On the other side, the ponies found themselves surrounded by trees with very little light.
" Are we in the Evergreen Forest?" Rainbow Dash asked as they scanned the area that they were in.
Just then, they watched as the portal behind them closed.
" Hey, it closed!" Applejack exclaimed.
" How are we supposed to get home now?" Fluttershy whimpered.
" Don't be alarmed. I'm sure that once we find the jewels, it will open up again." Twilight told her friends and confidently started walking.
" Let's go!" She called to them behind her.
" Twilight's right. C'mon ya'll." Applejack said.
The ponies joined Twilight's side as they began trudging through the deep forest. It was dark and hard to see.
" Let's light our horns up Rarity before we run into something." Twilight suggested.
" Good idea." Rarity agreed.
The both lit their horns up and preceded walking.
" So tell me, how do we find these jewels again?" Rainbow Dash wondered.
" According to the book, the jewels are kept by princesses." Twilight answered.
" Neat! I wonder what kinds of princesses live here!" Pinkie said excitedly.
" Here? In the forest?" Rarity questioned.
" I don't think so. Let's just get out of this forest first." Twilight said.
" Good idea. This forest is just as scary as Evergreen." Fluttershy replied, her eyes darting around in fear.
All of a sudden, they stopped in their tracks when they heard a scream echo through the trees.
" What was that!?" Rarity gasped.
" I don't think we're in here alone. Let's go see where it came from. Somepony could be in danger." Twilight told her friends before they all trotted off deep into the forest.
Running, they tried to locate where the scream came from. But it was hard as lots of obstacles kept getting in their way. The ponies found themselves getting tangled in branches, tripping into puddles, and even going over unexpecting cliffs. It was a minefield. Eventually, they all made it through and found the source of the scream.
" I hope running through all that was worth it." Rainbow Dash mumbled, annoyed as she picked twigs and leaves out of her mane.
Walking quietly, the scream that they heard earlier was now replaced by crying. Twilight motioned her friends to a nearby bush. Getting behind it, they all stayed quiet and peeked over it. In a clearing a few feet away from them, a young girl was lying on the ground, sobbing.
" On my goodness!" Fluttershy said quietly.
" What kind of creature is that?" Rainbow Dash asked, looking at the girl confused.
" It's a human. I read about them. They're very interesting." Twilight explained to her confused friends.
" Will they hurt us?" Applejack wondered.
" No. They're just like us. I don't think we need to worry about her hurting us."
Near them, they saw woodland creatures hiding behind trees, bushes, and rocks. Some were also hiding with them.
" Aww...it's okay little ones." Fluttershy cooed, smiling as the animals approached her.
She turned her attention back to the sobbing girl.
" Poor thing. She must be so frightened. Let's go cheer her up."
With the animals following behind her, Fluttershy came out from the bush and started slowly approaching the girl.
" Fluttershy! What are you doing?" Rainbow Dash called to her in a whisper.
She went to go get her, but found herself being stopped by Twilight as she put her wing in front of her.
" Wait! Let her go."
Deciding to stay put, Twilight watched in interest as she and her friends watched their friend go toward the girl.
Step by step, Fluttershy, along with the animals, got closer and closer to her. Now standing beside her, Fluttershy drapped her comforting wing over her. At the same time, a bunny was curiously sniffing her. The girl looked up and saw it, startling her. Scared, the animals, but Fluttershy, ran back into hiding.
" Please don't run away. I won't hurt you." She said.
Then she turned and saw Fluttershy.
" Are you okay, miss?" She asked softly.
Instead of being startled, the girl gazed at her curiously.
" Why, you can talk! And you have wings!" She exclaimed.
Before Fluttershy could speak, the girl realized that the animals were still hiding.
" I'm awfully sorry. I didn't mean to frighten you. But you don't know what I've been through." She apologized.
While asking what they did when things went wrong, a pair of blue birds sung.
" Oh, you sing a song!" She grinned.
Hearing them sing, Fluttershy happily sang along, surprising the girl.
" You sing beautifully." She complimented.
" Well, I do practice from time to time." Fluttershy blushed.
" Do you think you can help me have them come out?"
" Of course!"
While the girl started to sing, Fluttershy hummed along as she helped the animals out of their hiding places. From the bushes, the ponies watched.
" Okay, we got her to stop crying. Now let's grab Fluttershy and go!" Rainbow Dash urged.
" No! The poor thing is lost in the woods!" Rarity retaliated.
" Yeah. And who knows what could be lurking in these here woods." Applejack pointed out.
While they debated, Twilight was still watching the girl, thinking.
" Hey, Twilight?" Pinkie said, tapping her friend's shoulder.
Twilight turned to Pinkie.
" I have an idea."
She turned to friends and stopped their arguing.
" What is it Twilight?" Applejack asked, she and the other ponies looking at her.
" I think we need to stick with this girl. I don't know what it is, but there's something about her that might help us out." Twilight proposed.
" Okay!" Pinkie agreed.
" Are you sure that's a good idea?" Rainbow Dash questioned.
" We don't even know this girl and what she might do." Applejack added.
" Just trust me. And if anything goes wrong, we'll leave." Twilight replied.
After some thinking, they all agreed.
" Good. Now let's go." Twilight said.
With her friends behind her, Twilight and them walked over to the girl. She turned and saw them approaching her.
" Are those your friends?" She asked Fluttershy, who was still humming with the animals.
" Yes." She answered and went to join them.
" I meant to ask you this earlier but, are all of you magical creatures of this forest?" The girl asked the ponies.
" Magical creatures?" Rainbow Dash said, raising her eyebrow.
" No. We heard you crying and wanted to help." Twilight explained.
" That's very sweet of you. May I ask what your names are?" The girl asked, smiling.
" Of course. I'm Twilight. You've already met our friend, Fluttershy. And this is Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, and Pinkie Pie." Twilight said, introducing herself and her friends.
" Nice to meet you all."
" And what's your name darling?" Rarity asked.
" I'm Snow White." She replied cheerfully as her and the ponies shook hands with each other.
" So what are you doing out here all alone Snow White?" Applejack asked.
" My stepmother is trying to kill me. So I ran out here to try to get away from her."
" Kill you?!" They all said at once, shocked by this revelation.
Snow White nodded.
" Now we definitely need to help her." Applejack whispered in Twilight's ear, which she strongly agreed with.
" You don't have to be scared anymore. We'll help you." Twilight said to her.
" You will?" She said.
The ponies happily nodded. Snow White smiled.
" I really feel quite happy now. Thank you. But I do need a place to sleep at night." She told them and the animals.
" Maybe you know where I can stay in the woods somewhere."
The ponies of course were still new to everything, so none of them knew where to take her. One of the squirrels then talked to Fluttershy.
" Oh good." She said and turned to Snow White.
" They know a place where you can stay."
" You do?" She asked the animals, who nodded their heads.
Fluttershy and Twilight helped her onto her feet.
" Will you take me there?" She asked kindly.
Snow White grinned sweetly at them before being pulled blissfully by the birds with the ponies following her.
" Good. Once we get her to safety we can find a princess and get the jewels." Rainbow Dash mumbled to her friends as they traveled deep into the woods with their new friend.