What Hath Joined Together

Chapter 18

                                                                                 What Lies Hidden

"Twily, are you okay?"

Twilight Sparkle almost fell into her lake of syrup and peninsula of pancakes. "Hmm?" She looked up at Shining Armor, the bags under her eyes a testament to what surely must have been a long night of studying indeed.

Seated across from her at the table, Flash Sentry looked on in concern.

Yesterday, Flash had knocked on her door at dawn to find her already awake. The dinner he had brought for her from the night before had been barely touched, though the ice cream was gone, to his amusement. Disregarding his protests, Twilight had dismissed him from any duties all of Friday, insisting that she had more studying and translating of the old book to do.

Despite assuring him that she would be fine, Flash had checked on Twilight throughout Friday. He brought her both breakfast and dinner, tried to get in as much conversation as he could, and spent the rest of his free time assisting Shooting Star or in his room. Adjacent to hers, he could hear her pace, and curse, and mutter to herself. The few glimpses of Twilight he saw revealed another impressive collection of coffee mugs, scattered parchment, and more empty inkpots and broken quills than he thought possible.

Now, Saturday morning, Twilight looked utterly exhausted as she cast a sleepy-eyed glance towards her concerned brother.

"You look like you're not even awake," Shining said with a frown.

"I'm just a little tired," Twilight said with a monstrous yawn.

"You spent all of yesterday in your room." Shining set his fork down. "Is everything okay?"

Twilight attempted to stab a piece of her pancake. It slipped away into the waves of syrup.

Flash thought of all the maple trees that had bled to make Twilight's breakfast possible. A valiant effort. A worthy cause.

She hasn't even eaten half of it.

"Everything's fine, Shining. I just had a lot of work to do. Translating from Old Equestrian to the modern can be time-consuming. Especially when..."

"Especially when?" Shining prompted.

With a sigh, Twilight let her fork fall to her plate. "Nevermind. Are you going to take me to the recruits' training this morning or not?"

Noting the curtness in her reply, Flash looked uncomfortably between the two. Though Cadence was unable to join them for breakfast this morning, the present tension was reminiscent of that first morning that she had joined them at the table.

This time, Twilight was the weary looking one, and, just as Cadence had, she declared upon all obvious truth that she was fine.

After a moment, Shining sighed. "If you're sure you're not too tired, I don't see why not..."

"Good!" Twilight threw her cloth napkin on the table and jumped down from her seat. "Ready to go, Flash?"

Leaving his bowl of oats and cinnamon behind—even the most simplest of meals a delicacy here to his tongue—Flash rose from his chair as well. "Ready, Twilight."

There is definitely something on your mind again, but you won't let me in. Maybe I should call off tonight...

Less dramatic than his sister, Shining rose from the table too, though he was abrupt in doing so as well. The three of them exited the Royal Dining Hall without a word. Other than the servants milling about, not a soul crossed their path as they made their way out of the Crystal Palace and into the crisp morning air.