"This is ridiculous!" Twilight shouted aloud for the third time that morning.
She and Spike had been busy clearing up after the events of the previous night. As Twilight scrubbed away at the inkstained carpet, Spike grumbled from behind a stack of books:
"Got that right! I was busy all week tidying this place up! Now it's even worse than before! If I find out who this was…"
"My question is what did they want?" Twilight replied, spraying more cleaning foam on the carpet. "I mean, there's no sign of who it could have been, and apart from everything being messed up and rearranged, nothing's missing, so it wasn't a burglar"
"Yeah. Whoever it was, they must've had some really serious studying to do!" Spike said with a slight chuckle.
Twilight frowned at her assistant, trying her best to look disapproving of Spike's quip, while inwardly grinning at his remark. Her horn glowed a gentle purple as she levitated a stack of books back onto their shelf. Spike may have meant it as a joke, but who knows? Maybe he was right, and somepony really did break into the library for a midnight read.
But there weren't any signs of breaking in on the door, or the windows! Either their prowler was incredibly skilled in forced entry, or they had some other way of getting.
Twilight blanched as sudden fearful thought came over her. What if they hadn't broken in at night at all? What if they had been in the library beforehand, and just didn't leave when it closed?
She shuddered at the thought, quickly putting it out of her mind.
"Well, that's all of the books." She said, dusting her hooves on the carpet. "Spike, could you finish off cleaning the ink out of the carpets for me?"
Spike nodded, reluctantly grabbing a brush and bucket of water. "I guess so, but why can't you?"
Twilight slipped her saddlebag round her waist, making sure her purse was inside. "I'm heading into town to get some supplies. If our prowling friend makes another appearance tomorrow night, I at least want to know who it is."
Spike thought this over in his mind, then nodded "Sure thing."
With that, Twilight opened the door and headed out, leaving Spike alone. The dragon brandished the scrubbing-brush like a sword, dunking it with great flourish and pizzazz into the bucket of water.
"Alright, inkstains. You've met yer match!"
"There ya go, missy!" Said Mr. Snapshot jovially as he helped slip a pair of small boxes into Twilight's saddlebag. "You need any help with the tripod?"
The unicorn shook her head. "Ooh, if you would, thanks. Just slip it on my back, under the strap."
The friendly colt did just that. A small bag of coins levitated from Twilight's saddlebag and landed on the counter as she headed out of the shop.
"Thanks again, Mr Snapshot!" she called as she closed the door behind her and headed back to the library.
Now we'll see who our mysterious prowler really is! The cameras in their neat little boxes were a relatively cheap model, but she wasn't worried. As long as they took pictures, she'd be satisfied.
That afternoon, Twilight spent the majority of the day placing a clever little enchantment on the cameras. After many attempts, she sat down, sweat dripping down her face.
"That…that oughtta do it." She muttered to herself. "Now to test it."
She levitated one of the cameras onto a nearby table, unscrewing the lens-cap and pointing it at the doorway to the library. Standing to one side, she walked slowly past the porch, passing the door and heading towards the bookshelves.
Her hard work was rewarded as she heard the gentle Click of the camera. She smiled; finally, she got it!
Trotting over to the camera, she waited patiently as a small sheet emerged from a slot on the bottom of the camera. She gently pulled the photograph free and held it suspended in front of her face. It clearly showed her walking past the door to the library.
"Perfect." She muttered o herself, just as Spike emerged from the next room.
"Hey Twi. What'cha got there?"
"Oh , hi Spike. Just setting us up for tonight." She replied, beckoning him to join her.
Spike stood by her side, looking at the photo "Uh huh… so what does this have to do with the prowler?"
"Well Spike, those supplies I mentioned earlier… It was these little cameras I just bought. I put a spell on them so that they'll take a picture if anything goes through their line of sight. It wasn't easy, but I think I got it right."
Twilight's horn glowed again as she stood the tripod up in the middle of the room, screwing one of the cameras onto the top, facing the doorway. The other camera, she deposited on her bedside table, with a small book holding one end up, so that it faced the window.
"What's that one for?" Spike asked, pointing up to Twilight's bedroom.
Twilight hesitated for a moment. She hadn't told Spike about the shadow that passed by her window the other night, worrying that he might freak out more if he found out. She innocently smiled, shrugging.
"Er… Extra security. Just in case he came in through there. You never know…"
Hours later, the moon was high in the sky, gazing down on Ponyville.
Twilight lay awake in her bed, tossing and turning. She was confident that if anything happened, if their mysterious caller returned tonight, all the evidence they need would be there. But she was still apprehensive, nervous. Even a little excited.
It'd almost be a waste, she thought, if they don't come back…
A sudden sound reached her ears. Her eyes snapped open. They were here!
She made to get up, her ears perked up, ready to hear the telltale clicks of the camera downstairs.
Click!
And there it was. Whoever it was, she had their face now!
Click!
Twilight froze. That click was definitely closer.
Her gaze slowly turned to the small camera that lay perched on her bedside table. A shadow had fallen across the table, from the window.
There, framed in the window was the silhouette of a strange figure. Twilight froze with fear. It was coming in the window!
She shrunk back in terror as her eyes remained fixed on the strange pony, who stood motionless, staring back at her through unseen eyes.
Her heart was pounding. She wanted to scream, but her voice wouldn't work. She wanted to run, but she could not will herself to get up and flee from the terrifying sight.
But it did nothing. It didn't grab her, it didn't run away. It just stood there, occasionally shifting its balance on its unseen legs.
Twilight remained stock still. What did this pony want? Who was it?
She watched as something appeared to grow from the back of the mysterious pony. At first a lump. Then it grew, stretching out, like some bizarre tentacle, darker than any shadow. Twitching and wriggling slowly, the tendril felt its way through the night air, before turning to point directly at Twilight.
Cold sweat poured down the unicorn's face and body. Never mind who this pony was! WHAT was it?
The tendril slithered over the windowsill, snaking its way down the bed .
No. NO, get away! Get away!
Twilight pulled the covers over her head, quivering with terror.
Don't come any closer! Get away!
The covers were whipped back by some unseen force.
GET AWAY!
Twilight opened her mouth to scream, just as the tentacle wrapped itself around her head, shrouding her vision in darkness.