//------------------------------// // Settling In Surprise // Story: Legend of Everfree: Another Story // by ArcanaMaverick7 //------------------------------// After everyone was given their tents or made their own sleeping arrangements, the campers started to put away their stuff. "I'm all for learning safety rules, but I do hope I can get started on my designs for the camp fashion show sooner rather than later," Rarity sighed as she walked toward her tent with Applejack and Bianca Coloratura. "I can help you out if you want," Bianca offered. "Before I went to follow my dream as a pop star, I helped my mom out in her boutique as a seamstress and designer." Rarity smiled at the offer and turned to the Dove Faunus. "That would be wonderful of you, darling." "I still can't believe you talked Gloriosa into havin' a fashion show," Applejack remarked. "We're in the middle of the woods, for cryin' out loud! We're supposed to be roughin' it," she exclaimed as she gestured at the campgrounds. "It's clear from Gloriosa's own wardrobe that she appreciates a well put together look. Even if we are in the 'middle of the woods', Applejack," Rarity stated. "Fair enough," Applejack said as she kept walking. "Just as long as you don't put me in one of your fancy pants outfits. ...You're gonna, aren't ya," she asked as she pointed an accusatory finger at her fashionista friend. Rarity attempted to deny it, but she then said she would with an excited laugh. "Don't worry, darling. It'll absolutely speak to your personal sense of style," she told Applejack. "And if it doesn't you could borrow something from Azalea's wardrobe," Bianca said. "I actually made that jacket she wears now." "Really," Rarity asked excitedly. "That's some amazing work! Can you show me how to do it myself?" As Rarity and Applejack walked to their tent with Bianca, they passed by the Sapphire Tent. Inside, Sunset Shimmer and Twilight Sparkle were unpacking with Azalea and Layla helping them. Soon, Shimmer found a flashlight she packed and turned in on to shine light under her face like she was telling ghost story. After making ghost noises, she turned it off and looked back at Twilight, Azalea, and Layla. "That was weird back there, right? With that guy, Filthy Rich," Shimmer remarked. As Sunset told the girls what she thought, Twilight was distracted by something. "Something's up," Azalea said as she handed Sunset Shimmer a spare shirt from her bag. "People like him come to my family's farm from time to time and nothing good ever comes of it... Usually for them when my dad shows them a new definition to the phrase 'tree hugger'." "How so," Spike asked as he rested in a dog bed that Twilight brought with her. "He throws them into a tree hard enough that they get stuck or something breaks," Azalea answered in a deadpan tone. "Ouch," Spike replied as he winced at the thought. "I just have this feeling that Gloriosa's hiding something," Sunset Shimmer stated as she was suspicious with how Filthy Rich and Gloriosa Daisy interacted with each other early. Putting it aside, Shimmer changed the topic to something else. "Her brother's pretty cute, though, huh," she asked Twilight as she leaned on her bag, causing something to fall onto the ground. "He's okay," Twilight responded as she blushed at Sunset bringing up Timber Spruce. "Ooh, now look who's trying to hide something," Sunset Shimmer and Layla teased. "No, I'm not," Twilight said a little too quickly. "Hey, you okay," Shimmer asked as she and Layla stopped teasing Twilight. "You seemed a little freaked out on the bus earlier." "Yeah, we could hear it over the Scroll my uncle gave you," Azalea added. "She probably had another one of her nightmares," Spike said. Twilight tried to get her dog to stop talking by dropping a pair of socks on his head. Layla and Azalea were a little concerned when they heard Spike say 'another'. "I'm fine," Twilight indignantly told the girls before sitting on one of the beds in the tent. "I mean, what do I have to complain about? Ever since I transferred here, everyone from CHS has been really nice and accepting, especially considering what happened at the Friendship Games." As Twilight explained how she's been changing since her transfer, she frowned when she recalled the Friendship Games. "That wasn't your fault," Sunset told Twilight as she, Azalea, and Layla all sat down with her. "Principal Cinch is the one who encouraged you to try and use all that magic to win the Games for Crystal Prep. You weren't ready to have that kind of power. But it's over now. All those Grimm were taken care of, too. And if there's any group that's gonna forgive you for something that happened in the past, trust me, it's this one," Sunset said with a smile as she put her hand on Twilight's shoulder. After Sunset finished her pep talk to Twilight, Rainbow Dash and Rua Amaranth poked their heads into the tent. "You guys coming or what," they asked. "Be right there! I just want to put on some sunscreen," Sunset told them. When they left, she checked her bag only to find it wasn't inside. "Huh. I coulda sworn I packed it." As Spike and the girls started looking around the tent, Twilight noticed the bottle on the ground next to Sunset. "Found it," Twilight told everyone as she pointed at the bottle. But when she did, it was surrounded with a sparkling raspberry-colored aura and started to levitate in front of her and Sunset. Looking around the room, the girls and Spike saw more objects floating around and were covered in the same aura. "Layla," Azalea asked as she looked at a few books and Spike's dog bed floating by. "This isn't me," Layla explained. "My Semblance doesn't have this kind of aura and even if it did, it would be the same color as my own." Sunset Shimmer looked around the room before turning back to Twilight, who was looking creeped out by what was happening. "Did you... How is this possible," Sunset questioned. "I can't believe this," Twilight said as she looked on in frightened horror. "It's..." "Amazing!" "Terrible!" After the girls voiced their thoughts about the situation, the objects that were floating around the room dropped as the aura around each one faded away. Spike fell out of his bed as it dropped to the ground, but Azalea was quick to catch the dog before placing him on the closest bed. Sunset Shimmer, Azalea, and Layla were surprised to hear that Twilight didn't have the same opinion as them. "What?! You're joking, right," Layla asked in disbelief. "This is so cool! It's like you have the same Semblance as me and one of our teachers back at Beacon," she told Twilight as she demonstrated her Telekinesis by lifting Spike off the ground and placing his dog bed underneath him before releasing him onto it. "Yeah! This is great," Sunset agreed. "I mean, we've all ponied up before, gotten the whole ears and wings and tail thing, shot magical rainbow lasers, but nothing like this has ever happened! How did you do it?" "I don't know," Twilight told them as she still showed fear on her face. "Maybe I didn't. Maybe it's her," she said, referencing somebody that confused the girls. "Her who," Shimmer and Azalea asked as they placed their hands on Twilight's shoulders, who flinched away as she dismissed the subject. "Nothing. Never mind. Can we just not talk about it? And could you please not bring this whole levitating thing up to the others," Twilight told the girls. "Why not," everyone in the tent questioned. "You heard Applejack. This is supposed to be the place where everyone can get away from magic. I don't want them to know I brought some crazy new kind with me," Twilight said. Azalea could tell that Twilight didn't want to talk about her own problems and fears of what was happening. The Cow Faunus remembered her own troubles back at Beacon during the first few months of school. "I don't think you can get away from every problem you have," Azalea told Twilight. "I'm speaking from experience when I say that things that haunt you always have a way of coming back until you confront them head-on." "Like Team JADE," Layla said with disgust and anger coating her tone. "If you really don't want me to, I won't say anything," Sunset said to Twilight as the latter was about to exit the tent. Twilight lingered at the tent before giving her answer. "I really don't." Azalea and Layla looked at each other before they turned back to Twilight. "We'll be quiet about for now," they told her. "Okay, but this isn't necessarily a bad thing," Sunset voiced to Twilight as the girl left the tent and headed for the dock. Looking down at the floor, Sunset noticed the bottle of sunscreen at her feet and wanted to try something. Holding out her hand and placing two of her fingers at her temple, Shimmer tried to see if she had gotten telekinesis as well. As she tried to levitate the bottle, Sunset failed to move it and let out a sigh when she couldn't use the same magic as Twilight did. "I think you're just gonna have to pick it up," Spike said as he sat next to the bottle. Sunset sighed in defeat before grabbing the bottle normally. Layla chuckled at what happened and spoke to the CHS camper. "Wanted to see if you could use it yourself," she asked. "Yeah," Shimmer replied as she opened up the bottle. "I thought that if Twilight got it, maybe I could've gotten some of my old magic back." "Right, you're a pony back in Equestria," Azalea remembered. "Almost slipped our minds." "I think several classmates forgot it as well," Shimmer said with a smirk as she applied sunscreen to her face and neck. Azalea and Layla left the tent first, leaving Spike and Sunset Shimmer to follow behind as the latter applied sunscreen to her arms. While she was doing that, she and Gloriosa Daisy bumped into each other. Sunset tried to steady herself by holding onto Gloriosa's arm before she heard something. "—show up like that!" "What did you say," Sunset Shimmer asked as she and Gloriosa balanced themselves while Azalea and Layla watched on. "I... didn't say anything," Gloriosa replied in confusion before perking up. "Just here to make sure everyone was headed over to the docks! Did you three need something?" "Nope," the three girls replied. "Because if there is anything I can do to make this week the best week ever, you just let me know," Gloriosa said in a cheerful tone. "I've got this!" "Thanks, I'm good," Sunset said as Gloriosa walked away to check on the other campers. "People that chipper make me nervous," she said to Spike, Azalea, and Layla. All of a sudden, Pinkie Pie showed up next to the girls. "This is gonna be so much fun," she exclaimed with her usual enthusiasm as she brought Sunset Shimmer, Layla, and Azalea into a big group hug. "I guess not all people," Sunset remarked as she smiled at her friend's antics. "I think her happiness is rubbing off on me if I can handle her after all this time, she thought to herself. After Pinkie released the girls from her grip, the four girls and the dog headed off to the camp's dock to meet up with everyone.