The morning came almost too fast. Twilight felt like she had only just fallen asleep by the time her eyes fluttered open. Walking over to her window, Twilight noticed that Celestia was obviously still asleep. She wanted to go back to sleep, but she knew that once she was awake, it was almost impossible to fall asleep again. Accepting this knowledge, Twilight walked over to her gear and started getting dressed again for a morning run. The noise she was making had not gone unnoticed, however.
"What are you doing up so early?" Asked a voice from behind Twilight.
Not expecting to hear anybody, Twilight quickly grabbed her knife and spun around to strike the possibly assailant. Her strike missed as the target ducked just in time.
"What was THAT for?" The individual asked.
"Sweet Celestia, Spike, don't sneak up on me like that!" Twilight said, "I could've killed you".
"Sorry, didn't mean to scare you," Spike said, "I just don't remember you ever being awake so early".
"It's time for my morning run," Twilight explained, "I'd like to sleep, but old habits are kind of hard to break".
"Would you like some company?" Spike asked.
"Thanks for the offer, but you need to get your own rest," Twilight said, "Plus, I might go flying as well, and you don't have wings yet".
"Well, have fun," Spike said.
"I'll try," Twilight said, "And I'll be back in time for breakfast".
Twilight watched Spike climb into his bed basket before approaching her window again. She didn't want to wake anypony else, so she decided she'd glide from her window. As soon as she jumped, she noticed something was wrong. Before she could figure out what was wrong, Twilight crashed into the ground. After pushing herself up, she looked at her wings. Being distracted by Spike, and wanting to get her run over with, Twilight had forgotten to preen her wings. If she was to fly today, this would have to be fixed. The whole time she was preening her wings, Twilight mentally scolded herself for forgetting such an important task.
After she was finished preening, Twilight decided to take flight first and then run home after a little while. Knowing there wasn't enough room to take off very easily at the moment, Twilight walked to the front gate and entered the street. As soon as she was in a nice open stretch, Twilight spread her wings, focused her energy into her hind legs, then leapt forward to take off. After a few seconds, Twilight tilted her head back and the ground started getting smaller.
The night air was refreshing as Twilight soared like a bird just set free from its cage. The sight of the night sky was something Twilight hadn't really been able to take in for quite some time. The moon was low in the sky, but the stars were still shining as brightly as ever. It was a beautiful work of art that helped Twilight feel a little more at ease as she headed towards the castle.
As Twilight approached the front courtyard of the castle, she noticed Luna preparing the lower the moon so that the day may start. Having never seen this done by Luna herself before, Twilight decided to swoop down and join in by Luna's side. Twilight was completely silent during the whole thing, which only took a few short minutes in reality. The display was amazing and only showed just how much care the princess of the night took with her precious work. Finally, Twilight decided to speak up.
"The was amazing," Twilight said, causing Luna to jump.
"I certainly did not expect an audience," Luna said after regaining her composure, "But thank you, nonetheless".
"You take a lot of pride in your work, and it shows," Twilight said, "That was the most beautiful display I've seen in a while".
"I'm glad you enjoyed it, Twilight," Luna said.
"I know it might be a little personal, but I feel like I should ask," Twilight said after a short pause, "Does raising the moon every night bring back painful memories?".
"Sometimes, yes," Luna said, looking away towards the sky, "Ever since that night a thousand years ago, the raising of the moon has become somewhat of a reminder, and not just for me, of my fall".
"Do you ever wish they would just go away?" Twilight asked.
"I do not," Luna said, "If I ever lose those memories, I fear that I may fall once more and allow Nightmare Moon to return".
"Sounds like me, in a way," Twilight said.
"How do you figure that?" Luna asked.
"Remember what I said about remembering my fallen brothers in my dreams?" Twilight asked.
"That is different, Twilight," Luna said, "I suffer so that Nightmare Moon may never threaten Equestria again. You suffer to keep the memories of those who fought and died by your side in battle may never be forgotten".
"But, we both suffer to keep memories from fading when they should not," Twilight said.
"I suppose you have a point there," Luna said.
"And before I forget, how's my brother?" Twilight asked.
"He's sleeping in the royal hospital at the moment," Luna said.
"Say what!?" Twilight yelled, "I didn't really hurt him that bad, did I!?".
"The nerves in his side where you bucked him are slightly damaged, but it's not permanent," Luna said, "He should be on his hooves again after a week".
"At least I didn't cripple him permanently," Twilight said.
"I take it you would like to go see him," Luna said.
"If that's alright, yes," Twilight said.
"Then follow me," Luna said.
"Mr. Armor, you have a early morning visitor," The nurse said as she woke up the sleeping stallion.
"Who? Huh? Wha?" Shining Armor asked, opening his eyes slowly.
"Your sister is here to see you," The nurse said before motioning Twilight over.
"Twily?" Shining Armor asked, "Didn't expect to see you this early".
"You alright?" Twilight asked, "Luna told me what I did to you".
"I'm fine, it's no biggie," Shining Armor, "Though it does surprise me how you have that hard a buck".
"I was in a war, remember?" Twilight pointed out, "Didn't get into much close quarters combat, but I had to be able to handle myself when I did".
"How hard would you need to buck one of those guys to put him down?" Shining Armor asked.
"When you get all your strength back, I'll let you see how hard it is to hurt me when I'm in my combat gear with a simple buck," Twilight said.
"It looks like any other clothing I've seen," Shining Armor said.
"Their world works differently than Equestria," Twilight said.
"I guess so," Shining Armor said.
"So, are you going to tell Cadence how you landed here?" Twilight asked.
"I'd never live it down if I told her, so no," Shining Armor said.
"Trust me, she's not the only one who won't let you live it down," Twilight said.
"Yeah, love you too," Shining Armor said sarcastically.
"Just focus on getting better," Twilight said, "I'll save the teasing till after you get out of here".
"Fine, I guess," Shining Armor said.
"So, you want me to save my story till you get out?" Twilight asked.
"Nah, just catch me up at a later time," Shining Armor said.
"Want me to hold off on showing how my guns work?" Twilight asked.
"Now, that is a yes," Shining Armor said, "I'm very interested in seeing how they work and what they can do".
"How did I see that coming from a mile away?" Twilight asked jokingly.
"Maybe you've developed mind reading powers," Shining Armor said.
"Either way, just focus on getting better, and I'll hold off on my demonstration till you can witness it," Twilight said.
"Any chance of me trying to use those weapons?" Shining Armor asked.
"I don't see the harm in it, so long as you follow my instructions first," Twilight said.
"What do you take me for? A danger to society?" Shining Armor asked, "I wouldn't operate anything without knowing how to safely".
"For now, though, you just focus on getting better," Twilight said.
"Yes, ma'am," Shining Armor said, horribly failing an attempted salute.
"If you were going to salute me, you should have tried it when you first saw me coming over," Twilight said, "Though, you outrank me, so I should be the one saluting you".
"And yet you still haven't even though you've been in uniform every time we've seen each other," Shining Armor said.
"Not used to saluting my actual brother," Twilight said.
"That's not an excuse, you know," Shining Armor said, "I bet you'd still get chewed out for not doing it".
"I suppose so," Twilight said.
"Don't worry, I won't tell," Shining Armor said.
"Anyway, I need to be getting home soon," Twilight said, "Don't want anypony thinking I've gone back to war".
"I guess I'll see you in a week, then," Shining Armor said.
"I'll just see you when you get better," Twilight said.
With that, Twilight turned and walked away, leaving her brother alone to sleep. She needed to get home soon, anyway, and she still had a run to go on as well.