The following day, the news spread all over town. "The poisoner has been caught in a trap- it was Veil!"

In the afternoon, everypony gathered in the town square. Twilight and Applejack escorted Veil up to the stage, where Luna was waiting. Celestia was up there too, but she was in a wheelchair because she hadn't quite fully recovered yet. Watching from the crowd, Fluttershy drew in her breath sharply. She could see Veil's paws were bound in front of him. He jumped and snarled, biting at his guards as they hauled him along.

Once Veil was onstage, a scowl on his face, Luna addressed the crowd. "You see before you a young ferret called Veil. My sister gave him his name when he was brought here many years ago. Our friend Fluttershy showed him every kindness, trying to teach him the values of the life we live here, to honor, help, befriend, and never to harm others. Sadly he ignored all advice and went his own way, lying, cheating, stealing, and creating bad feeling among ponies. All this could have been forgiven, and has been countless times in the past. However, now Veil has passed the point of forgiveness. He tried to kill one of us."

"I knew he was trouble!" Octavia shouted.

"By rights he should be slain himself for attempting murder," Luna continued, "But my sister Celestia says she will not allow that. So instead, I say to you, Veil: You are no longer one of us. There is no place for you in Equestria. Veil, you must go now. I declare you Outcast!"

A cry like that of a wounded animal broke the silence. Fluttershy dashed onto the stage, trying to get hold of the young ferret. "No, no! Not my Veil! Please, let him stay. I'll look after him, he'll change, you'll see, I'll talk to him…!"

With great effort, Celestia stood up and intercepted Fluttershy before she reached Veil. "Hush now, be still, little one, he is a poisoner and would have murdered had he not been stopped. There is nothing more you can do for him!"

Veil looked stunned as Applejack cut the bonds from his paws, and he stared at Princess Luna, crying, "What about me? Where'll I go now? I've got no family, I'm alone. What'll I do?"

Seizing both the ferret's paws in a vicelike grip, Luna brought her face close and said through gritted teeth, "Little sixclaw the poisoner, eh? Do you know why Celestia named you Veil? She said it was because there was a veil over your life before you came to Ponyville, but the real reason was that Veil is an anagram of EVIL!"

"So, all ferrets are evil, huh?" Veil sneered. "Well, earth ponies are numbskulls. Pegasi are brutes. And unicorns are snobs!"

Luna yelled, "I knew who you were from the day I picked you up in that ditch! You're the whelp of that other six-clawed vermin, Swartt Sixclaw the Warlord! Now go an' work your evil somewhere else, scum!"

She did a magic spell with her horn and Veil suddenly found himself outside of the town. He could still see it in the distance, but when he tried to come closer, he found himself blocked by a magical barrier. He stood quivering with rage, shaking his six-clawed paw in a fist. "You ain't heard the last of me! You dyed these paws red, and red they'll stay to remind me that someday I'll be back! Then I'll slay every living one of you, but this time it won't be just poison I'll use, it'll be a noose, a rock, a dagger, anything I can lay my blood colored paws on!"

Meanwhile, back in Ponyville, Princess Celestia and Twilight Sparkle held Fluttershy close between them as she pleaded, wept, and begged for them to give Veil one last chance- Veil, the ferret she had reared and loved from a babe, despite all his evil ways.