Spike awoke in his new size appropriate bed at the sound of his alarm clock. It was 7:30 in the am. The time Drako had set for him. It was a week after the newest development in Spike's life. Week after Pinkie and Drako's stay in the safe house. He was having odd dreams, that turned out to be symbolic premonitions, he was reunited with an older brother who had lost him as an egg, and that same brother helped him to achieve a growth spurt and grow wings. And his brother had taken time during the week to teach Spike how to fly, so they could focus more on his fighting skills.
But the thing he loved most of all, was that he was now in a serious relationship with the mare of his dreams, Rarity. He also learned that he had imprinted on her as his life-mate. Basically, there would be no other girl but her, ever.
His brother Drako was currently suspected of being involved with Pinkie. At least according to Rarity. But both of them denied it, Drako being the more insistent. Though Pinkie did appear to flirt with him constantly.
*SLAP*
"Ow!"
"Rise and shine hermanito."
"What was that for?!"
"To wake you up"
*Slap*
"Hey I'm awake! And I was awake before the first one"
"Then you should be out of bed by now"
*Slap*
"Will you stop?!" Spike yelled as he struggled, fell out of bed, and stood up "There. I'm up."
"Good" Drako swung again, but Spike caught his arm.
"I'm up. Stop. Doing. That."
Drako looked at his brother smugly.
"Nice reflexes."
Spike looked at his hand holding Drako's, and let go when Drako wiggled it slightly.
"Lesson number one when it comes to me training you: Don't question my methods.
"Come on, let's get some breakfast" Drako said as he descended the steps.
Spike followed, and caught Drako's tail when it came at his face. Drako looked at him with a cocked eyebrow.
"Eh?"
".....Cool" Spike said after looking at his hand.
"Sis" Drako called "You got the coffee ready?"
"Yes Drako" Twilight called from the kitchen "Sorry about not having any. Not too big into coffee."
"That's fine sis, I'll make a run when this is over."
Twilight levitated a coffee shop cup of coffee to Drako and Spike as they entered.
"For me?" Spike asked "You never let me drink coffee."
"Drako's request. And who am I to go against your trainers wishes?"
"Ah, I see you went down to Sugarcube Corner for the pastries" Drako approached a large bag and looked in. He looked at Twilight with a questioning face.
"No croissants?"
"They didn't have any today. Sorry"
Drako shrugged and took a sip of his coffee, and his face scrunched up.
"Ughhh, you call this coffee?"
"I call this Equestria" Twilight said with a chuckle.
"Well it's mostly just a pick me up. It'll do for now" Drako said before taking a bite of a donut.
Drako and Spike ate a pastry and drank their coffees. Once they were done, they got their prepared packs, and Drako got his katana.
Then they went outside, where the rest of the Mane Six were waiting to say their goodbyes.
"Can't wait to see how strong ya are when ya get back Spike."
"And you're definitely gonna show me some of your new flying moves."
"Watch out for dangerous creatures out there Spike."
"I'm going to miss you so much Spikey Wikey. Suppose I can't call you little anymore."
"Make sure you stay safe out there. I don't know what I'd do if I lost you"
".......Pinkie you're hugging Drako."
Pinkie opened her eyes wide and saw that Spike was right.
"Oh. Well...It's because you two look so alike now."
"He's black and red and I'm purple and green."
"I can't mix up my colors sometimes?"
Spike looked at Drako after Pinkie released him. Drako just shrugged his shoulders.
"Be safe out there little brother" Twilight said as she hugged Spike.
"I will"
"I can guarantee he will be" Drako assured her.
Before they left into the forest, Rarity gave Spike a long, passionate last kiss.
"Mmmmmmmua. For luck. 
"
"Ahem. Uh....thanks" Spike replied dreamily.
They turned to see Pinkie giving Drako a similar but more excessive kiss.
"Mmmmm Mm Mmmmm MMMMMMUA!"
Pinkie turned to see everypony staring at her with wide eyes.
"What? Also for luck."
"All right, let's head out Spike."
Spike and Drako turned around and started heading for the forest. When Drako stopped suddenly and looked back, seeing that his tail was stretched out and coiled around one of Pinkie's hind legs. He looked up to see that Pinkie had also stopped from walking away after feeling a tug, and had turned her head to look at what it was.
The two stared into each other's eyes at a distance with blank expressions. Drako began to slowly uncoil his tail from Pinkie's leg, but stopped when Pinkie gave a slight tug in her direction. She had done it on instinct.
I'll be back Drako mouthed to her.
Pinkie blinked before mouthing to him I wish you weren't going.
I have to. For him.
Drako uncoiled his tail and brought it back before turning back around, not acknowledging Spike as he walked on, who had stopped and was watching with knitted eyebrows. Spike watched as Pinkie looked on at Drako with a sad expression, not noticing Spike, before turning around and walking away slowly.
Spike turned around and caught up to Drako.
"What was that about?"
"........What was what about? Keep your mind on what we're going to do out here."
Spike turned his head forward and kept quiet the rest of the way, and momentarily shifted his eyes towards his brother, the latter walking on with a straight face.
Pinkie walked on with her head drooped, and noticed Rarity ahead. She had done the same thing as Spike.
"Darling?"
Pinkie walked past the unicorn, not acknowledging her.
"Pinkie" Rarity said as she caught up to her.
"You're going to miss him aren't you?"
Nod
"I'm going to miss mine too. Still can't talk about it?"
Head shake
"Want to get some ice cream and a big spoon?"
"Ten containers...........per day."
"
Um, they're going to be gone for six weeks dear."
"...........And?"
"Um, well......we're going to want to keep our figures for when they get back."
".......Two a day"
"I suppose that's acceptable for you. Given your high metabolism. I'll stick to one a week."
"So why couldn't the Mane Six see me train?"
"I never said they couldn't. I told them they might not want to with what we'll be doing."
"?! What are we gonna do?"
"You'll see."
Spike and Drako finally reached a clearing in the woods and set their bags down.
"Okay" Drako said as he turned to face his little brother "Let's get started."
Strength & Survival
"First things first" Drako said "I can teach you all the moves I want first, but without strength behind them, they're practically useless. What would you rather whip someone with? A string, or a leather whip?"
Drako approached a large rock, stuck out his index finger, and tapped the rock with his claw.
"That did nothing right?"
Drako then opened his hand, tensed up, clenched it, and produced his index claw again. He traced a line on the rock and removed his hand. Spike cocked an eyebrow at this, which Drako repeated. Then he raised his hand to the rock, and snapped his fingers. The rock immediately exploded into smaller chunks, some pelting Drako, who didn't react the entire time. Spike shielded his face as some chunks flew by him.
"Whoa"
"Right? We're going to spend this first week exercising everything we need to. Arms, legs, wings, tail, chest, stomach, shoulders, hands, feet, and back. By the time we're done, you should be able to do what I just did. And punch a hole in a three inch board of solid wood."
"Wow, um.....okay then."
Drako lead Spike to another large rock and placed his hand on it.
"This is your rock. When we're done, you're going to do what I did. With your hand, and then we find some more for you to use your other hand, feet, and tail on.
"Stretch out everything in any way you can. You don't want to cramp up."
"Push ups, give me as many as you can. Hands shoulder length apart, palms flat, back and legs straight, your nose should practically touch the ground. Hold out your arms straight in front of you. Bring back your hands. See where they're next to your chest? That's where they should be in the down position. Go."
Spike did as instructed, while Drako watched with his hands behind his back.
"One" Drako counted.
"Two. Three, four, five.......six................seven............................eight."
"Agh" Spike said as he collapsed.
"Haven't exactly done many before have you?" Drako asked, somewhat amused.
"Not......really" Spike replied, exasperated.
"That's fine. Stand up." Spike stood up with a helping hand from Drako. "Take five minutes. Everyone goes through it their first time. Our goal is to get you up to fifteen without struggle." Spike took his five minutes and stretched out his arms.
"Okay. We're gonna do a special exercise. You're gonna lie down with your hands in the position, and when I say up, you put yourself in the up position and hold. Then when I say down, you bend and hold yourself in that position until I say up. Five seconds on the first up, then three for every one after. It's gonna be the equivalent of five push ups, I'll count them. Get into position."
Spike lied face down with his hands ready.
"Up"
1,2,3,4,5
"Down"
1,2,3
"1 Up"
1,2,3
"Down"
1,2,3
"2 Up"
And so on.
They repeated this exercise for ten minutes, with breaks in between.
"Stretch out your arms, rotate your shoulders, shake your arms. Shaking helps to prevent seize ups. Make sure to tell me if you feel like you can't do any more or you're exhausted. Getting tired and sore during exercise doesn't benefit you, it just leaves you without enough energy for the next day.
"20 minutes rest. We're done with arms for today. We'll move on to something else."
"Do ten squats."
"Only ten?"
"Warm up for the mile run"
Five minutes later
"Only twenty seconds of walking before running again Spike. Come on!" Drako said as he ran along side his tired brother.
Twenty minutes later
"Argh! My legs!" Spike exclaimed while out of breath "It burns to breathe!"
"Yes it does hermanito" Drako said as he rested next to his brother. They had finished right next to a stream. Right where Drako had intended.
"Drink some water hermanito. You gotta stay hydrated." Spike gladly complied, with Drako joining him soon after. Once they were done, they rested.
Drako indicated to Spike to sit in front of the stream. "Run your hand along the surface of the water." Spike did as instructed with a questioning look. "Was it hard or soft?"
"Soft?"
"So water is soft?"
"Yeah"
"Then how can it destroy a town?"
"Huh?"
"A tsunami can destroy an entire town. And all it is, is water. Could cotton do the same? Or pillows?"
"......"
"We need to be like water. Water is the softest stuff in the world. It seems weak, yet it can go through a wall. We need to be like the nature of water. With enough strength behind it, it can turn buildings into rubble. That rock and the others we find, will be your buildings. Do you want to be a drop, or a tsunami?"
".........A tsunami"
"Correct. Think about that every time you doubt yourself. So you should think it zero preferred to three times max during our three weeks.
"Come on" Drako said as he got up "We're walking back. Get one more drink if you want."
Day Two
"Hunting?"
"Yes" Drako confirmed "Your dragon sense of smell can tell you if any vegetation is poisonous and if you find yourself somewhere that only has poisonous stuff, you're going to have to live off the wildlife. Especially since you can't just dig and expect to find gems all the time."
"But, I've never eaten meat" Spike said nervously "I was raised in a vegetarian society."
"I'm aware of that problem. But I know you've eaten poultry."
"Huh?" The comment confused Spike "What do you me-" Then he recalled. Applejack's chicken. It wasn't too pleasant a memory for him. It had scared and angered AJ, and he had never told her. He still carried guilt over it. It's why now he stayed away from the chicken coop when he visited. Well that and the chickens would probably go crazy if they saw him.
"How did you know about that?" Spike asked as he had never told anyone.
"I took a peek at your memories when we last mind-shared."
"Oh"
"Listen to me Spike" Drako said as he approached and placed a reassuring hand on Spike's shoulder "What you did was not your fault. Your suppressed development held back your predator side and it leaked out. You should be glad you didn't eat all the chickens. And Scootaloo."
Spike chuckled at the memory of biting Scootaloo's flank and claiming it tasted like chicken. Then a worrying thought came to mind.
"I wouldn't have really eaten her if I wasn't snapped out of it right? Right?"
".........Maybe"
"What?!"
"Which is why you need to learn how to hunt other animals" Drako said quickly "If you don't, your instinct will kick in and look for what's closest."
"Well......okay" Spike complied "But it'll be hard for me to kill an animal."
"Well you better hope it gets easy if you wanna eat for the next six weeks."
"What?!"
A few hours later, Drako had instructed Spike in how to set traps and make snares. But he had yet to kill any of the animals he caught. consisting of squirrels and rabbits. He watched uneasily as Drako did it for him.
That night, Spike had to make do with some berries and nuts he had found. The smell of the meat roasting over the fire didn't help. Drako reiterated that once Spike killed an animal for himself, he could eat well.
Day three
"A one inch punch?" Spike asked.
"Yes" Drako said "It's what you'll use to put a hole in this board." Drako placed his hand on a large wooden board, three inches thick and placed on a steady stand. He then quickly punched a hole on the left side. "That was a one inch punch. But it was probably too fast for you to see. Let me do it again."
Drako, stretched out his arm, held out his fingers and placed the tips on the board. He checked to make sure Spike was watching, and snapped his hand closed, punching another hole in the board. Spike's eyes widened at seeing this. Drako removed his hand from the hole and turned to Spike.
"You'll do it the same way I just did, until you can punch a hole clean through. You need to treat it like it's a regular punch, put the strength of your whole arm into it, from the shoulder to the fist." Drako then motioned to the board for Spike to step up and begin. Spike stepped forward and readied himself, but pulled his arm back slightly before punching the board. The result was hurt knuckles. Spike winced in pain and shook his hand while holding it.
"Wrong" Drako said after shaking his head "You pulled your arm back and put in too much force. Your hands aren't durable enough yet, so you hurt yourself. Think of it as pushing something big and heavy. You don't propel your hands forward when you push a box, you tense your arms to put strength into your push. Remember, when you make the fist, it's a snap like snatching something from the air. This and fist pushups will strengthen your knuckles. Now do it again, and right this time."
Spike re-placed himself in the position and this time made the snap.
"Good" Drako said "Now keep doing that for thirty minutes."
With the berries and nuts now mostly gone, Spike finally killed a rabbit, with some help from his predatory instinct. And it was delicious.
"I can't believe I didn't want to do this before!" Spike said as he took a bite of his rabbit leg "This tastes amazing!"
"Told ya. We can eat meat raw too. Our stomach acid is too strong for parasites. But there is something special about cooked meat."
"Does all meat taste the same?" Spike wondered out loud.
"Does all fruit taste the same?" Drako replied "Wait till you have beef. Medium rare steak. Now that's good eats." Amen
"Sounds good. From what animal?"
"Cow" Drako replied "Beef is cow meat."
That stopped Spike in mid bite. He was familiar with cows, as friends since they could speak.
"Um.....cows?"
"We'll only hunt wild ones" Drako assured him "The ones that aren't domesticated and only moo."
Spike would be uneasy when the time came, but it eventually became like the other animals.
Spike was finally able to punch a hole through the board by the sixth day. Drako told him that he should be grateful to have progressed that much. Their hard scales and dragon muscles are what allowed them to advance that fast.
Drako and Spike repeated the exercises of the first day for the rest of the week, with the addition of two more each day. Begin the Rocky training montage!
Push ups! (arms and tail)
Running!
Sweat!
Hitting a punching bag!
Slow motion!
Pull ups! (arms and tail)
Close ups!
Adrian!
End of day seven
"Let's see if you're a drop or tsunami" Drako said as they approached Spike's rock. Spike stepped up to the rock and put on a face of determination. He steadied himself, brought up his arms, made a fist, and let it fly. The rock was turned into smaller rocks by Spike's punch, confirming he was the latter.
"Tsunami" Drako stated proudly "Very good."
"So what do we start on tomorrow?" Spike asked.
"Tomorrow we begin martial arts, weapons and self control."
