the air with a sigh, sitting down and flipping through a few pages of the yellow paper. “Very well, Riffraff. If you must...”

“I must.”

“...well, if you must. But I have a few questions for you...some related to the charges against you, some...related to other matters.” She glanced up at him and studied his reaction, Riff unable to stop from frowning and slowly leaning back in his chair as he tapped his free hoof lightly against the metal table. “I’m sure you have some idea to what I’m referring, correct?”

The muscular pegasus grimaced, leaning sideways to peer shamelessly at the other pony’s emblem and somehow unsurprised to find it was a magnifying glass. “I suppose if I make any private investigator jokes, they won’t be taken well?”

“I would be grateful if you refrained, yes,” she responded curtly, glancing down at her notes and then idly flicking her horn to send the manila folder sliding across the table. “But why don’t we start here, with the unfortunate brutalizing of Mr. Keyes?”

Riffraff frowned, then opened the folder before tilting his head away slightly. “Wow. I thought it was only the cops in my hometown who used scare tactics like this.” He grumbled and then studied the photographs thoughtfully – he’d seen his share of mutilated corpses in the court room. Besides being assigned the boring or low-class cases, he also was occasionally put in charge of cases involving parole or alteration of sentences for imprisoned convicts. The masculine pegasus had never minded those cases – he had been able to put his researching abilities to use, happily spending hours poring over evidence and historical cases to keep ponies in prison longer. The city had found Riffraff useful in extending sentences for dangerous criminals, though it certainly hadn’t made the crimson stallion popular with those particular ponies.

Before him, the multitude of photographs revealed the savage beating Amdusias had laid upon the unicorn. He idly pawed through them before shrugging and leaning back in his chair, crossing his forelegs across his broad chest. “Don’t have much to say about it, ma’am. I’m sure Grace already told you the same thing.”

“You might be interested in hearing what your companion said, actually,” the mare replied softly, leaning forward slightly as she met his eyes.

Amdusias snorted behind the pegasus, his hands gripping the back of Riff’s chair as he bent down to mutter what he’d read from the unicorn’s thoughts...but before he could, the stallion smiled amusedly and fearlessly leaned back toward the detective. “Cute. But we’re not a couple looking to sell each other out to avoid a few pages of the book apparently being hurled at us. And by the way, you may have missed the little bump Grace had, but I can already tell you’re trying to figure out what you could possibly still get on me now that I could just as easily sue half the department for police brutality. Not to mention the whole ‘fruit of the poisonous tree’ gambit... pretty sure I could confess to killing Celestia herself and it would still fall under that heading. Meaning this whole interview is pretty much useless.”

Amdusias seemed almost impressed, glancing down at the top of the pegasus’s skull and nodding once. “I suppose you may have been an absolute hack at the guitar before we’d met, but you apparently managed to fit more than just the how-to's of dodging demonic contractual law in that tiny brain of yours.” Riffraff smiled slightly again, but continued to look calmly at the frowning mare, his forelegs crossed upon the table and his expression serene.

She bit the inside of her lip thoughtfully, then nodded slowly. “Of course. However, you’ve also done me the courtesy of helping answer the second half of my questions – your legal knowledge alone helps confirm that you are in fact the same Riffraff who used to lawyer back out west. We were unable to confirm it, since your emblem did not match what was on record for you back then. So naturally...” It was her turn to smile contritely. “We’re curious as to what prompted you to physically alter your mark and why you so suddenly ended a promising career in law to become...a traveling minstrel?”

Riffraff felt the massive demon at his back slowly tense up, hearing his fingers squeezing the metal chair with enough force to bend the steel. He cleared his throat and tilted his head while pointing down at the pictures still spread across the table. “Ma’am? I believe you had intended to do your job and question me about the brutal beating of this poor soul?”

But the detective failed to take the bait, only focusing on the pegasus’s visible discomfort as she stood up and leaned against the table with her front hooves. “Oh, I think that whether or not you and your partner are guilty of this crime, there’s far more to be discovered about your past. I’m not convinced that a mildly successful lawyer with a bright future ahead would give everything up, not to chase a cross-dressing singer, not to become a guitarist.” Riffraff stiffened up as well this time, eyes narrowing slightly. “A public official with such sway over other ponies, suddenly ducking out of the bright limelight to instead live by the grimy spotlight in front of ponies who wouldn’t even remember your name the next morning? It’s almost insulting to me to think anypony would willingly give up that life to join the dregs of society.” She laughed sharply and turned around briefly to eye the reflective glass while failing to notice the small plume of black smoke that had been exhaled following the furious snarl she’d been unable to hear. “Yeah, because any pony with even an ounce of sense in his brain will give up a respectable living for the slacker lifestyle of ponies who put on little shows to score just enough money to buy their next--”

“ENOUGH!” Amdusias roared, half-shoving the still-seated Riffraff to the side as he became visible to the detective in a flash. “You will not continue to mock the most sacred of all arts in MY presence and expect to go without warning!” The mare screamed and stumbled backward, eyes wide with fear as the enormous scaled male loomed over her, his height made no less formidable by the fact that he was leaning halfway across the table. “You will cease this disrespect of my domain, and end your frivolous questioning of the mortal before you! As far as I am concerned, the worth of his life is infinitely greater than yours, and he has sold his soul to me – that’s correct, a soulless creature has greater worth in this world than you, for he appreciates the nuances and experiences of a life lived through music! Your life is meaningless to the universe, do you realize that? You find worth in picking apart the responses of other mortals, pitiless creatures you have frightened with callous, cowardly tactics, framing them for crimes they may or may not have committed. And this is how you measure yourself?” The demon gave a brash laugh, throwing his head back for a moment while Riffraff only watched, bewildered and somewhat touched as well. By now, the detective had dropped down to her belly, whimpering and staring up at Amdusias with fear and growing demoralization. “Pitiful! The creature I have claimed as my own will have his effect on the world – it may be but a drop upon the surface of the vast, endless waters within which rest all the layers and all the worlds in all of existence, but even a single drop may cause ripples, affecting those near, those far, those even centuries in the future, long after he has died and gone. But even his one, tiny drop is greater than your life, insect – you, who will be lucky to even gaze upon the universal waters before some absent entity steps upon you and quashes your meaningless life from you like the tiny cockroach you are!” Amdusias growled and flung the metal table to the side as easily as a ball of paper, bending down low as smoke poured thickly from his muzzle and nostrils, his voice almost wavering as he spoke audibly past a barely-withheld gout of flame in the back of his throat. “End this mockery of justice, release my guitarist back to his cell and order every one of your fellow mortals to keep their distance, for I will be watching, and I have absolutely no fear of bringing my damning retribution down upon your soft skulls!” He bared his teeth and snarled directly in her face, causing the unicorn to cry out again before he suddenly looked up with brightly glowing eyes, a grin crossing his muzzle before he held up a hand and snapped his

“-just enough money to buy their nex--oh my gods, WHAT was THAT?” the detective screamed, staring around wildly as she found herself once more seated behind the upright metal table, Riffraff seated across from her and visibly attempting to withhold a grin.

“What...what was what? Nothing happened,” he said nonchalantly, glancing slightly to the side and eying the pleased-looking demon who was nonetheless now seated with his back to the far wall, taking slow, measured breaths. “Is everything alright?”

“Is everything alright!?!” she half-yelled back at him, eyes wide. She shoved away from the table, toppling her chair and looking around fearfully, her body trembling violently. “What the hell is going on here?!”

Riffraff cleared his throat. “Uh. Gee, are you okay? I am being sincere,” he said, his voice as level as he could force it to be.

She seemed to not realize his exact words, breathing heavily and then snatching her pencil and pad up in her hooves and hissing hoarsely: “Someone will be by shortly to...to take you to your cell...” She swallowed and twitched violently before staring around the small room once more and then quickly rushing out through the door.

Riffraff sat in his chair for several minutes, simply relishing the expressions on the mare’s face as they replayed themselves through his memories. He grinned despite himself, then peered over at Amdusias once again. “What about the ponies behind the glass?” he asked, trying not to appear as entertained as he truly was.

“What about them?” Amdusias snorted. “They merely experienced their star detective suffering a sudden and unexpected breakdown. It would be a miracle if she was ever asked to act as a witness in your case...in fact, I would say that for the next month or so, it will be a miracle if she even sets foot into a room before turning on the lights and searching underneath every possible surface for ‘monsters’.” He flashed his sharp teeth back at Riffraff. “Stellar performance, would you not say?”

“I. Wow. You are a very dark demon, Amdusias,” Riffraff said slowly. But the pony still smiled slightly. “Thanks, I think.” He paused, then asked carefully, “Are...you okay, though? You’ve kind of done a lot of...messing around with us disgusting mortals in the last couple hours. You look a little drained.”

“I am simply upholding the banner of my kind,” the Sloth demon replied icily. “It is no business of yours, regardless. What dysfunction do you mortals have that causes you to automatically feign care for the health of others? Actually, this is no mystery – it’s fairly obvious that you ponies enjoy the attention and satisfaction of being thanked for showing concern you do not even truly feel. And yet I do not thank you, nor do I even show signs of having any false care for you or your maiden.”

Riffraff shrugged and pulled a cigarette out to quietly light and shove between his lips. “I dunno what you want me to say to that, Dusey. Sometimes we mortals just...do stuff. Sometimes we actually...genuinely care about others, too. I won’t deny that many do it for the attention or altruistic means...but not all of them.” He puffed slowly, eying the scowling reptile. “Me and Grace, well. I guess we care about you. Well. Maybe not CARE, but.” The pony grumbled, rubbing along his muzzle awkwardly before shrugging. “Maybe it’s some version of Stockhoof Syndrome. But I’m asking if you’re alright because I’m compelled to. Not because I want you to gush at me and tell me ‘oh gosh gee, no I’m super-fine, Riff, but how are you, are you okay, you totally got beat up, even though I was the one who let it happen and basically goaded you into it, but we’re being emotional mares right now, so let’s look past that and focus on our feelings!’” The pegasus had spoken with a higher and higher pitched voice until he was basically squeaking at the end. He grunted afterward, ignoring the cold, furious glare Amdusias shot him. “Don’t get so defensive. Maybe I just want to find out if your self-inflated ass is still gonna be able to keep me and Grace safe if any other crap goes down ‘til we’re out.”

The demon snarled quietly, struggling to stand up and managing his feet after a moment. His breathing continued heavily, however, and Riffraff could see the physical strain in each movement the reptile made. “You will show me respect, maggot,” Amdusias wheezed, grimacing immediately after and rubbing slowly at his own throat. “Merely an overstraining of my vocal chords. Do not worry your ugly mortal head, I will maintain vigilance so that no individual but myself has the pleasure of wrenching every extremity from your nasty little body.”

Riffraff felt somewhat relieved by the return of the demon’s normal attitude, relaxing in the chair and smoking in silence while Amdusias produced his saxophone and started to play a soothing tune. The pegasus had a feeling that the tune was meant more for Amdusias himself – he knew well enough by now that the demon’s music could be used for his own benefit just as easily as it could be directed toward others. He closed his eyes and let his mind drift over the events of the last several days as the easy, melodic song filled the drab interrogation room.

He’d almost already forgotten about the events at Canterlot – he still found it strange, though, that even the city officials weren’t mentioning it. It made sense to him for the citizens to care less; their lives were a constant bustle. But he had figured at least government workers would have more concern for the entire fiasco. Then again, I guess since Celestia is apparently back in her place...and the not-Nightmare Moon is somewhere in exile far, far from here, they really don’t give a damn anymore. They still have their jobs, the country isn’t embroiled in chaos...life goes on. He nodded slowly to himself and felt a mild mental stir from the demon behind him, though Amdusias couldn’t be bothered enough to stop his music in order to give the sarcastic response he no doubt had in mind.

The pegasus was led from the interrogation room by an unfamiliar officer shortly thereafter, Amdusias still gripping the silver saxophone as he moodily followed the two ponies back to the holding cells. There was no sign of the petrified detective and Riff couldn’t help but wonder what fate she’d be experiencing over the next while considering how absolutely stark raving mad she would appeared to whatever higher-ups had been observing the questioning session.

“Hopefully she has been demoted. Or perhaps sent to a sanatorium to be diagnosed with acute mortal retardation,” Amdusias grumbled. “I dislike mortals such as her even more than I dislike you, soul-seller. And I dislike you a great deal.”

“I don’t think they still have those,” Riffraff replied under his breath, avoiding the unnecessary stares as he was pointed into his unlocked cell where, surprisingly, they found Graceful snoozing peacefully beneath the bench. “Helheim must be old-fashioned as balls.”

“What’s that?” the officer asked, frowning slightly at the pegasus. But Riff only waved idly at with a foreleg and the cop snorted derisively before slamming the cell and leaving the holding area.

“It is not old-fashioned. It is properly designed to mitigate any and all issues that occur. Your Equestria could improve by taking a few lessons from us,” Amdusias replied waspishly before studying the slender male snoring quietly on the floor. “Has he finally used the last of his energy for the day? Or is he merely sated with unfamiliar male seed, thus rendering him in need of recharging?”

“I hope to hell he didn’t go and do that without letting us watch,” Riffraff mumbled. “That would be disappointing.”

“Speak for yourself,” grumbled the lizard-like entity, shuddering and leaning against the barred wall of the cell. “Not all of us are interested in voyeuristic adventures of the horrific mortal mating rituals.”

“Yeah, of course not, you’ve never watched us from inside the closet, clopping your undoubtedly weird demon penis and hoping I didn’t hear you,” Riff drawled, flopping back onto his haunches and looking over his shoulder at the mortified reptile with amusement. “I can’t tell if that reaction means that you want to kill me, or if you’ve actually done that.”

“I’m not dignifying it with a response,” retorted the demon before he hastily added, “Yes, I am aware that was technically a response. I do not need to resort to...watching gross, uncivilized beasts fornicate.”

“You know, for a demon of Sloth, you sure do talk about sex a lot.” Riffraff glanced up at the glowering reptile, hiding his smile behind his harmonica as he held it up to his muzzle and blew a soft blues scale through the small instrument.

“You initiated the conversation!” Amdusias all but shouted, though his reaction only caused Riff to grin wider. The demon muttered darkly and rolled his eyes. “You are also aware that pleasuring me sexually will not soften the harshness of your impending eternity in my estate, are you not?”

Riffraff snickered and held the harmonica away from his lips for a moment. “Please, as if I’d even want to pleasure you sexually. Apparently your Pride flaws are showing through today as well.”

Amdusias twitched, his eyes narrowing slightly before he snorted. “Do not lie to me, pony. I know quite well that you crave me physically almost as badly as your unquenchable filly over there.”

“Oh, really?” the pegasus scoffed, oblivious to the stares he had been receiving for the last minute or two. The pony and the demon wrinkled their muzzles and glared challengingly at each other, eyes burning and bodies tense. Seconds spiraled into minutes, neither male blinking and Amdusias seeming almost impressed again.

“Very well,” he finally said, breaking the silence and leaning back slightly. “We shall have a competition of music between us.”

“And what will that settle?” Riffraff replied suspiciously, slowly continuing his simple harmonica solo.

“The loser will agree to being at the beck and call of the winner for the duration of one mortal day,” Amdusias explained with a toothy grin. “I will defeat you regardless, but I will prove you wrong even if you happen to cheat yet again and pull a cheap victory out of your venomous muzzle – for if you win, I already know you’ll beg me to bed you. And when my certain sweeping triumph has come to pass, I will order you to drop your otherwise-useless mortal head between my legs and ensure that your undeniable pleasure throughout is recorded for you to witness with your own eyes.”

Riffraff paused for a moment, then cleared his throat and let his harmonica drop to dangle from his neck again. “Wait. You’re proposing a musical duel for the sole purpose of getting to screw me?”

The pegasus swore he saw a quick blush streak through Amdusias’s features, but the demon maintained his composure well, smiling confidently. “You may continue to make excuses, but as always, I will be proven correct.”

“And...if I just agree that, yes, I crave your mysterious demonic dick-stick as much as Graceful?”

Amdusias blinked and looked genuinely awkward for a moment before responding quickly, “Well, in that case, I will have been proven correct, and there would obviously be no need for the competition I would have won, anyway. So you may proceed with your concession now, treacherous insect, and avoid yourself the embarrassment of a handy defeat.”

“Well. Fine, then, I --”

“Riffraff! Graceful Melody! Apparently it is your lucky day!” bellowed an as-of-yet-unheard voice, a new face pushing into the holding cells. The stocky pegasus glanced quickly through the cells, then spotted the crimson stallion looking curiously through the bars, a smaller pegasus apparently asleep behind him. “You’re being released on remand. However, you will need to remain within the city limits until your case has either been judged or dismissed, is that understood?” The muscular officer, wearing a tight blue police vest, approached their cell to unlock the door, then stand back and allow them passage.

“Oh as if this puny mortal could prevent me from moving the two of you to wherever I choose,” Amdusias commented snidely, gripping his saxophone with both hands and wrinkling his muzzle, then glancing down at the two stallions.

“Yes, we understand,” Riffraff said softly while dropping down next to the bench to gently shake his companion awake, smiling into Grace’s bleary silver eyes when the smaller pegasus gazed up at him curiously. “I’m gonna assume that someone finally did their job and had witness accounts taken from other ponies present that night at the bar?”

The officer narrowed his eyes somewhat, then nodded curtly. “Yes. I just got here, but I’ve already heard that today has been...interesting thanks to you two. I wouldn’t ask any more questions and just enjoy your freedom while you can.”

“We din’ do nothin’,” Graceful mumbled tiredly, rubbing at his eyes before standing on all four hooves and shaking his mane and tail out, then peering at the well-built pegasus outside their cell. “Do you wanna have sex?”

The officer stared at him in disbelief and Riffraff sighed, slowly rubbing a hoof down his own features before ushering his companion quickly past. “Uh. Sorry, he’s got Tourette’s.” He cleared his throat and glared when Amdusias only looked down at him with mild entertainment. “At least he isn’t a total...ass...head.” This received a glare from the uniformed pegasus, to which Riffraff quickly added, “Not that you are, either. It. Has been a long day, and I apologize, I’m jumping at shadows.”

“Yes, you wish to jump the bones of those shadows,” Amdusias deadpanned, looking smugly pleased with himself as Riffraff grumbled and dropped his head, deciding it was better to escape the police station before attempting to have any sort of conversation with either the demon or the slender pegasus.

They were walked through the processing center again, once again being documented and given papers upon which the set date for their hearing was printed, as well as the stipulations of their remand. They were to not leave Manehattan’s limits until contacted about the case being dismissed, or of course to show up on the date of the trial. But Riffraff was rather certain at this point that both the lack of physical evidence and the witness accounts would be enough to clear them...not to mention that his very obvious bruises would make a serviceable backup plan. He knew better from his days as a defense attorney that juries gobbled up visible, grievous injuries as easily as they did abused foals and victims of tragic workplace accidents. He and his companion were virtually untouchable at this point, assuming that neither of them did anything to further agitate the police department. After all, even though it was becoming quickly clear that the two pegasi were not the culprits in Keyes's beating, Graceful's harassment of multiple officers could be taken to court if they pushed their luck too far. For now, they had the safety net of the attack they'd suffered while in jail. The only issue with the whole Keyes thing is that they're never gonna catch the pony...well. Demon who did it. He grimaced and looked over his shoulder to glare accusingly, but he only found a scowling officer closing the doors of the station and turning to stomp back inside.

“Amdusias?” Riffraff asked to the air despite himself, frowning a bit and glancing around slowly. “Oh c'mon, seriously? He's going to spend practically the entire time in jail with us, THEN finally leave us alone?”

Graceful blinked and peered up at the larger pegasus. “So. He actually was there the whole time? I mean. I figured he musta done something or helped somehow or something, 'cause...you are walkin' an' everything. It didn't really seem like what those mean ponies did to you would let you walk around so easily.”

“Yes, he was there the entire time,” Riff muttered. He shook his head with a snort. “But somehow I'm unsurprised. I think even though he's getting less...horrible, he still enjoys our suffering. Or at least mine, seeing as you were already making some buddies in there.”

Graceful nodded thoughtfully before perking his ears. “Hey, did he show you his junk, did you get to see it!?” The crimson stallion groaned and dropped his head in defeat.

“You are revolting sometimes,” he mumbled, arching his back slowly. “Let's get back to the motel. Day's obviously pretty much shot, but...we can either go out and see the town, or go find out if anywhere is open that'll give us a good price on Amdusias's little toy.”

“We should buy like a million cupcakes!” Graceful beamed and nodded while trotting in a quick circle and unfurling his wings to flap them a few times. “That would last us like a WEEK.”

“I doubt even that long,” Riffraff replied dryly, testing his own wings slowly and finding himself surprised and pleased that Amdusias truly had healed all his internal injuries – he still looked like he had been mauled by an angry pile of bricks, but the snapped wing he'd felt breaking before was completely functional, not even sore. I guess he can keep insisting that he does that stuff because he wants to ensure I die the way that gets him my soul...but there are worse things he could have done. He really doesn't hate us as much as he puts on sometimes... He smiled slightly to himself, then nodding to his companion. “But alright, sugarflank. You good to go?”

Graceful whooped and leaped nearly straight up in response, his wings quickly catching the air as he flapped them hard and swiftly soared high above the city streets. Riffraff laughed quietly and took a few bounding steps forward past a huffing unicorn, grinning sheepishly at the over-dressed mare and then grunting as he hopped off a bench and thrust himself into the air with several powerful beats of his own wings, straining himself to catch up to his slender companion with a smile.

The two pegasi bumped their flanks gently together as they sailed past the tall buildings, their wings moving easily in tandem and allowing them to remain inches apart. Flying came naturally to most ponies of their race, but the two companions still found a thrill in the act, especially when sharing the experience. Considering it was usually the first big “lesson” during a pegasus's childhood, considered to be as natural as walking and breathing, it wasn't rare for them to draw confused stares from those few witnesses to their laughing and childish shoving as they flit through the skies.

It was nevertheless a source of cheer for them both and Riffraff felt his worries and concerns melting away the moment his hooves left the ground. His expression lightened and he took a deep, relieved breath as he and his companion glided between tall skyscrapers and past the occasional fellow pegasi. He closed his eyes and relished the sensation of the cooler, cleaner air whipping past his bangs and through his now-messy mane before streaming along his masculine frame and down his long, smooth tail. Every beat of his wings felt effortless and the stress of their temporary imprisonment and impending court date seemed to fade with each easy flap. He didn't have to glance to the side to see that Graceful had likely never even felt the initial strain of their predicament, but he looked anyway and felt somehow even more at ease to find his partner's warm, genuine smile and carefree wink.

Their travel back to the motel went without incident and by the time the two males entered their tiny room, Riffraff felt his mind nearly cleared, his stress dissipated. He still worried somewhat about the future court date, even though he knew that Graceful’s reassurances were not simply said to soothe his thoughts. He had plenty of experience with tilted cases in the courtroom, and their own situation was more than favorable for them. The blood-red pegasus smiled at this thought before his companion hopped onto the bed and caused the headboard to rock against the wall with a sharp crash. The loud bang snapped Riff from his reverie and he shook his head a bit before sitting back on his haunches to watch the slender male lean nimbly over the bedside stand to reach for the gleaming tambourine that still hung from the reading lamp. He tilted his head somewhat as the smaller pegasus grabbed the instrument between his hooves and then flopped back on the bed to study it in the dim light.

“Whatcha think it’s worth, Riffy?” the feminine stallion asked curiously, holding the tambourine out at leg’s length for a moment, then pulling it close to his face to peer at the jewel-encrusted instrument. “Is it gonna get us somewhere better? Are we gonna keep working?”

“I don’t know, and maybe, and yes we are,” Riffraff answered drolly, smiling despite himself. “We can’t just...stop working because we’ve gotten a bit of easy money. Besides, you’d go off and spend it all at once.” The other winged pony pouted and Riff rolled his eyes. “You know it’s true. But...sure, we deserve to spend at least a few nights somewhere nicer. Shouldn’t be that big of a deal.” He paused, then gestured to the instrument between his partner’s hooves. “The issue is finding somewhere that will actually give us good money for that. I somehow doubt that the average pawn shop is gonna give us even half of what it’s worth.”

“How ‘bout we check out the local museums?” Graceful chirped, his pierced ears perking with a bright expression. “I bet that thing’s like super-fancy art to them or somethin’! We could even tell ‘em it’s like...real old, an’ from a thousand million years ago, like from before even Celestia was around! We could say that our grandpa got it from Celestia way back then and he passed it on to us!”

Riffraff blinked. “Um. Okay, first...family members don’t usually make out and grope each other in public. Second, no living grandfather today would have been around a thousand million years ago.”

“You don’t know that! Maybe Celestia has a super-super-mega-old grandpa hangin’ around somewhere!?”

“You. You are a special pony,” Riff replied with an amused smile, rubbing a hoof against his forehead and then approaching the foot of the bed. He crossed his forelegs upon the mattress, resting his muzzle upon them. “Anyway. That’s not a bad idea, actually. Didn’t even think of that. Yeah, we’ll...come up with a simpler story, though. Just say it was handed down to you. And even if they don’t think it’s some old, lost artifact, it...is covered with gemstones.”

“And it’s shiny!” Graceful added cheerfully. “Ponies like lookin’ at shiny things!”

“Is that your excuse for having a thousand piercings all over your face and crotch?” Riff replied with a snicker, leaning his head back slightly to avoid a playful kick from the other stallion’s lower legs. He gently swatted his companion’s hoof away, then crawled up onto the bed to flop over next to him. He looked over at the sparkling instrument, then smiled slightly. “But alright, alright. Tomorrow we’ll check into a better place – but only if we can find somewhere that’ll take that glittering monstrosity off our hooves. Otherwise we probably won’t even be able to afford the bathrooms in the lobby of one of those...actual hotels.”

“We’ve stayed at a hotel before!” Graceful responded with a toothy smile.

“No, YOU might have stayed at hotels before, when you were on your own and were an exotic, sparkly prostitute. But we’ve never been able to afford one,” Riffraff replied, ignoring the huff from his companion. “And don’t deny it. We both know you made money that way, too.”

“I’m not denying it!” the smaller male complained loudly, slapping Riff’s chest with the tambourine and causing it to give a disharmonious rattle. “I think it’s rude that you said I WAS that, like I’m not anymore!”

Riffraff blinked stupidly before groaning and slowly rubbing his face with both hooves. His partner pouted and tapped the jeweled instrumented against his own muzzle a few times while rocking back and forth next to him. “You’re so weird. Fine, fine, you’re still a prostitute.”

Graceful immediately smiled again, switching emotional gears fast enough to give any other pony whiplash. “Yay!” He paused and then peered over the top of the tambourine to ask Riff suspiciously, “Am I a good prostitute?”

“The very best,” Riffraff answered drolly. “No one can sell their flank like you do.”

“Thanks!” The periwinkle pegasus beamed and tossed Amdusias’s strange gift into the air before catching it and setting it onto the nightstand. “You always say the nicest things, Riffy. But now since I didn’t get to experience all that prison has to offer...” He grinned, leaning over toward his companion with a lick of his lips.

Riffraff awkwardly looked up at the smaller male as he easily straddled his larger frame. “Uh. Okay, it was just jail, not prison.” He gently shoved the feminine stallion to the side with a grumble, Grace yelping dramatically and flailing around on the other half of the bed. “And second, I am very exhausted. It has been a long, painful day in jail. I would like to just sleep tonight.”

“But Riiiiiiff!” Graceful kicked childishly at the air with all four legs, then rolled onto his side with a sullen expression. “Sleeping is for babies and gross fillies!”

“Then I guess tonight, I am a gross baby filly,” Riffraff replied dryly, reaching over to lightly flick the other male’s nose. “Go...do stuff in the bathroom if you really need to. I am tired. And I don’t wanna play Lights Out Tag with you.”

“Oh, alriiiight,” Graceful mumbled disconsolately but nodded. “None of that tonight, then.” He flopped onto his back and closed his eyes. “Boring pony.” Riffraff, however, only gave a muffled grunt in response, already half-asleep as the slender pegasus jutted his chin out before curling up against Riffraff’s side and letting his own body begin to relax and slide into a comfortable doze, the intensity of their day giving way to the calmness of slumber.