"I'm not so sure she's here, guys," Kaylee said, biting her lip.

"Oh, come on, there's definitely a part of the pond we haven't been to. Right?" Later looked from side to side; to her left, the way they came—to her right, the very clearing from which Kaylee and Flight had run originally, its muddy, hoofmarked surface no different than when they left it. "You know, on second thought, maybe there is indeed no part of the pond we haven't been to. Drat."

The water had completely subsided by that point, a serene mirror that reflected back the tree branches and pinpricks of starlight above; an uninformed newcomer wouldn't have been able to tell anything odd had happened at all.

"Well, if she's not around the immediate perimetre, she's either closer or further from the water," Clove stated matter-of-factly from the back of the group. As he had been the unconscious one before, he was tasked with carrying Cotton's limp body on his back. Although he wasn't explicitly complaining, he was making his feelings known by stating quite obvious things as if they were new revelations.

"Good work, Captain Obvious," Later retorted, rolling her eyes. "How'd you deduce that one?"

"Hey, how come he gets to be Cap'n Obvious?" Mochi protested. "If anyone here's earned the title, anypony'd say it'd be me in a heartbeat."

"She's got a point," Flight chimed in. "Whenever I notice something obvious, Mochi notices it too and then says it out loud!"

Kaylee shot her an odd look.

"What, I'm playing along!" Flight exclaimed, digging her hooves into the mud.

Later facehoofed. "I'm glad you ponies are having fun, but this is pretty serious. Scootaloo's a good friend, plus the commander would be pretty piouhgd if she found out we... lost her."

"You know, I didn't just say what I said to be annoying," Clove Hitch interjected. "Well, this time at least. Regardless... how about Kevin and Mochi go check the water and see if Scootaloo drowned, and Later and Flight can fan out and check the forest a little further from the pond. Unless she was hellbent on running away, we'll find her, dead or alive."

"How charming," Later deadpanned. "And I suppose you'll just be sitting here, then?"

Clove shrugged, or at least did so to the best of his abilities. It's difficult to shrug while carrying somepony—and an unconscious pony, at that—on your back. "I can't imagine I'd be too much help in either the pond or the forest—it just makes more logistical sense to have me stay here."

"Yeah, yeah, I don't want to hear it," Later grumbled, elbowing Clove in the side as she passed. He winced as her elbow made impact with his wing. "Flight, please be a dear and trot with me so we can get away from here as soon as possible."

Gulping, the butter-yellow filly nodded to Kaylee and then dashed off to follow Later who had already stormed off.

"Okay, kid, it looks like it's just you 'n' me for the pond," Mochi said from behind the filly. Kaylee turned to see the mare already hoof-deep in the murky water, slowly trotting further towards the centre. "I dunno how we're gonna see anything in this mess. Maybe you can use your horn or somethin'? Like, light it up? Heh, hell if I know how magic works."

"Yeah, I can do that," Kaylee replied, stepping into the water. It was frigid, sending a shiver up her spine. "Brr..."

"Perfec'. I'll just wander 'round with the water up to my neck 'til I run into a filly corpse or somethin'."

"D-don't joke about that!" Kaylee stammered."

"Hey, it might not be Scoots! Could be anypony in this murk—I can't see a darned thing."

Kaylee merely frowned as she continued her trot towards the pond's centre.