//------------------------------//
// Chapter 12 
// Story: Settling In 
// by A Wild Magikarp 
//------------------------------//

	In the early hours as Celestia's sun began is rise over the mountainside to illuminate a new day, the residence of Ponyville woke to start their days. Some went out to their market stalls to set out their goods, others to the stores to ready them to receive customers, and still others just to get a head start on the day. Despite the comparative size difference of the town compared to Canterlot only a few miles away, it almost seemed to buzz with more life in the early hours than the capitol city. With few exceptions, it seemed that everypony had someplace to be, and something to be doing. One of those exceptions, as it happened, was the newest addition to the Ponyville populace.

Sky's day started differently than any others; with an impatient feline batting at his muzzle. Something he was more accustomed to than he would have like. Cracking open his eyes to see Selene sitting on top of him, he gave the cat a unamused look, which was taken in stride.

"You can't give me one day to adjust can you? Not even one?"

Her response was another swat on the nose, and a meow. She knew he was frequently grumpy and slow to start in the mornings, but that was why she was there. There where things that could not be left undone, regardless of what kind of day it was before.

Sky sighed, before resigning himself to an early morning once again. Stretching with a groan, he displaced the cat from her place on his chest and stood from the bed to begin the usual morning lineup. Searching through the baggage, Sky located his toothbrush, toothpaste, and upon considering the day before, his towel and soap.

Twenty minutes and a hot shower later saw Sky much more bright eyed and bushy tailed. Leaving the bathroom, this time sighing contently, he saw it also left Selene no less impatient, as her reasons for waking him had yet to be fulfilled. She meowed again, this time in a almost pleading tone, which elicited a small laugh from her owner.

"Alright alright, I get it, your hungry. Gimme a sec to find the food."

It did not take long to find the cat food, as Selene had been given her own bags to travel with. A pony can only go so many trips with their luggage smelling like cat litter before something has to be done after all. Taking out the cat-pan, toys, and other bits and pieces, Sky went about making the house ready for its new feline resident, before cracking open a can of cat-food and pouring it into a bowl, which Selene promptly attacked.

"Huh, I forgot that you haven't eaten anything since those fries yesterday at the cafe. Sorry about that girl."

With his cat cared for, and no other immediate needs presenting themselves, Sky was now left to consider his own breakfast. He had not wanted to travel with to much, so the pantries contents had not come with him from Canterlot. But considering he now knew the location of one of the best eateries he had ever visited, and the sizable amount of stalls that he had seen yesterday selling food, he felt confident finding a meal would be no problem.

"Kay girl, I'm going to head out know. You know where all your stuff is, so feel free to poke around."

Selene didn't respond, her face still buried greedily in her food bowl. Sky took that as his que to leave, and after a quick check to be sure that he had plenty of bits on him, he made for the door.

To his surprise, his front porch was not empty. Standing with her hoof raised in a way that suggested that she was about to knock, was an unfamiliar earth pony mare. The open door seemed to catch her by surprise, as much as the fact that she was there did to Sky. There was a moment of silence as both ponies took a moment to look at the other in confusion.

The first thing that struck him about her was her bright emerald eyes. They where an almost piercing shade of green unlike any he had seen before. Following that her choice of head-wear drew his attention, a hat that he had a hard time naming. A stampson if he recalled correctly, though he could be wrong. Her blond mane and tail where done up in ponytails, a style that she had chosen for function rather than form, if he had to guess. Not that it was an unappealing hairstyle by any means, but looking at her orange coat he could easily tell that she was a much more physically active pony than he was, a lean but muscular build suggesting hard work of some kind. Three apples adorned her flank, and upon seeing them he decided she must be a farmer, if the apple orchard down the road was any clue.

The mare blinked once before a friendly smile took its place on her face. She reached up and gave a light tug at her hat in greeting.

"Howdy neighbor! Names Night Sky, right? Ahm Applejack, owner of Sweet Apple Acres, the orchard just over yonder. Sorry fer the look there, I was just expecting somepony... older ta answer the door."

Sky shook his head a bit to clear it of his current train of thought, before what she had said caught up with him.

"Umm... yes, that's me. Why is that, if you don't mind me asking?"

"Well, when Apple Bloom told me somepony had finally set up in the new observatory, she din't really tell me a whole lot about what ya looked like. An pardon if it sounds just a bit presumptuous, but when ah think off a scientist or what have you, I think of those older fellers with white manes and lab coats."

That was understandable, Sky thought to himself. He WAS the youngest astronomer at the university, though perhaps not the youngest pony working there. And while he may not be what she expected, their was no shortage of stallions who fit her description back in Canterlot.

"Heh, ya, I'm surprised I don't get that more often now that I think about it." He said, running his hoof through his messy of a mane, which was not yet fully dried. "But no, I'm the new pony she was talking about. So, your Apple Blooms... sister, right? I think she mentioned having an older sister yesterday, and you're to young to be her mom."

"Hehe, well thank you kindly for the compliment sugarcube. Yes, Bloom's mah sister, and I will have you know that she spoke very highly of you despite how short ah time she's known ya. Might have somethin' ta do with the fact that she apparently got permission to poke around in your fancy new facilities with her friends though, doesn't it?" She asked with a knowing grin.

Sky groaned at this. So word had started getting around that he was giving tours of his RESTRICTED work area huh? Great. He was going to have to work up his tolerance to cute more if he hoped to survive those three.

"Now don't you worry about that partner, I already told her that she can't go off and brag none to any of her other friends at school 'bout getting to visit this place. Don't want you getting mobbed by a buncha' school foals do we?"

This brought some much needed relief to Sky, knowing that he would be safe from anymore tour requests.

"Thanks for that. I really shouldn't be letting them in in the first place, not without permission at least. It's just a lot harder to say no to those three than you'd think."

"Ya, well, wait till their askin' ya for bits to go buy manticore huntin' supplies, then you won't find it so difficult."

"... I can't tell if your serious or not."

The look he received in response told him all he needed to know about how serious she was being.

Remembering why she was here, Applejack craned her head around and grabbed the green saddlebag she had been wearing, setting it down in between the two of them.

"Well considering Pinkies party last night, ah feel ah can safely say that I will not have been the first to welcome you to Ponyville. Ah WILL however be the first, and probably only pony to welcome you to the neighborhood, considerin' there ain't really anypony else livin' this far out of town. So, on behalf of the Apple Family, I would like to present you with this!"

Reaching into the left bag, she pulled out a large white box, which she then opened to reveal a large, steaming hot apple pie. The smell alone was enough to remind Sky of how hungry he was, his stomach growling against his will. Blushing lightly, he chuckled and looked away.

"Hah! Ah reckon that mean ya like it? You probably got a taste of Apple cuisine at the party yesterday. We down at the farm couldn't make it with to much work being left tah do, but Granny Smith worked up a storm in the kitchen when Pinkie came in askin' for help with the food. Figured it was the least we could do, and after hearin' what you're doing for the Crusaders, felt like you deserved a little something more for your troubles."

As much as he wanted insist that they shouldn't have gone through the trouble, Sky's stomach was to busy growling at him to make any such attempt seem genuine. So instead, he took the offered box and set it on his back, the heat of the pie inside warming his back.

"Thank you very much miss. You can probably tell by now that I was just about to go out to get something to eat. It looks like that won't be a problem anymore thanks to you."

Applejack offered a hoof, which Sky quickly took and shook.

"Aah, think nothin' of it sugarcube. Anyways, ah have to get back to work, and ah get the feeling your eager to dig in, so I'll leave ya be. See ya around, and don't be a stranger, ya hear?"

With that, she turned around and made her way down the path, back towards the road to the orchard.

"I won't! Have a nice day, and thanks again!"

Closing the door, Sky moved into the kitchen, where he set down the box, still warm to the touch, and smiled. So far, so good. It seemed that it was much easier to get settled into this new town than he thought it would be. There had been a few bumps along the way, but overall, it had been a fairly successful move. And with the Princess's talk last night, he was feeling much more confident now than when he had first arrived.

Returning to the luggage once more, Sky found a fork in the sparse collection of kitchen supplies he had brought along, and returned to the pie thankfully still untouched by Selene, who was apparently full after the large serving of food she had been provided. Spearing a piece of the delicacy rather than cutting it into slices as he had the night before, took another moment to savor the smell before diving wholeheartedly into the meal. As he ate, he thought to himself.

Just as delicious as last nights sample. I MUST go and thank Granny Smith in person for these little wonders, and perhaps ask for some pointers on how to make my own. So far, this day is starting on the right hoof.





"A-are you sure she went in... there, Elizabeak? It doesn't seem like her to wander off like that. Especially someplace so... dark."
Elizabeak shook her head furiously, turning and pecking at the tracks she had been showing her caretaker.

"Yes I see them, and they do look like Cluckeny's clawprints, but... the Everfree is a really, REALLY dangerous place, and I'm sure that even a little chick like herself would know better than to go in there. Maybe there just... another birds old tracks?"

Elizabeak simply returned to pecking at the dirt path into the forest, adding in a few agitated squawks as she did so.

Fluttershy sighed. She knew she was just making excuses at this point. There was no way around what had happened. Last night had been so exhausting, going to Pinkies party and staying late talking with the new pony, that she had decided to go to bed right after Rainbow Dash had dropped her off. She figured that she had already feed all of her animal friends, and that none of them would need any more help that night. Had she done her nightly rounds, she would have found a hole in the chicken-wire around the coop, and patched it before some little chick like Cluckeny had gotten out and wandered off by herself. Now, there was a baby chicken somewhere in the Everfree forest that was probably lost, and afraid, and hungry, and...

Fluttershy gulped, looking up at the ominous trees, that almost seemed to be looming over her despite her distance from the shade of their branches. It was her fault that the chick got out, so it was her job to find it. Nopony else would, and she couldn't bring herself to say now to her animal friends at the best of times, let alone when it was an emergency such as this.

Knees still shaking in fear, she turned to Elizabeak.

"S-s-stay here Elizabeak. I w-want you out of the forest. It's dangerous, and I don't want you getting caught like you did l-last time, o-ok?"

Elizabeak was not a chicken to easily forget, especially when it was an encounter such as the one she had with the cockatrice. Sitting exactly where she was, she squawked out an affirmative to the demure pegasus. Fluttershy looked back into the foreboding darkness of the forest, still dimly lit despite the sun that was now high in the sky. Another breath to steel herself, and she took her first step into the shadows.