Twilight looked around herself at her friends. Rarity, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, they had come to her without question when she'd mentioned the disappearance of Rainbow Dash, Applejack, and Scootaloo.
"Alright, girls. I don't know what's going on exactly, but I have a feeling we'll need our Elements of Harmony if we're about to stop it," the purple Alicorn decided. "I'll keep Applejack and Rainbow Dash's in my saddlebags for now. Spike, you watch over Applebloom and Sweetie Belle while we're gone, won't you?"
Spike nodded absentmindedly, fawning over a gemstone Rarity had brought with her for her poor Spikey-wikey.
"Spike?" Twilight tried again, but Rarity was quick to step in.
"Let me, darling," she offered to Twilight, then moved into Spike's view. "Oh Spikey-wikey, you wouldn't mind watching over these sweet little fillies for me while we're out, would you?"
Spike's attention was immediately drawn to Rarity and he was floating on a cloud of admiration before the Unicorn's question reached his ears. "Not at all, Rarity!" he quickly agreed, moving to stand on attention and saluting her like a good little soldier.
The two remaining of the trio of Cutiemark Crusaders were looking around a bit uneasily.
"We have ta stay here?" Applebloom wondered.
"In a library?" Sweetie Belle added.
"Why can't we come with y'all, princess Twilight? We'll behave?" Applebloom suggested, both looking up hopeful.
Twilight twitched an ear at that, but shook her head. "I'm sorry girls. If you stay here instead, and behave, I'm sure I can convince Pinkie to make her famous cupcakes for you?" she mentioned as potential bribe, and smiled lightly to herself as the two fillies perked their ears up.
"Yes princess," the both of them offered solemnly, only the prospect of cupcakes upon their sisters' successful return lifting their spirits a bit.
Pinkie was quick to jump in, rattling off about various methods of cupcake-making to help make them feel better, and Twilight had to pull her away from the fillies to get her to focus on the matter on hoof.
"Pinkie! We were planning on going after Rainbow and Applejack, remember?"
"Huh? Oh, yeah!" Pinkie grinned, hopping out of the door. "What are you waiting for, let's go!"
Twilight facehooved but followed behind, shaking her head a bit at Pinkie's oddities.
"Honestly, dear, I don't understand how Pinkie can be this happy at a time like this," Rarity commented, moving in on the princess' left side. "It's absolutely the worst possible thing that Rainbow Dash disappeared. Just when I had the perfect dress made for her too!"
"Well, um, maybe she's, er, just hiding her worries?" Fluttershy shrugged, moving up to Twilight's right. "I know I'm worried sick."
Twilight shrugged and looked at where Pinkie was headed. "Er, Pinkie.. The Unicorn Range is over to the North, not the South."
"Oh, I know!" Pinkie grinned, "But we can't go there directly. We have to go South to go North."
Twilight raised an eyebrow at that. "Why?"
"Because of the dancing frogs, of course. Duh."
Twilight sighed and rubbed a hoof to her forehead again, letting it linger as it touched her horn and again marvelling at how fast it had grown out. It almost looked as long as Celestia's or Luna's now.
"You start to look more and more like a real princess, Twilight dear," Rarity commented. "When will you come by so I can make you some exquisite royal dresses? You know you're growing out of your current outfits."
Twilight smirked and opened her wings, looking up at the sky. "Maybe later, Rarity. I have to see if I can find a trace of our friends first."
"Oh, my..." Fluttershy meeped, ducking out of the way as Twilight took to the sky with some strong movements from her large wings.
Pinkie bounced back toward her friends and shouted up at Twilight; "Don't touch the clouds!"
"Why shouldn't she touch the clouds, dear?" Rarity wondered, and Pinkie frowned at her.
"Because they're not clouds, duh."
Fluttershy looked up at the dark clouds spreading out from the North and backed away a bit. "The... they're not the fumes of a... another sleeping dragon, are they?"
Pinkie grinned and hugged Fluttershy warmly. "Of course not! What dragon would go sleep in a haunted mansion? That would be silly."
Fluttershy went pale. "H... h... haunted ma... ma... mansion?"
Twilight dropped down on the ground beside her and looked at her friends in turn. "No sign of either of them, but there's a weird cloud coming from the North. I suggest we head through the White Tail Woods since that's the fastest route we can take."
"I still say we should go South," Pinkie shrugged, putting on a rainbow-colored umbrella hat on her head which she'd pulled out of nowhere. "My right elbow stings, my left shoulder is itchy, and I have an upset stomach. It's not a combo I've had before."
Rarity sighed and walked past Pinkie and Twilight to take the lead, shaking her head softly. "Let's go then, dears. It looks like it's going to rain and I don't have a raincoat that looks nice with these saddlebags."
Twilight shrugged and moved to follow behind Rarity, with Fluttershy and Pinkie taking the rear.
It didn't take them too long after leaving Ponyville to reach the edge of the White Tail Woods, and the clouds above had drowned it in a gloomy darkness by the time they arrived.
Pinkie hopped merrily into the depths of it, singing her "Giggle at the Ghostly" song, while Twilight followed behind, her horn shining a bright light around her. Rarity had moved to the rear to push Fluttershy along as the poor yellow Pegasus was almost paralyzed with fear.
Twilight's bright light barely penetrated the dense forest around them, allowing them to see only a few feet around, and Fluttershy quickly gravitated to Twilight as she realized it was probably the safest place to be at.
"Hey, guys! Look at me! I'm Applejack!" Pinkie suddenly exclaimed, bouncing back from just outside the circle of light wearing Applejack's hat on her head!
Twilight rolled her eyes at Pinkie's antics, but then realized something. "Where did you get that hat, Pinkie?"
"I found it, just there!" Pinkie pointed, and Twilight immediately shone her light in that direction.
There was nothing but a normal looking bush where Pinkie was pointing, so Twilight asked her question again.
"Oh, it was lying here. Like so," Pinkie demonstrated, putting the hat back in place in a way that looked like it was blown onto the bush by a gust of wind, resting upside-down on it.
"She must have lost it due to the branches, the poor thing. I'm having enough trouble as it is keeping them out of my precious mane," Rarity suggested, and Twilight levitated the hat to herself.
"Most likely. It does mean we're on the right path, girls," she decided, folding the hat up and sticking it in her saddlebag with the Element of Honesty. "I've never once seen Applejack without her hat, though. Let's be careful as we go ahead."
"Found something!" Pinkie exclaimed not a moment later, and Twilight rushed toward the sound to reveal Pinkie poking an inquiring hoof at Scootaloo's scooter lying on the floor.
"Oh my, isn't that," Fluttershy started.
"Scootaloo's scooter, yes." Twilight frowned. "We're definitely on the right path. Can you hold onto it for us, Pinkie?"
"Okey dokey lokey!" Pinkie grinned, grabbing the scooter and making vroom, vroom noises as she drove around on it.
Twilight pressed on, feeling a pit in her stomach even before she reached the other edge of the forest. By the time she did, and the town beyond came into view, the pit in her stomach changed to mortal dread and a cold shiver ran down her spine.
"Oh my," Fluttershy remarked, cowering behind her.
"This can't be a good thing," Rarity exhumed.
"Oh, look! More friends!" Pinkie exclaimed merrily!