Good bye, Spike (Main story)

In the distance Spike could hear now Cadence's hoof steps on the hard stone of the castle's floor.
The alicorn was catching up to him, but the little dragon didn't give up on running away from her.
Actually had he been left by himself, he would have by now ran out of strength to continue. The muscles of his legs ached; they were not built for long races. His lungs seemed to burn hotter than the fire he stored in his belly.

"Spike, wait!!"

He heard her call his name again and he picked up his pace despite the continuous pain his body was going through with each step.

"Spike!"

Turning on each corner the dragon hoped to lose his pursuer. For a few moments we didn't hear Cadence's steps and was about to stop, take a breather, but the distinctive fluttering of wings let him know Cadence was now seriously chasing after him. It was impossible to run faster than she could fly, he knew this for a fact. Looking around the hall and evaluating all his options Spike saw no other way out than through an open window that led to the castle's gardens. He jumped with all his might and saw himself float several meters above the ground before falling rapidly into a thorn bush.

While caught in the thorns Spike heard Cadence zoom down the corridor and sighed in relief. He had managed to get away...for now.
He thanked the heaves for his hard dragon scales while he attempted to free himself from the sharp thorn vines that had wrapped themselves around his body. Anypony else in his situation would have hurt himself severely

With a somewhat fast pace Spike walked towards the heart of the garden, the maze. In there he knew Cadence wouldn't be able to find him as easily and it'd give him time to solve the puzzle in his head. It wasn't long before he had disappeared beyond the high walls of the garden maze without any idea of where to go or what to do beyond walking and thinking.

"What happened in there?
Why did I do that? Why did I say those words? Why did I kiss her hoof! Ugh!"

Spike reduced his speed and began to walk calmly, giving his body some time to rest and regain some breath. The muscles of his legs were sore and his mouth dry. A glass of water was something he could not say no to at the time.

"Agh...It doesn't make any sense."

Spike walked and walked, turning on each corner he found with his arms crossed and a frown on his face.

The night was cold and a soft breeze wandered through the corridors of the maze accompanied by an eerie whistle and the rustle of the leaves. Above, in the dark and cloudy sky a pale yellowish moon began to shine through the grey clouds twisting the shadows of numerous statues placed randomly inside the maze. The moonlight reflected on their surface made them look almost alive, as if the figure carved could stop posing and leave for a walk.

"Why...?
why...?
what's going on with me?"

Spike continued walking ignoring the nightmarish illusions cast by the pale orb in the sky.
It seemed as if he'd have continued walking until the end of the globe in that condition, but he was made to stop by one of the statues.
He hit it hard and fell to the ground backwards with his face up. As he tried to stand up again he was able to detail with more clarity the figure carved from the stone.
It was a tall, female alicorn judging by her slim figure and curves. She stood on her hind legs with her wings spread to their limits and her eyes looking down as if fixiated on the little dragon. Her mane was short cut and her cutie mark was a constellation Spike knew well, the Ursa major.
Like all the statues in the garden the original carved expression of the statue was neutral, but the lightning and shadows caused by the moonlight made it look as if her eyes were half open, like the ones of somepony that has just been abruptly waken up from their sleep.

Spike was afraid. So afraid it made him forget about his memory loss and the embarrassing incident with Cadence. The statue looked as if it was about to say something to the little intruder that bumped against her.

"Sagard, is that you?"

Spike's heart stopped. Did he just hear her talk? Did the statue just talk to him?
It can't be, it just can't be!
Suddenly everything was pitch black. The maze, the statue, even the moon was gone. All he could see was an orange light coming from below a door, drawing a golden line on the floor.

"Sagard?"

The queen's words came from behind the sturdy wooden doors of her room. From within the darkness the hallway was submerged the dragon spoke once more.

"As you requested I have come, Queen Elicia.".

The queen remained silent for a moment.

"Come in."

The doors opened and the warm atmosphere of the queen's chambers spread across the corridor and around the little dragon. He stepped inside the room and the doors closed behind him and once more the corridor succumbed to the darkness.

The queen's room was a place he had never been into during his whole life as Sagard. The room was spacious with a balcony filled with white snow and a fireplace in which a gentle flame rested. On the walls hung paintings of the queen of varying sizes and shapes depicting her with family members or friends.
While the dragon looked around Queen Elicia moved towards her bed and made herself comfortable.

"How did the princesses take the news?"

She spoke slowly and in a disinterested manner, something unusual on her, especially when it was about their daughters and granddaughter.

"The princesses have locked themselves in their chambers and didn't cross a single word with me after you told them."

-"I see. As expected they took the news rather badly. But well, that's nothing to be surprised about. No pony ever has been able to handle those news well."

"I'd assume so my Queen."

The dragon hurt inside as he remembered the news the queen gave him and the princesses that afternoon. I'd be a lie if he only were worried about the princesses. He was also still afraid of it, of ceasing to be.

"And? How are you feeling?"

The young dragon bowed deeply in order to avoid the queen's eyes. He did not want to let her see the fear that invaded him.

-"Me, my Queen? Well...I must admit I am afraid. Not even once crossed through this Sagard's mind that everything would end like this. You could say I feel uneasy."

"Uneasy? About what?"

-"My Queen...have I been of any help for the princesses? Have I truly eased their pain when hurt or sad?
I...This Sagard thinks that it is not so. How could it be when I leave them behind so shamelessly?"

The dragon trembled while keeping his head down. He felt warm tears form at the sides of his eyes while he waited for the princess' answer.

"Fool."
-"What?"
"If that is what is really bothering you, you are nothing more than a fool. Raise your head."

The dragon hesitated before following that order.

"Raise you head!"

The queen's voice was like thunder. So loud it the dragon could still sense the vibrations of the air inside his chest seconds afterwards. Slowly he did as told and saw the princess' horn glow in a golden aura. She was levitating a big painting right in front of him. The dragon had not seen it never before.

"Do you know the story behind this painting?"

The dragon straightened himself up and looked carefully at the painting. The painting showed tents close to a forest. Armored ponies walked in the background with axes, spears and swords in their mouths. In the foreground there was a couple of alicorns and a small, purple figure with a helmet that covered his face. The first alicorn was small, grey with golden eyes and a dark mane short cut. The other one was the late queen Victoria. Both wore the same kind of heavy armor with a slight difference: Queen Victoria had her helmet on, while the filly had a crown of small white flowers on top of her head. It was obvious to him then that the panting was one of an old war in which Queen Elicia stood next to her mother in the battlefield. But before the dragon could start voicing his answer, the Queen Spoke again.

"There was once a little princess that knew nothing of the world besides war. She fought because she saw others fight. Her mother fought, her father fought, her brothers and sisters fought, even her kin fought. It was the most natural thing to do for her in those violent times.
But she didn't know what she was fighting for, she just fought.
On the day this panting was being finished a young squire suggested the princess she should wear a crown of her favorite flowers instead of the royal crown..."

The dragon, while hearing the story, felt weird...as if he knew the story himself despite the fact that he had never heard of it.

"...The princess didn't like the idea. She wanted to look like her mother and wear the royal crown. It was a symbol of power, of authority. It was the proof of her skill as a warrior and as a leader, one that could battle forever without ever getting tired or surrendering.
It was then that the young squire said something to the princess that she had never thought about."

-"...Princess, I thought we fought hoping a day would come when we didn't have to fight anymore..."

The interruption was brief. His words were only those. The Queen smiled and levitated the painting back into its rightful place.

"Oh, so you do remember."

He looked at the Queen confused. He couldn't understand the meaning of her words.

"At the time you said you wanted me to wear the crown of flowers to let the others now that I'd put an end to all the fighting.
And that when everything was over you'd make me a crown of flowers exactly like the one in the painting.
Unfortunately by the end of that war you weren't around anymore."

-"My Queen, excuse me...I...I don't understand."

"I looked forward to that crown, I looked forward to the day when we wouldn't fight anymore.
Had you not say those words back then I guess I'd still be fighting in some way or another.
That's why I can't forgive you for doubting yourself. Despite being just for such a short time with them I know you've helped them a lot like you helped me."

The queen had never seen him in the way she was doing it right now. She seemed to look at something beyond himself. The dragon was speechless, he didn't know how to reply to her words.

Queen Elicia then lifted her bed sheets and cleared a space right next to her in bed. Once more the dragon didn't know how to
react. The Queen's magic enveloped him and placed right next to her.

"That's why it's alright to go to sleep now. They are already old enough to go on without your help.
Rest. When you wake up again you'll see with your own eyes what great princesses they have become."

The dragon felt his body sink delicately in the feather mattress while the soft the blankets wrapped themselves around his and the queen's figures.

Never before had he been that close to his queen. It surely was somewhat embarrassing, but at the same time it felt like they had slept on the same bed hundreds of times before.

"Somehow, my queen...I feel nostalgic while being here with you. As if I had dreamed about it countless times before, but had forgotten completely about it the morning afterwards.
Elicia...
I am really sorry about the flower crown."

-"Do not worry about it. You'll make me one next time we meet, Ailbert."

"Surely, Elicia. I won't forget next time."

They both fell soundly asleep. He dreamed of days past when they were together, of days when he was with her mother princess Victoria, and he even dreamed of days before that when he had other names, when he was with other princesses. All of this while the world around him disappeared in a blurry mess of colors.

**********************

"Are you sure about this, Cadence?"

Princess Celestia, princess Luna and Princess Cadence walked towards the castle's armory in their search for Spike. The princess of love, unable to find the little dragon anywhere had to resort to the other two princesses help.

"Yes, Aunt Celestia. I am completely sure about it."

-"Please sister, I think this is all a misunderstanding. Surely it is just a short confusion on Cadence's part caused by the alcohol. There is no way something like that could have happened."

From the two Luna had been the most skeptical since the beginning, despite being the first Cadence trusted with the news.

"Aunt Luna, believe me, were it just an hallucination caused by drinking I'd not be as worried. But this is actually a big deal.
It has already begun. Who knows how long Spike's got left?"

The moon princess just rolled her eyes and continued walking next to her sister.

"This is a great miscalculation on my behalf. I believed it'd take a couple of years more before the new princess had to go through this."

Celestia seemed depressed. She could estimate very well the impact the news would have on Twilight when she told her. She had gone through it as well when she was young.

"I don't see why the two of you worry so much about it.
We all went through this one day without preparation or warning, mother just told us and we coped with it as best as we could and we ended up fine. I don't see why Princess Sparkle cannot do the same."

The tone of voice Luna used when talking about the matter made Cadence angry. She talked as if the whole ordeal had been of no importance whatsoever in her life, just a short lived bad memory she easily had pushed to the back of her head, when Cadence actually remembered very well how much her aunt Luna changed when the morning afterwards he was nowhere to be seen.

"I say we let this whole matter be for tonight and we tell princess Sparkle in the morning. As intelligent and understanding as she has proven to be so far, I am sure she will care less about this than both of you think."

-"It is already clear that we are going to tell Twilight about this tomorrow Luna, but we should not quit on finding Spike. His condition is highly unstable. I don't think he'd be able to cope with this situation on his own."

"How could he not, sister? He has done this at least a hundred times. I'm sure that for him this is nothing different than changing his dirty clothes."

-Slap!-

It happened in less than a second and took both sisters by surprise. It was a clean hit on the moon princess' cheek. The skin was turning red and swelling already. Cadence just kept her hoof in the air. Her expression showed no regret for hitting her younger aunt.
With her head still turned to the side Luna just looked at her niece with disbelief. Had she really just slapped her?
Celestia kept quiet and so did the whole castle. It was Cadence who spoke first after the aggression.

"You know it isn't like that. He isn't like that at all. We are all special to him."

For a moment Celestia felt the hairs on her back stand. She saw violence in her sister's eyes, violence brought by Cadence's comment. Luna looked like she was ready to jump at her niece's throat in an attempt to prove her wrong. But luckily she didn't.

"Special you say? Hmph. Cadence, you should stop believing in fairy tales. It'll be the end of you someday."

Luna walked away whilst rubbing her swollen cheek leaving the two of them behind.

"I have to go already. Do as you see fit. I won't get involved in this matter."

The alicorn was spreading her wings, preparing to take flight, when one of her guards appeared around the corner running towards them.

"Princess, we've found him!
He is in the...princess are you hurt?"

As expected of one of Luna's guards he cared first for the well being of his princess. Luna gestured with her free hoof that he should not worry about it and give his report to the other two princesses, then she shot up into the night sky.

The guard could notice something odd about her and the other princesses, but remained quiet. It was best not to get involved when such great powers had their differences.

"Please, continue."

-"Yes, your highness. Spike was found in the garden's maze. He is still there. It looks like he is sleeping in the in the arms of one of the garden's statues."

"One of the statues, you say?"
"Which one?"

-"It is the statue of the late queen, Elicia."

Cadence was the first one to take off the ground, flying straight ahead towards the maze. She knew exactly where her grandmother's statue was located, at the very center of the maze.

To spot the place to land took only a couple of seconds, the area was brimming with guards of golden and black armors, all of them surrounded the little transgressor that had dared to use one of the statues of the royal family as his bed.

When Cadence and Celestia landed they could feel a certain hostility in the air around them. The guards knew who Spike was, but they still couldn't let such an act slide with a smile. All the armored stallions and mares wanted to at least reprehend him for such rudeness.
Still, as ordered by the princesses no pony had gone close to him.

"Back to your posts."

Celestia gave the order just once. All the guards left without making a single protest, despite whatever emotion they might had at the time inside them, leaving the three of them there, Celestia, Cadence and a sleeping Spike.

"Spike! Oh, thank goodness he's still alright."

Cadence placed a hoof over her chest in relief and approached the sleeping dragon with a gentle smile.

"I don't know what I'd have done if we had found his egg instead. I don't know what I'd have told Twilight."

-"Still...I don't think there's that much time left, Cadence."

Cadence turned back and saw her aunt's face. Celestia was looking upwards, at the statue's head. She looked sad and yet somewhat happy, as if she couldn't decided how to feel about what she was seeing.

Queen Elicia had been given once more a crown. It was a delicate crown made of adam's neddles, the late queen's favorite flower, something only those who had lived with her could know. There was another thing also, but that was surely a coincidence. It was surely due to the way the moonlight fell on the statue's face, but somehow...the statue seemed to be smiling at the sleeping dragon.