Twilight stacked all the plates at the table and made her way over to the kitchen sink. Pinkie had only just set the basket on the counter. "That was a little weird, huh? I never question the Princesses' decisions, but I don't really understand why they requested an audience with us." The unicorn smiled fondly. "I guess it doesn't matter. Do you have work later today?"
Pinkie didn't say anything. Her hooves rested on the countertop on either side of the basket.
"I hope not. Maybe we could do something fun inside. You know, where it's warm. I'm not quite ready to go out in the cold just yet, but—"
"Twilight."
She glanced at her marefriend. Her name had been said in the most un-Pinkie-like way possible. It was sharp enough to stop her ramblings, but calm enough to make Twilight nervous.
Pinkie avoided her gaze. "We... We need to talk."
Time slowed down as Twilight leaned forward to try and meet Pinkie's eyes. "I have been trying to talk to you. I mean, you haven't said a word since before the Princesses came, and even then you were pretty quiet."
The earth pony was breathing harder than usual, and her hooves were shaking. "No, I-I mean... we need to talk about us. Our relationship."
Twilight swallowed thickly, and she squinted. Her heart started beating faster. "What do you mean? What're you talking about?"
"I've been thinking about it, and I've realized that... that we can't work." She breathed in shakily. "I'm sorry, but I'm breaking up with you."
Twilight's heart stopped. The gears in her mind stopped turning momentarily, before spinning faster than ever. She couldn't think straight, and millions of questions made themselves known. The unicorn was barely able to speak. "W-what?"
Pinkie pushed herself off of the counter so she was on four legs again. "I'm sorry."
Then, she rushed out the door, leaving a confused unicorn in her wake. Twilight could only stare at the open door with tears stinging at her eyes.
Twilight let herself fall back on her haunches and took a deep, shuddering breath. Her mind was drawing a blank. Let's think logically about this. Right. Don't remind yourself about the fact that the love of your life just broke up with you and ran out the door with no explanation, because that would be like twisting the knife. Oh, who am I kidding... I couldn't not think about something if my life depended on it... What did I do wrong?!
Pinkie didn't know where she was going and she didn't really care. All she knew was that she had to get away from Twilight and away from all her friends. I can't believe I did that. She hates me now, I know it. I'm the worst pony in the history of all ponies. If you looked up "worst pony" in a dictionary you'd see my picture in it.
Pinkie found herself standing beside the frozen lake where she'd shared her first kiss with Twilight. Her bottom lip quivered as she plopped down beside the water and stared at her reflection.
It's all my fault. Twilight's probably crying right now... And I'm the reason. Her vision blurred as tears of her own ran down her face. Why did it have to end like this? Why did the princess have to tell her?
"I miss her already..." Pinkie buried her muzzle underneath her forelegs and began sobbing. The cold snow underneath of her didn't bother Pinkie at all. Her mind wandered back to what Princess Celestia had said.
"Are you aware of Twilight's nightmares?" Princess Celestia asked finally. Pinkie nodded. As far as she could tell, she'd solved those nightmares by getting Twilight her Smarty Pants doll back.
"Luna is aware of them as well. As you know, my sister is the Princess of the Night, and that means this falls under her jurisdiction."
"What do you mean?" Pinkie tilted her head to the side.
"Twilight's nightmares have not only hindered her studies, but they're also affecting her health. Luna has expressed these concerns to me, and she believes there is but one true way to end them."
"How? I'd do anything for Twilight. Tell me I need to find some herb in the Everfree Forest and I'll do it. If there's something on the other side of Equestria that can help her I'll do it without a second thought! There isn't a single thing I wouldn't do for Twilight!"
And she knew it was true. There was determination in her eyes and fire in her words—she'd never felt more sure of anything in her entire life. Princess Celestia met her eyes, a deep sadness set within them.
"So long as the subject of her nightmares is close to her, Twilight will continue to have them."
Pinkie's brows furrowed and she frowned. "I don't understand."
"...The only way to get rid of Twilight's nightmares is for you to stop seeing her."
Pinkie's heart broke at those words. Her gaze shot to Celestia's, her eyes trying to voice the confusion her tongue could not. When the words finally sunk in and she knew them to be true, Pinkie lowered her eyes to the table. The implications of that statement were far too much for her to take in.
Pinkie loved Twilight with every fiber of her being, and she'd do anything for her. But staying away... Forever? That hadn't even crossed her mind—she'd never thought of that as something she'd have to do. The answer was obvious to her, but it hurt too much to accept. Twilight's well-being was more important than anything else, even if it meant sacrificing that much...
A wing draped over Pinkie's shoulder and the next thing she knew Princess Celestia was comforting her. She couldn't hold herself back any longer. Sobs clawed out of her throat and tears stained her fur, and yet all she could think about was Twilight's sorrow.
"I'm sorry it's come to this..." the alicorn said quietly, "but if you truly love my student, this should be nothing."
Pinkie didn't say anything, unable to speak over her crying. She cried for longer than she remembered ever doing in the past, before pulling away from the Princess. She hadn't been listening to what the older mare had been saying, too wrapped up in her own thoughts.
And that was when Twilight walked in.
Pinkie didn't slow her crying—she'd hurt the one mare she vowed she wouldn't. But was it justified? No, Pinkie thought, I'm still the worst pony ever, even if I did it for a good reason...
A sudden nagging thought pushed its way into her mind—Is somepony watching me? The earth pony didn't care enough to look. At least, until there literally was a shadow of a pony standing over her.
Pinkie finally looked back, unsure who could have followed her here.
It was Big Mac.
The stallion didn't say anything. His expression was impassive, but his eyes were soft. And for the second time that day, another pony sat next to her and comforted her while she cried.
But just like before, it did little to help.
