As Twilight makes her way to Sweet Apple Acres, she finds herself wondering about why Discord would do something like this. She thought he was reformed. He did say he was bored. ...No. Discord was up to his old tricks again, she was sure. And after all that time she and her friends spent with him. She couldn't believe he would betray their trust like that. Especially with Fluttershy. She was sure of one thing, though. When she found him, she was going to make him sorry for tricking them the way he did.
She continued to make her way down to Apple Jack's farm, hoping to find a clue to where Apple Jack might be, and, possibly but much less likely, Apple Jack herself. she trotted up to her friends barn and knocked on the door, tapping her hoof as she waited-impatiently-for someone to open the door.
When it did open, she was face to face with Granny Smith, squinting at her. No doubt to make sure she knew who it was. When she finally recognized her, Twilight was in her face in mere seconds.
"Excuse me, Granny Smith! Would you happen to know if Apple Jack is home?!"
Granny Smith simply dug in her ear in a gesture that said "You;re too loud." before saying, "I reckon she left quite a while ago. To visit you in fact!"
Twilight looked at her for a moment before facehoofing. In her rush to find her friends, she had apparently forgotten that they were all present at her home only moments before this all happened. She thought of a new question. "Would you mind if I took a look around the barn? I think Apple Jack told me she left something here that she might need. She sent me to go get it for her."
Granny Smith thought about this for a second, staring down the purple mare. This made Twilight sweat profusely, nervousness coating her every movement as she stood stock still in front of the elder mare's scrutiny.
Her nervousness was only washed away as she heard Granny Smith say, "Alrighty then! Come on in. If Apple Jack sent ya, it's fine with me!"
She sighed audibly and stepped inside, walking around the barn like a mare with a purpose as she searched the place from head to toe as fast as she could. And what a purpose it was. She tipped over every hay bail she saw, checked inside and outside every pen she could see. and scoured every single solitary inch of land she laid her eyes on. She had to make sure she was extra thorough.
After finishing her search and finding absolutely nothing, not even a clue as to where her friend might be, she sat down on her haunches and thought. The only thing remotely close to a clue was a lasso tied to a tree out in the Apple Family Orchard, but after running trough every possible meaning it could have and finding no connection, she gave up.
Strangely, she took the thing with her. She didn't know why, but it was like, she needed to have it. She felt it was something she had to have.
She decided that if she couldn't find Apple Jack, she would try and find Rarity. Remembering that they were all with her before they disappeared ruled out the possibility that she would be back home. It would be easy to find a clue for her, though. All she would have to do is look for the shiniest, most fashionable thing she could think of, and she'd be there. Or so she hoped.
With that, she left the farm, giving Granny Smith a quick "Thank you!" as she galloped away back towards ponyville.
She made her way towards Rarity's home, which also doubled as the fashionista's very own boutique as well, and soon found herself face to face with it's door. She knocked carefully, afraid that her friend might be in the same predicament as Apple Jack.
It took a while for anyone to come to the door, and when it did open, the one to open it was Sweetie Belle, Rarity's younger sister.
"Hello?" She said in her usual small voice.
Yet again, she nearly knocked someone over with how fast she got in Sweetie Belle's face. "Hi Sweetie! Do you mind if I come in?"
Sweetie Belle pushed Twilight's face away from and said, "Sure, Twilight-" She grunts as she pushes her away. "-you can come in. Just hold on a second."
Twilight pulled back and waited, urgency in her eyes.
'Wow, she must be in some hurry.' Sweetie Belle thought as she opened the door further and let her in.
Once inside, Twilight immediately began searching the room. She pushed aside sowing machines, looked under fabric, lifted up mannequins. Heck she even undid clothing.
Sweetie Belle saw this and wondered just what Twilight was looking for that she had to mess up her big sister's home like this.
"What are you looking for?" she asked, wanting to know the more her home was torn up..
"I'm looking for any sign of Rarity." Twilight said as she lifted a stack of designs off of Rarity's work desk.
"Oooh are you two playing hide and seek?" Sweetie Belle asked in excitement.
"Yes." Was all Twilight responded with.
"Oh, I wanna play I wanna play! Can I? Huh, Can I?"
"No." Twilight turned around to look Sweetie in the eye.
"Aww, but why not?" Sweetie Belle whined.
"Because this is a very dangerous game of hide and seek." Twilight said pointing a hoof at Sweetie.
"D-dangerous!" Sweetie gulped.
"That's right."
"Are you going to hurt my big sister?" Sweetie asked, near crying now.
Twilight stopped.
"No, Sweetie. I would ne-"
"Please don't hurt Rarity, Twilight! Whatever she did, i'm sure she didn't mean it, so please don't hurt her! Forgive her!" Sweetie was crying openly now, begging and pleading Twilight not to hurt her sister, whom she loved so dearly. She was clinging to her leg.
Twilight almost cried herself. But she held it in and put her hoof around Sweetie in a hug. "I would never hurt Rarity. She is a treasured friend of mine. I love her."
Sweetie looked up at her, sniffling. "R-really?"
"Yep. I love her just as much as I do all my friends. I would never dream of hurting her." Twilight said, pride welling up inside her at the thought of her friends. She put her hoof to her chest.
Sweetie wiped her eyes. "Good. That's good. I'm glad."
Twilight used her magic to conjure a clock. She checked her remaining time. "Oh no! I only have eighteen hours left!"
She galloped out of her friends home as quickly as she could, taking the rind she found when searching under Rarity's designs, and leaving Sweetie Belle to wonder what happened.
As she went, Twilight thought of Where else to go search. She could go to Fluttershy's place, but it was so close to the Everfree Forest that her search might get interrupted by monsters as they try to attack her. What's worse, she might not even get in because of Angel Bunny and her tendency to be suspicious of anyone who isn't Fluttershy. She didn't want to go through having to tell her what was happening. That would take up time she didn't have.
She decided to go to Clousdale and look for any clues that could lead her to Rainbow Dash. But she couldn't just invade her home. She would have to ask the Wonderbolts if they knew anything.
She flew up to Cloudsdale and stopped at Rainbow Dash's cloud house. She may not be able to look inside, but she knew her way best from here. With that, she began her journey anew.