Adventures were different from most things Twilight dealt with; she either wished to do many more of them or avoid them altogether. There was no middle ground at any point in her life, likely due to just how chaotic some of her quests became. But at the same time, there was something about them that made her heart race or attracted her imagination.
Twilight couldn't recall the last time she went on a long journey with her friends. Slowly trotting across the scorching lands of Enigma Crater somehow brought both a sense of amazement and dread. The latter emotion outweighed the former, though with her friends all by her side, Twilight kept her head raised.
However, as the group trekked for what felt like hours, both of those emotions were soon replaced with boredom. The heat being increasingly unbearable as time marched on was also not helping matters. Twilight knew she wasn't trotting over molten lava, but the cracked, barren earth beneath her seemed just as warm.
If only they left at night. That was what Twilight occasionally thought. But doing so meant possibly bumping into the beasts that roamed Enigma Crater, the region's nocturnal monsters in numerous ways a greater threat than the brutal heat from what Celestia told her. Twilight considered some discomfort better than becoming a giant serpent's meal.
The sweat dripping down her body and the relentless heat cooking the soil made any thought of staying at Enigma Crater a few extra minutes seem downright absurd. And as Twilight took a deep breath and wiped her forehead, nostrils twitching a little, she noticed a small lizard scurrying past her. It was the first sign of wildlife she saw ever since she left Hidden Woods; Twilight couldn't help herself from smiling.
"That's an Enigma Lizard," Fluttershy explained, trying to exude even just a fraction of excitement. "They're bodies are covered with a thick, gooey substance that helps them withstand the region's heat." The lizard dashed away from the group, quickly vanishing from sight. Fluttershy merely sighed in response as her shoulders sagged. "Sorry to ask, but how long is Enigma Crater?"
"We're about half of the way there," said Celestia. She and the others resumed trotting, some of the ponies pulling a canteen out of their saddlebags. Celestia then raised her head a little and gently tapped the ground. "Yes, this hill's slight incline means that the hardest part of the journey is over. Temperatures cool down from here, though it may take a while."
"A while?" Rainbow shrieked. She rolled her eyes and groaned, wings nearly poking the ground. "Sorry, but how can a crater be this big? I mean, it feels like forever since we last left town." Pausing, she then took a sip of water. Rainbow licked her lips. "There has to be somewhere we can nap, right?"
"We can't waste too much time." Celestia approached Rainbow, the two staring directly at each other. "We only have so much water to last us the entire journey, and if we waste it all before reaching Maple Village, we'll be in deeper trouble." Her brow sank a little as she ruffled her wings. "Patience, Rainbow Dash. You can take some breathers here and there, but nothing too long. There will be plenty of time to rest soon."
"These darn rocks are even hot to the touch," Applejack added. Panting, she ceased trotting in place for a moment and reached into her saddlebag. Pulling out two pairs of boots, she swiftly tugged them onto her legs. "I wasn't expectin' to use these again. This place makes that fiery swamp seem like nothing."
"It might as well be one of those swamps," said Starlight. A bluish aura wrapped around her horn, soon enveloping the rest of her body as she began hovering an inch above the earth. Both Trixie and Rarity stared at her with widened eyes. Starlight, however, blushed in response. "Okay, so there's a spell for flying. It'll never make you as good a flyer as a pegasus, but whatever works."
Fluttershy and Rainbow flapped their wings in unison, both of them cracking a slight smirk. Twilight followed suit; her hooves no longer felt as though they were melting or being stung by needles. Trixie got out long, leather boots of her own and slipped them on, Rarity following suit with a short but stylish set of her own. As for everypony else, Celestia and Luna appeared content with the regalia adorning their hooves. Spike, meanwhile, paced back and forth during these few seconds, mumbling something to himself.
"Come on, it's not that bad," Spike muttered, his voice just loud enough for everypony to hear him. "It feels kind of nice once you get used to it."
"Maybe it's because you're a dragon, dear," said Rarity. She feigned a chuckle, then playfully rubbed the top of Spike's head. "Ponies don't take those lava baths for a reason. I would've loved joining you and Ember that one day, but I'd have been burnt to a crisp!" Trotting once again, Rarity kept her gaze glued to Spike, the dragon skipping over to her. "Spas are what ponies have instead. You might like it, darling!"
"Only if Rainbow Dash tries one, too."
In a flash, Rarity and Applejack turned to Rainbow, both of them wearing the widest grins they've had all day. Rainbow gave them a sheepish smile, cheeks flushed, and snickered briefly. Twilight and company quickly understood Rainbow's little secret, all except for Celestia and Luna wearing sly smirks of their own.
"Um, spas aren't my thing," Rainbow said, pressing the tips of her hooves together. "But I'd be there if my friends invited me."
"Is that so?" Starlight quipped sarcastically. "I've seen you sneaking into Ponyville Spa."
The group all laughed together as they kept marching. While it wasn't much, Twilight felt as though those brief, awkward moments lifted a weight off of her shoulders. Maple Village seemed closer than it actually was, even if anything indicating that they were almost there hadn't appeared yet. The land was as empty as ever, no sources of water or trees in the distance visible.
There was also the question of how to spend the time it'd take to reach Maple Village. Twilight quickly glanced at Starlight and raised an eyebrow. She focused on the bluish aura surrounding her friend for a few seconds, Twilight's eyes widening afterwards. Already, a question somewhat related to magic popped into her head. With a deep breath, she nudged closer to Starlight until they were inches apart.
"Can I ask you something?" Twilight muttered.
Starlight nodded without hesitating. "I'd pretty much answer anything at this point," she teased, playfully waving a hoof. "What's on your mind?"
"I'm curious, how are you able to fly using magic?" Twilight peeked at her wings, resuming eye contact with Starlight a moment later. "I've seen nopony else use such a spell. And back when we fought, you were nimble enough to keep up with me." Twilight tilted her head a little. "So how did you do that?"
Starlight pursed her lips briefly. "Well, I'm using the magic to lift my body up." The aura around her body brightened. Starlight then slowly ascended, only to descend back to where she was as her magic dimmed. "Trust me, it's not as easy as it looks. You saw how exhausted I was when we fought in the past."
"That spell must require a lot of magic." Twilight rubbed her muzzle; it wouldn't have been the first spell she knew of that required a lot of exertion or had some drawback. Teleportation, freezing spells, and so on often had some sort of flaw. Only the simplest of spells required little to no effort. "How long did it take you to master?"
"About a month." Starlight shrugged. "It was one of those ideas that I just had one day. Never expected to use it, let alone for—you know." She chuckled nervously, wearing a sheepish grin. "If you're wondering, it was from a book I bought while in Canterlot. It was part of some festival."
"The Canterlot Star Swirl Festival?"
Starlight bobbed her head without hesitating. "That's the one! I remember being confused by everypony wearing robes and fake beards at first. It wasn't until I knew who Star Swirl was that I understood what was going on." Rubbing the back of her neck, Starlight then donned a perplexed expression. "But the thing about wearing old armor and chugging mugs of beer still confused me."
"Ponies have fun in a variety of ways." Twilight wrapped a foreleg around Starlight's shoulder, the latter squirming briefly until she was comfortable. "You should join me for something like that when we have the chance. It might make for an excellent friendship lesson, not to mention be tons of fun. I can even bring Pinkie with us." She turned to Pinkie and waved at the mare. Grinning radiantly, Pinkie responded with a wave of her own. "Maybe Sunburst or Trixie might want to join us."
"Of course I'd join," Trixie chimed. She caught up to Twilight and Starlight, then raised her head. "Trixie would dazzle ponies with her latest tricks, but I can also make room for anything you, Starlight, and Sunburst want." Adjusting her cape for a second, Trixie slipped in a slight giggle. "I've always loved those festivals, even when I'm not surprising everypony with my amazing performances."
Twilight turned back to Starlight. "See, it'll be a lot of fun!"
"Well, I guess it wouldn't hurt," said Starlight. She nodded slowly. "Alright, sounds like a plan." Turning to face the world before her, Starlight raised an eyebrow. "Do you think Maple Village might be holding a festival? If they're outside of Equestria, I bet they'd have traditions of their own."
"They almost certainly do," said Luna. "However, I don't know if they're celebrating anything today, let alone this week."
Without warning, Twilight's ears twitched. She looked behind her and spotted Spike wearing a pale expression. The small dragon sniffled as though something was irritating his nostrils, but it couldn't have been allergies. No such plants made themselves known, nor would they survive in such a harsh climate on their own.
"There's something up ahead," Spike murmured, twiddling his claws. He bit his lip and pranced ahead of the group, stretching an arm out. "Do you see that smooth, silver bump?"
Twilight looked ahead and spotted exactly what Spike described. It seemed like anything else she might've traversed over earlier, only something was peculiar about its shape. It arced more smoothly than anything else in Enigma Crater, even if it appeared minuscule from where the group stood. The white smoke rising near the lump and into the sky also caught her attention, a faint scent polluting the air. Twilight rubbed her nose, nodding with the rest of the group.
"That's a dragon's back," Spike continued. "I recognize the smell of their breath from anywhere."
"But how'd you smell its breath?" asked Applejack. She wore a confused expression, head cocked a little. "That dragon has to be miles away, 'cause all I see is a small bump up ahead." She paused for a moment, whipping her tail back and forth like a pendulum. "Here's what I'm worried about: Is it a friendly dragon, or would it want to gobble us up?"
"It's how dragons know where to go for migrations or when they're summoned by the Dragon Lord. And as for your second question, it depends." Spike shrugged, twiddling his claws moments later. "Either it's the first one or the second."
"And what if it's the second?" Fluttershy asked, looking surprisingly calm compared to everypony else having pursed lips or glum visages. "Maybe I should intimidate it if you're okay with that. But I also don't want to do that if it's already friendly." She curled her mane momentarily. "I just want what's best."
"We can try avoiding the dragon altogether," Luna said, raising a hoof. "But if the region around it appears too dangerous, we'll have to sneak past it. I assume that shouldn't be a problem." She looked at Twilight, Starlight, and Trixie, cracking a smile shortly after. "We're not making much noise, and we have three ponies talented in magic with us."
"Let's see what option we take first," Twilight suggested, placing a hoof to her chest. Her throat dried up; there was always something about being inches from a colossal dragon that sent chills through her spine. Just thinking about it was no different. "If it's possible, we'll go for the first one. The second should only be a last resort."
"If we're sneaking past, I'm totally cool with that," Rainbow said, performing a tight loop in the air. "So whatever works for me!"
"I'm more in favor of the first one," said Pinkie. Her body shook violently. "I still remember when we had to deal with that big, scary, red dragon a while ago." A gasp left her mouth. "And I'd hate for this dragon to be even meaner! That would be terrible! Besides, we'll be doing cool, fun things soon!"
"Yes, there should be plenty of fun at Maple Village," Luna muttered. "For now, we should be careful with that dragon up ahead."
Twilight slowly nodded. "I think that goes without saying," she whispered to herself. Taking a deep breath, she resumed making her way toward the dragon, the rest of the group packed close together. While Twilight had learned a great deal about dragons ever since she first moved to Ponyville, there was still plenty about them that remained a mystery. And given how Spike knows more about dragons than anypony but Celestia and Luna, Twilight recognized taking his words seriously.
However, Twilight and most of her friends had dealt with gigantic dragons before, though such encounters were more often than not shaky at best. But if dragons such as Spike, Ember, and Torch were anything to go by, there were plenty of friendly dragons out there. Twilight held her breath for a moment, hoping this new face was kindhearted.
While the next mile or two since Spike noticed the dragon hadn't taken long, Twilight felt as though hours flew past since then. Her tightening chest wasn't helping, nor were the shivers coursing through her spine. Realizing just how massive the dragon was only made those sensations worse, albeit with Twilight also feeling awestruck.
When the group was about half a mile from where the dragon slept, all of them raised their heads and blankly stared at the creature. Nopony budged an inch, eyes unblinking. The winged reptile was at least the size of a mansion, maybe even more. Then there was its wingspan, likely wider than four buildings put together. What demanded the most attention, however, was the dragon's bright, armor-like body. On occasion, smoke bellowed out of its nostrils, the pungent stench akin to sulfur.
Twilight pursed her lips, landing on the earth and immediately nudging forward. "Do—do you think we could just avoid it?" she asked. In a flash, she turned to where Celestia and Luna were, both of them wearing stern visages. "It's massive, but anything else seems like a better plan."
Celestia rubbed her muzzle, shrugging after a few seconds. "We'd be cutting it close if we moved around it," she said. "If the dragon wakes up, it would certainly see us from here." She squinted, muttering something inaudible to herself briefly. "If we keep a safe distance, about a mile or so, it would be possible to avoid it. But there's just one major problem." She then turned her head to the left, then to the right, and pointed at a region up ahead. "Do you see the bursts of steam coming out of the ground?"
The rest of the group gazed at where Celestia was pointing, nodding their heads in unison a second later. Thick, white clouds rose from the earth, obscuring most of the region. A strong, burning scent polluted the air. Eruptions from the hundreds of geysers visible occurred every ten seconds or so without fail.
"Those geysers spew steam several times hotter than water that's about to boil." She caught her breath, Celestia then momentarily pursing her lips." From what I learned on my first trip to Maple Village, one blast could knock a hydra over, and the temperatures there are even worse than what we just experienced." A sigh left her lips. "Going through them is indeed possible, but we'd need plenty of water to withstand the heat. It's a place that's normally avoided, the patches of land where the dragon is one of the few parts of the region where there are no geysers."
"How much water do we have left?" asked Applejack. She flicked her tail, then pulled a canteen out of her saddlebag. Opening it, she peered inside, closing it soon after. "I'll make it if I conserve water the rest of the way." She turned to face the other ponies. "How's everypony else doing?"
As if by command, everypony else grabbed their own canteens, repeating the same steps Applejack took. As Twilight checked on hers, she figured that there would be just enough water to make it even with the added distance. Pinkie, Fluttershy, Trixie, and Rainbow all wore glum expressions; not a word needed to be uttered about how much water they had left. They'd risk being baked by the geysers if they tried trudging across them. There was the possibility of asking Celestia or Luna to move the sun and moon respectively, thereby cooling the temperatures. However, the risks of throwing the day and night cycles out of loop were too great.
Such a plan might've even disturbed the dragon, which could have been one of those nocturnal predators.
"I guess we'll have to sneak past," Twilight said as a matter of fact. She swallowed a lump, shivering for a brief moment. "Is everypony ready?"
"Ready as always," Rainbow replied, gliding over to Twilight. She forced a confident grin across her face. "If that dragon wakes up, I'll get everypony out of there in ten seconds flat." Nudging away from Twilight, Rainbow then placed her hooves behind her head, wings still flapping as she floated an inch off the ground. "I bet it'll be a piece of cake."
"I hope you're right," Fluttershy murmured. She pressed her hooves together and bit her lip. "But we can't rush something like this, remember? If one of us moves too fast, we might make a noise and wake the dragon up." She paused for a moment. "At the same time, we can't be too slow."
"Quick, light steps should do the trick, dear," said Rarity, slowly trotting in place. She then swiveled her head, making eye contact with Spike. "You might know a thing or two, Spike." Rarity then approached him, the latter's eyes shimmering. "Do you have any marvelous ideas on how we can get past that frightening dragon?" She winked at Spike and cracked a smirk. "I'd highly appreciate any suggestions."
Spike twitched a little, giggles leaving his mouth. "Well, take it one step at a time and not touch anything," he said. "It'll all work out if you do it like that." He then turned to face Twilight and donned a sheepish smile. "Twilight did that back when we lived in Golden Oaks. And not once did she wake me up!"
Blushing, Twilight rubbed the back of her neck, feigning a few chuckles. "It feels so long since I lived in Golden Oaks," she admitted. It still felt as though years had passed since she last stepped into the humble library. How she became used to her new abode in less than a year still surprised her. "But yes, I remember now."
"We'll stick close together," Luna said, wearing a nervous expression. "That should ease things a little."
"Anything else?" asked Rainbow.
"Maybe we should take our boots off," said Trixie. "For those of us wearing them, that is." She tapped the ground for a moment. "It'll be uncomfortable, but we'll be quieter. And while I may be the Great and Powerful Trixie, I—" she gulped "—I don't think I'd stand a chance against a dragon."
Rarity winced and stepped back, cheeks tautened. "If you insist," she said. Rarity then slowly took her boots off, placing them back into her saddlebag. Both Trixie and Applejack followed suit. "But this better be quick." Rarity trotted in place and clenched her teeth. "Burning myself would be a disaster!"
"Trixie knows what she's talking about." She approached Rarity, playfully tapping the mare's shoulder and donning a faint smirk. "I know that it's uncomfortable, but we'll put them back on once we're in the clear." In a flash, Trixie's visage transformed into a blank expression, slightly frowning as Rarity snickered nervously. "Don't make a fuss about it for just a few minutes, okay?"
Rarity nodded without hesitating. "I'll keep the dramatics to a minimum." She wiped her forehead. A sigh then left her mouth. "But my hooves better not be burned by the time this is over. They have to all be in pristine condition, even when I'm not sewing something marvelous."
Trixie slowly bobbed her head, brow sagging slightly. "Let's hurry up and get this out of the way."
With everypony now touching the ground with their hooves once more, they all nodded together and trudged over to where the dragon rested. Much to Twilight's relief, the earth beneath her wasn't the oven-like surface it once was, though her hooves stung at times. At least it was tolerable enough for sneaking past something.
However, what Twilight wasn't counting on was the journey going by much quicker than she expected. And just seeing the giant up close turned her coat pale. It was as though she was trotting up to her castle again, but without the comfort that typically brought. All she felt were her muscles tightening.
Twilight wished she could've said something, anything to ease the tension, yet one small peep might've been enough to disturb the dragon. As such, she glanced behind her shoulder and at the rest of the group, waving a hoof at them and pointing to her left. With slow, short steps, they all crept around the dragon. Any thirst that Twilight had minutes ago suddenly vanished.
Sweat dripped down Twilight's forehead. The beating of her heart echoed into her ears, chest tightening a little. She alternated between looking ahead and at where the dragon's eyes were. Her ears twitched erratically whenever the monster snored. Twilight wished she took the alternate route, even if the risks of running out of water were high.
The group was already nearby the dragon's massive, sleek snout. Clouds of smoke left its nostrils, Twilight's own nose itching somewhat. Thoughts of teleporting away from the dragon crossed her mind, though there were a few problems with that. First was that she could've only teleported a short distance with the others, both the size of the group and having never been to Enigma Crater working against her. The second part would've been figuring out where they'd all be safe.
As amazing as magic was, even it had limits.
Twilight and company continued their journey, eventually reaching a point where they could just resume trotting forward. Just making their way around the perimeter of the dragon took at least a mile, Twilight's hooves aching a little. With step after step, she glanced back at the dragon each and every minute. And of the many times she checked, not once had the beast moved.
When Twilight checked for the fourth time, the dragon then suddenly opened its eyes. Twilight stared directly at one of them, her coat the palest it had ever been. Even Celestia and Luna bit their lips upon noticing the creature staring right back at them. More smoke rose from the dragon's nostrils, the sounds of sharp teeth grinding together polluting the air.
Yawning, the dragon stood upright, opening its wings. It turned to face the ponies, eyes blinking as it then gnashed its teeth together. Twilight couldn't help herself from shivering, most of her friends doing the same. She quickly glanced to her left, then to her right. Both areas had those dangerous geysers nearby, but the land behind her was clear.
Twilight took a deep breath. She quickly turned to face her friends. "Think of a plan and start running!" she shrieked.
In a flash, Celestia fired a beam of magic from her horn, striking the dragon's wings and preventing them from moving. But despite the spell's success, Celestia nevertheless stepped back and turned away from the massive beast. At least Twilight knew she could take some comfort in knowing that the dragon would be slower now.
Everypony galloped as fast as they could without a second thought, Spike even hitching a ride on Celestia's back. As they scurried away from the behemoth like ants, a purplish aura soon enveloped Twilight's horn. She looked back at the dragon and fired off a powerful blast. It struck the dragon in the jaw, but it only recoiled a little.
"Was that even full power?" Starlight blurted out. She cast a spell of her own, but like Twilight's it only made the dragon flinch. "I don't care what the spell is!"
"You have that freezing spell, right?" Twilight retorted. "Use that!"
Starlight nodded, then fired off another spell at the dragon. And just as planned, a pinkish block of ice surrounded the dragon, rendering it immobile. However, the ice shattered in about a second, the dragon roaring at the skies and violently flailing its wings. A powerful gust swirled through Twilight and friends, all of them still upright and still galloping.
"I have an idea!" Luna exclaimed, brow sagging. All of a sudden, the princess slid across the ground with her hooves, raising her head and making eye contact with the beast. Dust swirled around her like a tornado. A blue glow wrapped around her horn, sparks flying out of the tip. "It just has to get in range first! Stand back!"
"Have you lost your mind?" Rarity shouted at the top of her lungs. "We'll be eaten alive if it catches us!"
A confident grin adorned Luna's visage. "It was vulnerable to Starlight's spell. Trust me, it'll work."
Leaping toward the dragon, Luna then licked her lips as the aura surrounding her brightened. A burst of magic fired from her horn, quickly constricting the dragon much like a python. Twilight's jaw dropped at the sight; any magic potent enough to halt a dragon in its tracks was worth gawking over, regardless of where it came from. However, as Twilight stared at Luna, she noticed the princess gritting her teeth and grunting.
"Luna, that's enough!" Twilight begged, rushing over to her friend. "You'll hurt yourself if you don't stop!"
Luna slowly turned to face Twilight, sweat dripping down her face like a rainstorm. "I'll be okay," she murmured. And before Twilight could respond, Luna ceased casting the spell. The electric-like sensations pricking Twilight's coat ceased. The world was much dimmer than before, and as for the colossal dragon, it remained completely static. "We have thirty minutes, give or take."
Twilight gazed into Luna's eyes. She pursed her lips, touching her chest and taking a deep breath. "That was amazing, and there's no denying that. But please don't do anything like that again." Twilight lowered her head; she noticed Luna's legs wobbling as if they'd collapse at any moment. "You could've passed out!"
Panting, Luna wiped her forehead and feigned a smile. "But it worked." A soft chuckle escaped her mouth. Luna then trudged toward her sister, wrapping a wing around her once they were inches apart and almost collapsing. "Sister, can you help me trot with our friends, if just for a little bit?" She then stood as tall as she could once again.
Celestia nodded in an instant. "Of course," she said. "But as Twilight said, please don't exert yourself too much. You know we've been over this before."
"I know." Luna's cheeks flushed; she donned a weak smirk. "As I was saying, let's get out of here before the dragon breaks free."
As requested, the group all continued their journey toward Maple Village, leaving the frightening beast behind. Not having to worry about being chewed meant Twilight could finally appreciate the surrounding scenery. It wasn't much, but there was something special about the distant geysers shrouding the lands to the east and west. A rainbow off in the horizon was one of the more notable features, Trixie unable to avert her gaze from the radiant sight.
Tiny and harmless critters skipped across the cooling earth, growing in numbers the more Twilight and company trotted. Grass began appearing up ahead, tickling Twilight's hooves whenever she stepped on it. It was there that Luna was able to walk on her own once again, releasing some of the tension gripping Twilight's chest. Birds sang a beautiful cadence, toads croaking and hopping across nearby ponds, the first signs of water in what had to have been ages.
All of that paled in comparison to what was ahead. The silhouette of a town was obscured by mist, though as if by magic, the mist gave way and revealed Maple Village, the trees' autumn-colored leaves and the forest in the background warming Twilight's heart at the sight. A river of sparkling water divided the town into two segments. Fish occasionally hopped out the water and commanded attention, a few undisguised changelings watching them with bright smiles. It was there when Twilight recalled what made Maple Village special; the changelings were noted as being noticeably different than the ones from the ominous Changeling Hive.
Twilight turned to Starlight, the two trotting alongside each other. "Looks like we made it," she said as a matter of fact. A sigh of relief left her lips. "I think it goes without saying, but let's focus on resting up before doing any research or adventuring." Wiping her forehead, Twilight giggled for a moment.
"As long as we don't get chased by giant dragons again, I'll be fine," Starlight quipped. "It's no wonder that few even made the trip across Enigma Crater. If the heat doesn't stop you, those dragons and beasts will." Her eyes widened a little, Starlight rubbing the top of her head. "Speaking of which, why is the town here of all places? It's not like Equestria's lacking open fields."
"Maybe they moved here at the right time," said Applejack. "Seasons and environments change, so maybe those monsters weren't around back then. Heck, I bet they settled here because it's got great farming land." She looked over to her left. "It's by a river, and maybe the soil's perfect for crops."
"Or it could've been because they wanted to live somewhere that's pretty and fun!" Pinkie added, hopping about like a rabbit. "The farm stuff Applejack said makes sense, but if Maple Village is prime territory for having fun, then it totally makes sense for them to live here! And I don't mean parties, but rather spelunking, diving, and so much more!"
"It could have a little of everything," said Fluttershy. She bobbed her head briefly, the smile across her face brightening. "And since it must have a different culture from ours, let's be as polite as possible." In a flash, she swiveled her head toward Rainbow, donning a serious expression. "And that means not making a mess of things."
Rainbow blushed and chuckled nervously. "Okay, so maybe I gushed too much at Baltimare's Daring Do Convention. I mean, it's not often you get to meet A.K. Yearling, the most awesome writer in all of Equestria!" A grin adorned her visage, Rainbow flapping her wings and hovering an inch above the ground. Seconds later, she touched the earth once more and cleared her throat. "But don't worry, I won't wake anypony up this time."
"I'll try to be more polite, too," Rarity added. "An extra pinch of kindness goes a long way, you know."
"Whatever is in store for us, I know we'll be at our best," said Twilight, head raised. She ruffled her wings and glanced back at the rest of the group. "We've visited new towns plenty of times before, and Celestia knows this place better than any of us. Let's try to also have some fun, everypony."
While the rest of the day would've consisted of getting to know Maple Village and resting up, Twilight was eager for the following day. Not only would researching magic be possible once more, she wondered if there were any clues about those mysterious pillars nearby. Despite being steps away from the town, she hadn't seen them yet, so perhaps things were shaping up to be easier than expected.
Of course, trouble could've reared its head at any moment, something Twilight hoped to avoid if possible.