My Little Pony--Ponyville Mysteries--Schoolhouse of Secrets

by Penumbra Quill

  “Great!” Scootaloo yelled. “She sics her tree on us and takes off! What now?”

  “Help us! Anypony!” Sweetie Belle yelled. Scootaloo and Apple Bloom joined in.

  “We’re being eaten by a tree!” Scootaloo yelled.

  The tree continued swaying. As it did, the vines around the ponies loosened. They quickly became loose enough for the ponies to untangle themselves. Apple Bloom, Scootaloo, and Sweetie Belle jumped down and ran a safe distance away before turning back to watch the swaying tree. As they did, the tree slowed its back-and-forth motion until it eventually once again stood still. The vines dropped and hung innocently, but the Crusaders now knew better than to approach it.

  “Why did it let us go?” Sweetie Belle asked.

  “I bet our yelling scared it,” Scootaloo said confidently.

  “Seriously?” Sweetie Belle asked. “I don’t think three ponies scared out of their minds screaming for help stopped the hungry tree.”

  “Lilymoon left,” Apple Bloom said, looking in the direction she ran. “As soon as she was gone, the tree stopped attacking us. She was doing it.”

  “Yeah! Because we know she’s the one who messed up the Schoolhouse and attacked Pip!” Scootaloo said angrily.

  “Should we go tell somepony? Like, maybe our sisters?” Sweetie Belle asked.

  “No,” Apple Bloom insisted. “We’re goin’ to Lilymoon’s house on Horseshoe Hill and we are gonna get to the bottom of this.”

  “I knew that’s what you were gonna say,” Sweetie Belle said with a heavy sigh.

  CHAPTER TEN

  If Diamond Tiara hadn’t told the Cutie Mark Crusaders where the house on Horseshoe Hill was, Apple Bloom was sure they never would have found it. Now that she was looking at it, she recognized it was by far one of the largest houses in Ponyville. But it was so tucked out of the way that she had probably passed it hundreds of times in her life and never noticed it. Ponyville and the Everfree Forest were right next to each other, but there was usually a clear division where one ended and the other began. High on the hilltop, the house blended into the Forest, almost like it was a part of it. Vines wrapped around the walls of the five-story cottage. Trees grew right next to it and branches brushed against the windows. The cottage itself seemed to be somehow wilder than other buildings in Ponyville.

  “Wow,” Scootaloo said, studying the house. “That is definitely the…”

  “Scariest house in Ponyville?” Sweetie Belle finished. “Yeah, definitely the scariest house in Ponyville.”

  “It’s just a house, y’all,” Apple Bloom insisted. “Now, let’s go get a better look.” The ponies crept up the hill, careful to stay close to the trees and bushes so they wouldn’t be spotted by anypony. They crept even closer to the house. The vines growing up against the wall wrapped tightly around the windows.

  “Great,” Sweetie Belle muttered, “more vines.” Apple Bloom rolled her eyes and pushed the vines out of the way with her hoof. Through the window, they could see what looked like a workroom. There were jars filled with all kinds of things, strange plants lining the walls, lab equipment set out on tables, and two Unicorns—one male, one female—wearing goggles and standing next to a large cauldron. They had the same lavender complexion, blue mane, and piercing violet eyes as Lilymoon.

  “Do you think those are Lilymoon’s parents?” Scootaloo whispered. Apple Bloom shushed her and kept watching. One of the Unicorns, the male, poured vials filled with different liquids into the cauldron. The other Unicorn plucked leaves off a nearby plant and dropped them into the mixture as well. The cauldron bubbled violently as purple smoke poured out onto the floor.

  “What kinda potion is that?” Apple Bloom wondered aloud. She squinted. It was getting harder to see what was going on; the window was so foggy.

  “Uh. Apple Bloom?” Scootaloo tapped her with her hoof. Apple Bloom turned and realized it wasn’t just the window getting foggy. A mist had come out of nowhere and surrounded them! Apple Bloom and the others tried to back away from the window, but their hooves stuck to the ground as if it were made of taffy.

  “Gross!” Scootaloo yelled as her hooves sank into the ground.

  “I can’t move!” Sweetie Belle squeaked as she tried in vain to back away from the window. A chuckle echoed around them, but they couldn’t see anypony through the fog.

  “Wh-who’s there?” Apple Bloom asked. “What do you want?”

  “What do I want?” a crackly voice asked with another chuckle. “I’m not the one snooping into other ponies’ business, now, am I?” A glowing horn appeared as the fog swirled away, revealing an old Unicorn. She was at least as old as Granny Smith (if not older) and had a tangled gray mess of a mane. She studied the Crusaders carefully. “Auntie Eclipse thinks you should answer your own question. What do you want?”

  Before anypony could answer, an explosion from inside the house engulfed them all in smoke.

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  In the commotion after the blast, Apple Bloom realized she could move her hooves again. She could hear Auntie Eclipse coughing and didn’t waste any time. She turned to run in the opposite direction.

  “Run, y’all! This way!” she yelled. Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle followed her, leaving the old Unicorn behind them.

  “I can’t see anything!” Sweetie Belle called.

  “This way! Follow my voice!” Apple Bloom shouted back. The purple fog was beginning to clear up and Apple Bloom could just make out the path they had taken that would lead them back to Ponyville. But before she could get there, another Unicorn jumped in her way, blocking them.

  “Over here, Auntie!” she yelled. The fog had cleared enough for Apple Bloom to see the pony clearly. She was slightly older than the Crusaders and looked like Lilymoon but in reverse. A blue coat, a lavender tail, and a lavender mane with a single black streak running through it. She lowered her head and her horn glowed brightly, lifting the Crusaders off the ground.

  “Hey! Let us down!” Scootaloo yelled. The Unicorn’s horn glowed again and the Crusaders suddenly found they were unable to speak!

  “Well done, Ambermoon!” Auntie Eclipse said as she walked slowly toward them. “Now we can get some answers!”

  “Is everypony okay?” The female Unicorn with the goggles came rushing out of the house. She saw Auntie Eclipse and the other Unicorn, Ambermoon, with the floating Crusaders. “What’s going on out here?” she asked cautiously.

  “Well, that didn’t work,” the male pony said as he walked outside. “We’re never going to be able to break into the Livewood if we—”

  “Blue Moon!” the female Unicorn said loudly, interrupting his thought mid-sentence. “We have intruders!” The male Unicorn, Blue Moon, raised his goggles and studied the Crusaders.

  “Intruders? They’re just—”

  “Sticking their snouts where they don’t belong!” Auntie Eclipse insisted. She turned to the Crusaders. “Now, who are you and what are you—”

  “Auntie!” Ambermoon gasped. “Look!” Auntie Eclipse and the others followed Ambermoon’s gaze. She was staring at the Crusaders’ matching cutie marks.

  “Well, look at that,” Blue Moon whispered. He studied the Crusaders with renewed interest. “Who in Equestria are the three of you?”

  “I know who they are,” said a voice from the doorstep. Everypony turned to see Lilymoon standing there. “They go to my school. I’ll deal with them.”

  “You didn’t mention you were going to have guests,” the female Unicorn with the goggles said.

  “Sorry, Mother,” Lilymoon said calmly, her eyes never leaving the Crusaders. “It must have slipped my mind.” Lilymoon’s mother nodded to Ambermoon. Her horn flashed as she released the Crusaders, dropping them gently to the ground. Lilymoon’s mother looked down at them, her eyes darting to their cutie marks.

  “I’m Lumi Nation, Lily’s mother.” She didn’t smile as she spoke. In fact, she didn’t seem particularly friendly at all. “This is her father, Blue Moon; her siste
r, Ambermoon; and our aunt Eclipse.” Each of the Unicorns nodded to the Crusaders. “Lilymoon doesn’t often bring friends around. We apologize for any confusion.”

  “No problem,” Apple Bloom said, watching Lilymoon carefully as she spoke. “We just wanted to stop by and… see how you all were liking Ponyville so far.”

  “It’s a little too nosy for my taste,” Auntie Eclipse muttered. A look from Lumi Nation quieted her. Blue Moon grinned widely at the Crusaders, like he was trying a bit too hard to be friendly.

  “Personally, I find Ponyville full of surprises,” he said. “For example, I see you all have matching cutie marks. That’s definitely… different.” The entire family looked at the Crusaders expectantly.

  “Yeah. It’s actually pretty awesome.” Scootaloo showed off her cutie mark. “Ponies are always interested, since we’ve got the only matching cutie marks in Equestria.”

  “I wouldn’t be so sure about that,” Auntie Eclipse whispered. Apple Bloom looked more closely at Lilymoon’s family’s cutie marks. Where Lilymoon had her spell book, Ambermoon had a potion bottle, Lumi Nation had a leaf, and Blue Moon had a star. But on top of those symbols, they each had the exact same bright moon, smoke, and lightning. Lilymoon’s family had matching cutie marks, just like the Cutie Mark Crusaders!

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  Despite Lilymoon’s family wanting to know absolutely everything about the CMCs and their matching cutie marks, Lilymoon convinced them she needed to talk to her “friends” alone. She brought the Crusaders into Auntie Eclipse’s library. There were some old and dusty chairs, tables, and couches scattered throughout the room. A large map of Equestria hung on one wall. Below it was an equally large map of what looked like the Everfree Forest. There were strange artifacts lying around, and of course, most of the room was filled ceiling to floor with shelves of ancient-looking books. Lilymoon slid the library door closed and turned to glare at the Crusaders.

  “What are you doing here?” she asked.

  “We’ll ask the questions!” Scootaloo said aggressively. “We saw what you were doing with those rocks in the Forest! Just like the books in the Schoolhouse! We caught you red-hooved! Don’t try to deny it!”

  “You don’t know what you’re talking about,” Lilymoon responded flatly.

  “Oh yeah? Then why did you have your tree attack us?” Scootaloo demanded.

  Lilymoon snorted and rolled her eyes. “I saved the three of you from that Poison Joke Tree because you obviously have no idea how to take care of yourselves in the Forest.”

  “Poison Joke Tree? I thought Poison Joke was on the ground,” Sweetie Belle said.

  Apple Bloom wasn’t sure what to think.

  Lilymoon sighed. “Poison Joke also grows on trees. It’s rare. But it happens. The vines pull you up until the leaves infect you. The only way to get free is to find the tree’s ticklish spot.”

  “You were tickling the tree?!” Sweetie Belle asked incredulously. “You saved us?”

  “Of course I did.” Lilymoon arched an eyebrow. “I wasn’t going to let you get hurt just because you were spying on me.”

  “We were spying on you because of what you did in the Schoolhouse!” Apple Bloom shot back.

  “I wasn’t the one who did that to the Schoolhouse!” Lilymoon said angrily. But then her face fell and she looked away. “But I am still the one who’s responsible,” she added quietly.

  “Say what, now?” Apple Bloom asked.

  Lilymoon studied the Crusaders as if she was weighing her options. “It was a bogle,” she finally said.

  “What’s a bogle?” asked Scootaloo.

  “A bogle is a creature that lives deep in forests. They’re very rare. Just like Poison Joke Trees.” Lilymoon’s cold exterior melted slightly as she explained things.

  “Are they scary-looking?” asked Sweetie Belle.

  “Nopony knows exactly what they look like. They’re invisible,” Lilymoon explained. “In fact, there’s a lot ponies don’t know about them.” She walked over to one of the bookshelves and searched. “That’s why my family moved here,” she added.

  “For bogles?” asked Apple Bloom.

  “No,” Lilymoon said as she searched, “to be closer to the Everfree Forest. It’s kind of an obsession, to be honest. There’s just so much ponies don’t know about it. Here!” She used her horn to levitate a book off the shelf, placing it on a nearby table.

  “The Lost Creatures of Equestria,” she read as she blew dust off the cover. “This book contains the only recorded mention of bogles.” Lilymoon flipped through the book until she came to the page she was looking for.

  “‘Bogles tend to keep to themselves,’” she read. “‘They’re very territorial and mark their nests with elaborate decoration. Methods can include but are not limited to: scratching symbols in trees, bright colors, stacking and levitation of objects—basically anything that makes their nest look as unique as possible. They get furious if anything disturbs their home.’” Lilymoon looked down at her hooves. “I wanted to observe a bogle in its natural habitat. I found the nest when I went into the Forest after school, but the bogle wasn’t there. I went back and checked again this morning. I didn’t think it was there. I should have been more careful.… I knocked over a couple of rocks.…”

  She sighed and then continued reading. “‘Once provoked, the bogle abandons its nest and tracks the creature who disturbed it. It builds a new nest in the victim’s home. If it likes its new surroundings more than its old nest, it’s almost impossible to force it to leave.’” Lilymoon looked at the Crusaders. “I got to the Schoolhouse early. So did the bogle. I think it really likes the Schoolhouse.”

  “Wow. So this really was all your fault!” Scootaloo blurted out. Lilymoon looked away, embarrassed.

  “Okay, okay,” Apple Bloom said. “No use cryin’ over spilled cider. How do we get rid of it?”

  “That’s the problem,” Lilymoon said, flipping to the next page. “It doesn’t say anything else about bogles. I was hoping when class started, all the noise would scare it off. But that obviously didn’t happen. So I tried rebuilding its old nest, hoping it would miss it and return. But I don’t think it wants to leave the Schoolhouse.” She looked at the Crusaders, and for the first time she wasn’t glaring at them. She seemed scared. “I don’t think there is a way to get rid of it!”

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  “There has to be some way to get rid of it!” Scootaloo insisted. “This is your aunt’s library, right? Maybe we could ask her?”

  “No!” Lilymoon said firmly. “We can’t do that!”

  “Why not?” Sweetie Belle asked.

  “Because.” Lilymoon glanced back, making sure the door to the foyer was still closed. “I’m not supposed to go out into the Forest without them.”

  “So what were you doin’ out there?” Apple Bloom asked. Lilymoon sat down in one of the ancient chairs, and a cloud of dust flew around her.

  “My father is an expert on reading the stars. Astrology, science, magic. My mother spent her life studying the plants of Equestria. She can recognize every leaf, root, branch, and berry that exists, especially the ones with magical properties. My sister is a natural with potions and spells, and Auntie Eclipse… well… she knows everything about anything that has ever happened in Equestria.”

  “They sound smart! Why don’t we want to ask them how to get rid of the bogle again?” Sweetie Belle asked, confused.

  “I can hear exactly what they would say.” Lilymoon groaned. “Oh, Lilymoon, you shouldn’t have gone out alone. Oh, Lilymoon, don’t mess with things you don’t understand. Oh, Lilymoon, why can’t you be brilliant and amazing just like the rest of us? Oh, Lilymoon, why are you such a disappointment?” Lilymoon frowned at the Crusaders. “My family has very high expectations. I was exploring the forests of Trotsylvania with my mother when I got my cutie mark. We were studying the flight patterns of perytons.”

  “What’s a peryton?” asked Scootaloo.

  “No
t now!” scolded Apple Bloom. She nodded to Lilymoon to continue.

  “I wasn’t sure what a book had to do with magical creatures. I thought maybe I was supposed to study and catalog them. That’s why I was trying to study the bogle. I don’t know. I just want to show my family I’m good at something. You all wouldn’t understand.”

  “Actually,” Apple Bloom said, “I think we have a pretty good idea of what it’s like to want to figure out what you’re good at and prove yourself to ponies you look up to.”

  “You do?” Lilymoon asked.

  “Definitely.” Apple Bloom turned to the others. “So, Crusaders? What do ya say?”

  “I say we’re gonna come up with a plan to catch a bogle,” Scootaloo said.

  “I say I’m gonna regret everything about this,” Sweetie Belle said with a groan.

  Lilymoon stared at the Crusaders. She looked confused. “Why would you help me?” she asked.

  “That’s what friends do,” Apple Bloom responded simply.

  “I don’t have friends,” Lilymoon replied.

  “Well, with that attitude, I can see why,” Scootaloo fired back. Apple Bloom shot her a look. “What?” Scootaloo asked innocently.

  “She’s right,” Lilymoon admitted. “I don’t know if you noticed, but my family isn’t exactly ‘warm and fuzzy.’ I guess I’ve always come across a little different. So nopony ever asked to be my friend and I never tried.”

  “Well, you got three friends now,” Apple Bloom said. “And we’re gonna help you fix this.”

  “Thank you,” Lilymoon said, relief flooding her face.

  “Now,” Apple Bloom said, “let’s think this through.” She paced back and forth. “You said bogles like decorating their nests, right?” Lilymoon nodded. “And they hate when anypony disturbs them?”

  “Pip found that out the hard way,” Scootaloo reminded them.

  “Well then, the first part of the plan is easy. We mess up the Schoolhouse and make the bogle mad,” Apple Bloom said to the others.