Body Swapping and Mutual Clopping

Spike loved sand. The way it slipped between his claws, the soft brush of it as he kicked it up and watched it settle, the hot, comfy blanket it made for him as the Saddle Arabian sun beat down on him.

He'd been walking for almost an hour now, and the heat only invigorated him. Sure, it wasn't a pit of lava, but there was something powerful about the rays permeating his being, driving him forwards. In the distance, he could see the concrete obelisks that had called him to the desert in the first place, lonely spires that had yet to crack or fall into dereliction despite their age.

The structures of ancient Saddle Arabia were an anomaly to even the most distinguished scientists and magicians if only for the fallacy of their anachronisms. In simpler terms, ponies from those times shouldn't have had access to the materials used to construct them, ranging from cement to concrete to granite.

Spike squinted at the sun above him, trying to mark its position. He was miles from the nearest settlement, and determining the time had gotten rather difficult without a clock handy. He assumed it was past noon, but in all honesty, he had no clue how to read the sun's angle without a dial handy. Shrugging, he resumed in his straight walk towards the obelisks, tall, round, and desolate.

Princess Celestia had entrusted Spike with a diplomatic mission to the Saddle Arabian capital of Ponyadh in order to better foster relations between the two countries. It was customary that a diplomat be sent from one country to the other once a year to better learn of their ways and beliefs, and Spike had been lucky enough to be chosen.

When he had arrived in the skyscraper filled metropolis that was Ponyadh—the exact opposite of what he'd been expecting—he received an audience with the reverent king, a pony that others worshiped and declared holy. The king told him of a pilgrimage that all in his religion took, but warned him that it was scorching hot and tiring and that there would be no shade to protect him from the sun during his journey.

He was both shocked and pleased when Spike accepted so enthusiastically. Saddle Arabia was so much hotter than Equestria, practically boiling, and Spike adored it. He felt completely in his element, and he was never going to turn down an opportunity to both explore and get a suntan.

Still, his legs were beginning to grow tired, and he'd resigned to walking on all fours if only to fight the strain. Spike was twenty-three now, matching Dragon Lord Ember in height but outdoing her in stockiness, his arms thick, his chest and abdomen sculpted, his tail long and dragging in the sand behind him, kicking up small yellow clouds.

He persevered despite his growing temptation to take a nap in the heat. It wasn't like him to give up so easily, after all.

Minutes ticked over and repeated themselves as the spires turned from an outline in the shadow of the sun to prominent blocks in the centre of his vision, and Spike began to make out ornate carvings and runes adorning the structures' exteriors. He wondered what they all might have meant, and was sure that if he had Twilight here, she'd be able to tell him. That, or make a pretty educated guess.

At first, Spike had only wanted to get through his trial, but the more land he traversed and the closer he came to his objective, the more he found himself with a vested interest in the structures the Saddle Arabians considered to be so important. It was almost like how Twilight got when she was studying, he considered, a small smile on his parched lips as he continued to march his way through the sandy barrier.

"Heh, wonder if they've got a lake or something over there. I could use a drink..." It barely registered in Spike's mind that he was talking to himself, but he supposed hours alone following a samey path would do that to most creatures. Even the sedate sound of silence became boring sometimes.

It was times like this that Spike wished he had wings. Not to make the journey quicker, he was quite happy with walking at a relaxed pace, but to get up high and scope out his surroundings. He had no clue what to expect of the high-walled buildings in the distance, nor the towers, and he didn't fancy the idea of getting lost in them. Scaling them would be rather easy, he assumed, but he'd also heard that desecration of these buildings was cause for imprisonment, so he shelved that idea before even considering sticking his sharp claws into the wall.

Standing at almost twice the height of most ponies, it had been a while since Spike had found a building imposing, but the veritable labyrinth that stood before him definitely made its presence known. It's not that he considered turning around and leaving at that point, more that he actually backed up a few paces and turned when he noticed how the spires blotted out the sun. After walking through such a bright and seemingly endless landscape, the dark was almost perturbing.

Still, Spike knew why he was there. He had to complete the pilgrimage, or he'd feel as if he was a liar. Taking a bold step forwards, he allowed his hand to touch stone before moving back onto his feet, standing straight and arching his back. The buildings were so tall and wide, they almost looked as if they'd been constructed for adult dragons, not ponies. Just another curiosity concerning their existence, Spike supposed.

As he progressed, the light continued to seep further away, until it was a fragile, wavering thing in the distance behind him, with little trickles pushing through small cracks in the distance. Spike had decent vision in the darkness, and what he could see was more of the ornate carvings that had featured on the exterior, etched into the walls and depicting battles, excursions, kingdoms... He could only make out any detail when he breathed a small burst of fire, but instantly, he clamped a hand over his mouth, realising his mistake.

He couldn't burn any of the etchings, it would be near-sacrilege. Slowly, trepidatiously, Spike continued to walk, paying special attention to his footing as he continued and being sure not to allow his claws to scrape across the floor. He had to treat the place with respect, it was the duty of a good diplomat, and he wanted to make Celestia proud just as much as he didn't want to anger a foreign nation.

Besides, Celestia's pride equated to Twilight's pride.

Spike's work for Celestia meant he got to see Twilight more than he would have liked, but the trade off was worth it if only for the quality of the time they now spent together. They always had so much to talk about, from Twilight's duties and experiments to Spike's travels and missions, and it made for a firmer companionship between them, something better than Spike's adolescence, when he had spent the majority of the time stir crazy.

Now it was all fun and enjoyment, and Spike couldn't help but look forward to every next time he would see the beautiful nerd. He could picture her now, her tail fluffing with excitement and her ears perking up as he prepared to regale her with a new exploit or mistake of his, her soft giggles as he recounted his latest screw up and her looks of concern over any small indiscretion on his part.

His mind was so full of Twilight that he barely noticed the shape shifting in the distance. Spike felt a bristle in his scales as if wind had just passed through his body, and instantly he found himself on full alert, his large tail pressed to the floor and his feet firmly planted.

"Who's there?" he called out, attempting to mask his fear. Spike knew he was powerful enough to take on some creatures, but this was the desert, it could be a giant scorpion for all he knew, or something even worse.

No answer, and he tried to downplay it in his mind, one of his feet tapping as he considered turning tail like he should have earlier. Maybe it was just his eyes playing tricks on him?

Spike's eyes didn't play tricks on him and he knew it. All thought of safety left Spike as he let forth a blue jet of flame, illuminating the tunnel and stripping away the darkness' fog, his eyes refocusing as he scanned the hall for sign of a resident.

Another bipedal creature stood in the distance, a couple of feet taller than him, with indistinguishable features and an impressive physique. Before Spike could switch to a defensive stance or even rush out a few words, he found himself being whisked off of his feet by the creature and rushed through the structure, his grip firm but not rough, a single arm able to hold the drake with ease.

"Wh-what are you doing?!" Spike called out, kicking his legs and attempting to wrap his tail around the creature but to no avail. In a moment of panic, Spike breathed fire over the creature's back, but it appeared to glance off with no effect. How was that possible? Was the creature draconic too, or just a powerful magician?

The question was lost on Spike as he was pulled deeper and deeper into the recesses of the structure, eventually being ascended up a large spiral staircase. By this point, he had resigned himself to his fate. No matter what he did or how he struggled, he couldn't break the creature's grip, so he'd hold off on escape until he'd had an opportunity to assess the situation.

Up and up they went, sunlight bleeding through and allowing Spike a quick glimpse of the dark fur on the creature's back, almost wolfish in texture. They continued to climb the tower as the creature's bounding steps reverberated along the staircase, his feet moving up four or five stairs at a time even while he modulated his breath, seeming to never tire.

The repetitive cycle of stair seemed to end exactly when Spike thought it might never. They leveled out at the peak of one of the towers, though Spike had no clue which, passing through a set of double doors and into a dank, unlit chamber.

Spike could feel his heart hammering in his chest even as he was set down, and by instinct he released more fire, hoping the creature would at least flinch and back up. It didn't move an inch, looking down at him with a curious stare from its one eye. There was a short flash, and the room came to life, a bright light emanating from the ceiling as Spike felt multiple eyes fall upon him, all singular and each belonging to another bipedal furry creature.

"Why do you fight me, young one?" his kidnapper asked with something between a bark and a rasp, his tongue clicking between his words.

"You just grabbed me out of nowhere!" Spike protested as if the reason couldn't have been anymore obvious, his eyes swivelling as he took in the room, various modern instruments that looked as if they might not have been out of place in Ponyville General situated throughout the room, more strange carvings adorning the walls to make for a strange but intriguing contrast.

Spike might have appreciated it more if he wasn't scared shitless. "So, is someone going to explain to me what the heck's going on? Should I be fighting or running or begging for my life? I honestly don't know."

"You have nothing to fear from us, young one." the creature looked to his companions. "He is a new one, we have not seen him in our halls before. We should learn of him."

A few rasps and hisses were heard in response, but they all seemed to the affirmative. The way they spoke freaked Spike out a little. Even after all of the places he had visited, it still seemed extremely outlandish. Regardless, they said they wanted to 'learn of him', whatever that meant, and it could be an out. "Uhh, what did you want to know?"

"You are new," the creature repeated, his eye widening. "We wish to study you."

"Well, I can tell you all about me if you really want?" Spike offered, a little breathy in his speech. "Would that help?"

"It would be much faster if you allowed us to glean that information ourselves," the creature clicked, gesturing to a table in the corner of the room, wired to strange glowing devices that seemed to beep and tick. "Would you take a seat for us?"

"Over there?" Spike asked, gulping. "What do those machines do? Will you hurt me?"

"I have already told you, you have nothing to fear from us." His voice was smoother this time, but still retained its signature rasp.

"As long as I comply, right?"

"You could turn and leave now and we would not stop you. I apologise for the way that you were delivered, but it seemed faster than allowing you to discover this place alone. When you discovered me, I felt it was the best choice to bring you straight here."

"Hold on a second, who are you?" Spike turned to each of them in turn, his lips parting as he attempted to place their origins. "I don't think I've ever even heard of creatures like you. What are you?"

"We are the architects," the creature simply said.

"Of this place?" Spike asked, his eyes narrowing.

"Of many. We are not of this world originally, but visit from time to time. This happens to be one of those occasions."

"Wait wait, hold on, let me get this straight," Spike stammered, backing up a little. "You guys are aliens?"

"If you like that term, than yes, that is what you shall call us," the alien responded, widening his maw and clicking thrice. "That said, will you assist us?"

Spike considered the question for a moment. He had only come here to study the ruins for the sake of his mission, and now he was being asked to be a test subject. Only him, huh? Why couldn't this weird stuff ever happen to someone else, and how the heck was he meant to react to it?

The aliens were patient with him, calm and relaxed as he mulled their question over. Eventually, Spike realised what his issue with the whole thing was. "You're not gonna use whatever you find to do something bad, are you?"

"Young one, we are architects. We do not unmake."

"Yeah, suppose you've got a point there." Spike tapped his foot against the floor as his eyes travelled to the ceiling, his eyes squinting at nothing in particular as he attempted to rationalise the situation. "Are the tests simple?"

"They require nothing from you but your compliance, and you will not feel anything. Does this satisfy you?"

Spike nodded, still unsure but beginning to lean towards confidence, or at least acceptance. His feet carried him closer to the aforementioned table, and he looked back to the aliens with a tilted head. "So just sit here, right?"

"Exactly that. Now, take a deep breath and close your eyes. There will be a reward for your service later."

That was a lot of fun. Spike had been all through the towers, recording notes and learning about the ancient Saddle Arabians, and not once did it get dull! He'd wished for a little companionship at points, but the solitude of the experience had its allure too. He'd have plenty to tell Twilight about, that was for sure.

There were two things, however, he couldn't explain. One was a very faint feeling of lightheadedness that seemed to be fading, and the other was a strange device he had found in his saddlebags, one with a multitude of buttons.

He could remember finding the thing, it had been about a minute after he walked into the place, when he lit up the dark room. There it had been, laying on the floor, and he had picked it up and gone on his way without incident. It seemed strange, a piece of what he could only assume was magitechnology being all the way out here, but Spike didn't have the foreknowledge to question it. For all he was aware, magicians might have frequented the location.

Or perhaps someone dropped it during their pilgrimage. Regardless, it looked to be a cool little doohickey, and finding it had just been the cherry on top of a good day. The sun was beginning to set as Spike trudged back through the desert, slightly exhausted, but the chill that the night brought about sped him along. First, he would go to the king and show him proof of his excursion and what he had learnt, and then he would spend the next couple of days travelling back to Ponyville.

The night grew darker and more tiring as he went, and still the nearest outpost was a fair distance away. Spike twiddled his claws as he walked, keeping a brisk pace if only to outmanoeuvre the cold, but still it managed to keep up with him, sending a chill up his spine that even managed to permeate his thick scales.

He needed a distraction. Jostling his bag, he felt around inside to find a small packet of gum, something they seemed to be fond of in Saddle Arabia. He chewed on it, the taste of spearmint filling his mouth as he went, but after ten minutes it had no flavour left to give and again he was in the clutches of boredom, tiredness and cold.

He'd hoped the minty flavour would bring him to alert, but no luck there. He spat out the chewed up gum, leaving it in the sand as he continued on, hoping to find something else to occupy himself with. Eventually, his claw brushed against the remote, and he reached for it out of plain curiosity. Perhaps the thing could provide him with some amusement?

Fishing it out, he looked over its sleek, metallic surface, the many multi-coloured buttons looking back at him. He wondered if it still worked in any capacity, and what its purpose might be. It can't have been that important if somepony dropped it and never thought to go back and find it, right? Spike figured it couldn't hurt to at least press a button or two and see what it did. Hell, maybe it was a musical instrument, or something like that.

Holding the thing between his claws, Spike squinted down at the buttons, but found no markings aside from their colours. Shrugging, he pressed one at random, waiting for something to happen. He was almost disappointed when a sound didn't ring out, and was about to place it back in the bag when he heard a very loud, distinct, and clear voice emanating from the device.

TIME SKIP

Spike reached the outpost, rested, travelled all the way back to Ponydah, spoke to the king, and rested again, all in the span of a second.

He remembered everything clearly. Each of his interactions, the way the king had nodded and praised him for his keen eye and attention to detail, the moment he got his foot entrenched in sand on his way back to Ponydah, and even paying for the room he was currently staying at.

Yet, somehow, it had all happened in a second. All of the tedium of his travels had disappeared in favour of relentless, nonstop, and instantaneous action. It was crazy, it made no sense, it—

It can't have been the device. Spike remembered using that too, yet only now that time had finished zooming had he had a chance to think about it. How long had gone by? An entire day? More? The notion that such a thing could occur was astounding, Spike had never heard of magic like that, magic that sped time. Chaos magic, maybe, but definitely not unicorn magic, or even the powers that Tirek possessed.

It was only just setting in to him, but Spike was now becoming increasingly sure that he had just shot his way through time, and it was as simple as pressing a button. Talk about convenient, huh? He sat in the bed of his inn room with a small grin as he realised another thing: there were so many more buttons to press.

He was giddy and slightly fervent as he reached for his bags, tearing through them to find the small device. For a moment, he was worried he might have lost it, but soon enough he was reunited with the curious thing. He stared at it, his eyes filled with awe as he wondered just what else it might be capable of.

Spike probably should have left the remote alone. There were so many buttons to press, any of them could have caused something disasterous to happen, and he would have been the sole cause.

...but there were so many buttons to press.

Wasn't there a chance that something equally awesome could end up occurring? Spike fiddled with the thing in his claws, his scales glazing over the surface of each metallic bump as he envisioned himself pressing down and allowing fate to take its course. The first time had been so shocking, so impressive, he had to imagine that he could do something else of equal amazement—all of the power was in his hands.

Spike looked out of the window, seeing the modern metropolis that made up Ponydah from its high reaching buildings to its paved and tarmacked streets, dressed ponies walking along as the sun continued to set. Everything seemed so peaceful, yet he could very easily disrupt it with something as simple as a tense of his hand, a press of a small button.

Perhaps Spike wasn't always a creature of sense and forethought. Would he have been the same dragon if he was? his claw traced around the remote as he considered his options, multi-coloured buttons with strange engravings staring back at him. He had no clue how to decipher any of it, nor who could have written it, but he wasn't about to go and ask any of the Saddle Arabian ponies. For all he knew, this could be a dangerous magical artifact, and hoofing it over to a foreign nation hardly seemed like a good idea.

Neither did using it again, but curiosity had been known to slay the dragon on occasion. Spike thumbed the leftmost button as he felt his heart rate begin to increase, the feeling hammering at his chest from the inside as he became profuse with sweat, a slight shake to him. He pondered the possible ramifications of his next action, but his thoughts never led him anywhere concrete. How could they when the next step was such a mystery?

One press, that was it, and then he'd have an answer to his wonderment.

Wincing, Spike made his choice, squeezing on the device and watching the device flash green for a moment as it seemed to surge with lightning. It whirred with arcane brilliance, a detail lost on him previously, and once more a loud, booming voice could be heard from it.

PORTAL

There was a blinding flash in the near vicinity, and Spike forced a hand over his eyes to shield them from the sudden surge of energy. He could almost feel the power coming into being before him, but there was something about it that was completely different to the atmosphere that unicorn or even alicorn magic created. Plenty of time around Twilight told him that much.

Squinting, Spike began to lower his arm and take in the sight before him. Hanging just outside of the open window was a strange, purple field, in the centre of which he could see what looked like a street. He looked closer, hoping to discern some identifying detail, but he could barely make anything out besides the cobbled stone paths and the rolling hills in the distance. Could it have been Ponyville? Surely it would already be dark there.

Spike understood the concept of portals. One side brought you to the other, just like teleportation, but how could he be sure that this would work? Was there anything that could happen to him as he walked through it?

Wait, the portal was outside the window. What if it was only an image and he fell straight through it? He'd only fall a story, and he doubted he'd even break anything if he was prepared for the landing, but fuck would it hurt. Spike weighed his options as he stood there, eventually electing to take a single finger and push it into the opaque surface of the portal, hoping he'd still have the digit when he pulled it back out.

He did so, and when he retracted his hand, his finger was still there, and he'd been able to see nothing on the other side. Surely it was safe?

Okay, there was no guarantee whatsoever that it was safe, but he'd just risked losing a finger, might as well go all the way. Steeling himself, hoping he wouldn't fall a story and graze up his scales, Spike climbed up onto the window ledge with his bag on his side, prayed to Celestia he wouldn't get lost in transit, and jumped.

He landed on the ground in a small crunch, snow bunching up around him and causing him to shiver. Snow? That didn't seem right. Opening his eyes and picking himself up, Spike studied his surroundings in more detail. This definitely wasn't Ponyville. It took a little walking, but he managed to find a sign that hadn't been iced over, yet it was still covered by a soft blanket of snow. Reaching up and brushing it off, he saw the words Trottingham Town Square inscribed on the wood.

Now that he thought about it, it made sense. The landscape of Trottingham was meant to be much like that of Ponyville, but it was also far further north. Had he really gone that far with the press of a button? It seemed impossible, yet it filled his heart with energy.

If he was able to focus, would he end up in Ponyville next? Spike had no clue if it worked like that, but he at least knew what one of the buttons did now. The leftmost made portals, now he just needed to figure out how to focus that. Looking behind him, he saw that the last portal had vanished. That was good, he didn't want to leave an open conduit to Saddle Arabia right in the middle of the street.

"Okay Spike," he said through the biting cold, holding the device tight in his claws. "Think of Ponyville."

Images of the multi-coloured buildings, the scenery, the castle, and Sugarcube Corner all flashed in his mind as he triangulated every facet of the town he could remember with his mental GPS. He knew the landscape, he knew the sights, he even knew where it was relative to other towns, and where he was now. Continuing to channel those thoughts, his eyes firmly shut, Spike pressed down on the remote once more, knowing this was a shot in the dark.

Another whir, another voice.

PORTAL

The first thing that Spike felt was relief that he had pressed the right button. The next was the feeling of power before him as another gateway was torn open before him. He peered through it, this one easier to study, and almost immediately spotted the moonlight refracting off of the crystal castle in the distance, his home. He had done it! Now to go home.

Spike boldly stepped through, a smile on his face and not even a moment's thought spared as to the safety of the construct, he felt at peace. He found himself barely a minute's walk from his home not an instant later, and with gusto he wandered through the night, intent on disturbing Twilight's rest. Usually he would have waited, but this was so incredible, she had to see it! He knew she'd only be angry if he had waited for something as silly as 'sociable hours' first.

So it was that he rushed through the castle—barely forgetting to close the front doors behind him—and up to Twilight's room. He barely remembered to tiptoe past Starlight's bedroom, but aside from that he was too hyped to consider how much noise he was making.

The sounds of his footsteps must have carried, because Twilight had flicked on a lamp and pulled up her eyemask before Spike could even say a word to her. Her eyes slowly focused on Spike, and at first she looked as if she might crack a smile, but her happiness to see him was soon overshadowed by concern. "Spike! What are you doing back here already! You're meant to be in Saddle Arabia for Princess Celestia!"

Twilight had jumped up and out of bed with an uncanny amount of energy, her scolding senses driving her entire body. "Hold on, Twilight, there is a reason. Just let me get it out of my mouth, and—"

"Is that snow on your scales? Where the heck have you been?" Twilight's eyes flashed incredibly critical, she hardly seemed as if she was going to trust anything Spike had to say.

"The snow?" Spike said, only just noticing that a small measure of the stuff still clung to him. "Oh, that was from Trottingham."

"Trottingham?! Why were you in Trottingham?" If Twilight had looked irritated before, she was freaking incredulous now. Spike really did have a way with words.

"No no, listen, Twi! You've got it all wrong!" Spike waved his hands at her, feeling half her size despite being, well, twice her size.

Twilight sat on her haunches and looked up at him whilst still somehow managing to appear as if she was looking down at him, clearly unimpressed. "This had better be good."

Spike took a second to breathe, glad that he was actually going to get a chance to say his piece, but the waving of Twilight's hoof hurried him along. "Right, so first of all, I did go to Saddle Arabia. Look, I've even got the sand in my bag to prove it!" he said, offering his back forth for Twilight to inspect.

She peered into it, noticing a few grains on the inside. "And the snow on your scales to boot. Wanna explain to me how all of that happened?"

"So I was on this pilgrimage to these ancient spires near Ponydah, the king sent me—"

"The Towers of Stabel?" Twilight instinctively responded, her eyes lighting up. "If you're serious, you're extremely lucky you got to go, and you'd better have taken notes for me."

"Even better, notes and sketches. I'll show you those later. Anyways, while I was there, I found this strange thing..." Spike dug into his bag, producing the device once more. "Can you tell me what this is, Twilight?"

Twilight scrutinised the object in his grasp, an eyebrow raising as she glanced it over. "Can I hold it?"

"Just tell me if you recognise it for now, or if you can work anything out about it at first glance."

Twilight bit her lip, her eyes briefly crossing as she stared at it closer, pushing her head forwards. "I... I'm honestly not sure. I can't sense any magic from it, and I've never seen something like this in any book, let alone in real life. I've got no clue what it is."

"Really?" Spike blinked, looking down at the remote again. "Because this thing is definitely magical. It can do all kinds of crazy stuff! That's how I got back here so fast, actually."

"Hold on." Twilight craned her neck, pointing a hoof at the remote. "This little thing helped you to get home?"

"Yup! Just pressed a little button and bam, portal."

For a moment, Twilight was silent, but her eyes were moving over the device as if she was attempting to read it, constantly flicking back and forth. She didn't look up at Spike, and her voice was barely above a mumble. "A portal, you're serious?"

"Uh-huh! Two, in fact."

"It can't be... No magician has ever been able to make a sustainable portal between two locations, matter transference only works through teleportation. Celestia has tried it, Starswirl tried it, hell, even I've tried it. You're telling me that this thing can do it repeatedly?" Twilight's face was almost white now, whether it was fear or excitement, Spike was unsure of.

"Not only that," Spike continued, despite being a little worried that he was about to overwhelm her. "The first time I used it, I skipped time. Like, an entire day passed in about a second. At least, it did for me. Everything sped up, and I remembered going about my entire day, making my choices, but it was done like a snap of my claws."

"That's incredible... you promise you're not joking?" Twilight looked as if she might cheer or cry at any moment, her tail was thudding against the floor and her body was lightly shaking, as if this was either the best or worst news she had heard all year.

Spike had an inkling it was the former. Wordlessly, a small smirk on his lips, Spike pressed the leftmost button on the remote again, and another portal flashed up beside him, the word ringing out as he did so. Twilight rushed over to it, her horn sparking, her eyes bugged as she attempted to deduce how the hell it had came to be.

She stood there in a state of befuddlement as multiple lines of purple radiated from her horn, glazing over the portal. "I can't explain it," she said in a whisper, still staring. "I can't detect any magic from this, not even chaos magic. But it's real, isn't it, Spike? You've been through two of these..." Slowly, a grin settled on Twilight's face, and her tail flounced as she began to jump on the spot. "It's real! This is really a portal!"

"I know, it's awesome, huh?" Spike grinned, pressing the button again and allowing the portal to dissipate.

"Awesome?! This is astounding! It's spectacular! It's—" a blush settled on Twilight's cheeks as she stopped prancing on the spot. "Those are all synonyms of awesome, aren't they?" The embarrassment was short lived, as she bounded over to Spike and laid her hooves around him, her softness enveloping his abdomen as she gave him a squeeze. "Thank you so much for showing this to me, Spike."

Spike could feel her trembling around him, her breath was threatening to escape her completely with each pant as she held onto him tight, nuzzling into his belly.

"I've missed you," she finally said, her ears tickling his stomach as she pressed her head against him, softly moving her muzzle back and forth. "And this is..."

"I completely agree," Spike laughed, giving her a squeeze back, nonetheless conscientious of his strength and being sure not to harm her. "Maybe after you've had some more sleep, we can look at it some more? I'm still wide awake, because it was barely evening in Saddle Arabia, but—"

"Sleep?!" Twilight almost barked, her eyes hardening, though she soon giggled away her seriousness. "Who needs sleep?! Let's test this further! I want to see what this thing can do!"

Spike looked down at Twilight as she smushed her fuzz against him, his body coming to life in the warmth of the embrace. "Aren't you worried that it might do something, you know, bad? Shouldn't we be in a controlled environment?"

"I..." Twilight was silent for a moment, but her muzzle still curved upwards as she withdrew from the hug and looked up at Spike. "I know you're right, but can we just press one button?"

"Twilight, are you sure that's a good idea?"

"No! I'm not sure at all!" Twilight said through quickened breath, a few more laughs escaping her as her muzzle scrunched. "But I want to try it! I know that's stupid, but..." she swished her mane, her words quietening. "It's been a long time since we've done anything together, Spike. This could be fun. I know we should wait, but I'm excited, and... One button? Please?"

"I mean, I've already pressed two... I suppose one more couldn't do any harm." Spike knew the logic in that was essentially non-existent, but he couldn't help loving the way Twilight's face lit up when he said it.

"Great! Do you want to pick another?" Twilight took a few steps back and waited on Spike as he began to look over the remote again.

"Well, we know what the one on the far left does. Far right sound good to you?" Twilight nodded, and Spike fought off a gulp. Hopefully, this wouldn't be disastrous. Maybe it would be fun, maybe they'd enjoy themselves. "Here goes nothing, I guess!" Spike pushed his thumb down on the rightmost button, his muscles tensed as he waited for a result. Again, the remote lit up, this time purple, and once more it began to buzz as a voice sounded from within.

CONSCIOUSNESS EXCHANGE

Before Spike could make sense of the words, he felt a spell of dizziness overtake him, falling back against the bed and squeezing his eyes shut. Behind his closed lids he could see multiple flashes of various colours, all shocking his senses and impairing his vision. His body felt strange, and for a moment he began to worry.

Deep breaths, and surely he'd be fine. He opened his lids, looking down only to see a pair of hooves beneath him. Was Twilight holding onto him again? He tried to move his arms, only to see the hooves move with him, soft and fluffy and not attached to him in any way.

Wait, they were him. He just moved them. Spike parted his muzzle in shock even as he realised he had a muzzle, slowly flexing his new hooves and watching the way they moved, becoming accustomed to the new body. 'Consciousness exchange', that's what the device had said. Did that mean he'd somehow ended up in Twilight's body? "Twilight?" Spike called out, and it was in Twilight's voice, which was only more confusing.

He looked around the room with pony eyes, looking for her, or rather, himself. In the side of the room, behind a dresser, an off-balance drake was stumbling to all fours, looking exactly like Spike was used to seeing in a mirror except for one difference, the purple eyes. Did that mean that his green eyes were a part of Twilight right now? That was an interesting touch.

"S-Spike?" Twilight responded, and she had his usual gruffness to her tone. She tried to get up onto two feet, but she wasn't used to his weight distribution and opted to remain on all fours. "You're in my body, aren't you?"

"Yeah, I am!" Spike responded in a surprisingly girlish, excited voice. "This is so strange! Cosy, too. Who knew that being a pony felt this fluffy, even on the inside?"

"You like it, huh?" Twilight snickered, taking a couple of steps forwards. "Just be careful with my body, I'm gonna need it back at some point."

"Please, like I'd do anything stupid with it," Spike laughed, hopping up onto all fours and promptly flopping to the ground, feeling his flanks poking out as his tail swished in the air. "This... is gonna take some getting used to." The tail seemed to flick about of its own accord as he dug his hooves into the carpet, attempting to right himself as Spi—no, Twilight laughed at his expense. "Yeah, yeah, hilarious." Spike tutted, realising exactly who he sounded like, because, hey, he was her.

"N-no, it's not that." Twilight seemed to consider that for a second, tilting her head. "Well, it's kinda that, but this is so alien to me, so surreal. To think, do I actually look like that?"

"Like what?" Spike questioned, pushing himself up hind legs first and keeping his forelegs planted to the floor as his tail draped over his barrel, Twilight staring the whole while.

"Uhh, Spike? You're kinda giving me a view..."

Looking behind him and realising what Twilight was talking about, Spike attempted to cross his hind legs, only to fall flat again. "Oh, shit, I'm sorry, Twi!" A few moments of laying there, attempting to force his tail down, and another thought crossed his mind. "Hold on, why are you complaining? It's your body, you've seen it before."

"W-well, yeah, but it's you in the body, and—"

"Then why were you looking?" Spike snickered, stretching out again.

"Well, because, I... I don't know, it's just interesting to see, I guess. Odd, but kinda fascinating." Twilight seemed to stare at her own plot for a few moments, chewing on her draconic lip. "You know what's even more fascinating? Your body. It feels so hard, and powerful. How do you walk around like this without breaking things?"

"Well, are you remembering not to tense? It's pretty easy to go from relaxed to straining in my body, and—" Spike's eyes drifted downwards, not even by intent, and he noticed from his line of sight that the larger, taller dragon before him was hard in more ways than one. "Err, Twi?"

Twilight blinked hard before focussing her attention on Spike's face. "Yeah, Spike? Wow, I look pretty different with your eyes."

"Are..." Spike considered how to phrase it gently, but nothing of particular use came to mind. "Are you alright over there?"

"Perfectly fine, I think! Like I said, I'm a little tense, but—"

"You've got a hard-on," Spike deadpanned, pointing with a hoof. "My cock—err, your cock is hard as fuck."

"That's what that feeling is?" Twilight gasped, falling onto her backside to inspect the growing shaft between her legs. Without thought or consideration, Twilight ran one of her hands along it, looking up at Spike. "It aches a little, now that I focus on it. I wasn't sure where it was coming from before, but I think all the blood's pumping there. How do I make it stop?"

"Well, I mean, how do you think?" Spike really didn't want to have to spell it out for her, there were some levels of awkwardness that even he hadn't crossed with Twilight, and he wasn't planning to.

"Oh, you mean like this?" Twilight asked in an innocent tone, wrapping a claw around the head of her cock and inching her way down. She shuddered a little from the feeling, but Spike instinctively started shaking his head.

"No, no. You're doing it all wrong. You've gotta make it wet, first."

"Oh! That makes sense." For a few seconds, Twilight just sat there. "Should I spit on it, or?"

"I usually use lubricant, because my spit isn't very glossy. However..." Spike finally managed to stand, inching over towards Twilight and dipping his head until he came within inches of her cock, dribbling down a thin layer of spit and allowing her to pump it in. "That should work for you."

"Okay... am I the only one who thought that was way hotter than it should have been?"

Spike couldn't deny it, he felt the same way. Being inches away from his own cock but seeing Twilight play with it, being in Twilight's body and knowing he could dip down and suck on it, there was something incredibly strange and amazing about that sensation, and it was definitely one he was enjoying. Still, why should she have all the fun? Spike began to sway his hips as he walked away, causing his alicorn ass to lightly jiggle for Twilight as he felt his wings beginning to stiffen. "This what you had in mind for an experiment?" he purred, his tone husky and seductive.

"Mmf... I mean, i-it's definitely yielding good results," Twilight huffed, her hand moving faster up and down her cock, now lathered in spit.

Spike looked back with a smirk and a devious glint in his emerald eyes, falling onto his haunches and swishing his tail over his hind legs. "So, what about you? What's the process for your body?"

"Oh, are you feeling left out?" Twilight chuckled as she continued to pump up and down, finding a rhythm and gently cupping her balls with her other hand, being mindful of the claws. "First off, you wanna make sure you're nice and slick down there."

Spike took a hoof and moved to explore his new pussy, quickly moving it back up with a tint to his cheeks. "Looks like that's not gonna be a problem for me."

"You get excited watching me? You little narcissist," she winked, her voice a rough hum as she increased the speed of her motions. "First off, you wanna—mmh—warm up your body. I like to start by rubbing over my chest and belly and getting myself all hot and bothered, teasing myself a little..."

Spike did as instructed, taking his hooves and rubbing through the tuft of fur on his chest, reveling in the softness of his fluffy body. He pushed and kneaded his way lower and lower, his body incredibly sensitive and receptive to his touch, moving up and down and swirling in short circles around his belly as he wriggled in place, causing Twilight's cock to twitch excitedly. "And I'm the narcissist? You can't get enough of this."

"Shh..." Twilight was biting on her lip hard as she worked her shaft, stroking faster and faster. Her cock was incredibly stiff and its foreskin moved over her head in a gliding motion, keeping the entire surface moistened and sensitive. "You wanna be gentle at first, build up to it, and then try rubbing around your clit in circles and giving it a little flick every now and then. You can be a little rougher with your slit, but don't try and push a hoof in there, I'm too tight for that..."

Slowly, Spike brought a hoof to his lips to make wet, and then trailed down his stomach and towards his aching pussy. He rubbed around his hind legs at first, electricity dancing across his senses as he finally allowed himself to touch the little nub, his wings shooting out of their own accord at the burst of sensation, startling him. "H-how do you control these things?" he asked, trying to get them to fold as he gave himself another short rub.

"Honestly? I don't," Twilight admitted, her hands working in tandem to cover her entire length now, rolling up and down her shaft together and causing a small measure of precum to drip from her cock. "Ooo, your cum is hot. H-hot feels good. This feels good... Why does this feel so much better than when I do it to myself?"

"I-I was about to say the same thing," Spike said between grunts as he gave his clit a small flick, another hoof working on his belly and gradually lowering down as he pushed down to his puffy little labia, massaging it from top to bottom and letting loose a heavy and distinct pant which permeated the room and bounced off of the walls. "Shit, this feels so good..."

"I-I know, I feel exactly the same, and—oh Celestia, I think I'm close already." Twilight slowed her hands down, sucking air through her teeth as she panted, her chest heaving as she scooted closer to Spike, so close that their tails touched. "I don't wanna cum yet, I want to be lost in this for a little longer with you."

"Y-yeah, I don't think I'm going to last much longer," Spike admitted, knowing it to be true. Even when he tried to take the heat off of himself, rubbing his thighs instead of his pussy or playing with his chest, he could feel an orgasm beginning to build inside him, one that wouldn't burst without him wanting it to but that laid dormant all the same, just waiting for him to tip it over the edge.

"You can cum, Spike, it's fine. Remember, mares can have multiple orgasms in a row."

"Th-that sounds fun," Spike huffed, his hoof slippery from the juices matted against it and dripping down onto his tail as he continued to work his little cunt, his vision almost blotting as he felt Twilight's heat pushing against him from her proximity, her body—his body—rising and falling as he continued to push his hoof around his clit, switching the direction every now and then if only to shock his senses more, his pussy throbbing as his release drew closer with each passing moment.

This was something special, something that built up inside of him so heavily that it felt as if it was the only thing he had ever truly experienced, something that pushed out all thought and reasoning as all that filled his mind was primal desire, the pussy beneath his hoof, the cock being softly jerked and twisted in front of him, the erotic nature of the situation and the tail softly tapping against his as he felt himself teetering on the edge of rapture.

The pulsation of his body, the desperate trembling of his hind legs, it all came to a head as he finally shot forth a small jet of cum, dousing Twilight in it, even covering her cock in it as he began to paint his old body in his marejuice, squirting sticky strings of liquid all over her as he cried out in euphoria, the rapid and ecstatic 'yes, yes, yes!' coming from his throat only matched by repeating waves of pleasure washing over his entire body even as their product coated Twilight's.

"Oh my gosh, Spike, that's so fucking hot. if you keep covering me, I'm gonna cum too..."

That was all Spike needed to hear. Before he could let his orgasm die, he frantically flicked at his needy pussy, feeling it clench and tighten as he pushed himself to the edge once more, his eyes scrunching shut. "Fuuuck," he groaned at the top of his lungs, smashing through the barrier and releasing another spray of cum as he threw his head back, sitting back up and shaking his mane out of his eyes just in time to see Twilight's eruption.

She shot her load hard, perhaps harder than Spike had ever managed from that same cock. She forced rivulets of her hot dragon liquid out, sprinkling warm droplets over Spike's body until it felt as if he was being assaulted by the patter of raindrops, the scent of her seed in the air, the pheromones making his body stretch as if on instinct, a temptation to taste her rising inside of him until he reminded himself that that was actually his cock, not Twilight's.

Fuck it, a taste wouldn't hurt. Reaching forwards, feeling adventurous, Spike grabbed Twilight's cock and angled it towards his mouth. She was still engorged and throbbing, leaking cum as he lapped at her, sampling her taste and licking his lips, feeling the way it sizzled against his tongue and swirling it in his mouth as he became acquainted with the taste, eventually choosing to swallow. At least Twilight would have some cum in her when they switched back, and for some reason, Spike was fond of that idea.

For a long time, both of them were silent, the only sound their simultaneous pants as their orgasms faded and they sat there staring at one another, much like they had been doing the entire time. With a soft giggle and a thump, the pair of them fell to the side, looking each other in the eye. "So, did we learn anything?"

"Only that either dragons have amazing orgasms, or males have amazing orgasms. I'm going to have to make that distinction sooner or later."

"Yeah, I had a pretty good time in a mare's body myself. Think we could do this again?"

"Do you even need to ask?" Twilight laughed, giving him a poke on the belly. "I mean, of course we can do this again, no doubt about that, but I'm more curious about something else, if I'm honest."

Spike thought back to the time they had just spent together, to the events of the last day, to everything that had just unfolded in such a bizarre and wondrous fashion. "What the heck could you be more curious about than what we just did?"

"Well..." Twilight gestured behind them with a claw, and on the floor, there was the device that had allowed those last few minutes of exploration to even be possible. "Look how much fun we managed to have between ourselves with only the press of one button."

"Uh-huh, I know, that was probably the best session I've ever had, by far."

"I-it was oddly intimate, honestly," Twilight murmured, looking away. Before Spike could think much of it, she righted herself, her eyes sharp once more. "But you're getting away from the point. What I'm trying to say is, what we just did, that was possible simply because we pressed a single button on that remote."

"Yeah, I know. It's pretty astounding."

"No, you're not getting it. Look at it, Spike. How many buttons do you think there are on that thing that we don't know about?"

Spike humoured Twilight, but he already remembered the vast array of multi-coloured buttons with strange and unintelligible symbols atop them. "There's gotta be at least a hundred of them, yeah."

"That's right," Twilight smiled, reaching over and giving him a kiss on the forehead. "And am I the only one who's wondering what the rest can do?"