Dragon Blood

Chapters

The Daily Routine
The Hunt
The Errand Boy
The Warning
The Shower
Update

The Daily Routine

Spike woke up groggy and exhausted as the sun’s rays entered his window and glared into his eyes. He sat up in bed, his hands rubbing his temples as he let out a groan. He and Twilight had spent the night organizing and then reorganizing her library for what seemed like the fifth time that month. He was usually the one moving the books into their respective piles by genre or author but then at the last moment, Twilight would shake her head and say that it was no good and use her magic to move all the books that he had taken the time to carry from one end of the room to the other. It would have been faster if she had just organized them with her own magic, but Twilight had insisted that she had to study her own abilities in the time that the whole library was being taken apart, mentioning that the more time she wastes not studying, the farther behind she would become. The farther behind she would become would then lead to a number of overdramatic scenarios that included Princess Celestia banishing her to the outskirts of the Everfree forest. Spike would listen to her rant and just shake his head as he carried the books to their new pile. That would happen about every time they worked on the library. This time Spike spent most of the night running back and forth as usual, but Twilight made him do it all over again at least three more times. He literally collapsed into bed after Twilight had finally let him go to bed.

“Spike! Get up! We have to go to Rarity’s for my dress fitting!” Twilight’s nagging voice rang through his room as he stood up about to get some breakfast. Shit, I almost forgot about going to Rarity’s today. I gotta get going! thought the draconic teen, his sudden tiredness completely wiped away replaced by anticipation and excitement. Spike quickly changed his clothes and brushed his stark white teeth while trying to gel his hair into his signature spikey Mohawk. He managed to get himself ready in less than five minutes, running down the stairs to see Twilight with her bag and her hand on her hip. She rose her eyebrow slightly as he ran towards the door.

“Why can’t you get ready that fast any other morning, Spike?” Twilight asked him as she approached the door, pulling out her keys to lock the door behind them. She turned to him and gave a smirk and he instantly knew what she was going to say to him. “Oh right, it’s because of Rarity isn’t it Spike?” Twilight laughed but he knew it was all in good fun. Twilight had known about his crush for Rarity for a long time now even though he never actually directly told her anything about it. When Spike looked back on how he reacted around Rarity when he was younger, he now realized how obvious he was. What Twilight didn’t know was that his simple crush for Rarity had only grown far beyond that. He knew it was love. It was love that he knew was unrequited but he didn’t care; he loved Rarity for everything she was. She was beautiful, smart, generous and gentle. Everything that he wasn’t. Or at least everything that other people saw him. She was blessed with blood of the Unicorn, a beautiful, gentle and majestic creature such as she was. He was cursed with the blood of the Dragon, a dark, greedy and terrifying monster that he saw himself to be, along with others who saw him and could see his damn wings. His wings on his back were not like that of a Pegasus’s which were smooth and graceful and feathered. His wings were jagged, clawed and ugly and he had no way of hiding them. Everyone could see what a monster he was. He wasn’t exactly ashamed of his bloodline, but he was ashamed of what their reputation had become. Most of the people who weren’t draconic would only see bloodlust and greet in them. It made Spike sick.

“Che,” Spike replied to Twilight, his hands deep in his pockets and his head looking down towards the ground watching his feet. “Hey Twi,” he suddenly looked up at his friend, “you think Rarity would say yes to me if I asked her out?” he asked tentatively, nervous for the answer.

“Spike…” she said as she sighed a little, knowing that the question was to come up at some point in the day. “You and I both know the answer to that. She’s too old for you,” and she was right. Rarity was 22. He was 17. All the more reason that he loved her. She was a woman and he was just a kid. “You should find someone your age Spike. I know that you’ve had this crush on her for a while but I’m worried for you. Having a crush on Rarity this long could get… Unhealthy…”she ended lamely.

Spike growled a bit. He knew what she meant by unhealthy. She thought he would get possessive of Rarity. Twilight had good reason to think this though, draconic people are known for being possessive and greedy… just like a dragon. He made no comment after that and continued walking to Rarity’s, his hands shoved down into his pockets again.

They reached to doors of Rarity’s shop and Spike knocked a few times. He heard the distant sound of Rarity’s voice calling down from behind the door that she was coming, followed by quick footsteps. She opened the door and Spike smiled at what he saw. She wasn’t dressed any differently than before but he still was stunned at her beauty. She was wearing a simple white collared button down shirt with the sleeves rolled up between her wrists and elbow. She wore a simple black skirt that went just above the knees of her long legs which sported simple black flats. Spike looked at her face and continued to feel his heart race. Rarity still had her signature blue eye shadow with subtle pink lipstick. Her blue eyes were joined by her half-moon red glasses placed slightly askew upon her nose. She was holding a few papers in one hand and a tape measure in the other. She smiled brightly as she spotted Spike.

“Oh good, Twilight you’re here. And with Spike too? Come in, we have much to get done,” Rarity smiled as she beckoned them both inside. Spike’s nostrils were suddenly filled with a pleasant scent. Rarity’s scent. Lavender with the slightest hint of vanilla. It wasn’t overpowering but he could smell it clearly. He was surrounded by mannequins dressed in all sorts of different styles of clothing from casual every day wear to elegant gowns. He was amazed at how she could whip these creations up in her mind and then bring them to life.

“Alright Twilight, I’ll have you stand right there while I grab my clipboard,” Rarity said to Twilight, pointing to a spot on a sort of podium in the middle of the store. Spike simply sat and watched as Rarity used her magic to grab the clipboard from the other side of the room. He loved watching Rarity perform magic. The aura that came from her was a clear blue that seemed to sparkle just as the gems that she loved. That they both loved. He loved gems as much as she did but for different reasons. She loved them for their individual beauty and pureness. He loved them because they tasted good, but also because Rarity loved them. He watched the clipboard hover in space while surrounded by the misty blue aura that was Rarity’s magic. The tape measure was also being controlled by her magic, measuring Twilight as Rarity recorded the various numbers on her clipboard. She hummed while doing so, talking to herself. Spike noticed that she had those odd little quirks when she was concentrating and found them absolutely adorable. The way she would furrow her brow if she knew something was wrong, the way she tapped the end of her pen when she was looking for the right word to use when describing a certain fashion or stitch. He loved each one of them because they were so… Rarity.

“Hmm… Twilight, I understand you want to have a dress that is suitable for the Princess… so something formal…” Rarity asked Twilight as she continued to multi-task.

“Yes, I need it for the Gala that’s-” Twilight started to answer her question but was interrupted by a clunk followed by a loud gasp made by Rarity. Spike instantly stood up, ready to help Rarity if she were in mortal peril. She wasn’t.

“You don’t mean The Grand Galloping Gala now would you, Twilight? Is it really that time of year again?” Rarity asked, suddenly inches away from Twilight. Rarity’s magic had ceased, causing the objects that were being held by it to fall to the ground. Rarity had been to the Gala several times with Twilight along with the rest of their friends.

Twilight flinched as she realized how close her friend was. She took a step back and nodded to Rarity. “I agree Rarity, it seems time flies doesn’t it? The one you made me a few years ago for the Gala is a little too small so now I am here-“ she was cut off again by Rarity and Twilight rolled her eyes but smiled, knowing that Rarity would have this reaction when Twilight would tell her the reason for her commission.

“This changes everything about the design Twilight! You should have told me it was for the Gala,” Rarity exclaimed as she vigorously scratched out her notes about the dress and began to make new ones, muttering about different stitching and fabrics. “And we’ll need plenty of gems,” Rarity looked over to Spike who sat up a bit straighter when he heard the word ‘gem’. “That mean’s I’ll have to borrow you for a few days, Spikey-Wikey darling” Rarity gave a big smile and continued to write more ideas for Twilight’s new dress. He simply nodded and tried to hide his excitement

It was at these moments where Spike didn’t curse his Dragon blood. He could find the gems and jewels that Rarity needed for her dressmaking easily, seeing that he was a gem eating Dragon Blood. Along with her gem hunting magic and his keen sense, together they could find cart loads of gems for her. It also meant that he could spend his time with her alone, something he couldn’t do as often while being next to Twilight all the time. Spending time with Rarity was something he treasured more than those jewels. Rarity was a jewel herself in his eyes, one that he vowed to take care of as long as he could breath.

“And that should do it for today, Twilight dear. I might as well make all of the girl’s new dresses for the Gala,” Rarity said, nodding more to herself than Twilight or Spike. “Ooh it will be so much fun!” she squealed and grinned at the thought.

“Just don’t push yourself too hard, Rarity. I’ll help you out any way I can, ok?” Spike said, knowing how determined she could get with her work. She could spend a good week working on a new line of clothing while insisting that sleep would only slow her down, which only reminded him of Twilight. He understood why she pushed herself so hard; she loved making dresses. Rarity was known especially for her beautiful dresses because of the passion and hard work she put into each one. He admired her more for her unwavering determination but also was concerned with her health.

“Aww Spike darling, you’re always such a gentleman. I’ll be having your help, so you can keep an eye on me incase anything happens. I trust you, Spikey-Wikey.” Rarity glowed as she led them to the door. “Now tomorrow morning I want you to be here at 6:30 am sharp, ready to use those gem hunting skills of yours, Spike. I’ll inform you of more details when you arrive.”

“’Course, I’ll be there right on time and you can count on it, Rarity.” Spike grinned as he felt his stomach fill with butterflies.

“Thank you so much, now you two must be busy the rest of the day, right Twilight?” Rarity asked her, not that she was trying to get them to leave but she could see the growing irritation in her friend. Spike frowned slightly at the thought of leaving Rarity’s presence so soon.

“Yes in fact we do, Spike. I need you to take a few notes for the Princess about my studies about enchanted carnivorous plants and their behavior when confronted with small woodland mammals.” Twilight affirmed, reaching out to grab Spike by the wrist and pull him away from the entrance of the boutique. He turned around slightly to look back at Rarity one last time and waved and he saw her wave back enthusiastically.

After coming back to the Library and spending about an hour writing down Twilight’s notes on her plants, Spike found himself on the balcony of his room that overlooked Ponyville. He remembered coming there for the first time with Twilight, being sent there with her all the way from Canterlot by Princess Celestia. That’s when he met everyone. He got to meet Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy and most importantly, Rarity. He knew the second he laid eyes on her that she was the most beautiful creature in the universe, even more so than Princess Celestia herself (though he could never say that out loud in the presence of her most faithful student Twilight Sparkle). From that day, he had sought her out, even though at the time he was still only 11. But it was six years into the future now. He had grown up into a teen and she had grown to be a beautiful adult woman who was way out of his league. But he was more than ready to try now. Spike was determined to tell her that he wanted her to be by his side. He would do it tomorrow.
~~~

Author's Note

Hey there. This is my first time posting on this site and my first Pony fiction. I hope I didn't screw anything up.
I have written Fan Fiction before on FF.net but never on here. I decided it was time to do so.
I love this pairing and I can say that it won't go too fast. I have a good idea of how the story will go.
I'll answer any questions or comments or constructive criticism.

The Hunt

It was odd when Spike woke up the next morning to go to Rarity’s. He woke exactly three minutes before his alarm went off at 5:45. He could barely get to sleep the night before, his mind racing with all the different scenarios that could happen. He wanted to confess to her the right way. Not just like some little kid would do. He wanted her to remember it forever. He finally dragged himself out of bed and took a nice cold shower; something that the fire-breathing dragon loved. He got himself ready and was out the door with a piece of toast in between his teeth courtesy of Twilight. Spike made a mental note to thank her when he came back later that evening.

His walk to Rarity’s boutique wasn’t that far from the Library, but this cool summer morning made it feel like miles upon miles. His head buzzed with words that he wanted to say to her when telling her his true feelings. Each step felt like he had lead tied to both feet, but his stomach was filled with light fluttery butterflies. He looked up finally after what seemed to be too long for his liking and saw that Rarity was outside already, waiting for him with a smile. Man he had missed that smile, even though he saw it plenty of times yesterday.

“Morning Spike darling!” her cheerful voice reached his ears. It had no sign of tiredness or irritation of being up so early. He liked that. “I’m so glad that you agreed to come and help me out Spike,” she said as he waved back towards her, giving her a similar smile.

“Like I said Rarity, I’m always happy to help you out,” Spike chuckled as he rubbed the back of his neck. He secretly loved to be praised by her which was part of why he loved helping her out. She was always so gracious for his help and he loved helping her (and being close to her and alone).

“Oh Spike, Twilight is lucky to have you as her assistant. I wish I could have an assistant as wonderful as you are, Spikey,” Rarity’s eyes did that thing again as she said that. They sort of mist over while she looks at an imaginary image, a small smile on her face. It was adorable to Spike. Hell, everything that she did was adorable, even when she was on the brink of strangling Sweetie Belle for making a flag out of very expensive fabrics that were imported from Saddle Arabia. Even then, she was still quite adorable, even if he were on the receiving end of her rage. He could put up with it because it was Rarity.

“So Rarity,” Spike began, trying to get her out of her day dream, “what exactly do you have planned for me today?”

“Oh my, I almost forgot what you were here for!” Rarity snapped back to attention as she used her magic to haul out two rather large mining carts towards them and Spike had a pretty good idea of what he was going to be doing while they ventured to the mountain where they would begin mining. He didn’t wait for Rarity to explain what his task was and grabbed both carts and looked back towards her.

“Shall we head out then?” he asked her, a small smile gracing his lips as he started to walk forward. She simply nodded and walked next to him while they ventured out of Ponyville.

The walk towards the mountain wasn’t too bad, in fact Spike enjoyed taking morning walks. With Rarity of course. Without Rarity, he could sleep in and not care if he missed a morning walk. They talked about various things such as her business and how she had been asked to make a new line of dresses just after Twilight and he left. Spike adored the sound of her voice. It was so proper and silky with a hint of attitude laced into it. She was so lady like and beautiful that she seemed so perfect, almost too perfect to be real, but he knew that the Unicorn Blood walking next to him, laughing lightly at the jokes he made (that in reality were not very funny) was very real. And he was really happy.

He was lucky that she even talked to him. Outside of Ponyville, to those who didn’t know him, they saw a blood thirsty Dragon Blood. He used to walk down the streets of Canterlot and watch as Unicorn Blooded and Pegasus Blooded stared and whispered about him. He had grown to ignore it now, knowing that it was impossible to avoid. His wings and bright green hair and fangs gave it away. He would watch as mothers would pull their children to the other side of them when he walked by or how they would suddenly tighten their grip on their bags. Some men even had gone to farther measures, ones that put his life in danger. They would spit at the ground, hiss at him, even throw rocks or anything blunt they could find. He was healed quickly by the Princess herself when things had gotten out of hand. He had once asked the Princess why he was treated as such, why other people would stare and give him disgusting looks. She explained why; because Dragon Blooded people are thought to be savage and demonic creatures, looking only to steal and cause trouble. He wanted to prove her wrong since that day. Rarity knew of the troubles he went through when going to Canterlot. It happened often when they had gone together along with Twilight and the rest of their friends had gone for the Gala or were summoned by the Princess. It was only recent that the Princess had given Twilight a spell to conceal his wings for one day so he wouldn’t be subjected to that kind of torture while in her city. He couldn’t have thanked the Princess enough that day.

Spike could see the mountain where he knew they were going to stop while he walked down a dirt path with Rarity still briskly walking with him, telling him of her ideas for her dresses that she would be making for her friends. He listened intently, amazed at how detailed she was with each garment, describing everything down to the size of each stitch she would make.

“And of course I’ll be making a suit for you, Spike,” she said and his ears perked up. He didn’t ask for one, but that was why he loved her. She was generous and kind and the list could go on for miles.

“A suit for me? Didn’t you just make one for me a few years ago, Rarity?” he asked her, tilting his head to the side while he looked at her, still pushing both carts in front of him.

“Oh Spike, I’m almost positive that thing doesn’t fit you anymore. You’ve grown much taller since then and you’d probably rip out the seams if you tried to put it on,” Rarity waved her hand nonchalantly and laughed softly. Spike made a face mixed with a frown and a questioning look. Rarity noticed and suddenly knew what he was about to say. “Oh don’t worry Spike, it’s no trouble. I’m happy to make you another suit.”

“You don’t have to Rarity,” he said, knowing that adding another commission to her list would only stress her out. “You’re doing so much for the rest of our friends. You’re going to go insane with all of these projects that you set yourself up for.”

“Spike, you’re so sweet to think about me, but I love doing these kinds of things for my friends, even if I do spend most my nights working on them. I don’t want you to worry about me. What you need to worry about is finding me those gems.” Rarity again brushed his comment off and Spike still didn’t feel relieved. He knew that by the time all of the dresses were done, she would be a tired mess and he didn’t want to see his Rarity in such a condition. She deserved better than to be exhausted from wanting to do her friends such a service.

The pair reached their destination at the base of the mountain. He was glad that they were only going into a cave to look for gems, rather than going up to the top of the rather large mountain. They made their way to the first cave with Rarity leading him. “Damn… her butt looks perfectly shaped in that skirt… hugging her hips nicely… man what I wouldn’t give to feel her thighs and ass…” Spike thought to himself as he watched her hips sway back and forth while she walked, almost as if she were teasing him with the way her hips moved. He instantly blushed at his thought and shook his head trying to rid himself of the dirty thought. He generally was not a very perverted guy. He preferred to be a gentleman and keep such things to himself. But even then, he still didn’t like to think those kinds of things because it made him feel like a sleazy jerk who only wanted women for their bodies. But it was hard to keep those thoughts away when he was with Rarity. Not only was she beautiful, but damn right sexy. The only time he really saw her in a sexual way was in his dreams. As he grew up, he started to have more and more dreams about Rarity in ways that made him blush when he thought about them. It usually was just the two of them in a romantic setting, Rarity finally confessing her love for him and Spike would whisk her off her feet and the rest would just snowball from there. In his dreams, he would be the perfect lover that he had read about in some of Twilight’s Romance novels that he had read in his spare time. He would make her crave him and cause her to make beautiful sounds from her mouth while he made love to her. She would call his name and praise him for the way he would touch her or kiss her, and this would only drive Spike over the edge. But each time he woke up in the morning from one such dream, it only solidified his doubts about the likelihood of them ever even sharing a simple kiss. It all came back down to the two problems that he couldn’t control; his blood and his age. Spike wanted her to be his anyway though he knew this thought was selfish. He was destined to be a selfish creature in nature, and he knew that his feelings for Rarity wouldn’t change. He was a greedy and stingy Dragon Blood.

They entered the cave and continued to walk down until Rarity stopped in her tracks. She turned to him and nodded. “This should be a good spot to start Spike,” she said to him, using her magic to open her bag up and pull out a very sparkly blue notebook. It looked like something Rarity would have; everything that Rarity owned sparkled in some way. “Alright Spike, let’s get to work” Rarity stated, holding the notebook in her hands now, using the pencil to write down a few notes guided by her magic.

“What exactly are we looking for, Rarity?” he asked as he pulled on a pair of leather gloves, indicating that he was ready to get started.

“Well now, let’s see darling…” she turned a few pages back in her note book and nodded, “Ah here it is. For Twilight, I’m thinking amethyst… and…” Rarity skimmed over her notes, her brow furrowing again in the same way it always did. “For Pinkie Pie I think… yes Pink Sapphire would suit her perfectly… then Sky Blue Topaz for Rainbow… Ruby for Applejack… Fluttershy needs Aquamarine… Diamond for me and lastly…” she looked up at Spike with a smile, “Emerald for Spike.”

Spike smiled wide, making sure that he turned away from her gaze, embarrassed of his toothy smile that revealed his fangs. Green was his favorite color and he was happy that Rarity had put in some consideration for him. Spike closed his eyes and let him be consumed by his natural instinct for finding gems. He let all of the greed and possessive emotions that he held in wash over him. If it weren’t for the fact that Rarity wanted him to help her, he would never do this. He hated the way his Dragon Blood made him feel, but this was the only way to find the treasures that his own treasure requested for. He could feel in his fangs growing much longer to the point where he couldn’t keep them hidden behind his lips. He could feel his skin slowly becoming flaked with purple scales all over his body. His physical strength had increased radically, his usually lanky arms now filling out with muscle, his chest rising from his newly gained muscled body. His ears pointed and tinted a light green. Spike fought the feeling of his wings wanting to expand and take flight and he managed to stop them. Spike opened his eyes, his usually rounded pupils now slits. The transition was always an unpleasant one. It was uncomfortable and made him want to fly away, but he knew he couldn’t do that. Not when he was with Rarity. This form made him feel like the monster he was. He didn’t want Rarity to see this side of him ever. It was the evil that was inside of him manifested into the physical world. He avoided eye contact with Rarity and went straight to finding what she needed.

Spike could smell it. All of the different kinds of stones that occupied the cave. His sense of smell was heightened in this form. Each stone smelled different as they had different flavors to them. His mouth watered some as he inhaled deeply through his nose. He smelled his favorite gem first; diamond. It was like when it had just stopped raining, cool and refreshing. He followed the scent of the diamonds, keeping low to the ground as he did so. He could clearly smell them and began to remove rubble and rock from the ground, finding his haul. There lied his hoard of diamonds which he sifted through quickly. He found one that he liked which had a blue tint to it and put it into his pocket, noting that he would give it to his own gem at a later a date. Spike grabbed a handful of the gems and raced back to the mining cart to lay the stones inside and only to sniff out another precious stone that Rarity had requested for. While Spike was finding each stone for her, Rarity was writing notes about each stone he had uncovered and how many there were. She would have been overwhelmed with the amount of stones that he brought her if it weren’t for her magic.

Spike spent the day searching for bulks of jewels, stopping occasionally to ask Rarity if she needed more of anything and all she would say was more of everything. Spike was happy to oblige. He never did look at Rarity in the eye when he spoke to her. He couldn’t look at her while looking how he did.

Rarity finally told him that they were done for the day and he couldn’t have been happier. He returned to his human form before looking at Rarity. The carts were filled to the brim with different colored jewels, each one individually recorded by Rarity. He pushed them out of the cave, exhausted from digging in the cave. The sun was low in the sky while they walked back to the boutique.

“Spike, I can’t thank you enough for this, darling,” Rarity said as they walked down the dirt path, “Without you, I simply couldn’t imagine finishing all the dresses on time!”

“It’s no problem Rarity,” Spike said smiling, blushing at her compliment. He was glad that he was looking down while pushing the carts; he never liked how he looked when he blushed. It clashed with his hair and eyes, or at least that was what Rarity said when he wore red. Spike enjoyed feeling like he was important to her even if it was just digging up precious rocks.

“Oh but I have to pay you back in some way, darling. Even with this new suit I’m making you, I still have to pay you back for being so helpful,” Rarity exclaimed, becoming flustered almost instantly. Spike tried to convince her otherwise for the entirety of their walk home, but she insisted that she would pay him back in full whether he liked it or not. Secretly, he loved the idea of being paid back in full, especially when it was Rarity who owed him.

They reached the boutique just as the sun was barely over the horizon. Spike helped Rarity carry the gemstones to her workshop. Spike had smiled wide while Rarity continued her onslaught of thank yous. He stepped towards the door, waving to Rarity.

“I’ll see you tomorrow Rarity,” he smiled and was just about to close the door when he heard Rarity from behind him.

“Spike, wait!” she said, prying open the door with a smile, “I still have to pay you back for today,” Rarity pulled him into a hug which he happily accepted. He pulled back and was amazed once again by her beauty. Without really realizing what was happening, he felt a light feathery touch on his cheek and realized that Rarity had gone to her tip-toes and placed a kiss on his cheek. Spike watched dumbfounded as she pulled back with a small smile upon her lips. “Goodnight, Spikey.”

“Goodnight… Rarity” Spike replied after she had shut the door, leaving him outside in the cool night. Spike could easily argue that he was the luckiest Dragon Blood in the world at that moment.

~~~

Author's Note

Woo! Chapter 2. I can't believe how many people have seen this story. I feel so important!
Yup. If you have anything you wanna tell me, just do so. I actually have a plan for this story now. I worked by butt off to get this done. Mostly because I liked it.

The Errand Boy

Spike’s mind couldn’t have been more cluttered. His mind revolved around thoughts of Rarity and the day he spent with her. He enjoyed being with her, she made him forget about most of his troubles. He also couldn’t keep the thought of their goodbye. His face was red the entire way home and when he arrived back in the Library, Twilight was convinced that he was sick and tried to persuade him to let her use a new spell to reverse his symptoms. Spike eventually had to tell Twilight about Rarity kissing his cheek or risk being tested on by Twilight. When she realized that he was blushing because of Rarity, Twilight rolled her eyes and stormed up to her room, mumbling about how Spike was wasting her time with his love life. He knew she was only upset about not being able to test a new spell, but it still made him feel like he was starting to annoy Twilight with his feelings for Rarity.

“Spike! Are you even listening to me?” Twilight’s irritated voice snapped Spike back to reality. Spike had agreed to help her with new transformation spells. He was holding a trombone in his hands steadily. Twilight was attempting to change the trombone into a tuba, but so far was managing to turn the trombone into a giant pretzel of brass. Spike had looked down and saw that the trombone that he was holding only moments before was now coiled and knotted around his body tightly.

“Oi, Twilight! What the hell did you do?” Spike asked as he looked from his entrapped body then back to the Unicorn Blooded bookworm, his voice feigning irritation and confusion. Twilight rolled her eyes and placed her hand on her hip.

“If you were paying attention, you would have heard me yell at you to let go of the trombone, Spike!” she scolded him as she began to use her magic to uncoil the instrument from around his body. Twilight’s magic was similar to Rarity’s in the shimmering aura, however Twilight’s magic was deep magenta in color. Twilight had been practicing magic since Spike could remember by the guidance of Princess Celestia. He was around Twilight all of his life, being raised next to her and her older brother Shining Armor by their parents. In the early years of his life, he always thought he too was a Unicorn Blood that had just a little bit more trouble accessing his talent for Unicorn magic. It wasn’t until he started breathing fire when he burped after eating that he realized he wasn’t a Unicorn Blood. That had been the start of his disdain for Dragon Bloods. He soon realized that there weren’t very many Dragon Bloods in Canterlot, and the ones that he encountered where criminals. Spike realized at that point what he was; a monstrous Dragon Blood.

“How do you even manage to do this with a trombone, Twi?” he asked her, stretching his arms when the trombone had released him.

“I must have read the spell wrong or something…” Twilight muttered under her breath as she studied the condition of the brass instrument. “Well on the bright side, there’s no way that Pinkie Pie is going to play this trombone again,” she inquired, still looking at the trombone, examining the damage that she had caused.

Spike rolled his eyes as Twilight continued to rant about the properties of instrument transformation. He merely shook his head as he took the misshapen trombone into his hands, intending to return the piece of junk to Pinkie Pie. Not even Twilight’s magic dilemmas could make him stop thinking about Rarity.

Spike walked down the streets of Ponyville with the busted trombone in his hands, receiving odd looks from everyone he passed, but they realized it was only Spike carrying an instrument. Though he was used to that treatment in Canterlot, he wasn’t used to getting stared at in Ponyville. The residents of Ponyville had come to accept him for what he was” a Dragon Blood. No one was scared of him anymore. He was just the Librarian’s apprentice who came from Canterlot six years ago with Twilight Sparkle. When he had first come to Ponyville, things were much different. He couldn’t walk into a store without Twilight in fear of his greedy blood dictating him to steal and rampage the entire vicinity. He and Twilight both knew that the claim against him was false and unjust, but as the years went on, the more the people of Ponyville could see that he was not just some greedy thief. At least, that’s what they thought now. Sometimes, Spike still felt like he was a greedy Dragon Blood. He hated it. There were no good sides of being a Dragon Blood.

Spike headed down to Main Street Ponyville where he knew he could find Pinkie Pie. He walked casually down the street, occasionally getting a greeting from all of the other people he knew. He waved back with a toothy smile and continued down to Sugarcube Corner. He spotted the bakery and braced himself for whatever Pinkie Pie had to throw at him, whether it be literal or not.

“Hello? Pinkie Pie?” Spike called as he entered the shop, looking around to try and find the pink haired employee, “I’ve got your… er...” he paused, trying to find the right words, “trombone… or what used to be your trombone!”

“Coming!” Spike heard a sing-song from the stairs followed by an onslaught of stomps. He saw his curly haired friend wearing an apron with the words “SUGARCUBE CORNER” emblazoned with pink and blue letters with just a few too many sparkles on it. Her bubblegum pink hair was pulled back in a ponytail, creating a huge mess of curls behind her head. Pinkie was covered with what seemed to be a combination of flour, chocolate and pink frosting which only made Spike chuckle. It was so typical of Pinkie Pie to be coated with baking ingredients when she was working either from her hard work or a massive disaster that had just happened in the kitchen.

Pinkie Pie spotted Spike holding her instrument and she gasped, running down the stairs a bit faster, nearly tripping on the way. She jumped over the counter with ease as she charged towards Spike. He flinched slightly, waiting for impact, but it never came.

“Is this what’s left of my trombone?” Pinkie exclaimed as she took the brass instrument in her arms as she seemingly cradled it in her arms as if it were her own child.

“Yeah… Twilight’s transformation spell backfired and started to attack me,” Spike avoided Pinkie’s eyes as he rubbed the back of his neck, adding a chuckle to try and lighten the mood.

“Now Mr. Trombone, that was not a nice thing to do to Spike,” Pinkie addressed the broken trombone as if it were alive, something Spike was used to. She regularly gave certain personalities to inanimate objects. “Say you’re sorry, Mr. Trombone!” she frowned and scolded the instrument. “I’m sorry for putting you in mortal danger and possibly causing you permanent mental trauma, Spike.” Pinkie said in a deep voice, waving the trombone at Spike as if it were addressing Spike directly.

“Oh come on Pinkie,” Spike huffed as he looked at her, indicating that he didn’t want to speak to the trombone. Pinkie responded silently, sticking her bottom lip out and widening her eyes in a desperate way. Spike rolled his eyes, feeling ridiculous for talking to the trombone.

“I forgive you, Mr. Trombone,” Spike said with the slightest bit of irritation in his voice. Pinkie Pie giggled and threw the trombone over her shoulder, causing a loud bang that didn’t seem to faze her in the slightest. Spike watched with his mouth slightly open and a look of confusion across his face.

“Meh, I never really liked playing the trombone anyway,” Pinkie shrugged off her action as if nothing was wrong. “What else can I do for you, Spike?”

“I just stopped over to drop that off,” Spike responded, already heading out the door to go back to the Library.

“So you aren’t doing anything right now then, huh?” Pinkie asked him, tilting her head to the side.

“Well actually, I was about to--” he started to say until he was interrupted by Pinkie Pie suddenly shoving a large box in his hands.

“Good! I’m on an extra super-duper tight schedule and I was wondering if you could deliver this to Fluttershy? It’s a carrot cake for Angel’s birthday,” said Pinkie, grinning widely.

“Ah that makes sense. Are you not going to do this party Pinkie?” Spike asked as he set down the cake in fear of dropping it and earning an assault of cupcakes by Pinkie.

“Oh I’m decorating this party after work. I won’t have much time, but that’s exactly why I have my Party Cannon!” she declared excitedly, pulling the cannon out of nowhere, patting it proudly.

“Heh, I guess so. Well I guess I’ll see you later then, Pinkie Pie, “ Spike waved for the last time before exiting with the cake in hand.

The walk to Fluttershy’s Cottage wasn’t too far from Sugarcube, just outside of downtown Ponyville. He always enjoyed Fluttershy’s company mostly because she was one of the few who wasn’t scared of him when he first came to Ponyville. She was kind and even interested in him, being that he was the only Dragon Blood she had met. When he wasn’t with Twilight, he would usually go over to Fluttershy’s cottage to help her with the animals. Once Spike got past Fluttershy’s shyness, she opened up to him instantly. He eventually even told her his life story from beginning to present, something he hadn’t told anyone besides Twilight. Fluttershy even knew about his strong feelings about Rarity and Spike trusted Fluttershy more than he could trust most people.

“Hey Fluttershy,” Spike said as he knocked on the wooden door, setting the cake down on the ground.

“Oh hi Spike. I didn’t expect to see you today,” Fluttershy said as she opened the door just a crack to see who it was. She pulled the door wider to let him in. Her slightly curled, light pink hair that slightly covered one eye by her bangs was let down her back in between her feathery pale yellow wings. He always liked looking at her wings because they were so different than his own. At one point, he even asked if he could touch them, and she had agreed on the terms that she could touch his. The wings were plush but at the same time strong. Fluttershy had described his as strong and durable and scaly. He hadn’t really responded to that comment but had made a sound between a snort and a “hmm”.

“Pinkie Pie sent me over to drop off this cake for Angel,” he nodded as he entered the small cottage and placed the box on the dining table. He pulled up a seat and sat down, waiting for Fluttershy to come and join him.

“Oh thank you Spike,” Fluttershy smiled as she looked inside of the box to look at the cake. She pushed it aside abit and looked at Spike, observing him. “What’s wrong, Spike?”

Spike looked up and shook his head, “nothing’s wrong, Fluttershy. Why would you thing that?” Spike asked her, resting on the back of his chair, not making eye contact with her.

“I’ve known you pretty long Spike. I know when you don’t look at me directly; something is on your mind, so you might as well tell me.” Fluttershy said confidently to her friend as Spike cursed himself for having such an observant friend. He nodded and sighed slightly, this time making contact with her deep turquois eyes.

“It’s nothing really… just the same you know with Rarity and all…” his voice trailed off slightly as he saw the knowing look on Fluttershy’s face. “But this time it’s about the age difference, Fluttershy. I’m practically the same age as Sweetie Belle and I’m afraid that she’ll only see me as… a kid.” Spike added quickly to give Fluttershy some context to his woe.

Fluttershy nodded as she listened to the draconic teen, her eyes never leaving his. When he finally finished telling her what was on his mind, she closed her eyes as if to process all the information he had just given her.

“Spike,” Fluttershy started quietly, “I think you and I both know that once you turn 18, Rarity will have a hard time looking at you as just a kid. In fact, I’d be surprised if she still thinks you’re a kid, Spike,” she put her chin on her hand to rest it there.

“Fluttershy, Sweetie Belle is 16. I’m barely a year older than her,” Spike said with a low growl, “do you even think Rarity could look at me without seeing someone the same age as her sister? I’m not trying to lower my chances, but it’s just a fact, Fluttershy.”

“Spike, even if Rarity sees you as a kid, why would that little detail make a difference?” Fluttershy asked him, straitening up in her seat. Spike knew that Fluttershy was supportive of Spike and wanted the two to get together. Even before Spike had confided in her, Fluttershy had been thinking about the prospect of Spike and Rarity being a couple.

“What if I don’t want to be seen as a kid, Fluttershy?” Spike huffed heavily, grey smoke fumed from his nostrils as he did so. “I want to be an adult to her... Rarity deserves a man,” he slumped in his seat with his brow furrowed in frustration.

“Well then show her that you’re serious about being a man,” Fluttershy burst out, standing up with her hands on the table and causing her chair behind her to fall over. She blushed and quickly picked up the chair, sitting in it with her hands in her lap, her hair covering her face a bit. “You know… if you really want to…” she said quietly, a blush visible on the bit of skin that he could see on her face.

“You know Fluttershy… that’s not a bad idea,” Spike sat up and his mood suddenly perked up. Fluttershy had a point; if he could show Rarity that he wasn’t a kid, his chances would go up. He nearly squeezed the life out of Fluttershy when hugging her. She made a sort of squeaking sound before Spike realized how hard he was hugging his friend.

“Before you go, can you give this dog food to Applejack for Winona? You know… if it isn’t any trouble…” she asked quietly while indicating a large bag of dog food. Spike nodded as he picked it up with ease and with more confidence than he had before.

Spike carried the sack over his shoulder while walking to Sweet Apple Acres, noticing that the sky got just a little bit brighter. Spike smiled to himself, wondering how he could possibly do that.

Spike reached Sweet Apple Acres with the bag still in hand. He didn’t wait for invitation to go in the property because he knew that the Apple Family wouldn’t mind. He scanned the visible area for any sign of Applejack. He noticed that her older brother, Big Macintosh was out by a nearby apple tree with a wheelbarrow. Spike stopped in his tracks to watch him kick the tree with his foot, causing the apples to come down towards the ground into the wheelbarrow. Earth Bloods may not have wings or magic like Unicorn Bloods or Pegasus Bloods, but they were gifted with extraordinary physical ability. Though the Apple Family’s methods of harvesting were somewhat unconventional, kicking the tree rather than using a latter to pick each fruit off one by one was much faster. From what Spike knew, each member of the Apple family was trained in martial arts, then those skills were applied to apple picking. Spike admired the persistence that the Apple Family had when it came to finding the best way to harvest apples.

“Oi Big Mac, is Applejack here?” Spike called out to Big Mac. Big Macintosh looked up from his work and waved to Spike with a small smile, his bright orange hair messily covering his eyes a bit.

“Eeyup,” Big Macintosh said in his signature deep voice as he shook his head. Spike sighed to himself knowing that figuring out where exactly Applejack was would be difficult.

“You know where she is?” Spike asked again, walking closer to Big Macintosh to avoid yelling any more.

“Nope,” Big Macintosh said, returning to his work, kicking the tree again to get some of the remained on the branches of the trees.

“I thought I heard ya callin’ for me Spike,” a very southern voice came from behind Spike. He turned around to find his friend Applejack smiling at him. She was wearing her usual work attire which consisted of worn out jeans, a yellow and red plaid button down shirt that was rolled up past her elbows and a brown cowboy hat. Her golden hair was pulled back into a ponytail with her bangs covering her forehead at a slant. Applejack’s face and arms were streaked with mud and grass stains, something that was very typical of Applejack.

“Hey there Applejack,” Spike said as he walked the other way towards her, “Fluttershy asked me to drop off this food off for Winona.”

“Well gee, that was mighty kind of ya Spike,” Applejack smiled as she pat him on the shoulder. Just as Spike was going to brush off the comment and say he was just being helpful, he was cut short by the sound of barking a dog who knew that her food had just arrived.

Winona leaped onto Spike, catching him off guard and knocking him over. He was assaulted by Winona’s tongue lapping all over his face as he tried to get the dog off of him.

“Winona! That’s no way to treat our guests,” Applejack said as she scolded the dog. Winona barked and happily trotted over to Applejack, her tail wagging behind her. “Sorry ‘bout that Spike, Winona here doesn’t usually jump on anyone except anyone in the Apple Family,” Applejack laughed as she adjusted her hat.

“Don’t worry about it Applejack,” Spike said as he stood up, wiping off the dog slobber that came from Winona, trying to find a way to get it off of his hands. “I was just taken by surprise is all, I’m fine.”

“Like I said, it’s mighty nice of ya to drop this off for Winona here, Spike. If you need anything from me, just give me a holler,” Applejack gave Spike the thumbs up as he headed out from the farm. Spike did want to talk to Applejack for a little bit, but he figured that she was busy with work.

Spike walked down back to downtown Ponyville, his hands in his pockets and his head looking towards the ground. He didn’t really pay attention to where he was going because his mind was still focused on what Fluttershy had said to him. How could he show Rarity that he was a man instead of a kid. Different ideas popped into his head all at once, but Spike couldn’t find the best one. He sighed and looked up to the sky as if it would give him all the answers that he needed.

Spike finally got back to the Library, the sun now very high in the sky. He opened the door to the entrance to see Twilight with another person who’s back was turned to him. He coughed a bit to make Twilight look up and see him.

“Oh Spike! I’m glad you decided to show up,” Twilight said without the slightest bit of resentment, though he knew she was irritated with him.

“Er… Twilight? Who are you talking to?” Spike asked her, eyeing the person who’s back was still towards him.

“Heh, you don’t recognize me huh, Spikester,” the person said, finally turning around to face Spike.

“No way,” Spike breathed as he looked at the face of who it was that called him that name, his mouth open in shock.

Author's Note

FINALLY GOT THIS IN.
I meant to upload this faster, but I broke my finger so it's really difficult to type fast.

So not much Sparity in this chapter but more of a filler chapter. It was meant to be a bit longer, but I wanted to get it out and my finger hurts.

Cliche cliffhanger, but I was so sick of being so slow.

Flames accepted, critiques accepted.

The Warning

Spike couldn’t believe what he was seeing in front of him. He hadn’t expected to see Shining Armor at all. If anything, Spike was expecting Rainbow Dash. He got chills at the thought of Rainbow Dash coming back to Ponyville, but he shook it off. “She’s not coming back, Spike.” Spike thought again, trying not to remember the incident.

“Shining! How the hell did you find time to come to Ponyville?” Spike asked his adoptive brother, walking over towards Shining to hug him. Shining looked a lot different now that he was a prince. He married Princess Cadence about 4 years ago and the last time Spike had saw him was during the return of the Crystal Empire, only 3 years ago. His dual tinted blue hair was still the same, hanging slightly over his eyes. He was still pale as ever, unlike his sister who was much darker. Spike still wondered how that happened. Shining was in a dark navy suit with a matching tie. It was weird to see him dressed as such. Spike was used to Shining being dressed in military attire and with a stern look on his face.

“Well I’m actually here on Royal Duty, Spikester,” Shining said while embracing his little brother tightly. Spike always thought that his brother’s hugs were the best.

“Royal Duty huh,” Spike nodded slowly, looking back at a slightly annoyed Twilight with a small chuckle, “what kind of Royal duties?”

“That,” Twilight said while standing up, “is business that is not for your ears, Spike.” She made a shooing motion with her hands, clearly indicating that he was being invited to leave.

“And it’s for your ears, Twilight?” Spike snapped back at her quickly, “I may be your assistant, but I’m also your brother.” His eyes narrowed at his sister, his teeth clenching hard.

“Hey now Twily… Spike has just as much right to know as you do,” Shining Armor looked at his two siblings, his eyes furrowed a bit. Ever since childhood, Shining Armor always tended to be the peace maker in the family. He got along with everyone usually, making it easy for him to become a point of middle ground.

“He’s a 17 year old kid, Shining,” Twilight said, pointing at Spike, “he’s not ready to hear about these kinds of affairs!” Twilight’s eyes showed not only irritation but also a pleading look to Shining Armor.

“I’m not a kid, Twilight!” Spike growled, his pupils turning into slits and his fangs starting to grow. His Dragon Blood was boiling, revealing himself to be a dangerous Dragon Blooded monster. His features would appear when Spike would feel extreme emotions that were similar to a Dragon’s demeanor. “Do I have to remind you who saved the Crystal Empire from King Sombra? I have just as much place as you do, Twilight!”

“You and I both know that was only because I wasn’t able to do it myself. I’m the one who entrusted you with the Crystal Heart, Spike!” Twilight snapped back at him, her eyes seeming to have some fire to them.

“Exactly Twilight! You trusted me to save the Crystal Empire and I did so!” Spike retorted, his deep purple scales beginning to emerge around his face and his arms, his fingers elongating into sharp claws.

“You aren’t even a holder of one of the Elements of Harmony, Spike!” Twilight shouted at him, taking a step forward towards her brother, her hands now in tight fists, trying to suppress her magic. Objects around Twilight began to levitate, surrounded in Twilight’s magenta colored magic aura. Her hair too was beginning to rise behind her with her anger, her eyes flickering from a deep purple to a bright white.

“I’m as good as one!” Spike shouted over Twilight, smoke coming out of his nostrils, his teeth growing in size rapidly.

“Oi Spike!” Shining put his hand on Spike’s shoulders, instantly bringing Spike back to his senses. Shining had learned how to help Spike control his anger and greed, something Spike needed a lot when they were still in the same house.

“Fine, tell him what’s going on.” Twilight said, crossing her arms as she sat back down, not looking at either of them. Spike gazed at Twilight for a moment to try and find the reason for her not wanting him to know the affairs of the country.

“It’s about the Changelings, Spike.” Shining said, looking at Spike in the eyes, his brow creasing to make him look angry and resentful. Spike nodded and realized why this information couldn’t be put into a letter.

Four years ago is when the Changelings had invaded the very wedding that Shining Armor was to marry Princess Cadence. The Changeling Bloods were a race of dark people with the ability to morph their outer appearance to anyone that they have seen, feeding off the love of others. The Changelings native land was the land of Draconia, living next to the Dragon Bloods. The leader of the Changelings, Queen Chrysalis had attempted to take over the entire land of Equestria without the help of any other race, not even the Dragon Bloods. Queen Chrysalis had deceived all of the people of Equestria, even Shining. She had disguised herself as the bride, feeding off of the love that Shining Armor felt for Princess Cadence, slowly brainwashing Shining Armor in the process still under the impression that it was his fiancé. The Princess was locked away in a cave all alone that had the ability to suppress Cadence’s magic in order to eliminate the possibility of escape. As preparation for the wedding continued, Twilight had noticed that Cadence was nothing like the Cadence that she knew. The Cadence that was about to marry her brother was cold, rude, demanding and heartless. When Twilight had tried to expose the imposter Cadence, Queen Chrysalis sent Twilight to the very same dungeon that held the real Princess Cadence, revealing her true identity to the Unicorn Blood. Twilight soon found the real Cadence who was a mental and physical mess, but Cadence explained the nature of Queen Chrysalis and her army of Changeling Bloods to Twilight. Twilight and Cadance had managed to escape the dungeon and interrupt the wedding with Shining and the fake Cadence, revealing that Shining Armor was about to marry an imposter to the rest of the wedding guests. It was then that the Changelings attacked Canterlot Castle, causing chaos.

The Changelings had raided the Canterlot Castle grounds in huge numbers. Most of the combat was hand to hand, with the holders of the Elements leading the rest of the Canterlot Army. The difficulty in fighting the Changelings came when they would change to look like the soldiers of the Canterlot Army and even the holders of the Elements of Harmony. By then, Queen Chrysalis had trapped Princess Celestia in a cocoon, rendering the Princess incapable of using her magic to eliminate the Queen. In the end, it was the combined power of Princess Cadence and Shining Armor that had vanquished Queen Chrysalis, their love overpowering the intentions of evil that Queen Chrysalis so desired. The remaining Changelings retreated back to Draconia, leaving Canterlot a damaged war zone. They celebrated the wedding afterwards on the same day, but still the events were fresh in everyone’s minds. Security around all of Canterlot was tightened due to the severe damage that had been done.

“They’ve become active again in Draconia. We got word from King Darius that there has been an uprising in their revolts since they were defeated,” Shining said, his usually bright eyes darkening. Shining gestured to the couch, silently directing Spike to sit down. Spike sat down slowly, still watching Shining, nervousness and even some fear boiling in the pit of his stomach.

“From what I’ve gathered, there seems to be a rebel leader that has taken charge of leading the Changelings with the revolts,” Shining said to Spike, looking at him directly in the eye. “My sources have informed me that he goes under the name of Diedrich, but because of the nature of the Changelings, we don’t know what he truly looks like.”

“So why exactly did you have to come all the way out here to tell us this?” Spike asked, resting his elbows on his knees, propping his head up. He concealed his true emotions of worry quite well, knowing that it would be easier to listen to his brother rather than bury Shining with questions.

“Cadence and I both agreed that I would come to Ponyville to place a protective spell around the perimeter. We figured that Diedrich would target the holders of the Elements.” Shining looked out the window as if to look out for the rebel Changelings.

“What about… Rainbow Dash?” Spike looked at Twilight who immediately looked away from Spike. Rainbow Dash was always a touchy subject. Ever since the incident, Rainbow Dash’s name was rarely mentioned and when it was, the mood was instantly changed.

“We’ve secured the area where she is living, so the Element of Loyalty is safe.” Shining looked at his sister, seeing her eyes widen. Spike knew that whatever was coming next from Twilight would not be good.

“You know where she is?!” Twilight turned to face her brother, anger laced in her voice. Her eyes were wide but she seemed either hopeful or betrayed.

“Yes, I do. But I can’t tell you where she is as per her request. I can’t break that promise, Twily.” Shining Armor looked directly in Twilight’s eyes, knowing that not telling her the location of her friend was hurting her. Spike watched as Twilight turned her head away again to look out the window, her arms now crossed. “The point is that we want all of Equestria to be on alert, especially areas with very important people such as Ponyville, Canterlot and the Crystal Empire.”

“Shining! You know that without the Element of Loyalty, the entirety of the Elements of Harmony are powerless! How can you allow her to remain in hiding?” Twilight stepped to her older brother, her hands back into tight fists.

“Don’t you think I know that, Twilight?” Shining Armor replied cooly, causing Twilight to unclench her fists and her whole body to relax. “I know that without one of the Elements present, the Elements of Harmony are powerless.”

“But then why—“ Twilight started again, her voice rising in volume.

“I have an agreement with Rainbow Dash regarding the matter,” Shining said, his tone still cool. Just as Twilight was going to say something, he interrupted her, “an agreement that only concerns me and Rainbow Dash.”

“Shining! What if—“ Twilight’s voice changed from anger to pleading. It was just like Twilight to worry about every little detail that concerned the fate of Equestria.

“Twilight, I’m not going to continue arguing with you on the matter,” Shining huffed.

“How long are you staying, Shining?” Spike asked him, knowing that the worst of the news was over. His brother’s demeanor had softened and his voice was no longer low and serious.

“A few days at most,” Shining replied, giving a smile this time. Spike smiled back and sat back in his chair. “I would like to see everyone again while I’m here.”

“I’m sure they’d be happy to see you,” Twilight chimed in, still not looking at her brothers. She still looked irritated but her expression had softened.

“Why don’t you show me around Ponyville Spike?” Shining stood up, using his magic to summon his shoes, putting them on his feet.

“I’d be happy to,” Spike answered, heading towards the door, slipping on a pair of sandals. He didn’t bother to ask Twilight if she wanted to join them, knowing that she wasn’t in the mood. She would most likely wait for them to leave and then rummage through her books to find information on the Changelings. It was in her nature to do so.

Spike led Shining out the door of the Library, blinking rapidly at the change of lighting. The sun was down much lower in the sky, giving it a golden glow. He walked in front of his older brother silently, looking towards the ground in front of him. Spike then suddenly felt Shining’s hand on his shoulder, and he stopped to turn around and look at his brother.

“What’s bothering you, Spike?” Shining asked his little brother, his voice soft with worry, “is it what happened with Twilight?”

“How the—” Spike started to say until he saw the look on Shining Armor’s face. It was a mix of a raised eyebrow and a smile.

“I’m you’re big brother,” Shining said, chuckling, “I know you better than you think.” Spike smiled as well, seeing that his brother was right; Shining Armor did know him very well.

“No,” Spike answered, shaking his head, sighing, “definitely not Twilight.” Spike debated over whether or not he should mention his love for Rarity to his older brother. It was already a difficult enough subject with Twilight, so it could either go really well with Shining, or it could go really bad.

“Spike, you can tell me anything. You should know this by now, little brother,” Shinning said in a reassuring voice, gripping Spike’s shoulder a little bit tighter.

“You gotta promise me you’re not going to get angry,” Spike pleaded with his brother.

“Spike, I can tell you that I will do whatever is in my power to not get angry with you,” Shinning looked into Spike’s eyes.

Spike nodded and prepared himself to tell his brother of what was on his mind. “You know Rarity? I really like—no, I love her. It started just as a crush, you know? Then I knew that it wasn’t just a crush… it was love.” Spike said, his eyes closed as he explained his love for Rarity. “But everyone says that she’s too old for me, and they’re right. Rarity could never see me as a man, but I know I’m the one that has to protect her. I have to be the one to love her!”

Shining Armor merely listened to his brother, nodding now and again. He waited until Spike was finished before speaking.

“Spike,” Shining started, “do you know how I met Cadence?” Shining asked Spike, truly interested if he already knew his story of meeting the Princess.

“Actually…” Spike furrowed his brow, putting his hand on his chin and looked up at his brother. “I don’t know.”

“She was my Magic tutor,” Shining said, smiling to himself at was a distant memory, “I met her when I was 15, and she was 21 at the time.” Shining laughed as he saw the look of shock on Spike’s face, “I had a huge crush on her, and as time went on I learned that she liked me back. Problem was that I was only 16. She told me that she didn’t care that I was younger, but only what my heart held for her. After she told me that, we began to see each other in secret until I was 18, then she told the Princess that she had a very new interest in me as a man and I ‘officially’ courted her, and the rest is history.” Shining finished his story, a smile still on his face.

“Cadence is that much older than you?!” Spike burst out, still processing the story in his head. It was all new information that he would have never expected from his older brother. Shining Armor always seemed to be the kind of guy that wouldn’t sought after an older woman. It then dawned on Spike that Cadence had gone for such a young guy.

“She’s not that much older!” Shining said with a laugh, punching Spike’s shoulder, starting to walk forward again with Spike following right behind him. “So my point is Spike, Rarity may be much older than you, but I doubt that could stop her from seeing you as something more than a little kid.”

Spike merely nodded in response, his head looking down at the ground. His mind raced full of possibilities. Hearing his brother’s story gave Spike hope and confidence, though he didn’t want to show it. He grinned to himself, thinking now that he really did have a chance with Rarity, something that he desired more than anything. Spike lifted up his head, subtly puffing out his chest with pride. He didn’t hear his brother chuckle to himself as he watched Spike suddenly pick himself up.

“I would like to mention something else to you Spike,” Shining Armor added after a few minutes of silence between them.

“Hmm?” Spike looked up at his brother, greeted with a similar furrowed brow.

“I want you to be on high alert when you and the rest of the holders are at the Gala,” Shining said, not letting Spike interrupt him when he mentioned the Gala, “I know you’re going Spike, and I’m trusting you to look after the girls while they’re having fun. I’m sure that the Changelings are going to use the Gala to their advantage and plan to interrupt it.”

“Have you told Twilight?” Spike asked, confused. For Shining Armor not to tell his sister of something as serious as that was puzzling to Spike.

“No, I don’t intend to. I want them to have fun at the Gala, rather than feel like guards. However if the time comes to defend Canterlot, they will have their Elements on them. I did tell Twilight to always have her Element of Harmony on hand from now on, and I’ll tell the rest of the holders.” Shining nodded slowly, his hand now on his chin as if in deep thought. Spike snapped his fingers in front of Shining’s face, trying to get him back to the present.

“So basically… you’re telling me to expect the worse during the Gala, but not tell the girls?” Spike tried to confirm, the situation still very confusing to him. He didn’t dare question his brother, seeing that he was a prince now and probably knew what he was doing.

“In a nutshell, yes,” Shining smiled and nodded, his demeanor changing alarmingly fast again. Spike wasn’t used to this new Shining Armor but he could still see his older brother past the prince.

“And you’re sure that you don’t want me to tell any of the girls about it?” Spike asked again, trying to make sense of what his brother just asked him to do.

“That’s exactly it. They will have their Elements on hand of course in case of emergency but I don’t want them to be expecting the worse during the Gala,” Shining confirmed Spike’s question, though to Spike, the plan that Shining Armor had in mind was rather odd.

“I don’t know what you’re planning,” Spike said as he turned his head to the sky, putting his hands into his pockets, “but I sure do hope you know what you’re doing, Shinning.”

“Spike,” Shinning said, also looking up at the sky with his brother, “I wouldn’t be doing this if I didn’t know what I was doing.”

“Hey Shining,” Spike looked back down to make eye contact with his brother, a small smile coming to his lips.

“Yeah Spike?” Shining smiled with his brother.

“It’s really good to see you,” Spike grinned, showing his very white teeth to his brother.

Shining chuckled at Spike and slapped his hand on his brother’s back, then rubbed it in a friendly manor. “It’s really good to see you too, Spikester,”

Author's Note

Hey there!
Sorry about the really late update. I have a really bad hand injury that make's it really hard to type and write and a load of other things.
With my hand injury, I got really depressed about other stuff and the ideas for this fic were just on hold until I could come to terms with it.
Anyway, I think that the next update will be a lot quicker because I actually know how it's going to play out. My hand will prevent me from typing as fast as I want to, but it will be out sooner than this one.

Flames and Critiques accepted.

The Shower

It had been a week since Shining Armor had left Ponyville after placing a protective barrier around the border. From what Spike had gathered, his brother had a good time visiting the small town and catching up with the holders of the Elements of Harmony. What Spike hadn’t expected was the long evening strolls that his brother took every night. Shining preferred to be alone during those walks and wouldn’t return for hours. Spike hadn’t bothered to ask, feeling it was out of place for him to do so. And just as he arrived to Ponyville, Shining Armor left just as suddenly, leaving a note on his bed thanking Twilight and Spike for letting him stay in the Library. When Spike gave the note to twilight, she ripped it in two and stormed out of the room. Spike knew that she loved her brother, but something about Twilight’s behavior still worried Spike. As always however, he brushed it aside.

Spike’s mind had been on The Grand Galloping Gala since Shining left. Spike had stopped over at Rarity’s boutique every so often to see if she ever needed help with her dressmaking. Of course, she would refuse to accept his help in a very polite manner, saying that it was no trouble and that it was her job to take on the task on her own. Though Spike thought this response was absolutely adorable and very much like Rarity, he still would insist on helping her until it got to the point where he would forcibly help Rarity while she was still insisting on being able to finish on her own. After a few hours of assisting Rarity, Spike would get a very generous kiss on the cheek and a thank you from Rarity, leaving him dumbfounded each time. He loved feeling like he was important to Rarity, enough so that she would even touch him. It made his ego expand for the rest of the day and Spike would end up spending another few hours just walking around Ponyville, thinking about the upcoming Gala and how he would get at least one dance with the Unicorn Blood. Most of his ideas consisted of him sweeping her off her feet and ending the night with a kiss, or stealing her away from drunks trying to take advantage of her. In the back of his mind, he knew that those scenarios were almost impossible to happen, but he justified the overly romantic thoughts with the fact that he was a teen in love. To say that Spike was looking forward to the Gala would be an understatement. He was counting down the hours to the Gala almost obsessively, carrying a check list of things he needed to do at the Gala for Rarity to notice him. Though he wouldn’t admit it, he felt like Twilight with her obsession with scheduling.

“Twilight! How long is the train ride to Canterlot again?” Spike shouted from his bedroom, his bed covered in papers with different diagrams and plans all for the Gala. His hair hadn’t been styled into his usual spikey way, causing it to flop over his eyes. He was hunched over, scribbling on a crumpled piece of parchment that already had too much in on it.

“Five hours, you know that!” Twilight’s annoyed voice reached his ears as he scribbled down a few more notes.

“Yeah, yeah,” Spike waved his free hand at the door in a shooing motion, ignoring Twilight’s comment. He didn’t hear Twilight stomping up the stairs to his room, and jumped when she slammed open the door, causing much of his papers to fly into the air only to float down gently as Twilight looked at her younger brother, hunched over a mess of paper and ink.

“Spike, you need to get out of the house,” Twilight sighed as she crossed her arms while looking at her younger brother.

“No, you need to get outa the house, Twilight,” Spike spat back immediately, his tone between mocking and sass. He scoffed at Twilight and continued to scramble around for a different piece of paper.

“You look like you’ve been attacked by ink,” Twilight said as she looked at the mess. “And you smell fucking terrible. When was the last time you bathed?”

“Doesn’t matter,” Spike looked back down and found the paper that he was so desperately searching for. “I don’t need to bathe,”

“Spike! You need a shower! Just look at your-self,” Twilight said as she used her magic to summon a mirror in front of his face.

Spike hated to admit it, but Twilight was right. His skin was greasy and blotches of black in covered his cheeks and forehead. His hair was oily not only from not bathing but from the ink that had caught in his bright green hair, now causing it to be a muddy algae color. There were bags under his eyes that were blood shot. Spike sighed as he slowly stood up and nodded to Twilight, silently grabbing a towel from his closet.

Spike dragged himself to the shower and closed the door behind him, turning on the water. He removed his clothing and saw that they too were covered in ink and dirt. He stepped into the shower and sighed in relief as the water hit his skin. He stood there for a moment to soak in the feeling of having all of the grime being washed off of him. It was then that it occurred to him what exactly he had been doing for the past week. He was sitting in his room for a week without food or human contact, writing down his plans to make Rarity dance with him during the Gala. It was stalker-like and all around just creepy. Spike groaned at himself, knowing exactly why he did such a thing. His Dragon Blood was slowly influencing him, creating an obsession with Rarity. Sure he loved her and he desired for her to be his, but his actions for the past week were just like a dragon. He shook his head, trying to rid himself of the obsessive thoughts he had of the beautiful Unicorn Blood.

Spike turned the heat up and took a bottle of shampoo and poured a large amount onto his hand, slathering the bulk of it in his hair, then along his body. He began to rub the soap into his scalp and through his hair, feeling the ink wash out with the shampoo. As he felt that his hair was clean of ink, he moved to his arms and chest. The hot water still felt relaxing on his skin as he cleaned himself off. He continued down from his chest down, rubbing his legs and finally getting mostly clean. That was when those thoughts started to flood his mind.

Spike was inside of the boutique, the windows showing him that it was night time, candles inside of the room dimly illuminating the room with a warm golden glow. Rarity was sitting in front of him on a chair, her body still just as beautiful. She was dressed in her usual outfit, a white collared shirt and a black skirt. Her red glasses were gone, her beautiful blue eyes glittering brightly. Her mouth was parted slightly, her red full lips just as kissable. Then her voice reached his ears like a song.

“Spike…” her voice was breathless and soft like a gentle breeze. Spike noticed that her body was moving up and down slowly, her breathing very heavy.

“Yeah?” Spike answered, his own voice just as low. His heart was pounding in his throat as he watched Rarity shift in her own seat. He didn’t know what to expect from her at this point. He’d waited for a moment like this and even planned what he would do, but now that he was presented with it, all Spike could do was look at her stupidly.

“I…” she closed her eyes as her bottom lip was being bitten by her teeth cutely. She licked her lip softly and then began again, “I love you.”

His heart could have stopped right then. Rarity loved him too! If it wouldn’t have ruined the mood, Spike could have jumped up and down like a little kid opening the latest and greatest toy on Hearths Warming Day. Everything that he dreamed of was happening in front of him at that very moment. Spike could see the future in the small amount of time he had to respond to her sudden confession. They were on a date at a romantic restaurant, him getting down on one knee and her squealing with delight at the sight of a gorgeous diamond ring. The wedding would be held in Canterlot and he would give her everything she wanted. Then he saw little green and purple haired children running around the house while Spike tried to chase them down while Rarity was yelling at them for disrupting her creative flow. Then they were old, holding hands with each other. Spike shook his head, realizing that he had been sitting there silently for a rather long time. He gulped and merely nodded at Rarity and closed his eyes only for a moment.

Spike felt Rarity’s fragile arms around his neck and then her breath over his lips. He was waiting for her to move, not wanting to make her uncomfortable. Spike finally felt her soft lips upon his for a moment. It was everything he imagined and so much more. They were feathery and light, but also like pillows on his lips. Just as he was enjoying the kiss, something occurred to him and he pulled away from her.
“Why did you stop,” Rarity asked immediately, looking into his eyes with worry in her voice.

“Is this what you want, Rare?” Spike asked her slowly, “I’m just a kid…”

Rarity silenced him with her lips on his, this time she seemed a bit bolder in the kiss, moving her lips slightly with his. He followed her lead and softly kissed her back. He closed his eyes, still amazed that she was even in front of him. They continued to kiss for what seemed like hours until Rarity pulled back. His eyes opened to see her soft lips smile lightly. Her hand had found its way to his cheek, cupping it gently. Her eyes were still just as brilliant as they were before, but much closer. He could see that her eyes were starting to water as if she were going to cry.

“Spike darling, you’re a man. A handsome man that I’ve fallen in love with,” she smiled at him, wiping her eyes carefully as not to ruin her makeup. “Oh goodness, look at me. Crying over something so silly, I must look like a mess,” she smiled and laughed lightly as she gave a small sniffle.

“You’re beautiful Rarity,” Spike noted as he gave her a smile, “you always have been.”

“Oh Spike…” she smiled back as she leaned forward again to place her lips on his. Rarity wrapped her hands around his neck again as she kissed him, his own arms wrapping around her waist.

Spike pulled her closer to him by the waist, causing her to awkwardly fall on top of him. Their lips broke at that moment and Rarity let out a small giggle. He watched as Rarity straightened herself out, her knees know straddling him while he sat on the chair. He loved seeing her this close to him, holding him and touching him. With his hands still at her waist, he pulled her closer to his body as their lips met once again. The kiss was slow at first, just like the first one he shared with her. As Rarity began to relax her body against his own, Spike pulled her bottom lip between his as he massaged her lips with his own. They moved fluidly with one another, only caressing one another’s lips in the kiss. Spike craved more from her, but he forced himself to hold back as they kissed.

Spike felt her tongue on his upper lip, seemingly begging to enter his mouth. He hadn’t exactly kissed anyone before so he decided to let her be in control. He opened his mouth a bit to allow her to do so. It wasn’t what he had expected a tongue to feel like. It was almost velvet against his mouth as he felt Rarity explore his mouth, touching his tongue now and again. Not wanting to wait any longer, he too pushed his tongue lightly into her mouth, licking her bottom lip while doing so. She let out a small sound which Spike could best describe as a moan. He repeated the action, causing her to make the same noise but louder and a bit longer. The moan and the intense kissing finally caught up to him, causing him to pull away from Rarity again, heaving.

“Is this what you want, Rarity?” Spike breathed as he attempted to catch his breath. He looked up to meet her eyes once again.

Rarity nodded in response slowly, “Yes darling, it’s what I’ve always wanted,” and with the last words barely off her tongue, Spike’s lips came crashing back down onto hers. She reacted with just as much vigor, her hands now in his bright green hair.

Gone was the romantic feeling in the air, but now pure lust. Their kissing grew heated quickly, their tongues desperately battling for dominance inside the other’s mouth. Rarity continued to make those soft moans as Spike took his hands and explored her body, the curves of her hips and breasts and so many other places that he dreamed of caressing.

‘Damn this is going fast…’ Spike thought in his head as his mind was beginning to become a blur. He found himself on top of Rarity, both of their clothing off. His lips were earnestly on her beautifully rounded breasts, then on her stomach. His lips finally led to him to taste what he had craved for so long.

Another blur and he was roughly shoving his cock into her, causing her to make the softest of moans. The friction against his member was hot and raw as he grunted, watching Rarity under him, her breasts quickly bouncing up and down with each powerful thrust. Spike heard her voice call out in ecstasy for him to continue with everything he had. Spike growled and in another blur he could feel himself close to his release. Rarity’s screams grew in his ears, encouraging his roughness, his climax seemed closer than before. His eyes locked on hers and in that moment, he felt himself release—

“Fuck!” Spike muttered in a hushed toned as he let himself release onto the wall of the shower, the water falling fast and hard on his head as he shivered with the aftermath. His chest was heaving up and down, his face flushed brightly as the realization of his actions hit. Of course that wasn’t the first time his imaginations lead him to masturbate, but this time it had been the most intense. Though no one was there to witness what he had just done, he was embarrassed.

Spike finished up his shower and dried himself off, making sure that all the evidence of his climax had been washed away. He wrapped his towel around his waist, stepping out of the shower in a billow of steam. He walked towards his bedroom, noticing the sound of voices coming from his room. His eyes narrowed and he approached his bedroom door quietly. He knew those voices all too well.

“And I had said, ‘Darling, you have to be kidding me! You and I both know that you are not the reason!’ and Applejack refused to let me convince her otherwise,” Rarity’s voice found its way to Spike’s ears. His first reaction was utter happiness, hearing her voice. Then confusion.

“And you’re sure Applejack is convinced that she’s the sole reason for…” Twilight’s voice was heard next, but then a low whisper, “Rainbow Dash leaving?”

“What the hell are you doing in my room?” Spike suddenly slammed open the door, seeing Rarity laying on his bed, Twilight on the floor. They were both in the middle of using their magic, papers and books and other miscellaneous items suspended in the air by both magenta and azure aura. Spike looked around and saw his room was much cleaner and organized.

There was a moment were all three of them looked at each other, shock in Twilight’s and Rarity’s eyes. Spike’s cheeks flared as he looked down and saw that he was still only wearing his towel.

“Oh my goodness Spike!” Rarity yelped and sat up, her hands around her knees as if she had been caught doing something indecent.

“Spike! Clothes!” Twilight yelled at him as she used her magic to throw a pillow into his face, followed by a set of clothing. Spike grunted and slammed the door, quickly putting on his clothing.

“We were cleaning your room,” Twilight’s exasperated voice came from the inside of his room, a scowl on Spike’s face as he rolled his eyes. “Considering that you were basically living in a pig’s pen,” Twilight noted with what sounded like a suppressed snort.

“What’d you need Rarity for then?” Spike muttered as he pulled up his shorts, “I’d thought you could handle a something like this with your magic, Twi.” Spike managed to get his head through the shirt that his sister had tossed to him. Spike opened the door, seeing that Rarity was still sitting on his bed.

“I happened to stop over looking for you actually,” Rarity huffed at Spike’s mutter, “Twilight invited me in and I offered to help with cleaning.”

“Oh? What’d you need me for?” Spike asked her, looking into her eyes where he immediately got lost.

“Your suit is finished!” Rarity squealed, “all I need is for you to try it on at the Boutique.”

“And I’m assuming now is a good time for you, Rarity?” Spike asked her, his heart swelling.

“Perfect time actually,” Rarity nodded as she hopped up from the bed to head out the bedroom door.
Spike smiled and nodded as he headed out of his bedroom, his heart fluttering excitedly. He was just about to follow Rarity to her boutique until he heard Twilight call his name. He turned around and looked at her.

“You’re lucky that I had already hid the worst of your mess before she came here,” she said with a hint of annoyance, one of her eyebrow’s raised. He didn’t have to ask her what she meant because he knew that the papers that had until very recently been scattered on the floor would have extreme consequences if Rarity were to see.

“Thanks,” Spike mumbled to his sister with a quick nod and a small smile. He quickly stomped his way downstairs, and out the door in a flash as he ran to catch up with Rarity.

Author's Note

I'm sorta alive!
Yeah, so this was going to be a full out clop with tons of stuff but I got sick of putting it off and made Spike turn into a hormone driven teen. Yup.
Still having a hard time typing which sucks, so chapters will be out slowly. I haven't lost interest in this! I just am very busy.
Also!
Possible upcoming chapter with the epic reveal of the missing Rainbow Dash! Or maybe not so epic. Either way, a chapter dedicated to her could find its way soon. And then some other kinda important parts.
Updating will be sorta slow, but if I get reviews and comments and things, it may encourage me to write a little faster. You never know.

Update

I will not finish this story ever unless someone pays me to finish it. I have the entire plot ready, just no motivation.