Ch. 1 - Kindling
"Are you sure?" Spike asked hesitantly.
"Eeyup" Big Mac answered in his deep southern drawl, before replying "As far as A'h know, being quiet and polite seems to work for me... And A'hm sure you've noticed how much they like me."
"That's true; you do seem kind of popular with the mares around Ponyville... Thanks Big Mac, I'll give it a try!" Spike replied cheerfully, before heading off towards town to test Big Macintosh's method.
"Hmm.... He's gonna get himself hurt chasing after 'em like this..." Big Mac mused as he resumed working on the defunct tractor.
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"Hi Spike! What'cha up to?" Rainbow Dash queried as she peered at him, lounging on a particularly comfy cloud near the outskirts of town.
"Hello RD... Nothing important" Spike briefly replied.
"If it's not important, why are you doing it? This is the perfect time to do nothing if you aren't busy..." Dash replied, eyebrow raised at his quick answer.
With a shrug, Spike continued trudging towards Ponyville.
"Hmm... That was weird... Maybe I should follow him and see what he's doing..." Dash mused before deciding, "Nah, this cloud is too comfy... I feel like taking a nap anyways..."
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"Hi Spike!!" Pinkie Pie greeted him, bouncing around behind the counter at Sugarcube Corner, filling orders with a face-splitting grin. "What can I get ya?
"The usual, I'm gonna head to Rarity's soon..." He answered, dodging a cupcake she tossed to a customer who had forgotten to pick it up.
"Aren't you helping out Twilight in the library today?" She said as she prepared pastries for the young drake.
"No" he replied, not mincing words.
Tilting her head a little at his short reply, she handed him the bag of treats before bouncing off to get an English muffin for a brown earth stallion who waited anxiously nearby.
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Knocking gently on the door of the Carousel Boutique, Spike waited for somepony to answer the door. After a few minutes of this, he peered through the window and discovered the familiar sight of Rarity completely absorbed in a new project. With a sigh he let himself in and walked up to her, briefly ducking as fabric, tape measures and scissors flew overhead.
"I brought you some food" He announced, as he set the bag down next to her.
With a barely audible mumble of thanks she floated an éclair from the bag and nibbled on it, not bothering to break pace as she toiled away, a half-finished, light brown dress on a mannequin nearby.
As Spike silently glanced about the room, he noticed how much more attention she must have been giving this dress than her usual projects, there were dozens of piles comprised of drawings, half finished sketches, and crumpled up papers scattered about the room. Leaning back against a wall he noted the easel that currently occupied her tunnel vision was constantly being drawn on and erased with several pencils that she held in her aura. He was about to make a suggestion, before remembering Big Mac's advice and remaining quiet.
Finally noticing the almost awkward silence that permeated the room, now that it had a secondary and silent occupant, Rarity asked over her shoulder, "What do you think, Spikey? How does this look?" before floating the easel towards him, displaying its neatly drawn content.
"..." He tilted his head and picked up a pencil, before making changes to the ruffles of the dress and the embroidery pattern she had sketched on the piece.
"What did you...." Her voice trailed off as she gazed at the elegant design he had added to the paper. "Spike, this is beautiful... Where did you learn how to..." she stammered, before stopping with a determined look in her eye and turning back to the mannequin. Tearing off the fabric that had previously occupied it, she started anew with the refined sketch.
Spike sat down nearby and watched as she worked on the redesigned dress with a fierce passion, fabric flying about the room madly as she did so.
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With a satisfied sigh Rarity wiped away a drop of sweat from her brow and munched on her last éclair, the rest having been gently devoured during the duress of her work on her newest masterpiece of fabric. "That looks gorgeous... Where did you learn to make designs like that?" She prompted him as she finally sat down for the first time in a few hours.
"I picked up a few things helping you out around here" He answered with a small blush.
Raising her eyebrow, she replied in a skeptic voice "Darling, that's not just a few things... That's better than almost all of the designs my customers come in with... And I've had customers from Prance before."
Remembering his plan to avoid speaking much, he simply answered her praise with a gracious smile and a nod.
"I really appreciate your help today... You're an excellent helper, I can see why Twilight keeps you around," She praised with a brilliant smile. This simple compliment from the mare he adored made him feel even warmer inside, which seemed illogical because of the fire in his chest; But Spike brushed the stray thought aside and returned her smile, lost in her beautiful eyes. So lost that he almost missed her saying "I'm just glad I got this done so soon, I might have been put behind schedule on the dresses for the Gala."
This snapped Spike back to reality as he remembered why he had come here today, he had been working up the courage to ask if he could take Rarity to the Gala as his date for weeks now...
"I'm really looking forward to the Gala this year; I'm hoping it turns out better than last year, however..." Rarity adopted a discouraged expression as she informed him, "I really don't have that much of a reason to go this year... After what happened with Blueblood..." She trailed off, a sad expression adorning her face like harlequin makeup that had been smeared onto her normally beautiful smile.
It was at this moment that Spike's moment finally came, presented to him on a silver platter by her dismayed mood. "Well... Bluebood doesn't have to be the reason you go... I... I could take you to the Gala..." He suggested with a hopeful smile.
Upon hearing these words Rarity realized something she had not realized before; Spike might be small for a dragon, but she hadn't stopped to consider his actual age before... She had attended his birthday party but a few months before that Pinkie had thrown to celebrate Spike turning... Oh my... Pinkie had thrown a special party this year because... He had turned eighteen... With that thought she blinked and realized she had simply been staring at him for quite some time now, and he looked rather discouraged by how long she had taken to think. "I.. I would love to go with you Spike, it'd be nice to have a date to the Gala," she replied with a gentle smile.
"........" Spike's jaw hung open upon hearing his request permitted by the mare of his dreams, and not only that... His mind scrambled to find any coherent response to the fact that she had called it a date. She... said this was a.... She must have just meant I was to accompany her! But she called it a date... No, she said "It'd be nice to have A date to the Gala" She probably meant that you were just going with her, probably nothing will come of it. Spike sat there dumbfounded, trying to convince himself of what she had meant; Unintentionally spacing out and leaving himself staring at Rarity like an idiot for the longest time.
"Spike?"
Spike snapped out of his reverie with the speed of Dash pulling out of a dive. "Y..yes, Rarity?" Idiot! He berated himself, You'll scare her off if you just sit there staring at her like a weirdo…
"Are you alright?" She prodded, worried by his apparent lack of response to her acceptance of his offer.
Biting his lip to avoid blurting out anything that might worry her further, he simply nodded and gave a small smile. His actions seemed off to Rarity, but she dismissed the thought and gave a bright smile.
"I suppose I should start on that suit now…" Rarity sighed, "I really wish they hadn't come in so close to the Gala to have them made… Who would wear a red bowtie with a good suit anyway? That stallion has no sense of fashion…"
Author's Note
Okay.... One chapter down... The next one will be the reactions in more detail, and some general stuff... Leave Comments, Suggestions, and Advice please! Seriously... I think I need them... -curls up on his side-
-TKM
"YOU WHAT?!" Twilight yelled, grabbing Spike's face and staring at him as if he had just announced that he had rented a serial killer a room for the week."I've told you three times already Twi… “Spike replied, albeit with a bemused expression, " I asked Rarity to the Grand Galloping Gala and she said yes… "
She continued staring at him for a minute, a horrified expression plastered across her face; which was for once not buried in an old tome of some sort… "THE GRAND GALLOPING GALA IS IN A WEEK! HOW DO YOU EXPECT TO BE PREPARED FOR A DATE IN ONLY A WEEK?!" She yelled as she scrambled to and fro in the library, grabbing every book on dating she could find, before unceremoniously dumping a small mountain of books on him, and frantically rushing off in search of paper, quills, and ink.
Managing to excavate his way from the mound of prose, manners, and romance, he announced rather simply; "I've been planning this for a couple weeks…"
Twilight stopped dead in her tracks at those words, and whirled to face him; before shaking him and yelling "THEN WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL ME YOU WERE PLANNING THIS?! I COULD HAVE HELPED YOU BE READY FOR THIS MONTHS AGO!"
With a roll of his eyes, he replied "I would have consulted you, but I just felt I didn't need you breathing down my neck for three months…"
With an aggravated cry, she resumed scrambling about, pulling chalkboards into the center of the room; presumably to make diagrams of the exact movements he should make over the next seven days, as per her usual insanity whenever somepony else makes plans, and she is left out of the loop…
Spike simply reclined on his rather uncomfortable throne of hardbacks sporting mushy content, watching with a mildly exasperated expression adorning his draconic muzzle
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Finally managing to escape Twi's whirlwind of notes, books and cheesy lines for impressing Rarity; Spike stumbled out the front door, before plastering himself to the wall as Pinkie bounced by, inches from flattening him into a rather scaly welcome mat as she hopped around madly on two pairs of what appeared to be spring loaded horseshoes. No longer startled by her sudden appearance, and the near- landing on his aching cranium he breathed a sigh of relief and uttered in a barely audible tone, "Man that was close… It would suck if something happened to me before my date…"
At these words, Pinkie froze mid-bounce and dropped back down in front of Spike with a excited expression, and began rapidly assaulting his ears with questions at a speed that would make machine guns flinch, "OHMY GOSHYOUHAVEADATE?!WHEREAREYOUGOINGONYOURDATE?!WHOISIT,SOMEPONYIKNOW?WELL,IPRETTYMUCHKNOWEVERYPONYAROUNDHEREANYWAYS,RIGHTGUMMY?!" Her inherently emotionless and hair-nomming companion blinked from his perch on her fluffy, hot pink mane, non-plussed as always; playing the perfect opposite to her overly energetic demeanor. With a happy laugh she stated with a goofy expression; "Of course I was going to ask where he was taking her Gummy, that's kinda obvious, silly…
Spike watched silently as Pinkie conversed with her distinctly quiet companion; momentarily forgetting her obsession over the identity of Spike's date, and the location they would be headed for on their date… Realizing what a good opportunity he had, he had snapped out of it and snuck away slowly.
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Walking out of Ponyville, Spike spotted a small cloud hanging low against the otherwise clear backdrop of a mid-day sky, and decided to see if Rainbow Dash was on it. Sure enough, lying there without a care in the world was the chromatic cloud wrangler herself, taking a mid-day nap.
"Hey Dash, you mind if I ask you something?”Spike called up to her, shuffling his feet nervously.
She poked her head over the edge of the cloud, before responding, "Sure, what is it? Wanna know about my new tricks, death-defying stunts, and general awesomeness? “She responded with a cocky grin.
"Actually, I just need some advice…You see, I finally got to ask Rarity out on a date, and she said yes… but… I don't know what I should do next…" He informed her anxiously.
"Pfft, that's easy… You finally got her, now you just have to keep impressing her… I'd start with a dive, and then a few laps around the place…"
After a few minutes of her detailing flight patterns to him, he realized she wasn't going to be of any help, and excused himself quietly.
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Walking back into town, Spike stopped by a familiar sight, Applejack's cart set up, and business as usual being conducted with a smile, and an exchange of bits. He walked up to the stand, and greeted Aj, "Hey Aj, I was wondering if you could give me some advice about something… I finally managed to work up the nerve to ask Rarity out, and she said yes…"
"Well shoot, what's the problem then? It sounds like you've got what you wanted, right?" She replied, with puzzlement scrawled across her ironically orange face.
"I don't know what to do now that I've got her to say yes… We're going to be attending the Gala together… and I'm nervous… I don't want to embarrass myself…" He replied nervously.
"Oh… I'm not that good with them frou-frou manners and the like, but I guess just be polite and such," She responded with a shrug.
Gaining nothing further to work with, Spike headed out of town again with a sigh.
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"Ahh… much better…" Spike sighed, reclining in a quiet, billowing field outside Ponyville, the wind whistling gently through the stalks of grass surrounding him. Looking around happily, he discovered a small group of animals nearby, centered around Fluttershy; who as always was attempting to appease them. Walking slowly and enjoying the simple peace of the field, he made his way to Fluttershy.
"There we go, eat up little ones… Be sure to eat all your food so you can grow up to be big and strong, like your auntie Fluttershy..." She encouraged them as they picked over their food.
"Hey Fluttershy..." at Spike's sudden appearance, Fluttershy squeaked and hid behind some of the larger animals she had been prompting to eat, earning her a disdainful look from Angel in the process.
Her pink mane poked out from behind the animals, and she looked out to see Spike standing there with an amused expression. With a relived sigh she whispered, "Oh, it's just you Spike… You startled me, I wasn't expecting you… Not that I mind you being here of course, I just meant that you scared me… um, not that you're scary because you’re a dragon, it's just that…"
With a small smile Spike interrupted her, "It's fine Flutters, I was just passing through and thought I'd stop by and talk awhile…" He scratched the back of his head with an awkward smile, "Besides, I need a little help… You see, I finally got a date with Rarity… I've been trying to get advice from the others, but… Twilight's too logical, Pinkie's just Pinkie, Rainbow's advice is useless for someone without wings, and AJ doesn't have any advice I didn't already know… So I thought I'd ask you for some tips…"
"Oh my… um… I'm sorry Spike, but I've been on even less dates than you have… I don't know the slightest thing about dating… I'm sorry…" She replied with a dejected expression.
"Oh… That's alright Fluttershy... I guess I could always ask the princess… See you later..." He replied as he walked back towards town.
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Dear Princess Celestia,
I am worried; I finally managed to work up the courage to ask the mare of my dreams to accompany me to the Grand Galloping Gala next week. My problem however, is that I am nervous about how to act during this date. I worry that if I mess up during such an important event, I might not have another chance to ask her again. I might not even have the chance to talk to her again. Please Princess, is there any advice you can give me?
Sincerely,
Spike
Author's Note
Happy Thanksgiving, or whatever else you celebrate... also, I rarely get a chance to get on this site which is why this took so long to appear... and that view counter! Wow! Thanks to everyone who's viewed, faved, submitted to groups, and up-voted this! I need all the help I can get... fortunately; the third chapter is in the works... hopefully I don't take four months this time, huh? -laughs- anyways, comments and suggestions appreciated and suggested... Oh, and as I like putting stuff in here; feel free to comment with good Dr. Whooves jokes and/or references! If I like it enough, I'll find a way to work it into one of the chapters and credit you in the author’s box...
