I'll Show them All

Twilight hearing those words come out of Spike's mouth left her happy to hear he finally wanted to talk to her, and yet she still felt a pinch of concerned wondering what he was going to say. But nevertheless the fact he asked her to talk is a step up from keeping a distance between them since they started this journey together.

“Sure, Spike.” she answered.

Spike nodded, “Follow me.” he started leading the way, as Twilight followed before calling out to the others.

“Spike and I are gonna step out for a bit!” and with that they exited the place.

The girls hearing that felt the same emotions as Twilight felt when Spike asked her to talk, “Spike's finally going to talk to Twilight.” Rarity began.

“That's good, isn't it?” Gabby asked all around.

“Yeah, but the thing is Twilight's half the reason Spike left home and where most of his resentment stems from.” Applejack explained.

“Should we be concerned?” Wallflower asked in worry.

“I am.” Fluttershy admitted.

“It'll be fine!” Pinkie smiled.

“How can you be so sure?” Fleur wondered.

“Just a gut feeling.”

“Well, we're gonna need to go on more than a gut feeling for this one.” Rainbow said, “Let's go tail them.”

Before any of them could leave, they were suddenly restrained by magic courtesy of Potion Nova, “Ah-ah, there'll be none of that.”

“What're you doing?!” Rainbow struggled.

“No matter how concerned you are for the two this is something they have to deal with alone.” Nova explained, as the girls realizing she was right relaxed and let the two former sibs have their privacy.

Spike led Twilight through the town before they entered the forest outside it. There was silence between them as they walked, until Spike stopped in the middle of the forest.

“Spike, why did you bring us all the way out here?” Twilight wondered.

“Privacy.” he answered.

“Makes sense,” Twilight admitted. There was some awkward silence between them, until Twilight broke it, “So I noticed you've made amends with Rarity, Rainbow, and the rest of the girls. You even made friends with Sunset.”

“I did.” he confirmed.

“I think it's good that you did. Seeing you and the girls growing close again makes me happy.”

“It does make me happy.” Spike confessed.

Twilight nodded, “I know we've all said this before but we're proud of you, Spike. I'm proud of you. Four years since you left and look how far you've come. If only I'd realize what you truly were capable of with proper training I wouldn't have...”

“What? Left me out on your missions?” Spike asked rhetorically with a tone, that caught her attention, “One time. It was one time you allowed me to join, and soon as an unexpected timberwolf attacked I did what you wanted and took cover out of harms way. And by just a sheer collision with the area close to where I was hiding I got a scrape, and then it's all 'Oh my God Spike's hurt someone call 911!”

Twilight cringed having realized years ago she exaggerated Spike's injury on that mission, “Seriously one measly scrape and suddenly you wanted to keep me on a short leash the rest of the mission. Then the next time you girls had a mission and I requested to join you turned me down. And it was just another delivery mission so it's not like I would've been put in real harms way. That timberwolf that time was just a fluke that I was able to avoid real damage. And your excuse of protecting me and that it was for my own good was not a real excuse for such a simple mission. And then you had to call me a nuisance that would be in the way.”

“Technically if you remember, I never actually called you a nuisance. I'd just said you would've been one had you joined us and things could've taken a bad turn.” Twilight reminded him.

“You may as well have just called me a nuisance because the feeling was still behind it!” Spike argued.

“I know I said the wrong things then. And I felt bad saying it!” Twilight argued.

“If you really felt bad then why was your apology coated with condescending?” Spike challenged.

Twilight irked back, but spoke up, “Ok, yes I could've been nicer about it, but I was just concerned about you!”

“Because I was so pathetic and powerless?!”

“Because you were my younger brother and I loved you!” Twilight shouted, “All my life I was the younger sibling in my house. Shining Armor was the oldest and he always looked out for me when I needed him. But I wanted to experience that same feeling! To have a younger sibling to look up to me, one I could care for! That's why I was over the moon when mom and dad told me we were going to adopt a new child into our family!”

“Huh?” Spike raised a brow.

“When I saw you I knew I finally got a younger sibling to care for. We did everything. We played. We studied. We laughed! We cried! And I loved every moment of it!” Spike started getting stirred hearing Twilight pour her heart out, “And when you got injured even if it was a scrape I was so terrified what if something worse happened to you?! You were my only little brother and if anything happened to you I'd never forgive myself!”

Spike not wanting Twilight to turn this on him continued to speak up, “So why didn't you just suggest training to prepare me? Shining Armor was the one to suggest it, and despite you not protesting about it, it still wasn't enough to convince you to let me join! I wasn't going to be your younger brother forever, Twilight!”

“I knew that, and it still terrified me!”

“It's life, Twilight. People grow up and change! So why was it so hard for you to accept I was trying to?”

“Because I loved being your older sister!” she argued, “I never felt such a great joy before and I was afraid if you grew up too much you'd stop seeing me that way! I know it sounds selfish but that's just how I felt!”

“Jeez for someone so book-smart, you are surprisingly dumb!” Spike retorted.

“What?”

“You think just because I was gonna grow up I wouldn't need you anymore?! You would always be my big sister! It was you who didn't want me anymore as we got older! That's right. When you met the girls you started spending more time with them as well as others without even thinking about including me! It was because of you I missed the Grand Opening of Equestria Land all because of a stupid package!”

“Spike, if there was anybody else available outside you I would've picked them, but there wasn't!”

“Even so, the damn package didn't even show. I did all that for nothing!”

“That part was out of my control, Spike. And you still got to go to Equestria Land.” Twilight reminded him.

“After waiting a whole month for all of you to be available. And when we were there you acted like such a busybody with your scheduling you made it feel like it wasn't supposed to be fun!” Spike vented.

“In a busy establishment like that it's handy to have a schedule to know the best course of which rides and food stands to get to first before they got too crowded!” Twilight argued, “I had it prepared for me and the girls too!”

“And what about that Spring Break yacht trip?” Spike questioned.

“The one hosted by The Wealthy's?”

“Yeah, you and the girls and so many others got to spend it on that yacht! Why was I excluded?!” he demanded.

“The Wealthy's said no plus ones. Believe me if there was I would've brought you with just as Applejack, Rainbow, and Rarity would've done with Apple Bloom, Scootaloo, and Sweetie Belle!”

“Or you could've just declined going. That's what I would've done!”

“Would you really?” Twilight questioned Spike who realized would he truly have done that if it was him invited on the yacht instead of Twilight? The temptation to spend Spring Break at such a location was too good and hard to pass up for anyone.

Spike shook the question off, “And don't think I forgot about Camp Everfree, the offer to help prepare your school dance, and the concert after party!”

“I know it was stupid of me about not remembering to mention your invite to camp! I felt so bad when I realized what I did! And I know I promised your assistance would be needed but acted like I didn't when everyone else showed up. But it's not like I told you to just go home! I said you could stay and be ready in case you were needed! You never know what could've come up!” Twilight explained loudly, “And yes it was stupid of me to forget about you at the after party! We all just assumed you were in another spot of the place talking with other party-goers. Every one of us was!”

“Even so, what really pisses me off now if back then Fluttershy was going to offer me a chance to adopt a pet of my own, but you stood in my way telling her I wasn't responsible enough. How did you know I wasn't?!” Spike shouted.

“Spike you were barely responsible enough to take out the garbage immediately when you were told too, so forgive me if I didn't have much confidence you could handle an actual pet!”

“You still had no place to make that decision without even discussing it with your parents!”

“It didn't even matter because we already had a pet!” Twilight reminded him.

“Owlowiscious?” Spike recalled, “He was your pet!”

“He belonged to all of us in the house, so that also made him your pet by proxy. Besides you always loved spending time with him, do you deny that?”

“Still it would've been nice to know the option of having a personal pet of my own was on the table!” he replied.

“I know I made so many mistakes with you, Spike, and I regret them all every since you left!”

“Enough talking!” Spike shouted, as he drew his sword, “You claim you know I've changed, but I remain unconvinced you truly see that.”

“Spike, what're you saying?” Twilight asked getting scared.

“You and me one-on-one. No holding back.” he explained.

“Spike, you can't honestly-”

“No excuses, Twilight. I'm not your little brother anymore, nor am I weak! So you should have no reason to hold back!” he went at Twilight attempting to hit her, but she dodged.

'Spike's serious about this,' she thought, 'I don't wanna fight him, but I don't wanna dishonor him more. Looks like I'll have to.' Twilight powered herself up.

Spike looked seeing Twilight ready herself, “Alright, Spike, if this is what you really want.”

“I do.”

“Then I accept.” she agreed.

Twilight tried to blast at Spike with magic bolts, but Spike dodged them before getting up close to her trying to swing his sword at her, but she used magic shields to repel the strikes. Spike's strikes kept getting harder and harder as he put his all into them.

“Looks like your training with Shining Armor hasn't dwindled at all. He'd be so proud!” Twilight said, while still keeping her shields up.

“More than you ever were!” Spike shouted as his sword strikes finally broke one of her magical shields.

Twilight jumped back avoiding another sword swing, “I know you're fighting with your full force, but you're relying too much on your anger towards me. You let it control you and you'll lose sight of yourself.”

“Save your wisdom for someone who cares!”

Twilight frowned, “Looks like I'm really going to have to teach you this time, Spike.” she unleashed her wings and started flying up.

“That's not gonna save you, Twilight!” Spike called, as he sheathed his sword and mounted his hoverboard floating up after her.

The two flew through the forest with Spike chasing after Twilight in hot pursuit. As they dodged trees and branches, Spike was using his magic bracelet to fire rock projectiles at Twilight. Twilight destroyed them using her magic shots. Spike frowned, as he fired ice shots at a branch above Twilight making it break off and fall right down for her.

Twilight seeing this quickly teleported out of the way much to Spike's ire. She reappeared behind him and tried to punch Spike only for the young man to spin around and catch her fist. When Twilight tried using her other fist Spike caught it too as they were grappling in the air.

“I left home to find my place in the world and I found it without you or anyone else back in the city.” Spike told her as he glared her in the eye.

“And I was happy when you said you did. If anything I hated that I wasn't able to help you find it sooner!” Twilight argued.

“You never wanted to help me!” Spike shouted, as he jumped off his hoverboard and tackled Twilight causing them both to plummet to the ground with Spike's hoverboard falling down with them.

The two ended up crashing into some bushes before rolling out of them while Spike's hoverboard hit the ground hard breaking into two. The two got up to their knees and glared at one another, as Twilight spoke up.

“Spike, when we were younger all I've ever wanted to do was help you. But as I got older I started focusing more on my own choices in life. That was selfish of me for not thinking about you as much as I did back then, but believe me when you left I was devastated. And even so I never stopped thinking about you!”

“And how?!” Spike challenged.

“We never changed your bedroom. We kept it the same with me always cleaning it so it doesn't get dusty! Especially your Power Girl comic collection!”

Spike's anger subsided a bit hearing that, but still wasn't going to give in, as his former sister continued, “And the day of your birthday every year since you left me and the girls would gather in it to celebrate you even with you not being there.”

“You-you did that?”

Twilight nodded, “In fact ever since you left a part of me hasn't been the same. I actually got in trouble at school because of others badmouthing about you!”

Spike was suddenly taken full aback, “You what?”

“That's right,” Twilight confessed, “Many times I heard the students talk about how you left. I hated hearing them bring it up, but some of them actually said stuff like you did the city a favor leaving, or even me a favor by leaving claiming you were holding me back. One day I just snapped at some of them saying stuff like that and tried to really hurt them. I was almost expelled because of that if not for Celestia understanding why I snapped. And since then it's been so hard for me to not do it again whenever I heard someone else talk smack about you behind my back.”

“You risked your own academic record just to stand up for me?” Spike asked in shock.

Twilight shed some tears, “I love you, Spike. And nothing should've been more important than our relationship. I know I can't take back any of the things that I did wrong by you, but I want to start over and be better for you. I don't care if you don't come back to Canterlot City, I just want to have you back in my life!” and with that Twilight broke down into tears.

Seeing this caused Spike's resentment towards Twilight to fade as he watched his old sister breakdown in front of him. True he was bitter and angry about the times Twilight made him feel inadequate and unwanted, but remembered that the past was in the past he could choose to move on with his life or continue holding a grudge. And especially hearing how Twilight was willing to tarnish her own academic record for the sake of his honor and name. That was truly one way for Twilight to go the distance for someone.

As it all sunk in Spike started fully letting down his guard, and a tear came out of his eye. With one move he threw himself over to the sobbing girl and threw his arms around her much to Twilight's surprise.

“Please, don't cry, Twilight! Cause it's making me cry!” Spike sobbed on her shoulder.

“Oh, Spike, I didn't mean too!” Twilight cried as she held Spike close.

“It's alright! I brought it out of you!”

“But you had every right to for how I treated you!”

“Let's not talk about the past, not anymore.” Spike suggested.

The two faced each other looking at their sad faces, “Spike.”

“Twilight.”

The two embraced, “I'm sorry.” they said together.