Eventually, Kalahari decided that she ought to go check up on the investigation. Leaving the book on the table, she went back to the exhibition hall.
Chandra must’ve finished up; ponies were milling around the doorway, if only to pack stuff away. Kalahari glanced through the crowd, trying to find Chan- There she was. It looked like she was stewing. Probably didn’t go well, then. “Didn’t find anything?” Kalahari asked.
Chandra kicked at the ground. “No,” she muttered. She cocked her head, thinking a moment, then added, “Well, not really. There was something, but it was probably nothing. Dark magic.”
Kalahari blinked. “Probably nothing? You call dark magic probably nothing?”
“Well…” Chandra said, “it was really faint, and the pony working with me didn’t feel anything. I might’ve thought I felt something when I didn’t.”
“Still…”
“But even then, it’s- Well, it’s complex, and it’ll be in the report or whatever. You can read it then. But basically, we don’t know who could’ve done it, so we’re back with nothing.”
“Not exactly,” said Phalanx, walking up to them. “I’ve got that sketch of the witness.” He twitched his wing, showing a corner of the paper. “I know some ponies here who know ponies in the Crystal Empire, so, on the million-to-one off chance that they know this pony, I’m going to ask them for help. If that’s okay with you, of course,” he added to Chandra. “I’m here to protect you, so it’s up to you whether or n-”
“Let’s go,” cut in Chandra. “I want to feel like we’ve done something.”
“Hang on,” said Kalahari. “Do you have anypony else coming with you? A detective or anything?”
“Um, no,” said Phalanx, “but that… something like that’d probably be a good idea, yes.”
“Then maybe I should go, too. Dupinto’d think it a good idea to have somepony else following up on this. If it’s okay with you, I’ll go ask him, but I’m sure he won’t mind.”
“Sounds good,” said Phalanx. “Chandra?”
“Yeah, that’s perfect,” said Chandra, nodding.
“Then hang on a second,” said Kalahari. She walked up to Dupinto. “We’re done here?” she asked him.
Dupinto shrugged. “Pretty much. Didn’t find much of anything. That Royal Guard’s planning on-”
“Actually, that was what I wanted to talk to you about. I was thinking that it’d probably be a good idea if somepony who wa-”
“Was trained in detective work went with him?” guessed Dupinto. “And that pony’d probably be you, wouldn’t it?” Not waiting for an answer, he tapped his chin for a moment. “Yeah, that’s wise. Go ahead. We don’t need any help here.”
Kalahari nodded and, after a brief stop to pick up her book and bags, headed back to Phalanx and Chandra. “We’re good,” she said.
“Then come on,” said Phalanx. The trio left the library, Phalanx and Chandra picking up their bags on the way out.
As they headed through Ponyville, Kalahari asked, “So, be honest: how much of a shot in the dark do you think it is? You said it was a million-to-one chance, but is it really that bad?”
Phalanx shrugged. “Don’t know. Really, I don’t. They go to the Crystal Empire frequently on business, so if the pony here was also on business for whatever reason, they might know her. And they might know her even if she wasn’t. If I had to give us chances…” He frowned for a moment. “…one in twenty. Optimistically.”
“Well, it’s better than nothing.”
Kalahari took a moment to survey the road they were walking down. They’d gone a short distance out of Ponyville, enough that the road was now more of a path. Ahead, Kalahari could see a large mass of trees, although she couldn’t tell what kind they were. It would’ve been a forest, except for the low fence surrounding it; and it wasn’t a “keep out” sort of fence, more of a “this is where we stop” one. An orchard, then. Between the trees, she could make out a farmhouse -- the bright red kind -- on a hill. Just ahead of them on the path was an arched trellis acting as a door through the fence. A simple wooden sign with a cutout of an apple in it hung from the arch.
Kalahari didn’t recognize it, but Chandra did. She blinked at the sign once she saw it. “Is this… Sweet Apple Acres?” she asked.
Phalanx didn’t so much as pause as he headed through the gate. “Yeah.”
“As in, makers of Sweet Apple Cider Sweet Apple Acres?”
“Yeah.”
“You’re a personal friend of the Apple family?”
“No. I just like to randomly walk on their property when heading over to visit someone else.”
“Ha ha. But seriously, h-”
“Hey,” said Kalahari, waving a hoof. “Is the Apple family important or something?”
“Kind of,” said Chandra. “There’s just the small matter of them being one of the biggest apple distributors in the whole of Equestria and the makers of only the greatest apple cider anywhere ever.”
“Ah,” said Kalahari. “I’m not really a big fan of apples.”
Phalanx and Chandra stopped walking and looked at each other. Looked at Kalahari. Looked at each other again. Phalanx shot an exaggerated snarl at Kalahari. “You are a terrible pony,” he said in a voice way too serious to be taken seriously. He flicked his tail and continued walking up the path.
“They’re all right,” protested Kalahari. “I just don’t see anything special about them.”
“Then you need to try these apples,” said Chandra. “Trust me, they’re good.”
“Not anymore, they’re not. You’ve built them up too much already.”
“They’re better than that.”
“See? You’re still doing it.”
“Oh, shut up, you two,” said Phalanx, climbing up the front steps. “Maybe I can wheedle some apples out of Kerry and you can try them yourself.” Knock knockknockknock-knock. Knock knock.
After a moment, a mare opened the door. She was tall, but lean. Her dark red coat looked a bit dirty, as if she’d just come from the middle of dusting. Her mane, slightly darker than clover, was sort-of-not-really tied up in a bun; most of her hair was wrapped up, but a lot of it was hanging freely down her neck. On her flank was a cutie mark of three apples. As soon as she saw Phalanx, her face broke into a broad grin. “Why, hello, Phalanx!” she said in a rather twangy accent. “What brings you ‘round here?”
“Hey, Kerry,” said Phalanx, giving her a nod. “I’ve actually got some questions on the theft of the Elements. No, I don’t think you did it,” he added quickly, seeing the look on Kerry’s face, “I’m just thinking you might recognize a sketch we have of a witness.”
“Well, then, why don’t you and your friends come in,” Kerry said, taking a step back and holding the door open. “I was just about to start dinner, but nopony’s really that hungry yet. Just drop your bags inside.”
“Thanks,” said Phalanx. He went inside the house, Kalahari and Chandra following. As per Kerry’s offer, they deposited their bags just inside the doorway.
Inside the house, the feeling Kalahari got was one of coziness. It was just one of those houses that had been lived in by the same family for a long time and built up a warm, friendly tone. The walls were a soft yellow, almost like that of corn. There were small, rustic decorations and knick-knacks scattered around pretty much everywhere. Kalahari almost would’ve liked to move in immediately.
Kerry took the four of them to the dining room. As they sat down around the table, Phalanx said, “Chandra, Kalahari, this is Kerry Pippin, proprietor of Sweet Apple Acres. Kerry, this is Kalahari, a detective involved in the investigation-” Kalahari waved. “-and Chandra, a specialist from Canterlot.” Chandra waved.
“Pleased to meet y’all,” said Kerry, smiling. She turned to Phalanx. “Now, what can I do you for?”
Phalanx pulled out the sketch and laid it on the table. “Do you know this pony?” he asked. “She’s a witness, but due to circumstances, we barely got any statement from her, and we don’t know anything about her, except that she’s from the Crystal Empire.”
Kerry was silent as she examined the sketch. After a few moments, she shook her head. “She looks a mite familiar, but I can’t say I know her. You might want to try askin’ Ida, though. She’s out in the orchard, finishin’ up the day’s buckin’. My daughter,” she added to Kalahari and Chandra. “Helps with the work ‘round here.”
“Ida?” frowned Phalanx. “Why do you think she’ll know if you don’t?”
“Oh, she’s just more involved in the Crystal Empire,” said Kerry, waving a hoof vaguely. “Does a bit more of our business there.”
“Your daughter does business there?” cut in Kalahari. “How old is she?”
“Young mare,” replied Kerry. “College-age, but she decided that she wasn’t going to college. Don’t need to learn differential equations or pony psychology to help run an orchard, after all. And it’s less ‘does business’ and more ‘is intermediary’. She ain’t ready to actually run the place just yet.”
“Ah.”
“So where in the orchard is she?” asked Phalanx. “It’s kind of, you know, a big orchard.”
“Northwest,” said Kerry. Then she frowned. “At least, she oughta be. She’s usually in by now, and it ain’t like her to still be out this late.”
“Well, if there’s anything wrong, we’ll help her out,” said Phalanx, sliding out of his chair. “Either of you girls want to come along, or you going to wait?”
“I’ll come,” said Kalahari. “I don’t want to mooch and infringe on Kerry’s hospitality.”
“Oh, you ain’t moochin’, it’s no problem,” said Kerry. “It’s all I can do for a friend of a friend.”
“In that case,” said Chandra, “call me moocher. It’s getting cold out there.”
Phalanx rolled his eyes and left the house. Before she followed him, Kalahari teasingly said, “Wuss,” and darted out before Chandra can respond.
Exiting from the back door, Kalahari could see that the farm was even larger than she had thought. Hill after hill of trees rolled across the land, all in brilliant shades of red, orange, and yellow; the leaves hadn’t been removed from the trees yet. Kalahari whistled softly. “Big,” she muttered.
“It’s impressive,” said Phalanx. “They’re a hard-working family, the Apples are. Takes a while to buck all the apples from the trees, even if you spend all day doing it.”
After a while of walking, Kalahari looked up at the trees. They were all bare of apples. “So, the Apples mainly grow and sell apples?”
“And apple products, yeah. They grow a few other crops in the off seasons, but that’s mostly for their own food.”
“There’s no way I could do that. I’m definitely not a farm zebra.”
“Me, neither. I-” Phalanx suddenly stopped and cocked his head.
Kalahari stopped, too. “What’s-”
Phalanx raised a hoof. “Shh.” He paused for another moment, then said, “You hear that?”
Kalahari didn’t say anything, but stopped, listened.
“It’s kind of quiet,” whispered Phalanx. “You might not hear anything.”
Kalahari listened for a little more. Then, “No, I hear it, too. A kind of thudding or bonking?” She was whispering, too.
“Yeah.”
They paused and kept listening.
Whunck.
Whunck.
“Kind of regular. But not really.”
“No.”
“Think it’s Ida?”
“Probably. Let’s check it out.”
They picked up the pace a little, walking more briskly. After a few moments, they came upon the source of the noise.
In a small not-quite-clearing, a smallish Earth pony was standing next to a pile of rocks, looking over her shoulder at a tree -- pretty much the last tree around still with apples on it. Baskets were laid out around the trunk, a few apples lying in them; metal arches connected pairs of baskets, probably for carrying. The pony herself was green-bodied, with a cutie mark of a neatly-sliced apple. She had golden eyes, her mane and tail a combination of scarlet and russet orange. Her mane was cut short, while her tail seemed to be deliberately long to make up for it. Her canvas vest was weathered and worn.
As Kalahari and Phalanx watched, she bucked a stone from the pile at the tree. It hit the tree hard -- whunck -- and a few apples fell from the branches. The pony snorted. “Durn it.” She bucked again. A few more apples fell. “Durn it.” She wound up for another buck.
“Hey, Ida!” yelled Phalanx.
Ida flinched in surprise, but only a little. She turned to see the two of them coming out of the trees. “Hey, Phalanx,” she said, then looked over her shoulder again. Buck. Whunck. Two apples. “Durn it.”
“Um…” said Kalahari, walking up to her, “what’re you doing?”
“Ranged apple buckin’.” Ida tried again -- whunck -- and didn’t have any better luck. “Durn it. If I can actually do it well, I can get the apples down more quickly.” Whunck. “Durn it. Guess I can’t do it.”
“Kalahari,” said Phalanx, “this is Idared.”
“Call me Ida. Everyone does.” Whunck. “Durn it. Old-fashioned way it is, then.” She walked up to the tree and, in one smooth motion, turned around and bucked it, her hooves hitting the trunk squarely. With a rustle, every apple dropped from the tree and landed in the baskets.
“And that’s that,” said Ida, flicking a few stray apples into a less-full basket. “Last tree in the orchard.” She glanced at the baskets, then turned to Kalahari and Phalanx. “Any chance I could shanghai you into helping me with these?”
“Sure,” said Kalahari.
“Just take a pair of baskets,” said Ida. “Like this.” She crouched down, walked one pair’s connecting arch, and stood up, the arch spreading the weight across her her back. “Bit heavy, though.”
Can’t be that heavy, thought Kalahari. They’re just apples. And then she knew she was setting herself up for a shock, because the only time anypony went, ‘oh, it can’t be that bad’ was when it really was that bad. Apprehensively, Kalahari crawled under the arch, lifted it up, and-
-it really wasn’t that bad. Heavy, yes, but pretty much what she was expecting. She still had to plant her hooves to keep her balance, though.
Didn’t look like Ida had that problem; she carried her baskets like they were almost nothing as she walked back to the house. “So, Phalanx and…” She glanced over her shoulder. “Kalahari, was it?”
“Yeah.”
“So what brings you two out here?”
“It’s about the Elements of Harmony,” said Phalanx.
“Uh-oh.”
“We don’t have any leads except for a witness from the Crystal Empire with no name, and we were hoping you might recognize her. It’s not much-”
“-but it’s all you got. Be happy to help, if I actually recognize her.”
“Yeah. Sorry to butt in on you like this.”
Ida waved a hoof. “Oh, it ain’t a bother. With the last of the buckin’ done, there ain’t much to do here, so I was goin’ to go on a road trip anyhow. Ain’t like I-”
“Road trip?” asked Kalahari. “Why?”
Ida glanced over her shoulder. “Makin’ the most of my final stupid teenager years,” she grinned. “Gotta see Equestria, you know? I’ll be stayin’ here, for sure, but I want to see the world a bit ‘fore that happens.” She faced forward again. “Ma’s all right with it, and she can handle the farm for a few months, ‘specially once Dad gets back from his business trip.”
“And you’re paying for this… how?”
“My own money.” Ida sounded slightly annoyed. “Ma and Dad pay me for the work I do, and I’ve been savin’ for a while. I ain’t just gonna ask them for money.”
“Oh. Sorry.”
“Eh, that’s fine.”
By now, they arrived back at the house. After dropping the baskets off at the barn (which already had an awful lot of baskets), the trio headed back into the house and to the dining room. Chandra and Kerry were in the living room; talking about meteor showers or something, from what Kalahari could make out.
“And here’s the sketch,” said Phalanx, tapping it with his hoof. “Do you recognize her, o-”
“Amber?”
“…I’ll take that as a yes.”
“Seriously?” asked Kalahari. “How do you know her?”
Ida pulled the picture towards her, frowning. “I sometimes sell stuff in the Crystal Empire, and I’ve gotta get me and the apples there somehow, so I usually take the train. One time, the engineer came up and said, ‘Hey,’ she said, ‘your cider’s good, but it sells out too fast, and I can’t get any.’ And she said, ‘I’ll let you ride for free if you give me a carton early.’ I looked at the money, and it was good for me, so I said, ‘Sure,’ I said. After a while of this, we became friends, and, well…” She shrugged. “Her name’s Amber Waves. I can find her, and it’s probably best I go with you. She can be a bit…” Ida coughed. “…hem, jumpy.”
“Well, we’ve got this much,” said Phalanx, rolling up the picture. “More than we had.” He looked out the window and frowned at the early sunset. “It’s a bit late to be heading up to the Crystal Empire, though.”
“You can stay here for the night,” said Ida brightly. “Ma won’t mind.”
“You’re sure?” asked Kalahari. “I don’t want to-”
“Hey! Ma!” Ida yelled to the living room. “Can they stay with us for the night? I’m goin’ to the Crystal Empire with them tomorrow!”
“Are you gonna help me with a larger dinner?” Kerry hollered back. “And fix up the guest room?”
“Sure!”
“Then absolutely!”
Ida turned back to Kalahari and Phalanx, grinning broadly.
“Don’t. Say. Anything,” growled Kalahari.
As dinner was being made and after Kerry had beaten down her offers to help (“You’re a guest! I’d be a terrible host if I had you workin’!”), Kalahari decided to dig into the Elements of Harmony book again. She’d gotten it, and darn it, she was going to read it. Cover to cover, if she could manage it.
Settling down in the living room, she cracked open the book to where she had left off, where Twilight was talking about how she and five friends had found the Elements to use against Nightmare Moon. But the Elements are far more than just jewels, rocks, or fashionable accessories. What they represent, what they are, goes much deeper th-
“Whatcha doin’?”
Kalahari flinched, looked up, flinched, and backed up. The filly in front of her was so close their muzzles had practically been touching. She was young, just barely into elementary-school-age. (Which, given Ida’s age, said some interesting things about Kerry.) She was a bright green with big, round eyes of deep blue. Her mane, tied into pigtails, was crimson. Plastered all across her face was a look of curiosity.
After collecting her thoughts, Kalahari said, “Research.” Praying that that sounded boring enough for the filly to ignore her, she went back to reading. …what they a-
“What kinda research?” The filly had that adorably cloying lisp that foals always seem to have at that age. She moved in a bit closer to Kalahari, trying to look at the book.
“Boring research.” Please go away. I’m bu-
“You look funny. Are you a zebra? What’s your name?”
Resigned to the incessant nagging of youthful curiosity, Kalahari nudged the book to the side. “Yes. I’m Kalahari. What’s y-”
“Auntie Bloom knew a zebra. She said Granny AJ was scared of her.” The filly squinted at Kalahari. “You don’t look scary.”
Well. Exactly what are you supposed to say to that?
“I’m Jonagold,” said the filly. She walked over to where Kalahari had pushed the book. “Whatcha readin’?”
“It’s a book.”
“What kinda book?”
“It’s about the Elements of Harmony.”
“What’re those?”
Kalahari was about to give as best a description as she could when she realized that something as dry as that definitely wasn’t going to get Jonagold to stop pestering her. So why not have some fun? She glanced around the room faux-furtively, then leaned in close to Jonagold and whispered, “Can you keep a secret?”
Jonagold’s eyes went wide. She nodded vigorously as she leaned closer to Kalahari.
“Well,” Kalahari whispered, “when put together, the Elements of Harmony form an ancient laser gun.”
“Lasers?” Jonagold said softly.
“Lasers,” said Kalahari, nodding sagely. “All throughout history, ponies have fought over them. You know why Nightmare Moon went bad?”
Jonagold’s eyes were so wide they were practically bigger than her head. “Why?”
“Because she wanted the Elements for herself, so she could rule Equestria alone.” Kalahari pulled Jonagold even closer with a foreleg. “But Celestia was having none of that, oh no, so she took the Elements, and BLAM!” Kalahari yelled the last word and stomped hard on the floor, drawing a frightened squeak from Jonagold. “She blasted Nightmare Moon straight to the moon!”
Jonagold scrunched up her muzzle. “Serves her right for being a meanieface.”
“Oh, yes,” said Kalahari. “But Celestia was scared of the Elements’ power, so she scattered them across Equestria, where they could never be used again. So across the centuries, ponies have tried to find them for their own gain, failing every time.”
“Bet Daring Do could’ve found ‘em,” said Jonagold emphatically. “Owie-Soda would look for them, but Daring Do’d beat him an’ his cats up an’ take them back an’-”
“But she did! She found the Elements, then had to hide them to keep them safe. We’re following in her hoofsteps.”
Jonagold’s expression became one of exaggerated skepticism. “But it wasn’t in any of her books!”
“Of course not, silly,” said Kalahari, tapping Jonagold on the nose. “Then it wouldn’t be a secret, would it?”
“Oooooooh.”
A deep bell rang through the house and across the fields. “Soup’s on, everypony!” yelled Kerry. “Come and get it!”
“Now,” whispered Kalahari, “remember, this is a secret. You must not tell anypony.” She held up a hoof. “Promise?”
Jonagold’s hoof was dwarfed by Kalahari’s as she put them together. “Promise.”
At that moment, Phalanx came down the stairs, having offered to arrange the guest room. “You two look busy,” he observed.
“We are!” said Jonagold, speaking up before Kalahari could. “Kalahali told me about your…” She dropped her voice. “…secret mission!”
Phalanx raised an eyebrow. “Oh? And what’d she tell you?”
“You’re gonna find the Laserments of Harmony! So you can blast bad guys with them!” said Jonagold brightly.
Phalanx looked at Jonagold as she darted off to her seat, then at Kalahari, a Seriously? look chiseled all over his face. “The Laserments of Harmony?”
“I didn’t call them that.”
“Did you call them lasers?”
“Yeah.”
“…Wwwwhy?”
“Well, she’s a kid, and if you look at how they’re used, that kinda is what they are…”
Phalanx snorted and flicked his tail at her as he followed Jonagold into the dining room.
An awful lot of food was laid out on the table, and it covered the gamut of types: grains, fruits (mostly apples) and veggies, soup, you name it, it was probably there. Servings were already on each pony’s plate, almost to overflowing.
“I hope it’s enough,” said Kerry as everyone took their seats. “I wasn’t plannin’ on three extra ponies stoppin’ by and had to throw some more stuff together at last minute.”
“I… think it’ll be enough,” said Kalahari, staring at all the food. If this isn’t definitely enough for us, what is?
There was a minute or so of relative silence where everyone was too busy eating to say anything significant. Chandra in particular dug in with gusto, demolishing half her plate well before anyone else. Given her size, Kalahari wondered where she put it all.
As she was spooning some more applesauce onto her plate, Chandra asked, “So, if you don’t mind me asking, where’s Mr. Apple? I haven’t seen him around.”
“Dad’s in Manehattan,” said Ida through a mouthful of cranberries. “Business trip.”
“He grew up ‘round those parts,” added Kerry. “In the Broncs, specifically. Still knows some folks there, so he always goes there when we got somethin’ over there that needs doin’. Left just a few days ago, so he should be back in a week or so. Maybe two.”
“Shame,” said Chandra. “I would’ve liked to meet him.”
“I’m sure the feelin’s mutual. You just got unlucky, is all,” said Ida, shrugging. “He’s here most of the time, after all. And- Kal, how come you’re not touchin’ your applesauce? Does it taste bad?”
Did she really have to point it out? “I’m not a big fan of apples,” said Kalahari. (Kerry and Ida looked slightly put out.) “Or sauces, for that matter.” She ran the tip of her hoof through the applesauce, leaving behind a trail. “I don’t really like their texture.” She scraped her hoof on her napkin.
“Oh, come ooooon,” said Ida, “I put a lotta work into that. And you’re just gonna let it sit there without even tryin’ it once? C’mon, you’ll like it!”
“Can I have your applesauce?” piped up Jonagold. “If you’re not go-”
“Jona, don’t take food that isn’t yours,” said Kerry sternly. “We’ve been over this.”
“But Mooom, if she-”
As Kerry and Jonagold argued, Ida leaned in close to Kalahari and lowered her voice. “Seriously, though, pleeeaaase? Can you try it just once? I think it’s the food I’m best at, and I’d hate to have you not even try it.”
“Fine.” Kalahari frowned at the applesauce for a moment, then dubiously licked at it.
Four point seven seconds later, her muzzle was plastered with it, the bowl was half-empty, and Kalahari was continuing to dig in with gusto. “I take it all back,” she said. Nom. “I take back-” Nom. “-everything bad-” Nom. “-I may have ever said-” Nom. “-about apples-” Nom. “-and sauces.” Nom. “This is heaven.” Nom nom.
“Told you you’d like it,” said Ida. Her tone was ostensibly one of humility, but Kalahari recognized her expression as one that was almost-but-not-quite concealing a smug, satisfied grin. Well, let her have it. This was good applesauce.
A few more pushes had Kalahari trying other apple foods; they were better than she thought they’d be. And before she knew it, she’d eaten too much, most of the food was gone, and Kerry and Phalanx were already clearing the dirty dishes off the table.
“Y’know, Phalanx,” Kerry said, “I always thought you were a big eater, but then you go and bring Chandra ‘round.” She laughed. “She musta eaten her own weight in food!”
“Don’t look at me,” said Phalanx. “I didn’t know her until today.” He turned to Kalahari. “Although you did.”
“From college,” Kalahari said to Kerry. “And, hey, when I knew her, she didn’t eat that much.”
“Oh, don’t you worry, it ain’t a problem,” said Kerry, waving a hoof dismissively. “Just an observation. ‘Sides, if she eats that much, she likes it, and there ain’t nothin’ wrong with that.” She began loading the dirty dishes into the dishwasher. “Now, there’s two beds in the guest room, and I had Ida make them. Unfortunately, we ain’t got any more beds, so one o-”
“I can sleep on the sofa,” said Phalanx. “I’ve been through worse.”
“Alrighty then,” said Kerry happily. “Glad that’s all settled. Bed-shufflin’s always the worst part ‘bout havin’ company over.”
Kalahari glanced out the window and was a bit surprised to see that the sun had already almost set. Stupid autumn and its stupid shorter days. “Listen, it’s been a long day for me. I’m going to head up and get some sleep for tomorrow. And if we leave before you’re up, thanks again for letting us stay, and thanks for the food; it was great.”
Kerry nodded. “Uh-huh. You take care, now.”
Taking the Elements of Harmony book with her, Kalahari went upstairs and poked around the rooms until she found the guest room. It was simple -- not much more than two beds and a dresser for each -- but it was enough. Kalahari couldn’t help but notice that Ida wasn’t the best at making beds; there were an awful lot of wrinkles in the sheets and some ends were sticking out. But Kalahari would take a badly-made bed over no bed any day, and when she settled in, it was more than comfortable enough.
Setting her book on the pillow, she leafed through the pages. Where was I, again? It only took her a few seconds to pick up where she left off. But the Elements are far more than just jewels, rocks, or fashionable accessories. What they represent, what they are, goes much deeper than simple physicality; they are inextricably linked to the essence of harmony in all of Equestria…