Chapters Spike’s eyes were wide as he ran, his pony sister running close behind him as they traversed deeper and deeper into the Everfree Forest, a bit of blood dripping from the open wound on his arm. His shirt was a tattered mess, ripped open from the front, revealing the scars on his chest, and his jeans fared no better, being mangled and torn below the knees, making them look like a strange pair of shorts, showing the many scars on his legs as well. Neither one looked back as they ran, both fearing that their pursuers would close in on them if they did. They only let themselves catch their breath once they reached a clearing within the Forest.
“I think…” Twilight began, panting hard. “We gave them the slip. For now, at least.”
The clothes of the purple unicorn were also a mess, but weren’t as destroyed as her adopted brother’s. Her shirt had a few tears and rips in it, but nothing too detrimental. Her skirt was torn from the knee, up, making it look like a fancy skirt, rather than a traditional frilly and flowy skirt that she normally wore. Her mane - a dark magenta color, with a purple and pink stripe running through it - which was usually well kept and ran straight down her back, now looked like she had a fight with her pillow and lost badly, and her eyes were red and puffy, indicating that she’s been crying for hours for what was to come. Even her normally pristine lavender coat was dirty and frayed in places.
Spike silently placed a comforting hand on his big sister’s shoulder and smiled sadly, a few tears escaping from his eyes. “We both know this is the best option for us. I’m able to get away, and you won’t be in any trouble with Princess Celestia.” He told her, wincing at her name. He knew he wouldn’t be able to heal the scars the ruler of Equestria dealt to him, physical, mental, or emotional, but, he didn’t care, so long as he was able to escape the torturous hell that was his current life.
Twilight nodded and pulled him into one final hug, nodding silently. “I know. I send you through a portal to an alternate world where Celestia is kind and benevolent to all creatures, after you set fire to the surrounding area. When Celestia’s guard comes to find me, I tell them that you turned against me, and I had to kill you to save my own life.” She replied, choking on ‘kill you’, a few fresh tears escaping her eyes once again.
After a few more seconds, Spike backed up and looked at his sister, drinking in her looks as if to remember her. He knew she was doing the same, wanting to remember his light green spines, running from the top of his head, down to the spade tip of his tail, his purple scales, which shined brightly along the back of his wings whenever he flew around to carry her from place to place. His lime green scales which ran from his chest and along the underside of his tail, and his piercing emerald green eyes, which always seemed to radiate care and love for her.
Taking one last quick glance at her, Spike sucked in a deep breath and nodded to Twilight, who began charging her magic. Channeling his flame sack to mix the liquid into his lungs, he blew a furious flame, which quickly engulfed the trees and plants around him, taking great care that nont of the flames he blew hit his sister. Once he deemed the surrounding area to be sufficiently alight, he halted his fire breath and gave one last smile to Twilight before she cast the teleport spell on him. As the magic swirled around him, Spike heard Twilight speak her last words to him.
“Goodbye, Spike. I love you.”
*****
Spike hated nightmares. They were a constant in his life, and they only served to deepen the scars within his mind. And it was always the same exact nightmare.
Spike lay at the hooves of Celestia’s throne, battered and bruised, unable to move his limbs as he stared up at the frighteningly beautiful goddess. And her loose white dress only served to make her seem more godly to him, especially with her multicolored mane and tail which always seemed to flow on invisible currents. Her fingernails were pristinely maintained and polished, and the gold jewelry and horseshoes she wore always shined in her sun.
“You are lucky my faithful student speaks so highly of you, beast.” Celestia spat out at him. “Otherwise I would kill you here and now. However, you’re only living on borrowed time and luck, and one day, your luck will run out. And I will be there to kill you myself when it happens.”
A guard walked up to the ruler calmly, his armor glinting as he saluted to her before leaning in and whispering into her ear. Celestia nodded and looked down at Spike disdainfully. “Be glad I am leaving on another hunting trip today, little salamander, for I am cutting our time together short, but when I return, it will be that much longer.” She informed him as she stood up. “I will make every last dragon pay for letting one of their own rape me so long ago.” She growled out, kicking him in the stomach before leaving through a secret hallway behind her throne.
***
Spike groaned as he slowly regained consciousness. He could hear faint voices around him, growing in volume until he could make out what they were saying to each other.
“....make any sense. Dragon’s are supposed to have scales as tough as armor, so why does this one have so many scars.” A voice that sounded like Twilight asked.
“Well, it says here that if a dragon is young enough, very powerful magic can harm a dragon’s scales, but they gain a natural resistance to it the older they get.” A new voice replied. Spike mentally amended that if one knew how to bypass the natural resistance, than they could harm any dragon, no matter their age.
“Forget the scars, look at his clothes! They’re simply garish!” Another voice called out in a fanciful tone.
“Hey, you have to admit, the scars are kind of cool. It shows how tough he is.” A tomboyish tough girl voice added in.
“Ooh! Maybe he’s running away from somepony.” A somewhat high pitched voice guessed in a hyper manner. Rather accurate guess. Spike thought to himself.
Giving out a stiff groan, he slowly opened his eyes to see who the owners of the seven voices were. He was surprised when he saw Twilight, the other five element bearers, and a new mare all staring right back at him, and he felt like he might start crying right then and there.
“T-Twilight?”
Author's Note
A huge shout out to Blanks and Bronyhood of Steel for helping me figure out ideas for this chapter. Couldn't have done it without them.
A New World
Spike sat at the crystalline table with a cup of tea sitting before him, as he looked around at the ponies who seemed to just stare at him. Twilight Sparkle, or rather, the Twilight of the new world that he found himself in, was an Alicorn Princess of Friendship. She was wearing a dark blue shirt with the sleeves stopping halfway down her upper-arm, gently hugging her ample C cup breasts, and a pair of loose-fitting jeans that had sparkle patterned stitching along the legs. Next to her was Rarity, the Element of Generosity. She was a pure white unicorn with a royal purple mane and tail that were curled in such a way, you could mistake her for one of the Canterlot Elite, had you not known who she was. Her black dress both hugged and accentuated her curves, especially her full looking D cup breasts, showing her love for fashion, and her desire to hopefully find her ‘Prince Charming.’ Of course, Spike wanted to tell her right away that there was no such thing, but reminded himself that she could probably blast him through the wall if he wasn’t careful.
“So, yer tellin’ us that you’re actually from another world?” Applejack, the Element of Honesty asked. She was an earth pony with a coat so light orange, you’d think it was a natural tan. Her blonde mane and tail were done up in ponytails and tied at the ends, undoubtedly so they didn’t get in her way when doing her chores on the farm at Sweet Apple Acres. She wore a red and white plaid button up shirt that was tucked loosely into a pair of worn out jeans. Her supple, yet firm looking D cup breasts lightly showed through the cleavage of her shirt.
“I find it fishy at best.” Rainbow Dash added in. She was the Element of Loyalty, and the fastest pony alive, as she was currently the only one able to pull off a Sonic Rainboom. Her flight suit was a little baggy on her, but not unattractively so, as it lightly hugged her B cup breasts, the blues and yellows of the Wonderbolts reserve suit were still as proudly bold as ever, showing off her love for her team. “I bet it’s all just an act to catch us off guard.”
“Hmm…. I don’t know…” a fire-orange mare replied. She introduced herself as Sunset Shimmer, and she was the assistant to Twilight in this world. “We’ve dealt with alternate dimensions before, if you recall the mirror that Twilight and I went into?” She said, looking at Rainbow from a book she was reading about dragons. This mare was wearing black pants, and a bright orange t-shirt under a black, unzipped jacket, that tightly hugged her firm CC cup breasts.
Twilight sighed, drawing everyone’s attention back to her and the topic at hand. “He might actually be telling the truth, seeing as Celestia, Luna and I are the only 3 powerful enough to actually create a portal to another world.” She reminded her friends before turning to Spike again. “But why did I send you here?”
“Well, my old life wasn’t exactly pleasant. I don’t exactly want to say why, though.” He told them, looking haunted by what transpired in his past. “Maybe…. If I become more confident, I can tell you, but, it still haunts me.”
“That’s fine, dear.” Rarity replied, giving him a soft smile after he finished speaking. “We completely understand.”
“Yeah, besides, y’all have proven that yer not gonna do anythin’ against us, so Ah don’t see why we can’t help ya.” Applejack adden in, smiling as well.
“A-are you sure? I don’t want to be a burden on you guys…” He told them, looking down at his folded hands.
“You won’t be a burden.” Sunset interjected. “I’m sure there are tons of stuff you can do around the castle for us.”
“But, when I woke up and started speaking, Flutter- the Fluttershy of this world ran away, completely afraid of me,” Spike started. “Are you sure other ponies won’t have the same reaction?”
It was a legitimate fear coming from him. Pinkie Pie - the one from this universe of course - and a pony named Starlight Glimmer had to chase after and comfort Fluttershy after she nearly ran through a wall to get away from the ‘monstrous dragon’.
“Hmm… you may have a point there…” Twilight pondered as she rubbed her chin thoughtfully between her index finger and her thumb. “The only solution I can see is we each take turns showing you around the town and introducing you to ponies that we know will actually try to get to know you.” She suggested, and - to the surprise of Spike - the other girls agreed with her plan.
“So who should show him around first?” Rainbow asked Twilight, no doubt just wanting to get it done and over with so she could go back to training.
“Ah’ll do it.” Applejack interjected before Twilight could make a suggestion. “Ah’m more likely to be trusted at first.” She reminded the purple alicorn.
“Oh, yeah,” Sunset suddenly remembered, smacking her fist into her open palm. “You’re really bad at lying. I forgot.”
“Ah’m gonna pretend Ah didn’t hear that.” the orange farm-mare replied as she stood up. “Whelp, we’d best get started if’n we’re gonna introduce y’all to everyone in time.” She told Spike.
He just nodded before standing up and following her towards the castle’s entrance.
***
Spike followed Applejack down a dirt path between chest high wooden fences that seperated large apple fields from the main path. “This here is just the back fields of Sweet Apple Acres, mah family’s farm.” She explained as they continued down the path. “We’ll be coming up on the barn and house soon.”
Spike was in awe, for a lack of a better term. All of this was just her family’s back fields? He had heard that her farm was big, but this was just ridiculous.
As they continued walking along the path, a big red barn that was easily 2 stories tall stood proudly, towering next to a smaller green wooden house that was also 2 stories tall, but still somehow shorter than the barn by comparison.
“Welcome tah mah home, Spike.” Applejack told him, smiling at him. “Wait here a tick, Ah’m gonna go get mah brother and granny so y’all can get properly introduced.” She promised before heading off toward the house. He wanted to ask her to wait, but, decided against it. This was her home after all, so, he had no choice but to just agree with her request.
After a few minutes, he saw her coming back outside with an elderly looking mare with light green fur, the exact same color as a granny smith apple. Her white mane was done up in a loose bun, while her tail was slowly swaying behind her as she walked with her granddaughter towards him, wearing a yellow sun dress that flowed down below her knees.
The pony behind them, however, made Spike’s heart almost stop from fear. He was an intimidatingly large Stallion, his fur a bright red which barely concealed the coiled muscles in his arms, making Spike think that the stallion could snap him in two like a toothpick. His mane and tail were short, and a slightly darker blonde than Applejack’s almost bleach blond mane and tail. He wore a dark green t-shirt that barely contained the ripping muscles along his body, and a pair of blue denim jeans.
This was going to be a long day for Spike.
Spike felt something cold and wet splash his face, causing him to wake up in a hurry, as his dragon blood made everything that was cold to a pony much colder to him.
Snapping his eyes open quickly, he found himself propped up against an apple tree as Applejack and the two other ponies stared down at him.
"You okay, Sugarcube?" Applejack asked him, looking a bit worried. "Y'all fainted like ya just saw a ghost when my brother walked up to ya."
Spike looked over at the red stallion, who stood a few feet away, his muscular arms crossed.
Quickly looking away, he knew he shouldn't lie to these ponies. Lying to ponies only got him into more trouble and caused him to be beaten more.
"B-back in my old world…" The dragon started, looking away from the three ponies in front of him, afraid of what he would see in their faces. "Dragons… were hunted down and slaughtered by Princess Celestia."
He heard the three ponies gasp in shock, though he still refused to look them in the eyes. "The only reason why I wasn't killed was because the Twilight from my world hatched me, and I was her servant, though, she called me her little brother." He finished.
"Why would tha Princess do that?" He heard Applejack ask, sounding angry. "We have a peace treaty with tha dragons. No pony is allowed to attack a dragon and no dragon is allowed to attack a pony."
Spike looked up at her surprised before shaking his head. "I'm sorry, I'm not allowed to tell anypony what happened to her. If I even try to, a magic spell will kick in and punish me." He told her honestly.
Applejack's eyes widened before setting into a glare. "Those damn bastards." She growled out, causing Spike to cower in fear.
"Language, young lady." The elder pony reprimanded. "Ah think this conversation is upsetting tha poor dear. We should introduce ourselves so Big Mac can continue his chores."
"Eeyup." The red stallion agreed.
Spike slowly stood up, with some assistance from Applejack. "They're right, sugarcube. You sure you're gonna be okay?"
He looked at her before looking at her older brother and grandmother. "I think so. But, I don't think it's a good idea for me to meet anyone else for a while." He answered.
Applejack nodded, knowing he had to be more comfortable around her and the other girls before any of them introduced him to anyone else.
"Well, anyway…" she started, waving her hand toward the big red stallion. "This here is mah older brother, Big Macintosh, but we just call him Big Mac fer short." The stallion nodded to Spike, a kind smile on his face despite the intimidating muscles that showed with each and every movement of his body.
"And this," Applejack continued, motioning to the elder mare. "Is mah granny, Granny Smith."
Granny Smith smiled kindly at the dragon. "It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance, young'n." She told him.
Spike smiled a bit, still feeling incredibly nervous. "It's a pleasure to meet you as well." He replied, fidgeting a bit. "My name is Spike."
"Yer welcome ta stop by anytime ya want, Spike." Granny Smith told him, gently grabbing him hand in her own. "You ever need a place to relax and not worry about anything, the farm's always open to ya."
"Oh, uh, th-thank you." He replied, taken aback by her kind offer.
And Big Mac and Granny Smith walked back towards the farmhouse, Applejack led him back through the farm and toward Ponyville. "After hearin' what y'all went through where y'all are from, it's no wonder she made ya that offer." She told the drake.
"What do you mean?" He asked, trying to ignore the smell of the apples around him.
"Well, we look out fer our friends here." She told him, smiling at him. "And Ah think y'all could use some friends to help ya get by."
Spike stared at Applejack in disbelief. She wanted to be his friend? The Applejack he was used to would use him for sparring practice, and not as an opponent, but, as a punching bag, yet this Applejack was much kinder, and actually wanted to help him.
Any other thoughts he would've had on the subject were suddenly cut short has his stomach gave off a rather large growl, the smell of the apples around him becoming too much to ignore.
Applejack looked at the dragon in surprise. "When was the last time y'all had an apple?" She asked him.
"Um…. If you mean a whole apple, never." Spike replied, rubbing the back of his head. "I've only ever eaten the cores."
He could see Applejack look stunned, as if the thought of only eating apple cores was foreign to her.
"Wait right there a tick." She told him suddenly before hopping the fence and jogging to one of the apple trees that bore ripe fruit. Picking a nice, bug, juicy one, she turned it over in her hands a few time, inspecting it for any flaws.
Once satisfied with how the apple looked, she jocked back over to him, hopping the fence again before handing it to him. "Here "
Spike stared at it before looking back up at Applejack.
"Are you sure?" He asked her nervously. "I don't want to be-"
"Just eat the apple, Spike." She told him.
Quickly shutting up and nodding he grabbed the apple from her before taking a bite out of the red fruit.
His eyes widened as the flavor exploded into his mouth, the juices of the apple dripping off his chin as he seemed to be in pure bliss. The crisp crunch sounded much better than in his dreams, and the flavor was a million times better than what the apple cores tasted like.
Before he knew it, he had eaten the whole apple, including the stem and core out of habit.
"So, how did it taste?" Applejack asked, smiling at the look on the dragon's face.
*****
“WHAT?!”
Spike fidgeted uncomfortably as Applejack had just finished telling the others what he told her, and now seven of the eight mares were looking at him with varying looks of sadness, pity, and anger.
“But… How could princess Celestia do something like that?” Twilight asked, not wanting to believe it. She had taken the new rather hard, and had collapsed into her throne.
“Ah ain’t got a clue,” Applejack replied, crossing her arms under her breasts. “But, Ah know fer a fact that he ain’t lyin’ ta us.”
Sunset nodded, sitting next to Twilight. “We already knew he came from another Equestria. We shouldn’t assume that every Equestria is like ours.” She told the purple alicorn, trying to console her.
“That’s true.” Starlight suddenly spoke up, scratching the back of her head. “I mean, remember when I tried to stop you all from meeting each other? Every time you failed to stop me, you’d return to an Equestria in which the history got worse and worse.”
Starlight was a light purple, almost lilac-colored unicorn with a darker purple mane and tail that had two light blue strips running through them, with a pair of perky looking C cup breasts. She was wearing a dark blue sweater with shooting star patterns along the sleeves and a pair of black jeans.
Pinkie bounced up to Starlight and pulled her into a huge hug, lifting her off the ground as she did. “But you’re our friend now, silly billy!” She exclaimed.
Pinkie Pie was a bright pink earth pony with a slightly darker pink mane and tail that always looked like cotton candy and a pair of very bouncy DD breasts. She currently wore a sky blue long sleeve shirt and blue jeggings, which seemed hard to contain the… junk in the trunk that he’d heard several stallions say she had.
Spike’s thoughts were suddenly interrupted by a pair of soft arms pulling him into a tight hug, burying his head in a pair of soft E cup breasts. “I’m so so very sorry that all happened to you.” He heard Fluttershy tell him while she continued to bury his head in her pillows. “I promise to at least try and not be afraid of you so I can help you out as well.”
Fluttershy was a butter yellow pegasus with a bright pink mane and tail that she would always try and hide at least one eye behind whenever meeting new ponies, or, dragons in this case. She wore a sun yellow turtle neck sweater and a pair of blue jeans, which were slightly stained with dirt, since she was the sole caretaker of the Ponyville animal shelter.
“Careful there, Shy,” Rainbow teased. “You may end up smothering him in your big breasts.”
She and Pinke began to snicker and laugh as Fluttershy made a quiet “Eep” noise, quickly letting go of Spike and backing up a few steps with a massive flush on her face.
While the other ponies were laughing, Spike was starting to hyperventilate, memories of something similar happening back in his old world surfacing.
“Come on, Fluttershy,” Rainbow started again, suddenly sounding vicious. “We all know that dragons are nothing more than greedy horn dogs. You need to teach him a lesson.”
Spike was starting to feel dizzy, as if he were being spun around and around on the world’s biggest lazy cakey. Was he wrong about these ponies? Were they just like his old world? He couldn’t be sure, as all the laughter turned dark and sinister.
“Kick him in the stomach!” He heard Rarity call out. “I hear that’s the weakest part of a dragon.”
Spike brought his hands up to his head, his eyes dilated down to pinpricks as the room started to sway around him.
“No, that won’t do much.” He heard another voice reply, causing his heart to nearly stop.
No… He thought desperately. Please… not that voice. Let this all just be a nightmare, please.
“Let’s use a magical blade, that’ll cause much more damage to the beast.” Celestia continued.
Screaming in fear, Spike fell to his knees, gripping his head in his hands as he fought to keep the apple he ate from coming back up.
“Please, I’m sorry!” He begged his masters, shaking in fear. “I won’t touch her again, I promise!”
“Promise?” He heard Applejack say, spitting it out like it was venom in her mouth. “A dragon’s promise don’t mean nothin’ around here.”
“Please, I’m sorry!” He begged again, feeling sick to his stomach.
Unable to stop the rushing bile he felt in his throat, he collapsed onto his hands and knees as he barfed whatever little food his stomach still held. Even after all his stomach could give was out of his system, he still retched and heaved, crying, as he begged for their forgiveness, begged for them to be merciful on him.
He suddenly felt his head being lifted up and he stared into two pools of sky blue as they washed away everything else. It took him a moment to realize that the eyes weren’t angry or disappointed, but worried and kind.
“Shh…” He heard Fluttershy’s voice soothing him. “It’s okay. Just relax.”
With the power of her stare, he found his eyes growing heavy as she smiled at him. “That’s it. No one’s going to hurt you. I promise.”
“Th-Thank you…” was all he managed to reply before the stress of the day finally caught up to him and he collapsed into the arms of the Element of Kindness, succumbing to sleep.
Author's Note
Sorry for the late update on this story
"Your Highness, they're on the move."
Spike opened his eyes in time to see Princess Celestia stand up from the tree stump she had been sitting at, the light brown khakis and button up safari shirt replacing her normal white dress. They were in a forest after all.
She faced the soldier who had given her the news and nodded. "Thank you. Inform the others." She replied in a kind voice that sounded alien to Spike.
The soldier saluted, the gold centurion armor shining, before walking off toward the platoon that was resting nearby.
Celestia then walked over to Spike and kicked him in the head. "Wake up, you useless reptile." She spat. "It's time to move. You are going to lure out those beasts for me. And remember." She got down low so he could see the rage deep in her eyes. "If you even think for a second about trying to help them, my soldiers will take great pleasure in showing you the same treatment Discord was given over a thousand years ago."
He gulped and nodded before standing up, the rest of the platoon ready to go. Following them through the forest, they soon came upon two dragons, one was black with dark red spines and underbelly, and the other was ocean blue with neon green spines and underbelly. They were relaxing next to a river as they lowered themselves down to drink.
"Alright, Dragon ," One of the soldiers sneered at Spike. "Do it."
The drake gulped and nodded before silently walking through the bushes. Taking a deep breath, he shouted out what Princess Celestia instructed him to say.
"Help! Tyrant Celestia is here! If you help me, I think we can take her down together!" Spike shouted, channeling the anger inside of him. He wasn't allowed to show any anger to the ponies, but, Celestia found out that if a dragon sounded honest in his anger, other dragons would help if they could benefit from it.
And it worked like a charm.
The two dragons stood up and saw how beat up Spike looked and heard the raw anger in his voice.
"Hold, brother," the black dragon replied as they ran up to the purple and green drake. "We shall help you fight off the demoness. She has been a plight in our race for eons."
The three dragons stood side by side as Princess Celestia descended from the heavens, her pure white wings radiating the light of her sun. Spike sucked in a breath, the flame sack within him rumbling with the flames of rage as the black and blue dragons launched themselves at Celestia, hoping to distract her long enough.
The white alicorn princess just smirked as her horn glowed golden yellow, two crackling blades of energy shot from her hands, turning the dragons screams of rage into screams of pain and terror as the blades started cutting the dragons into smaller and smaller pieces, starting with their hands and feet, then their upper arms and lower legs, blood shooting from the stumps like macabre fountains, turning the lush green grass into red fields from hell.
"Brother! Help us!" The black dragon shouted, turning to face Spike, who sat there, watching the two dragons die. "No… NO! TRAITOR! You are a traitor to your kind!" The dragon shouted out before his head was liberated from his body, landing with a wet smack right before the purple and green drake, nearly liberating the contents of his stomach.
"Dark Magic is a wonderful thing." Celestia commented. "It can easily bypass these beasts natural resistance to magic."
She grinned at Spike as her horn lit up again, this time crackling with dark energy. "Wouldn't you agree, beast?" She asked him, sending a blast of the dark magic right toward him.
*****
Spike shot up, panting hard. The events of the nightmare still fresh in his mind.
Taking a few deep breaths to try and slow his heart he lay backwards into the pillow he had been sleeping on.
Spike's eyes shot open as he realized that he was sleeping in a bed. A bed meant for ponies. The fear came back stronger as he thought about what the ponies would do if they found him sleeping in a bed.
He was about to slip out of the bed when the door to the room he was in, causing his heart to skip a beat in fear.
To his surprise he saw Sunset Shimmer walk in, carrying a tray of food in her magic.
She was wearing a pair of faded blue jeans, and a green and blue frill t-shirt with the sleeves stopping just after her shoulders.
"Oh, good, you're awake." She said, smiling at him as she turned the lights on. "How are you feeling?"
"Um… a little better." He answered, still looking a bit scared. "I, uh… had a nightmare… some more memories of my old life." He explained.
She nodded sweetly, placing the tray onto a nightstand next to the bed. "I think I understand. I read that ponies, or, dragons, in this case, that are suffering from PTSD can sometimes get memories of traumatic events either when their asleep or they can bleed through into reality when outside stimuli remind you of that event."
Spike nodded, having been told such from the Twilight from his old world when he explained similar events to her.
"Do you, um, want to talk about it?" She asked him.
He shuddered and rapidly shook his head. "I'd rather not remember any more than I have to." He explained, staring at his hands with a haunted expression.
"I understand." She replied. "Anyway, I brought you some breakfast." She smiled, motioning to the tray.
"Breakfast?" He asked, confused. "Wait, what time is it?"
"It's eight in the morning." Sunset answered him. "You've been unconscious for about seventeen hours."
"S-seventeen hours?" He choked out, staring at her in surprise.
"You needed the rest." She explained, placing a hand on top of his in a comforting gesture. "Twilight did a scan of your internal energy and found out that you were in severe need of rest." Grabbing the tray of food in her magic, she placed it on his lap for him. "When was the last time you had a good night's rest?"
Spike stared at the silver dome on the tray, trying to think back. Had he ever gotten a good sleep? He had never slept in a bed before, and he was always the last to fall asleep and the first to wake up.
"I honestly don't know." He finally answered, looking up at her. "I just slept when I could and woke up when I was supposed to."
Sunset stares at him in shock, not fully able to understand his statement.
"I was only allowed to live because the Twilight of my world said she needed an assistant." He explained. "That's the official reason anyway."
She shook her head, wanting to change the subject. "Anyway. You better eat. You need to replenish what you lost last night." She told him softly, lifting the dome off and revealing a stack of pancakes with some eggs to the side of them.
He picked up the fork and cut himself a bit of the pancakes, sticking it into his mouth. As soon as it touched his tongue, his eyes widened as the flavors exploded around him, and he nearly died of bliss.
*****
Twilight was sitting at one of the many tables in her library, several books on dragons and how to deal with PTSD stacked beside her as she buried herself into research. She had changed into a mauve long sleeve shirt and black leggings.
"Does she always do this?" Spike asked the two other ponies at the table with him.
"Pretty much." Starlight answered with a sigh. She currently wore a dark blue skirt that went down to her knees, a forest green t-shirt, and an unbuttoned midnight blue blouse. "If she needs to know something, or if she's just curious about something, she tends to just throw herself into research."
"Didn't the Twilight from your old world do the same?" Sunset asked him curiously.
He shook his head in reply before following up with, "She usually just spent time with her friends or tended to my wounds whenever she could. I never saw her actually do this level of research."
Sunset and Starlight stared at him again, not able to imagine any Twilight not doing this much research on a topic.
"Plus, she was a unicorn, still living in the Golden Oaks Library." He continued, shrugging. Yeah, she saved Princess Luna from being Nightmare Moon, but, there weren't many other reasons to use the Elements of Harmony."
"Wait, what?!" All three mares asked, Twilight dropping her book in surprise, which caused Spike to jump a bit and whip his head toward her in fear.
"What about Discord?" Twilight asked. "Chrysalis, Sombra, Tirek?"
"When Celestia and Luna turned Discord to stone the first time, they turned him into rubble." He explained, trying to slow his beating heart. "Princess Mi Amore Cadenza and Shining Armor were the ones who defeated Chrysalis and Sombra. And Tirek's legs were hacked off before he was banished to Tartarus."
"But… but…" Twilight was both disturbed and freaking out at what Spike just told them. "But, what about the Magic of Friendship?"
"Anything or anyone that was either Draconic or threatened Equestria was decreed to be dealt with as swiftly and as permanently as possible." Spike answered sourly. "The Magic of Friendship was only supposed to be used by equines or other herbivorous creatures."
Spike felt three different hands gently lay across his right arm. "Well, in this Equestria, all creatures are given the opportunity to experience the magic of friendship." Sunset started.
"It doesn't matter what they look like, what's in their past or what they believe in." Starlight continued.
"Friends help us be who we are. They pick us up when we're down and comfort us when we're scared or sad." Twilight fished, gently squeezing Spike's fingers.
Spike stared at the three mares in front of him, tears slowly beginning to form in his eyes. "I-"
The sound of the main doors of the castle opening interrupted them as Rarity called out into the Castle.
"Twilight, darling, are you home? I was going to make Spike some new clothes to help him get settled in better, but then I realized that I wasn't able to get his measurements.
Spike blinked before looking down at his torn shirt, just now realizing that he wore his tattered outfit ever since he arrived in this new world. The three mares at the table with him followed his gaze to his bare chest, seeing the scars and toned muscles that he had gotten in his old world, causing their eyes to widen and a blush to spread across their face as they slowly removed their hands.
"Well…" Starlight started, smiling awkwardly. "This isn't awkward at all.