Though Rainbow Dash had stayed up almost the entire night to watch out for signs of activity from the other island, she hardly allowed herself to sleep and rest beyond a quick nap for a few hours. There was too much to do, to much to prepare for to allow herself to sleep. Though she knew she’d regret it later, she was already regretting wasting time on sleep in the now. The sooner she got up and about finding Rarity, the sooner she could put her troubles to rest.

After about four hours of sleep, Rainbow’s body roused itself and forced her awake. Yawning, the pegasus wandered out of her shelter to see a few ponies sitting around the camp. Most of the ponies who had helped her keep watch, like Ratchet and Flag, were nowhere to be seen, instead choosing to make up on their lost sleep. Only Gyro, Roger, Champagne, and Ruse sat out in the open, with the occasional sign of life from within Gauze’s new medical hut at least betraying that the doctor was awake and active. And not only that, but a familiar, colorful macaw was perched on Gyro’s shoulder, nibbling on her ear in a constant plea for head rubs.

“There’s my favorite buddy in the whole wide world!” Rainbow exclaimed, lying down by Gyro’s side. Chirp chirped and spread his wings, hopping from Gyro’s shoulder to Rainbow’s and rubbing his head against her cheek. Rainbow chuckled and tickled the bird’s head with a wingtip, then winked at Gyro. “And Gyro. I guess you’re cool, too.”

Gyro laughed and ‘punched’ Rainbow’s side. “If you’re gonna be like that, then Chirp’s my favorite feathered friend ever.” She smiled at the macaw, who was busy playing with Rainbow’s mane. “We were having a good thing until you decided to ruin it.”

“Ello,” Chirp said, proudly fluffing his feathers. “Rainbow!”

Rainbow blinked, then grinned at the macaw. “You learned how to say my name? That’s awesome, little dude!”

“He’s been saying it all morning,” Champagne said, seated across from Rainbow. “It’s his favorite word, I think.”

“It better be his favorite word. I’m his favorite pony, after all!” Rainbow nuzzled the bird’s chest feathers some, then turned to the rest of the ponies gathered around the circle. Her eyes fell on Ruse first, and she smirked and raised an eyebrow. “You’re not tired? At all?”

“Mostly sore,” the ventriloquist said. “I only need four hours of sleep to feel great. I got five last night.”

“I wish I had your superpower, damn,” Gyro said. “I can sleep for eight hours and still be exhausted.”

“It’s why I take naps.” Rainbow fluffed her wings and dragged over a basket of fruit. “How’re the legs, G?”

Gyro shrugged and feebly kicked with them. “Mostly useless, but that’s an improvement over totally useless. At least my back doesn’t really hurt anymore. Maybe I’ll be walking again soon.”

“Hey, that’s pretty good!” Rainbow smiled and slapped Gyro on the shoulder, causing Chirp to momentarily spread his wings to keep his balance. “Keep at it, girl, and you’ll be better in no time!”

“Maybe I’ll be able to go the rest of my stay on these islands without getting crippled again,” Gyro said. “It’d be nice to like, not have to be bedridden every month.”

“You better hope you get your legs working soon.” Rainbow’s ears flicked over to the side, where Jolly Roger finally looked up from the very edge of the circle. “You might need them sooner than you think.”

“Glad to see you’re being a part of the conversation,” Rainbow said. “It’s about time we start getting along and working together, right?”

“It’s a start,” Champagne said.

Roger glared at the two of them. “Fuck off,” he muttered, and he returned his attention to the block of wood he continued to whittle down with a knife.

Champagne’s ears flattened. “…or not.”

“Don’t mind me,” Roger said, much to his own surprise. “I’m just a pirate with a stick up my ass, so I’m taking it out on other sticks.”

Rainbow saw Ruse’s pale magic flicker off of his horn, and she immediately covered her muzzle and started chuckling. Jolly Roger dropped the block of wood and brandished his knife in Ruse’s direction. “You think you’re funny, you piece of shit? How about I give you a new hole in your neck to try speaking out of?”

“Why don’t you put that thing down before you hurt yourself,” Rainbow said, glaring at him.

“I think I know how to use this better than any of you,” Roger growled at them, twirling the knife about in his feathers. “Back off.”

“You’re only here because we need you,” Gyro reminded him. “Not because we want you here. Remember that, asshole.”

Rainbow sighed and shot Gyro a look. “Come on, G…”

“I’m not wrong, am I?” Gyro matched Rainbow’s look with one of her own. “Don’t tell me you actually enjoy his company. At least his brother’s not as much of an ass hat.”

Jolly Roger sneered at the two of them, but ultimately sat back down and went back to whittling down his block of wood. “We’re only here because we can’t deal with all that shit you unleashed on our own. Once that’s done with, then we’ll see who’s on what side of the knife.”

Rainbow rolled her eyes. “Great to know that we’re all happy and cooperative here…”

Standing up, she yawned and stretched her legs. “I’m gonna take a trot around the island with Chirp. Maybe check in and see how everything else is doing. Sometimes minotaurs would come here, and if they’ve rebuilt their boats enough to be active again, that’s gonna be a problem.”

“Rebuilt their boats?” Champagne’s eyebrow climbed up her forehead. “What do you mean?”

“It’s… a long story, and I don’t feel like explaining it.” Backstepping a few paces, Rainbow pointed a wing at Gyro. “G can tell you all about it. It’s not like she’s going anywhere.”

“Fuck you too, Rainbow,” Gyro grumbled.

“Love ya, G.” Then, spinning in place, Rainbow nuzzled Chirp and quickly shrugged her shoulder to get the macaw flapping his wings and flying. “Alright, Chirp, try to keep up!”