Pinkie sighed, trotting the town's streets alone. She planned to visit Twilight. The alicorn hadn't showed her face for a week. Even in this short ammount of time, the princess was easily missed. One does not simply forget about the newest princess. The afternoon sun shone down on Pinkie's forehead, yet the cool breeze detracted from the heat. This particular Saturday didn't seem as freeing as most, for reasons she couldn't understand. Perhaps she missed Caramel; he hadn't visited for a few days. Perhaps her deflated hair had something to do it with. These reasons still didn't help Pinkie's situation, unfortunately for her. A few ponies passed her, whispering and staring. A few she knew a bit more personally greeted her, looking puzzled. The conversations they had never went past 'I'm doing well, thanks for asking.'
Pinkie finally came up upon the library. She raised her hoof to knock, but the door oped before she could. Twilight stared at her, a longing in her eyes. Pinkie couldn't tell if the alicorn was going to cry or yell. A small yelp left the purple pony's lips before she spoke.
"Pinkie... I'm so..." She began, only for Pinkie to stop her.
"Twi, how are you?" Pinkie asked, staring back. "And I don't want a generic answer."
Twilight sighed, a few mumbles and squeaks jumping out of her mouth. "I'm...not the best, honestly. A-and before you go comforting me, just let me first apologize. Pinkie, I didn't mean to snap at you like that. It just-"
"-happens sometimes." Pinkie finished Twilight's sentence for her. "Don't worry about that, Twi. You getting better is more important than making sure I'm okay because somepony said a few negative words to me. Do you know why I can be so happy? I don't let every little thing bother me. So I don't ever want you to apologize for something silly like that ever again Twi, you got that?"
Twilight hesitated, then nodded. She trotted backward into her library, motioning for Pinkie to follow before turning back around. "Pinkie, thanks for not giving up. I sure did, and it's comforting that somepony still cares." The alicorn squeaked. Pinkie knew what this meant. Twilight's voice only squeaked when she was truly struggling with something. It had been a while since she'd heard one of those voice squeaks. After all, Twilight had moved to Ponyville post Pinkie breakdown. For Pinkie to make great friends with somepony after emotional trauma was unheard of. Looking around, Pinkie stopped.
"Twi, where's Spike?"
"He's in Manehatten with Rarity," She replied flatly.
"B-but Rarity moved almost a year ago... I thought you said Spike was here with you?" She argued lightly, confused more than angered.
"I never said that. I only said he was too upset to talk to me. I suppose I could've I used a better word than 'talk'... We write letters to keep in touch. That's how he knew Shining passed on. He wrote a surprisingly short letter last time and now isn't responding to any letters I send him. I only assumed he felt as depressed as I did, it's possible he just got too busy helping Rarity.." Twilight rambled, a few tears added in with her words. Pinkie took a few steps back, trying to think of a way to respond. Instead of words, she decided to race up and hug the alicorn, her hooves fitting awkwardly around Twilight's wings when Pinkie did. Twilight jumped in a bit of shock, slowly easing into Pinkie's rushed embrace.
"Pinkie..." Twilight trailed.
"Oh, too awkward? Too forced? Rushed? S-sorry." She stammered, breaking the hug and taking a few dizzy steps backwards. "You..didn't need that hug." Twilight slowly approached her unstable friend, wrapping her hooves around Pinkie's neck.
"But you did."
"Twi!? Me? Pssh, you're talking crazy!" Pinkie yelped, her voice reaching record highs. She flinched a bit, yet still rubbed her head into Twilight's chin.
"Do you want me to stop?"
"No..." She replied softly, a few of her own tears streaming down the princess's chest. "I'm so sorry, Twilight Sparkle," she whispered, slumping onto the floor. Twilight opened her damp eyes, a bit dizzy herself. The exhausted mare stared at her hooves to see Pinkie had fallen asleep in her library. She smiled, using an advanced levitation spell to lift her off the floor. The party pony seemed heavier than the last time Twilight had lifted her off the floor when she passed out, even with her alicorn magic. She peeked outside. The moon cast beautiful beams over Ponyville.
She sighed, trotting the streets alone. She giggled, reminiscing of the last time she had to carry Pinkie home like this. Pinkie had held an all night long movie marathon. The Cakes were using Sugarcube Corner, so it happened at Twilight's library. Most of Pinkie's friends got tired and went home before the second movie even started. It was a mystery why she started at midnight. Pinkie insisted on staying up all night, but ended up falling asleep in Twilight's loft. Back then, Twilight was just a unicorn. She had strong magic, but her magic increased when she ascended. It seemed strange for Pinkie to grow so heavy, even with the magic increase.
Twilight approached Sugarcube Corner at last. The doors weren't locked, so she just let herself in. The door to Pinkie's loft was locked, unfortunately. Thinking fast, she did a bit of exploration to find the Cakes' bedroom. Luckily, it was unlocked, and the Cakes were out of town. Twilight laid Pinkie gently in the princess-sized bed, also using magic to wrap Pinkie in blankets and sheets.
"I forgive you, Pinkamena Diane Pie." In that moment, Twilight regained her purple hue. Friendship meant something once more.