The silence was too silent. To Twilight Sparkle, it was almost unbearable.
She had never thought that she and her former best friends would ever be in the same room together and not be chatting or laughing the night away. But now it was different.
Ten years before, Twilight and her friends were as close as ever as they faced the greatest evil that Equestria had ever known. Eventually, as they lost their beloved princess and as the kingdom fell apart, so did their friendship. And yet, life went on. Princess Candence and Shining Armor had taken over and restored Equestria to it's former glory, and Twilight, respectively, became the teacher of an exclusive school for Gifted Unicorns in Canterlot. After she left Ponyville, she never heard from any of the others again. Now, back in the place where she had once had slumber parties and great adventures, she was sitting silently and awkwardly next to five ponies who she used to share a special bond with.
Nopony spoke. Nopony moved or glanced around. Twilight knew that they must be thinking of all of the things that they had done over the past ten years - sleepovers, fun playdates with their pets, adventures; not to mention, saving Equestria countless times! She wanted to blurt out all of the exciting things that had happened to her in Canterlot and have them share her excitement like they were fillies again. She wondered if they felt the same. Twilight also wondered why they were all here in this waiting room. Princess Candence had sent Twilight here, saying that they "needed to talk." Had she purposely set this up? Did she expect them to talk? If that's the case, it's not working. Twilight thought, frowning.
Looking around her, she sensed hostility in the air. Something must have happened between these ponies… Twilight observed. It was now apparent to her that their promise to remain friends after Twilight had gone had not been kept. It was almost as if Twilight was the glue that had held them all together, and when she left, their friendships diminished.
But for what reason?
She wanted to ask. She was longing to know. But she knew that if she spoke, only more silence would follow her words.
Twilight shuffled her front hoof on the ground a little, breaking the silence with the rough scratching of the tile. She stopped after awhile. She had expected Rarity to cringe, and shriek, "OOOH! Stop, Twilight! You'll damage your hooves!" But it never happened.
She tried whistling a little, hoping that Fluttershy would pipe in, saying "Ooh, what a pretty song! It reminds me of a bird's." But it never happened. She felt like a fool for ever thinking that she could get Fluttershy to speak without a real, cute animal by her side.
Twilight's next not-so-nonchalant approach was to take an apple out of her bag and eat it. Applejack did not even stir at the sound of the crunch of the delectable, red apple.
She was about to explode! Inhaling deeply, Twilight was ready to scold the ponies for acting like such fillies!
"YOU-"
Rainbow Dash's voice cut her off, as if they had both intended to speak at the same time.
"Hi… girls."
