private Canterlot Mystery

[HigurSan 195]

As the night drew longer, guards patrolled the streets in a quiet and ordely manner. While the night life had returned, many ponies were staying home with their families. One notable patrol was accompanied by a Ms.Jinglebell. Whenever they came across a pony who was injured, sick, or hungry, she didn't ask questions. All she did was help those in need. Ponies long into the future would remember this kind old mare, who could probably hide any of them at the drop of a pin. Long after she passed, surrounded by family and friends, her name was immortalized in a small statue in the town square, commisioned by a now elderly Coppertail Jr. The statue was a favorite meeting spot for young and old lovers. The image portrayed was simple. Ms.Jinglebell sat in her rocking chair, holding out a cup of tea and a biscuit, forever reminding ponies that tea is preferable to any quarrel.

 

Stonewall lay there with Ebony, smiling even as he slept. One eye was still open as always. It would be fair to mention that there were several Nix stationed to attack Ebony on that night. After the worm creature was pulverized, they all thought it better to never go near the pony with the fiery eyes and crowned cutie mark. One such creature ended up becoming a loyal pet to one of the maidponies, who mistook the monster of horror for a scruffy looking dog. The others eventually dispersed as the magic sustaining them dissapated. Fido, the new pet, remained for many years until his mistress passed, and disappated knowing that there was more meaning to life than the purpose you were made for.

[Nothing&NoOne 695]

Ebony slept with her head rested against his, their horns touching. She slept easily that night; there were no monsters haunting her dreams. Only when the sun started peaking over the distant mountains did she stir, her red eyes opening half way. She looked at Stonewall and nuzzled him, resting her head against his chest.

[HigurSan 195]

Stonewall, as was typical for him, was awake. Quietly, he rolled over onto his back, laying her on top of him so that they were face to face. Wrapping his hooves around her, he smiled. "Good morning Ebony," he whispered quietly. "I see that you slept well. My promise still holds... so I might have to accompany you no matter where you go now." He said that in a joking manner, though he could be serious. Nuzzling her head gently, he sighed and closed his eyes for a moment. Thoughts of the recent deaths were far from his mind. As long as he was with her, he would only think about her.

[Nothing&NoOne 695]

Ebony smiled and nuzzled him back. "I did. Did you?" She asked quietly. "I'd have no problem with that."

[HigurSan 195]

Stonewall nodded in confirmation, nuzzling her again. "I slept well. It turns out that the sun is still shining, and Artemisia hasn't complained too much. I would rather spend more time in bed, but the Wonderbolt presentation is today." Smiling, he kissed her lightly, before dropping his head into the pillows. A few noises were arising from the city. The clamour of carts hitting the cobblestones, greetings of friends, even the tweeting of birds announced a new day. Hopefully today would be peaceful, and it didn't look like anything would go wrong on this morning. Of course, the guards in the streets didn't hurt things.

[Nothing&NoOne 695]

Ebony giggle quietly. She rolled off him and stretched, then brushed her mane. She picked her necklace with her magic and looked at it, then put it on.

[HigurSan 195]

He rolled out of bed, fixing his hair so it didn't look like a complete mess. Stretching his legs, he went to go check the hallway. To his complete lack of suprise, there was a minimum of six guards stationed through the short length of the room. Doubtless there were Pegasus ponies keeping watch outside aswell. You had to hand it to Coppertail, when he made a promise, he followed through. Stonewall liked that quality in a pony. It was really too bad that Coppertail had joined the policepony brigade instead of the Royal Guard. But, everypony has their place in life, and aside from recent events, Coppertail enjoyed his job. That pony would probably be the best cop in Equestria until the day he died. Smiling to himself, Stonewall re-entered the room. "Oh, Ebony," he said quickly. "You might want to pick out a casual dress. Nothing fancy or hindering. Either way, you'll look beautiful." His voice and eyes were completely genuine, with not a hint of sarcasm or untruth. Meanwhile, he picked out a simple dress vest for himself, complete with a red bowtie. Smiling at her, he waited for her to choose.

[Nothing&NoOne 695]

Ebony smiled at him and went to her closet, moving dresses aside with her magic. She pulled out a casual dark red dress; pretty much everything in her wardrobe was different shades of red, to match her eyes and accessories. She put the dress on; a casual neckline with a neat collar, a few ruffles at the neckline. there were also a few ruffles on the sleeves and the end of the skirt, which went to the floor. She fixed her mane and put her tiara on.

[HigurSan 195]

Stonewall and Ebony had just finished dressing in time for Fine Tune to practically bust down the door. Stonewall turned to the suprise interuption, his horn flaring like a lightning bolt. The moment he saw it was Fine Tune, the light snapped off. Sighing in happiness, the Stallion trotted over to the young pony and patted him on the back. It was then that Stonewall felt the pit of jealousy welling in his heart once again. Surely Fine Tune had no charged into the room for him, so the only other option was... Ebony? His eyes flared as his head snapped towards his mare, then back to Fine Tune. A strange thing happened at that moment in time. In every pony, the soul is strung much like a finely tuned harp. Sometimes, chords are struck, and at a rare point in time, lines snap.

 

This particular line inside of Stonewall was as strong as steel. The dedication he felt to his friends and loved ones was said to be unshakable. As he blinked, horrible images crossed past his eyes, like a nightmare brought to life. Ebony, his sweetest Ebony, might leave him for this colt. That was of course complete nonsense by most rational thought, but rationality was far from his mind. Many other indescribable horrors flashed before him in that one moment. Straw seemed to be piled onto his back in a gargantuan mountain, threatening to break him at any moment. Chaos clouded his mind, and the chord snapped like twine.

 

On the outside, the stallion had stood still only for a moment. Carefully, like he was handling a bomb, Stonewall set his hoof onto the floor. The images in his head were taking an impossibly darker turn. What would he do? How could he somehow avert this terrible eventuallity? If it did come about despite his best efforts, what would he do then? The answer was somewhat clear to him amid so many questions. Like a trickle of smoke, it tickled the inside of his brain, tempting him to do the impossible. What would be the harm? It would look like a complete acccident, and she could be his forever. Total insanity gripped his mind, and his horn began to glow in a white aura you could barely see. But the inside was fighting back all the while, trying to grip solid, rocky, reality.

 

On the outside, his physical posture was stiffening. If any pony was looking at him directly, they would notice that his hair was beginning to split ends, strand by strand. His well groomed mane began to grow unruly. A slight twitch entered his left eye. Most noticable was the lack of his irises when you looked at his face. Somehow, in only a few seconds, his eyes had turned from deep and caring to bottomless, white, and crazed. His right hind hoof spasmed once or twice, involuntary scratching the floor. Madness, complete and utter madness was slowly over taking the stallion from nose to hoof. A sudden mad galloping was heard in the hallway, and a flying Inspector Coppertail catapolted through the door, taking Stonewall to the ground. The magical build up, unrestrained, exploded. Instead of fire or force, random things popped in and out of existance. The couch was replaced by a somewhat suprised female zebra, while a secondary wardrobe simply vanished with a pop. Most notably, the windows shattered with the sound of a thousand nails scratching the chalkboard.

 

The old earth pony stumbled away from the stallion, holding his back. "For hay's sake boy, you're more trouble than a barn full of that strange pink creature from Ponyville," Coppertail said with a groan in Stonewall's general direction. "I swear, if I have to do that again, our debt is paid off." Stonewall was a mess in the worst sense. His hair was completely crazy. Long locks of mane tanled with what appeared to be small tentacles. His tail was burned off to the nub. The stallion clutched his head, curled into a ball. The Inspector walked over to the stallion again, groaning all the while. He suddenly looked up at Ebony and smiled sheepishly. "Before you rush over here ma'am, we need to get him fixed first. It could be worse if anyone but a doctor touches him." At that moment, a frantic nursepony rushed in. If you had a good memory, you would recognize her as the same one from the previous night. She was absolutely determined not to lose another patient.

 

Coppertail stretched his back, which popped into place with a satisfying crack. Turning to Fine Tune and Ebony, he explained. "You may not know this, but your friend here has just suffered a magical flux. I don't know everything about them, but I know enough. Basically the stress from the past few days has worn down Stonewall to a very thin level of peace in his mind. I want you both to know that this is not the fault of either of you. I know Stonewall fairly well, or I knew his father. While not exactly common among unicorns, this sort of thing happens on occasion. So, he should be fine in the next minute or so. But unfortunately he will not be able to talk to or see any ponies other than his doctor. Ms. Nightingale, I know you must be distraught right now. But its for his own good."

 

Turning back to Stonewall, he pulled out some earplugs and a blindfold. Applying both of these, he and the nurse carried Stonewall out of the room. His limp body was barely breathing, with one hoof kicking feebly at things only he could see. Inside it was much the same. He couldn't move, or do anything. There was only blackness in his mind. It would take a while for that to change.

[Nothing&NoOne 695]

Everything was becoming too much for Ebony. She stayed away like the inspector had said, but it was tearing her apart on the inside. She barely had control over herself when Fine Tune snapped, and she backed away, her eyes widened in fear, tears streaming from them. She didn't feel safe; everyone seemed to be losing their minds. She cried out and closed her eyes when Fine Tune started yelling, and her horn lit up with magic. There was a crack noise in the room and she was gone, her mind using a last ditch effort to try and save her from the insanity that was gripping the room.

[HigurSan 195]

((Sorry for this, but I think its appropriate.))

 

Two Days Later:

 

Stonewall groaned as he lay in bed, trying to figure out what happened. He was hooked up to some sort of magical and medical device. Looking at the ceiling, he studied the patterns for a long time. Finally, with a groan of pain, he sat upright. The machine started bleeping like something was wrong. Shouting was heard from down the hall. Groaning in pain, Stonewall disconnected himself from the device and stood up. The shouting was coming closer, and he was afraid. He didn't know where he was, or where he should go. He just needed to leave. An image popped into his head, and he teleported with a zap. Wherever Ebony was, Stonewall would teleport in behind her. Gasping, he gave her a hug.

[Nothing&NoOne 695]

//xD//

 

When Ebony opened her eyes again, she was in a dark forest. She looked around, then cried out quietly in pain and put a hoof against her forhead. She didn't know she could teleport, she never learned the spell; but it weakened her. She closed her eyes for a few seconds, trying to teleport herself back. Her horn lit up for a few seconds, then went out, and she was alone in the dark. She used a light spell, using the red magic from her horn as a light source. She looked at the tall trees, seeing the sunlight slowly fade. She bit her lip in effort as she used the light spell again. She didn't have the strength to keep it going for long periods of time.

 

*two day mark*

 

After wandering the forest for a few days, running from creatures in the dark that might not have been there, Ebony was ragged. Her dress was torn and dirty, her mane was tangled, and she has a few scratches on her forlegs, neck, and face. She'd been crying on and off from fear when her light spell faded and she couldn't use it again for a while. After coming to a large tree in a tangle of branches, she collapsed on the ground form exahustion and fear. She stiffened when she heard something behind her and turned, seeing Stonewall lunge for her and hug her.

[HigurSan 195]

Stonewall held her tightly, like he was never going to let go. There was a certain sadness about him. On any other pony, it would have equated to hysterical sobbing, but Stonewall was firm of mind again. Though, if you took a good look, maybe it had firmed his mind a little too much. It didn't seem to be anything permenant, but the shock had stiffened his emotions. All he could do was whisper that he was sorry over and over again. Finally, he pulled himself together enough to look at her. Realizing they were in the dark, he cast a small spell to light the area in daylight. The forest wasn't so scary when it was lit properly, there was simply to much foilage in the way. The ground had a soft, loamy quality to it. Looking her in the face, he did the only thing that occured to him, which was kiss her for a full minute. Finally, he drew back enough to speak. "Ebony..., I'm so sorry. The... oh Celestia, I've wrecked everything." His eyes downcast, he pulled her into another embrace.

[Nothing&NoOne 695]

Ebony was limp in his arms, weakened from running from invisible monsters and trying to keep the darkness away from her with magic. She kissed him back when he kissed her, and when he hugged her again, she started trembling. The darkness that was chasing her slowly made its way into her mind, weakening and scaring her more then it should. Her imagination made her picture the horrible things that waited for her in the dark, as well as Fine Tune's insane yelling and Stonewall's condition. She didn't cry, she was staring into nothing; but her damaged frame trembled in his arms.

[HigurSan 195]

Stonewall shuddered again as the cold wind swept through the forest. This place was where nopony should venture. Most knew it simply as the Dark Pine Forest. Stonewall knew its true name. Roughly translated in pure magical language, it meant 'the void that never fills'. Attempts had been made to clear this place out for homes and life, but always failed in misery. Staring into her eyes, he saw that void, a void as empty as the sky on a new moon. It almost looked like he could see into her soul. The reality that revealed itself there was harsh and unforgiving. Sighing, he looked away into the now lit forest. Maybe... the darkness could be brightened into something better, wonderful. Turning his head towards hers, rubbed their horns together, letting a burst of magic loose.

 

At the most base level, this was like a match being thrown onto a fuse. Magic flew like a bright flash through her mind, impacting the lonely visage of her soul. Light enveloped the scene, spreading outwards. This magic was somewhat simple. It made every good memory and feeling come to the surface at one time. While overwhelming for some ponies, it was also used as an effective method of bringing military ponies out of battle shock. The effort was costly, depleting Stonewall's magic to a very low level.

[Nothing&NoOne 695]

Ebony's eyes widened when he used the spell on her, and she put her hoof on her forhead again. She breathed out and blinked a few times, then looked at Stonewall, her eyes no longer a dark void, but still reflecting the exahustion that was fighting with her. Her head spun a bit but she looked into Stonewall's eyes and hugged him, holding onto him tightly. She nuzzled her head into his chest and closed her eyes.

[null123456 759]

''So.. I guess I should go?'' Said Splinter as cocking an eyebrow. ''See ya later, Lovebirds!'' Said Splinter to Ebony and Stonewall before running out of the room.

[HigurSan 195]

Gasping from the effort, Stonewall laid his head down on top of hers. They sat like that for quite a long time, until magical daylight began to fade from the air. Looking up at the growing darkness, Stonewall began preparing to return home. He still was only half-full on magic, and it would take some preparation. Slowly, he built his magic, working a delicate thread of concentration into a pattern around their bodies. His eyes closed, with his arms holding her tightly. The magic built up to a respectable level, and with a flash they were gone. Instantly, the creatures hiding in the dark approached the spot where the ponies had been. Of varying shapes and forms, no two were alike. Sometimes they wondered why ponies were so afraid of them, but they had never gotten close enough to one to ask. The pair reappeared in the courtyard of the castle. In moments, they were surrounded by a crowd of guards. A very tired looking Inspector Coppertail forced his way through, and sighed at Stonewall. "Well darn boy. We've been looking for her for two days and you find her in an hour. Now, both of you need to sleep. Get on to bed." The crowd dispersed, looking wary of the Grey pony with the checkered mane.

[Nothing&NoOne 695]

Ebony held him tightly when they teleported. She looked up when they reappeared in the courtyard, looking at all the ponies looking at them. She leaned against him again, knowing she wouldn't be able to stand on her own. She hadn't slept in 2 days, she was running from her own shadow.

[null123456 759]

''So, Coppy. Lets catch up on some things!'' Said Splinter as his voice echoed through the castle.

[HigurSan 195]

Stonewall nodded at Inspector Coppertail. "Oh, Stone. Before I forget, the Princess has declared that in order to lighten the mood, there will be a Grand Galloping Gala tomorrow night," Coppertail said. Stonewall walked away slowly, carrying Ebony on his back. It seemed like forever, but eventually they got to Ebony's bedroom. A noticable change was the zebra sleeping in one corner, and the windows were now magically reinforced glass. It made them give up a small sparkle in the receding daylight. Stonewall set Ebony in the bed, and walked over to the zebra. She promptly woke up, and they talked in foreign ponyspeak for a minute. With care, Stonewall cast a spell on her, and she returned to her home with a pop.

 

It will be noted that the zebra mentioned was the daughter of a low-ranking cheiftain in a far off plains country. Her disappearance was presumed to be the fault of another tribe, causing a full out civil war. Her reappearance two days later did not stop the fighting, and eventually the war ended with her father's tribe ruling the entire country. This may seem tragic in a way, but the unified nation became a beacon of stability and civilization in that area of the world. Even later, Stonewall and the zebra mare met again. It was a friendly meeting, and soon trade relations were established. In due time, the Zebra became queen of her country, ruling it with fairness. Her name was Queen Windtrotter.

[Nothing&NoOne 695]

Ebony was half asleep when Stonewall carried her to her room. She was asleep when he put her on her bed, her ripped up dress spread around her back legs like pages around a studying filly. She dreampt of her own shadow trying to consume her, and she was running.

[HigurSan 195]

Stonewall, seeing she was not sleeping well, got in the bed with her. He didn't try to wake her to take her dress off. He fell asleep with her in his arms, trying to whisper that she was okay. Deep into the night, Inspectory Coppertail stood watch outside of the room. He still had a promise to keep. As the son rose, the shift changed, and all was well. The first ray of sunshine hit the window, causing a small rainbow. Stonewall opened his eyes slowly, and stretched his neck. Looking at his love, he leaned over and kissed her on the cheek. Laying there for a while, he waited for her to wake up.

[Nothing&NoOne 695]

Ebony sighed in her sleep and blinked her eyes open. She yawned and nuzzled Stonewall, comfortable in his arms amongst the pillows.

[HigurSan 195]

Stonewall nuzzled the top of her head. As the sun rose further, the windows gave off a few non-flammable sparks. Sighing, eventually Stonewall groggily rose to a sitting position. Looking around, he noticed a distinct lack of zebra and smiled. Then a tall alicorn walked out of a shadow. "Son," it said gruffly. The pony bore a striking resemblance to Stone, but older and more refined. Looking at Ebony, the alicorn nodded. "I see you have chosen your mare Stoney my boy. While I wasn't happy about it, I'm glad you made the choice now. Just... don't sleep in the same bed too often. I know you're a grown stallion, but I'm still your father and it looks bad if I have to watch you while you sleep for the benefit of her tutor. Now get up, we have a big day ahead." Stonewall took this without comment, and went to select another vest. This one was styled leather, with a few icons of far away lands enscribed in golden thread.