Spike stood on one of the many balconies that covered the outside of the brilliant crystalline castle located in ponyville and gave a contented sigh as he stared at the stars littering the clear night sky. Initially he had planned to spend the night elsewhere, away from the castle, as Twilight had set up a slumber party with her friends. When he had been younger, or at least looked younger, Spike would have had no problems at all with joining them for the evening if they had invited him, but after the growth spurt that he'd gone through around his seventeenth birthday three years ago, Spike had decided that it would look just a little bit strange if an unattached young stallion, or in his case dragon, spent the night with six young unattached mares. Twilight and the girls were understanding, but insisted on some occasions that he join them, if not just for part of the evening. Tonight had been one of those nights, and Spike had enjoyed himself. The group had talked of work, play, playful work, politics, and just about anything else that came to mind while Pinkie Pie dominated the group at Monoponly. It wasn't until about midnight that one by one, everyone had retired to bed, until only Spike remained awake.
He took a deep breath, enjoying the fresh night air, and turning his mind to the reason he couldn't fall asleep: Rarity. Over the past few months he'd slowly toned down the amount of public affection and servitude he showed to her, not clearing his schedule at a moments notice to help her with her shopping or some dress order, but he did try his hardest to be helpful when he could. He'd come to the realization that she probably didn't feel anything back and elected to just try to be her friend. Tonight had been no different in his mind as to how he treated her, but she seemed to look away every time he looked her way and acted distracted when he talked to her. It just felt so off, and Spike had no idea what might be causing her to act so distant. Even as he'd begun to try to be just a friend, she'd not changed her actions at all, and why should she? Spike shook his head. He had no idea what was going on.
He heard the balcony door open and turned, surprised that someone was still awake besides himself. He was greeted with the sight of the mare on his mind, clad in silk purple pyjamas. The startled look on her face implied that she hadn't thought anyone else was up. She gave a weak smile.
"Erm, Spike. What are you still doing up?"
He gave her a soft smile, trying to ignore just how good she looked in her pyjamas. "I couldn't sleep, and I figured that some fresh air might be what I needed." He wasn't really lying, he couldn't sleep and he had thought that some fresh air might clear his mind. "What about you? You were the first one off to bed tonight."
If it was possible for Rarity to become any paler a shade, Spike was almost positive that she would've. "I... Well, that is... I, ah..." She closed her eyes and clenched her fists taking a deep breath. "I've got a lot on my mind right now, and I thought it would be nice to get some air." She tried to smile again, but her face seemed to reject the idea, and she instead looked as if she had just eaten a salad composed of lemons and salsa, a face spike had seen only once before when Twilight had eaten a lemon salsa salad.
Ok, now she was really acting weird. "Are you ok Rarity? You've been acting strangely all evening." Spike asked, concern seeping into his voice.
Rarity flinched. "Oh? I, um, I hadn't noticed."
Spike frowned. "Come on Rarity, talk to me."
She scrunched her face up and looked away before sighing. When she spoke, her voice was soft and defeated. "Alright." She walked over to the balcony and looked out at the night sky, glancing at Spike out of the corner of her eye. "Have... Have you been avoiding me over the past few months?"
Spike was taken aback. "Uh, no? Why would you think I was avoiding you?"
Now Spike was really confused.
Rarity twirled a lock of her mane with a finger. "It's just that I've been seeing less and less of you. We used to spend everyday together, and then you started to be 'busy' every few days or so. Days became weeks, and..." She paused, her voice catching in her throat. "Did I do something to make you hate me?" Her voice almost cracked and there were hints at tears near the edge of her eyes.
Spike looked at Rarity, horrified. "No way Rarity! I... I just thought you might want some time to yourself." He rubbed his right arm nervously. "I felt that I'd been really, uh, overbearing and I just thought that it would be a good idea to ease up on how much time I spent around you." Now it was his turn to give a weak smile.
"Why on earth would you think that?!" Rarity's voice rose, and tears welled in her eyes. "I always asked if you wanted to spend time with me. What would lead you to believe I didn't want to spend time with you?"
"I...I..." Spike blinked, surprised. He'd never actually thought about the fact that it was indeed Rarity who instigated much of the time they spent together. He'd always attributed it to her need for someone stronger than their other friends to do the physical tasks she couldn't, but now that he thought about it, Rarity did just as much heavy lifting with her magic as he did with brute strength whenever they worked on things. "I don't know." He hung his head, ashamed to admit that he hadn't really given his actions much thought. "I just made an assumption, and I guess I shouldn't have."
Rarity crossed her arms and hugged them to her chest, a frown on her face. "And just what did you assume? That I didn't want one of my closest friends around?"
Spike sighed, and resigned himself to his next sentence. "No, what I assumed was that you and I couldn't be anything more than friends, and I didn't want to hurt myself, or you for that matter, so I stepped a bit back, so we could just be friends."
Rarity looked at spike, confusion masking her face. "Spike, what are you saying? What do you mean by more than friends?"
Spike gave a small chuckle. "You of all people need it explained to them... That's kinda funny." He shook his head. "Rarity, I'm in love with you, and I have been since I met you. You are one of the most beautiful ponies I know, both internally and externally. I love the way that you are and I've been to much of a coward to tell you." He let out a sigh, a weight settling in his gut, a burden lifting from his shoulders. It didn't matter what she said, he'd finally told her. "I just figured that you didn't and probably couldn't feel the same way about me." He gave a small, sad smile.
Rarity looked at spike, tears streaming steadily from her eyes. "Oh Spike." Her voice wasn't mush louder than a whisper. "Why didn't you tell me sooner?" She grabbed him by the collar of his t-shirt and pulled him down to her height, pushing her lips on his. Spike's eyes shot wide open and he flailed his arms for a few seconds before Rarity broke the kiss.
Spike's mind was racing at a mile a minute and the only thing he was able to vocalize was a surprised "Wha?" as his other mental functions shit down.
Rarity put a hand to her lips and giggled before wiping the tears from her eyes. "Did I break you darling?"
Spike nodded hesitantly. "yes? What in equestria was that?"
Rarity gave Spike a seductive smile and leaned closer to him. "Just a little something to let you know that I share your feelings."
Spike cocked his head to one side, much like a puzzled dog, looking at Rarity in confusion. "Oh?" His eyes widened. "Oh." His pupils dilated. "Oh!"
Rarity laughed and wrapped her arms around the surprised dragon, burrowing her face into his chest. "Honestly Spikey, don't ever change."
All Spike could do was sputter. "Bu... Wha...how... When did you...?"
Rarity smiled as she nuzzled his chest, enjoying the warmth that the dragon emitted. "Fall in love with you? About a year or so after you and twilight moved to ponyville." She sighed. "I just didn't say anything. What was I supposed to do? Say that I was in love with someone who everyone revered as a child? That wouldn't have been fair to us. So I waited, and then when you turned seventeen, I finally could try and ask you out." She paused and looked away. "Except..."
Spike realized exactly what she was thinking. "If you out of the blue asked me out, it would just look like you were after the 'new' me."
Rarity nodded, tight lipped. "Exactly. I've been trying to find a way to talk to you since, but..." She sighed and looked at the ground. "I've been very nervous about it."
Spike grinned and lifted Rarity's chin with a claw. "Hey. Now you don't have to be nervous, right?"
Rarity laughed and gave Spike a quick peck on the lips. "No, now I don't have to be nervous."
The two stood together, just enjoying their embrace, looking into each other's eyes. After a while Rarity gave a small yawn.
Spike raised an eyebrow. "Tired?"
Rarity gave a small giggle. "Quite. Now that I no longer have anything weighing on my mind, I'm actually quite ready to sleep." She gave a yelp of surprise as Spike swept her off her feet and began to make his way to the balcony doors. "Oh my! Spikey!"
He grinned at rarity. "Yes?"
Rarity shook her head. "Never mind." She gave spike a kiss on the cheek.
Spike shrugged. "Alright."
The two retreated into the depths of the castle, unaware of two ponies perched in a tree, who had been watching the entire episode unfold.
"What did I tell you my niece? All it took was a little cooperation to get them together."
Prices Cadence smiled at her aunt, the princess of the night. "You were right. Thanks for your help auntie Luna."
Luna grinned. "Anything for my niece. Though I must say that this was long overdue. Now run along, your husband is missing you." She winked at Cadence, who blushed at her aunt's suggestion.
The alicorns departed, leaving behind a happy new beginning, one that most certainly was meant to be.
The End
Author's Note
Hey guys, long time no write. I hope you enjoyed this little piece of writing that was kicking around my noggin.
