//------------------------------//
// Chapter Two: Aquainted 
// Story: Protector 
// by JDPoni 
//------------------------------//

	Rarity walked toward the library, basket levitating beside her, trying to tone out most of the noise around her.  All the noise seemed to be coming from one source, and Rarity was simply too tired to deal with it right now.
“So that’s when I said ‘then all you need is a rubber duckie!’ and then Cranky’s eye started to twitch, and he just looked soooo funny that I had to start laughing and…”
“Hey you two” Applejack called out, crossing the street to meet them.
“Applejack, thank heav…” Rarity paused, and quickly cleared her throat.  “It’s… wonderful to see you here so early.  I would have expected you to still be in your fields by now.”
“Nah, Big Mac helped out early today.  They said I needed to take some ‘me time’ every once in a while, whatever that means.  But today it means I can show up nice and early so we can get to eatin’.”
“Did you guys hear about that creepy guy that was wondering around town last night?”  Rarity shuttered as she spoke.
“Huh?”  The other two ponies looked at her, speaking almost at the same time.
“Somepony was wandering around town last night, an eerie glow following him everywhere.”  She looked at the other two ponies, concern etched onto her face.  “Did you see?”
Applejack shook her head.  “Nope, I turned in kinda early last night.  Thought I had a lot more work this morning.”
“I didn’t notice anything.”  Pinkie Pie giggled.  “Then again, I was pretty tired after watching the Cakes’ foals again.  I don’t think I would’ve noticed a stampede through Ponyville!”
Rarity simply sighed.  “Oh well.  I’m sure it’s nothing to worry about.  Woulnd’t you agree, Fluttershy?”
Fluttershy smiled at the three, turning around to face them as they approached.  “I’m sorry, what are we not worrying about?”
“Never you mind, it’s just Rarity fussin’ over nothin’.”  Applejack gave Rarity a knowing look.
Rarity looked back, an annoyed look on her face first, but it soon softened as she realized she didn’t want to worry Fluttershy either.  “Oh, it’s nothing, I’m sure.”
The four walked to Twilight’s in relative silence for almost a full second when Pinkie Pie bounced up.  “Ooh, ooh!  If there’s a new pony in town, then it’s somepony I haven’t met yet!  I’ll have to find out who it is and throw him a PARTY!”
"So much for not brining Fluttershy into it’ Rarity thought to herself.  “Well, we’ll meet him, or her, soon enough.  For now, I’m looking forward to a peaceful afternoon in the park.  Where’s Rainbow Dash?”
“Aw, she’s probably already at Twilights.” Applejack blew a stray strand of hair out of her face.  “Just wantin’ to beat us there, I recon.”
“I heard that!”  The four looked up to see Rainbow Dash descending from the sky.  “And I did beat you here!”  She landed in front of the four, just in front of Twilight’s door.
Applejack looked back to the sky, a smirk on her mouth.  “Yeah, probably because you didn’t clear out the clouds like you said you would.”
“Pff, whatever.  You know how fast I could get that done.  Besides, the clouds are light today.  They look nice.”  Rainbow turned around and knocked on the door.  “Why does every day have to be cloudless?”
Just as Fluttershy opened her mouth, the door to the library opened, revealing Twilight smiling at the group.  “Hey there.  Come on in. I was just getting everything ready.”  She turned and walked toward her table, a large picnic basket sitting on top of it.  “I just put a little something together.  I hope you guys like daffodil sandwiches.”
The group entered the library, Rarity looking over the basket.  “Did… did you make the sandwiches, Twilight?”  Everypony but Twilight slowed, a worried look on their faces.
Twilight didn’t seem to notice.  “No, Spike woke up early to make them.  I guess he just wanted to be extra helpful today.  Why?”
“Oh, no reason.”  Fluttershy, Rainbow dash, Applejack, and Pinkie Pie let out a quiet ‘whew’ as Rarity responded to her friend, trying to remain as subdued as possible.  Everyone remembered the last time Twilight made the picnic food, accidentally using sugar instead of salt.  Even though it was an honest mistake, Spike had been careful to make sure he was ‘extra nice’ the days of the picnic ever since.  Rarity made a mental note that he would have to thank the little dragon later. 
“By the way, I don’t suppose that you all could do me a tiny little favor, could you?”  Twilight gave the group her biggest expectant smile.
“What is it?” Pinkie asked.
“Well, there’s a new pony in Ponyville that I met last night…”
Twilight found herself cut off by Rarity.  “You met that creepy pony that was skulking around last night?”
Twilight’s face fell a little.  “Rarity... He wasn’t skulking around.  He was looking around the town.  He’s been assigned here by my brother to help keep Ponyville safe.  He’s a member of the Royal Guard.”
Rarity instantly perked up.  “A member of the Royal Guard?  Oh my, what’s he like?”
Applejack stepped forward, stepping between Rarity and Twilight.  “How’d you end up meeting him anyway?”
“I was up late last night, and he delivered a letter from my brother.”  Twilight shifted from one side to the other.  “So, we got to talking a little, and I kind of ask if he wanted us to show him around town.”
Applejack looked like she was going to say something, but Rarity stepped in front of her.  “But of course we should show this young stallion around town.  After all, if he’s new around here, he won’t know anypony, and that’s just a dreadful situation to be in.”
Twilight looked around to the others.  Applejack cleared her throat.  “Yeah, it sounds like a good idea.  Nothin’ wrong with bein’ neighborly with the new folk.  But we will get to eatin’, right?  I had a light breakfast for this here picnic.”
“Of course!”  Pinkie Pie bounced up and down and all around.  “I’m so glad you want your new friend to meet me, Twilight!  I’m gonna make sure to get the cake mix in the right slot this time!”
Twilight just looked to her friend, a little dumbfounded.  “What… cake mix… you know what, nevermind.  I’m just glad you guys seem to be on board.  I didn’t want to let a friend of my brother’s out in the cold.”  She looked over her friends, and noticed Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy floating above the rest.  “What about you two?  I want to make sure I’m not putting anypony out.”
“Nah, it’s cool.  I think it’s really awesome to help out the people close to your family, Twilight.”  Rainbow Dash shrugged.  “Besides, if he’s a member of the Royal Guard, he could get my name all over Canterlot, and then I’d get into the Wonderbolts for sure.”
Fluttershy shrunk back a little.  “Well, if everypony else is okay with it…”
“And what’s the matter with meeting new people?”  Applejack looked up to the yellow pegasus.
“Oh, nothing.  Except the meeting, and the… talking to new people.  And Canterlot Guards are so… big… and scary…”
Twilight let out a small giggle.  “Oh, believe me, Fluttershy.  Silver Arrow’ll be a pleasant surprise for you.  Trust me.”  She looked at the clock on her wall.  It read nearly noon.  “Speaking of which, he should be here any minute.”
“Any minute?”  Rarity began to fuss over every inch of her.  “How’s my mane, is it straight?  My hooves aren’t too shiny, are they?  You can never look too good for one of Canterlot’s elite, after all…”  A knock came from the door.  “Oh, that’s probably him!  Hurry, Twilight, answer the door!”
Twilight raised an eyebrow, but giggled a little to herself.  She walked over to the door and willed it open.  On the other side stood the red maned unicorn she met last night, this time without his armor.  “Hey, Twilight.  I’m not too early am I?  Your friends aren’t upset that I’m here?”
“Oh, no, please come on in.  I’ll introduce you to everypony.”  Twilight backed up a little and let Silver Arrow in.  “Everyone, this is Silver Arrow.”  She led him into the library, right in front of the group.
Applejack was the first to walk up.  “Howdy.  I’m Applejack.  I hear you’re here to help guard Ponyville?”
Silver Arrow nodded.  “Yeah.  With everything that’s happened over the past few months…”
“You don’t need to say any more.”  Applejack simply grinned at him.  “I’m just happy ta meet’cha is all.”  She held up her hoof, and Silver Arrow happily took it.  He soon kind of wished he hadn’t, as Applejack shook it with as much vigor as she normally does, leaving him a little shaken.
Rarity tried to wipe the disappointed look off her features and stood up tall.  “Hello.  My name is Rarity.  It’s a pleasure to meet a friend of Shining Armor.”
“I’m glad to meet you to, Miss Rarity.  I’m familiar with your name.  Ever since your designs have been showcased by Fancypants, they’ve been all the rage in Canterlot.”
Rarity looked a little shocked.  “You know of my designs?”
“Kind of hard to miss them when you guard the people wearing them.”  Silver Arrow simply smiled.  Rarity smiled back, looking much more comfortable.
Before the conversation could continue, Pinkie Pie landed right between them.  “Hi!  I’m Pinkie Pie!  I’m so happy to meet you!  I love meeting new ponies, and I’m sure we’re gonna be the best of friends!  I wanna get something really quick, so I won’t be there to help showing you around town, but someday soon I’ll give you the extra-special Pinkie Pie tour!  It’ll be so much fun!  But I’ll meet everypony in the park when we get that picnic, and we’ll have the most super fun picnic ever!  I’ll see you later!”  And with that, she left Silver Arrow completely dumbfounded as she hit eighty-eight miles an hour running out the door.
Everyone was silent for a second.  Silver Arrow finally opened his mouth.  “Ooookaaayyy…”  He looked to the other ponies in the room.  “Did… did I just scare her off, or was that something else entirely?”
Rainbow Dash landed right next to the colt.  “Nah, it’s just Pinkie being Pinkie.  I’m Rainbow Dash, by the way.  Nice to meet you.”
“Nice to meet you too.  Aren’t you the one who won the last year’s best young flier’s competition with that Sonic Rainboom?”
Rainbow Dash stood up taller.  “Heh, yeah.  You heard about that, huh?”
“Yeah, pretty much nothing the Pegasus Guards talk about other than that.  A few have tried to pull off a Sonic Rainboom.  It hasn’t worked out so well.”
“Yeah, I’ll bet.”  The rainbow maned pony gestured over to Fluttershy with her hoof.  “That’s Fluttershy.  She lives up to her name.”
Fluttershy walked up to the two.  “I’m okay, Rainbow Dash.”  Her voice was softer than normal, but still intelligible.  “I’ll admit I was a little nervous of meeting you, or any Royal Guard, you’re all so large, and stern-looking.  But you look nice. You’re so small, and light.”  Her smile was shy, but looked genuine.
Silver Arrow slumped down a little.  “Uh, thanks.”
Twilight shook her head a little.  “Well, now that we’ve all been introduced, shall we show you around town?”  She moved closer to Silver, simply smiling at him.
Silver’s face reddened.  “Uh, yeah!  Sure, that sounds amazing!”
Twilight turned toward the door and lead the group out, Silver following behind, trying to look confident, but still blushing.  Rarity and Rainbow Dash lagged behind, Rarity stifling a giggle.  “What’s up, Rarity?” Rainbow Dash asked.
“Oh, just noticing Silver Arrow’s huge case of love-at-first-sight.” 
“Yeah, I wonder how long it’s gonna be until Twilight notices.”  
“Probably never.”  Rarity began to trot out after the rest of the group.  “It’ll be fun to watch, even though he’s not exactly the model Royal Guard.”
Rainbow Dash let out an amused snort, following Rarity out of the library, shutting the door behind her.