open The Town That Friendship Forgot

[Silly Druid 6,990]

@Windy Breeze

7 minutes ago, Windy Breeze said:

“Oh, it's nothing. I'm just doing what a true good neighbor does” saying her own goodbyes to Tree and Shadow, she went back to her house.

As for Shadow, she hummed a song as she carried the cheese flavored ice cream on her back, ignoring the fact she had no idea what song she is singing. It was soft and gentle in tone, as walk beside Tree, having no idea the latter's companion has already arrived.

Meanwhile at the apartment, the diary went back, but every time somepony would walk pass by the door of Shadow's apartment, it would quickly vanish into nothingness.

Tree Song walks beside Shadow Trail for some time, but she decides that's it's better to keep where she goes in secret, so she parts with her and takes a different way, despite going to the same part of the town.

"I'm back! With ice cream!" she says to Nopony after finding him near the row of apartments where Shadow lives. They share a friendly hug and proceed to eat the ice cream (Nopony prefers the honey flavored one, and Tree Song cookie and cream). They make sure no one is near to hear what they say, and start talking about the situation they have to deal with.

"Don't tell this to anypony because they would think you're crazy, but I have good reasons to believe that Nightmare Moon has returned."

"Nightmare Moon?! Are you serious? How is this even possible?"

"I don't know, but it seems she's messing with the life of a pony called Shadow Trail. She lives near here."

"I know her. I met her in the game, and now she invited me to stay at her apartment for the night."

"That's good. This way you can keep an eye on what's going on there. It's possible that something will happen this night."

They share the information they obtained so far.

"So Sundae forgot what she was supposed to warn Shadow about? Then you should tell it to her yourself when you go there. I'll sleep on this bench, so if anything dangerous happens, just shout. I will hear you."

Nopony removes the magical trigger, as it's not needed anymore. He has already taken a nap today, so he is not sleepy, and has some time to think about all this. Tree Song starts walking towards the apartment.

[Windy Breeze 15,190]

@PawelS

Inside her house, Sundae finished eating her dinner with the entire household staff. She decided to send them off despite the staff's protest, having clearly become attached to her, but nonetheless, they obeyed and went out of her house, leaving the only living member of a wealthy family alone.

Sundae is now currently wrapping herself in her favorite blanket after washing her face. She I'miled and closed her eyes, wanted to wake up early for the next day.

However, unknownst to her, someone broke inside her house, and they have different idea.

...

After parting with Tree, Shadow went back to her apartment complex. She closed the door behind her and immediately went to the fridge to get some celery, carrot, broccoli, and other vegetables for tonight's dinner food: vegetable salad.

However, her luck doesn't stay to long when it comes to making food, but hopefully she can make a very successful food.

It took for several minutes for the vegetable salad to be cooked. Shadow put the vegetable salad on a glass bowl, she prepared three brown bowls and waited for Tree and Nopony.

As she waited, she thought it would be a good idea to take a look at her camera. She stood up and went to her bedroom. She opened her saddlebag.

To her confusion, among her valuables is a black book titled My Diary. She shrugged and decided to investigate it tomorrow before picking up her camera and going back to the kitchen.

Edited November 29, 2020 by Windy Breeze

[ExplosionMare 18,063]

@Dynamo Pad @C. Thunder Dash @Pastel Heart @Samurai Equine

Pencil nodded, albeit a bit hesitantly, towards Dynamo. The change of plans was a bit confusing but it was something she could manage. If Dynamo needed her now, she could spare a few minutes before she headed over to the DDR station with Thundy and Chelsea. Holding her hoof out to signal to the griffons to wait a moment, Pencil turned to Dynamo and said,

“S-sure! If you wanna talk now that’s fine. I can watch Thundy and Chelsea play DDR later if you wanna do this now,”

Before she could discuss any further, Trilby trotted over and offered everyone merchandise from the Two Castles game. It consisted of a t-shirt, lanyard, and a small bracelet. Everything was neon and had something written on it along the lines of “I survived Two Castles”. Pencil chuckled at the bright neon accessories as she put the items on. She looked like a giant firefly but at least she could be proud knowing she did in fact take part in Two Castles.

“So, Tribly...” Pencil inquired. “...are we all actually hosting this event as well? I’m just asking cause you mentioned something about staff,”

[Courageous Thunder Dash 7,824]

@ExplosionMare @Dynamo Pad @Samurai Equine

The good thing about this particular DDR arcade cabinet was that there was no timer when selecting the song from the list. Thundy and Chelsea waited patiently for the two others. "Maybe we could at least warm up on something..." Chelsea said. "But which one?" Thundy asked. 

[Silly Druid 6,990]

@Windy Breeze

Tree Song goes up to Shadow Trail's apartment, and knocks on its door. When the door opens, she says:

"Hey Shadow! I got the warning for you from Nopony, the one Sundae forgot about. It's important."

[Samurai Equine 51,580]

@Dynamo Pad

No hugs?
Not even a hoof on the shoulder?
Yeah, that's fine~! Totally. Trilby shakes it off and replaces his hat with a neon ball cap to fit in with the rest.
However, he sees Dynamo leaning in to whisper something, so he leans in as well and listens closely. As he does, it's made clear that it's a conversation that needs to happen AWAY from present company. Trilby smirks and nods understandingly. "I gotcha." He whispers back to Dynamo. "Come by my shop first thing tomorrow before you do anything else. Bring Pencil. We'll talk there. I'll try and have Shadow there too, but if not, don't worry about it. I know her pretty well, so I think I can speak on her behalf." Trilby nods and parts ways with Dynamo.

@ExplosionMare

But as he is about to sell merch to the crowd, he sees his new friend Pencil. "Are we? Well, unless Dynamo says otherwise, I think we are! We can still play games or do whatever we want. Tartarus-sake, I brought all this merchandise without official approval, and Dynamo doesn't seem to mind if I sell it here or not. That sounds like a good enough endorsement to me." Trilby explains. "Thanks for being part of the team in there with me. But don't let me stop you from enjoying the games now that we're out!"

[Windy Breeze 15,190]

@PawelS

As she was about to look at the pictures in her camera, she heard a knock. She quickly put her camera down on the table and went to answer the door.

6 hours ago, PawelS said:

@Windy Breeze

Tree Song goes up to Shadow Trail's apartment, and knocks on its door. When the door opens, she says:

"Hey Shadow! I got the warning for you from Nopony, the one Sundae forgot about. It's important."

“I'm listening” Shadow told her.

[Silly Druid 6,990]

@Windy Breeze

"Don't trust diaries." Tree Song says slowly and clearly, to emphasize the importance of the message. "That's all he has to say to you. We don't have enough information yet to tell you anything more. But I have a feeling something bad is going to happen soon. So be careful."

[Windy Breeze 15,190]

@PawelS

Shadow nodded. So she has to not trust diaries? Well, that was kind of weird, but how Tree explained how important the warning from Nopony, she decided to take the warning. Better to be safe than sorry.

“I cooked some vegetable salad for dinner. Want some?” she offered.

[Dynamo Pad 11,321]

@Pastel Heart @ExplosionMare @Samurai Equine @GeneralDirection @C. Thunder Dash

As the two griffons tried to figure out a song to dance to, Dynamo looked over as he tried to voice his opinion. "If you ask me, then how about the song Love Shine? That's one of my favorite songs, but it's always a song I usually warm up to when playing DDR." He would say, before turning his attention back towards Pencil and Trilby. Upon the mention of his shop, Dynamo gave a smile and sighed in relief. "Thanks and I'll hold you to it. I'll be there first thing tomorrow. I'll make sure to knock so I don't walk in unannounced." He would say, nodding once more in understanding towards Shadow. "Okay and that sounds like a plan to me. If Shadow is unable to make it, then it's okay. I thought it would be best to have a couple of opinions from others. Also, Trilby has a point." He says, hoping to gain Pencil's attention with Trilby. "I don't mind if he sells his stuff in the arcade. If he wants to, then he can leave some at the arcade to hang up to see if other gamer's want them. Sort of work out a profit for both parties if that makes sense. If not, then it's no need to worry, in my opinion. I remember Trilby said he was a haberdashery when we were in the game world. So, it's better to go around other places that can help with his business. So, if it can help a friend, then I'm okay with it. Who knows? It might draw other ponies and creatures in who haven't considered games before." He explained, rubbing the back of his neck with his hoof. All the while, having a sheepish smile upon his face. "I think I took too much up in business when I was in Fillydelphia. My old teacher taught me everything he knew in an about video games, but he also taught me about business and marketing. Said something along the lines of it helping me if I worked at the Ponyville arcade, or any arcade, in general."

[Silly Druid 6,990]

@Windy Breeze

"Sure thing, I love vegetables!" Tree answers, sensing some pleasant smells coming from the kitchen. All the effort she put into playing the game made her really hungry. She already ate some ice cream, but it wasn't enough.

[Windy Breeze 15,190]

@PawelS

Shadow smiled “Come in, you can also invite your teacher if you want to” she went to the kitchen, and began putting some of the salad into two small bowls “I hope you like it. I'm not really good at cooking. All I did in my life is shoot some photos for my work”

[Courageous Thunder Dash 7,824]

@Dynamo Pad @ExplosionMare

At the mention of "Love Shine", Thundy's eyes transformed into heart shapes. He ended up squealing like a fan girl. "My fave! That's my song!" He squeaked, bouncing up and down cutely. Chelsea giggled at Thundy's antics. Thundy didn't realize what he just did and stopped. "Oh gosh...I hope no one was looking at me..." He said blushing deeply in embarrassment. 

[Silly Druid 6,990]

@Windy Breeze

"I'm sure it tastes great" Tree says, looking forward to eating it. "You can't go wrong with a vegetable salad."

"As for my teacher, he's not coming here tonight. But I'm sure you'll have an occasion to meet him later" she adds, not wanting to disclose the details of their plan. Because of that, she decides to change the subject. "So you say you're a photographer? Can I see some of your work?"

[Windy Breeze 15,190]

@PawelS

Shadow wasn't sure about that “Sure... But I can't just let you see some of the photos that are not taken to be revealed, they are reviewed by my bosses only” she picked up her camera and shown various pictures of various situations, including a picture of mare talking to a foal, a suspicious stallion In an alleyway, two individuals eating on a balcony of a skyscraper, and a photo of a pegasus, laying on the ground, her neck broken as if snapped. However, there are also some ponies who does not seem suspicious, like a royal guard, standing idly at a gate, presumably at Canterlot, a cyan mare wearing the Wonderbolt uniform chatting with a unicorn stallion and two pegasus while taking a picnic, and lastly, a photo of Princess Twilight Sparkle when she visited Appleloosa “Mmm, i wonder when did i took pictures of these?” Shadow was genuinely confused before showing a few photos of  more random ponies.

Edited November 30, 2020 by Windy Breeze

[Dynamo Pad 11,321]

@Pastel Heart @ExplosionMare @Samurai Equine @GeneralDirection @C. Thunder Dash 

Upon seeing Thundy's eyes turn into hearts, Dynamo could only tilt his head in confusion. He had to cover his ears as he heard a high pitched squeal from the male griffon. He looked around the room as a couple of gamer's and onlookers were kind of staring at Thundy, before returning to what they were doing. "Uh...I would say that's a bit too late on that one. Granted, I guess I can't blame you. Love Shine is a pretty catchy song and always something to dance too. So, can't go wrong with a song like that." He says with a reassuring smile. 

[Silly Druid 6,990]

@Windy Breeze

Tree points at the photo with the pegasus with broken neck. It does look suspicious that Shadow has such a picture in her collection.

"Do you remember this one? What happened here?"

[Windy Breeze 15,190]

@PawelS

“Oh, that's just a victim of an unsolved murder case which took place at Fillydelphia six months ago” Shadow said “One of my bosses told me to take pictures of the mare's body and anything suspicious in the city which could be connected to her murder so they can conduct their own investigation. They suspected her griffon husband is the killer since he disappeared a few days after the murder”

Edited November 30, 2020 by Windy Breeze

[ExplosionMare 18,063]

@Samurai Equine @Dynamo Pad @C. Thunder Dash

Pencil tapped her chin then nodded thoughtfully at Trilby. She didn’t want to skip out on anything she was supposed to do but if it turns out she didn’t need to do anything extra, then she was fine with that. Besides, she would really like to see how good Thundy and Chelsea could be on DDR now that they were bipedal.

“Yeah, that makes more sense, thanks. And, uh, if we’re supposed to meet at the shop tomorrow for the discussion, then I’ll be there,” she said. She then looked at Dynamo. “Is there a certain time you want us to be at the shop or can we just come by sometime in the afternoon?”

Before she could hear his response, Thundy was squealing in a very piercing voice. Even though Pencil had been known to squeal plenty of times herself, she could never get used to anyone else’s loud noises. She grimaced until the horrible noise was finally silenced. Once she realized why Thundy was being so loud, she giggled upon the realization that he was only excited about a certain DDR song. Pencil figured she would be that excited too if there was a song in the game that she really liked.

[Courageous Thunder Dash 7,824]

@ExplosionMare @Dynamo Pad

Chelsea had cued up the song Love Shine. Since there was no "Challenge" chart, both difficulties were on the "Expert" chart. Thundy was sort of bouncing in anticipation to get the song started. "Alright, ready when you guys are." Chelsea stated. 

[Silly Druid 6,990]

@Windy Breeze

"I see. So a part of your job is to help with solving mysteries. That's kind of similar to what I do." Tree noticed.

"Anyway, I'm sleepy. You said you have only one bed, so I can sleep on the floor. I have a sleeping mat."

[Windy Breeze 15,190]

@PawelS

Shadow frowned “Wait, what about your teacher?” she asked with concern “Is he going to sleep with us? I don'tw want to think he would sleep on a bench or something. It's very uncomfortable to sleep outside in the middle of the night, especially if its too cold”

[Silly Druid 6,990]

@Windy Breeze

"Don't worry about him, he can take care of himself. He has some plans about dealing with the magical anomaly." Clearly Tree isn't comfortable talking about this subject, because she doesn't want to reveal too much information to Shadow. "Besides, we're traveling ponies, so we're used to sleeping outside."

[Windy Breeze 15,190]

@PawelS

“Ooh, okay” So they were actually travellers. No wonder how they wondered into Friendshire “Good night, Tree. And Nopony, if he can hear me” she joked before going inside her room, collapsing on her bed, letting her consciousness drift away.

[Silly Druid 6,990]

"Thanks for the delicious meal, and good night!" Tree says to Shadow before both of them fall asleep.

Meanwhile on the bench, Nopony positions himself so that he would have a good view of Shadow's apartment in case something happens, and falls asleep as well.

None of them has any idea what's happening in Sundae's house.