Elements of Spike

Chapters

Catastrophic Craving for Crispy Cabochons
Covert Controvertible Cover-up
A Curious Case of Chance Cherishing
Cryptic Caretaker Conundrum

Catastrophic Craving for Crispy Cabochons

Spike touched his forehead. A splitting hangover was pounding him like a hammer.

"Augh… what was I doing last night again?"

Spike only remembered that he was having a rapturous party with Twilight’s new friends and all the town’s ponies after the defeat of Nightmare Moon.

After Twilight successfully pleaded her mentor to let her stay, she also asked for the Elements to be used for her study for a few days before bringing them for safe storage in the Canterlot Tower.

He was charged with bringing the Elements back to the library, before Twilight dealt with all the thankful ponies. However, he was also fed with what felt like moons’ worth of distilled cider on his way home by random passers-by.

What happened afterwards was a moving blur. He could remember the ponies converging on the library. Twilight was doing preparations for her experiment on the Elements in the basement, but she was half-dragged and half-begged out by the party-goers.

Spike pretty much feasted on everything he could lay his hands on, as Twilight tried her best to set up her experiments and attend to her guests at the same time.

The party went on for quite a while. It was wild, fun and made him throw all his worries away. Eventually, as the night drew deeper, the guests left one by one, until almost all were gone.

Then something happened. What exactly happened was a bit hazy, but it involved a lot of eating, gasping and fainting.

"Was it Twilight’s magic mishap again? Bah, Twi messes up all the time, she should stop doing dangerous magic near so many ponies."

"Eh… So now, where am I?"

Spike stood up and looked around himself. "Tsk, looks like my new bedroom. But why is it such a mess?"

Looking out of his little basket crib, he noticed that all the cupboards and drawers in the room had been hastily pulled out. Books and papers scattered on the ground. The whole place looked as if it was ransacked by a mob.

Before Spike could stare in shock, a familiar purple visage entered his sight. It was also familiarly panicky, as he was so used to see throughout his entire life.

"You-!" Twilight galloped towards Spike, and rudely shook the dragon with her hooves, "You must be Twilight! Right? Right?! Please tell me-"

"… Que?" Spike blinked, as he wasn’t sure what he had heard. "Come again?"

"I asked, are you Twilight Sparkle, you know, the student of magic of Princess Celestia? Oh man, I am so going to be sent to the moon for this…"

"What in the hay are you talking about, Twilight? I mean, I am Spike the Dragon! And you, you are clearly the one and only Twilight! Look at your own coat, your purple mane, the six-pointed star on your side?"

"… O- Oh my gosh…! Oh my gosh! Oh my gosh!!"

Looking at the increasingly unhinged face of the purple mare, Spike coughed. "Seriously, you talk like Twi and panick like Twi, who else could you be?"

"I am you!" The purple mare desperately yelped. "It’s all our fault!"

Spike widened his eyes and his jaw almost dropped to the ground. "W- What the heck? What happened?"

After a pregnant pause, he added. "And where is Twi?"

"I don’t know where she is!" The purple mare was on the verge of crying. "Maybe she is still somewhere… here, because I can still… ‘remember’ what she did and experience how she feels… This must have something to do with the Elements!"

"Calm down, Tw- I mean, me, we can handle this." Spike tried his best to remain calm and comfort her.

"… Do you feel something funny in your tummy?"

"Eh? Why would I?"

Twilight shifted uncomfortably. "I, uh, I mean we, um, kind of did away with the Elements."

"What do you mean by ‘did away with’?"

"I- and by I, I mean Twilight, saw that you were drunkenly licking your tongues… after plucking the gem off her Element of Magic crown."

"Holy Guacamole! I did that?" Spike was flabbergasted. "I did not remember it at all!"

Twilight reached into her saddlebag and took out a bunch of gemless necklaces and crown, to the shock of the dragon. "We were drunk as a skunk. And I’m afraid that with Twilight and her friends’ new intimate ties to the Elements, this would mean…"

She drew in a shaky breath. "I am not the only one."

The remaining color drained from the dragon’s face, and he asked with a shrieking yelp. "Where are the others?!"

"They were all gone by the time this happened, that’s why I… Ugh, Twilight began her experiment in earnest at that time. Thank goodness for that! After I woke up, I tried waking you up as well, but you were too drunk, so I just scrambled around the library to see if there is anything on the Elements that can help us undo this mess."

She looked at the floor crestfallenly. "But no, I found nothing. Even with my newfound magical knowledge, I can think of nothing. We’re doomed, man, we’re doomed!"

Spike first froze for a moment. His expression then suddenly turned incredibly serious and resolute.

He placed a bucket in front of him, grabbed a thick tome from the desk, and forcefully knocked himself right in the middle of his belly with the book.

Twilight looked on with horror as Spike’s eyes bulged and he coughed into the air. Despite the great pain, he did not yell out, but he did stumble and hiss in disappointment when he looked into the bucket.

"What the hay are you doing?!"

"Argh… I… I’m just trying to knock the gems out of my belly. But I fear that by now, they have all been digested completely. Curses!"

Twilight gulped and stood still, too panicked and terrified to say or do anything.

Spike inhaled and exhaled, until his breaths were no longer labored and his pain subsided. "… So you know everything about Twilight now, the other me?"

Twilight squeaked and replied shyly. "Yes."

"We should gather the other Element-bearers and check up on them first. Meanwhile, you should act as if you are Twi in order not to rouse any suspicion."

"Why- What- How?" Twilight gasped. "But I am you, Spike, not Twilight!"

"Sorry me, we’re on the same boat now." Spike said with a poker face. "Either we keep this up until this is sorted out. Or it is to the moon with me, and to the mad house you go."

"A- Alright…" Twilight lowered her head and muttered.

"Now you’re Twilight. Get into character, Twilight. You will have to do so in front of other ponies. Try call me Spike or number one assistant or whatever, then order me around like the bossy mare that she is."

"Spike!" The purple mare retorted reflexively, as if her muscle memories carried her on. "W- Who exactly are you calling bossy?"

Astonished, Spike then squeezed out a weak grin. "....Hey, warming up to the act already?"

"No no no! I- I don't- I mean," Her face was white with fear and confusion, then she realized. "That's right! Her feelings and mannerisms must've been mixing up with mine, somehow!"

"Don't think that's a big problem right now." The dragon shrugged. "It means you can act more naturally."

"Really? I don't think..."

Spike, however, simply looked intently at Twilight without a word, while pacing back and forth in the room.

"W- What now?" The purple mare squeamishly asked.

"Remember? You’re Twilight, you have to call the shots… Or at least pretend to, when we’re at the outside!" Spike slapped his knees and pointed to her. "You need to get used to it. Let's start by giving me an order."

"Wait, what?"

"Just do it, for Celestia's sake!"

"Okay… S- Spike!" Twilight gulped and began. "Come on, let’s go and find our friends!"

She paused for a bit. "… Um, who are we going to find first?"

"Calm down, Twilight. Use your ‘rational logic’ and that smart brain of yours, eh?"

The purple mare deeply breathed and uttered slowly. "… We got to find the one who’s nearest to us first. It's the optimal strategy to contain each of the possible disturbances within a reasonable timeframe..."

"Now that's a good idea." Spike nodded. "I don't know what you're on about afterwards, but yeah, let's do just that."

Twilight nodded with a gulp. "Y- Yeah. We should look for Pinkie, since the Sugarcube Corner is nearby. Then we’ll find Rarity, then Fluttershy, then Applejack. We’re likely to run into Rainbow Dash if she is out for duty in Ponyville today… Not sure about that though."

***

"Twilight."

Spike asked as he walked beside the gingerly-looking Twilight. "So... How does it feel like to be a pony?"

"Eh?"

"I mean," Spike lowered his voice further. "You were me, right?"

"Yeah. I- I think?"

"So you should have a very good idea of what is different between being a dragon and being a pony."

Twilight's face went blank for a moment, and then she made a grimace.

"It is weird to be honest. I am still getting used to walking on four. I am now much bigger, my center of balance is completely different, not to mention I now have a head of mane and I am covered with furs. Although a small part of me treated this as completely normal, the other parts of me are finding these all very weird."

Her cheeks slowly reddened. "Way too weird for my taste. I should be a macho and brave dragon, but now I am a- a-."

Her words quieted down to the level of a buzzing mosquito. "A girl…"

Spike gulped audibly. The level of awkwardness suddenly soared to sky high in just a few sentences. He never thought of the gender aspect of this shambolic wreck. He shuddered to think of himself to be the one who was suddenly trapped as not only a member of another species, but also the opposite sex.

He decided to just say anything to switch the topic. "So uh… What does Twilight think of me then?"

Twilight almost stopped right at her track. She looked at Spike sharply and slowly began, "… She loves you, above all things."

It was a succinct response, but it both tugged and cut at Spike’s heart. He both delighted at the confirmation of his place in Twilight’s heart, but he also feared that his mistake would deprive him of the real Twilight.

They then walked together in silence until they reached Sugarcube Corner. The morning was young, and the bakery was just open for business.

They entered the cupcake-shaped house, and were greeted by a worried Mrs. Cake.

"Oh, are you the new friends of Pinkie? I’m very sorry, but Pinkie is unwell today…"

Twilight and Spike looked at each other, and Spike spoke up, "Good morning, uh, Mrs. Cake. So what’s wrong with Pinkie? Maybe we can help her."

"She’s been acting funny the whole morning. I think she got herself a few pieces of gems, and she baked a cake with them. Then she somehow got the grand idea of trying to eat it. She had almost choked herself! We rushed to help her, and she’s now resting in her room."

The duo almost planted their face in their respective palm and hoof at the same time. Wincing with one eye open, Twilight immediately said, "Mrs. Cake, I may have an idea why Pinkie is acting weird. It might be magic-related. Please, just let us go up and check up on her."

"Thank you, do check up on her, of course!" Mrs. Cake smiled with a relieved look, "I’m glad that Pinkie’s got such good friends."

The two nodded back at Mrs. Cake with tenuous smiles, and then ran up the stairs like a whirlwind.

Once they reached the second floor, they were immediately greeted with a bizarre scene. A clearly deranged-looking pink mare flung and bounced around in a messy room covered in confetti and silly strings. Strange contraptions scattered on the floor, making off-key accompaniment to the nonsense songs that the unhinged pony kept on spewing.

"Goodness me." Twilight widened her eyes. "And I thought I was the conflicted one."

"This one is going to be a tough nut to crack." Spike gritted his teeth. "But heck, let's go and be done with this."

With a nimble slide on a misshapen piece of confetti, he bent under a stray silly string and dashed within the earshot of the pink pony. He then slipped up in a to the side of Pinkie’s ear. With a determined expression, he whispered.

"… Hey, are you Spike too?"

The pink mare jumped up and then froze mid-air literally for a few gravity-defying seconds. Then she unceremoniously fell onto the floor in shock.

"Y- You know?"

"Yeah, I know. Twilight also knows because she’s actually also... um, how to put it... ‘Spiked’."

The purple mare rolled her eyes upwards, and the dragon continued with a sigh. "Most importantly, no sane pony, however out of her mind, would attempt to consume gem, including Pinkie Pie."

"Hey! I resemble that remark!"

"It should be ‘resent’, Pinkie." Twilight corrected.

"Get it together already!" Spike cupped his forehead and broke up the conversation. "We have to find the others and undo this mess."

"Yepperoni! I get to see more of me! Spikes of the world, unite!"

Twilight grimaced. "… I don’t think this, uh, Pinkie-Spike is mentally stable enough."

"We have to make do." Spike scratched his nose. "I’ll go tell Mrs. Cake that we’re bringing Pinkie away to... treat her, yeah. You bring her downstairs and out of this house stat."

Twilight pouted, for a moment unwilling to just follow his imperious order. Even though she too realized the gravity of the situation, something within her was oddly uncomfortable with being pushed and bossed around, but she could not put her hooves as to why.

Spike, though, was getting impatient. "What are you waiting for? Go get her! We don’t have much time left. If the princesses decide to check up on us and the Elements before we can make up a cover story together, we’re all in deep trouble, deeper than depths of Tartarus! Move, move, move!"

"O- Okay-" She nodded hurriedly, deciding to push down her vague feeling of objection for the moment.

She then pulled at Pinkie as Spike rapidly ran down the stairs. "Pinkie, for the love of Celestia, stay calm and stay sane outside, okay? We cannot afford to have any other ponies discovering this!"

Pinkie let out a giggle, and then solemnly saluted. "Lieutenant Spinkie shall follow your orders, General Twilight Spike-kle!"

Twilight let out a long sigh. This was going to be a long day.

***

"Next up… Oh my stars, it’s Rarity." Twilight facehoofed again.

"Heheh, what’s wrong about Rarity?" Pinkie widely grinned. "Now she’s definitely yours… and us! Not figuratively, but literally! She’s the captive of our collective love – forever!"

"Yikes! Don’t phrase it like that! She- I- now that- I can't seriously-"

Spike stuttered for a good few seconds, before groaning aloud. "I mean, no, just no! If you're me as well, then stop sounding totally depraved! "

"Aw…" Pinkie deflated. "Actually… I have calmed down a few moments ago. I just want to cheer you up with some silliness… because I'm afraid we’re all having a tough time ahead."

Pinkie lowered her head and sulked. Twilight then gave Spike a wordless frown.

"I am sorry, I didn’t mean it... I'm just frustrated at the whole situation, y'know, uh, Pinkie?"

Spike tentatively offered, but he was still not entirely sure if it was appropriate to address the mares by their names. According to his observation, the alternate ‘Spikes’ seemed to be heavily affected by the personalities, memories and quirks of the mares themselves. But it was still weird to call them by their name because they were apparently not really them. He felt as if he was living within a Sphinx's riddle, and his brain was almost melting.

Fortunate for him, Pinkie immediately beamed. "Thank you, Spike! I am relieved to see that I didn’t go too overboard in the eyes of the Ur-Spike."

‘I’ve got another name now?’ Spike thought to himself. When he raised his head again, the Carousal Boutique was already in front of them.

But before they could approach the door, a horrific shriek pierced the peaceful morning air.

Somepony, who was almost completely wrapped in different fabrics, bolted out of the door like a slingshot. To untrained eyes, the pony looked like a mummy who have busted through a paint factory.

However, to the trained eyes of the three, the galloping pony was exactly the one they were looking for.

"Freeze, Fashion Fiasco!" Pinkie shouted.

However, Rarity continued charging towards them in full-on panic.

Twilight gasped, and immediately readied her magic. A purple aura enveloped the spooked unicorn, slowing down her movement briefly. But to the shock of the three, Rarity lit her own horn, and let out a desperate cry. In a burst of magic, she shook free and ran away like an injured animal.

In a split second, Spike jumped forward and caught the white mare by her legs. Rarity again shrieked. However, the dragon immediately yelled, "Calm down! We’re here to save you!"

Amazingly, the panicking unicorn did stop struggling. She then collapsed on the ground and quietly sobbed.

"What’s wrong?" Twilight frowned.

"Don’t worry, we’re here to help you!" Pinkie then struck a wry smile. "We’re all on the same boat now. Or, rather, are the same boat."

"E- Eh? You two too?" Rarity raised both her brows.

Spike let out a long sigh. Although the mare in front of him looked exactly like Rarity, he could not feel even a slight bit of his usual infatuation or attraction in light of what transpired. "Yup. We all have a Spike-tastic problem here. So, Rarity, what exactly happened?"

"I- I woke up in the boutique this morning. I was momentarily excited to be so close to my beloved Rarity. I… um…" Rarity’s face quickly reddened as she stuttered. "K- Kinda spent half the morning looking at myself in the mirror, almost forgetting to cook for Sweetie Belle."

Her ears drooped as her voice lowered. "But then I remembered from her memories, she is supposed to finish three dresses by the end of today! I then rushed to the sewing machine, but I totally screwed up, making a mess of the dresses! I also suddenly realized that with me here, Rarity is, like, g- gone! Like, for good! I then freaked out and ran out of the boutique… Then I met you guys."

Spike grimaced. "Don’t worry, we’re gathering all the Element-bearers to see if we can fix this mess."

"B- But my dresses…" Rarity fidgeted.

"Forget the dress for now! We have a far bigger potato to grill." Spike pushed at the white mare. "Now follow us before the princesses come. If we cannot fix this in time, we must find a way to cover that this happened at all."

Looking at the frazzled mare, he sighed. "By the way, clean yourself from this mess first."

***

"So this is caused by you… me… Grr! Spike eating the gems on the Elements by mistake?" Rarity asked.

"This is our best guess." Twilight said with a sigh.

"Yep. So to conclude, aside from having to fix this eventually, we also have to replace the gems on the Elements with some counterfeits for the moment."

Spike shook his head. "Anyway, Rarity, surely you do have some gems lying around-"

Spike’s words were interrupted by somepony abruptly plummeting from the sky, forming a small crater right in front of them. Although it only flashed briefly in front of their eyes, the cyan and rainbow color could not be mistaken.

"Rainbow Dash, are you alright?!" The dragon gasped, as the dust cleared off to reveal the cyan mare lying flat on the ground.

"Awww…" The cyan mare stood up and patted her plots. "Thank Celestia this is morning mud covered in dew. Darn, how does one fly with these things anyway?"

She raised her head, saw Spike, and then immediately grabbed Spike with her front legs. "Oh my gosh! Thank goodness, I was looking for you everywhere! What should I do?! What should we do?! Oh dear, you won’t believe I-"

Spike rolled his eyes up. "Yes, yes, I believe, we all believe. 'cos we all know."

"Huh?" The cyan mare merely blinked in confusion.

"And as to what to do... I'd love to know for sure." Spike sighed. "Before you ask, all the ponies here are in the same rabbit hole as you. Trying to fix this before anypony else notice."

"Really?!" Rainbow Dash again gasped. "So you’re telling me that all five of us here are Sp-"

"Shhh!" Spike hurriedly shushed her. "Don’t say it out loud here! I've gone and destroyed the Elements. The frickin' Elements! No one except us can know this!"

Rainbow Dash immediately covered her mouth. "S- Sorry."

"Now we go find Fluttershy and Applejack. Then we’ll have an emergency meeting in the Golden Oak Library. Let’s pray to the Elements in my belly that we fix this or at least cover it up, before any of the Princesses notice."

"Right..." Rainbow Dash gulped as she climbed up and joined the ragtag group.

They walked in an uneasy silence towards Fluttershy’s cottage. When they arrived, they were greeted by a scene even more bizarre than what happened at the boutique.

An army of bunnies, led by Fluttershy’s most beloved rabbit Angel, were using a bunch of bundled red carrots as a makeshift battering ram. They were obviously trying to ram open the front door of the cottage, but to no avail. The door and windows seemed to be boarded from the inside.

The mares and Spike rushed to the front, to the initial alarm of the bunnies.

Angel hissed at the intruders, before Pinkie stood out and loudly announced, "Fret not, my leporine friends! We come in peace! And we’re here to rescue the princess out of this treacherous and impenetrable castle!"

Spike rolled his eyes, and added, "Yeah, what she said. We know what had spooked… uh… ‘Fluttershy’ into hiding. So let us cooperate and get her out of the house. I swear, we mean her no harm and we only want to help her."

Angel narrowed his eye. His expression then turned frustrated, as he pointed towards the 'ram' with a rocking motion.

"So you're saying the ram is no use." Twilight observed and surmised tentatively, which earned an approving nod from the bunny.

"How about we just yell really loud into the house?" Rainbow Dash casually suggested. "Surely if she heard it's Spike, she'd open up."

"No, no no." Spike waved his claws. "We are trying to make as little ruckus as possible, not more!"

"Oh, oh, then why don’t we let Twilight and maybe Rarity try magicking the door open?" Pinkie cheerily said.

"Yeah," Rainbow Dash conceded. "That sounds cleverer."

"Good thinking!" Spike nodded. "Twilight, Rarity, then please."

The purple and white unicorns looked at one another with some apprehension, and then turned to the door and lit their horns. To their delight, with the raw power of Twilight’s magic and Rarity’s help, the door was immediately yanked open like a film of papier-mâché.

Then they immediately saw a yellow pegasus shuddering at one of the corners in the cottage. Noticing the opened door, her pupils shrank to a pin and she let out a frightful yelp.

"Fluttershy!" Spike raised his voice. "Don’t panic! We’re here to help you!"

"Eep!"

Twilight looked at the bunnies behind her. She decided she needed to mince words a little bit. "We four are having the same condition as you."

"Eh?"

"Twilight is right." Spike intentionally drew out the name of the purple mare. "We are trying to fix this. Join us and find Applejack, and then we can discuss how to fix all these."

Fluttershy gulped, but she remained on the floor with a slight tremor.

"Fluttershy." Spike closed his eyes. "Who in the world can you now put your trust in other than us… and me?"

Like a magical keyword, the ears on the yellow pegasus stood up. Fluttershy then hesitantly nodded. "O- Okay… Are you all m-"

"Yes." The dragon and the mares almost made the 'shh' gesture at the same time.

"We don’t get all day, Fluttershy." Spike lowered his head and whispered to the yellow mare. "The princesses will want the Elements back at the earliest by tomorrow. We better sort this out quickly…"

"E- Eh? What does this have to do with the Elements?" Fluttershy looked at Spike with a confused look.

Spike closed his eyes and sighed. He gestured the yellow mare to come out to listen to his explanation.

Fluttershy mindlessly walked away with the dragon, until Angel grabbed at her tail with concern in his eyes.

"Um… Angel, I may have to go out for a while." Fluttershy looked back, her gaze was uncertain but gentle. "Be a good boy and attend to the animals when I’m gone, okay?"

***

Spike was feeling a bit of a déjà vu. At least only one pony was left to deal with.

However, he was also feeling more and more concerned. Would there be an easy solution to fix this, or even any solution at all?

The whole ordeal felt unreal. Were they really… mental copies of him? What exactly were these extra ‘Spikes’ anyway? Where did they come from? How? And why? He did not quite manage to ask those questions in depth when he interacted with them. Maybe he could do so later in the library after they grabbed Applejack.

If not for the fact that these mares quite literally just met and had not a single reasonable intent to prank him, he could never believe that this had happened in a thousand years.

His gaze swept across the mares. Twilight was lowering her head like she was being scolded by Celestia. Pinkie was trying desperately to maintain an unconvincing smile, but only managed to put up a rather unnerving one. Rarity was somehow looking both high-strung and flustered, no doubt still caught up in the confusion of literally becoming his crush. Rainbow Dash was looking calm, but she was also chronically distracted. Fluttershy was looking even shier than the real deal, as if that was even possible.

Not exactly the A-team to solve the current problem.

He punched the palm of his other claw again and again restlessly. While he did worry about the mares’ reactions if they were returned to normal, righting the wrong definitely trumped his emotional concern of being blamed or scolded.

As his mind wandered, he barely realized that they had already arrived at the Sweet Apple Acres.

They strode in, and quickly they found an orange mare bucking an apple tree casually. Red fragrant apples rained down from the tree, and Applejack cheerfully took a bite at one of them. "Mighty good!"

Spike slightly frowned. This didn’t look right. Applejack looked… Applejack, for a lack of a better word.

Not that he minded if he had one less mare to worry about or fix, but if Applejack alone was spared the effect, then the likelihood that this was caused by the effects of him gouging down the Elements would decrease by a lot.

Still, he went forth and hailed. "Hello Applejack."

Applejack raised her head and smiled. "Howdy! Look what we’ve got ‘ere. Ah was goin’ to look fer y’all after finishin’ mah work. But the apples fell into mah hooves by ‘emselves!"

"So, um…"

"Yeah, yeah." Applejack carefully observed the mares who all looked out-of-whack. She shook her head. "So it’s not jus’ me. Shucks."

"Wait, you’re…"

"Yes,Ah’m you too, as it seems." Applejack shrugged. "Weird, yeah. Bothersome, sure. But works are works, and it got to be done before Ah go find you."

"I… see…" Spike gulped. At least AJ-Spike looked somewhat more adjusted than all the others. She even kept the accent. Just minus the sense of what was objectively more important. "So, are you done yet?"

"Sure sugarcube, that was the last bucket to fill. You want me to join you, right? Let me put ‘em apples away and Ah’ll come in a jiffy."

Covert Controvertible Cover-up

Back in the library, the mares sat guardedly at the table. Spike walked back and forth in front of them.

He suddenly turned to them. "Now, we’re finally all here. I must make sure about a few things. Are you all really me?"

"Absolutely positively." "Yep!" *Sigh* "Yeah." "Yes..." "Ah'd think so."

Spike breathed in heavily, and sat himself on the table in the middle of the library.

His gaze swept across the mares’ faces, and then he said with a cut-glass voice.

"I’m gonna check this through a Spike trivia test. Something that only the real Spike would know."

The mares mostly frowned but nodded. Only Pinkie grinned enthusiastically and proclaimed, "Yippie, a game show quiz!"

Spike facepalmed at Pinkie's flippant comment. "This is not... Fine, I’m first going to ask Ap-"

He stopped in his own track, and asked the assembled mares with a serious face. "Wait, before we begin, I must clarify another thing. What names do you guys prefer being called?"

"What do you mean?" Rarity asked.

"I mean, you’re all Spikes… I assume, so it feels right to just call you all Spike. But on the other hand, it will be a mess, and none of you seem opposed to me calling you by the names of the mares themselves. So-"

"Meh, I can’t care less." Rainbow Dash waved Spike down and shrugged.

"Um… It’s less confusing this way?" Fluttershy offered weakly.

"Plus I thought you don’t want to rouse suspicion." Twilight said with a thoughtful look. "We can't be trotting around calling each other Spike No. 1, Spike No. 2, can we?"

"Ah dunno. Just feel comfortable either way." Applejack grinned. "You can call me Spike too if you want, though it will plum sure get confusin’."

"Okay…" Spike tapped on his cheek hesitantly. He eventually shook his head and asked. "Let's begin with Applejack. So Applejack. what was the color of my egg?"

"Hah, that’s an easy one. Twi gave you a piece of the shell on yer first birthday, and you've been keepin' it wrapped under yer basket. Purple with even more purple dots onnit, right?"

"Hm, not bad." Spike nodded. "Now, Fluttershy."

The yellow mare flinched.

"I don’t mean to be rude or anything, and this is distressing to you and me both." Spike wagged his claw in disapproval. "But if you’re me, can you please come on and dragon up a little bit? Stop being all fidgety and stuff!"

Fluttershy lowered her head and stayed silent. Tears began rolling in her eyes. Apparently, she was taking the chastisement not really well.

‘Holy buck!’ Spike thought to himself in horror, as the mares around him gave him stares. "Okay, no no no no no nuh-uh. For the love of my scaly goodness, I don’t mean to put you down or anything... I’m sorry! Now, just answer an easy question about me. What is my favorite kind of gem?"

Fluttershy paused, and then wiped her eyes and burst into a light chortle. "This is silly. You love all of them... But the green ones are the best."

"Ah… of course." Spike smirked. His gaze darted hurriedly away from the demure pegasus for fear of provoking her again. "So now, Rainbow Dash. What is my dream after I grow up?"

Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes up. "You ask that? All of us here know you dream all the time to be a strong muscular dragon-knight that rescue damsels in distress across Equestria. With a liberal sprinkle of easily accessible gem snacks anytime anywhere, of course."

"Well pu-"

"And yesterday you fantasized about Rarity to be that damsel in distress."

Spike and a few mares in audience immediately blushed in embarrassment. Especially Rarity, whose cheeks were almost as red as ripe tomatoes.

"A- Anyway, that's enough for now. We all know that piece of information, of course, there is absolutely no need for embarrassment."

Spike cleared his throat with a dismissing claw-waving, his last sentence seemed to be directed more to himself than to anypony. He then surreptitiously turned to the white unicorn. "So uh Rarity, um… how do Rarity think of… me?"

"Wait! This is not a question about yerself!" Applejack immediately protested, her face tinted with annoyance but also visible amusement.

"Answer me anyway!" Spike almost yelled.

The white unicorn shifted awkwardly, and sighed in a mix of sadness and disappointment. "S- Sorry. Spike is just a baby in her eyes. She had absolutely no romantic affection for you whatsoever, and I believe she thinks any relationship would be p- preposterous."

"Pre-what?"

"It means absurd, Spike." Twilight supplied helpfully.

"Yikes! That’s harsh." Rainbow Dash wheezed.

Spike sulked for a moment, then bounced up and covered his disappointment with a poker face. "Okay, that’s perhaps not really the time. So next up, Pin-"

"Spike? That counted as one for Rarity?" The pink mare asked in doubt. "You need to be fair to all of us."

"Fine, fine." Spike huffed unamusedly. "Rarity, tell me one of the worst blunders I have made, when I was living in Canterlot with Twilight."

"D- Does accidentally burning down the entire shelf of Twilight’s reference books, when you were trying to send the one she wanted through magic fire, but couldn’t find the one she requested… count?"

"Yes, yes, it does. Twilight’s lecture afterwards was a dang pain in the ass."

Spike mumbled, until he realized that there was a lack of reprimand for his dirty mouth from the purple mare as he had expected. He looked to the face of Twilight, who was looking to him with only unease.

With a shrug, he turned back to Pinkie. "Alright, now are you satisfied and ready to answer my question, Pinkie?"

"Sure and sure!" Pinkie smiled. "Ask away!"

"Okay, what was my secret handshake with the gem dealer behind the Canterlot Tower?"

Pinkie narrowed her eyes. "This is trick question, isn’t it? Yep, the Royal Treasury is behind the Canterlot Tower, but we don’t usually call the Lieutenant Minister of the Exchequer a ‘dealer’ and a Letter of Royal Assent a ‘secret handshake’."

"Darn, you’re good." Spike inhaled deeply. "So last… Twilight."

Spike knit his brows. This was going to be difficult. He had been living with Twilight his whole life. She knew practically everything of him because she brought her up. What could he ask?

Spike suddenly thought of one thing. He paced forward and began, "… Twilight, do you remember the time I ran away from the Ivory Tower because you don’t bother talking or playing with me for a long time, as you were preparing for the magical aptitude examination?"

Twilight raised her brows with a stunned expression, and then nodded.

"Then you should know I hid in the hedge maze. Before you come, I scribble something on the back side of one of the statues. After we reconciled, I secretly rushed to erase my markings. Since I’m sure that Twilight never saw it, my question is, what did I write?"

Twilight grimaced, and then through pained breaths, she uttered the words one by one, "… ‘I wish I was never hatched’."

Everyone grew silent. Spike looked at Twilight, threw his arms up and nodded briskly. "Good."

The group then turned quiet as nobody had an idea of what to say or do next. However, after a protracted silence, the dragon suddenly pounded on the table with his fist, creating a booming sound.

The mares were startled, but Spike merely angrily shouted. "I’m an idiot! I screw it all up! Darn it all to Tartarus!"

Pinkie immediately interrupted. "Wait! Spike, we haven’t discussed yet! Maybe there’s a way out of this! Also, I know for a fact that at least Pinkie will not be mad at you."

"How can you know for sure?"

The pink mare beamed. "Just my Pinkie Sense!"

"What are you talking about? You aren’t even her! None of you are the ponies you’re supposed to be!"

Pinkie gasped and flinched, lowering her head as if taking his words as a harsh chastisement. The other ponies did not offer support or retort, as they too gazed downwards and apparently sulked.

Spike looked on and felt a bit guilty for his hurtful outburst, but he was in no mood to be thoughtful. "… We’re kidding ourselves if we believe this can be solved easily, when this is something that even somepony with Twilight’s knowledge cannot solve."

Closing his eyes tightly, he yelled. "I really wish I hadn’t been born, then at least I wouldn’t have messed up the lives of six ponies with my own stupid mistake!"

Suddenly, Spike was shoved onto the ground. He blinked in shock, until he saw who had stood over him in an unamused expression.

"What is wrong with you?" Rainbow Dash berated. "You stand here and interrogate each of us on whether we are you. But now, you yourself are acting like a complete wimp and totally un-Spike!"

Applejack also added, "Yeah, what use is there to act all fickled? We’re here to solve problems, not to make more of them. You need to calm down and dragon up yerself, sugarcube."

Gazing widely into the magenta eyes of the pegasus, he loudly gulped and said. "S- Sorry, I- I have let my emotions come over me. I’m just very afraid! I'm worried that I have made an mistake that I can't fix…"

"Y'know what they say - It ain't over till the fat lady sings." Applejack chuckled. "Just have it easy and figure this out slowly."

"And together!" Pinkie added emphatically.

The dragon turned his head away and bit his lips. "… You are right, we should-"

He suddenly widened his eyes and almost shouted, "Wait a second! Are we sure that you six are the only ones who are affected?!"

The mares looked to each other.

"Well, my sister was not affected, I’m pretty sure." Rarity said. "She's still the clingy filly from what I remember."

"Mr. and Mrs. Cake are perfectly normal. I think you probably noticed that already." Pinkie said sheepishly. "It was only I who went a lil' bit unhinged."

"Yeah… lil' bit." Twilight rolled her eyes.

"I saw Derpy Hooves today on my way to town center. Although I was rushing through, but she seemed alright." Rainbow Dash shrugged.

"None of my animals looked strange…" Fluttershy added.

"Nor did any o’ mah family." Applejack said.

"That’s a relief." Spike exhaled.

The dragon scratched his head. "But wait a minute, you all said my this and my that. And your mannerisms are clearly more they than me. What’s up with that then?"

The mares looked quite astonished at his query. After some brief looks of confusion, they either frowned or grimaced.

"I told you." Twilight said with a sigh. "I had Twilight’s memories and felt her feelings. But what I haven’t told you is that how confusing that it is making me. I knew for a fact that I’m not her, but I’m beginning to think things in her perspectives… you understand?"

"No, I don’t understand."

Twilight groaned. Rarity then hesitantly spoke up, "It’s kind of like daydreaming as someone you’re not. Except that it feels really, really real."

"But I’ve only ever daydreamed as myself, but bigger and stronger."

"Oh gosh!" Rainbow Dash facehoofed. "It's making me crazy to see how dense I can look from the outside."

"Hey! Are you saying that I’m dumb?"

"It’s not an insult if it’s talking about yourself, kind of." Rainbow Dash deadpanned.

"Ah doubt you’re ever goin’ to understand the feelin’ except if you go through this like all of us. Ah doubt you’d want to though."

Applejack breathed out heavily with a glazed look. "But Ah suspect if we don’t fix this, this is only goin' to get worse. Even right now, Ah’m beginnin' to feel more used to think things as AJ would more than Spike would."

Spike gasped. "So how are we going to fix this? Any idea?"

"Have you tried getting the gems out from your tummy?" Pinkie asked.

Spike’s face turned slightly green as he remembered the self-inflicted blow on his belly. "Trust me, I have tried."

"Uh… it’s not like the gems wouldn’t have been digested in full after a night anyway." Rainbow Dash said. "So unicorns, do you have any idea with your magic doohickeys?"

"I think you mean ‘unicorn’. Not every unicorn is as magically inclined as the one who was hoofpicked by Princess Celestia does. I only know telekinesis and gem finding. I have absolutely no idea about the Elements before Twilight brought them up."

Twilight closed her eyes. "The Elements are the most powerful magical artefact known to ponydom. It was an ultimate weapon to guard the peace and harmony in Equestria. The six Elements are tied to six Element-bearers, representing six virtues deemed by the spirits of Harmony as the most crucial virtues."

"Now tell us something we don’t know." Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes.

"I can’t. That’s all I know." Twilight sighed. "These are just speculations. I suppose that Princess Celestia was the original wielder of the Elements alongside Princess Luna. Then during the events that led to Luna’s banishment, she might have somehow wrestled the control of the Elements and connected all six to herself. I don’t know why she then decided to just leave the Elements in the old castle. Maybe no threat was big enough to warrant the use of the Elements after that. I do-"

Twilight gulped. "I doubt that they are still connected to the Elements. But if they are, then…"

"Holy Guacamole…" Spike’s eyes widened.

"It won’t be too bad though Ah think." Applejack said. "If the princesses are also one of us, then we don’t even have to worry about the problem of exposin’ ourselves."

"I don’t think hoping for more ponies to get into this mess is the right way to go." Rarity was much less enthusiastic. "Especially those who are as important as the princesses. I can't even imagine having to rule Equestria in their stead..."

"Meh. Could be worse." Rainbow Dash wryly grinned.

"In any case," Twilight continued. "I don’t think any of them is still connected to the Elements, or else Celestia would be able to wield them to defeat Nightmare Moon, or that we couldn’t have used the Elements to attack an Element-bearer in the first place."

Twilight then lowered her head. "I… I mean, Twi would have studied the Elements in deeper depth, if not for this unfortunate happening. Now I don’t even know where the princesses got the Elements in the first place, not to mention I can never ask them about what they know about the Elements unless I want all these to be thrown out all in the open."

Spike gazed at his feet long and hard, and he suddenly said. "Although my initial reaction was to cover this up… But perhaps we should really tell the princesses."

"No!" All the six mares cried out simultaneously.

"W- Wha- Why?" Spike was a bit stunned by the emphatic rejection from everypony.

"You said it yourself, dude." The cyan mare shook her head. "If we fess up, we’re certainly going to labs, or asylum, or even labs in asylum. You’d be badly punished for destroying the extremely important artefacts and causing this to us."

"I just don’t want to see you or anypony locked up." Fluttershy said sadly.

"What’s more," Applejack narrowed one of her eyes. "Call it a hunch o’ mine. Ah don’t think the princesses will have an idea of how to deal with this, because it had certainly not happened before."

Pinkie made a scary noise. "I think they might even try opening up your belly with a scalpel to take out whatever are left of the Elements!"

Fluttershy let out a frightful ‘Eep’, and Spike involuntarily shivered.

"Pinkie, don’t make up scare stories. The princesses will never do something like that!" Twilight huffed, albeit a bit uncertainly.

"I hope so." Rainbow Dash wryly added.

"I just don’t want you to get hurt." Rarity said quietly. "I believe we all don’t mind returning our lives to what they were. But I believe even the... hmm, real Rarity would be saddened if you get lifelong infamy and punishment because of this."

"Don’t be reckless, Spike. I beg you." Twilight pleaded. "I will continue the research by myself, perhaps I will find something new. But before that, don’t do anything silly. Twilight would be heartbroken to see you go."

"B- But what are we going to do now?" Spike asked with a hesitant voice.

"Didn’t you ask if I have spare gems?" Rarity smiled. "I do. And I will need Twilight’s help to cut and enchant them. Now that they’re not even connected to the Elements, there is no chance for them to ever discover this…"

***

Spike let out a big sigh as he held up a tray of freshly brewed tea. He then walked to the assembled mares in the treehouse, who had gathered once again a week after the incident.

"Thank goodness the guards did not suspect a thing when we handed over the Elements."

Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes. "And why would they? I say you stop worrying over nothing."

"... You might be right." Spike licked his lips. "So, are everypony here having a normal week?"

"Normal is the least likely word I'd use to describe this week."

Rainbow Dash snorted. "But yeah, I pretty much just kick clouds around like the old Rainbow Dash. Nothing much, except the occasional odd daydream about joining the Wonderbolts. I can see why Rainbow Dash loves them, but I… uh… well, yeah, it’s cool I guess."

"I have to apologize to my clients about the delay in delivery, but at the end, I managed to finish those dresses the next day. Though one client commented to me that the dress was more… purple and scaly than usual."

Rarity then showed an awkward smile. "I also was briefly excited about being able to cast magic to find some lovely gems, until I realized that I can’t eat gems as a pony."

"Only if Pinkie realized that back then." Spike smirked to the narrow stare from the pink mare, and then turned back to Rarity. "You can still give me some of your finds, Rarity."

"S- Sure. I’d love to." Rarity lightly smiled, and then muttered under her breath with a reddened face, "…. Spikey-wikey."

"Hey Spike!" Pinkie wiped her frown and swiftly replaced it with a wide grin. "You won’t believe how big the birthday cake I made for Matilda was! It was both the first time and the two hundredth time I baked a birthday cake, so it was really special!"

"Really? I’m happy for you then." Spike smiled.

"Sounds mighty excitin’." Applejack grinned for a moment, and then she turned thoughtful. "All Ah did was buckin’ apples all day, but Ah’m thinkin' about somethin' else."

"Such as?" Spike asked.

"Ah’m jus’ thinkin’ that the Apple family has been here fer so long, and we’re among the founders of this town, but we’re still feelin’ the pinch each year. That's a bunch of bumping gums. Ah jus' feel this is unfair, y'know? At least for all the gems you used to find, you got to keep half of them, right?"

"It isn't like that in here?" Spike asked.

"Of course not. If we're gettin' half the cut at the Acres, we could've raised a darn gem-encrusted barn. And then a few more." Applejack waved her hoof with a seemingly knowing look. "But enough of this talk about gems and bits."

Spike nodded and turned to Fluttershy, who was looking cheerless and despondent. "What’s wrong, Fluttershy?"

"I… I had a big argument with Angel yesterday." Fluttershy bit her lips. "It has never happened before."

"Eh? Why did you argue with him?" Spike asked.

"That critter can be quite spirited, Ah know." Applejack said.

"But it’s still not a reason to get angry with him, he’s just a bit forceful in his way of caring about me." Fluttershy lowered her head. "I’m just sick at hearts that I can’t tell the truth to someone who cares about me so much and clear the misunderstanding."

Fluttershy raised her head and sniffled. "W- What if Angel and the animals hate me for now on?"

"Silly Fluttershy, that’s even more unlikely than the princesses are now sending in the guards to grab Spike away!"

"P- P- Pinkie!" Spike stuttered. "Don’t joke about that! Tempting fate is never a good idea!"

Spike gingerly looked towards the door and gazed at it for a few moments. He eventually sighed in relief. "Heh… So Twilight, tell us how you’re been adjusting this week."

Twilight immediately felt a slew of complicated emotions, but she began regardless, "I’ve been researching in the Golden Oak Library. But as I expected, there is no record of the Elements in a town library like this. I suspect any book containing detailed information about them must be either in the capital or in the library of the old castle ruins."

"I see. Thank you very much for your work." Spike nodded.

Twilight felt inexplicably glad to hear Spike’s gratitude. "Y- You’re welcome."

"But what about how you feel about yourself?"

Twilight widened her eyes and gulped. She was very conflicted about herself. Spike clearly wanted to find a way to restore everypony to their original selves. She did not exactly mind the implications, instead, she was frustrated by the lack of progress in her research. Meanwhile, she tried to be as ‘Twilight’ to original Spike as possible, but she was finding it particularly difficult to look convincing to him. She found it more distressing to see all the other mares do it without much difficulty. The fear of causing his disappointment was paralyzing.

With difficulties, Twilight thought of a way to cursorily express her feelings. "I-"

Suddenly, Spike belched and coughed up a letter in green flame. All the mares gasped in shock. Spike himself was especially alarmed, as he immediately grabbed it from mid-air and began reading it.

"W- What does it say?" Pinkie asked. "Not an arrest warrant, isn’t it?"

"Pinkie, you don’t send arrest warrant to the accused." Twilight deadpanned. "It’s used and held by the authorities who carry out the arrest. What’s more, if you inform the accused beforehand, what if they run away?"

Spike sighed and sat back on the ground. "It’s nothing, thank goodness!"

"What kind of ‘nothing’, though?" Rarity asked.

"It’s an invitation, let me read it to you:

Her Grand Royal Highness, Princess Celestia of Equestria, is pleased to announce The Grand Galloping Gala to be held in the magnificent capital city of Canterlot… Okay, basically it invites Twilight and one guest to the Grand Galloping Gala."

"Nice and dandy. Our little cover-up is not exposed or anything." Rainbow Dash remarked.

"But just one more guest?" Rarity frowned. "This sounds fishy. The princess know we are seven-strong here."

"But the problem is, do we all want to go? Except Twilight of course." Spike said.

"What about you?" Applejack smirked knowingly. "You hate girly frou-frou stuffs."

"Darn right you’re!" Spike grinned.

"To be fair…" Rarity looked left and right. "None of us have really been to the Gala before, so we don’t know what it’s like. I…"

"You what?"

"I kind of want to go…" Rarity looked to the floor with burning cheeks. "D- Don’t judge me!"

"Worry ye not, mares doing marish matters, it's the natural order of things." Spike said with a Zen-like tone. "But the most important thing is, can you accept yourself after you accept it yourself, huh?"

"Stop screwing with her head, Spike." Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes. "Would you still mock her like this if she’s the bona-fide Rarity?"

Spike stuck his tongue out, "Sorry. I just want to know why though."

"I just want to experience the glamour of the balls and the lives of upper classes in Canterlot a bit. I know I lived in Canterlot and this sounds weird… But I, I mean, Rarity probably longs for it for a long time. It also seems wrong for me to reject this on her behalf, especially since it's so far away. Maybe by then things would've been all fixed up?"

"I only hope so..." Spike scratched his cheek. "So it’s Twilight and Rarity?"

"But I’d need a dance partner." Rarity fidgeted. "I would have wanted to look for a royal prince like Blueblood, if not for the fact that I now know everyone in Canterlot knows he’s a colossal tw- I mean, not exactly a gentlecolt. If you can go, Spike, I would be glad."

"Uh…" Spike blinked and struggled to formulate a reply.

"Ah don’t mean ta add any more trouble or anythin’." Applejack awkwardly smiled. "But ‘bout that… I wonder if goin’ to the Gala can help mah family’s bits get goin’."

"Mm? How?" Spike asked.

"Ah have done a bit research mahself on the Apple family history. It turned out that a lot o’ our profits have been taken by the middleponies like the Riches. Granny don’t seem to mind it, but Ah don’t think it’s fair for us to stay on the line all the time and yet doin’ all the tough work, just for them to sit their rich plots in their mansions."

"Hah." Rainbow Dash smirked. "So what you gonna do? Chase the Riches out of the town?"

"No. The Riches did help the town grow by reselling our apple products and attracting settlers back in the early days. They aren’t exactly scroungers. But Ah think it’s time for us to find a way to cut out the middlepony and earn more bits. Ah think Ah might be able to find potential buyers in Canterlot who might want to buy directly from us. Or failing that, we can at least set up a stall and introduce the name of Sweet Apple Acres to them."

"That’s not bad in theory." Twilight tapped her chin. "But Canterlot are full of the upper-class types who won’t give a moment's notice to whoever that is beneath them. The Gala will be a veritable black hole of these types. No offense, Applejack, but they would likely think that your rural outlook do not match with their perception of refined taste."

Applejack’s enthusiasm got doused a bit. However, she said, "… Ah know, but tryin’ doesn’t hurt, does it? Now that we’re aware o’ that, Ah can do something to… class up, Ah suppose. Ah got plenty o’ time."

"… If you insist, we will help." Spike nodded.

"I want to check out the Wonderbolts too, if you don’t mind."

"Rainbow Dash?"

"Yeah, they will attend the Gala, right?"

"Yeah… But they are an elite troupe. They aren’t going to just mix in with commoners like us."

"It’s totally uncool if they consider those who saved the kingdom by defeating Nightmare Moon ‘some commoners’." Rainbow Dash huffed.

"I suppose I can try sorting it out with the organizers or the princess…" Twilight shifted her gaze.

"Awesome! It would be cool if they see how I fly and invite me to join them on the spot… But yeah, that seems unlikely. So I’d settle for checking them out to see if they’re as cool as I think they are."

"If the Gala is like a big party, then I’d love to attend too!" Pinkie grinned.

Twilight again awkwardly smiled. "I love your parties, Pinkie. But like what I said to Applejack, Canterlot ponies’ perception of entertainment is likely different to yours. I’m not saying that you shouldn’t come, but just be careful that they might be more stuck-up than you expect."

"Roger that." Pinkie nodded.

"I also love to see some rare animal in the Royal Sanctuary and meet ponies involve in the conservation of rare species." Fluttershy gingerly smiled.

Twilight nodded, "Great, we-"

"Is no one here thinking about how much frou-frou nonsense the Gala is going to involve?" Spike mumbled. "You guys will have to dress up to the T and dance and stuffs."

"I don’t like it, but as we said, we have other reasons." Rainbow Dash shrugged.

"Are you not going, Spike?" Twilight frowned.

Spike sighed as he looked down to the floor. "I’m not exactly in the mood. With this mess still going on, I don’t feel like going off to some balls in Canterlot."

"But it is still moons away from the Gala. We might be able to solve this before that, Spikey-wikey." Rarity said.

"... Spikey-wikey?" Spike looked exactly as if he heard himself propositioning himself - completely dumbfounded.

"U- U- Um-" Rarity stuttered. "S- Sorry if this sounds weird. It’s just how Rarity would call you off the cuff. Just a weird verbal tic of mine, ha… ha ha!"

"No need to be embarrassed. AJ’s accent’s pretty obvious too, ain’t it?" Rainbow Dash teased.

"Ah ain’t got no acksent!" Applejack jokingly retorted, defusing the awkwardness completely.

"Heh." Spike exhaled. "So yeah, I understand that I cannot fully understand what you all are going through. But do you really think that it’d be a good idea for me to go?"

"O- Of course!" Rarity beamed.

"If you say so, then I’ll go." Spike smiled.

"So, uh…" Twilight shiftily said. "You need me to write a letter to the princess to tell her we need more tickets?"

"Isn’t that usually my job?" Spike raised a brow, and then he realized something. "Well, technically it’s a job open for any of us now. But I think I’m still the best candidate to do it because… claws and stuff."

He whipped out a piece of paper and a quill, quickly scribbled something on it. Then he passed it to the purple mare. "Do you mind if I use your name?"

"I don’t mind… But I don’t know if-"

"Done." Spike already engulfed the letter with his green flame. "What did you say again?"

The purple mare blinked, and then blinked some more.

"Uhh... Alright, nothing then."

A Curious Case of Chance Cherishing

"So Applejack, I heard that you’ve been staying in the house for all day." Spike walked alongside the orange mare in the plowed field. "What have you been up to?"

Applejack sheepishly grinned, "Am Ah that obvious?"

"Well, it’s the Applebuck Season, of course ponies are going to comment when they didn’t see you buck apples together with Big Mac."

She sighed. "Ah can’t help it."

"What, are you also unused to having a mare’s body like Twilight?"

The face of the orange mare immediately reddened up. "Wh- What?"

"Twilight told me back then she’s having a hard time adapting. Do you somehow forget how to buck trees?"

Realizing that it was just an innocuous question, Applejack huffed. "Well, Ah never! Ah’m just figurin’ out the financial status o’ the Apple family, so Ah can do somethin’ wit’ it like what Ah said."

"… I hate to ask it again and again, and I know it might be... sensitive. But it is eating at my heart for too long. Who are you? If you’re really just me, then why are you concerned with her life like this?"

"A- Ah…"

Applejack knit her brows and lowered her head, letting out a difficult breath at last.

"Ah don’t know. With each passing day, I’m feelin’ more and more as if Ah’m Applejack. Why won’t Ah be? Ah act like her, Ah think like her and Ah care for her family like her. Although mah time as Spike the Dragon still affects mah decision from time to time, Ah can’t help but think that if Ah can’t think exactly as her, then Ah can at least think for her."

"Are you more me or more AJ, then?" Spike raised a brow.

"Ah don’t know!" Applejack almost shouted. "Why are you so concerned with that anyway?"

Spike winced at the outburst, but he clenched his claws and pressed on.

"Look, for one, it makes calling you by name less awkward."

After a clumsy smile, he quietly added. "Of course I care about you as well. I mess up the lives of Twilight and her new friends with my stupid action. None of you have done anything wrong, but now you’re each loaded with a piece of me. The least that I can do is to check up on how each one of you has been adapting."

"Spike…" Applejack looked at the apparent self-blame on the dragon’s face. "Ah’m sorry Ah shouted at you."

"No, if you’re speaking as Applejack, you should never be sorry. Even if you’re speaking as my ‘clone’, you’re also one of the victims. I’m physically the dumb one who drank too much hard cider and ate the Elements. I'm the one who came up with the idea to sweep this under a rug because I'm a chicken and don't want to get punished."

After a moment of uneasy silence, Spike turned his head to the orange mare. "But Applejack, I’m still curious. Is it a hard time for you to suddenly live as a pony and a mare?"

Applejack again stiffened and blushed, but this time she was somewhat prepared for this line of questioning. "Ah’m sorry Ah didn’t clear them up for you just now or back in the library. You must be itchin' for answer. Shucks, Ah’ll try harder this time. Don’t get flustered though, ‘cos Ah’ll go in some lady stuffs."

"Un- Understood…" Spike gulped and stood straight.

Applejack suddenly kicked her legs towards a nearby tree, and some apples dropped to the bucket below. She picked up one of them and bit into it.

"You see, Ah have all mah body reflexes as a well-trained apple farmer intact. Ah felt like as if Ah have lived as a pony mah entire life. And in a sense, it’s true. It never occurs to me as something strange or unnatural unless Ah think hard about it or you bring it up."

Regret and sadness again welled up on the dragon's face.

"Nah, Spike. You don’t have to feel bad ‘bout it. It’s only natural that you’re interested in knowin’ how we feel. This is a new experience for all of us, Ah’m sure."

Applejack paused a bit, and then bashfully chuckled. "As for bein’ a girl, eh, it’s a slightly more complicated matter."

"How?" Spike asked with apprehension.

"Hmm... Ah’m startin’ to realize how much of our thoughts are shaped by our physical bodies. Ah reckon because of the part of me that's AJ, Ah didn’t exactly freak out when Ah find out Ah have to live as a mare. But the other parts of me are a proud macho dragon. Or should Ah say, should be a proud macho dragon."

Applejack then let out an awkward laugh. "If we’re all like what Rainbow said about you, we should all be raring to knight around, rescuin’ damsels in distress… even though, meh, some of us are more like the damsels themselves."

Applejack then bit her lips in slight uncertainty.

"But that’s not the point… mah point is, bein’ a mare have changed our thoughts so much, Ah sometimes feel scared of losin’ mah identity."

Spike asked with a worried look. "What do you mean?"

Applejack merely sighed. "For instance - and Ah’m bein’ completely honest here - Ah’m feelin’ not very inclined to chase mares anymore. On the contrary, Ah’m beginning to see stallions as potential partners, something that you’d never thought, wouldn’t you?"

"No! Absolutely not! I- I’m not into that!"

"Of course Ah know." Applejack then turned to Spike. "Do you want me to be even more honest?"

Although Spike was a bit unnerved by potentially more shocking reveals, he nodded. "G- Go ahead."

"Ah want you to be mah pardner."

"Partner? Uh… We sort of already are in this together, aren't we?"

"Naw, naw. Ah mean in a more… special sense. Y’know, like the way you want to be with Rarity?"

Spike immediately did a spit-take, stepped on his wrong feet and fell towards the ground.

Applejack, though, swiftly put a hoof in front of him before his snout planted into the ground.

"What, is it too out of the blue?" Applejack raised a brow.

"W- Wh- Wha-"

Spike panted and went briefly cross-eyed. Then he gasped for more air and spat his words in quick succession.

"We have just met a few weeks ago!" He said with a frightful yelp. "A- And you’re at least in part me! Isn’t- Isn’t that-"

Applejack scratched her head, taking his ruffled reaction rather calmly. "Well, Ah don’t think it’s so bad. You didn’t exactly fall in love with yerself when you looked into the mirror. Ah don’t recall being that vain. So if Ah feel anythin’ for you, it’s clearly more than the feelings of ‘Spike’."

Spike simply shook his head like a wet retriever. "That makes no sense at all whatsoever!"

"Ah say we leave sense to the winds and do whatever suits our fancy."

The orange mare smirked. "Seriously though, Ah think the part of me that is AJ feels very impressed by your honesty, work ethics and devotion."

Shrugging her shoulders, she continued. "Ah like that you take on the burden of responsibility, even though each of us that is part-Spike should similarly be partly responsible. More importantly, bein’ in this situation makes me realize that we have quite matching personalities!"

"W- We do?"

"For example, we’re both quite hard-headed, aren’t we?"

Feeling only like having been battered in the head, the dragon could only squeeze out. "I guess…?"

Applejack chuckled, then meaningfully looked at the road leading to the town center. "No offense to Twi, but Ah don’t think she matches you as well as me do, nor had she been expressin’ enough gratitude for yer work."

"No! Twilight loves me very much, she-"

"Perhaps. But I know about her and yerself as much as you do."

Applejack slowly said. "Ah might sound like Ah’m badmouthin’ her, but Ah speak only the truth here. Besides, her love for you is clearly different to what Ah’m talkin’ ‘bout here."

"I… I…"

"Ah don’t need you to reply right now. In fact, Ah don’t need a reply, because Ah’m just tellin’ what Ah’m honestly feelin’."

Applejack then deeply inhaled and smiled brightly.

She lied, because she was not completely honest about her truest motives.

But even so, she not only felt like a weight was lifted from her heart, but she felt like she had stuck a flag onto Spike before everypony else.

The original Spike was something akin to a forbidden prize, the one dragon whose mere presence reminded her of the treasured life as Spike. Something that seemed to be fading away day by day, and fear was nagging at her heart.

She did not know what she felt with crystal clear clarity. She only knew that being close to him was a selfish comfort and an alluring experience, so she did what she had to do and claim him as her own. And as she had expected, she finally felt full, for the first time since the day it happened.

Was she greedy? So what if she was, especially if she had been a dragon. Dragons were supposed to be greedy, weren't they?

Spike, though, was taking the news with a mix of shock and confusion.

He thought he knew what love was. He was even sure that he could just go charge right into a relationship with a certain white unicorn and hold his head up high. He just never imagined that he would be propositioned by someone in this kind of strange state. He would never in a million years think that proposing to him would be high on any of the six mares’ priority, after the shambles with the Elements.

He had been certain that he loved Rarity. But being proposed by someone else suddenly set him up into a stark reflection. Was his crush on Rarity an infatuation, a commitment, a duty, or a sense of true love? Did any of those matter? He wasn’t even so sure with himself anymore.

***

"Hey, Twilight."

Spike mindlessly dragged his body into the Golden Oak Library and hailed the purple pony inside.

"Whu- uh, what’s the matter, S- Spike?"

The purple pony was briefly tongue-tied. Having working around the clock, she was more than tired out just to find out a way to reverse the shambles.

Not that the dragon would refuse to lend his claws should she need it, but she was reluctant to call upon his help. For some reason, she feared that Spike would resent her for being all needy, something that never crossed her mind when she was only Twilight. She knew it was irrational, but like a phobia, this clinging fear could not be simply explained away.

Also, she now felt she’s only working, as if just because Spike told her to. To her honest opinion, it didn't seem that too much actual damage had been done, apart from some navel-gazing about who they were. After all, she could still continue Twilight Sparkle’s friendship mission in this state.

Spike was none the wiser. The dragon was still ruminating on what Applejack said to him earlier. Like on a natural reflex, he wanted to ask opinion from his most trusted figure, even though she’s not quite herself at this state, to say the least.

"A- Applejack just said something to me, and I don’t quite know what to do…"

Twilight felt unusually happy that Spike came to her advice for something, her tiredness melted away somewhat. Ever since the mishap, a small intangible part in her was feeling paradoxically farther from his heart.

"R- Really, what did she say that troubled you? I might be able to help!"

Spike shifted uncomfortably. "Normally, I won’t come to you for this sort of things. But since this has everything to do with our current status, I want to hear from you."

Twilight raised a brow. What did he mean by ‘this sort of things’?

"Well, basically, Applejack just asked me to be her... significant other."

"Oh wow, Spike, you’ve used such an advanced word so accurately... Wait, what?!"

"Yes, that’s true and I’m never gonna joke about something like that! I’ve been confused about that the whole day… It just feels so weird… How should I see this, and how should I see her?"

"Hmm..." Twilight's initial surprise gave way to a pensive look.

Spike bit his lips and quietly continued. "Feelings aside, I don’t know if I can treat her as Applejack the mare. She’s at least partly me, right? Of course I can’t know for sure, but whatever she says, I just can't imagine she'd be into me in any shape or form, had this blunder never happened!"

To Spike’s surprise, Twilight asked him with a hard gaze. "… Does it even matter what would have happened otherwise?"

Spike was briefly taken aback, and then retorted. "Of course it would matter! Everypony is not themselves right now! Even if I take a hundred steps back and say 'yes', it would be, like, taking advantage of her not being herself!"

Twilight touched her own cheek. "What does it mean by somepony ‘being herself’, though?"

Spike blandly blinked. "… Huh?"

"It’s hard to tell, isn’t it?"

"What’s so hard to tell? I mean, every one of you woke up that morning, and figured that you’re not yourselves straight out of bed, didn’t you? You all think that you’re me and not a pony, isn’t that quite straightforward?"

"No." She shook her head. "As I’ve told you, we can remember their pasts."

"So what? It’s not like ‘seeing is owning’."

The purple mare briefly looked as if the dragon’s words have pricked and hurt her, but she then merely sighed. "I don’t want to wax philosophical on you, but that’s the only way I know to tell you what I think of my… our current status."

"Go ahead."

She turned away and looked up. "So yes, we all think that we’re sort-of the clones of you ever since a few days ago. But does that really make us not the ponies we’re supposed to be originally?"

"How can you be me and Twilight at the same time? That’s not possible!" Spike showed her a confused look.

The purple pony bashfully chuckled, and then slowly said. "What makes a pony the very pony that she is? Many scholars of the past have tried to answer this question, the question about the ‘self’. I remember reading a number of volumes on the matter, but I think nothing of it other than aiding my magical research. It’s only now that my own mind is put to test, I become so intimately aware of what they truly mean."

"Huh."

Closing her eyes to recall, she continued. "We all have beliefs of what and who we are. Twilight Sparkle thinks she’s a book-loving unicorn with purple coat, Spike thinks he’s a young dragon with a love for gems and lengthy afternoon naps-"

Spike promptly complained. "Hey, I am not that lazy!"

The purple pony laughed. "Right. You yourself know whether I was being fair or not."

Ignoring the protesting harrumph for the dragon, her expression soon turned serious. "These kinds of enduring beliefs are important to us. It comes up in our mind whenever we think about ‘what is me?’"

Looking up at the window behind the sober dragon, she continued. "For certain, the belief that we were a young male drake named Spike featured so noticeably in our minds since that incident. But thing is, it isn’t all."

Sighing again, she traced the edge of a thick tome nearby. "A pony is shaped by many things. Her esteem, for example. We think of ourselves through an emotional lens, and we let it color the judgment of not only the others, but also ourselves. As you might have noticed, we could not help but act upon many visceral reflexes of the mares themselves."

Sensing vague acknowledgement from the dragon, she smiled. "We’re also shaped by everyone around us. What we think about ourselves is also social. In other words, we’re also at least partly somepony that the others tell us we are. The way we have to act like the mares themselves these few days merely reinforced this tendency."

The purple pony waved her hoof up and pointed to a pinned note on the table like she’s holding a lecture. "When you look into what constitute a mind, you also need to consider the dimension of time. You said ‘seeing is not owning’, that’s not entirely unreasonable."

She crossed her hooves with a grave look, and slowly muttered. "But for memories, it’s a much murkier matter. What we thought we had done in the past heavily shaped what we believe about ourselves. Memories... are never a matter that is clear-cut, reliable and unchanging. There is a thousand ways to tamper them with magic, and another thousand to tamper them without. To sequester them cleanly in one single mind is but impossible. What Twilight the pony did in the past, it affects both my rational self and perception. And from there, it affects my present self, and my future self as well."

She forcefully tapped on the tome. "… At least this is what the books tell us. That’s also why it’s so hard to tell how much of me is Spike the dragon and how much of me is not."

She pushed her mane backwards and grinned. "The self is a strange thing indeed. That’s why mind magic is such a fascinating and complex area… But I digress, regarding what Applejack had said to you, I think… Spike?"

The dragon was already snoring loudly with arms open and belly up. Twilight narrowed her eyes, briefly annoyed that her audience had fallen asleep, and her carefully researched conclusion was not being taken in whatsoever.

At the end though, she merely smiled in defeat and carefully lowered a blanket onto him with telekinesis. She then looked towards the setting sun outside the window and muttered.

"Applejack… Clever girl, huh?"

Author's Note

Realistic presentation of what happens in a developmental psychology lecture.

Cryptic Caretaker Conundrum

The next day, Spike was slowly treading towards Fluttershy's cottage, carefully holding a big bag of bird feed.

He stepped onto the quaint little bridge over the creek, and looked to the distant cabin door. Tiredness overcame him, so he sat on the ledge, while looking at the cottage and recouping his breath.

At some distance away, a large, innocuous-looking bush shook vigorously. Two heads popped from the hedge at the same time, and turned to each other with some surprise.

"Well slap mah head and call me silly... Fancy seein' you in here, Twilight."

The orange mare shook a stray leaf off her head and smirked. "What are the odds we've picked the same bush to hide in?"

"I saw you tail behind him, so I started following you." Twilight gazed at the orange mare with a poker face. "What's this all about?"

"Easy there sugarcube." Applejack raised both her hooves. "Ah jus' heard that Spike's goin' to check on Fluttershy, and Ah want to make sure everythin' goes fine."

She then shrugged. "Fluttershy didn't show up the other day to pick up the diced apples for her animals, so Ah delivered to her by mah own hooves. She thanked me, but lawds'a mercy, did she look like a ghost! So Ah reckon Ah've gotta keep a tab on things."

Twilight narrowed her left eye, seemingly unsatisfied with the answer.

"Eh, you don't look so convinced." Applejack looked to the side suspiciously. "Ah say, this is all just normal friend caring about another friend..."

"Let's not beat around the figurative bush. I know what you're up to, AJ."

"... Huh, so Spike told you everything?" Applejack slowly grinned, shedding any remaining pretense. "Ah knew it. After all, Ah would've turned to you as well, if Ah were still a dragon."

"So you did ask him out." Twilight raised a brow in disbelief. "This is outrageous! What exactly are you thinking?"

"Whoa nelly, shhh-" Applejack hushed, and then explained with a light voice. "Look, Ah don't know about you, but having him by mah side feels so snug and safe..."

The orange mare looked up towards the wavering treetops and muttered. "The apple orchard can feel so vast and empty sometimes, y'know? Ah just did what Ah had to do to persuade him to stay with me more often."

"Were you saying those things... just so that you can claim him all for yourself?!"

"Sheesh Twi." Applejack's smile turned droll. "Ah didn't expect to be put in a wringer when Ah stepped out of the Acres this morning."

"Answer me." Twilight's laconic words sound non-negotiable.

"Ah'm not playin' him for a fool, nor am Ah lyin' to get what Ah want, if that's what yer implyin'." Applejack shot back.
"Unlike you, Ah don't have the leisure of havin' him tag along by default. But at least Ah'm honest with mah feelin'. Whatever we become and wherever we go, Ah'm not goin' to be regrettin' what Ah said, that's fer sure."

Twilight looked a bit stung, but she insisted. "... We'll talk about this later."

"Yeah... and there! He's on the move again."

***

A gust of spring wind blew at Spike's face. He sighed, stood up and dusted himself off. He inspected the bag, and lifted it up with both his arms again.

Heavy as the bag was, he was more preoccupied with the yellow mare in the cottage.

From what he heard from the other girls, the pink-maned pegasus had been lethargic and withdrawn ever since the fateful day. Therefore, once Spike heard that Fluttershy had not collected the bird feed the day before, he volunteered to help the animal caretaker to do some manual work, planning to give her a pleasant surprise.

Admittedly, it was also a way for him to briefly put aside what happened with Applejack.

Indeed, Spike felt quite sorry about Fluttershy. She was the only newly-met pony who showed him a modicum of interest before everything happened, even though it's only due to the fact that he's a baby dragon.

She was a gentle soul, living by herself by the vast Everfree and caring for the animals. But all he did to her after the incident was to scold her for not chinning up like the rest of them, all with the tact of a sledgehammer.

After all, at the time, Spike only knew to treat them as 'copies' of himself, since that's what they exactly said. But one thing was becoming more and more apparent - what the Elements did was much more complicated. Exactly how, he was not sure, but to treat them as courteously as he would to the originals seemed like a good idea.

He shook his head and found himself at the door already. He laid the bag on the ground, and was about to lay his claws on the door.

"STOP! Don't you even try to move an inch closer to my house!"

A voice blasted from inside the door, sending the dragon into a jolt.

"Huh?"

"I- I am not gonna say this again!" The voice stuttered for a brief moment, before returning to full strength again. "GO AWAY, OR ELSE!"

To say Spike did not expect this reaction would be an understatement. "F- Fluttershy? Is that you? I'm just here to deliver the bird feed to you! What's this all of a sudden?"

"Can you not understand me?!" The voice grew more anguished and agitated. "Go, just go, please!"

Spike was dumbfounded. What could have prodded Fluttershy into shutting herself in again? He thought they had everything cleared up in their last meeting. And to hear the usually soft-spoken mare practically barked at him was all-the-more disorienting.

***

Holding two pieces of large lotus leaves above themselves across the creek, the peeping mares gazed at the scene with eyes wide open.

"What's going on?" Twilight was similarly puzzled by Fluttershy's reaction. She turned to find Applejack looking at the scene with a mesmerized expression.

"Applejack?" Twilight poked at the orange mare, and she poked again when she received no response. "Applejack?"

"Ahh..." The orange mare let out a long sigh. She turned to Twilight with a knowing smirk. "Ah see... Ah see."

"What do you see?" Twilight frowned.

"Ah reckon Ah might know why she's acting like that."

Frustrated at her crypticness, Twilight asked anxiously. "Then tell me!"

Applejack waved away the purple mare's concern, and turned her gaze back at the scene. "Let's jus' keep watchin' where this goes first."

***

"Look Fluttershy, whatever it is, we can talk it out..." Spike extended his arms like he was dealing with a raptor, while frantically thinking what could have ticked her off so badly.

"I- you... Did something bad happen? Panic attack? Night fright? O- or..." Spike continued with fretful realization and a wince. "... have you somehow become yourself again?"

The door abruptly yanked open, revealing a yellow pegasus, very much not looking like the paragon of kindness. Fuzzy mane covered her blood-shot eyes, and her outstretched hoof basically slammed the door onto the cottage wall, causing the tweeting birds at a distance to fly away in alarm.

"NO! I'm still not 'myself'! I just don't want to see you! At all!"

The angry yellow mare yelled, but she seemed to be deliberately avoiding direct gazes. "Get lost now or I'll sic Harry on you!"

***

The scattered birds flew at the onlooking mares' heads, and they promptly ducked in avoidance.

"Applejack, do you know who Harry is?" Twilight asked, raising the leaf with her magic again.

"He's an animal friend of Fluttershy... a bear, Ah think? Quite a large fellow at that."

"A bear?!" Twilight sounded clearly aghast. "He is in danger!"

"No, he's not." Applejack was cool as a cucumber. "She's just bluffin', anythin' to get Spike away from her sight."

"How are you so sure of that?" Twilight frowned at Applejack, and then looked back to the silent but very tense standoff in the front of the cottage.

"She just isn't the kind of pony to hurt others. She doesn't even rise to stand for herself when she should. There's no chance in Tartarus she would really sic a bear on Spike."

"But she- Ugh, then tell me already!" The purple unicorn was overwrought with suspense. "Why exactly does she not want to see him?"

"Twi, oh Twi," Applejack clearly derived much pleasure in teasing the anxious purple mare. "Yer eyes are bein' covered yer frenzy. Look at me, and look at Fluttershy, you'll see somethin' in common, but jus' expressed in a very different way."

Twilight knitted her brows immediately and quietly pondered. Suddenly, she too seemed to understand what Applejack was hinting at, and let out a long breath.

***

"... Fluttershy."

Spike was the first to reopen the conversation. "I don't know what happened that made you so mad with me, but whatever it is, I apologize."

"..."

"W- Was it because I scolded you? If that's the case, I am really sorry. I thought you were all just me so I kinda..." The dragon trailed off and sighed. "I don't know what I can say or do to make up to you, but-"

"That's not it!" Fluttershy yelled again impatiently, stomping the ground with a disgruntled face. But this time, a pleading tone crept up her voice. "Why won't you just leave me alone?!"

"I can't leave you alone. I don't care who you are or who you think you are, every one of you is my responsibility." Spike tried his best to soften his tone. "Not least because I don't even know why you're so crossed."

"If I tell you, are you going to go away?"

"Just tell me first."

"I... I can't stand your sight!" The yellow mare finally yelped in distress. "I just can't!"

Spike froze, hit by her words like smashing into a ton of bricks.

Fluttershy shivered and averted her gaze further, but she eventually began with a smaller voice.

"... This whole ordeal feels like a dream that I can't wake up from. I talk with the animals, care for them, chat with friends, live the life of an animal caretaker... But I always feel drained by thoughts of you."

Spike gulped, and he bit at his tongue in an attempt to keep his emotion in check.

"I've felt it ever since I argued with Angel on the first day, and what you said... It simply made my confusion stronger. It doesn't feel right. Nothing feels right. It's like I am always looking through an hourglass. Even when I do everything just right, something still feels wrong. I don't even begin to know what's wrong, and how to even begin to describe it."

The yellow mare slowly turned her head back to the diminutive dragon, her brows knitted tight. "But... But when I look at you, I just feel that dissonance so strongly. So much so that I couldn't help but lash out. So if you can just leave and make me feel less stressed out, I'd be... I'd be..."

She let out a heavy sigh, unable to continue her thoughts.

"I... I can't hurt you." She then simply shook her head, strain was apparent on her face and in her voice. "I don't hate you either. But please, just leave me alone."

***

"There you go." Applejack remarked with a head-shake. "Poor Fluttershy, she's so confused."

"And your head is so clear, huh?" Twilight sourly noted.

"No need to add so much kick to your words, Twilight. Remember, we have much in common." The orange mare thinly smiled. "But Ah think she's not thinkin' right with her noggin'."

"You think what's troubling her is the same as yours?"

"Ah'm surprised you asked it out loud." Applejack turned to look at the scene with a tinge of concern, but mostly with the amusement one looked into a funhouse mirror. "Of course we all feel the same kind of confusion. But we're also dealin' with that in very different ways. And the way Ah deal with it is to set mah eyes in the right place, fire mahself up and take charge."

"Right."

"Right." Applejack showed the purple pony a toothy grin. "Ah jus' think she's not seein' right. Spike the dragon is the root of all these. To run away and pretend he doesn't exist is a way to deal with it, but it's at the end no use. Dread him, run from him, the piece of him in us remains."

"... That makes more sense than I'd like to admit."

"Ah'll take that as a compliment." Applejack gave the purple mare a wry grin. She checked to make sure the dragon and the pegasus still stood in a stalemate, and continued. "Ya see, Ah came here to check on Spike. He sure looked right sprung on yesterday. But seein' how it is now with Fluttershy... Ah can't honestly say Ah look forward to competition, but this also would not do. She is our friend after all."

"Competition? Sheesh." Twilight raised a brow, but then asked. "But what exactly do you plan to do?"

"Why, we jump out like two bush bunnies and clear their heads with words."

"... You are serious."

"Or we just sit here, and watch him tuck his tail and scurry away." Applejack shrugged.

"No way. Spike... He just isn't a dragon who would give up on somepony he cares about like that."

"Ah know, but Ah also heard Fluttershy has a weapon to surpass Harry the Bear."

***

Fluttershy slowly drew in a breath and broke the silence this time. "... You're not leaving."

"I can't, sorry!" Spike quickly bowed but stood his ground. "I don't know what I can do right now, but I know what I definitely can't do: to leave a mess I made behind and leave someone else to deal with it."

He rose and stared the pegasus in the eyes. "We need to talk."

A gust of wind blew against his spines, and the dragon drew a half-circle in the dirt with his foot.

"Mister, you are making this very difficult." Fluttershy seemed both vexed and perplexed at his tenacity.

"No matter how difficult," The dragon breathed out slowly. "I must stay and fix this-"

"That's enough!" All of a sudden, it was as if the air itself froze solid. An oppressive atmosphere enveloped the scene, the yellow-coated mare darted forward and harshly glared into the diminutive dragon's eyes. "How exactly are you going to fix this, Spike, when you exactly are the problem?! Now would you be a dragon of his words and GO AWAY!"

The dragon let out an audible gasp. He stumbled backwards and sat awkwardly on the ground, two arms hastily setting down and holding up his small torso. His eyes seemed to get drawn in by the relentless glower of the pegasus, like a lone rowboat in a maelstrom.

In a green bush at a distance, a suppressed whisper could be heard.

"That's the Stare."

Applejack hushed, awe apparent in her voice. "Fluttershy told us she only used it in dire situations. Naughty varmints are deathly scared of it, and Ah suspect it can even bend wills of lesser ponies... Pro'lly one of the reasons why she's such a capable caretaker fer the critters."

"Indeed, I can feel the tension even at such a great distance. That's no mere effect of willpower..." Twilight frowned but surmised. She looked carefully at the dragon, who struggled against the overwhelming gaze from the usually demure pony. "But I don't sense any magic that I can detect anyway."

"This ain't no time fer magical research, Twi. You can grab Fluttershy into yer lab fer that, after we deal with the problem at hoof." Applejack added. "But thank Celestia Ah'm not yer assistant... now anyway."

Twilight first glared at the sheepish orange mare, and then pondered aloud. "That's an enticing suggestion, actually. It will be a good point of entry for my so-far fruitless research, since the pony that stands there can use a very unique skill seemingly only accessible by the Fluttershy of old-"

"Shh, there!"

Twilight was pulled from her thoughts, and quickly looked back to the duo.

The dragon somehow managed to withstand the fierce stare from the pegasus, and to their even bigger surprise, stood up against the suffocating presence and held his own. While he was by no means comfortable-looking, judging by his twisted brows and cold sweat on his forehead, he did not seem to cede any more ground either.

"At the risk of soundin' like Ah'm praisin' mah own apples, Ah'm quite proud." Applejack nodded smilingly. "Ah never saw someone manage to resist the Stare before."

"At the risk of sounding obvious, he is a dragon, not a 'critter'."

"Oh, of course," Applejack squinted with a wide grin, her laidback demeanor was grinding the gears of the anxious purple pony. "Then again, it could also be that the Fluttershy of now can't wield the full power of the Stare right now."

***

"Gah!"

Fluttershy could barely believe it, as she was pushed to the point of exhaustion before the effect of the Stare fully took hold. She tumbled back and leaned on the cottage wall herself, before letting out some big labored breaths.

"Hah, hah, is it... It's over?" Spike himself also sounded as if he was pelted with a fierce storm of hailstones, his voice hoarse and thin. The dragon's gaze swam with tiredness and he groaned. "Argh, what in Equestria was that? My head is a total mush..."

Fluttershy gritted her teeth with a mix of shame and anger, but she did not know if she's more frustrated with the dragon or herself. She simply looked away, refusing to meet gaze with the dragon.

To her surprise, she found her pet rabbit Angel peering intently at them, sitting with his legs crossed on the window ledge. Instinctively, she looked to him for support, only to remember that they were not exactly on the best of terms right now.

Just before she looked back dejectedly onto the ground, the rabbit jumped off the ledge and ran up to the startled mare. He immediately mouthed off something that Spike had no idea about, but it was evidently enough to turn her face stiff.

"... Angel, you-" Fluttershy muttered.

The bunny first gave the dragon a brief stink eye, before he turned his full gaze back to Fluttershy. He jumped up and made an exaggerated motion with his upper limbs, his frustration was apparent despite the wordlessness. At first, Fluttershy retorted quietly but vigorously, however soon found herself on the defensive.

"How was I-? But- But I was just trying to-" Fluttershy looked almost dazed, and after receiving another grand earful from Angel, she lowered her head further, seemingly full of shame. "... You really think so...?"

Spike then merely ogled with wide eyes, as the pegasus and bunny rabbit simply went back and forth. The bunny rabbit seemed to be both venting and lecturing the pegasus mare, and its wordless nature .

He was befuddled but largely relieved, when the pegasus's demeanor softened considerably. Unease was still clear from her body language, but he saw she tentatively walk near him, this time much more diplomatic.

"I... I know it's a really odd time to say this." She fidgeted. "But, um, please come in. I'll make tea."

Spike sharply breathed in, he actually got to talk to her. He was somewhat worried that by defying her order to leave, he was actually going to make her hate his guts. Apparently, he had the prickly yet persnickety bunny to thank for.

Shrugging his little shoulders, he motioned a heartfelt thank-you to the rabbit with his paws, quickly grabbed hold of the bag of bird feed, and followed the pegasus into her house.

***

"Okay, I am now officially, totally lost. What exactly happened?"

Twilight gawked as the duo entered the cottage, followed by the door loudly slammed shut. The midday sun shone down the grasses and the glistening river stream, and tranquil peace have suddenly returned to this brim of Ponyville.

"Tartarus if Ah know. Ah never really figured out what 'Shy's deal with her critters was. That Angel bunny though, he often pushed her around, but Ah guess mostly for her own good. Seems like he must've figured that getting the two to talk is the way to go, which Ah agree."

Applejack then snorted. "Aw shucks, at least things are lookin' up?"

"Are we still going to, uh..." The unicorn cocked her head sideways and frowned. "Ugh, I don't even know what to do anymore. It's not like they're coming out any time soon."

"Oh, you were originally stalkin' me fer stalkin' him." The orange mare rolled her eyes and chuckled. "Should we go back to that?"

Twilight rolled her eyes back up briefly, but then bit her lips. "I... I think maybe we should leave them alone for now."

"Oh?" Applejack smirked again.

"Mind you, it's not that I am not curious what they would be talking about inside the cottage." The unicorn mare then lightly exhaled. "But whatever it is, it's probably their businesses and their own."

Twilight then paused for a bit and hesitantly tapped her hoof. "They need their own space. He needs his own space. I just don't think it's right to be too possessive, if only it could distance him even further."

Applejack's smirk faded, and she deliberated over Twilight's words.

"He would find help in me when he seeks it." Twilight then looked sideways with a lower voice. "Besides, I have faith in him."

"... Well then." The orange mare, for the first time, dropped her wryness in her tone, her expression replaced with one of ponderance. She rose from the bush and dusted herself.

"... You're leaving? I thought you come this far just to see what he's up to, what with him wanting to avoid you and all-"

"So he was avoiding me." Applejack sharply looked back, and couldn't help but show a bit of disappointment in her voice.

Twilight covered her mouth, but Applejack quickly picked herself up and nodded briskly. "Ah reckon yer right. Ah should probably jus' leave him alone fer a bit, let him stew in his thoughts. Don't want him to think Ah'm even more overbearin' by bein' a nosy snooper and all. We can always check back on them later, when they're ready."

"I am not trying to call you out or anything, it's as much for you as it's for me-"

"Yeah, no need to couch it. Yer jus' tellin' it like it is, sugarcube. Ah'm stupid fer gettin' too caught up in mah desire, and not caring enough about what he thinks."

Applejack stepped onto the winding path and turned her head back again. "Ah guess Ah must've sounded like a wind-up, huh? Sorry 'bout that. Ah was probably a bit defensive, what with me fixin' to get a hold of him... But Ah guess you've already told me what Ah need to hear."

Twilight nodded then shook her head. "I should be more patient and understanding as well."

"So anyways," The orange earth pony continued. "Ah still have some time before Ah have to go back to the Acres. You probably won't be starting your usual afternoon research session till later either, if Ah remember correctly? So let's go fer a lunch in town."

"Um, I didn't bring my saddlebag out when I-"

"Then it's on me."

The unicorn was about to open her mouth to protest, but she was already dragged along by the strong earth pony, who already began to mouth off a list of dining locales like a travel guide. Twilight could only smile and exhale in resignation as she was forced to canter along.

Indeed, it has been a long time since her mind was primarily occupied by something as mundane as choices of hay burgers and cider drinks.

She was also grateful for it.