It was late in the evening when Twilight returned to the cabin. Despite having spent hours sitting in the cold, guided by Twilice's voice, Twilight hadn't made any progress in summoning, or even sensing the Aether. Several hours of concentrated meditation and cold, stoic guidance had left both of them mentally exhausted, forcing Twilight to slowly walk her way through the forest back into the cabin.
After Twilice pointed out that the two of them were being watched, Twilight couldn't help constantly looking around as she walked. She didn't know what was out there, and she didn't want to find out either. She had tried to reason with herself, maybe it was just a woodland critter, maybe Twilice was wrong, but as much as she tried, a voice in her head kept telling her the same thing.
"It is most likely dangerous, your paranoia is justified," Twilice repeated yet again.
"You're not making me feel any better, Twilice," Twilight grumbled. She was much too tired and upset to argue with the voice in her head. "How do you know it's dangerous? You only said you could feel its presence."
"I could sense its presence because I could sense the magical energy within it. I could feel the size of its soul. If it were just a small animal, I wouldn't have told you."
Twilight groaned aloud. "Of course it couldn't just be a bird. It's never a bird. It's always a dragon or some crazy cult leader in the middle of nowhere or a second Twilight from another timeline stuck in a giant magical block of ice!" Twilight's voice rose along with her frustration. "If it were just a bird, I'd be concerned I was missing out on the next creature of the week! I'm actaully so happy that I'm being stalked by Celestia knows what while my friends think I'm out of my mind!"
"You seem upset. Perhaps it would be best if you slept," Twilice patronized.
Twilight's eye twitched in irritation. Sometimes she wished she could have the privacy of her own mind again. "I don't need to sleep, I need to figure out what might be out there so I don't have to deal with another problem while I'm researching."
"well research a little quieter then, because we're approaching the cabin."
"I know, Twilice. I see it. You're looking through my eyes," Twilight hissed.
"You're awfully snippy all of a sudden. Maybe I won't teach you anything after all."
"No, please, I'm sorry!" Twilight begged. "I'm fine I... I just need something to go right today."
Twilight creaked open the door to the cabin, letting it's warmth and light envelop her. As she walked into the empty living room, she faintly heard the sound of chatter from the kitchen. She was much too tired to talk with her friends, especially considering she'd forgotten to get Gillian another ice sample. She made her way to the stairs to wind down, but Twilice tried to stop her.
"Wait. Don't you want your friends to know you're home? You wouldn't want them to worry."
"Ugh, fine," Twilight wheeled back around and strode over to the kitchen. She placed her hoof on the door, but stopped for a moment. Through the thick wooden door, she could hear Gelgen talking frustratedly to somepony else.
"... Why would I lie to ya, ya think I'm doing this for kicks or something? I saw it with my own damn eyes!"
"Well, have ya got any proof. This is a pretty big claim to make, especially about our friend," Twilight could hear Applejack's reply.
"Twilight's our friend, she wouldn't hide anything from us!" Pinkie added.
"Yeah. Twilight might be a li'l weird, but she's been really nice t'me," Gillian chimed in.
"Fine, alright, I get it! If I brought you proof that the princess is using some weird magic on the ice, would you believe me then?" Gelgen asked.
Applejack scoffed. "Fat chance you'll find any, but if ya do, I guess we'd believe ya."
Twilight could hear a slam, presumably coming from Gelgen. "Alright, it's settled then. I getcha proof, and we all agree to confront her about it. Agreed?"
Twilight didn't hear anything more, but the sounds of shuffling made her quickly scamper away from the kitchen and up the stairs to her bedroom. It was alright, they didn't need to know she was home. They'd figure it out. At least her friends were still supporting her.
Spike, previously asleep in his little bed, snorted awake as Twilight shut the door behind her.
"Mmm... Hey Twilight. You've been out all day, are you ok?"
"Yeah, I was just doing so much ecological research. Local Griffonstone fauna and all that, very interesting," Twilight lied. "You want me to show some of my findings?"
"Uh... No thanks. Just remember to give Gillian those samples you went out to get. She's been walking around the cabin all day saying how great a friend and princess you are. It was really annoying," Spike mumbled, nestling himself back into his sheets.
"Right, ok. Sure," Twilight flopped onto the bed, not bothering to grab a book to read.
"Sigh... I'm the worst."
"Oh? How so... Princess?" Twilice questioned.
"I shouldn't have said those things about my friends earlier. I leave them alone in a cabin with strangers while I go galloping around the forest, all the while I'm being followed by a griffon who has it out for me, and they're defending me. Ugh, I didn't even get anything for Gillian. Maybe I should send a letter to Celestia and let her handle this."
Twilice scoffed. "Giving up already? You think Celestia has any more knowledge about this ice than you or I do? I've been living in this ice for fift-... uh... ah, twenty years."
"Wait, twenty years? That doesn't make any sense, the spell that surrounds the ice is eons old."
Twilice made an odd sound at Twilight's realisation, sounding akin to a hiss and a hiccup. "Perhaps Ma Vie altered it in some way. Perhaps she herself used a very old spell. You're much more experienced in Equus magic than I am."
"Yeah... Maybe. I guess I should wait until GIlda and the rest come back until I ask for help from Celestia. She's probably busy with royal duties," Twilice thought.
"Good," Twilice gurgled. "Also, I'll be waking you up early tomorrow so you can give your friend those samples you promised."
"Don't you need rest?" Twilight asked.
"No, the Aether's all the energy I need to keep myself going."
"Alright, show off." Twilight spoke over Twilice's snake like laughter.