Lemon Hearts looked outside the train window, her head resting against one of her hooves. It was dusk, and the sun was setting, painting the sky a beautiful purple, with a hint of orange. It cast rays of light into the train, revealing the sparkling dust that floated around. It was a beautiful time of day.

The yellow pony looked back at her friends. It was just a few hours ago that they had seen her break down into tears. It was just a few hours ago that Twinkleshine had cracked under the pressure and ran away. A few hours ago, Lemon Hearts had let out everything that had been troubling her for the past few days. The yellow pony sighed. Lyra and Bonbon, who sat next to her, had seemed to have gotten over everything, and were happily chatting away. Minuette, who sat alone across from her, simply sat, wearing a cold, blank expression, looking out the window with her head resting against a hoof just as Lemon Hearts had been doing. Twinkleshine, who would normally have been sitting next to Minuette right now, was nowhere to be seen. The four remaining friends had looked for her, calling her name, but they had never found her. Eventually, the train had arrived, and they had been forced to leave without her.

If anypony was to catch a glimpse of the mare sprinting aimlessly through the town, all they would be able to see was a flash of white and her pale-pink mane and tail, trailing along behind her.

Twinkleshine knew that what she was doing was immature and childish, but she didn’t care. She just wanted to get away from her friends for a while. She should have helped Lemon Hearts. She should have been there for them, not cracked under the pressure and backed out. Twinkleshine stopped momentarily and looked up at the sky. Almost dusk. The sun was beginning to set. For some reason, the thought that it would be night soon called her slightly. The chilly air, the beautiful stars, the silence… That’s it. That’s what she needed. Silence. Everything had gotten to her, she couldn’t handle it anymore, it was just too much and she was crying and frustrated and upset and her friends were probably mad at her and oh, what an idiot, idiot idiot, she’ll never be able to face her friends again and she’ll never see Twilight again and—

  “Stop,” Twinkleshine said to herself, “you’re getting too far ahead of yourself. Everything is going to be just fine. All I need is some time to myself to think about things. That’s all.”

The pony stopped running, and shut her eyes as hard as she could for several seconds, just like she had seen Lemon Hearts do a long time ago to calm herself down. Everything was black, and all the sounds around her faded away. Twinkleshine took a deep breath, and when she opened her eyes again, her tears were gone.

  “Geez, Lemon Hearts. If I hadn’t seen you do this a while ago, I wouldn’t have known to do it. If only I had had the strength to tell you to do this before…”

Twinkleshine took another deep breath and began to slowly wander off, her only goal now being to find a nice, quiet spot to rest. She pictured an empty field, covered in beautiful and soft, wavy green grass, the grass’ calming pattern only being interrupted by a large oak tree on a slight hill. Ah, if only she could find a place like that. She would be able to rest under the shade of the tree, the only sound being the gentle breeze. She would be able to look up at the perfect blue sky, at the beautiful clouds.

No, maybe not just her. Two new figures appeared in her fantasy paradise – Minuette and Lemon Hearts, sitting by either side of her. She pictured them both with happy faces, laughing at something with their eyes closed. She couldn’t hear them laughing, but that was okay. All she wanted to hear was the breeze… It wasn’t long before some more figures appeared under the tree, all sitting around it now. Lyra Heartstrings, Bonbon, Moondancer, and even Twilight Sparkle. They all wore similar expressions, laughing at something. Even Moondancer. Moondancer… What was she doing right now? Was she okay? Twinkleshine hoped she was.

Maybe she should try and go back tomorrow… she should visit her… Maybe… she…

Twinkleshine woke up, startled. She was curled up, lying in a spot she didn’t recognise.

  ‘Wha… Was all that tree stuff a dream? I must have kept running and ended up here… I don’t remember though… Huh…’ she thought. The sleepy pony looked up and observed her surroundings. She was lying in a quiet alleyway. The moon was well out, and all was silent. The only reason she could see was because of the dimly lit yellow light coming from the lampposts in the street.

  ‘Well, I’m don’t seem to be that far from a main street. This spot’s pretty well lit, too. It should be safe to slee…’

The pony didn’t get to finish her thoughts before she fell deep asleep again.

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