//------------------------------//
// =Chapter 4-Settling into Ponyville II= 
// Story: Tale of a Mecha-Pegasus: Overworld 
// by Zaarlika 
//------------------------------//

X was pleased with himself. Although physically gaining no more than four singed golden hooves and a few strained pistons, X had made himself...somewhat more accepted in Ponyville, after helping lots of ponies. Again it was nighttime.
"Uuuh, so..."Scootaloo scratched her forehead.
"I could stay in this 'clubhouse'."X suggested.
"If you want to."Sweetie Bell shrugged.
"I don't mind." X smiled.
"Well, ok then, if you're good."Scootaloo nodded.
"C'mon, y'all, we gotta go home!" Applebloom called from outside.
"Well, cya, X."Scootaloo waved as she left.
"Cya."Sweetie Bell smiled.
"Goodbye." X smiled back.
"Remember if you need anything don't be afraid to ask." Sweetie Bell pointed to where she lived, the Carousel Boutique. X simply nodded in response. Sweetie Bell waved and left. X pulled the blanket and pillow out of the corner and lay down on the pillow. He thought for a moment.
"Hey, so today..."X was about to start talking when he remembered no one was there.
"Oh, right."X bapped himself in the side of the head. Looking out one of the windows, he saw Applebloom laughing and talking with her family, and then moved his eyes to Carousel Boutique, where he saw Sweetie Bell chatting and occasionally laughing. X wondered what it was like to have a family. He shook his head. He was getting off-task. He was here to RESEARCH, not make friends and waste time taking ponies about a town. He hadn't learnt much today, except for the location of three towns from Twilight's map, Ponyville, Canterlot and Cloudsdale, which apparently floated. He'd have to go there sometime. He lay his head down, pulled the blanket over him and set himself to Recharge.

~~~

X woke up alone today, instead of being poked by one of the Cutie Mark Crusaders. He was woken up by the sound of a chamber in his 'gut' seeming to echo a rather unhappy sound. He realized he was hungry. Despite being a robot, his kind still had to eat, and the energy in that food was used to help top up his power supply. He put the bedding items Sweetie Bell had given him in the corner and headed outside. Under a tree not too far away he spotted his three friends, and promptly trotted over.
"Hello." X smiled.
"Oh, hey X." Scootaloo greeted.
"Say, I need food. Are there any sources of food nearby?"X asked.
"A robot needing food?"Sweetie Bell squinted.
"Yes. We use food to keep up our power supply."X responded. The three fillies stared at him attempting to understand. X sighed.
"We eat to stop us running out of battery."X re-explained. The three nodded.
"Well, yeah, there's restaurants all over the place but you need money."Apple Bloom  shrugged. X looked into his bag and lifted out the hefty bag.
"Is this 'money'?"X asked. The three ponies' jaws dropped.
"How'd you get that much? Are you a noble I. Your home or something?" Sweetie Belle asked.
"Well, no, actually I'm-"X started.
"Don't worry, X, let's go look!"Sweetie Belle interrupted, heading off towards the buildings that made up Ponyville.
"Yeah, come on!"Scootaloo motioned for him to come, as she and Apple Bloom followed.

~~~

"Sir, is all of this REALLY necessary?"the shopkeeper asked.
"Yes."X answered, eyeing him.
"It's not just for me."X added.
"Oooh, okay. Hang on."the shopkeeper nodded. He walked off into another room and a minute later came out with a tray of food.
"That's 15 bits, sir."the shopkeeper put the tray on the counter. A little unsure of how currency worked in Ponyville, he picked 15 'bits' the coins, out of his sack and placed them on the counter.
"Thank you sir, have a nice day."the shopkeeper smiled, picking up the coins. X picked up the tray and carried it to the table him and the Cutie Mark Crusaders were at.
'So that's how currency works here. Simple enough.'X thought as he put the tray down.
"Wow, X, we weren't expecting THAT much."Scootaloo chuckled.
"Oh well, more to go around!"Sweetie Belle grinned, gorging on her sandwich. X was not curious about this; he ate things back home. He picked up a sandwich and sat it in his mouth, and bit down. This was unusual, it didnt just go into his mouth and roll down like food in Magnafell did, this sat in his mouth and needed to be chopped up in his mouth and swallowed. Odd. He bit a little harder, and a piece came off, sending the rest of the sandwich back onto his plate. The Cutie Mark Crusaders laughed.
"What?"X asked as he threw the lump of sandwich down his throat with his tongue.
"That's not how you eat!"Scootaloo answered. X thought. Instead he tried forcing the entire sandwich into his mouth and chewed on that. The three fillies watched as he casually chewed on a whole sandwich.
"That works, but isn't how you eat either."Sweetie Belle explained. X simply shrugged. Worked for him. He lifted his book from his bag and opened it.
'Supposedly the surface is full of towns, like how our home is a city. One particular town we know of is known as 'Ponyville', and is primarily home to Ponies. There are apparently two other 'main' cities, and supposedly a 'capital' but these are not known. There are also plenty of smaller towns scattered around.'Interesting. Maybe Canterlot was one of these 'main cities'.
"Oh, hey X! What are you reading?"X's ears pricked up when he heard the familiar voice. He swallowed his sandwich and lifted his head from his book to see Twilight smiling at him.
"Uuuuh, it's not much. Here, have a look."X handed the book to Twilight. She read the title, which was 'Our guide to the surface', and opened it.
"Interesting. You don't know too much, do you? And what does it mean by 'our guide to the surface'?"Twilight asked, handing it back.
"Oh, yes, Me'etar is in a cave."X answered.
"Hm. So, do you like reading?"Twilight asked.
"Quite a bit, yes. Do you?"X responded.
"Yes, heaps. I live in a Library. Do you want to see it sometime?"Twilight asked. X thought. This could boost his research.
"I would love to."X answered.