//------------------------------//
// Chapter 23: Headquarters Established, Assignment Given 
// Story: Silver Spoon Adopts a Naga 
// by Halira 
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Sisstet caught a ride on Miss Applejack's back as all the foals made their way to Sweet Apple Acres. Candy had said something about restarting the Cutie Mark Crusaders to her Aunt Applebloom, and the mare had excitedly given instructions to take them somewhere. 

He wasn't entirely sure how they were supposed to be the new Cutie Mark Crusaders since Candy, Cheese, and Caramel all had their cutie marks, and he and Autumn couldn't get cutie marks. At least, he didn't think he and Autumn could. He was pretty confident that Silver Spoon had taught them that Kirin's equivalent of marks was differences in the shapes of their horns—which if you weren't a kirin, you might not notice all the details in the form. There hadn't been any lesson on naga getting or not getting marks, but since naga weren't ponies, it didn't seem likely. 

They were walking through the Apple orchard. Technically, Candy, Caramel, Cheese, Autumn, and Miss Applejack were walking while he rode and Miss Rainbow Dash flew along above them. 

It felt like they had been walking a long time, but this was the farthest away from the main part of town he had ever been. The farthest he had ever gone was from his old home to the School of Friendship, and if he had to guess, this was at least twice that distance. It definitely looked different than anywhere else he had ever been. There were trees everywhere, and he couldn't see any buildings at all. Being somewhere where he wasn't either in a building or where he could see a building made me feel very exposed and nervous, and made him grip all the harder onto Miss Applejack, but she didn't seem to mind.

Silver Spoon and Twist had said it was okay for him to visit the Apples, and wanted him to spend time playing with his friends. Spending time with his friends was great, but he had expected it to be somewhere they would be somewhere more familiar. Was this the woods? Would they run into a timberwolf? Candy wanted to fight monsters, but he didn't think she meant to start today!

"Almost there, ya'll," Applejack announced. "Ya'll are going to love it. Me and my friends played here when we were youngins. Applebloom and her friends took it over when they were young and gettin' up to mischief. Then finally, Bright Pear and his friends had it most recently. That there old treehouse has been the refuge of any number of foals."

"Um, Miss Applejack?" Cheese said in a wary voice. "If it is a treehouse, should Autumn be coming into it?"

Autumn stopped where he was and glared at Cheese. "Why shouldn't I come to the treehouse?"

"Um, you sort of catch on fire when you get mad. Fire and trees don't go together—sorry," Cheese squeaked. 

Applejack stopped and looked back. "Uhhh, maybe we can put a barrel of water in place— in case of emergencies. It shouldn't be a problem. There have been plenty of kirin in Ponyville for a while now, and the town hasn't burned down because of 'em."

"See, it's fine, Cheese," Autumn attested. 

"Ya know, Princess Twilight when she was much younger, and a unicorn still, would sometimes catch on fire too if she got too riled up," Applejack said in a nostalgic tone."Ah reckon that there are lots of unicorns that are like that. They say that unicorns are like distant cousins to kirin, so they do some of the same things sometimes."

"Candy has a flame as part of her mark, and she set part of the woods on fire," Caramel observed. "Can she catch on fire?"

Applejack shook her head. "Ah don't rightfully know—she could. That means havin' some safety precautions in place for fire ain't just because of Autumn. Plus, I know foals get up to trouble. Applebloom sure did give us all regular scares when she was a youngin'— gettin' into trouble in ways you wouldn't believe she could, so it's always a good idea to be ready for anythin'. Best not to go assumin' anythin' about anycreature."

"Doess it hurt? Catching on fire?" Sisstet asked. 

"I've never gone nirik, but my mom says it doesn't hurt," Autumn answered. He looked at Candy. "Kirin are supposed to go nirik, though. It would probably hurt for any other pony."

"Never hurt Twilight none," Applejack responded. "Maybe it has to do with it being your own magic. Ah ain't an expert in that. Haft to ask a unicorn mage, or my sister might know. Applebloom knows more about magic than most unicorns. Regardless, ah don't think it will be a problem."

Well, if Autumn's tail was any indication, it could still burn other creatures. Sisstet knew it would burn him at least.

Applejack came to a sudden halt that almost dislodged Sisstet from her back, but he managed to grip on her tighter. She grunted in discomfort, and he immediately loosened his coils slightly. 

"Okay, ya'll, we're here," Applejack announced as she pointed up at a tree.

Sisstet looked up at the tree. There was definitely something up there, but he couldn't make out what it was between all the leaves and branches. There was a long set of steps that ran down from the tree to the ground, but he couldn't see where it went in the tree. Was this supposed to be hidden?

"Ah, cain't really see it," Candy said in confusion. 

"It just needs a'little ol'fashioned handiwork," Applejack replied. "It's been sittin' vacant since Bright Pear couldn't use it anymore. There's a hole in the boards up there where he fell through. Ah told that colt that he didn't need to be jumping around up there with how big he was gettin', but the dang fool wouldn't listen."

Rainbow Dash landed down in front of them. "Don't worry. With me helping, you'll have this place fixed in five seconds flat."

"Only if they want it done wrong!" Applejack protested. 

Rainbow turned and glared at the farm pony. "Hey! Is that any way to talk about your future wife?"

Applejack stepped forward and butted heads, literally, with the pegasus. "Ya may be my intended, but that doesn't mean ah trust ya any more than ah ever did when it comes to putting somethin' together right. Ya rush too much and mess it all up!"

"Just because it is done fast doesn't mean it is done wrong!" Rainbow shouted as she spread her wings. Sisstet began to wonder if being on Applejack's back was a good idea. It seemed like the two ponies were going to fight. 

"Have ya forgotten what happened when ya volunteered to help with the zap apple harvest?" Applejack asked with a growl. 

"Hey! How was I supposed to know my pegasus magic would make the trees come alive and attack us? Who would have predicted that?" Rainbow said defensively.

"Or when ya tried to rush the barn raisin' durin' the last reunion?" Applejack continued.

Rainbow backed away and blushed. "Uhhh… that one might have been on me. Nocreature got hurt, hehe."

"Or when ah asked ya to help feed the pigs?" Applejack said without relenting.

"It… could have gone better. In my defense, I'm pretty sure that rooster had it out for me."

"Or—"

Rainbow did a few quick flaps of her wings and went into a low hover. "Okay, okay! I might not be the best at doing farm tasks. How about I help deliver the supplies here for the kids? I can't mess that up."

Applejack grunted. "Ah suppose—"

"On it!" Rainbow yelled, then dashed away through the air. 

The farm pony sighed and shook her head. "That featherbrain rushed off without checkin' with me to see what was needed or where to get it." Applejack let off a second deep sigh to punctuate her mood, then turned to the foals—minus Sisstet, who was forced to stay behind her head due to being currently wrapped around her. "Mind the hole in the corner of the house, but the rest should be safe for you to explore. Ah went out and looked this place over when we were searching for a certain little filly and colt the other day. Figured there were a small chance ya were hidin' here."

"Yeeeah—sorry 'bout that," Candy said sheepishly. 

"Sorry, Miss Applejack," Cheese said just as sheepishly. 

Applejack bent down, which Sisstet took as a sign it was time for him to exit his pony ride. He released his grip and slithered off quickly, 

"Go on up and check it out," Applejack insisted. "Just mind the place Bright fell through the floor."

Candy, Autumn, Cheese, and Caramel all ran by Sisstet and Applejack, and the other foals quickly ascended the stairs up into the tree. Not wanting to be left behind, and more than a little eager to be in an enclosed area, Sisstet hurried after them.

When he reached the inside of the treehouse, all the others were already looking around. There was a lot of space up here, enough for more than a dozen kids, if they squeezed in right. There was dust everywhere, and leaves, and everywhere a foal went, they left tracks in the dust. The walls were even covered in dust, although there were many rectangular spots on the walls that were less dusty—perhaps where something had previously been hanging. In the far corner, there was a large hole in the floor that Cheese was currently sticking his head in for a closer examination. There were two windows, and both of them currently had tree branches poking through them.

"This is perfect!" Candy exclaimed as she looked around. 

"Glad ya'll like it," Applejack called out from below. "Ya'll can take time to get your bearings. If Rainbow Dash shows up with the right supplies, you can fix that there hole, sweep out the dust and leaves, trim back the branches, and have this place lookin' good as new in no time." The farm pony paused. "And if she ain't got the right supplies, tell her, ah've gone back to the house, and she can come ask me like she shoulda before."

Caramel pushed Sisstet aside to look down the steps. "You're leaving?"

"Yep," Applejack answered. "Treehouse is a place for foals, not grown ponies. I expect ya'll to head back to the farmhouse before it gets dark, and one of us will escort Autumn, Cheese, and Sisstet back home. Till then, ya'll will be good on ya'lls own—long as you stay here. Ah'll see ya'll in a while. Have fun till then."

Sisstet slithered around the room at a slow pace, feeling the cracks in the boards beneath his scales. He came over by the hole in the floor and looked down before immediately pulling his head back and backing away from the gaping chasm. It was a sheer drop down to the ground through that hole and seeing it made his belly feel woozy. His first real exposure to heights had been when that bat pony had carried him around in a net, and he decided that he didn't like heights, not at all. Just thinking about heights made him want to hide, shiver, and bite all at once. 

"Alright, agents, now that we have our base of operations, it's time to get to the first order of business," Candy announced.

"Ya ain't huntin' monsters!" Caramel shouted. 

Candy waved a hoof. "Well, not yet. We ain't ready for that."

Sisstet felt a wave of relief. He didn't want to go hunting monsters. That sounded scary. "What are we doing?" he asked. 

Candy grinned. "Ah figured that since all the great heroes come in groups of six, like the Elements of Harmony, we need to enlist a sixth member."

"I'm confused," Cheese said while scratching his head. "Are we S.M.I.L.E, the new Cutie Mark Crusaders, or the Elements of Harmony?"

"We're usin' the name Cutie Mark Crusaders as an alias. We're really the Agents of S.M.I.L.E and the new Elements of Harmony!" Candy said proudly.

"We can be both?" Sisstet asked."And what's an aliass?"

"It's our name we give, so they don't know our secret identity," Candy explained. 

"How do we know what element we are?" Autumn asked with interest. 

Candy pointed at the kirin. "It's easy. Ya're the Element of Loyalty because ya're so loyal and devoted, and ya think ah'm cute."

Cheese giggled as Autumn blushed, and Candy turned her attention to the yellow colt. "And ya're the Element of Laughter because ya mom was Element of Laughter, and ya like to laugh." She pointed at her brother next. "And Caramel can be the Element of Honesty because an Apple should be Element of Honesty."

"Why not you?" Caramel protested. "Ya an Apple too!"

Candy flicked an ear. "Because ah have to be the Element of Magic, obviously. Don't go tellin' Ma and Pa we're doin' this either."

"Ya want me to be the Element of Honesty and lie?!" Caramel demanded in outrage. 

"Keepin' a secret ain't lyin'," Candy replied with a sniff. 

"What am I?" Sisstet asked.

The filly grinned. "Ya are the Element of Kindness because ya are shy and timid, like Fluttershy. We need to find an Element of Generosity to complete the team!"

Sisstet considered his designation. He had heard many creatures tell him lately that he was unusually shy and timid for a naga. It was true that he did scare easily, and he didn't like to interrupt others when they were talking, but he usually didn't think much about it. While being compared to Fluttershy was a good thing, he wasn't sure all the creatures had meant it as a good thing when they called him timid. The kingsnake that was coming was probably going to be judging him. What would the kingsnake think if it thought he was too scared of everything?

Maybe hunting monsters would be a good thing. It would prove that he could be brave, too, just as long as Candy didn't get them into too much trouble. 

"Now, let's get to work, figurin' out who is gonna be the sixth member of the Agents of S.M.I.L.E!" Candy ordered happily.