This whole place was still quite unfamiliar to her. The entire wall space of the main room was taken up by nothing but shelves half-full with books, all bound in hard paper and written with uniformly printed ink, with their individual scents of dry bark suffusing the entire room and giving it a sense of preserved age that felt so eerie to her. It was quite silent as well, with no bubbling cauldrons or wandering Zebra about to wrench it any further from the sense of dread she felt within it—really the only thing she could hear was some light breezes and quiet birdsong from outside, but even that wasn’t all that known to her, due to her her previous home being in a desert.

Twilight eyed the room warily as she stood in the doorway of what was called a ‘kitchen’, making minimal use of the strange enchanted appliances to heat or cool something at will to make what could charitably considered ‘breakfast’ behind her, and looked across the massive swath of books with a question long since lodged in her mind: why in the world did anyone need this much knowledge in one place?

It made some sense to the Zebra, to keep all the knowledge a settlement may need in one place, just to keep things tidy, but surely even the some hundreds of creatures that lived in this town did not need this much knowledge...

Knock knock-knock!

The sudden noise of someone knocking on a door startled her, making her sharply crouch downwards and quiet her breathing, rendering the silence of the building even more tense for the couple seconds before the door slowly opened up, and someone peeked through, calling out into the room, “Yoo-hoo, Darling! Is there anyone home?”

The voice was feminine and elegant to an outright alien degree, and as its owner stepped inside, rather visible in the dim light of dawn as a type of Pony, though one clearly distinct from those Twilight was familiar with, what with the odd type of bat wings on her side—however, there was a more important question on the Zebra’s mind, which she spoke as she answered cautiously, “Yes, there very much is, but why is someone else on these premises?”

The Pony swiftly looked over, not seeming too startled by the sudden voice, and she smiled friendlily over at the Zebra, though did look a bit befuddled as she replied, “It’s a public library, dear. I do trust you are the librarian here, and not simply a creature hiding out from the night?”

“‘Librarian’?” Twilight replied quizzically while she composed herself, standing up and moving over to the Pony, getting a better view of her. “I’m unfamiliar with the term. But, I do live in this, overgrown fern.”

The other creature tilted her head and smiled with some amusement, no doubt at the imperfect rhyming, but then simply asked, “You must’ve just moved in, yes?” Getting a tentative nod from the Zebra in response, she closed and nodded in understanding. “I see, you must be unfamiliar with quite a lot of the culture here in Equestria, Darling. I was somewhat as well, but...” She sighed theatrically, and softly kicked the door behind her closed, before then heading closer to the other creature.

“I imagine you’re already aware of the general purpose of this building,” The winged Pony begun as she trotted further inside, her hooves clacking in a remarkably refined manner along the wooden flooring, but when she opened her eyes back up to look at Twilight, clearing wanting a response from her, she could see the very distinct red those eyes were. Gulping lightly, the Zebra nodded again, letting the other creature continue, gesturing to the walls of the room and saying, “Obviously, you can see the myriads of books around here.

“This is...” The Pony started for a moment, but trailed off, seeming to wonder on something for a time, and then turned to Twilight and questioned, “You likely have some sort of communal section of the settlement where you’re from, yes?”

Nodding once more, the Zebra could easily recall the way her tribe’s home was set up, and carefully responded, “I very much can, yes... Some of our land was for individual rest, however much of it was, to bathe and cook, though these spaces didn’t need so many books.”

“Ah, of course,” The other creature replied, still quite understanding, “But here, due to all of the different creatures with varying interests, it’s quite useful to have so much knowledge in one place. Take myself, for example,” She spoke, putting a hoof to her chest, “Right now, I am looking for a book on the history of Hippogryph fashion. It’s hardly something anyone would look for on any other occasion than one such as myself being inspired into looking into it, but, it will no doubt be quite useful to me right now.

“Though...” She continued, her smile turning a bit guilty as she stopped in place, “You’re probably more concerned about why someone you don’t know is in your home.”

Twilight had taken note of the mild tangent for what it was, but wasn’t quite able to fully think with those blood red eyes so focused upon her, but now with their owner silent for a spell, she was free to figure out the reason for that question. “The way you spoke, it’s what this place is. Not.. mine alone, but for all the creatures around these premises.”

“Indeed!” The Pony cheered, but a thought seemed to occur to her and she added, “But, I do believe you ought to speak to the mayor ab—the um, local leader around here,” She quickly defined, getting a nod from the other creature before she continued, “About making your status as the librarian—that being the one who works this place, knowing in general where individual books are and how to find them—official.”

“Oh...” Twilight muttered in return, recalling some of what Zecora had recently told her about how creatures tended to live in Equestria, “This would be my ‘job’, then? To help others around this.. den?”

“That’s right, Darling,” The other creature confirmed with that smile of her, which the Zebra was starting to notice held a pair of prominent fangs... “And, of course, you will be compensated for your work. This place is rather infrequently used by most, but still quite important, as is your capacity to hold this place day and night, which, I believe, is why it contains both personal living space as well as the library itself.”

Pulling in a breath and nodding in understanding, Twilight was thankful that any privacy wasn’t going to be robbed of her, even though it seemed like mere paranoia before. “Good to know about that, mare... but, I may be familiar with many creatures in this town’s air, though I can’t say I’ve seen your race before. I know you’re a Pony, but nothing more.”

“Ah, my apologies, Darling,” The Pony replied, and then stood up a bit straighter, swung her head about to flash her silky purple mane, and unfurled her wings in a proud manner, where she spoke, “I am a Thestral, a bat-like Pony that lives under the Moon... and you may call me Rarity.”

Blinking at the somewhat ostentatious display, Twilight did still feel free to observe the mare freely for a moment, taking note of the Thestral’s smooth white coat and purple tail, styled in a coil and just as cared for as her mane. The Pony’s Mark was also visible within the light of dawn, showing itself as three stylized diamonds on her flank, no doubt representing the mare’s gaudiness in some manner.

Regardless, Twilight looked back up to the Thestral’s face, her eyes tracked on the Zebra as she watched her with a raised eyebrow, making her feel a little embarrassed for a moment, but then Twilight realized it was more of a prompting look than a judging one. Shaking herself, she held a hoof to her chest and responded, “A-and I’m known as Twilight, a Zebra shamaness... neophyte.”

“Ah, I’ve certainly heard of Zebras before,” Rarity noted, tilting her head and observing the creature in question, “They certainly tend to keep away from Equestria. How nice to finally see one in the fur...” She trailed for a moment, her expression dimming as she seemed to observe Twilight a bit more intently. “We... do have another in this town, though...” Looking back up at her eyes, she asked skeptically, “You wouldn’t happen to know of them, would you?”

“..You mean the one in the cursed forest?” Twilight asked in response, and got a curt nod back, “Yes, she’s a friend of mine, and very.. much....?” She herself trailed off as she heard something outside, and a moment later, the front door rattled as if from a strong gust of wind. Leaving the thought for now, both the Zebra and the Thestral looked over at the door, where after a moment—

BANG!

“Oh...” “Rainbow Dash...”

“Yep, that’s me!” The rainbow-maned Hippogryph cheered out as she flew inside, staying aloft and smirking over at Rarity with overly ecstatic expression on her face... one that was borderline manic, for whatever reason. “No idea what you’re doing here, but I heard that the new Daring Do book finally came out and—”

“Oh, that...” Rarity grumbled, rolling her eyes in incredible exasperation. Sighing as she threw a sympathetic glance at Twilight, she looked back over to Rainbow and spoke strainingly, “Darling... you ought to know by now that it takes a while to get those things shipped here, yes?”

Scoffing and waving a claw, the Hippogryph blithely retorted, “Oh, come on, it can’t be that bad! It’s just a single book!”

“You’re not the only one who likes those books, Rainbow,” The Pony shot back, keeping a defensive glare at the other creature, “And if you’re really so adamant, why don’t you just fly on over to Cloudsdale or Canterlot and pick it up yourself? Surely that wouldn’t be such a task for ‘the fastest flyer in Equestria’, hm?”

“What, like I want to go through all that effort when I have stuff I got to do here?! I gotta work on my tricks for the Wonderbolts, and I gotta eat and nap a bunch to maintain this bod!” Rainbow Dash exclaimed in return, and when Rarity was about to reply, she sharply added, “And my job, which is pretty important. Keeping the storms at bay, making sure all the farms get enough rain... it’s tough work, and the rest of weather team would have a heck of a time without me!”

“Says the one that always sneers at how ‘easy’ it is, and is late to more often that not...” The Thestral muttered, glaring more openly at the Hippogryph with a faint blood lust in her eyes.

Rather exhausted of the irritating weather creature herself, but wanting to end things calmly, Twilight spoke up, “You have some concerning priorities, Rainbow.. but we don’t have this book you want, so you may as well go.”

“Well, why don’t you have it!?” Rainbow shouted back, flapping up a bit higher in the air and throwing her arms in consternation, “Why’s this place even exist if you can’t the books creatures actually want to read!?”

“Rainbow Dash...” Rarity then spoke, her voice low and full of anger as she took one step forward, stomping on the floor hard enough to echo through the entire room, “I do understand why you care so little for so many books, but you must understand that they still do hold value for many creatures. Many nonfictional textbooks exist here to help the young ones learn about anything they need or want to, and fictional stories of all sorts provide them with differing entertainment based on what they like about stories.

“You are but one single creature, Rainbow Dash,” The Thestral continued scathingly, a faint lisp sneaking into her voice as her fangs became bared and her lengthy, forked tongue slithered in her maw, seemingly hungry for the blood of the incessantly foolish Hippogryph before its owner, “And while I do know how popular these bookss are, it only came out a few dayss ago, and any medium-scale shipment from Canterlot happens at a specific point in time, irrespective of your desiress. Do you understand me?”

Rainbow had grown a bit pale at the blazing red glare of the bat-Pony, and the flapping of her wings slowed somewhat, though still kept her above the floor, and she could only reply with a muddled, “Y-yes, ma’am...”

Rarity’s glare and her posture, tensed as it was, lightened up a bit, and she replied, “Well, good. Though, you really ought to be more respectful of other creatures by now, Rainbow. Especially given how they have their own problems and may not be able to attend to yours.”

Twilight got a bit startled when the Thestral turned to her, the crimson of her eyes seeming to nearly glow with waning anger, and the Zebra definitely understood why Rainbow was so shaken by them. However, Rarity did seem to notice it, and averted her eyes just a bit, giving a guilty smile in apology, which let Twilight calm down and look back over to Rainbow Dash—she did have her own thoughts on what the Hippogryph did, and it seemed as though Rarity was allowing her to voice them.

“I.. may not be familiar with the books of this nation,” She spoke tentatively, that very unfamiliarity leaking into her voice, “But I do such works often contain vital information. I do believe this story you speak to be not real...” She paused for a moment, glancing over at the Thestral beside her, who nodded in affirmation, “Though.. I can still tell you care for it a great deal. Despite this, it is still fake, so any priority would go to works with greater stakes... I do not know how I would acquire these books regardless.. especially of those that I am so knowledgeless.”

A beat passed in silence, and Twilight could only imagine the other creatures taking understanding of her atypical speech for a moment, but then Rarity gasped with a hint of dread audible before she spoke in a high-strung manner, “Uh, Darling, you do mean of Equestria’s fiction in general, yes?”

Bewildered, the Zebra could only reply, “Um, yes? Though, why did you digress..?”

Rainbow seemed to pick up on it as well, though took a short while longer before asking in borderline disbelief, “Wait, do you not know who Daring Do is!?”

“Uh—” Twilight sputtered back, even more baffled by the derailing train of thought.

“Wait, no—!” Rarity tried to speak up, but the Hippogryph had already started.

“Well, that’s one heck of shame!” Rainbow exclaimed, ignorant of other two creatures’ emotions, “Daring Do is AWESOME! She’s a Cheetah treasure hunter that goes through ancient temples and crypts to get a bunch of crazy treasure, dealing with all the crazy traps in there, and saving a bunch of creatures from evil maniacs! This new one’s all about a temple in the desert...” She continued to ramble, but Twilight begun to tune her out and looked over at Rarity, who was hanging her head in visible frustration.

Moving a bit closer to the Thestral, she hesitantly asked of her, “Is Rainbow usually like this..?”

Rarity slowly nodded in confirmation, still keeping her head low as she muttered a curse under her breath. “I was trying to avoid this... Usually she is infuriatingly ignorant and brushes off anything that would be of concern, but this is one of two things she gets this.. mad about. And unfortunately...” She turned her head up just enough to look Twilight in the eyes, and she added with great dread, “I am going to need to jump out of the fire and into the frying pan.”

Not elaborating on the strange metaphor, the Thestral righted her posture and turned towards the yapping Hippogryph and shouted at her, “RAINBOW DASH!”

“...course, then the aliens—er, whah?” Rainbow sputtered at being interrupted, thankfully being more befuddled than irate, and focused back down on the creatures on the floor.

“I was actually planning on meeting you this afternoon, as I’ve finished that order of yours,” Rarity spoke, her tone more professional than usual, though likely no more than a mask above her lingering anger.

“Oh, sweet!” The flying creature cheering, pumping her forelegs before quickly asking of the Thestral, “So I can go ahead and pick that up at your shop, yeah?”

“Yes, but—” Rarity confirmed and attempted to say something else, but Rainbow had already jetted off through the main door that she had left open, the wave of air from her sudden take-off swept across the rest of the room and the two creatures left behind.

The Pony’s mouth was kept open for a couple seconds after Rainbow’s rude escape, before eventually it snapped shut with a loud clack, and she kept her gaze on the still-open door. “I do so hate to ask this of you, dear Twilight,” She spoke to the Zebra next to her, who was still somewhat mentally recovering from the Hippogryph’s madness, “But I believe I’ll need someone to accompany me back. I fear that if I’m left alone with that Rainbow Dash...” She turned her head just enough to let Twilight see those red eyes of hers, now seeming that they were truly glowing with bloodlust, “That I will end up killing her.”

A short time later, Twilight and Rarity hastily walked back to the extravagant Carousal Boutique, which was one of the few places the Zebra recalled from her stressful entrance into the town, where it served as both a home and place of work for Rarity. It was the troublesome nature of this most recent client of hers that kept them on edge, and had Twilight bring along her saddlebags, holding a few specific potions and other alchemical supplies to help deal with the Hippogryph—and of course, she made sure to leave a note for Spike, in case he woke up before she managed to get back to the library.

The town had gotten a bit brighter during their walk, with the Sun hanging just above the horizon, much to Rarity’s chagrin. She held one of her wings up to the side of her face to block the light as they neared the building, but with the front door thrown wide open, it was clear things were only going to get worse.

“Grr, what was I thinking..!?” The Thestral swore to herself, but Twilight could hear her just fine, “Keeping that door unlocked for any length of time was a mistake, especially with poor Sweetie...”

Twilight had remained silent for most of the trip, not having anything to say to the Pony leading her, but said Pony’s continued grousing made her more and more assured in her decision to bring those potions along. As they finally arrived at the shop itself, Rarity put down her wing to trot into the surprisingly dark interior and Twilight tentatively followed her, finding that the entire main room was veiled in a level of darkness, only broken by the sunlight coming in from the door behind her, as all the windows had been covered up with thick curtains.

The room itself was filled with at least a couple dozen metal racks, which each had several pieces of clothing hung from them on strange triangular hooks, many of which... didn’t seem to cover much of a creature’s body. Some were still proper clothing, though rather ostentatious and glittery, but most were composed of strange triangles, thin socks, and fancy saddles that the tribal Zebra had no clue the purpose of. However, it still rung with a sense of exclusivity, with the no-doubt expensive and fragile clothing all wrapped in the room’s darkness, and it made her feel.. uncomfortable, as though she wasn’t supposed to be there.

Rarity did invite her inside though, and so Twilight kept following her deeper into the room, where the Thestral gave some more aggravated grunts as she adjusted some of the clothing on the racks, righting them from their presumably incorrect positions. Eventually, they reached another door at the back of the room, which was also wide open and letting out some noises of things being opened and closed, as well as wings flapping and annoyed grumbling.

“RAINBOW DAAASH!!” Rarity screamed through the door, her gaze landing on something—likely the disruptive Hippogryph—through the impregnable darkness, where the creature in question could be heard setting something down before flapping her wings to move into view of the door.

“I know, I know,” Rainbow muttered somewhat nonchalantly, not seeming to pay much attention to the other creatures, “I just wanna get my suit and head back to Clouds—”

“Shut your mouth right now,” The Thestral commanded, that edge to her voice coming back stronger than ever and silencing Rainbow, her blood-red eyes boring into the other creature’s, who despite still seeming a bit distracted, was clearly perturbed at a fundamental level by them, her wing-flaps slowing down again. “You have no right to enter my shop and mess with my works like this, you damned fool. You still have more than two days to get back there, so do not tell me you are in any urgency!”

The continued berating started to pull the Hippogryph back into that trance, where now even Twilight could feel the power of those rage-fueled eyes, making it so very difficult to look away, or even move under the pulse-pounding fear of invoking the mare’s wrath... “I do have the finished suit, Rainbow...” Rarity spoke more slowly now, tempering her emotions while keeping both other creatures under that spell, “But it is in a protected place where disgraces like you won’t ruin them.

“Honestly, Rainbow, you ought to have learned even a little respect by this point in your life,” The Thestral scolded, sighing and finally pulling her gaze down to the floor for moment, breaking the hold it had on Rainbow, but before she could move or speak, Rarity quickly looked back up and added, “And I really ought to charge more to deal with clients as rude as yourself!”

Her words did seem to sink into the Hippogryph, who stayed silent for a moment while she kept herself aloft with her lethargic flaps, but eventually took in a breath and looked the thestral in the eyes to say tentatively, “Right. Um, I just wanted as much time as possible to prepare for the training, and I didn’t really know where to look, and this place is pretty dark—”

“Oh, I’m sorry,” Rarity cut her off once more, tilting her head slightly in an almost deranged anger, “Are you really blaming me and my needs rather than your simple impatience, you ignorant buffoon?”

“Well, n-no, but—” Rainbow tried to sputter, backing up just a bit as those crimson eyes grew ever more enraged.

“‘But’? But you don’t care about waiting a few minutes and would rather trash my shop and make me burn my eyes in borderline daylight?” The Thestral interjected, her tone becoming truly chilling with its lack of emotion, but Twilight could easily tell how she was mere steps away from letting loose. “You absolute self-absorbed moron... you are aware of my kind’s reputation, yes?”

That was a threat if Twilight had ever heard one, and she was quick to stop the Hippogryph from forcing it to come to fruition; on instinct, she hastily flipped one of her saddlebags and pulled out a large vial of pink liquid, and, with a quick glance at the symbols scrawled onto the paper tag attached to it, threw it at Rainbow, smashing it over her face.

“Gah!” Rainbow Dash cried out in shock, her beak flapping open, with the pink fumes that erupted from the shattered vial quickly finding their way inside, and the actual fluid splashing across her face. Twilight took that brief moment of distraction to look at Rarity, noticing the other effect of snapping the Pony out of her state and into a bewildered shock, where she did soon look back the Zebra, who gaze a pointed expression in response.

“That is a concentrated lethargy potion, Rainbow Dash,” Twilight stated, returning her gaze to the Hippogryph, who was now swiping at the fluid that was quickly sinking into her fur and the flesh beneath it, eyes still closed to protect against said fluid, “And I do not like how you treat this Pony like trash. I know her emotions were being taken too far.. but they are real, and come from her heart. You are the one that caused it, fool, so, of course she would lose her cool.

“The potion itself, is to slow you down,” She continued, noticing the effects of it setting in as Rainbow’s wings flapped ever slower, now unable to keep herself in the air, and making her stumble a bit as she landed on the floor, “And.. it’s power will make you drown. You will fall asleep for quite a long while... enough that time will be up when you get to Cloudsdale. However, I have an antidote with me, right here,” She reached into saddlebag again, now pulling out a very light blue potion, that she once again double-checked the tag on, “But do allow me to be clear; I will only give you it if you show us respect—truly and clearly.. and not some superficial aspect.”

The potion was clearly sinking in even deeper down, enough so that Rainbow was beginning to tremble under her own weight, but now she was able to open her eyes and look back at the Zebra, a level of disbelief and irritation in her expression. Still, Rarity quickly muttered an apology to Twilight before pushing past the Hippogryph and into the room behind her, no doubt eager to be out of her presence, even for a moment, though Twilight remained before her and continued, “I do hope you understand my actions, Rainbow, as.. it is your rudeness that made me lay you low. All I ask of you is simple respect, and that you think before you act.”

It may not have been the wisest of moves to ask such a question of a creature that was barely keeping herself awake, but Twilight knew keeping the Hippogryph from making things worse was the greater priority, and so even as Rainbow was forced down to her rump just to not fall over, her head hung down in what was certainly a mix of lethargy and shame, Twilight kept the potion from her. Only after a while was Rainbow able to actually process her thoughts, and then struggled to lift her head to look back at the Zebra, muttering out with a light slur, “A-arright, fine... s..srry...”

Twilight eyed her for a moment, noting how difficult it was to tell if the Hippogryph was actually being genuine or simply assenting—but she supposed it wouldn’t be fair to pass judgement on that given the creature’s potion-induced lethargy. “Here, drink this.. to counteract your exhaustion,” She said, and lifted the potion to her mouth to uncork it with her teeth, then held the cork in the corner of her mouth as she finished, “Though, it will take longer than a single moment of combustion.” Bringing the potion over to Rainbow, the other creature opened her beak to let Twilight pour the fluid in, slowly enough to let Rainbow gulp it down without overflowing.

Once done, Twilight was free to put the cork back into the vial and place said vial back into her saddlebags, but her eyes were soon drawn back down to the faint glints of light on the floor barely visible in the room’s darkness. They were the shards of the previous vial she threw, and there was also some of the fluid that splashed there as well, even more difficult to see, but it did all make her more thankful that she also packed a small rag amidst her other supplies. Flipping open her other saddlebag and pulling the rag out, she sat down on the floor and carefully scooped up the shards of glass and mopped up the fluid in the rag, and once she was sure she got all of it, she rolled the rag up into a small bundle, which was promptly placed back into her saddlebag.

Returning her gaze to Rainbow Dash, she could tell the second potion was working by how the other creature was able to keep her eyes open more and posture more upright, but it still took some time before she looked awake enough for Twilight to address her, “I believe it would be best if we went outside, for now. Rarity would certainly appreciate.. being away from you, you know.”

Seeming to snap out of a light daze, the Hippogryph looked over to her, and silently nodded after a moment. Pushing herself to stand, she paused for a moment, presumably to make sure of her balance, before then gesturing with a claw to the main door at the other end of the main room, still open with the daylight pouring in. Twilight took the cue and headed for the door, walking past the many racks of strange clothing again while Rainbow followed her, and soon enough arriving back outside, and having to squint slightly from the quick shift back from the dark interior to the bright sunlit town.

With both herself and the meddlesome Hippogryph outside and having nothing to do but wait, Twilight opted to sit on the ground a short ways in front of the door while Rainbow closed it behind her, before then taking a second before tentatively sitting down herself. The two creatures were now left in relative quiet, though not a particularly comfortable one as Rainbow fidgeted in place, unable to keep her eyes on any one thing for long, but Twilight kept herself still as she pondered the creature beside her.

The Zebra had hardly been in this land for long, and she had been exposed to a great many species in that time, each with their own culture that they brought to this town, and seeming to share said town quite amicably... for the most part. There would always be exceptions in any group of things, so it was inevitable that among the nice and helpful creatures of Ponyville, there were some bothersome and rude creatures... but that didn’t really help her understand why. Why, beyond the simple freedom of this land, that some creatures decided to act so poorly to others...

“I have a question for you, Rainbow Dash...” She spoke carefully, but still heard a light gasp from the Hippogryph next to her while she turned her head to look at her surprised and.. somewhat fearful expression, “Why are you so intent on being this.. brash?”

Holding her beak open for a moment in surprise, Rainbow then looked away and shut it, and soon tried to reply, “I... I’m not...” Sighing and glancing over the other creature for a moment, she muttered in assent, “It’s.. not something I’m trying to do.”

Somewhat mystified by her words, Twilight pondered them for a moment before asking, “So, why do you—”

“I’m not trying anything!” The Hippogryph cut her off in a mild panic, and her eyes locked onto Twilight’s, allowing her see the true seriousness of her tone, “I don’t want to cause problems for other creatures—I just... I don’t think about what I’m doing before I do it.” Her voice trailed off at the end, and she pulled her gaze away from the other creature, hanging her head while her entire body drooped in defeat.

Pausing again, the Zebra could tell how well that matched up with the creature’s previous actions; bursting into Twilight’s home and announcing her presence as if she was the only one that mattered, rambling on about a topic only she herself cared for and asking for the unreasonable, and of course, throwing another creature’s place into (based on Rarity’s reaction) disarray and remaining unmoved by said creature’s reasoning. The Hippogryph was not stupid, simply unaware of how her actions would affect others—at least, not without being forced to think on it.

“That is.. rather immature, you know,” Twilight spoke carefully, uncertain of why exactly the other creature acted as she did, but with a strong idea in her mind, “I do believe.. you’re growing up quite slow.”

Rainbow nodded slowly in acceptance and affirmation, her eyes remaining in place as she seemed to think for a few seconds, and then took a breath in and responded, “Yeah... I know. I just...” She went silent, looking even more uncomfortable and strained for some time, but eventually spat out, “I don’t like trying to change. I... All I really want is to live in the moment and have fun, but... a lot of the time, that causes problems for other creatures, a-and me...

“All this keeps happening...” She muttered, her tone becoming somewhat exhausted and exasperated with herself, “I’m just trying to fly around and have fun, all while working towards a dream of mine, but then other creatures tell me that I’m making things irritating for them, and...” Gulping, Rainbow looked over at the Zebra and spoke more candidly, “You know, I can tell when others want me to stop, and that I’m actually causing problems for them. I just.... don’t want to have to admit to them—and me—that I’m actually being dumb. It... really makes me really uncomfortable...”

Twilight kept looking at the Hippogryph as she turned away, gaining a level of sympathy for her despite all the frustration she had caused, but... that didn’t absolve her from needing to get better. “I know you want to hang onto your carefree childhood, Rainbow Dash, but.. those days are long since in the past. Every other creature has.. moved on in some way, but you’re... letting this discomfort stand in your way.”

Rainbow didn’t reply, but the Zebra could tell she was thinking. Reflected, really, about how much her petty immaturity had cost her and others. Pulling her attention away, Twilight was content to let her do so, especially with little knowledge about all of what the other creature had actually done in this town or gone through in her past that led her to be so... cowardly. Thus, the two creatures were left in relative silence as they watched Ponyville go about its morning business, what with creatures trotting about for whatever purpose, most of them seeming quite content in it all.

Twilight thought and reflected about it too; it was easy to get a wrong opinion about the creatures that lived there with the poor first impressions, all the chaos and shortsightedness of those who greeted her, but it was now clear that, just like the Hippogryph beside her, there was far more to this place than just that. Intentionally or not, Twilight had been digging deeper into this society, eager to learn and know all she could about anyone and everything, not just to keep herself and Spike safe, but also because it was insightful to learn about all the different creatures that had come here and lived here, from so many different cultures and with so many different pasts...

It was certainly strange to see so many differences among those that managed to work and live together like this, and it did certainly make her wonder how long it’d take until she, too, would feel at home in this strange, unfamiliar, and chaotic place.

However, her thoughts were interrupted by a sharp inhale from Rainbow Dash, and Twilight snapped her attention over to her to see her looking down at the ground and grimacing. From what, though, was soon answered when she heard a set of hoof-steps approaching her and Rainbow, making her look over at their owner—a female Pony Pegasus with a yellow coat and cyan mane, as well as a mark on her flank of three water droplets.

“Rainbow Dash,” The Pony called once she had gotten a dozen or so paces away, and Twilight looked at the creature in question, who was steadily getting more uncomfortable as the Pony approached.

After a moment though, Rainbow looked back at her, took a deep breath, then stood up and faced the Pony and replied, “Hey, boss. Sorry about... not showing up to work yesterday. I was... busy.”

The Pegasus’s eyes widened in surprise at that, and she only fixed her expression a few seconds later after getting within hoof’s reach of Rainbow. “Well...” She muttered, some disbelief still clear in her tone, “It’s good that you’re owning up to that, for once. ...What exactly were you busy with, then?”

Flitting her eyes away for just a moment, Rainbow replied with some guilt creeping in, “Packing, ma’am.” At the other creature’s raised eyebrow, she elaborated, “I was packing to head back up to Cloudsdale, as the Wonderbolt cadets will be training again. ...Ma’am.”

The Pony’s look was somewhat stuck for a moment, then she closed her eyes and heaved a sigh of disappointment. “And you didn’t tell me about this advance because...?” She prompted, her eyes opening to give a firm stare back at the Hippogryph.

“I.. thought you were aware of the times the camp started at, ma’am,” Rainbow returned, her body grower stiffer with each sentence tossed back and forth, “I know you know that I have to go there, but I didn’t realize that that’s—” She cut herself off, wincing at herself, but then started again, slightly more put together, “I assumed that you knew about all the details, even when you had no reason to. That was my job; I should’ve told you. S..sorry.”

Pursing her lips, the other creature looked very contemplative for a short time, but it was enough for Twilight to feel horribly awkward about being there; this conversation was hardly related to her, and barely understood the topic of their conversation.

“...While I certainly appreciate you being more.. forthright for a change, it doesn’t change the fact that you didn’t tell me about this before, and the disorganization this’ll cause us will cause some issues for everyone in Ponyville.” The Pony looked somewhat irritated through her otherwise professional tone, but that tone grew a bit colder as she added, “And that cost is going to end up coming out of your paycheck. Understood?”

Rainbow sharply pulled back in shock, her expression indignant and she looked ready to shout back at her superior, but then she just shut her beak and hung her head. “I.. yes, you warned me about that. I get it.”

Still a bit slow to accept the respect the Hippogryph was giving, the Pegasus nodded slowly with eyes trained on her, but then they looked over between her and Twilight, and she gave a nod and said cordially, “Rarity.”

“Hello, Dar—”

Twilight swiftly jerked away in shock, practically tripping over herself as she saw the Thestral somehow right outside her shop’s door, and right behind herself and Rainbow, with neither of them noticing until she spoke up.

Rarity held a hoof to her mouth as she tittered in amusement, then spoke with a slightly apologetic, but still laughter-filled tone, “S-sorry, Darlings, I didn’t mean to spook you!”

“Graaaah,” Rainbow groused from a short ways away, apparently also having jumped away in surprise, but then shot back in a somewhat miffed voice, “You really need to cut that stealthy crud out!”

“Oh, puh-lease,” Rarity retorted with a wide roll of her eyes, “It’s simply my nature, dear. I can’t avoid sneaking up on creatures more than you can avoid ticking them off.” Her voice gained a tiny bit of venom at the end, but she still held a rather genuine smile.

“Actually, she was quite a bit more respectful just a moment ago,” The other Pony said in response, gaining back the Thestral’s attention. “Actually admitted her mistakes for once.” She gave a light snort, glancing over at the creature in question, who was blushing a bit now in shame.

Tilting her head and looking over at Rainbow as well for a moment, Rarity also seemed quite surprised, but understanding as she spoke, “Ah, really now?” Turning her attention over to Twilight, who still hadn’t moved since getting startled, but had calmed down her heartbeat, she asked, “I take it you managed to knock some sense into the girl, hm?”

Blinking at being put back in the spotlight, Twilight took a moment before nodding in tentative confirmation and replying, “I.. suppose you could say that, indeed; I did have a talk that, she did very much need.”

“Well, I definitely appreciate it,” The Pegasus nodded in thanks, then hesitated for a second before saying somewhat awkwardly, “Uh, sorry about ignoring you for a while here; I was a little busy with...” She trailed off gesturing towards the Hippogryph.

“O-of course,” Twilight returned, a bit awkward herself at the odd point of conversation, “I do know what you mean. Your priority was on Rainbow, and how difficult she’s been.”

Nodding sharply, the Pony was clearly appreciate of the understanding, and she raised a hoof to the Zebra, and introduced herself, “Raindrops. I’m captain of the weather team here, and—well, I can’t say I recognize you. You’re new around here, yeah?”

“That’s.. correct, Raindrops. I’m a Zebra named Twilight,” Twilight herself replied in turn, lifting her own hoof to shake the Pegasus’s, “And I haven’t been here.. anywhere close to a fortnight.”

“Alright,” Raindrops muttered, nodding to what seemed to be just herself while the two creatures returned their hooves to the ground, “Since you’re probably not familiar with the way this all works, there’s a rollout of mail every week that goes over all the weather we’re planning for that week—though, it can end up being affected by other stuff sometimes.” She threw a glance towards Rainbow, who blushed even harder and looked away in shame, but Raindrop just rolled her eyes and went on, “Mainly though, it’s the Everfree Forest, and all the magic there that can end up changing stuff. We try to keep everyone up to date, but sometimes storms can roll in pretty fast from there, and we can end up stopping them. Alright?”

Twilight nodded in comprehension, though not quite full understanding—she was a Zebra after all, and Zebras couldn’t bend the weather to their whim, nor did they use any sort of mail.

An intrigued hum from Rarity brought the other creatures’ attention to the Thestral, where she spoke, “Actually, that may be a bit of a worry. She lives at the library, but hasn’t officially registered herself as the librarian yet,” She explained, getting a slow nod of understanding from the other Pony.

“Gotcha...” Raindrops muttered, but then looked away and sighed. “Well, I suppose I’ll have to leave you to that,” She said, looking back at the others with some apology in her expression, “I gotta get to my job soon. And Rainbow...” She trailed off, turning specifically towards the Hippogryph and keeping her eyes there long enough for Rainbow herself to actually look back, “...Try to keep this up, yeah?”

Rainbow inhaled a breath, and nodded in agreement, which let Raindrops give her a nod of thanks back before turning around, then jumping and flapping her wings to fly off into the air, heading away from the other creatures, back to where she was needed.

“Now that that’s all over...” Rarity spoke up, getting back the attention of the remaining two creatures, but she herself focused on Rainbow, “I do indeed have your order complete, Darling.” Reaching one of her hooves up, she pulled a small, flat white box made of what looked like stiff paper off of her back and held it before herself, but spoke scathingly to Rainbow, “However, I do believe you forgot to actually bring your bits to pay for it, Rainbow.”

The Hippogryph gaped her beak in turn, then smacked a claw to her face in embarrassment. “S-sorry...” She muttered, sounding slightly afraid after what she had already dealt with from the blood-lustful Thestral, but then pulled away her claw to hold it up and look at said Thestral as she said warily, “I’ll.. go get them right now.. alright?”

Rarity forcefully waved her off, which made Rainbow quickly turn around and jump and flap her wings to swiftly dart off into the distance, clearly heading over Ponyville to presumably her home, though her take-off did blow a gust of wind at the two other creatures, making them flinch back a bit in annoyance.

“That bloody girl, I swear...” The Pony uttered to herself, placing her box back onto her back.

Looked over at her in concern, Twilight took a couple seconds before asking, “Are you alright, Rarity? I do understand.. this other creature’s difficulty.”

Rarity shrugged and replied noncommittally, “Eh, we’ll see, Darling. It all depends if Rainbow actually heeds her boss’s words and manages to think before she acts.” After a few more seconds, she shook it off and turned to the Zebra, and spoke more apologetically to her, “Terribly sorry about involving you in all that, Darling. Would you like to come inside and join me for some tea?” She gestured over to her shop, and added a little curiously, “Perhaps would we could talk some about things you might like to know about Ponyville?”

A bit surprised by the offer, Twilight asked herself if that was something she actually wanted, or she’d prefer just going back home to calm down after everything with Rainbow. She still had that note in place for Spike, and library itself was still a bit eerie to her, but it would be nice to have some regularity, especially in the morning... Though, it wasn’t like talking with the Thestral would be terribly disquieting, unlike the Hippogryph, and learning some important things about this town would be useful...

“Yes.. I think that would be nice,” She agreed, nodding to the Pony, “After what just happened, I’d like some peace.”

Author's Note

Well, it’s good to be back with this.
And a more important chapter too, as it ties back to the prequel story with Rarity, even the plot of that story isn’t mentioned here. Don’t worry though, it will be next chapter, as well as some major stuff about this world and Ponyville in general.

Something I thought worth mentioning here though; it may seem a little strange how Rarity is so angry about Rainbow messing with stuff, despite very little of it being shown, but it is for a reason. Twilight doesn’t really know what these clothes are or if they’re ripped, especially with how dark the room itself is, even with the door open, and Rarity was already somewhat predisposed towards being angry at Rainbow, given the history between them. This will likely be elaborated on in the next chapter though, but I didn’t forsake the confusion that Twilight should be in, as it further shows how unfamiliar she is with Ponyville, and that the town’s been getting up to a lot of stuff without her.