“I sure hope this works,” a light purple colored unicorn readied a daisy near the test area. She positioned it on a table just so so that the spotlight provided her colleague with a clear shot. “We can’t afford any more mistakes. I don’t think you’re aware of just how complex Descartes’ Time Magic Theorem really is.”
“Starlight you know as well as I do that I’ve cast more powerful spells than this.”
There was a time when Starlight very nearly erased the order of time’s flow and sent Equestria spiraling towards everlasting doom. She and Twilight blasted each other with magic for what seemed like eternity.
“Heh, yeah–- well just be careful, Twilight. These spells require a lot of stamina and I don’t want to see anything happen to you.”
Twilight eyed her student curiously as if what she just heard could have deterred her somehow.
But no such luck. Twilight Sparkle had that determined look in her eyes again. The same look she had when she stepped up to take Celestia’s entrance exam.
And can you blame her?
What if you had suddenly became an alicorn princess? What if after becoming that same princess you were tasked with spreading friendship across the entire nation? Say you no longer had as much time to yourself to do the things you loved doing? Or even see the ponies you liked seeing?
What if these responsibilities meant outliving your most dearest friends?
Twilight wiped the sweat off of her brow from previous attempts at the age spell. This time was going to be different. She could feel it.
“I’m pretty sure if I recite Descartes in conjunction with Star Swirl’s Time Delineation Formula I’ll have enough energy to reverse the plant’s time polarity.”
“Say what now?” The pitter patter of tiny dragon’s feet could be heard scuffling up from behind where the plant was staged.
“Spike,” the purple alicorn said surprised.. “Didn’t I tuck you in already? Assistants shouldn’t be up past their bedtime.” Twilight gave Spike a stern look.
“I couldn’t sleep.” Spike let out a wild yawn. “I kept hearing weird noises so I came here.”
Twilight frowned. “Sorry Spike, we didn’t mean to wake you. We’re almost done.” Twilight was usually so adamant about her baby dragon getting enough sleep. This time was her fault however.
“What are you two even doing anyways?” Spike asked.
He looked at the plant, then to Starlight, then back at the plant. “Wait– are you guys trying that age spell again?”
Starlight began idly whistling, pretending not to know anything.
“Well er–” Twilight stumbled over her words. She knew how Spike felt about this. But she was a horrible liar.
“Twilight you know I don’t like it when you try these dangerous spells. What if you get hurt again?” Spike leaned in to put his arms around his caretaker. “Remember what happened last time?”
...
Twilight remembered, but she didn’t like thinking about it.
She was muzzle deep in a collection of her own papers pouring every ounce of energy she had in memorizing seemingly limitless lines of magic. It required all of her brain power, willpower, and stamina. The moon was high in the sky but Twilight wasn’t about to give up. She closed her eyes firmly and concentrated as well as she could. She just had to get this right!
Her horn began to glow a whole host of radiant hues. The room became encircled in shrouds of wind and magic.
She was doing it! The spell was accumulating its magical aura and all she had to do was focus her energy, shoot it at the flower, and hopefully turn it into a seedling.
But then something went wrong.
Twilight’s knees buckled. She was slowly losing consciousness. Her eyes rolled into the back of her head, and she had all but fainted up to this point. She fell on the floor with a crash and poor Spike had no idea what was going on…
It wasn’t until waking up in the hospital bed with her baby dragon clinging to her chest that she realized she didn’t want Spike to see her like that ever again.
…
“Spike, I won’t let that happen,” she said and freed herself from his hug. “This time is different. I have Starlight helping me and she’s a very capable student.”
Starlight smiled at the compliment.
“Spike,” Starlight said. “Let’s get you back to bed. Twilight and I are just running some tests. It’s nothing too serious.” She tried levitating Spike up onto her back.
Spike however dug his claws into the floorboards.
“No!”
Starlight let go.
“Not without Twilight. Please, I don’t want her to get hurt.”
Starlight gave Twilight a worried glance. Twilight returned a defeated one right back at her.
She sighed. “Ok, Spike. You can stay. But please promise me you will stay back. You don’t want me getting hurt just as badly as I don’t want you getting hurt.”
Spike gulped. “Yes, ma’am.”
This was it.
Spike took a couple steps back closer to where Starlight was watching. He grabbed onto her forehoof and half hid himself behind it.
It really scared Spike the last time Twilight tried an age spell. He woke up to find her passed out in the study with a severe nosebleed. The only pony Spike knew to contact at the time was Princess Celestia. He sent for her almost immediately breathing fire through a fit of tears.
It didn’t take long for the emergency response ponies to show up either. They were under Celestia’s orders after all. And poor Spike, what could he do? He had cleaned his caretaker up, he had given her his favorite baby blue blanket to keep her warm, and he even remembered Twilight’s smarty pants doll. Because well maybe it would make her feel better.
The whole time his tears just kept welling up over and over. His tummy hurt and his little heart pumped feverishly. One of his biggest fears becoming a reality.
Spike just assumed the worst. He had never seen Twilight sleep like that before so what did he know? When they took her away to the hospital without him and left him all alone in that big empty room of theirs Spike could honestly say that that was the most frightened he’s ever been before.
Spike wasn’t a huge fan of age spells anymore. And he definitely wasn’t big on Twilight trying them again. Still he understood why she was doing this.
Spike just continued to clutch Starlight’s forehoof and keep his distance. Starlight cast a sympathetic look down upon the drake. She understood how important Twilight was to him. And Starlight didn’t want to see Twilight faint from magic exhaustion either. She knew how taxing performing Star Swirl and Descartes can be on a spellcaster. And there was a reason she agreed to play “the assistant”.
It was now or never. Twilight had enough energy for one last try.
She took a spell casting stance by planting all four hooves evenly and firmly on the ground beneath her. She began reciting the magic in her head as from memory and closed her eyes to concentrate on the task at hoof. It was in nopony else’s hooves but hers now.
She started the spell from its anacrusis and the room became deathly still for a moment.
The same winds as before encircled the room. Twilight’s horn glowed impatiently with that same radiant energy. The room swirled in pinks, purples, and violets.
Spike began to bite his claws. This was starting to look and sound awfully familiar to him.
The alicorn reared and reared. She flung her head around wildly as the magic began to illuminate her irises. The spell looked right but then why wasn’t she releasing it? She should’ve shot the daisy by now. Something wasn’t right. Was Twilight stuck on it somehow?
“Has she ever done this before?” Spike shouted above the whirlwind of noise and chaos around them.
“Not exactly,” was all Starlight could manage as the room’s energy started flying wildly out of stasis. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen a spell get away from her this fast!”
Spike’s heart skipped a beat. From where they were standing Twilight appeared to be losing control. She was levitating off of the ground and the wind just swept in all directions all around her. She looked possessed like the Maneiac from Spike's comics.
Spike called out again, “Twilight!”
Twilight who remained incomprehensibly fixed towards the plant didn’t show any signs of volition. She exhibited intense amounts of magical energy, now pooling up over her horn the same color as her eyes. It was that beautiful deep shade of purple. Whatever spell Twilight was summoning, it was completely overtaking her.
“Twilight! You have to snap out of it! Wake up and snap out of it!” Spike fought the wind to try and grab her hoof.
Bullied by all of the intense light and noise, Starlight had lost track of Spike. She could hardly tell what was going on anymore. All she could do was shield herself from projectiles, panic's pangs sweeping over her.
Spike trudged on towards his friend. His friend who was now completely and utterly transfixed by age old reality bending spells.
There has to be a way to snap her out of this! Spike continued to stem the flow of light from his eyes.
He grabbed onto one of Twilight’s legs and pulled himself onto her back miraculously. Maybe if he could just reach her ear and shout at her she would be able to abort the spell?
Spike climbed his way up Twilight’s back while the room’s books were flailing all around them in random patterns and trajectories. One of them flew a mere inches away from connecting with Spike’s face.
“Twilight! Twilight! Please, you have to snap out of it!”
No response. Just the same illuminated trance as before.
Spike was having a hard time simply holding onto Twilight. He wasn’t a super heavy or strong individual. Quite to the contrary. He was light and not very wind resistant either. All of this gale force magic was throwing him around effortlessly. It took the digging of Spike’s claws into Twilight’s coat for him to keep hold of her. He hoped he wasn’t hurting her but he also wasn’t letting go anytime soon.
He called out to her again. “Twilight! It’s me Spike. You’re friend? Come on I know you can hear me!”
Getting closer to Twilight’s face Spike realized she was in pain. This terrified him more than anything. He could hear her stifled cries become more audible the moment his ears were within earshot of her voice. Twilight wasn’t safe. Spike had to think up something fast or Twilight might not have the privilege of making it to the hospital this time.
Spike hatched an idea.
Disturbing a unicorn’s horn could sometimes prevent the spell from manifesting itself physically, thereby diffusing the energy into thin air.
It was worth a shot.
Spike balanced on Twilight’s wavering shoulders.
“Almost got it...”
He jumped and grabbed Twilight’s horn. The room’s lighting dimmed. But if only just for a second.
“Uh–oh...” Spike could sense he was in trouble.
Seamlessly and violently the energy from Twilight’s horn released in one loud abrupt blast of light and magic.
In an instant the resulting shockwave knocked everypony back against the walls. Spike in one direction, Twilight in the other, and Starlight in between them. Twilight’s study was once more deathly silent.
Spike was right about one thing: smothering all that energy brought an end to Twilight’s predicament.
He was wrong however about where it would all end up…
Author's Note
Hiya everypony!
So my good friend Lemon_Thyme (http://www.fimfiction.net/user/Lemon_Thyme) and I have been collaborating a lot lately and this story is uniquely ours. She helps me edit, write, and even draws the lovely art! Oh won't you please say hello!^^
This chapter is only one of more to come. I can see this story as being at least 7 or 8 chapters long. The only problem being school is nearing the end of its quarter for me. And on top of moving into my new house and going to work I don't have much time for the fun things I like to do. But! This will be finished. Oh ho ho! Rest assured. I intend to finish this one here!!! 
My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic and all related characters, ideas, logos are trademarked and copyrighted by HASBRO.
Starlight received the least amount of impact from the blast. She climbed to her hooves rather slowly. She shook off the blow and tried to get the ringing in her ears to die down a little before planning her next move.
Twilight hit the wall in front of her after the initial ‘boom’ sounded. Starlight considered galloping over to where Twilight had landed. But not before realizing that she had already lost track of Spike.
“Oh Twilight is going to be furious with me!” Starlight thought. “Why didn’t Spike stay behind me?”
Twilight was a strong pony. And a little bit less fragile to magical explosions than a baby dragon perhaps. Starlight considered starting in on her role as medic with Spike first.
She remembered seeing what looked like Spike’s figure fly in the opposite direction from Twilight and over her own head. So Starlight decided to start looking in that direction.
“Spike? Spike!” Starlight called. “Spike where are you? Please tell us you’re alright!”
You know what would make it especially hard for Starlight to find Spike? Well quite simply all of the BOOKS.
Books.
Books lay strewn everywhere across the floor. Pages torn from every which-a-way littered the boisterous room around her. It was a mess to behold. As if her task was hard enough add to it the hindrance of every book in Twilight’s study occupying the floor around her.
But despite all of the chaos one thing remained untouched: one happy, healthy, potted daisy still sat in the middle of the room as if saying, “Hey, I think you missed me.”
Starlight kept searching for Spike while worry and fear crept over her. To make matters worse Spike was tiny enough that a pile of books could easily conceal him. She had everywhere to look!
“Spike? Spike!”
Just then a piercing noise arose out of nowhere and caused the unicorn’s ears to resume ringing all over again. It was a sound she wasn’t all too familiar with. Yet, not one she ever wanted to become reacquainted.
It was the unmistakable sound of a crying foal. And it sounded like it was coming from the direction Spike flew in.
“How did a foal get in here?” Starlight asked nopony in particular sprinting towards the wails.
She began throwing books and papers around with her magic desperately trying to find the source of all that crying. Books like “A Weather Ponies Guide to Winter Wrap-Up”, “How to Teach Magic Kindergarten”, and “Goodnight, Firebreather” were thrown out of the way as fast as Starlight Glimmer could perform the search part of the search and rescue. Eventually with enough throws she would find the source of the annoying crying.
Underneath a pile of magic encyclopedias, she found it.
There sat a much smaller version of Spike. Make that a much louder version of him as well.
Starlight reached a hoof out just to touch the poor thing. Was what she was seeing actually real or did she just hit her head a little too hard on the way down?
“Spike? Is that you?” Starlight blinked a couple of times.. “Oh please, oh please let this be somepony else’s dragon that just happens to look exactly like…” Starlight paused to swallow hard. “Spike…”
The hatchling dragon stared in horror at the massive pony that stood towering before him.
If this littler dragon was in fact Spike, a claim Starlight could point to by way of the creature’s light purple scales and bright, watery, emerald green eyes, then Spike wasn’t recognizing her. Or maybe Starlight had something on her face?
“Spike! It’s me! Starlight Glimmer? You know? Assistant number two?” Starlight turned downtrodden. “Oh Sweet Celestia… you absorbed all of the magic didn’t you?”
Spike just continued to ball his eyes out and shy away under the rest of the books Starlight hadn’t yet tossed away.
“Oh geez. Twilight is going to be so peeved…”
Thinking out loud made her realize she forgot something. “TWILIGHT.”
Without hesitation Starlight galloped to the other side of the room leaving the infant Spike to cry a little longer. She stopped in front of where Twilight was lying. It looked like Twilight was already coming to her senses. She was trying to stand up.
“Twilight! You’re alright. Oh thank Celestia you’re alright!” Starlight put her hooves around her mentor and pulled her into a hug.
“Ugh, wha– what happened?” Twilight asked.
“Well you sort of went rogue there, all of our books and papers started flying around the room–” Twilight put a hoof up to her own mouth the moment she realized something had happened to her books. Starlight continued on, “–and well uh, you missed the daisy.”
“This is the last time I conjoin Descartes with Star Swirl the Bearded.” Twilight rubbed her head.
“This time was supposed to be different,” thought Twilight.
Down but not defeated, Twilight supposed it would all be ok if nopony got hurt.
If...
Twilight continued, “I guess we’ll just have to tidy up the study tomorrow and pick up where we left off. Where’s Spike?”
Twilight regained the acuity in her posture much sooner than that of her hearing it seemed. She wasn’t quite aware of the tiny dragon crying in the background.
Or maybe it’s the opposite? Maybe she was so used to the sound of Spike’s crying that the sound actually wasn’t foreign to her at all?
“Well, you see, er– that’s the thing,” Starlight stammered. “Spike sort of, um. Well he kind of just– and you were so distracting–.” Eventually Starlight took a deep breath and said.. “Twilight, I can’t get him to stop crying.”
Twilight wasn’t sure if she understood.
“Is he hurt? Where? Do we have the first aid kit?” Twilight ran towards the sound of the wails. “Oh Spike! Don’t cry. I’m sure whatever it is I can fix it!”
Starlight trotted close behind her. “Twilight, what I meant is– I can’t get Spike to stop crying because... he got in the way.”
“'In the way?’ What–-”
Twilight reached the other side of the room expecting to see Spike holding his knee or his elbow or some other appendage. What she really saw made her jaw drop.
There on the floor of her study in front of her sat a figure Twilight never thought she’d see outside the photo albums again. It was her assistant. But a much, much earlier version of him. Way back before she even graduated Celestia’s school. His chubby cheeks, tail, arms, legs, and body were unmistakable to Twilight. She would recognize her baby dragon anywhere.
But did he recognize her?
“Bahada Gah!” Spike sat up and clapped his claws together. Remarkably enough he stopped his crying and reached both of his chubby little dragon arms out to try and grab Twilight.
“This… this is terrible!” Twilight was a potpourri of emotions right now. Fear, sadness, and desperation among them.
“Well, hey at least he stopped crying,” Starlight said.
Twilight shot her student an annoyed look.
The alicorn returned her attention back down towards Spike. Twilight had felt a lot of magical energy during the course of that botched spell. Like a lot of energy. If Spike had absorbed all of it well then she really had no idea how she was meant to turn him back. She cast a quick glance at her books, randomly tossed around the room, some pages torn and burnt. Twilight wished the current Spike was still around to help her clean this up. He had the entire shelving process memorized by genre, subject, and title.
“Oh Spike," Twilight kneeled down to let Spike wrap one of his tiny claws around her hoof. "I'm so sorry.”
Spike simply held onto her hoof and babbled. He was no longer comprehensible to Twilight and Starlight anymore. It all just came out as baby gibberish to them.
"Don't beat yourself up too bad over this, Twi. I mean at least he's still cute this way," Starlight giggled.
She quickly turned serious when she felt Twilight omit a reaction. Starlight put a hoof around Twilight's back while she was embracing Spike. "We can still fix this..." she whispered.
Twilight continued to hold Spike in her hooves. Everything to her felt the same as she held him. His weight, figure, the way he constantly tried clawing at her mane, the way he sucked on her hooves while she held him. It was all the same.
It took her back to a place in time that was exciting and different. A time where Spike depended on her for so much. For food, for health, for life.
Suddenly, Spike spit up all over Twilight's hooves. Twilight eyed Spike completely dumbfounded. A spit bubble popped causing Starlight's eye to twitch.
"Er, uh well- Twilight?"
"Can you grab me a towel please, Starlight?"
Author's Note
Well this story might have to officially go on hiatus for a bit. But like I said it WILL get finished. So stay tuned everypony! /)
My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic and all related characters, ideas, logos are trademarked and copyrighted by HASBRO.
