Starlight felt a jolt of electricity course through her body with every playful bite Spike gave to her neck.

“Spiiiiiike… stop it,” she said, with no real seriousness in her voice.

The dragon paid no mind to her complaints, and kept tending to her with a series of hungry, yet love-fueled nips at her coat. “I’ll stop when you want me to stop,” he said in a whisper, just strong enough so Starlight could feel his hot breath against her coat, sending shivers through her body.

Her only response was a few whimpers of delight, which only made the dragon press on. His claws rose up to her hips and pulled her closer to him, burying his snout into the fluffy fur of her chest.

Starlight drew in a sharp breath, any words of either objection or encouragement drowned by his sudden boldness. He took her lack of reply as an invitation to keep going, planting a soft, tender kiss in the middle of her chest. The light pressure and slight dampness against her coat clouded her thoughts and threatened to drive her crazy. Before she had the chance to fully process the sensations Spike’s actions sparked in her mind, though, her dragon planted another kiss on her chest… only lower this time.

A dozen different thoughts rushed through her mind, although none of them were requests for him to stop. She raised a trembling hoof towards his head, and gently caressed the scaly base of his skull, tracing the edges of his spines as she did so, in a motion that invited him to keep going.

Spike acquiesced, and giving her fur another gentle tug with his lips, he kept moving downwards.

Starlight looked up at the ceiling as her heart matched the speed at which many colorful thoughts crossed her mind. Her cheeks reddened and her breath came in short, desperate bursts. Her reaction only served to strengthen Spike’s resolve as he kissed his way down her stomach, threatening to make her melt in delight.

A surprised yelp escaped her mouth and her back arched in ecstasy as she felt Spike’s lips brushing against her nipples.

“Hmmm?” Spike asked her with a deep, slurred drawl in his voice, making his lips vibrate against her sensitive skin.

“D-don’t…” She managed to let out in between weak gasps for air. Spike paused for the briefest of moments as he looked up at her. Between flustered gasps of air, she looked back at him with a stare that conveyed a single emotion.

Lust.

“Don’t stop,” she whispered.

Spike was happy to oblige. He buried his snout even further down as his claws held her backside tightly, keeping her in place, pressing and pinching her gently but strong enough to get a reaction out of her.

A laboured breath made its way through her lips before letting herself get lost in the waves of pleasure. Starlight felt beside herself as Spike continued to caress her body, showering her in affection from her nethers, to her flanks and backside, even to her head.

…Wait.

Head?

She opened her eyes, blinking away the haze from her mind as though she was removing a silk blindfold. It wasn’t long before she spotted a furry blue hand scratching her behind her ears, and the massive figure to whom it belonged.

“You have a luscious mane worthy of the gods, my dear. The best I’ve seen this side of the Marengeti,” Ahuizotl said in a seductive tone.

“You’ve always been a charmer, Ahuizotl,” Daring Do said from her spot lying opposite to the creature, “but you do have a beautiful mane, have you thought about styling it into bangs?”

Starlight, for her part, was too busy trying to understand what was happening.

“Don’t listen to her, Star,” Spike said, looking as small and round-faced as when she had first met him, as he rested his head on her stomach, “I love your mane just the way it is.”

Just as Twilight had taught her to do when dealing with stressing situations, Starlight closed her eyes and took a slow, deep breath in hopes of calming her probably-severely-damaged mind. Then, she took another one, and one more after that for good measure.

This clearly isn’t working, she thought, time for plan ‘B’.

Deeming it an appropriate course of action, Starlight let out a shrill scream. This appeared to do the trick, as the shock was enough to wake her up. Starlight panted as she laid in her bed, staring at the ceiling. The events of her dream had felt so incredibly real, and she couldn’t help but wonder how that particular oneiric narrative might have played out had it not been for the odd turn it took near the end.

It seemed yesterday’s… events had a bigger impact on her than she initially thought. The mere idea of Spike and her holding each other, their bodies in direct contact, the fire in the dragon’s eyes, they all were enough to to make her blood rush to her face, as well to other parts of her body.

She heaved a drawn out sigh born of annoyance and, perhaps, a little bit of pent up arousal. A glance at the clock on the wall let her know how early it was, barely seven o’clock. If anything, she was grateful she went to bed early last night since she would otherwise had to add drowsiness to her anxiety. No, right now, Starlight was perfectly lucid and well-rested—if a bit disheveled—which meant that she was quite capable of thinking about the past day with complete clarity.

After the near miss at their movie night, they thought it wise to bring in another couch, lest they risked their desires get the better of them, and spend the rest of their evening burning through some more of the Daring Do movies.

Her eyes narrowed.

Why did pegasi call them near misses, anyway? That almost made it sound as if the opposite happened. Two flyers got careless, flew too close to one another and crashed. Look, they nearly missed! Yes, but not quite. She supposed it could actually refer to how near both flyers were when they missed, but wouldn’t it make more sense to call it a close miss in that case? However, that still carried the same issue. This required further examination; perhaps there were a few dictionaries that could shed some light on—

Just then, thunder roared outside of the castle, as though it meant to interrupt Starlight’s inconsequential train of thought. She twisted under the covers to get a better look at the outside world from the confines of her bed. The limited field of view offered by her window was just enough to show the dark, gloomy clouds that covered the Ponyville sky.

It sure is starting to feel like autumn, Starlight thought. Not that she minded, though; for as lovely as summer was, she’d always preferred the coldness that encouraged you to stay at home with a hot beverage. Plus, hot showers beat cold showers any season of the year.

Speaking of which, seeing how she was awake, she might as well start her day. Yeah, a hot shower, then she’d check if Spike was already awake—although knowing him, he was already up and making breakfast—and afterwards she’d see if she could get some reading done.

And perhaps move laundry day forward a couple of days, she thought as she noticed that the blankets were perhaps not as dry as they had been the night before. With a disgruntled groan she disentangled herself from the mess of covers, and pulled them from the mattress without thinking twice.

Soon enough, Starlight found herself under a more than welcome hot stream of water that did wonders for her aching body and matted fur. She absentmindedly went through the process of cleaning herself as her mind wandered back to the affairs of the previous days, and made a disapproving sound as a reprimand to her brain for that choice of words. There was an air of aloofness to her motions as she moved, barely paying any mind to her actions, letting her muscle memory take over the labour of washing her body so she could focus on other, more important issues—or rather, the one issue. The one remaining issue in Starlight’s mind, the one hurdle to cross before she could bask in the relationship she was building with Spike.

Physical intimacy.

You could simply admit you want to have sex with Spike and stop getting worked up over nothing, the nagging voice in her head said, apparently awakened by her introspective tirade. How can you expect to be honest with him if you aren’t being honest with yourself?

Her sigh was barely audible over the sound of the falling water. While she couldn’t deny the voice had a point, she couldn’t remember anypony ever saying that listening to voices in your head was a commendable course of action.

Regardless of budding psychological disorders, Starlight had to admit it was a topic that still made her somewhat uncomfortable. The “talking about it with Spike” part, of course; definitely not the part about, uh, physical intimacy. There was nothing to worry about in that department, after all. Even if there was a problem, she was sure they could work things out. They were a couple now, after all, working through issues is what couples do, right?

Right?

The voice had gone quiet now, which didn’t go unnoticed by the annoyed unicorn. Not that its opinion mattered anyway, Starlight had decided to do the responsible thing and talk with Spike.

With a satisfied smile, she rinsed off the leftover soap from her coat and hopped out of the shower. After a quick rubdown with a towel—and a liberal application of anti-frizz cream to her mane—Starlight looked at herself in the mirror.

She was going to go down, have breakfast, talk with Spike, and have a great day all around, and there was nothing anyone could do about it.

With a satisfied huff, Starlight took out her green and purple toothbrush, and paused while staring at it. She was glad the voice was gone, since the last thing she needed was a sarcastic remark. Then again, there was not much else to comment besides how she was going to be sliding a Spike shaped stick in and out of her mouth for a few minutes.

She blinked.

Wow, she wanted it badly.

An uncomfortably hot toothbrushing session later, she made her way through the castle corridors on the familiar path to the kitchen.

The day had a gray tint to it, no doubt due to the dark clouds that covered the sky. She was struggling to remember the exact purpose of the heavy downpour the weather team had scheduled for the next couple of days, but she didn’t care. After all, it served as a perfectly reasonable excuse to stay snuggled up at home.

With a light laugh and a spring to her step, Starlight entered the kitchen, where she was greeted by the smell of grilled vegetables and a dragon hard at work.

“Hey there, Star. Good to see you’re up.” Spike put down the knife he was using, and turned around to face her. In doing so, his pink apron gave a little twirl, made all the more noticeable by the vibrant frills it had on its edges. No matter how many times she saw it, the sight didn’t become any less adorable. Odd, sure, but endearing nevertheless.

“I was going to check on you in a while, but I see you beat me to it,” he said with a smile that Starlight was happy to return.

“It’s kind of hard to sleep in, considering we called it a day pretty early last night. Early to bed, early to rise and whatnot.”

“I’m sure Applejack will back you up on that,” he said.

Starlight’s smile morphed into an amused grin. She moved next to the dragon, pausing for a moment to give him a quick peck on his cheek.

“What are you making?” she asked him without giving him a chance to react. She could see Spike rubbing the spot she had kissed, lost in the brief sensation of her lips against his scales, before snapping back to reality.

“After we got stuffed with popcorn last night, I thought about going for something lighter, so I’m making tartines.” When he saw Starlight’s arched eyebrow, he let out a short chuckle and added, “Which is just a fancy name for an open face sandwich.”

“If I didn’t know better, I would think all this haute cuisine business is getting to your head,” she said, giving him a playful nudge.

“Hey, I only call it that because saying ‘open face sandwich’ over and over gets tiring,” he replied.

“And here I thought you just wanted to impress me,” Starlight said.

“While I won’t deny that’s a partial motive, it’s far from the only one. But anyway, would you like to help me cook?” Spike asked her, picking up the knife again.

She looked around the counter. There was a plate with shredded vegetables, including some of her favourites: carrots, celery, artichoke hearts, a few peppers, and a small assortment of flowers. It was nice gesture, considering Spike wasn’t keen on the taste of amaranth and chrysanthemums.

“I’d love to,” she said in an earnest tone.

Spike pushed a stone mortar with a few cloves of garlic in it. “Get to work on the aioli. Just add mayo and lemon zest and mix until it’s uniform.”

With a nod, she set out to follow his instructions. She very much enjoyed herself; as with many different activities she’d come to find enjoyable since her arrival at Ponyville all those years ago, Starlight found a measure of satisfaction whenever she cooked with Spike. Though she had to wonder if she’d find the activity as gratifying if she were to cook on her own. It was a theory to consider, maybe she could try to cook something for Spike someday.

The thought of lying in bed with Spike, a bowl of chocolate covered strawberries, and several tubs of ice cream assaulted her mind like a pack of ravenous parasprites.

“Is the aioli done? I want to toss the salad” Spike said.

“Bwuh-huh…?” Starlight replied.

“Are you alright, Star?”

“Uh… Yes, yes. I was just, uh, thinking about what to do next,” she lied as she filed the thoughts of food and cuddling away for later analysis.

“You seem to be done,” Spike said, eyeing the mesh Starlight was working on, “I’ll toast the bread and serve it up.”

“Lightly charred for me.” She took a step back to let the dragon work . A soft whistling sound coming from the kettle let her know the water was reaching boiling point.

As she filled the strainer with tea leaves, cinnamon, and cloves, Starlight couldn’t help but notice how different the mood was from how it had been the previous morning. Gone was the uneasy feeling of apprehension that permeated the air, replaced by a warm sensation brought by the comfort of their company. She could get used to it. She wanted to get used to it.

“And… done.” Spike had a dramatic flair when he cooked that he didn’t show anywhere else. She wished she could see that side of him more often.

The tartine looked beautiful, the shredded vegetables were a splash of colour on top of the white aioli spread over the warm, crunchy toast. There was no doubt in Starlight’s mind that it would taste just as good as it looked.

The weather was less than ideal to eat outdoors today, so they settled for the small table where they had shared their midnight snack only two nights ago. They sat and ate in silence, with nothing but the hammering of the rain against the windows and the occasional shared thought to break the stillness in which they found themselves absorbed.

For her part, she didn’t mind the silence. She found genuine comfort in knowing she didn’t have to force small talk to fill the lulls in conversation, but that Spike would be willing to listen if she did have something to say.

Once again, Starlight had to wonder whether or not this was a good thing. From her point of view there was nothing wrong with sharing a moment of silence but she hadn’t stopped to think if Spike was okay with it. It was true he didn’t seem to be bothered by it if his sporadic smiling and content expression as he ate was anything to go by, but perhaps she shouldn’t settle for contentment. Perhaps there was something she could do to know for sure.

Like talking about this with him instead of with yourself, just to mention one thing, the voice in her mind chided her.

She tried not to roll her eyes at her conscience’s remark, though lately refuting what it said was starting to get harder.

“So…” she said, breaking the silence. Spike looked straight at her, eager to listen to what she had to say. “The tartine tastes great.”

You should be ashamed of yourself, Starlight.

“Heh… glad you like it,” Spike replied with a satisfied smirk plastered across his face.

At that moment, Starlight didn’t need her conscience’s help to chastise herself for not thinking of what to say to Spike. How does one bring up the topic of sex? Sure, there shouldn’t be anything to be ashamed of, but still. She felt… weird when trying to bring herself to talk about it. Should she drop the bomb just like that and hope it all works out? The last time she let her mouth get the better of her sure worked out, but she didn’t want to make a habit out of it. She somehow knew words wouldn’t flow as easily as they did yesterday if she tried to talk about it again, though.

Starlight gave a subtle eye roll before taking another bite of the tartine, chewing as slowly as possible, as if to buy herself as much time as possible before she had to say something.

Oh, yeah. You were more than comfortable with saying you should wait, but twelve hours later you’re already starting to get cold hooves, she thought to herself, and did her best to avoid letting out a disgruntled scoff.

Why was she acting like this? She was better than this, she was Starlight Glimmer, student of Princess Twilight, saviour of Equestria, and a self-made mare, why was she behaving like a teenager afraid of messing up with her first coltfriend?

Maybe because he technically is your—

“Spike,” Starlight said, with perhaps a bit too much eagerness in her tone.

“Uh, yeah?” Spike seemed startled by the sudden outburst. “Is everything alright? Do you want more aioli in your tartine? I think there was some left over.”

“No, no. The tartine is delicious, I’m… I…” Out with it already. “I just wanted to talk about yesterday.”

Spike’s look of confusion was quickly replaced by one of understanding, and just as quickly by one of slight worry. “Oh… You mean about, uh, making love?”

Starlight couldn’t stop a smile from spreading over her face as she heard the nervous edge in the dragon’s voice as he spoke those last words. She felt a bit guilty at finding solace in her partner's distress, but she took it as a sign he had been thinking about it as well. “Yes… About that.”

Now that she had finally pushed herself to say it out loud, she found that it wasn’t as bad as she thought. She wanted to scream a little bit and run away, yes, but not as much as she thought she would.

“Sorry, it’s just that I’ve been thinking about it a lot since yesterday and, I assure you that I was being honest when I said I wouldn’t be against it.” She levitated their plates aside, and extended a tentative hoof towards him, an action which the dragon was keen on returning. The gentle strokes of his claws against her fur gave her a sense of calm, something to serve as an anchor as she tried to navigate the maelstrom-filled waters of her mind.

Less poetry, more talking, an errant voice said.

“And I don’t think we should rush it, either. I… I want it to be special,” she finished with a shy smile, barely a curve of the edges of her mouth. The ball was in Spike’s court now.

“I want it to be special too, Star. For both of us, I think we deserve that.” The dragon was smiling, as well. Not a wide grin, but one that spoke of understanding and shared feelings.

Which made it all the harder to push forward, knowing that she ran the risk of accidentally hurting him. But if they were going to make this relationship work, it was going to require effort and sacrifice. If he… If either of them got hurt, then they still had each other. They’d find a way to make things work.

“We deserve that and much more, Spike…” Starlight felt as though she had to forcibly pull each word from deep inside of her. She knew this was something that would only get harder to talk about the longer she put it off. “Which is why I’ve got to be honest with you.”

There it was, that flicker of doubt in his eyes which soon spread to his face. “What do you mean, Star?”

She had to appreciate the firmness in his voice. Despite giving him a stereotypical ‘We have to talk’ speech, he was managing to keep his composure.

She hoped she could do the same.

“I meant every word I said, Spike. I like you, a lot. And it makes me incredibly happy to know that you like me too,” she said in an earnest tone.

“And I assume here’s where the ‘but’ comes into play,” Spike said, his voice carrying a small hint of apprehension.

“It is…” Starlight said. Her voice trailing off as the admittance settled in.

You’re doing great, Starlight. Just let it all out. She wasn’t sure if that was her conscience speaking or her own inner thoughts, but at this point trying to tell them apart was pointless. She could only keep going.

“The feelings I have for you… They aren’t what you’d call ‘recent,’” she said, hoping that Spike would catch the meaning of her words. Which wasn’t the case, if his blank stare was any indication.

Starlight cleared her throat, though that only seemed to increase the heat rising in her face.

“W-what I’m trying to say, Spike, is that while I’ve only recently come to realise just how deep my feelings for you run, the truth is I’ve had them for quite some time, even if I didn’t recognise them for what they were…” she trailed off once again, silently begging that he would understand what she mean, if only so she wouldn’t have to spell it out for him.

Which, if Spike’s look of utter expressionless was anything to go by, she would have to do after all.

If it turns out he’s just messing with me, I swear to Celestia I’ll make him pay.

“Spike?”

Those words broke the dragon from whatever reverie he had found himself trapped in.

“How long are we talking about?”

“I couldn’t say for sure when I started to think of you as more than just a friend, but… It was definitely since before you were eighteen.”

It was out now, her secret shame. To call it that was perhaps a bit exaggerated, if not outright melodramatic, but the feeling of being honest with herself and with Spike was refreshing. With a sigh, she resigned herself to wait for what—

“Oh.”

There was no hurt in his voice. No sign of discomfort or shock. No hint of discontent nor bewilderment. He sounded as calm as if she had told him they had run out of sugar.

I know I was being overly dramatic, but what’s with the nonchalance?

“That’s better than what I expected,” he said, a note of relief evident in his tone.

“Wha—Better? What do you mean ‘better’? How’s that better?” Starlight’s nervousness had faded almost entirely, leaving room only for confusion.

Spike’s eyes wandered around the room, as though the kitchen had suddenly become more eye-catching than her. “Maybe ‘better’ isn’t the best way of putting it. What I mean is that… Well, I was worried that if you were to have second thoughts it would be, I don’t know, because I’m a dragon, or something like that.”

That… wasn’t something Starlight had considered.

“Why would you think that, Spike?”

The dragon gave a half-hearted shrug. Just a quick rise and drop of his shoulders. “I don’t… I don’t know. Part of me still is somewhat surprised that you like me. I guess it’s kind of hard to wrap my mind around it all.”

Starlight was silent.

“I mean, don’t get me wrong, Star. You’re pretty great, the idea of us being a couple is exciting, but it makes me a bit nervous, too.” The dragon paused as he took a deep breath. “I like you, I really do. I want this to work between us, so… I guess I’m just afraid I’m not going to be good enough, or that I may mess up somehow… I mean, I can imagine it must be weird to be with someone who isn't a pony, too.”

For a brief moment, the incessant pattering of the rain was the only sound breaking the silence between the two. Starlight bit her lip as she mulled over Spike’s words. She didn’t know what to say at the moment, though her inner voice didn’t seem to share that issue.

Such a great marefriend you’re turning out to be.

Ever since her confession a few nights ago, Starlight had spent so much time wrapped up in her own thoughts, in her own insecurities, she hadn’t really stopped to think that Spike must have been dealing with his own share of self-doubt about this whole issue. If it was anything like what she’d been through… the thought alone made her feel worse about clamming up her feelings.

“Uh… Star?”

“I can’t say that bothers me in the least.” The words came out of her so easily it surprised even herself, though deep down she knew them to be true. ”Through all the time we’ve known each other, you being a dragon hasn’t been an issue in our friendship. It’s just part of who you are, isn’t it?”

It was true, it really hadn’t been an issue. She had never thought of Spike as a dragon first and foremost, but rather as a friend—her friend—and as time went on, as something more.

“I guess it is…” Spike conceded, and a tension Starlight hadn’t noticed before seemed to lift from him.

“We’re friends. We’ve laughed, we’ve cried, we’ve driven Twilight crazy on multiple occasions, we’ve gone on adventures, we’ve done so many things together, and I can’t think of a single moment where you being a dragon mattered to me,” Starlight spoke with a confidence that had eluded her for the past couple of days, but at that moment it was as though it had never left her.

Spike was frozen in place, his eyes flashing with that loveable emerald flame that gave her a glimpse into the volley of emotions that were going through his mind.

“I fell for who you are on the inside, Spike,” Starlight said, her voice and gaze mellowing as she stared at the dragon, “and that wouldn’t change if you were a dragon, a pony, or anything else.”

Or whether or not he was of legal age when you fell for him, a voice added.

She didn’t bother silencing the voice, she knew it was right. Her feelings for Spike didn’t change because he may have been young when she started to like him. She liked him now, and that was all that should matter to them or to anypony else, and if they dared to say anything about it… well, she’d deal with that herself should it come to that.

“Thanks, Star. You have no idea how much that means,” he said after a while. It was Spike’s turn to be silent now, though the hints of a smile tugging at his lips weren’t lost on her.

“Don’t think about that Spike, because I sure don’t,” she finally said as she reflexively took a sip of her rapidly cooling tea.

“If you say so.” Spike’s smile now blossomed into a full blown grin. “And hey, I can understand if it’s… If it’s weird to be in a relationship with someone younger than you—”

Starlight shook her head. She had already spent too much time getting worked up over nothing, she was not going to let her worries get to Spike as well. “It’s not,” she said in an even tone, “I was just being silly.”

“Hey, now…” Spike tried to speak, but Starlight kept going; she had to say this.

“I was, Spike. It doesn’t matter when I started to develop feelings for you. We’re both adults who decided to be in a relationship and that’s all that really matters.”

And it really did.

“You are great, Starlight,” he said with a sigh.

“I know.”

Starlight did her best to avoid breaking into a goofy grin when she heard the compliment. She could feel a slight warmth growing inside of her as waves of relief washed over her, eroding the writhing mass of dread and worry that she had built in her mind. Hopefully, the same was true for him.

“Spike… If something ever bothers you, or you feel there’s something you want to get off your chest, know that you can tell me anything. I’ll always be there to listen,” Starlight said, and she could feel his grasp on her hoof tighten as she spoke.

“Same back at you, Star…” At that moment she didn’t care about the rainy mood and overcast skies, his smile was as bright as the sun could ever be.

See? Talking things out is good for both of you, her conscience said, maybe you should do that more often.

She could have groaned at the voice’s remark but she found it hard to care about that seeing how she was awash with relief at the moment. Regardless, with that out of the way, Starlight wanted nothing more than for them to move onto another topic.

“A-anyway, what are the plans for today?” Starlight asked in hopes of steering the conversation into lighter territory.

“Well, there’s still not much to do while Twilight is still in the Crystal Empire. I was thinking about doing some cleaning and then try to find something to pass the time.”

The mischievous smile he wore as he said that last part wasn’t lost on Starlight, who reciprocated with a smile of her own.

“Is there a particular way you’d like to pass that time, Spike?” She promptly hid her muzzle behind her cup of tea, hoping Spike wouldn’t notice the corners of her mouth curling upwards.

“You,” he said, and he at least had the decency of waiting until she had finished drinking before saying that, “I have lots of things in mind, but mostly just you.”

A warmth spread through Starlight’s face that had little connection with the now completely cold tea she just drank. Of course there was no concrete reason to interpret Spike’s words as anything more than a desire to spend the day with his marefriend…

…But that won’t stop you from doing so, will it?

Hush, you.

“And what… do you have in mind that involves me?” she said, trying to curb the excitement in her voice.

Spike downed the last remnants of tartine with a slow sip of his tea, all without breaking eye contact with Starlight.

“Why don’t you guess?” he said in a whisper.

She took a measured, calming breath. She was willing to play Spike’s little game, but that didn’t mean she would let him take the lead so easily.

“Another movie night?” she asked, to which Spike shook his head.

That much was to be expected. They had spent the entire previous night watching, discussing, and making several imaginary improvements upon the first four Daring Do movies before going to sleep. As much as she enjoyed it, doing it again so soon would probably rob the experience of its charm.

“Well, the weather is less than stellar today, so going out isn’t an option,” she paused, “again.”

“Don’t worry about that, there’ll be plenty of chances for us to go out,” Spike said, settling down his empty cup on a tray. “So keep guessing.”

“I doubt either of us would be willing to partake in more board games for the time being,” she ventured.

“I don’t know about board games, but I’m sure Pinkie Pie would lend us her Twister if we asked nicely,” he said, nonchalant.

She huffed. You tease…

“Alright, I give up. Just what do you have in mind?” she asked, leaning forwards and giving him her most innocent smile.

“Maybe I shouldn’t tell you, and just surprise you with it…” he chose that moment to break eye contact and feign interest on his empty plate. The smile never left his face, however.

“Or maybe I should tie you to that chair and make you tell me.” She wished she hadn’t finished her tea. A perfectly-timed sip from her cup would have made that seem much more ominous.

“Aw… Come on, Star. Where’d be the fun in that?”

Starlight was about to point out in detail how much fun she’d have doing that—as well as the fun he’d get from it—but thought better of it. Instead she remained silent and waited for Spike to keep talking.

“I promise it’ll be worth the wait,” he said, and walked away from the table, carrying a tray with the remains of their breakfast.

She watched him walk away, and for a moment she entertained the thought of pressing further but accepted the futility of it. If Spike wanted to keep it a secret, then so be it. There was nothing wrong with giving him the benefit of the doubt and seeing if he could surprise her.

A smile tugged at her lips. “Fine, if you want to be mysterious, then I guess I’ll let you have it your way.”

“How gracious of you,” he said without turning around. “I promise it won’t take long.”

Starlight absentmindedly cleaned the edges of her mouth. “Take your time, Spike. Let me know when everything’s ready, I’ll be in the reading room.”

“Twilight left you an assignment?” he asked, giving her a sidelong glance as she walked away.

“No, nothing of the sort. I just have a few dictionaries and flying reference guides to check,” Starlight said as though it was the most obvious thing in the world. Before Spike could voice his curiosity, she turned around and kiss his cheek. “I’ll be waiting.”

And without another word, she left the flustered dragon behind.

Author's Note

Try it yourself!
This recipe is the one I changed the most, and not only because of the obvious removal of anchovies. It's currently autumn in the story, so this is more of an Autumn Vegetable Tartine.
I actually looked up which vegetables are more common on autumn, considering Ponyville and Equestria to be in the equivalent latitude as North America, and then tried to pick the vegetables that would go best together.
This is the kind of thing that make me a slow writer.