“Twilight! Twilight! Wait up!”
Twilight rose her head from the rock she was using as a pillow, eyeing the young dragon sprinting across the meadow to her. She quickly wiped her eyes with a hoof as he slowed his approach.
“Twilight. I. Came. As-” Spike put his claws on his knees and panted until he caught his breath. He stood up, brushed off his scaled torso, and continued. “I came as soon as I heard you left! What’s going on?” He sat down on the rock Twilight laid by and gazed at her. “Something the matter?”
She shook her head in dismissal and laid her head on the rock, next to Spike. Sensing quiet misery, he laid his hand on her mane and tussled it. She tried to hide it, but a small smile crept through. A giggle escaped her sour mood as his tussling continued, completely ruining her royally styled mane. “Oh, Spike!”
“So..?” He lifted his hand away, allowing her to raise her head and meet his gaze. A subtle red tint was in her eyes, as if she had been crying. “Why the sourpuss all of the sudden?”
Twilight snorted. “Spike. Language.” The dragon shrugged. She stood up and nuzzled him before continuing. “Well, it’s nice to see you. I didn’t expect you to follow me…”
Spike wrapped an arm around her shoulders. “Twilight, I followed you into another dimension without a second thought. Of course I’ll come back home to see you.”
She returned his affection with a purr and a nuzzle. “Well I’m happy you did. It’s just…” She leaned away from him, forcing him to drop his arm down. Her head turned away for a moment, to gain composure. “It’s been months since I’ve had any real time off to myself. Everytime I visit, everypony’s… busy. I understand my friends have their own lives, but I haven’t had more than a passing conversation since my coronation.”
They watched as the sun began to set on the horizon, painting the sky brilliant shades of orange. “I miss my friends,” Twilight said, leaning against her number one assistant. “If it weren’t for them, I wouldn’t even be a princess. I would give it away in a heartbeat if it meant-”
Spike interrupted her by wrapping his arms around her neck and squeezing. “It’s alright, Twi. They still love you and all. It’s just that time of fall, you can hardly blame them.”
“Yeah…” She bit her lip, and decided to drop it. There was no point in complaining; it wouldn’t bring her friends back. They had their own lives now. That was something to respect.
Spike stood up and pushed her to her hooves. “Come on. While we’re here, why don’t we walk around a bit? Maybe we’ll see the crusaders or Big Mac or somepony!” He grabbed a front hoof and began tugging her toward town. Twilight rolled her eyes but allowed herself to be dragged so childishly.
“Alright, Spike. Lead the way then.” Twilight giggled as they walked out of the front door of the treehouse and down the streets of Ponyville. As they walked down the first few streets, Twilight noticed that something was slightly… off.
“Uh, Spike?” Twilight looked all around her at the empty streets. As she strained her eyes forward, she found that she couldn’t even hear the idle chit-chat of ponies at the marketplace. There was no clopping of hooves, or even the opening or closing of doors. Twilight’s eyebrows raised in confusion.
“Where is everypony?” Twilight stopped in her tracks and looked towards the sun, using one of her forehooves to shield her eyes from the light. “It’s only twelve o’clock. There should be plenty of ponies out and about at this time! Did Ponyville really get this quiet while I was too busy being a princess to pay attention?” Twilight frowned and sighed as she turned her head towards the ground. The pain of absence was etched onto her face in stress lines and tiny wrinkles.
Spike placed his hand on her shoulder and put his hand under her chin, lifting her head up so that he could look directly into her eyes. “Twilight. Being a princess is serious business! It’s not your fault that you’ve been busy lately, and nopony blames you for it. Everypony’s got their own responsibilities, and yours are pretty big now.” Spike grabbed Twilight tightly and held her in a hug, patting her on the back as she sniffled a bit.
“T-thanks, Spike. It’s just… I feel so bad! I haven’t had time for anything lately, let alone you and my other friends. I just feel like I haven’t been doing enough for you all. I’m the princess of friendship and I don’t even have time for my own friends!” Twilight sighed and held Spike to her chest, giving him an affectionate nuzzle. “I’ve never hated irony so much…”
Spike smirked and put his claws to the corners of Twilight’s mouth. He turned them upwards as she tilted her head in confusion.
“What? I just want to see the old, smiling Twilight that I used to see everyday!” Spike pushed the corners of her mouth even further, revealing her sparkling white teeth. “Go ahead. Smile! Show the world those pearly whites, Twilight! Just because you’re a princess doesn’t mean that you can’t be happy anymore.”
Twilight giggled and smacked Spike’s hand away playfully, giving him a genuine smile. “Heh. Thanks, Spike. You’ll always be one of my best friends. And my number one assistant!” She smiled and gave him another hug before Spike began to drag her along once again. “Wait, Spike. Where are we going now?”
Spike simply smirked. “Same place we were going before. Trust me, I think you’re going to like it.”
The pair continued to travel through the streets of Ponyville, Twilight still slightly on edge due to the lack of ponies around.
“Hey, look. It’s Rarity’s place,” Spike said as he pointed to Carousel Boutique. “Still getting your clothes from her?” He patted her back as they walked past.
“I would, but lately she’s been receiving several orders from other Canterlot nobles. She’s been busy lately. Really busy.”
Spike rubbed his chin in thought. “Want to head over to Sweet Apple Acres? I’m sure Applejack wouldn’t mind an extra hoof at bucking apples.”
Twilight shook her head. “Apple bucking season is over. She’s probably making cider, and you know what happened last time we tried to help.” Spike couldn’t help but shudder.
Spike abruptly held his hand in front of Twilight, stopping her. “We’re here!”
“Sugarcube Corner?” Twilight shook her head. “I’m not hungry…”
“Nonsense!” Spike dragged her to the bakery, his stomach rumbling in hunger.
Twilight looked in apprehension at the clear sugar glass door to Sugarcube Corner. Inside, she could see only darkness. “Spike. You never answered my question earlier. Where is everypony today? There’s been nopony in the streets or on the way here, and now Sugarcube Corner is empty! Something is seriously wrong here!”
Spike simply shrugged. “I don’t know, Twilight. Maybe they all took a vacation? Maybe it’s a holiday? I haven’t really been paying attention to the calendar, so that could be it. Either way, let’s go in and say hi to Pinkie. She’s been really wanting to talk to you lately.” Spike opened the door to reveal the completely dark interior and began pushing Twilight inside.
Twilight, for her part, struggled as she was pushed into the empty store. Something about it tugged away at the back of her mind. “Spike! Spike, what are you doing?” She felt herself stop in the middle of the room with Spike blocking the doorway. She prepared her horn and got into a stance, ready to defend herself. “Spike, what is the mea—”
Her words were cut short as Spike turned on the light. All at once, seemingly every pony in Ponyville hopped out from behind counters, tables, and even shelves.
“SURPRISE! WELCOME BACK TWILIGHT!”
Tears formed in her eyes as her friends surrounded her, hugging her and showering her in their love.
“Thank you, everypony… It’s good to be back.”
