The Return of Spike

The Return of Spike

Two ponies made their way up a dusty mountain path, the heat of the afternoon sun beating down on them. Their destination was a cave cut into the side of the mountain about three hundred yards away. Although the object of their intended journey lay in sight, both the unicorn male and alicorn female still felt like it was miles away. The effects of being outside at this time of the day were wearing them down, and it felt like they had been trudging along for an eternity. All around them the wind whipped up the side of the mountain causing poor visibility at the best of times. It also caused havoc with the two ponies. Dust blew into their coats and the wind was constantly pushing their manes over their eyes. Adding to the misery, when they pushed their manes away from their eyes dirt and debris would continue to assault them. It was turning out to be more difficult of a journey than they had anticipated, but it was a journey they had to make. They were paying a visit to a dear friend and revered figure in their kingdom.

“Shining…” the alicorn female called out to her companion. “Could we at least put up a magical shield to protect ourselves from this wind?”

“We need to conserve our magical energy, Cadence!” he replied shouting over the gusts. “You can at least fly back to the Crystal Empire if need be…I have to teleport! Besides, we’re almost there!”

The stallion pointed to the cave which was coming even closer into their view. It was under a large rocky outcropping with boulders on either side of its entrance. Hopefully these rocks would shield the two ponies from the elements. Few words were spoken between them as they made the final steps to get them up to the mouth of the cave. As they made their final approach, mercifully, the two large boulders at the entrance provided some much needed shelter. Both stopped to breath in air that wasn’t filled with dirt particles. After shaking the dust and out of his mane, Shining Armor gave his wife Princess Cadence an amused look.

“I have to say honey…” he began, “you do the ‘windswept look’ very well.”

Cadence shot him back an annoyed expression. “Speak for yourself...Shining,” The alicorn used her magic to fix her mane, which had been blown about in all directions. “This will take at least two hours at the castle salon to fix properly…maybe even more time than it took to fix my mane for the Equestria Games selection ceremony.”

“You sound like a certain Element of Generosity back in Ponyville my dear,” Shining chuckled as Cadence fought with her mane.

“I doubt even Applejack and Rainbow Dash would be willing to take the abuse we just took,” Cadence stated flatly. “Why did he have to pick this Celestia forsaken rock out on the fringes of the Crystal Empire? We could have let him sleep in the vault where we keep the jewels…”

“You’re the one who told him that he had to hibernate for a period of time,” Shining replied. “After all, it was his choice to make where he would sleep and hoard for the time required for him to grow into an adult. His instincts caused him to want to come here.”

Shining gestured with his hoof. “He probably felt that this place was the peace and quiet he needed…away from the Empire and his ‘adoring’ fans…”

“That makes some sense…” Cadence paused to consider. “So, it’s been three months exactly. How do we wake him up?”

“I’m already ahead of you guys,” a low rumbling voice came from inside the cave. A second later a large purple head with green tufts on both sides, and green spikes running down the long neck that was attached to it, popped out of the cave entrance. Both ponies stepped back in surprise at this sudden appearance. The head smiled as it caught sight of the two visitors.

“Hi Shining…hi Cadence!” the purple head exclaimed. Its voice was deep, but it also held the wonderment of a child.

“Hello Spike…” Cadence began nervously.

“You look…great…” Shining Armor added not really sure how to address the dragon head that was staring at him.

“Thanks, you guys!” Spike smiled at the two ponies. “But you haven’t seen anything yet. Wait until I pull my whole body out!”

“Were you awake all this time listening to us?” Cadence inquired.

“I’ve been awake for about an hour now,” Spike responded. “I had a dream that that you were both coming to see me today. Then when I woke up, I saw you walking up the path towards my cave. I think you made a mistake on your teleportation Shining...you could have teleported much closer and saved yourselves a walk.”

“I agree wholeheartedly,” Cadence shot a smug look at her husband. “But he thought that a leisurely stroll in a windstorm on a hot afternoon would be invigorating!”

“Oh well…” Spike let a chuckle out of his throat that felt like a small earthquake. “I guess it runs in the family...”

“Hey!” Shining Armor shot back. “I am totally not like my sister!”

“Relax…” Spike assured him. “I’m just messing with you. I haven’t seen you in 3 months remember?”

Spike turned back to Cadence. “Did you know that I woke up a month early?”

“Yes, we noticed that the plume of smoke you made when you were sleeping wasn’t there one day. We used the telescope to figure out what was happening. That’s when we saw you flying around the mountain ranges.”

“Yeah…” Spike reminisced. “I thought that my hibernation was up, but when I got outside I realized that the sun was at the wrong angle and that I still had more time to sleep. Since I was up anyway, I figured that I should get outside to stretch and test a few things.”

“You looked like you were having a good time out there,” Shining Armor offered.

“I was…” Spike beamed. “It was a bit awkward figuring out how to fly at first, but I think I got the hang of it. Being an adult dragon is actually really fun!”

Spike looked at both ponies in his presence. “Do you want to see what my whole body looks like up close?”

Both ponies looked at each other, and then nodded at Spike.

“Ok…” he stated dramatically. “Stand back!”

Shining Armor and Cadence both felt the ground shake beneath them as Spike pulled his full body out of his temporary home for the last few months. Once his body was fully exposed to the outside, he was truly a sight to behold. He was almost as large as when he rampaged through Ponyville on his birthday a few years ago. His scales shone in the sunlight, and they contrasted perfectly with the sharp green spikes that ran down his back to his elongated tail. In the middle of his back were two large symmetrical wings that when spread wide provided him with a massive wingspan. The transformation from baby, only a few months ago, to adult was awe inspiring if not a bit terrifying. Most ponies would have been scared to death by the dragon in front of them, but the rulers of the Crystal Empire knew that the beast in front of them would not do them or any pony harm. Because of his upbringing in Ponyville, and because he knew how to control his impulses better, he was more likely to be a gentle giant at this size than a rampaging beast.

Spike, meanwhile, stood tall at the edge of the cliff that his cave opened onto and surveyed the landscape around him.

“Hmm…” he mused. “There’s a nice light breeze out today.”

Shining and Cadence both looked at each other incredulously, and then back at Spike. It did make sense that the windstorm that they fought through to get to him wouldn’t feel like much to a fully grown dragon.

“Wow, Spike,” Shining called up to him. “I thought you were pretty big when you went through your first growth spurt back at the Empire…”

“I guess we won’t be wrestling any time soon huh?” Spike replied jokingly.

“Only if I’m allowed to have the entire Crystal Empire Corps and the Wonderbolts on my side…” the stallion shot back with a smile. Both of them laughed at his joke.

“Fooling around aside…” Cadence interjected. “Did you try to shrink yourself while you were out here Spike?”

“I did…” the dragon replied. I tried right before I went back to sleep. I was able to become smaller using that technique you taught me, but it appears sleeping made me grow huge again. I don't get it though...why do you need me to grow smaller?"

"So Shining can teleport all of us back to the Crystal Empire Spike," Cadence replied.

"Really?" Spike inquired. "Why not let me just fly everyone back. With my size I figure I could have you back within a couple hours. It's the least I do since you were willing to come all the way out here to see me..."

"He has a point there dear..." Shining agreed. "We could always just climb on his back and have him fly us to the Crystal Empire."

"True..." Cadence considered. "But imagine for a second what that would look like, the two rulers of the Crystal Empire flying in on a giant dragon. Never mind the how we'd look. Spike was a baby when he first came to the Empire, and even though he grew a little bit in the first few months, most of our subjects still think of him as small and harmless. We don't want to scare our people to death...have you forgotten the trauma they suffered under King Sombra?"

"You definitely have a point there Cadence," Spike nodded his head in agreement. "I don't want to wreck my reputation in a place where I'm loved."

"Exactly..." Cadence confirmed. "If you shrink down to a manageable size, Shining can teleport us directly to our throne room in the castle. Where, once we get there, I'm having a long, hot bath to get all this sand out of my fur..."

"Better get to shrinking Spike..." Shining Armor quipped. "You don't want to keep her majesty away from her cleanliness routine."

Cadence punched Shining in the side at that comment. "Ouch...that hurt!" he protested.

"That's for being a jerk..." Cadence gave her husband a withering look. "Any time you're ready Spike..."

Spike had to try really hard not to break out laughing at the antics of the royal couple. He managed to compose himself though.

"Ok..." Spike finally announced. "I'm going to try to shrink myself."

He closed his eyes and concentrated on visualizing himself in a smaller body. Slowly his body began to magically shrink down. By the time he was done transforming his body, he was about twice the size of an Earth Pony stallion. Still very large, he was at least now a less terrifying sight. He opened his eyes and saw that Shining and Cadence had become much closer to him than they were a few moments ago.

“Did it work?” he asked anxiously.

Shining Armor looked him over. “I think I can handle you at this size.” The stallion smirked. “If I’d known you could shrink like that I’d have reconsidered that wrestling match…”

“Very funny Shining, but you’d still probably lose…” his wife gave him an all-too knowing look. "Now...can we please get back home?"

“Wait!” Shining Armor exclaimed. “What about your hoard back in the cave Spike? It was quite the operation getting enough gems out here for you use for food and to grow. I don’t know if I can transport all of us back and your hoard as well.”

Spike put a claw to his chin and thought for a moment. “Leave it here,” he finally decided.

“Are you sure Spike?” Cadence asked surprised.

“Why not?" he stated. "My hoard is responsible for my growth. If I'm going back to the Crystal Empire or even Ponyville, I don’t need to be as big, right? I guess somepony is going to get a pleasant surprise if they find this cave though, huh?"

Cadence reached up to nuzzle Spike, which was a lot easier due to his new size. “You’re a generous dragon Spike.” Spike blushed at her affections.

“Right…get ready for the ride you two.” Shining Armor announced. He activated his magical aura which began to surround the three of them. When the aura reached a critical mass, a bright flash occurred causing the two ponies and one dragon to disappear into thin air.

Spike flew along the horizon with the setting sun at his back. He was a bit surprised, but also pleased with himself that he managed to make the journey from the Crystal Empire back to Ponyville by himself, even at his new smaller size. His wings were holding up nicely as he flew down into the valley where Ponyville lay. This was partly because he decided to make a quick stop in Canterlot, to visit with the two Princess Sisters. Celestia and Luna both marveled at his transformation from baby to adult dragon. They had known him in his young form for so long, they almost didn’t recognize him when they met him on the mountain top high above the city. Because the reputation of dragons amongst the population of Equestria was mostly negative, he didn’t want to cause any undue alarm, hence why he wanted to meet away from the crowded city. He was sorely tempted to stay with the Princesses, and they were certainly willing to extend all their hospitality to him. But, he had made a promise to another pony that he would be coming home that evening, and he intended to keep that promise.

As the sun was just dropping behind the horizon, Spike flew over the roofs of Ponyville. He had planned it this way. He didn’t want to arouse suspicion upon his arrival; however, it looked like his plan would succeed. There wasn’t a pony to be seen on the streets this close to sunset which is just how he wanted it to be. He had no problem finding a certain familiar building to land in front of either, although that was because it was the tallest building in town.

Spike glided down to the ground almost entirely in silence in front of the Crystal Castle, home of his adoptive sister and resident Princess of Ponyville. As he scanned the street in front of the castle he sighed. It had been six long months in the Crystal Empire learning who he was and growing into his new body. There were times when he thought his trip would end up being a big waste, but he managed to persevere despite his doubts and fears. His head reverberated with the words that Shining Armor and Princess Cadence had said to him before he left.

"Goodbye Spike…and remember you will always be held in the highest regard here O Great and Honorable Spike, the Brave and Glorious…” Cadence hugged him tightly.

“Make sure you take good care of my sister Spike. Make sure she doesn’t freak out…well…at least not more than usual…” Shining Armor tousled his head with a hoof.

“Thank you so much for everything you’ve done…both of you…” Spike offered a genuine smile to his royal hosts before taking off into the sky.

“Spike…?” A familiar voice was calling to him. A lavender alicorn walked towards him as he stood in the street. It could only be one pony, and now that pony was enveloping him in as much of a hug as she could muster.

“Oh Spike…” Twilight Sparkle wrapped her hooves around him tighter. “Welcome Home…”