Author's Note

Well, this is it. My first fanfic in a long time. Tell me what you think.

7-15-2015: Made this chapter easier to read + I made some more edits.

Poker Night

The Big Man
An Always Friends, Always More Story
A Humanized Pony Fic By Duke Moon II
Inspired by “The Girls of My Life” by Wildcard25

Chapter 0 – Poker Night

Our almost constant tradition for us girls was poker night and we used it to talk about things that happened to us that week. I remember one time Rainbow had this one story about one of her soccer games where she shot a penalty kick that was blocked but the goalie, so happy about blocking the goal, didn’t notice the ball rolling in for the goal. Rarity is always talking about how many hearts she’s broken as well as her latest fashion designs. Fluttershy and her pet-sitting adventures, Applejack’s tales from the afternoon rush at the market, Pinkie’s stories that are just…Pinkie and my latest academic endeavor…which fell on deaf ears until I get to the part where something funny happens to me. Poker night was definitely our night and it brought us closer as friends.

One poker night, however, would be a night of two firsts. Rainbow came up with the idea that there should be a weekly prize in our game and Applejack was responsible for bringing our first prize. Another first…well…during the game, we started to talk about Spike…

Twilight “Sparkle” Sagan
The Harem Diaries

Twilight Sagan's basement bedroom could easily be confused for a small library. From wall to wall there were bookshelves filled with all types of books, from fictional novels to scientific research texts. Everything was neatly organized by section and alphabetic order. There were even some round tables for joint study sessions. At the bottom of the basement stairs there was an oak desk with various writing instruments, some stick-it-notes, a laptop computer and an engraved desk sign that has the name Twilight Sagan with title of librarian. For someone like Twilight, this basement bedroom/library was heaven.

At one of the tables, Twilight was busy shuffling a set of playing cards. Sunday night was poker night with her friends and since she was the host of this particular poker night, Twilight was the dealer. With her at the table was Iris Dash, nicknamed Rainbow because of her multicolored hair, which she had at shoulder length. She currently had legs propped up on the table while she sat on a chair, a bored expression on her face.

“When are those slowpokes getting here?” Rainbow groaned.

“They’ll be here, Rainbow,” Twilight replied.

“Well, they better get here soon,” Rainbow said in a more determined voice. “I just can’t wait to beat all of you so I can win that prize…whatever it is Applejack brings.”

“Always in such a hurry,” Twilight sighed as she rolled her eyes. “Still, it is our last day of summer vacation, which means tonight's poker night will be something very special.”

“Am I late, girls?” asked someone in a rather chipper voice.

Both Twilight and Rainbow looked up the basement stairs and saw a poofy pinked haired teenage girl holding a paper bag. The girl waved happily as she stepped down the stairs ant took a seat next to Rainbow.

“Hi, Pinkie.” Twilight greeted. “Just shuffling the deck until everyone else gets here.”

“What’s in the bag, Pinkie?” asked Rainbow.

“Oh, just some assorted candies,” answered Pinkie. “Some hard caramel pieces, peppermint candies, gumdrops, cinnamon candies, candied apple, chocolate pieces, white chocolate dipped jalapeños and s’more flavored jelly beans.”

“Guess you got your trick or treating done early,” Rainbow chuckled.

“Silly Rainbow,” Pinkie laughed. “Trick or Treating is until Halloween.”

Rainbow rolled her eyes and sighed at Pinkie. It was then that the Rainbow haired girl noticed two more girls coming down the basement stairs. One had dark blue hair done up in a fashionable curl and was wearing a short dark blue skirt and a white blouse. The other was a light pink haired girl in a yellow blouse and light pink pants.

“Sorry for the delay girls,” the dark blue haired girl said with an air of pomp. “But I had some minor delays at home that needed to be attended to.”

“Like what, Rarity? Which blouse went with what eyeliner or which lipstick went with what pair of undies,” Rainbow joked.

“Forgive me if I find your attempt at humor lacking, Iris,” Rarity responded dryly.

“So what’s your story, Fluttershy?” Rainbow asked the light pink haired girl.

“Um…I had some work that needed to be done at the animal shelter,” answered Fluttershy rather shyly. “Plus I had to make sure Lupin was locked safely in his cage.”

“Lupin?” inquired Rainbow.

“One of the stray cats,” said Fluttershy.

“Odd name for a cat,” Rainbow said with an eyebrow raised.

“Y’all ready to get your behinds whupped?” a voice said.

The girls looked for source of the voice and saw a tall freckled faced blonde girl stepping down the basement stairs, wearing a stetson hat, an orange button shirt, daisy duke shorts and a pair of brown boots. She also had a six bottle carrier in hand.

“Finally,” Rainbow said, letting out a breath. “What you got there, Applejack?”

“Our first prize,” Applejack smirked. “A six pack of Zap Apple Cider, fresh from the brew.”

“Z..za..zap...,” Rainbow stuttered before running towards Applejack. She got on her knees and hugged Applejack’s legs. “Jacqueline Apple! You know you are my one true best friend! I love you, you freckled faced blonde bomb-

“Simmer down, Sally,” Applejack said as she pulled Rainbow away from her legs and picked her up by the back of her shirt. “You get this pack after you win the game…if you can.”

“Well, it looks like we’re all here,” Twilight said with good cheer. “Shall we start with a little deuces wild?”

“Oh, bring it on,” Rainbow said in a determined tone.

An hour passed after the first hand and the amount of players were down to three. Since the start, Rainbow made it her goal to be the chip leader and from where things stood, she had attained that goal by winning almost every hand. Applejack had a modest amount of chips, only second to Rainbow and Fluttershy had the least amount of chips, losing almost every hand or just folding. As for Pinkie and Rarity, they lost early on, mostly because Rainbow could read Rarity’s tells and Pinkie, for as unpredictable as her friend is, was beaten when Rainbow had a full house, three aces and two kings versus a flush hand. This poker night had brought on a will to win in Rainbow and she was taking no prisoners.

The current game had Rainbow and Applejack facing off with Fluttershy already folding her hand earlier. While Rainbow had a confident smirk on her face while holding her cards, Applejack’s face was like stone as she looked at hers.

“I bet 50 chips,” Rainbow said.

“I’ll see that and raise ya 100,” Applejack responded.

“You sure about that, Applejack?”

“Just addin’ more to that stingy little bet you placed there. What’s the matter? You holding back or somethin’?”

“We still got a few stacks of chips to last us through the night, blondie. I’m just worried that you’re in such a hurry to lose.”

“Keep talkin’, skittles. You don’ want to mess with an Apple at the card table.”

“All right, settle down you two,” Twilight intervened. “We’re here to have fun, not tear each other apart.”

“I AM having fun, egghead,” Rainbow snorted.

“Some fun,” Rarity complained. “I don’t remember a time losing a game of cards felt like utter humiliation.”

“Yeah,” Pinkie sighed. “I’m not having fun at all.”

“I’ve never seen Rainbow so aggressive at a card game before,” Fluttershy shyly spoke up.

“Yeah, well, blame Applejack for bringing the cider,” Rainbow smirked. “Besides, I got plans for those six bottles of heaven.”

“Pigging out on pizza and cider while watching the Silver Cup Playoffs? Pretty much your usual day there, even without the cider,” said Applejack with a smirk.

“I was actually thinking about something different,” Rainbow said as she leaned back on her chair, still looking at her cards. “Like maybe after soccer practice tomorrow, I’ll drag my sweaty self and the cider to the Drake residence, pull Spike from whatever big booby super heroine comic book he’s looking at and-

“Say that again?” Applejack interrupted, frowning at Rainbow as she gripped her cards.

“I’m just saying that after school, the little big man and I can spend some quality time together,” answered Rainbow. “A few drinks, maybe a b-movie from the bargain bin, have a few laughs…then maybe make my move on him. Oh, he’ll back off at first, but just a few kisses and…”

Rainbow trailed off as he felt the temperature in the room rise. She looked up and saw Applejack glaring angrily at her, gritting her teeth as she practically crushed the cards in her hands. The rainbow haired girl then looked at the other girls in the room. Twilight had her arms crossed with an angry frown on her face. Rarity’s face was twitching and looked outraged. Fluttershy frowned as she breathed heavily, practically snorting like an equine. Lastly, Pinkie, normally the happiest of her friends, was so furiously angry that her face turned red and steam started coming out of her ears. Rainbow couldn’t help but smile madly at the girls, triumphant that she could push all their emotional buttons at the same time.

“All in,” Applejack said suddenly, pushing all her chips in the middle of the table, gaining a shocked reaction from the other girls, except for Rainbow who continued to smile.

Twilight shook her head and said, “Applejack, don’t you want any-

“I’m fine, darn it!” Applejack shouted. She then directed her anger towards Rainbow. “You done it now, Dashie.”

“Two cards, Twilight,” Rainbow said as she discarded two cards from her hand. She then received two new cards from Twilight. She smirked and she looked at a still furious Applejack.

“Okay, girls,” Twilight said in her most civil of voice. “Show those cards.”

“Right,” Applejack growled as she slammed four of her cards on the table, revealing a pair of aces and a pair of eights, all black.

“A dead man’s hand,” whistled Rainbow. “That some bad luck you got there, Jackie.”

“It’s only bad luck…” Applejack trailed off. She then smiled and turned over her last card, revealing an ace of hearts. “…if your fifth card is junk.”

“Full house,” Twilight said as she then turned to Rainbow.

“Wow,” Rainbow said in an astonished tone. “You got a pretty good hand there, Applejack. And here I got is two pair…”

Applejack was about to take the pot until Rainbow got up and with a flourish, revealed her hand: Four kings and an ace. The rest of the girls gasped while Applejack looked very horrified, her eyes bugged out and her jaw practically hitting the table.

Rainbow couldn’t help but laugh as she collected her winnings. “Oh man,” Rainbow began. “I got you pretty good there, cowgirl.”

“What the…” Applejack shook her head. “You mean you were just yankin’ my hair!?”

“I meant every word there, Applejack,” replied Rainbow. “I’m just a game away from cider city and good times with Spike…really good times.”

“Iris Dash, has it ever occurred to you that Spikey-Wikey might have other plans for tomorrow?” asked Rarity, frowning at Rainbow. “Why, I was planning to ask him if he would help me out with the school uniform for the boys I’m designing for next year.”

“Are you going to try and make Spike wear bow ties again?” asked Rainbow with a laugh. “You gotta stop treating Spike like a Ken doll, Rarity.”

“I just don’t know why he’s so fussy about wearing a simple bow tie,” Rarity sighed. “Spike looks simply adorable wearing one.”

“But I was going to ask Spike if he would help me organize for the Freshman dance,” whined Pinkie. “There’s going to be punch, cake, all sorts of party favors, music selection and last but not least, balloons.”

“He’ll be too busy tryin’ mah new apple cinnamon pie, sugar cube,” Applejack said. “Once I tell him the recipe has a bit more kick, that Drake boy won’t stop at just one helpin’.”

“Um, excuse me,” Fluttershy piped in timidly. “I was planning to ask Spike if he could help me dog sit for a neighbor after school.”

The rest of the girls turned to look at Fluttershy in disbelief, which caused the shy girl to fidget uncomfortably.

“Really, Fluttershy?” Rainbow asked in disbelief. “The animal whisperer needs help taking care of one dog?”

“Would you believe the dog is a very big and unruly doberman pinscher named Satan?” Fluttershy laughed unconvincingly.

“Fluttershy, Satan is a wiener dog that belongs to Ms. Harshwhinny, the drama teacher,” Rainbow said as she narrowed her eyes and folded her arms. “The mutt’s spoiled, but not Cujo.”

Fluttershy looked away, ashamed, speechless and sad.

“Girls, you’ll just have to face facts,” Rainbow posed in a triumphant manner. “Spike’s mine for tomorrow and the rest of you will just have to wait in line.”

“Then you’ll just have to wait in line yourself, Rainbow,” Twilight began.

‘Here it comes,’ Rainbow deflated as she frowned miserably with her arms drooped.

“Spike’s already agreed to assist me in star gazing tomorrow night,” Twilight said. “I need someone taking notes for me for a report I’m writing for Principal Celestia and the Star Gazers Club. Ooh, I just can’t wait to try out my new telescope my dad got me for my birthday.”

There was collective, disappointed moan coming from the rest of the girls.

“I’m sorry, girls,” Twilight apologized. “But I did ask Spike first and he said yes.”

“Figures,” Rainbow angrily muttered.

“Excuse me?” Twilight raised an eyebrow.

“Nothing, it’s just…” Rainbow trailed off and sighed. “He’ll always say yes to you, huh?”

“He can’t say no to any one of us,” Twilight defended, to which every one of the girls nodded in agreement.

“I know,” Rainbow admitted. “It’s just…well, he spends way more time with you than any one us, egghead. I know you’re like his hero or some junk, and-

“Wait, hold on,” Twilight interrupted. “What do you mean, ‘I’m his hero?’

“Well, you’re the one who saved him from those bullies back in grade school when you first met him,” Rainbow explained. “I still can’t believe you used the Vulcan neck pinch on those guys.”

“I remember that day,” Twilight started. “We were in the fifth grade and he was in the third grade. Those bullies really left Spike in such a sorry state. A bruised cheek, black eye, bloody nose and I bet those were just the some of injuries I could see. To tell you the truth, I never felt so sad for someone, not even when my big brother had a huge fight with Cadence.

“When Spike looked up at me, I could tell he was crying. When I offered him a hand he got up and ran away, yelling at me to leave him alone. I didn’t know what to feel. I thought I wasn’t going to see him again after that.”

“And then the next day, you spotted him, called out and waved him over to our lunch table,” Rarity said. “Spike looked so worried, like something bad was about to happen.”

“Or feel out of place,” Twilight said.

“It didn’t help that Rainbow kept scowling at him all time,” Rarity frowned at Rainbow.

“For the last time, I wasn’t scowling at him,” Rainbow protested. “I was just so mad that a bunch of losers beat up on some third grader for three dollars and change. Besides, you and Fluttershy were all over him, from what I remember.”

“I remember being a perfect lady that day,” Rarity defended as she stuck her head up.

“I wasn’t ALL over him,” Fluttershy pouted.

“You two looked like you wanted to marry him on the spot!” Rainbow laughed. She then directed her attention toward Applejack. “And you started to stuff him with all kinds of apple treats!”

“For the love of God, he looked frail!” Applejack shouted.

“All I wanted to do was throw him a party,” Pinkie piped in.

“Pinkie, you were firing so many questions at him that I doubt he got impression that you wanted to throw him a party,” Rainbow deadpanned.

“Okay, we get it, Rainbow,” Twilight interjected. “So we didn’t exactly make a good impression on Spike right then and there.”

“Yeah,” Applejack sighed. “He just wanted to high tail it outta there.”

“Then the bullies showed up,” Rainbow growled.

“It’s was unbelievable,” Rarity shook her head in disgust. “They weren’t just satisfied with beating on poor Spike. Those…those hooligans were saying these unpleasant and horrid things to him, even questioning his manhood for associating with us. As a lady, I had no choice but to stand up and tell them that their brand of social graces will not be tolerated and that they should just leave.”

“Yeah, that really showed ‘em,” Applejack said sarcastically.

“The ring leader had the audacity to pinch my cheek,” snarled Rarity. “Needless to say, things went south from there.”

“Well, you did kick him in the south,” Rainbow pointed out, which got a laugh out of everyone, including Fluttershy.

“Yep, we had a ourselves a good ol’ fashioned lunchtime brawl,” Applejack smiled in satisfaction.

“Yeah, we kicked all kinds of ass,” Rainbow said as she slammed her right fist into her left palm.

“Really?” a confused Pinkie asked. “All I remember was Rainbow kicking one of the bullies in the face, Applejack out-wrestling another meanie, Rarity going all kung-fu (complete with a wagging finger), Twilight slamming the complete works of Shakespeare on top of another meanie’s head, me dodging punches when of those guys cornered me to a wall (boy did he need two sets of casts), and Fluttershy going all ‘I will find you and I will kill you’ on the last bully standing…or kneeling…but there was no tooshie kicking to be had.”

“Figuratively, we kicked ass, Pinkie,” Rainbow deadpanned again, eyebrow raised.

“Oh, okay,” Pinkie beamed.

“I was just so…so angry,” Fluttershy quivered as she tightened her fists. “One of the bullies came at me and Spike got in the way and he was knocked out cold. Girls, I thought he was dead…he wasn’t moving and I…oh God, I could have chocked that bully…”

“Fluttershy, relax,” Rainbow said in a comforting tone. “The only thing that loser had to worry about was whether or not he was wearing brown pants. Besides, we got some street cred out of it.”

“If by ‘street cred’ you mean we got sent to detention for a whole week,” Twilight moaned. “I just really hope no big time university looks at that when they interview me for admission someday.”

“You gals remember when Spike paid us a visit to detention hall after our little schoolhouse brawl?” Applejack recalled fondly. “The kid was so sweet and apologized for everything; like he needed to apologize for anything. Then he thanked us for stickin’ up for him, which for me, and I think for all of us, really sealed the deal. Friendship-wise.”

“And I got that whole week to plan a ‘Getting Out of Detention/New Friend Party’ for Spike and the rest of us,” Pinkie enthused. “It was so nice of him to let us use his dad’s bar for the party. We also got to see what a super duper dancer he is! He was a regular Alfonso Ribeiro!”

“Yeah, the kid really surprised us with that,” said Rainbow. “Spike really took us to school with those moves.”

“It’s amazing how long we’ve been friends with him,” Twilight said fondly. “Since those days in grade school, Spike has always been there for us and we have always been there for him. He’s become my number one assistant whenever I need help with my homework, he helps Applejack from time to time at the market, helps out Fluttershy rescue animals for the shelter, enjoys Rarity’s company whenever they go shopping at the mall, doesn’t mind being a human target for Rainbow-

“It’s called being a goalie, Twilight”, Rainbow interrupted.

“Anyway,” Twilight continued. “He even helps Pinkie at Sugar Cube Corner and makes his famous Time Bomb cupcakes.”

“Time bomb is right,” Pinkie said with a bit of fear.

“All I’m saying is that Spike has always been there for us. Though I think he was a little too eager to help us over the years, even if it situation was a little too much for him.”

“Yeah, he was totally crushing on us when he reached junior high,” Rainbow smiled wickedly.

“And we weren’t exactly helping the situation,” Fluttershy blushed.

“You can say that again, ‘Butter-Shy’.”

Fluttershy turned to a deeper shade of red as everyone else stared at her. She shut her eyes and squirmed as the attention was solely on her.

“Fluttershy, is there something you would like to share with the rest of us?” inquired Rarity, narrowing here eyes at Fluttershy.

“Um…no?” Fluttershy responded meekly.

“Yeah, sure,” Rainbow shook her head. “I guess that wasn’t you I caught shaking your booty at Spike on Principal Huerta’s yacht during Spring Break.”

“Marylin Flutters!” Rarity exclaimed, shocked at that her normally timid friend would do such a thing. The other girls, with the exception of Rainbow, gasped in shock.

“I wasn’t, I…” Fluttershy tried to explain. “I was leaning on the rail and I started humming and…I started shaking my hips and I lost myself…until I heard a cup drop. I turned and I saw Spike and…oh it was so embarrassing! I didn’t know what to say and Spike was apologizing and-

“And I didn’t let them hear the end of it!” Rainbow cackled. “Fluttershy, you were giving him quite a show there and Spike was just standing there like a stiff! I bet he was getting a stiffy just watching you sway that butt!”

“You’re awful!” cried Fluttershy.

“C’mon, ‘Shy, I’m only busting your chops,” assured Rainbow, which did little to lighten Fluttershy’s mood.

“Still, I’m surprised that you would do something like that and with poor Spikey-Wikey watching,” Rarity admonished Fluttershy.

“Like you’re one to talk,” Applejack scoffed at Rarity.

“And just what are you implying, Miss Apple?” Rarity said.

“Remember the time when you dragged me and Spike to that fancy-shmancy country club in Canterlot City? You needed someone to play doubles tennis with them snooty bleach twins and Spike was the coach. And then while we were taking a break, you sneaked Spike into the empty women’s locker room where I caught you and Spike having some alone time!”

“Rarity!” a scandalized Fluttershy said. This also earned some wide eyed expressions from Rainbow, Pinkie, Twilight and Fluttershy.

“He was just giving me a massage!” a flustered Rarity said loudly.

“Didn’t sound like that to me!” Applejack frowned. “I thought Spike was taking you to heaven and back what with all that dirty talk and moaning you were doing!”

“Ah, so it was a naughty massage!” Pinkie gasped.

“Not…helping!” Rarity gritted at Pinkie.

“So we’re you drooling with your tongue hanging out?” Rainbow asked knowingly.

“I couldn’t help it with those magic hands of his,” pouted Rarity, but then turned her attention to Applejack with an accusatory glare. “And since you brought this up, you got what I got right then and there, Jacqueline! You were completely at Spike’s mercy, calling out his name and you were begging him to do your front!”

“Girls, that was completely irresponsible of you two,” said a flustered Twilight. “You could have gotten Spike in trouble and you know he tries to stay out of trouble.”

“The last thing Spike needs is people thinking he’s a pervert,” Fluttershy said disapprovingly. She then turned her attention to Rainbow with a glare. “Despite what a certain girl says, Spike is an adorably cute puppy eyed boy who doesn’t have an indecent bone in his body.”

“Unless you count the one that stirs in the presence of hotness,” stated Rainbow.

“Rainbow!!” everyone else in the room shouted, aghast.

“What, it does.”

“And how would you know!?” Applejack asked all peeved.

“I noticed after school a few months ago,” Rainbow explained. “I wanted to practice my penalty shots and I invited Spike over to my house. Since my yard’s big enough and I had my own goal posts, I thought it was a good idea. Spike was ready and in position, so I walked out to the yard and wouldn’t you know it, he couldn’t keep his eyes off me. He was so speechless that no words came out of his mouth. His jaw was to the floor and his eyes were bugging out. And…I couldn’t help to look at his pants. Spike knew where my eyes were wandering to so he quickly covered it up. I gave him a smile and reminded to keep his eyes on the ball. I gotta give the little guy credit: he did manage to stop one out of a hundred of my shots.”

When Rainbow finished her story, the rest of the girls looked at her in suspicion. They knew the rainbow haired girl was intentionally leaving something out. They did believe her story, considering Rainbow never strayed away from attention. Ultimately, Rarity stood up, a stern expression on her face.

“Miss Dash,” Rarity said calmly. “This story wouldn’t involve a skimpy spandex soccer uniform, now would it?”

“Yeah, and your point is?” Rainbow said shamelessly.

This admission from Rainbow earned more glares, particularly from Pinkie and Fluttershy. Applejack just groaned and face palmed and Twilight’s right eye started to twitch. As for Rarity, she was seething, growling as she gritted her teeth.

“You’re unbelievable!!” screamed Rarity.

“Oh, get a grip, would you,” Rainbow said, a little put off. She then she started to address the other girls. “It’s all good clean harmless fun and you know what? Spike doesn’t seem to mind it at all. He’s a good sport. It’s not like I sneaked him into the women’s locker room for an orgasm.”

“It was a massage!” Rarity and Applejack countered.

“A naughty massage!” Pinkie spoke up.

“You three are horrible!” Fluttershy said furiously.

“Whatever, bottom shaker!” yelled Rainbow.

The five got into a heated argument. To Twilight, it all seemed so surreal as well as incoherent because as time went by, she couldn’t make what one was saying to the other. Feeling an increasing headache coming, Twilight stood up, took a deep breath and yelled, “That’s enough!”

Everybody quieted down, except for Pinkie who said, “…and then Spike pinned the tail on my butt!”

Pinkie’s last statement got some very confused looks from the other girls, which made the pink haired girl feel awkward.

Feeling stressed, Twilight closed her eyes, breathed in, put a hand on her chest, breathed out and extend her arm, palm open. She did this a few more times until she calmed down. Almost serenely, she sat back down. When she opened her eyes, Twilight gave an almost stern look at her friends, which made them aware of what had happened. Words were said, mean words, and when they looked at each other, they felt very ashamed and couldn’t bear to look at each other. For what seemed like an eternity, the girls were silent and feared saying anything.

Finally, Twilight stood up. The rest of the girls expected a big lecture from her, but what they saw was Twilight stern expression turn to one of deep thought, like she was trying real hard to form whatever words she wanted say. She then looked around at each and every one of the girls and sighed.

“Girls, I…,” Twilight trailed off, but then continued. “Look, I could just sit here and express my disappointment in all of you. That you girls constantly get poor Spike into all kinds of trouble. That sometimes I think you’re all crazy and I’m the only sane person in this room who tries her damnedest to keep him out of trouble. That for years he’s been like a baby brother to me. By all rights, I should be mad at all of you.”

Twilight pinched the bridge of her nose and shut her eyes. She breathed in and out again and took on a sad expression.

“Over a year ago, I bought this kissing book,” Twilight began. “I had a thing for a senior student named Jason Sentry, or Flash as everyone called him. I was tutoring him because his grades were low and was he spending so much time with his band. I got to know him well and I really started to like him, which is why I got that kissing book. I mean, I had it all planned out for our next study session and I read the book many times so I can get our first kiss right. Turns out, he had made up with his ex and started dating her again. To tell you the truth, I wasn’t as hurt as I thought I would be.

“Jump to a month ago, I invited Spike over for my annual book reorganizing. I was calling out to Spike to help me out with my physics books when I saw him going through my kissing book. By that time, I forgot I even had that book. Flustered, I snatched the book from him and put it away on the shelf. We took a break and I explained to him why I bought the book. He made a joke here and there but nothing too serious.

“Spike did manage to get the book again and sat on my bed, going over it. I sat next to him and I couldn’t help but notice how curious he was about the book, even if he was just leafing through it. It did make me laugh when Spike blushed as he got to the pages where kisses looked very intense. At the same time, I couldn’t help but notice how cute Spike looked as he was starting to breathe a little heavy. I even noticed that his lips were a bit parted.

“It wasn’t a long time ago, but, I…well, guess it wasn’t just me…you girls…we realized how much we really liked Spike…more than we cared to admit. So right then and there, I asked him if he wanted to practice…kissing.”

Twilight decided to stop there, feeling flustered and awkward. She noticed that her friend’s mood had changed. Applejack had her arms folded, a stern glare adorned on her face, like she was telling Twilight to go on with her story. Rarity had a shocked expression with one hand covering her mouth. Fluttershy, though she tried to hide it, gave a mild scowl at Twilight. Rainbow, like Applejack, was stern but with her eyes squinted. Pinkie, surprisingly, was expressionless…but if there were any seriousness on her, it was lightened because she was wearing a police officers cap and had a flashlight in hand.

Suddenly, Pinkie jumped up on the table on all fours, turned on the flashlight at Twilight’s face and asked in a grizzly voice, “So…did you get lucky, Sagan?”

“Pinkie!” shouted Twilight with enough force that sent Pinkie tumbling back to her seat.

“Well, we’re waiting on ya, sugarcube,” said Applejack.

“Okay,” Twilight sighed. “Spike, to say the least, was speechless. I had my doubts that he wanted to go through with it, but then he asked me if I was sure. I said yes and assured him that I wasn’t using him or anything, which perked him right up. We…waited…I don’t know, I guess we were waiting on who would make the first move. But then we started to hold hands and then…we kissed.”

Twilight stopped again and noticed that, while her friend’s expressions hadn’t really changed, she could sense that those expressions were a bit more downcast. The only one managed to look up was Fluttershy, whose expression changed to one of trepidation.

“How…how was it?” Fluttershy asked.

“Awkward at first,” Twilight admitted. “But after a few light kisses, we felt a bit more confident in kissing for a longer period of time. Though it was our first time, Spike trusted me to lead him, like he believed that I knew what I was doing. We made out for so long that I didn’t realize that I pinned Spike to the bed before we came up for air. I was straddling his stomach, breathing heavily, sweating, trying to calm down. Girls, I couldn’t believe what we were doing but I was so happy. From the looks of things, Spike was very happy, too.”

“I’ll bet,” Rainbow said enviously, her sentiments mirroring those of the other girls.

“I was about to kiss him again when Spike stopped me,” Twilight continued. “I thought he wanted to stop what we were doing, but then he asked me to do something, which at the time I thought was strange: he wanted me to wear my reading glasses. It was an odd favor, but I put them on anyway. Spike then sat up and kissed me, hot and fast. I was surprised at how intense the make out session was going, so I held on to his shoulders while he put his hands on my waist. We came up for air again but Spike immediately started kissing my neck. I didn’t now how much time had passed but I was moaning loudly and then…then…”

Twilight was too embarrassed to continue as she shook nervously. She shut her eyes as her cheeks took on a deep red shade. She was also sweating; no doubt telling her story got her all hot and bothered.

As for Twilight’s friends, their reactions ranged from shocked to just plain aroused. Applejack’s mouth was wide open as her eyes were wide, fluster written all over her face. Rarity was sweating, tugging at her collar while fanning herself, a blush adorning her cheeks. Fluttershy was shaking as she bit into her forefinger, her face a deep shade of red. Pinkie was pulling at her hair while a slight drool escaped her lips, an anxious look on her face and Rainbow was very flustered, her breathing having become ragged. Twilight little session with Spike was having a very profound effect on them.

It was Rainbow who shook her head and asked, “Then…then what?”

Twilight suddenly opened her eyes, well aware that her friends were waiting for her to finish her story. Instead, she laughed nervously and started to shuffle the cards.

“Um, shouldn’t we continue playing cards?” trembled Twilight.

“Like hell we will!” shouted Rainbow, standing up and banging her fists on the table, causing Twilight to spill the cards in surprise.

“Yeah, we wanna hear how Spike got ya off,” demanded Applejack as she stood up also.

“How did it feel?” asked Fluttershy.

“The big ‘O’! A huge spasm! Reaching the highest peak!!” Pinkie said loudly.

“Seriously, Twilight,” Rarity said with disappointment. “I fail to see why you leave out Spike bringing you to-

“THAT’S NOT WHAT HAPPENED!!” Twilight screamed as she stood, which sent rest of the girls crashing to the floor.

Twilight breathed in frustration and looked haggard. She the tried to calm down with her breathing exercise from before, placing her hand on her chest as she breathed in and letting out that breath as she extended her arm, palm open. Twilight did this several times as the her friends finally got up and took their seats. Finally calming down, Twilight sat down and sighed.

“Girls, I..,” Twilight started but then looked away. “No, you’ll think I’m sick.”

“Twi’, you just spun us a tale about you and my favorite boy lockin’ lips,” Applejack said bluntly. “The least you could do is tell us how it ends.”

“Fine,” said Twilight. “I was moaning…by then I was hugging Spike tightly while his lips were locked to my neck. Then I just blurted out…I called him…I...oh, God…”

“God?” Pinkie asked, confused. “Twilight, I know we think very highly of Spike, but I don’t think-

“Damn it, Pinkie! I called him ‘Baby Brother!!’” shouted Twilight.

The other girls gasped at this, causing Twilight to tear up as she looked at all the shocked faces.

“Twilight I-“ Rarity started to say.

“I called him ‘Baby Brother’….” interrupted Twilight her voice breaking as she put both hands on her face, sobbing into them. “I called him ‘Baby Brother’…several, several times…”

The girls were at a loss for words, even more so than when Twilight delved deeper into her story. Of course, seeing their best friend crying made any jealousy or shock die down. They felt sorry for her and regretted prying Twilight for more of how she was being intimate with Spike. They nodded to each other, as if silently agreeing to something. Finally, Rainbow stood up.

“Really, Twilight? That’s what got you bent out of shape?” asked Rainbow.

Twilight slowly uncovered her face and looked up to the girls, tears still streaming from her eyes, but looking very confused.

“Darling, I do admit that it is was odd calling Spikey-Wikey 'Baby Brother' in a moment of passion,” Rarity said. “But in a way it definitely makes sense.”

“What?” Twilight asked, still confused.

“Well, think about it, Twilight,” Applejack started to explain. “You…well, all of us, since we met him, Spike’s been like our little brother that we fuzz over and adore. Except now, he’s more than just our ‘Baby Brother’. He’s our best friend that we never ever want to lose over anything.”

“Yeah,” cheered Pinkie. “It’s like us and Spike are this one big happy family. I mean, we have our little fights and stuff, but we love each other so much that nothing can keep us apart. And if we are ever apart, we can still be together because we all think about each other.”

“And I never want to forget you girls or Spike,” Fluttershy said with a smile. “I really can’t help it! It’s so much fun to be around my Puppy!”

“I still can’t believe you call him Puppy,” Rainbow said as she face palmed. “It’s a weirder pet name than ‘Baby Brother’ if you ask me.”

“Girls, I…,” Twilight said as she wiped her tears away. “Thanks. I…thank you. I really don’t know what to say…”

Though Twilight was a bit calm than before, she looked at the girls curiously, raising an eyebrow.

“You’re all taking this whole ‘I made out with Spike’ thing really well,” Twilight pointed out.

“Well, if you think we’re mad about it, then…” Applejack started. “Yeah, we’re mad, but more at ourselves.”

“For not making a move sooner,” Rainbow said with a sad expression.

“And here I was waiting for Spikey-Wikey to make his move on me,” pouted Rarity.

“I wanted to make a move, but…” Fluttershy said as she looked away. “Oh, I was afraid that he wouldn’t appreciate it. I didn’t want to drive him away.”

“And I wanted to share my peppermint candies with Spike so that when we kissed, our breaths would be very minty and yummy,” pouted Pinkie.

Twilight saw how sad her friends were becoming. From what she could tell, they looked defeated because of her story. Twilight admitted to herself that it was…very explicit on how she described her little adventure with Spike, erotic even. She laughed to herself, almost not believing she, a bookworm who lived to study for the sake of academia, was capable of getting a boy to make out with her. She cleared her throat, which got the other girls attention.

“There’s something else,” Twilight said.

“Let me guess: you gave Spike a happy ending,” Rainbow deadpanned.

“Rainbow, hush up,” Applejack said to Rainbow in annoyance.

“Anyway,” Twilight continued. “After our little…session, Spike and I rested on the bed. I know it sounds cliché, but I wrapped my arms around his torso with my head on his chest. Without wanting to, I looked back in time, trying to pinpoint the exact place and time where I told myself ‘hey, really like my little Spike.’ Then I remember New Years Eve. He invited us to his family gathering and I…we really didn’t know what was going to happen. All I know is he wanted to tell us something…”

Twilight noticed her friends expressions turned to that of sorrow.

“We were on the outs with Spike over a year ago,” Rarity spoke up.

“Thanks to that jezebel he was dating,” Applejack said bitterly.

“Delilah Discordia,” spat out Rainbow. “Shoulda rearranged her face when I had the chance…”

“Can you believe she had Spike convinced that we didn’t like him, like him?” Pinkie said incredulously.

“We said some things...we all said some things that we didn’t mean,” Fluttershy said, her voice breaking.

“Girls, I know it’s painful to remember, but bear with me,” Twilight said. “We all went on with our lives, but I could never forget our friendship with Spike, even if he didn’t want me…us around. I was surprised when he sent me a text on New Years Eve, inviting me and the rest of us for New Years at his place. When we arrived, Spike he led us to a table and then we started to talk about what’s been going on since we had our…falling out.”

“All things considered, we were getting along nicely,” Rarity recalled.

“I even asked him where Delilah was,” Fluttershy said. “When he said that she had broken up with him, I…girls I just wanted to jump and hug my Puppy . But I thought Spike wouldn’t like that and said I was sorry for bringing it up.”

“Good riddance,” said Rainbow.

“Turns out that Delilah not only wanted Spike to cut us off, but his parents, his other friends, everybody,” Applejack said grimly.

“And then leave poor Spike in the lurch,” Pinkie frowned. “Who does that?! Who just messes up friendships?”

“Someone who thrives on chaos and misery,” Twilight answered. “Not to mention she loved hearing herself talk, which is how Spike found out about everything.”

“I’m just glad we made up that night,” Fluttershy smiled in relief.

“You know what I remember most of all?” Twilight smiled. “He admitted that he had a crush…on all of us. He just didn’t want to say anything because we’ve been friends for so long that he didn’t want to ruin our friendship.”

“We ended up ruining it anyway,” Applejack said bitterly.

“But we fixed it!” Pinkie Pie cheered.

“We sure did,” Rainbow said proudly. “And you know what brought a smile to Spike’s face? It’s when we told him that we started having a thing for him not too long ago. Sure, he was going on about age differences and some junk, but when I laid a big fat wet one on his cheek, all he could say was ‘wow’.”

“My kiss was wetter!” exclaimed Pinkie.

“My kiss was better!” Applejack said slyly.

“He loved my kiss!” Rarity and Fluttershy shouted at the same time.

“Girls, stop,” Twilight said, ending any further argument. “The point is Spike loves all of us. We love him…I love him…that being said, after our little make-out session, I did convince Spike to...give you girls, my best friends...a chance.”

“Wait, you didn’t ask him to go steady!?” exclaimed Rainbow

“Girl, what’s wrong with you!?” Applejack shouted.

“After all that hot and heavy action!?” gasped Rarity.

“That’s crazy!!” Pinkie shouted.

“We would have understood!” assured Fluttershy.

“I know!” exclaimed Twilight. “Believe me, if I had asked Spike to be his one and only, I’m sure he would have said yes. But as difficult as it was to ask him this…believe me, this was very difficult…I convinced Spike to give you girls a chance…the same chance he gave me.”

To say the girls were surprised was an understatement. Twilight had chance to become Spike’s steady girlfriend but decided that other girls deserved a shot at the young Drake.

“Let me get this straight,” Applejack said. “You want us to take a shot at someone we’ve known for a long time, which may be involve some kissing, touching and the occasional poke that may result in a roll in the hay.”

“Well…yeah,” clarified Twilight.

After a few seconds, the rest girls cheered, “Good enough for us!”

“Thanks, girls,” Twilight smiled in relief. “You won’t regret it.”

“You might, sugar cube,” Applejack chuckled.

“I certainly won’t relent,” Rarity said in a haughty tone.

“Me neither,” Fluttershy said confidently.

“I want Spike just as much as any of you,” Pinkie stated.

“Twilight, your ‘Baby Brother’ is about to become my ‘Baby’,” Rainbow smirked.

“One more thing, girls,” Twilight said as she extended her arm, her hand open. The girls took it as sign as Applejack placed her hand on top of Twilight’s. Rarity followed as she placed her hand on top of Applejack’s. Fluttershy followed then Pinkie and then Rainbow. Then Twilight got ready to speak.

“Girls, I just want you to know that yesterday, today and for all the tomorrows to come, you will always be my friends no matter what happens. As for Spike, he will always be our friend, regardless on who he chooses to be his steady. In the end, he’ll be lucky to have any of you. But let me say this: I won’t give up my ‘Baby Brother’ without a fight!”

“You got yourself a fight,” Rainbow nodded, which also got a nod from Twilight and the rest of the girls.

“On three!” Pinkie cheered loudly.

“Two, three, HARMONY!!” the girls cheered in sync as they let their hands fly in the air. After that, they sat down, feeling better than they did moments ago.

“You know, girls,” Rainbow said with a smirk. “Despite having the case of the feels, I still got a prize to win. Twilight, shuffle those cards. I’m feeling lucky.”

“Got it,” Twilight said as she pulled out a new deck.

“Ready to go down, bottom shaker?” asked a confident Rainbow.

“I’m ready to rise up…tiny peaks,” answered Fluttershy.

The rest of the girls made ‘Oooh’ sounds, making it known that Rainbow got burned.

“Low blow, Fluttershy,” said frowned Rainbow

After shuffling the cards, Twilight dealt five cards each to Rainbow and Fluttershy. Of course, her mind wasn’t on the game. She knew that after this night, things were going to be different. A war between her and the rest of the girls was on, a war of the heart. A war Twilight herself started. There is only a faint hope that friendship will survive this battle and that broken hearts can be mended in time.

To be continued…