Settling In

by A Wild Magikarp

Chapter 18

Author's Note:

I hate writing Pinkie Pie. She is such a great character if written well, but doing that is SO HARD. Can't rely on 4th breaks and references to keep here going, so one has to channel their inner party pony to come up with sufficient oddities to keep her interesting.
... It isn't as easy as it sounds.
Thanks to my editor The Great Derpsby. I don't know how he manages to catch all my mistakes, but he does.
Thank you all for reading, and enjoy!

"How do you guys find anything in this mess?"

Spike looked up from the glossary of Catcher's Collection of Curious Creatures to arch an eyebrow at Sky. While he may not get as excited over doing it as Twilight, he took pride in his organization of the library. He did not much care for other ponies muttering against his work under their breath.

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"Exactly that! I have been looking through this section for the last eight minutes and I have no idea what sort of system it is using. Look at this! What in the world is a 'Beakers Beautiful Brews' doing next to 'Baking For Fillies'? That's just ASKING for trouble! Or what about this? 'Classical Equestrian Culture' and Canc-.... wait a minute... it's... it's all going alphabetical? And top to bottom? I, but... Huh?"

Spike got off the stool he had been using and walked over to see for himself. Sure enough, the stallion was telling the truth. Genres clashed, subjects intermingled, and age groups where apparently disregarded in the corner of the library, as the only order to the book appeared to be the first letter of the title.

Spike tilted his head and scratched at his crest in confusion. HE certainly wasn't to blame for this, and Twilight would have a panic attack just looking at it. Nyx had helped them organize on occasion, so she wasn't the culprit. But who else organized the library besides them?

Realization struck, and Spike almost laughed before the gravity of their current situation sunk in, and a frown appeared instead.

"The Crusaders where trying to get their 'Library Organizers' cutie marks when Twilight and Nyx where out a couple of days ago. Guess I forgot to clean up this area afterwards..."

"... Oh."

"... I'll just... get back to work over here..."

"Yes, and I will, ah, find another section of the library to look through."

Turning in opposing directions, the pony and the dragon went back to work with renewed determination. Knowing that four fillies and a third of the Element Bearers where depending upon how much they could dig up on the monster stalking the forest had a way of removing any interest in small talk.

Only a few minutes had passed by when the Golden Oaks front door was thrown open for the second time that day. This time, a familiar hat-wearing earth pony came charging in with a determined look on her face, and a yellow filly on her back.

Apple Bloom jumped off her older sister and straightened her bow, before looking back at her sibling, then at Sky.

"You know, y'all seems to be forgettin' I can get around JUST FINE on my own. I don't need you all carryin' me around like some kinda baby..."

Applejack looked down at her kin and allowed herself a slight grin. Perhaps it was unkind to smile at her sister's expense, but it couldn't be helped.

"Sorry there sugarcube, but you said we needed to hurry, and after hearin' what you had to say, I have ta agree."

"Applejack! Good to see Apple Bloom found you so quick, me and Sky could use all the help we can get!"

The farmer nodded and tilted her hat to Spike, then turned to Sky. She gave him an curious look before approaching.

"Apple Bloom tells me you're the pony that found her after she got away from whatever critter found her and her friends in the woods. She also told me you took care of 'er, and how you rescued her after it found her again."

Sky looked over at Apple Bloom, who looked away with a meek grin, then back up to the older Apple.

"I didn't do anything special Miss Applejack, I would hardly call it a rescue. Anypony else would have done the same. I'm just glad she got out safe."

Applejack looked him over again, with what he hoped was respect, before nodding and looking at the room around them.

"So y'all are looking for anything on this varmint that's got the others huh? I may not know the library as good as Twilight or Spike, but tell me what you need and A'll do what I can."

Sky nodded in return, and turned to the central table, now covered in a collection of textbooks, grimoires, and bestiaries.

"Spike and I have already gathered all the books he is aware of that might give us some hint of what to expect from the Drakon. I was just giving the rest of the library one last look to be sure we didn't miss anything. If you and Apple Bloom could go ahead and join him looking for anything relevant to the creature, that would be a big help."

"Can do."

"On it!"

With the newest editions now at work, Sky turned his attention back to the shelves of the library. Hopefully the others would get there shortly, and when they did, he wanted to be sure they had every bit of information they could get on the beast. Time was not on their side, and they where going to need all the help they could get.

---

Pinkie Pie, the party pony from last night, was the first to arrive fifteen minutes later. While one could chalk it up to being absorbed in the book he was reading at the time, Sky could swear the front door was never opened. One moment he was reading on drakon nesting habits, the next he was in a world of pink.

Without so much as a sound, Pinkie Pie had managed to get up on the statue in the center of the table, and had placed her head between Sky and the book. He jumped back with a surprised yell, heart racing at the shock of her sudden appearance. That enormous grin she had worn last night was still there, and from the similar reaction of his counterparts, Sky could assume that she had somehow snuck up on not only him, but everypony in the room.

"Hiya Skya! Wasn't expecting to see you here today! Well I was, cause Twilight told me you'd be here, but I mean BEFORE that part!" The pink mare giggled at herself before moving out from between Sky and his reading material. For reasons unknown to Sky, she decided to up her balancing act, standing on her back left hoof and putting her front two out for support.

"Twilight told me to come here and meet you and Spike and Applejack and Apple Bloom! Said it was SUUUPER important, and you would explain everything when she went to get Rarity, before BAM, teleporting away!"

Thowing her hooves out for emphasis, Pinkie lost her balance and gave a squawk. Falling off the carving, she barely caught herself with her front hooves before landing face first into the ground. Immediately the party planner shot up, once again uncomfortably close to Sky.

"Soooo? Spill the beans mister, whats going on round here? Some sorta secret club? Secret mission? Secret-"

Sky said nothing in a state of information overload as Pinkie Pie continued her rant. She had yet to take a breath as she continued to list of different varieties of 'secret stuff' they might be doing/having/planing. It probably would have continued that way if Applejack had not intervened.

The farmpony in question shook off the surprise much faster than the others, and moved quickly to remove Pinkie from the overwhelmed pony. Dragging her friend away, she turned and faced the pink menace.

"Pinkie, leave the poor stallion be. Not everypony is as used to ya as we are."

Pinkie Pie settled into a relative state of calm, though the reprimand did nothing to curb her enthusiasm. She smiled at her orange friend and bounced lightly back and forth on her hooves, waiting for an answer. Applejack arched an eyebrow, but obliged none the less.

"RD and the Crusaders got themselves caught by a creature in the Everfree. We think the thing probably has Futtershy as well. Sky found Apple Bloom after she got away, and brought her here. We need to get everyone else together so we can come up with a plan to rescue them." Applejack motioned around the room at the collection of books that now surrounded them. "We were just looking up anything we could find on the thing before the rest of y'all got here."

Pinkie let out a dramatic gasp at this news. 'Probably to make up for the earlier lack of air,' Sky thought idly.

"A big mean monster has Dashie, Fluttershy, Sweetie Belle, Nyxie and Scootaloo?!" Pinkie asked. "This is even more important than I thought!"

As she finished announcing the seriousness of the situation, the front doors hinges where once again put to the test as the door flew open for the third time that day. The first pony in was a new one, likely the last pony Twilight had called upon. Rarity, Pinkie Pie had called her. He vaguely remembered her face from the newspaper article on their defeat of Discord.

Sky took a brief moment to assess the newest member of the group. The way she held herself, he was reminded of Miss Fleur De Lis, Fancy Pant's cousin back in Canterlot. Though the tycoon's relative and the unicorn in front of him now may both have had the 'proper lady' air about them, that was not to say they where identical. While both wore magnificent white coats, Fleur's two-toned pink mane was in replaced with Rarity's rich purple curls. And where the Canterlot model sported a lithe and supple build, this mare was built less so, though she had about her a natural grace.

Gentle blue orbs moved around the room, assessing the situation and picking apart details, never resting on one spot for more than a couple seconds. Setting her discerning eyes on Sky, she looked him up and down. The stallion had the feeling he was being judged, or perhaps appraised was a better word. An uncomfortable feeling of being exposed overtook him. It was only a moment, but those seconds stretched on for Sky, as Rarity's gaze began to unsettle his already frayed nerves.

The unease ended with Twilight running through the doorway after her friend, slightly more out of breath than her white counterpart. Her horn flared as she close the door behind her, and all the rooms occupants quickly set their eyes upon her instead.

"*Hah*... *Huh*... OK, that's everypony. Thanks for coming Applejack. *Huff* Did the others explain things to you?"

The farm pony nodded an affirmative. "Yep. Been workin' on finding anything that could help with em for a while while now."

"Good." Twilight replied curtly, before turning away to the progress the others had made in her absence. Applejack looked over to the newest arrival.

"Twilight tell you what's going on Rarity?"

Rarity gave a nod of her own in response.

"Indeed she did Applejack. It is in part the reason we are late to this little meeting. I was in the middle of working with a client, and dear Twilight had to explain the situation in order to pull me away."

Looking to her fellow unicorn, Rarity raised an eyebrow.

"Although she COULD have done so with a bit more tact. Opening with 'a monster has the girls' was somewhat unnecessary if you ask me."

The mare in question, having recovered from her run across town, payed little attention to Rarity's complaint, instead choosing to sift through the collection of knowledge sitting on her centerpiece. Everything from grimoires to scrolls orbited around her head as she took quick account of everything there, quickly glancing over each of their titles. The orbit stopped suddenly, and the satellites where set into a neat pile with the exception of one book, which was floated into a saddlebag that came to rest on the librarian's flank.

"Sorry Rarity, but there isn't much time. I gave you the basics, the rest can be explained on the way. I don't want to leave the girls alone with that thing any longer than necessary. Apple Bloom can stay here with Spike and wait for a response from Princess Celestia. Night Sky can lead us to where he found her, and we can work from there. Is everypony ready to move?"

Twilight was answered with chorus of confirmations, and one cry of indignation.

"What?! Ya mean you're all gonna leave me here when you go save the others? No way, they're my friends too, and I wanna help!"

Sky went to explain why that was a bad idea, but the older Apple beat him to the punch. Applejack looked down at her sister with a stern look, and Apple Bloom's bravado quickly melted away.

"This isn't up for debate, Bloom. You may be just fine with waltzin' into the forest yourself, but I ain't takin' my little sister with me to fight any KINDA pony eatin' critter. You stay here with Spike and wait for the princess, understand?"

Apple Bloom looked dejected, face to the floor and ears back, but she shook her head yes regardless.

"Yes Applejack."

"Good."

Twilight looked away from the Apple siblings to the group. Sky gave her a nod of confirmation when she looked his way, as did the others. With everypony ready she turned and opened the door, the others following close behind.