Stripes And Scales

Chapters

Chapter 1: A Bothersome Dilemma
Chapter 2: The Obvious Solution
Chapter 3: And Then We Get That Much Anticipated Aftermath

Chapter 1: A Bothersome Dilemma

The itching. That terrible, rampant, never-ending, invisible ants crawling up the skin. The insufferable, spine-shuddering, back-tingling, and most of all, just plain uncomfortable itching. It had no rest nor stop or even a moment’s respite from its constant torture on every single inch of his body. Oh, how he wished for a solution, nay, a miracle for his predicament. Unluckily for Spike, however, that just wasn’t going to happen the easy way.

“Dammit, dammit, dammit, dammit!” Spike exclaimed in a hushed yell. He got on his hands and knees, surveying the damage he left this time. “Craaaap… That’s, like, three times as many as last time.”

Scales. Broken, colorless, dead scales littered the bedroom, trailing from his covers of his bed to the windowsill upon which he sat. He grunted, following up with a semi-cathartic moan as the scratcher struck the small of his back. He’d be in bliss if he could only reach a little lower… and then it snapped.

In frustration, he threw the broken scratcher across the room, a few patches of scales going with it. He hopped to his feet and started moving with no particular destination in mind. Every step felt like walking in a suit of sandpaper.

The floor was scattered with numerous other tools he had used in a vain attempt to cure his skin problems. Forks, knives, rulers, pencils and pens, and even a cactus, all serving as bitter past failures, broken beyond repair. It didn’t matter if something was semi-successful; the constant resistance from his itching hide broke them soon enough. And with the most obvious solution, a back scratcher, no longer useful, he was all out of options.

As he tried with all of his might to think of a possible solution that hadn’t occurred to him (Which was exceedingly difficult to do with the itch occupying his mind), a certain voice sounded out from downstairs that made his blood race.

“Spike, you’ve been up there for an hour! Are you sure you’re okay?”

At the sound of Twilight’s call, Spike dived for his broom. As he grabbed it, more scales fell from the bristles, which made him curse under his breath. “Y-yeah, Twilight, never better!” he called down below, desperately sweeping away the abundant supply of scales covering the floor. “Just… gimme five minutes, okay?”

“That’s what you said the last three times, Spike. Then you went right back upstairs. What exactly are you doing anyway?”

Dusting a pile of scales underneath his bed to join the others he had hidden there, Spike said, “Just catching up on my studies is all! Nothing to worry about!”

“Oh really?” Twilight asked directly behind him. Spike’s neck snapped back at the sudden appearance of Twilight, nearly falling over his own tail as he leaped back. “You know, if you need a little private time, you can just tell me. I know you’re getting on in age, so it’s only natural for these desires to rise up.”

“Twilight…”

The alicorn gave a wry grin. “I have a collection of Playcolts you can borrow—”

“That’s not what’s happening, Twilight!” Spike snapped, getting back to his feet. He towered over the mare; his draconian height grew apparent to Twilight, who was once again reminded that her little assistant wasn’t so little anymore.

“So, what is it?” Twilight took a few steps forward, stopping when she heard a crunch beneath her hooves. She looked down and examined what that could have been. “Oh! Oh…”

Spike turned around and pointed to his back, which was a grisly display of peeling scales and a skin complexion so bad his once bright purple scales were now dull and tarnished. “Yeah, I’m having problems in another area altogether, thank you for asking.”

“Spike, why haven’t you told me about this earlier?” Twilight asked, grimacing as she shook off the broken scale stuck to her hoof.

Spike shrugged, casually scratching a peeling patch of skin on his stomach. “I’d have told you if I knew. I thought it was a rash or something at first about a week ago. But then it grew to… well, this. I didn’t want you to worry.”

“Silly. You could have told me.” Twilight lent the sulking dragon a gentle hoof. "Spike, you know I'd drop everything to help you. I shouldn't have to remind you of that." She brushed a few errant scales aside. “This is perfectly normal.”

“It is?” Spike’s eyes widened.

Twilight chuckled, looking aside apologetically. “...is what I would be saying if I knew the process of adolescence for a young dragon. Sorry…”

He carried a little bit of hope, but Spike didn’t expect any sort of solution, even from her. He shrugged, then scratched at his arm sullenly.

“This calls for a little book search. You stay right there, Spike. Do whatever you have to, I'll clean it up later."

Dragging his claws through a particularly itchy portion of his lower back, he gave her a thumbs up. “Anything at this point would help. It feels like parasprites are crawling all underneath my skin.”

“I wasn’t planning on sleeping tonight anyway…” Twilight muttered humorously.

“Um, Twilight, this wasn’t exactly what I had in mind when you said you’d help me out,” said Spike with a slur. He found it rather difficult to speak while hanging upside down, and he was pretty sure one of the pins was messing with his mouth muscles.

Twilight carefully levitated another pin to Spike’s back and inserted it between two dry patches. The dragon grunted, but it was only from the pressure. He didn’t feel a thing in terms of pain. “Acupuncture is a legitimate source of comfort and inner peace.”

“I’m not studying martial arts, I’m itching like nopony’s business. Can’t you ‘magic’ the itching away? Or use some science stuff?”

“Well, medicinal spells and science don’t really apply to dragons. All equine medicines will burn up in your stomach or bloodstream. Anything else would have a minimal effect at best. There’s no healing spell or itch cream that can penetrate your scales… Alternative methods seem to be our best option.”

“Well, let’s alternate to another alternative.” Spike folded his arms. Under any other circumstance, looking disgruntled in zero-gravity would be hilarious. He wasn’t amused. “I’m pretty sure I’m blaghping oughf.”

“Stay with me now.” Twilight spun Spike back upwards and gently levitated him down. However, she let him go a bit too soon, and he plopped onto the mattress by his stomach. “See? It’s a good thing we set that up, right?” She then pulled every pin out of Spike’s back without a second glance. Spike barely even blinked. “So, I guess it didn’t work.”

“Nope. Thanks anyway… I really mean that.” Spike flinched as he felt one needle in particular being pulled from his backside. It was right along his shoulder region, which now felt like it was on fire, coupled with its already unbearable itchiness. “Hey, Twilight, does my back look okay?”

“You mean other than your skin falling off?”

“Yeah.”

Spike hissed in a breath when he felt Twilight rest a hoof on his shoulder blade. “Actually, now that you mention it, it does appear a bit… lumpy. Uneven, actually.” She prodded harder, stopping when she noticed Spike tense up from the pain. “How long has this been going on?”

“Well, I thought it was a side-effect of the itching,” Spike muttered, his entire upper backside drowning in a sea of hotness. “But now it feels like my body is trying to grow out of my skin.” He gasped. “Could it be a tumor?”

“No, too big to be a tumor,” Twilight said, peering closer at the twin bulges along Spike’s backside. The largest amount of missing scales and peeling skin seemed to be centered around them. “This could actually be why you’re shedding in the first place. That’s my best guess.”

“Huh. Well, that’s closer than we were an hour ago.”

Twilight levitated the pins into a large jar and set it on her least stocked shelf. “Okay, now that we’ve tried acupuncture, I think we should move on to a deep tissue massage.”

Spike’s dorsal fins involuntarily perked when he heard that word. “Massage?”

“Well, it’s said relaxing the muscles in one way to cure the skin,” Twilight said, prancing over to a shelf while humming to herself. “I remember seeing a book about it earlier. All types of techniques to cure common ailments with just the use of another’s hooves. Not sure how effective it is, but hey, wouldn’t hurt to try.”

“No, it… it wouldn’t, uh…” Spike’s gaze fell from the shabby looking book to someplace a little lower. It was as if his eyes were magnetized to something so mundane to him. Until this moment, he had never realized just how naturally pleasant Twilight’s flanks were.

Spike swallowed nervously, involuntarily gawking at the slow wiggle Twilight gave as she opened the book, put on a set of reading glasses and bent over the reading desk. The early afternoon sun refracted off the perfectly groomed sheen of her rump. She must have been outside earlier. It was a hot day, so the little beads of sweat that slowly descended her curves were the flavor on the eye candy.

Twilight muttered something that Spike didn’t hear. “What?” he asked, shaking himself out of his trance.

“I said, I don’t think dragon tissue works the same as pony tissue. Do I have the right hooves for the job?”

Her hooves looked smooth as silk. Spike didn’t know why, but he wanted to grab them, feel them on as they fondled his scales. He wanted them to reach down and touch his—

“Spike? What do you think?”

Spike shook his head. When exactly did those thoughts get on his mind? Twilight was more or less his mother and sister, and now he was thinking about her like this? Maybe there was something worse than a simple skin rash going on here, he thought.

Twilight sighed, looking over Spike’s body. Her concerned expression intensified. “Hm, this must be worse than I thought. You’re getting red all over.”

Spike held his sides, turning away so he wouldn’t look at her. Already his back was aching up a storm of furious throbbing and an aloof itchiness he just couldn’t scratch. “I think I’m going to be sick,” he admitted.

“Do you have a fever?” Twilight asked. She placed a hoof on his backside, but immediately withdrew it away with a loud yelp. “Whoa, you’re burning up! Actually… you’re literally burning up!”

Spike glanced over his shoulder, noticing smoke a few errant flames pouring out the flayed skin patches on his back. “Oh yeah, those,” he muttered, smacking them roughly until they died down. “Don’t worry about it. That’s been going on for a while now. It’s not as bad as...” He trailed off as he furiously scratched at his arm. “Dammit!” he shouted through clenched teeth.

Twilight snapped back to the book. “Uh, right. Massage.”

“Oh, don’t bother,” Spike said, curling up on the mattress. He lay still, hoping a lack of motion would keep him from itching. “None of this is gonna work. I’d rather just wait it out. Dragon puberty is being a pain in the ass and neither of us knows how to fix it.”

“Actually…” Twilight smiled, eyeing a familiar book next to her reading stand. “There might be somepony who can help us.”

Spike rose and caught a glimpse of the same book. It had a green cover with the etching of an exotic flower. He smiled up at Twilight. The itch was feeling a little better already. “Twilight, I freakin’ love you.”

Chapter 2: The Obvious Solution

Spike knew the trail well enough to avoid any possible dangerous creatures. The last thing Spike wanted on top of his discomfort was a monster jumping him. Although, at the moment his only pest trouble was the abundant amount of insects that found him to be a delightful afternoon treat to feast on. He conjured up a bit of flame and blew them all away in a single breath. “Don’t mess with me.”

He was successful in blocking out his discomfort for a short while, but the burning, itching sensation inevitably returned. Along with the insects. He was really starting to hate this forest.

Stopping at a crossroads, Spike rubbed his chin and frowned. “Okay, Zecora’s hut can’t be much farther. Just gotta figure out which direction it’s in. Now, what did Twilight say?”

Remembering back five minutes prior, he could recall Twilight going on about Zecora being the only one knowledgeable about dragon anatomy and how he should seek her for help. Then she started talking about directions, which was when he started tuning her out so he could scratch a particularly itchy portion of his lower calf. Then she said some more words, wished him luck, and now he was here…

“Well, shuck all kinds of duck,” Spike concluded. Shrugging, he went in the one direction that never let him down before: forward. Where he was going, he didn’t need paths!

As the foliage of the forest grew thicker, Spike never felt more relieved to see the infamous poison joke. He recognized the patch from a few years ago, back when Zecora was believed to be some sort of evil enchantress. That patch mean she couldn’t be too far.

He briefly considered taking a step into the blue petals, in the vain hope whatever cruel joke they played on him would at least fix his itch. However, he thought better of it and decided that type of test was a bit too risky to pull. Considering it was poison joke, his itch would most likely become even worse.

Even the most violent animal would never come near that patch of flowers, so Spike felt comfortable raising his voice. “Yo, Zecora! You out here? I’ve got a bitch of an itch that I need to ditch! Couldja help me out?”

Spike heard a rustle in the brush, and he turned to see a certain face that made him flush with relief. At least, he hoped it was relief, and not… the other thing.

Zecora stepped out of the brush, strutting forward with no lack of confidence or swagger. She had her signature half-lidded eyes and perpetually sly smile. “Without a doubt,” she said.

“Whoa, seriously?” Spike asked. “I thought there’d be more to it than that. Like, a series of tasks to go out in the forest to collect supplies or something else needlessly tedious.”

“Spike, oh child, do you know who I am? I know of the quarrel that makes you say ‘damn.’” Zecora turned, revealing her large hide pouch, which was chock full of canteens, flowers, animal livers and fungi. “I am familiar with draconic adolescence, and I can do away with the itch’s presence.”

Spike fist-pumped. “Sweet! I thought for sure I was going to go mental from this constant itch.” Taking a step forward, he quickly stopped in his tracks when he remembered about the poison joke before him. “Oh yeah… you know a safe route back to your hut?”

“Of course, now let us strut.”

Following close behind Zecora, Spike ducked under low hanging tree branches and tripped over roots, all the while avoiding the dreaded contact with the poison joke. Zecora traversed the forest easily, not a step out of place as she walked calmly forward. It was all second nature for her. Spike couldn’t take two steps without fumbling into a bush or a tangle of vines.

Eventually, the two reached Spike’s salvation, which just so happened to be Zecora’s hut. Spike smelled the incense before he saw it. He was so eager to go inside, he didn’t even take care to notice the hut’s low hanging entrance. Like many a times at the library and various other buildings in Ponyville, he smacked his forehead once more, his growth spurt still not catching up with him mentally.

“Dammit!” Spike cursed, rubbing the sore spot on his noggin. Well, at least it took his mind off his horrible skin condition… for approximately two seconds. “Double dammit!” He reached for his back, but he felt a hoof there before he was able to scratch. “Uh, Zec—”

Whump. Whump.

Zecora’s hoof rammed into the small of Spike’s back. Twice. The dragon keeled over, and moved forward slowly, managing to get inside the hut. He didn’t have time to appreciate the painted woodcut decor of Zecora’s hut. He immediately went for the couch, which was draped with leopard skin. “Sweet orgy with Celestia! What did you do that for?”

“My medicinal techniques are the nervous system’s bane. I ask, do you feel any pain?” Zecora set her pouch down near the doorstep, already sorting through them at an easy-going pace.

“Of course I…” Spike reached for an itch upon his chest, only to realize there was no itch. “Oh!” For the first time since he could remember, that nagging, tingly feeling for him to scratch a part of his body was gone. He felt enlightened, almost like he had been transported to a higher plane of existence that had no itching at all! “That’s… I actually feel pretty great now. What did you do?”

“Zebracean remedies are a physical process. For bodily solutions, there is no contest.”

Spike’s head perked up. “Wait, so you can fix up my itch just by giving me a massage? I’m in!” He felt a little bad for putting down Twilight’s offer, but at the same time, he had a feeling Zecora would be more adept at the practice. “How do we do this?”

Zecora chuckled and shook her head. As Spike’s smile slowly fell, she went over to her cupboard and started searching through several rows of bottles. “Equine bodies are a simple fix, but a dragon’s pain isn’t so easily nixed.”

“So… what? Some sort of potion? A body wash? Is there any lotion involved?” Spike held out his arms in confusion.

“Do not worry, my friend. I will set you free from the itch’s wrath.” Zecora retrieved a few bottles, the contents of each one more unusual than the last. One contained what looked like liquid fire, another made entirely of bubbles. “I provide a solution; a simple bath.” She uncorked one bottle, filling the hut with the scent of brimstone and cedar. She then bent over her alchemy table, grabbed a small bowl, and began mixing the odd things together.

“I don’t need a rubber ducky on me, do I?” Spiked asked jokingly. He shifted his position on the couch, moving his head so he could see what Zecora was doing. However, that interest died when Zecora’s plump flank came into view. It was different than Twilight’s, who was rather pudgy from too many days from being cooped up in the library. Zecora’s was firm, toned from years in the forest foraging for food and staying in top physical condition. The spiral pattern of her glyphs only further accentuated the muscle beneath her smooth coat, which was enticing his new urges like never before. That perfect bum, accompanied with Zecora’s exotic accent, made Spike’s scales rather moist.

Zecora looked over her shoulder at the sound of Spike’s heavy breathing. She smirked. “You seem to be wet. Best clean up that sweat.”

Spike looked over his body, realizing that steam was pouring out of patches of his scratched off skin. “Oh great, another weird side-effect. Zecora, what is happening to me? Is this normal for dragons to just… become a sauna?”

“It doesn’t take a wise sage to know you have attained a certain age. Foals grow into adults over time. Adulthood for dragons is a more difficult climb. Very painful and aggravating, it may make you wish to shout, but there are ways to coax your inner dragon out.”

“Do those ways involve a solution to stop my scales from making my life a living hell?” Spike asked. He winced at the telltale signs of that insufferable itch beginning to rise forward again. “Also, might I add, a fast solution!”

Zecora took notice of Spike’s distress and got back to work, mashing the ingredients together even faster than before. “Patience, my friend. Soon, your pain will end.” She turned, strode over to Spike and presented the bowl to him. “It desires a dragon’s fire.”

Spike peered deeper into the bowl, looked back up to Zecora, then back to the bowl, and then shrugged. Snorting, he spit out a fireball loogie into the bowl. “Hope that’s good enough.”

Much to Zecora’s approval, the mix began to mesh together into a steamy, glowing heap of white ooze. It was like hot lotion. “First, we must let this be.” She set the cup aside, then clapped her hooves together. “Now, if you would kindly follow me.” Zecora turned on a single hoof and strode to the back of the hut. She lifted the tribal patterned drape, beckoning to Spike with an unusually sly ‘come hither’ look on her face. The young dragon couldn’t help but obey.

Following her beyond the drape, he entered the inner sanctity for Zecora’s potion making. Vials and bowls lined the shelves, some spewing out strangely colored smoke onto the floor. In the center of the room there was a large pot, where a boiling green, slimy concoction could be seen brewing under a low flame. There was no light, so the room was dim, the only light coming from the illumination of the flame.

“Wow, um… really nice place you got here,” Spike muttered, gulping when he caught a look at the various malicious looking masks lining the walls. “So, this is where you can kill my itch?”

“Mmmhmm.” Zecora approached the pot, retrieving a large bucket of water beside it. She stood on her hind legs and poured the whole bucket’s worth in, making the room feel a little more humid in the process. “This is the cauldron in which I bathe. I will let you use it for today.”

Spike paused. He found it a little difficult to understand her instructions after the image of her bathing was implanted into his mind. She probably made sure to get every single inch of her coat covered in soap. Then she’d have to wash it all off again, nice and sl—

Blinking repeatedly, Spike glanced back at her and asked, “Wait, come again?”

Zecora gestured to the cauldron. “Step into the water. This won’t take long. Leave the rest to me, and soon your itch will be gone.”

“Um… okay, then.” Spike walked to the cauldron and was instantly relieved when he saw that it was big enough for him. He hadn’t taken a dip in anything close to a hot tub in years. Dipping one foot in, he instantly felt a fresh wave of heat rise up his body and warm his bones. Dragging himself over the top, he quickly dunked his whole body into the strange mixture, forgoing testing the waters. In an instant, his entire body was enwrapped with a field of heat so deep he could actually feel it. This was tough, since even hot lava didn’t affect him too much, but whatever potion Zecora had brewed was making his skin feel like it was boiling. Only momentarily, since soon enough it ebbed to a relaxing, blissful warmth that loosened up his muscles just right.

“Embrace the warmth. The moisture. The smell.”

Spike laid back against the edge of the cauldron and did just as she commanded. He hadn’t felt comfort quite like this in what felt like a lifetime. Aside from temporary bursts of sweat and steam, he had been so dry ever since the itching started. He nearly teared up at the sensation of warm, hot water wrapping him up in its soothing embrace. His insides were sated as well, with the moisture climbing into his nostrils and cooling his inner fire. For once, he welcomed the steam emitting from his scales. It was like his own personal bathhouse. Well, except for the sultrily voiced zebra in the room.

“I owe you for this…” he said to Zecora as she laid a hot towel over his eyes.

“You are correct,” she chimed, “and later, I will collect.”

“Um… well, I have a few bits at home, if you’re interested in that,” Spike said. He smiled, relaxing deeper into the warm void of ecstasy that was the cauldron’s heavenly touch. “Or I could work for you for a while. Do a couple of odd jobs around the hut. A couple of chores as well.”

“The offer is tempting, and I may take it up. I’ll think of something. Now, where did I put that cup?” Zecora left Spike’s side and disappeared behind her curtain. She returned a few seconds later with the mixture in tow, which seemed to have grown in size. “There we are. It seems to be working thus far.”

The mixture had expanded, becoming a marshmallow-like substance. Zecora sniffed it a few times, nodded approvingly, and then poured it into the cauldron.

“So, how long is this supposed to take?” Spike asked, feeling the ends of his scales tingle a bit at the introduction of the new mixture. “I mean, Twilight said I can be back home anytime, so it really isn’t much of a bother to me. In fact, this is pretty sweet.”

“It may take hours, or just a minute or two. And I am most glad to have approval from you.” Zecora stood behind Spike. She got up on her hind legs again, her forelegs getting a grip on Spike’s shoulders. “In the meantime, I can ease your remaining stress. Do you welcome my caress?”

Spike felt a jolt shoot through his body as Zecora’s breath touched his dorsal fin. His lips locked together, making him unable to speak, so he simply nodded.

The moment her hooves touched his shoulders, he transcended his body and was whisked away to paradise. For some reason his skin and muscles were more sensitive than ever, so every movement of Zecora’s hooves sent his body into a blissful tizzle. His tongue rolled out of his mouth and hung out of his jaw, while the rest of him practically melted under Zecora’s amazing touch. Already any memory of the living hell he had been through drifted away, to be replaced with an oasis of good feelings and even better sensations.

Lifting the hot towel from his eyes for a moment, Spike peeked out and saw several of his scales floating to the surface of the mixture. “Hey, I think it’s working!”

He let the towel fall again as Zecora’s hooves touched his biceps. “My, oh my, strong like a boar. Truly your might has won you a paramour?”

It seemed like such a forward question, but Spike was willing to answer. “Paramour? Uh, no, actually. I don’t have any mare. Not at the moment, anyway...” Spike arched his back, the two lumps on his shoulder blades starting to feel sore. Luckily, Zecora’s hooves were over there right away, each touch cutting away at his displeasure like clippers removing weeds in a garden. Each poke and prod was meticulous in nature and made to ensure maximum enjoyment for Spike. Already the soreness died down as Zecora tentatively rubbed the lumps in small circles, fluctuating her movements with tantalizing breaths on his Spike’s dorsal fins. “Oh, dude... This is heaven right here.” Spike sighed, drool hanging from his mouth.

“No mare for you?” Zecora asked, though it didn’t seem like a question; more of an acknowledgement. “Then say with clarity; whatever became of you and Rarity?”

Again, an odd question, but Spike was willing to do anything for the wonderful zebra who brought him such relief. “Nothing, really. Nowadays, I help her out with her dresses and her gem hunting regularly. She actually pays me a small bit of her commission money. Though I usually spend it on more gems, or books for Twilight.” He sighed again. “It’s fantastic, really. I think Rarity is much better as a friend than as my, uh, paramour. I realized a while ago that I fell so far in love with the idea of being with her that I didn’t realize we had a good thing going.”

“I see…” Zecora said. She didn’t even bother to make a rhyme.

“Also, all things considered, I was never gonna get laid if I kept on chasing after her like some sort of puppy. I’m much happier now than I ever was trying to earn her affection.” Spike lifted the towel again. “But enough about me. What about you? I bet it can get pretty lonely out here in the forest.”

Zecora made a one-noted laugh. “The loner of the Everfree, a title I cannot deny. I too have yet to catch somepony’s eye. I’ve been in Ponyville hundreds of times, if I’m not mistaken, but a spritely young fellow’s heart has not yet been taken.”

“That’s a laugh. Who wouldn’t find you gorgeous?” Spike said without thinking.

There was a moment of silence, save for the bubbling of the bath. Zecora tilted her head at Spike’s comment.

The dragon kept talking before his mind could tell him to stop. He suspected he was becoming so relaxed that he couldn’t keep his mouth in check. “Call me a nonconformist, but I’d take a rough-and-tumble exotic forest dweller over any run of the mill beauty queen. You have this sort of… natural beauty to you, you know? Couldn’t find any mare quite like you in Ponyville, heck, in all of Equestria. I tell you something, Zecora, you are gonna make your paramour a very happy stallion. Or mare, whatever you’re into.”

Zecora went a while without blinking, but she finally let her smile return to her. She seemed utterly flabbergasted. “Perhaps... that is true. Thank you.” She craned her neck, removed the hot towel from Spike’s face. He was about to ask what she was doing, but his words were preemptively silenced by her lips on his forehead.

“Oh…”

Spike’s eyes were held in place, looking up at Zecora and her wistful smile. Her eyelids were lowered, as per the norm, but there was something new there. A hint of red along with the black and white, and an expression that looked… longing.

Spike felt a sharp sting shoot up his back. That strange urge from before, it was back, and seemed to be growing stronger the hotter the bath grew. He didn’t know what this would mean for him or Zecora, but it didn’t matter to him at the moment. He couldn’t stop himself. He gave in to his desire, eagerly awaiting Zecora as she lowered her head again. Spike lifted himself up by his elbows, and his lips met Zecora’s halfway.

Spike thought he was warm before, but now he was practically on fire. The warm wetness of Zecora’s mouth was paradise to bask in, and his tongue couldn’t agree more. It slithered inside, wrapping its serpentine form around Zecora’s tongue and squeezing it playfully. Though Zecora didn’t back down either, forcing his tongue along for a ride into his mouth as she wrestled with it with abandoned inhibitions, both trading saliva as their tongues pitted against one another in the embrace of the kiss. A crescendo met Spike’s urges, turning into a deafening roar that filled his mind with white-hot desire, so much so he couldn’t hold back and just sunk deeper into the kiss. He grew sloppier, more forceful, Zecora willing him to do as much as he needed to. He continued to slide his tongue across every inch of her mouth until he finally mustered up the courage to pull away and see her reaction.

She was still smiling.

“Uh…” Spike’s mind floundered to seek the right words to say as reality caught up with him. He just had a steamy make-out session with a zebra, who was much older than him. Extremely hot and sensual, but still older. But still hot. Also, she seemed to be into dragons, so he had that going for him. Also, she was extremely hot. That thought kept pestering his mind. “Wow.”

“You were sublime…” she whispered. Her hooves kneaded Spike’s shoulders. She finally broke eye contact with him as she overlooked the rest of his body. “But it seems it’s time.”

Spike’s skin began to crawl, the tingling sensation from before being kicked up a notch. He shifted in the cauldron, his shoulder blades in pure agony as he bent forward. “Ugh! Fuck, fuck, fuck my life, this hurts!” Spike hissed through gritted teeth, his entire body feeling like it was being dipped into a volcano, which wouldn’t be so bad for him normally, except for now. “Quick, how do you turn it off?!”

Zecora was backing away, although she looked reluctant to do so. “This is the final stage of your evolution, I have no doubt. I am afraid you will have to wait it out.”

“Okay… shit. Okay, I got this.” Spike drew in a large gulp of air, then exhaled slowly. The initial pain had passed now, replaced with what could only be described as a weird building up of pressure inside himself. It was like he was trapped inside a cage and he kept on growing, slowly breaking the prison that was his own skin. The pressure kept on building and building, until he felt like he’d explode. Instead, his skin did. Spike had to squint his eyes as a harsh sting swept over him, and when he opened them, the cauldron was covered in a film of scales and burnt skin shedding.

Breathing heavily, Spike reached behind himself, expecting the rim of the cauldron, but instead he felt something else. His entire back was exposed, no scales or anything. On the sides was his shed skin, which he carefully peeled away. Soon, an exact copy of himself, sans the insides, peeled off in his claws, scales falling off in great abundance. Holding the skin version of himself up in the air, Spike grimaced. “Ugh, is this what I really look like?”

Zecora laughed aloud. “Give it to me, my dear. This will have to be disposed of, I fear.”

“Wait, hold up, this is pretty cool,” Spike said, opening the mouth of the skin shedding and looking inside. “Kinda like a souvenir, except my skin… which isn’t that creepy, actually. It’s like a foal who loses their first tooth. Except skin. Actually, does it sound creepy?”

“Again, I’ll say it: we must do away with it.” Zecora seemed to be in good humor about the situation as she took the dead skin from Spike’s claws. She darted through another patterned flap.

Spike remained in the cauldron, heaving a sigh of relief and basking in the sweet after of all his pain. Relaxing on his back, two things made themselves immediately clear. First, the boiling cauldron was hot, and his new skin found that out the hard way as he instantly felt the sting return. The other thing was that the two lumps from before were still connected to his backside.

“What the…” Spike looked over his shoulder, eyes widening in surprise as two new appendages spread out from his back. Two fresh, brand-spanking new, out of the skin wings were connected to his shoulder blades now. Much like the rest of his new skin, they were a bit paler than his usual scale tone. But they were there, incoherently moving as he struggled to control them. “Holy shit, I got wings!” Spike said in utter shock. A few seconds passed before he added, “Holy shit, I can fly! I never have to walk again!” He crawled out of the cauldron in excitement, but his slightly larger feet caught on the rim of the cauldron and he ended up barreling over onto his stomach. “Ow.” He got back up quickly and started walking. He blinked twice before realizing he was walking on his arms and legs, and he was okay with that.

“Huh… weird,” he said, lifting himself on his hind legs. It was a bit tricky to manage, but once he did he managed to get a look at his newly changed body. Bigger than before, but not so much he couldn’t fit through a doorway. His arms and legs had bulked up in muscle, while his body had become more serpentine in shape. Heck, even his tail was longer. Checking over his shoulder again, he noticed how pathetically small his wings were. He wondered how they would support the rest of him if he tried to fly. “Maybe they’ll grow bigger,” was all he could say, shrugging and settling back down to all fours again. Moving past the flap, Spike called out, “Hey, Zecora, you still here? I think dragon puberty did a number on me!”

Zecora was entering the hut, no longer holding the old skin. She paused at the sight of Spike, sizing him up with a bit of a twinkle in her eye. She undid the pins in her mane. Her mohawk disappeared, with her white mane falling over her face. Spike realized how beautiful it was when she let it all hang down. He was captivated by the splendor of her face, the way her mane shimmered in the light of the fireplace, and those deep pools of eyes that he practically dived right into without a moment’s hesitation. Not even when he first looked upon Rarity had he been this enamored with a mare before.

Gulping, Spike stopped in his tracks while his mouth sputtered, grasping at straws at what to say. “I-I… uh… wow, um, you’re looking… nice.” Spike’s cheeks were a rosy hue, even more noticeable on his freshly shed face. “Beautiful, even.”

Zecora approached Spike with a noticeable sway in her step. Her hoof touched Spike’s cheek, gently yet playfully fondling his dorsal fin. She had the same look on her face from earlier. The part of himself that Spike left behind in the cauldron room flew right back to him, and the words started pouring out of him involuntarily. “I’m sorry about that… what I did. You did that thing with your lips and I got all flustered… The same thing happened this morning. I can’t help it. I look at you and I just go insane for a bit…” Spike flustered, taking in a gulp of air. “I-I just don’t know what’s wrong with me. I’ve never felt such a large… urging before.”

“You were rather forward, that is true.” Zecora’s hoof stroked Spike’s spines with a comforting touch. He leaned into it, smiling as the tribal mare touched him with great affection. There was no hesitation to be found in the way she touched him, nor in the way she spoke. “I could have stopped you, but I didn’t want to.”

“Oh.” Spike stood there—on all fours, which he was still getting the hang of—trying to muster up anything that could have broken the lingering tension. He was tempted to apologize again, but he felt that would have been redundant. So he desperately searched his mind for something else, anything that would make the situation comprehensible…

Zecora closed her forelegs around Spike and pulled him against her. This time, she put her lips against his. This kiss was less passionate than the first, but just as sweet. They took it more slowly, Zecora’s lips melding onto his as their tongues played with one another in their mouths, slow and steady, made up of long, lust-driven licks.

Spike’s claws flexed as his blood rushed through every inch of his new body. He felt like he was ablaze once again. He dug into Zecora’s back, holding tight to her thick coat, using her stripes as markers for where to rub her. He reached for her flanks as she fell in closer against him, taking her glyphs in each hand. As he did, Zecora’s moan filled Spike’s mouth. Her hoof dragged against Spike’s neck—

“Ah!” Spike broke the kiss and stepped away, slapping his hand to the back of his neck. It stung like a patch of raw skin… That was when he realized, he was raw. Like a peeled fruit, he had no functioning skin protecting him, just a thin outer coating that was still fresh as can be. Instead of an irritating itchiness like before, now his skin felt like he was being dragged on endless tracts of carpet. It was just barely noticeable, but it was still there, and every movement only reminded him how new his skin was. The most painful parts were his new wings, which caused him to wince in pain as they brushed against the wall. “Dammit, why does puberty have to be such a bitch? Well, it does come with bitchin’ wings, but the skin problems aren’t worth it!”

Zecora raised her hoof to comfort Spike, but she retracted it when she took notice of his irritation. She nodded, then strode over to her cupboard. “Another problem that I can sate. I assure you, not much longer we will have to wait…”

“We?” Spike tilted his head. “And wait for what?”

Zecora looked back. Her smile was as sultry as ever but her brow was tilted in mild embarrassment. “Y-your skin is... fresh, like a newborn child’s. Raw and unguarded, the hurt is wild.” Spike realized that he wasn’t the only one who was letting his tongue slip today. He also realized what Zecora meant, but in a strange way, he wasn’t at all offset by the idea. It felt right, like they were both in the right place in the right time.

“This will make your new body strong. Effective as it is, the application takes long.” Zecora now had another bowl in her hooves, this one a translucent goo that looked like it would make for quite the slip if it spilled on the floor. “All will be okay. Come this way.” Zecora swaggered to the curtains on the other side of the room which lead into what Spike assumed to be her… bedroom.

He followed, his heart beating fast but steadily.

Chapter 3: And Then We Get That Much Anticipated Aftermath

“Oh, that is the stuff,” Spike said, his forked tongue hanging out as he sighed deeper. The previous raw, sore condition of his new skin was readily being replenished to a comfortable state thanks to that weird goo stuff Zecora lathered on his backside. They were in the zebra’s bedroom, Spike lounging on his stomach atop the tiger skin bedsheet of her mattress. Zecora was atop his back, rubbing the strange lotion into his scales, massaging him with her entire body. She had removed her neck and leg rings for the sake of comfort.

“How’d you get some good at massages anyhow?” Spike said with a cathartic groan.

“A shaman like I must be well versed in relieving all things under any curse,” Zecora whispered. “These aren’t remedies in which ponyfolk take part. My medicinal ways are of the heart.”

“Well, you’ve certainly helped with my curses, I can tell you that.” Spike stretched out his wings, Zecora’s hooves carefully rubbing their sides. She helped get them to full length, taking care to not be too rough with Spike’s new appendages. Everywhere Zecora touched, Spike felt a tingle and jolt, causing him to giggle uncontrollably. Soon, however, he grew used to the sensation, but still couldn’t help grinning. “You know, dragons are weird. First you get a weird skin condition, then you get set on fire a couple of times, then you begin shedding scales and before you know it, all your skin. Also, getting wings are part of the deal as well. Yeah, really, really weird.”

He didn’t mention the rising, unrelenting urges starting to overwhelm him again, for fear that it’d make him seem like a creep. How would letting Zecora know his desires were taking form impress her in the slightest?

Actually, why he even had desires was a good question in itself. Sure, when he was a teenager he had urges like this, just like any other kid going through puberty. But never to the extent that he felt like he’d burn up without relieving it. Did a new pair of wings also mean a new pair of… Well, he certainly wasn’t going to check now. Not in front of Zecora. Unless she wanted to see it. She did kiss him earlier, which he had to admit, he greatly enjoyed. But why would she be interested in him? She was a pretty attractive mare in her own right, and earlier he was a dragon with a skin condition that would put the most acne-covered teenager to shame, and now his skin was more vulnerable than a newborn foal’s. The dangerous concoction of confusing emotions and post-adolescent hormones was starting to give Spike a migraine.

Yet, all of that seemed to fade as Zecora continued to grind along his back, slathering him in the slippery lotion. Thoughts did no good for him when he could enjoy such an erotic, sensual kindness from the exotic mare, so let his mind go for a while. He enjoyed the candlelight. He enjoyed the stinging pain ebbing away with every pass of Zecora’s body. He enjoyed the little breaths she made near his fins as she slid along him. When he woke that morning, he was as uncomfortable as he had ever felt. He hadn’t imagined he’d be in such bliss at sundown.

My medicinal ways are of the heart.

Spike decided to let his heart do the talking. “Zecora, I’m going to go for broke here, so if you’re going to kick me out of your hut, at least let me say everything I have to.”

Zecora waited until she was up against Spike’s fins once again to say, “Mmmhmm?”

“I have this insatiable fire that I just can’t get rid of, and it’s been growing ever since I started growing. I assumed it would go away after you got rid of the itch, but it’s still there. That’s why I can’t keep my claws off of you. That’s why I’m beyond aroused right now… You’re so beautiful. I don’t know if this urge will ever go away, but if I could share it with someone, it’d be you.”

Spike sighed. What should have been a few seconds felt like an eternity, elongated even further as Zecora’s body massage ended. Spike brought his palm to his face, groaning in shame. He said it. He was glad. But he also felt like dirt, and he doubted that would go away as easily as the itch. When he no longer felt Zecora on his back, he assumed she had left him to wallow in his own idiocy.

Spike tensed up, preparing for the worst when he heard Zecora speak. “This part, the most difficult to sate, is a budding dragon’s desire to mate. The transition to adulthood stokes a dragon’s inner desire.” Her hoof turned Spike’s face towards her. Her eyes glimmered in the candlelight. There was no contempt to be seen there. “Spike, my dear… I would love nothing more than to quell your inner fire.”

Instantly Spike felt that inner fire engulf him in an inferno. “Really? Wow… That’s, uh, a much better response than I expected.” He noticed that Zecora was sitting on her haunches, her chest covered in the lotion she used to relieve his raw skin. “So, um… how exactly do you wanna do this? I’m not exactly the most, uh, experienced guy at this sort of thing.”

“Your heart will tell you what to do. I lend all my trust to you,” Zecora said, resting her chin on her chest and eyeing Spike with a sultry look.

Spike nodded. He turned over, using what little control he had of his wings to flatten them against his back. The lotion had done its job well, as his back didn’t sting anymore. However, his front was still exposed and sensitive. Red marks could be seen down the length of his stomach, the skin so raw even a slight touch irked him.

Zecora seemed to understand that much. She slowly splayed herself over Spike’s front, the lotion upon her body quickly meshing with his skin. She slid along the length of him, just like before, only this time she was doing more than just bringing him comfort. There was something different in the way she breathed. She was cooing and gasping. Spike realized she was trying to be sexy for him, digging deeper into the basin of his arousal. It was working. Spike was about to compliment her on how amazing her body felt on his, but he was silenced by her wet, passionate kiss.

Spike eagerly accepted the gift of her lips and returned the favor with his tongue. Each wet, sloppy motion made him burn hotter, Zecora’s movements up and down his belly further stoking the flames. He was an unstoppable flame, bright and passionate, burning hotter as the night crept upon them. And before he knew it, that flame began to grow eager to join in on the fun.

The two let out long held breaths as the kiss broke, but Spike could feel every single motion of Zecora’s lips as she spoke. “I feel you, Spike… You are grand and strong…”

Spike could feel it too. His swelling pride was sandwiched between him and Zecora’s stomach, growing slicker every minute by the lotion’s touch. Waves and jolts of pleasure accompanied the fire inside of him. He couldn’t contain his moans.

Zecora kissed him again, this time lightly. She halted her grinding before whispering, “I hope this night lasts for very long.”

“Well, I’m sure Twilight won’t mind me sleeping over for some special treatment from you,” Spike said with a chuckle. He felt himself throb down below, the slick touch of Zecora’s wet coat against it only making it even more eager to be relieved. Taking a peek over Zecora’s shoulder, Spike whistled. “Dang, I do not remember it being that big before. Looks like the package with puberty includes a new package as well!”

Zecora’s constant rubbing against it with her back leg made Spike bite his bottom lip in surprise, nearly drawing blood. Her leg continued to make it grow and swell, becoming rock hard as it rose to attention. Spike was throbbing in impatience to dispel some energy.

“Zecora, please…” He felt a little embarrassed to beg, but now, more than ever, he wanted her. Much to his pleasure, she abided, rising off of Spike. Drops of lotion fell from her chest as she edged to his lower regions where, his budding growth needed some desperate attention.

She sat down on her haunches between his legs, smiling with a hungry look in her eyes at the prize before her. With a hoof slick from the lotion before, he touched his length. The cool lotion sent Spike’s mind spinning, but he resisted the urge to close his eyes and look away. He wanted to watch her. She slid her hoof up and down his shaft in quick, fluid motions that were soon joined by her other hoof. She stroked him slowly, appeasing his desires. Before too long, she was successful in releasing his maximum length, holding it against her belly as she continued to rub it between her hooves. Spike let out a breath he forgot he was holding. He couldn’t believe how amazing it felt; the continuous motions of Zecora’s hooves along his cock made his spine tremble with excitement.

Zecora let out a deep hum before leaning up against him, laying tender kisses upon the base. All it took was a simple dab of her tongue to make Spike gasp and his cock to twitch. Zecora chuckled quietly, and traced a long lick that traveled all the way from the base to the very tip. She didn’t stop there. Her tongue was soon joined by her lips, and finally the rest of her mouth.

“Oh… shit, shit, this is… fucking awesome,” Spike sighed. Never before could he imagine the warm mouth of a mare could feel so wonderful. Zecora’s mouth enwrapped the head of his dick, her tongue flicking in and out to lap and lash the tip of his shaft in expert motions. Soon she was encircling his head with her tongue, the slathering of saliva from her mouth leaking out and pooling at the base of his dick. The burning fire within him demanded more, however. It had just gotten a taste, and it wasn’t going to stop until it burned everything around it down. Luckily, Zecora knew this as well, and went to work, starting to slide her head down his length.

She went slow and steady, both hooves still rubbing his shaft while her head inched downward. Her tongue never stopped moving, licking and wrapping itself around his shaft every second so Spike couldn’t have a moment’s rest. Not like he wanted one, since this was the most euphoric he ever felt in recent memory. The rawness of his skin and changes to his new adult body didn’t even matter. All there was in his world was him, Zecora, and a burning need she gladly fulfilled. Which is why, when she finally reached the base of his dick, having stuffed the entire length of his cock down her throat, Spike let out a hungry moan. Still with his dick in her mouth, Zecora used her hooves to play with his testicles, bouncing and stretching them against one another like they were a toy. Her tongue never rested, still carrying out it restless motions of wrapping around his length like a snake and squeezing him dry.

After several seconds, Zecora looked up at him with those innocent yet lustful eyes of hers, then smiled with her mouth still full. She slid her head back halfway up, then immediately shoved his cock back into her mouth, her moans vibrating across Spike’s whole body. She repeated this process with great haste, each attempt resulting in more and more length she’d stuff down her throat. Her tongue was still agile, the base being used to lick the bottom of his shaft while the tip tickled his sides. Before too long, Spike was left in a state so filled with bliss and pleasure, he couldn’t find the energy to warn her or even stop the impending end of his endurance.

White seed drained from what little area there was between Zecora’s lips and Spike’s length. It was like a hot sludge, steaming as it dribbled down, pooling around the base of his cock. Spike thought he could relax after that, but another wave shot through him, erupting from his tip, right into Zecora’s mouth again. Yet, she kept her lips firmly planted around him, sliding down and sucking in what little cum had escaped. Spike felt a slight tug on his cock. His eyes widened as he realized Zecora had swallowed.

With a pop and a gasp, Zecora pulled off of Spike. He was now slightly bent, having lost a lot of the hardness that had been building up over all this time. Seed was still draining from the tip. Spike looked at Zecora’s face again. She was lustful, as expected. He saw satisfaction and peace upon her too. He figured out that she was content; there was no place she would rather be than with this now adult dragon.

Spike felt a little guilty. After all the sexy shaman had done for him, he still had yet to return the favor in any way. But then he realized something. Many times, as she had licked and sucked him, he had noticed her hind legs grinding together. Perhaps it was the act itself that was bringing her arousal, or it could have been anticipation for what Spike could possibly do when his cock was inside her…

Spike, foregoing any warning for the sake of passion, wrapped his claws around Zecora’s forelegs. He pushed her against her back, his turn the one to be on top of her. Though, not for long, for he soon shifted his attention and claws to the bottom of her body. There, Spike grabbed both of Zecora’s hind legs and carefully pulled them aside, revealing her jungle flower. That inner fire within him had only been relieved somewhat, but it wasn’t out. Not by a long shot.

Before he dived right in, Spike gave the insides of Zecora’s leg a long, teasing lick. He looked up to Zecora and winked. “Hope you don’t mind me having a little snack.” With an almost hungry desire, Spike wet his lips with his tongue and placed them against the lips of her pussy. Then opening his mouth slightly, he slid his tongue inside her, saliva pooling from his mouth that mixed with Zecora’s own sexual juices. Her taste was amazing, much like the forest she inhabited. Salty with a bit of tang, the flavor enamored his senses and made him lap without hesitation, only wanting to drag his tongue along every inch of her insides.

Zecora moaned with every pass of his tongue, accompanied with her legs flexing and her back arching. With one hoof over her face, she gasped, "Your wonderful tongue makes my need ache... Spike, oh darling... Please me, for Goddesses’ sake..."

That was a side of her he had never witnessed before, but he wasn’t one to leave her wanting. Her folds had parted enough to reveal her needy, swelling nub. Taking care not to do anything harmful with his claws, Spike pressed against the clit gently. Even that was enough to hasten Zecora’s breaths. He flicked at it, then pressed his tongue against it for a strong, lasting lick. Zecora panted like a diamond dog in heat. He circled his tongue around it, using the fork at the tip to enwrap and lick it with more hasty laps and swirls. With his thumb, he gently pressed it inside her, wiggling it about while focusing his attention on fondling her clit with wild abandon with his tongue.

Zecora’s only means of how much she lusted for Spike’s ministrations was to touch his head. Her begging and pleading for him to make her cum was lost to her rapid moans. She had never been this captivated by any bedfellow, nor did she ever have one so selfless and giving. She almost feared her inevitable climax, since that would mean the end of the constant bursts of elation brought on by her dragon. But no matter how much she bit her lip and clenched her muscles, Spike’s bottomless energy and the dexterity of his tongue finally put her under, and her end was met with a loud, lustful moan.

Spike relinquished his tongue shortly after the waterworks began. Zecora’s tropical juices began flowing from her flower, leaving her legs and bed drenched. Her nectar was all the more visible in the candlelight, giving her nethers and her legs a radiant orange glow. Spike licked his lips, accidentally lapping up some of Zecora’s juice in the process. He pursed his lips and smiled. “Heh. You taste like salty mangoes.”

Zecora smiled back up at him. He was sure her glowing expression was not from the candlelight. With one more shudder, the zebra rolled onto her forelegs and pushed herself onto her haunches. However, she only remained upright for a moment before collapsing. Spike was quick to catch her, holding her hoof in one hand and stroking her white mane with the other. Zecora made her desire to keep going apparent with several nips on Spike’s dorsal fin.

Spike himself knew he still wasn’t quite satisfied; the fire was dwindling, but it was still well and burning. Whatever weird, hormonal responses were going on in his brain, they still had much to be dealt with. The fire wasn’t about to die down with just a bit of foreplay, and he knew Zecora was the only one who could help put it out.

“So, you good for a round two?” Spike asked, holding two fingers up with a smirk on his face.

Zecora kissed Spike’s fin, as well as his cheek, the latter being much more passionate and affectionate than the other. Spike smiled at her, letting out a low breath as he felt her hoof touching the base of his dragon once again.

“Well, could have given me more warning than that… Not that I’m complaining.” He spread his legs and let Zecora stroke him. She kept him occupied with depraved, open-mouthed kiss, with their tongues quickly trading saliva in droves. He could taste some of himself in her mouth, while she in turn could taste herself in his. As they smacked lips and traded saliva, Spike’s lower pride began to swell up again, standing tall and erect with Zecora’s good-natured convincing. Without thinking, his hips began to sway upward and down, his shaft stroking Zecora’s leg before moving to the glorious, wet prize it so dearly wanted.

Spike’s length had a mind of its own as it rubbed against Zecora’s pussy. The motions became quicker and more heated, along with Zecora and Spike’s tongues, which dueled for supremacy in their mouths. Instinctively, Spike reached out and grasped both of Zecora’s flanks, giving them a firm squeeze, which caused the mare to moan into his mouth.

“Whenever you’re ready…” Spike whispered, kneading her fur in slow rotations. Each pass of his claws was stronger than the last. Zecora grinded against Spike’s cock in synchronization with his touch. The way she gyrated her hips, combined with the fire in her eyes, it was almost hypnotic, the spell only being broken by her leaning her head back and calling out as Spike began to slip inside her.

When he thought her mouth felt like heaven, that was a gross oversight. He was truly in paradise now, and with each inch of further penetration he went deeper into nirvana. His mind was at bliss, and that raging inferno finally had something to burn. Spike spread Zecora’s ass out with his hands, allowing him more room to fit his shaft in. It was a tight squeeze, and he almost considered giving up on bottoming out, but eventually he got the full length fit snuggly to his base, much to Zecora’s gaping approval.

She kissed him again, holding her hooves tight to his shoulders as he began to rock his hips. With Zecora’s rump held firmly in place, she was entirely at his mercy, passing into her and pulling out easily. It was like her inner walls were a perfect fit for him.

It was so simple, but so right. Zecora’s moans were all Spike needed to know he was pleasing her, and the way she squeezed him, her walls clutching his cock in a vice, only accentuated her deep voice. Spike knew how cathartic this was for her, even if her need didn’t match up to his in the slightest. Regardless, he wanted her to feel good before he did.

“Mmm… Oh, yes…” Zecora gasped, her head tilting involuntarily. “Touch me… I beg for your caress…”

With no need for further prompting from her, Spike eagerly pushed back into her folds with resounding strength, returning to the base of his shaft inside her. Not giving up his pace, he pulled back out and repeated the process, his length sliding in and out of her depths with increasing speed while his balls slapped against her pussy each time he pulled back in. Each pounding of his cock deep inside her caused Zecora to cry out, which only drove Spike’s lust to new limits. He licked the sweat off her neck while squeezing her ass cheeks tighter, grouping them with each thrust just to fit more of himself inside her. Every sensation with a tidal wave of pleasure to Spike’s brain, his new instincts eating it up and begging for more, while Zecora in turn was drowning in a sea of pleasure unlike any she had experienced before.

Just as Spike felt his climax begin to rise, he heard a rather sinister voice in the back of his head. He figured it was his inner voice telling him to do something to lessen the flames. Something to assert dominance and take his place as a true dragon. He listened, and he understood, feeling a new sort of itch crawl over him. But he wasn’t about to do something to accidentally hurt Zecora and ruin her night.

“Hey…” Spike said, breaking a rather passionate kiss between them. “I wanna try something else, but it’s a little rough… You okay with that?”

Zecora rubbed Spike’s bicep and nodded. “I’ve fought many a lion, tiger and bear. To let a dragon have his way with me only seems fair.”

Spike smiled, licking the lips of his lustful grin. “Great. Now, get on your stomach really quick.”

Zecora complied, getting off Spike while his dick slid out of her pussy with a wet noise. Turning the other way, giving him an ample view of her tribal ass, she settled on her stomach. She was only able to relax for a moment before her legs got whisked in the air by Spike’s eager claws grabbing ahold of her.

“Okay, lemme see if I can get this right…” Spike muttered, sticking his tongue out as he groped the stripes of her ass. The tip of his dick was slick from the previous pussy pounding he had gleefully taken part in, while Zecora herself was wet and slippery as well. After multiple failed attempts, he finally got it back inside her, causing her to put her back down on the bed. Now her rump stuck up in the air while he pushed his length fully back into her, Spike’s own large size making it so he had to rest both his hands on either of her sides and his face inches from her neck. Letting out a large breath from his nose that caused Zecora’s skin to get goose bumps, Spike asked, “So, ready to begin?”

“I yearn for the feeling of your strength within me…” Zecora’s breath was almost as hot as Spike’s. “Do as you wish… do not make me plea…”

Grunting, Spike pulled back out and thrust inside her, the earlier hesitation and slowness thrown out the door. His inner fire needed to be burned out in a truly glorious fashion now, and this position gave Spike the ultimate chance for that. For each thrust he felt it build up stronger inside him, increasing in temperature to a white-hotness that threatened to destroy everything around it. Zecora was prodded by Spike’s shaft with much more ferocity, the vigorous pace from before replaced with an animalistic intensity to maximize Spike’s pleasure by pounding her vagina harder and harder as the minutes ticked by. The zebra bit her sheet, too lost in her own mindless state of bliss to respond than the reactionary moan and scream of pleasure.

Before too long, Spike felt the signs of his climax about to reach its explosive, orgasmic end. He gripped Zecora’s sheets hard, nearly tearing the animal skin as he doubled his efforts to expel as much as his inner fire as possible. Lost in his lust, all that mattered to him was the tight hole of Zecora that was his only source of relief, which he gladly used. The loud smack of their sexual organs meeting with each thrust reached a rapid crescendo before finally dying out in a final grunt from Spike and scream from Zecora.

He stayed inside her, slowly pulling out while his seed poured into her depths. Zecora nearly cried out in panic at its heat, but only squinted as the initial warmth cooled down and left her to enjoy her own orgasm. His inner fire engulfed his body like a flame overtaking wood, leaving him to enter Zecora with every last pump of his seed. It trickled out of her lower lips, spilling on the bed along with her own juice, creating a sticky, slick connection between the two before Spike fully pulled out.

Lying on his back, Spike let out a deep breath. No more itching, no more scratching, and no more uncontrollable compulsion to mate. Becoming an adult dragon may have been a stressful and real bitch of a process, but the payoff was quite rewarding. Comfort. Honest to Celestia comfort. Not only did he get to spend an amazing night with the sultry zebra shaman herself, but he also got wings!

Wiping some sweat from his forehead, Spike looked up to Zecora and said, “Wheew… Tough day, huh?”

Her head was on its side. The look of satisfaction upon her face rivaled Spike’s. “An exciting one of medicinal practice, that is entirely true, but it was worth it to end it like this, laying in an embrace with you.” She reached out to Spike with her forelegs. It was obvious that she was too weak to move towards him by her own doing.

Spike reached out to her, wrapped his claws around her hooves and pulled her along the bed. She was strong enough to crawl, allowing her to worm her way on top of Spike. Just like how the evening began, she spread herself out over him, only this time she had no intention of getting off. With his chest acting as a soft, heated surface for her to rest against, he was hers for the rest of the night, and he was okay with that.

“Thank you,” Spike said, lazily running his claw through Zecora’s mane. “For everything.”

Zecora’s eyes were beginning to flutter shut, but she still spoke, albeit in a hushed voice. “You were wonderful, a true dragon, worthy of the body you now possess...” It seemed like a great effort just for her to stretch out her neck and kiss Spike one more time before her eyes closed entirely. “From this day forward, if your fire ever rises, I shall sate it. My body, to you, I bless.”

The sensual zebra fell asleep to the rise and fall of Spike’s chest. He wasn’t too far behind her, but before he fell asleep, he had a happy thought, affirming that being an adult dragon was going to be pretty interesting.

“Here’s to waking up with another itch that needs scratching.”