Friendship Born in Canterlot

How long has it been? Rarity couldn’t help but wonder as she stared out the window from Carousel Boutique. Ever since that memorable vacation in Canterlot all those years ago, Rarity had managed to find the confidence in herself to carry on and it had played out all the better for her. Standing up for herself, with the letters from Spike and Twilight supporting her, Rarity managed to face her tormentors head on. Caught off guard by her bravery, the foals had since learned to back off. From there, Rarity had thrown herself into her fashions with an almost manic fervor and when other ponies noticed, and they did notice, they’d come to see it in a new light: a positive light.

After completing her education, her parents had surprised the young mare with her own shop. Naturally from its appearance, she’d dubbed it Carousel Boutique and now Rarity was getting commissions for her work.

And that was to say nothing of the gems that she’d added to her dresses: how they made everything look all the more dazzling. She couldn’t help but picture Spike’s mouthwatering grin as he stared at one such dress, wanting nothing more than to it strip dry of its delicious gem morsels.

Shaking her head to shake away the mental image, Rarity reflected on how far she’d come. As she glanced up at the sky, her heart jumped up into her throat as she realized what time it was.

I’m late! I’m here when I need to be at Town Hall to decorate for the Summer Sun celebration! She panicked as she snatched up all her materials in her magic before rushing out of her shop, slamming the door shut in her haste. I can’t believe I lost track of time! That never happens! I can’t afford to let anybody think that I’m slacking off!

Normal noble etiquette dictated that a trot was the only acceptable pace at which to travel by hoof and normally, Rarity would eat, drink, and breathe by these rules. However, when she was in a hurry, those rules could jump in a lake.

I do hope that the inspector hasn’t arrived yet. It’d be poor taste to let them think that I wasn’t hard at work, making sure the celebration turns out stunning! Rarity’s gallop has since slowed to a brisk trot. A cursory glance at a nearby window told her that she still looked good even after a frantic run.

Breathing a sigh of relief, she stepped inside. There was work to be done after all.

* * *

Twilight scowled as she leaned her head on the side of the chariot as she listened to Spike read Princess Celestia’s letter:

My dear Twilight,

There is more to a young pony’s life than studying, so I’m sending you to supervise the preparations for the Summer Sun Celebration in this year’s location: Ponyville. And I have an even more essential task for you to complete: make some friends!

Twilight could just tell that Spike had enjoyed reading that letter just a little too much. She would have loved nothing more than to snap back with some manner of retort but held her tongue. It wasn’t Spike’s fault that things played out the way they had: he was just helping her out as her assistant. Still, there was one silver lining: at least that Ponyville seemed less loud than Canterlot tended to be.

Letting a sigh pass through her nose, a little something Cadance had taught her whenever she lost her cool, Twilight refocused on the letter and brightened at the thought of being able to live in a library. It was a dream come true for Twilight. Even if the library wasn’t anywhere near as extensive as Canterlot’s research library. Still, she’d need to get through the preparations as quickly as she could so that she could go back to do what she loved:

Reading!

“Hold on tight you two! We’re about to land!” The guards informed her as the latched onto each other and to the side of the chariot as the two stallions banked in to land in the center of town.

The two hopped out of the chariot as it slowed to a stop. Twilight uttered a thank you to the stallions who puffed their chests out before taking off back to Canterlot.

“Well…” Twilight sighed as she hefted her saddlebags onto her back before pulling out the checklist with her magic which she she then passed to Spike. “We might as well get started…”

Spike nodded as he accepted the parchment and the quill. As the duo walked leisurely through the town, a thought occurred to him.

Didn’t Rarity mention something about living in Ponyville? He was fairly certain that the topic had come up when she'd visited last. Nonetheless, the thought put a spring in his step as he kept pace with Twilight.

* * *

Rarity had been so focused on getting Town Hall ready that she hadn’t even noticed the door open and two figures walk inside. She’d only vaguely heard something about lists and decorations. Were it not for the fact that she was so focused on making sure everything turned out beautifully, she would have swelled in pride at the compliment of her decorations being labelled as beautiful.

“Yes, the decor is coming along nicely,” she’d heard a feminine voice note approvingly. “This outta be quick. We’ll be at the library in no time.”

“Not just the decorations.” This one struck her as more masculine… and more than a little familiar but the unspoken meaning behind his words was clear. Rarity quickly knotted the ribbon into an elegant knot around the pillar before turning to greet the two visitors.

And almost immediately her jaw dropped to the floor.

“S-Spike!” she stammered out, taken aback. Twilight and Spike were equally taken aback before Spike’s eyes lit up in recognition. While it had been years since that fateful vacation in Canterlot and talking through the journal was all well and good, there was nothing quite like a face to face reunion. This was facilitated as Rarity pulled Spike into a hug before flashing a smile at Twilight.

“It’s so good to see you both!” she gushed enthusiastically. “So what brings you two to Ponyville? You’re just in time for the Summer Sun Celebration!”

“Well that’s the thing, Rarity,” Spike started to explain.

“Princess Celestia asked Spike and I to supervise preparations,” Twilight finished. “And I have to say, the decorations are beautiful.”

Rarity allowed a girlish giggle to pass through her mouth as Spike nodded eagerly in agreement. It was at this point that her giggle turned into a gasp as she caught sight of Twilight’s mane. The lavender unicorn explained her run in with Rainbow Dash while checking on the weather. Rarity patted Twilight’s back sympathetically; she’d lost count of how many times her coat and mane had been ruined because of Rainbow’s antics.

“Why don’t you let me fix it for you?” Twilight was about to protest until she saw that look in her eye. It was scarily similar to one that Princess Celestia used when suggesting that Twilight take a break from her studies.

I’m not negotiating on this.

Far be it for me to refuse. Twilight thought as she fell into step behind Rarity as she led the way back to her boutique. Besides, she cast a look as Rarity and Spike talked animatedly about something or other. They haven’t seen each other in years. It’d been mean of me to not let Spike catch up. I can do the research on my own for a bit.

* * *

As it turned out, the world seemed to take particular pleasure in making Twilight’s life difficult. This was proven by the fact that an hour after Rarity had styled her mane back into her preferred style (after a vehement argument broke out about shaking things up), they were still at the boutique.

Twilight huffed out a sigh as she watched Spike recounting something he’d been doing in Canterlot while she was busy with her lessons with Princess Celestia. She’d blinked at her unfamiliarity with the story but had long since tuned it out in favor of her own musings. How was she going to get any time in to study before the sun went down?

Twilight was genuinely considering simply sneaking out while Rarity was distracted by talking to Spike. As she watched Spike talk with Rarity, it was sounding like a better idea by the minute but there was still a piece of her mind that pointed out that Spike was her responsibility.

Then it occurred to her…

“Spike we still have to check on the music!” Rarity’s front door could not have swung open fast enough as Twilight nearly gave Rarity an unwelcome doorway. Spike and Rarity stared at the open door before glancing at each other.

“Um… I should probably go after her,” Spike sighed, picking up the list.

“Well… if that’s the case, I’ll see you later,” Rarity smiled and hugged him one last time. Before he left, she gave him a suggestion about where to look for the pony in charge of the music.

With a smile and a nod, Spike waved before running down the street.

Making sure that no one else was around, Rarity turned around and called, “Pinkie!”

As though calling her was a means of summoning, the pink mare appeared behind her, catching the mare off guard. The fashionista quickly regained her composure and said, “About that party you were planning at the library…”

* * *

Spike had found Twilight not long after as she watched the lemon coated pegasus conduct her birds in a sort of nature choir. Both the young dragon and the pony were genuinely impressed by her skill and even applauded her, catching her off guard. Twilight had introduced herself to the pegasus by only got a mumbled reply.

However, this quickly changed when she spotted Spike appear from behind the bush. Her eyes lit up excitedly at the sight of him as she began to pelt him with questions. Twilight had been quick to intervene as she led the way back to the library while Spike gave the pegasus, Fluttershy, an abridged version of his life story.

Twilight pointedly ended the conversation when they arrived at the library. She’d explained that they’d be staying there during the celebration and that they wanted to get as much rest as they could before the celebration began. Especially if what few rumors she’d heard about Pinkie Pie were true…

Fluttershy had been understanding and waved goodbye as she flew away.

* * *

It had been a long day… night? Spike didn’t even know anymore as he kneeled down along with the others as Twilight and her new friends took down Nightmare Moon and brought back Princess Luna. They’d watched with bated breath as Princess Celestia returned, silently neck hugging Twilight and nuzzling Spike.

The battle with Nightmare Moon herself had been… actually, it had been more than a little underwhelming actually. Calling it a battle at all was being generous. Like cut off your tail to help a sea serpent level generous. There were the challenges they had to face to reach the Castle of the Two Sisters and those were far more interesting to say the least. While the dark coated mare did everything her power to crush their dreams, even going so far as to destroy the stones that were the elements, Spike decided he could do better.

Having a lot of hot sauce in his system also helped. While she was goading to Twilight about how she would rule with eternal night, Spike snuck behind her, flashed a mischievous grin at Rarity who stared back, wide eyed as it dawned on her what was about to happen.

Almost on command, Spike let out an enormous belch complete with searing green flames. Said green flames made contact with Nightmare Moon’s tail. It was to her credit that she hadn’t even noticed the smell of burning fur or tail until a second after Spike returned to Twilight’s side where she covered him with her tail.

She liked Spike a little too much to let Nightmare Moon imprison him after all.

They all waited a few seconds as they watched Nightmare Moon suddenly realize that something was burning and said something was her. In the time that it took her to realize this, Twilight and the others had the friendship epiphany which allowed them wield their respective elements of harmony.

Spike couldn’t quite help but let out a whoop as Nightmare Moon took a rainbow to the face.

Which brings us to now…

Princess Celestia had extended her hoof out in friendship to her long lost younger sister, Princess Luna, who’d eagerly embraced the opportunity as they watched the two sisters hug.

Which brings us to the party… It was a veritable mash of mayhem. From there, Twilight and Spike surprised everyone, including Princess Celestia when she learned that the pair desired to stay in Ponyville. Rarity had been especially delighted by this news: she’d get to rekindle her friendship with Spike!

The oldest mare in Equestria was silent for a moment but then said, “Spike take a note.”

“I, Princess Celestia, hereby decree that the unicorn Twilight Sparkle and the young dragon Spike shall take on a new mission for Equestria. She must continue to study the magic of friendship and must report to me their findings in their new home in Ponyville.”

Once Spike had finished, Celestia signed and proclaimed in done. There was a loud cheer of ponies as the Summer Sun Celebration commenced.

Rarity looked on with a smile.

Things were looking brighter than ever now.