MLP: Living with Equestrians

Spike Drake was not an idiot. At times he was foolish, sometimes even naïve, but he was smart where it mattered. However, he couldn't help but feel as though something had changed with the girls.

It had started out small. It'd been two days since Spike had been shot, and the girls were being especially nice to him, though that was to be expected, they were his friends after all. Sunset pulled the others aside to talk, and left him alone in the kitchen with Rarity and Applejack, who had come to visit after receiving news about his recovery.

"Oh, Spikey. I'd just like to thank you again for saving my life." Rarity cooed, before averting her eyes and frowning slightly. "I...I also must apologize for even putting you in that position. You almost...a-almost..."

Rarity trailed off, and moved to the side of the room to compose herself. Applejack stepped up, holding her hat before her with an embarrassed expression.

"I'm sorry too, Spike." She stated quietly, not meeting his eyes. "I could have stopped you, but I wasn't fast enough. With all that was going on, I just...lost control."

"Well...that's ok."

Both Rarity and Applejack looked up at Spike, who was smiling warmly at the pair as he continued.

"Truth is, I didn't really know what I was doing either. I just saw someone in need, and I acted. I'm just glad no one got hurt."

"Spike, you got hurt!" Applejack interjected, now frustrated by the boy's cadence. "Doesn't that bother you?"

"I mean, getting shot hurt a lot..." Spike confessed, making both girls flinch before he continued once more. "But, you're both safe. That's a good enough trade for me."

A brief silence fell over the room before Rarity crossed over to Spike's position, before wrapping him into a hug.

"Thank you, Spike. I'm still terribly sorry that you went through what you did." She whispered, before releasing him. "I'm also thankful that you're alright. Just...please promise me that you'll try to stay out of trouble."

"And you have ta promise me that you'll take good care of yourself." Applejack assed, offering a small smile to the boy as she joined the fashionista at his side. "Think you can manage that, sugar cube?"

"Well, I'll certainly try." Spike quipped cheekily, making all three of them laugh. A few minutes later, the rest of the girls returned, and the day continued as normal. The next day was when things started to get weird.

Spike rolled in his typically spacious bed, determined to get another ten minutes of sleep, when he felt something warm and soft make contact with his chest. He cracked his eyes open, expecting to see a stray pillow or blanket that he had shifted in his sleep. Instead, he came face to face with a very awake Pinkie Pie, who beamed at him as his eyes widened.

"Hiya, Cupcake! Sleep well?"

Spike responded by letting out a shrill shriek and lurching back. He nearly fell of the bed before Pinkie grabbed his hand, and pulled him back up.

"Whoopsie daisy! Sorry about that, Spikey." She apologized, still smiling. "I just thought that you might like a surprise to start the day!"

"Well...you definitely surprised me!" Spike responded, slowly returning the girl's smile. On the scale of crazy things Pinkie had done, that had definitely been on the lower end. A few minutes later, Spike got out of the shower, only to find the clothes that he had picked for the day were now gone, a small slip of paper in their place. He quirked an eyebrow before bending over to grab it, stopping and letting out a hiss of pain as his chest wound ached with the movement.

I should take my pain meds after this. He thought to himself, before scooping up the note and reading it hastily.

Noticed your clothes lying here, figured I'd put them back in your room for ya ;) -RD

Spike groaned as he finished reading, but found himself smiling once more. Rainbow was always one for practical jokes, he really should have seen this coming. After a brief sprint back to his room, Spike found his clothes waiting on his bed, as well as a smirking Rainbow Dash.

"Hey, stud. Ah damn, I forgot you had a towel in there with ya. I was hoping for more of a show." She mused, going into a pout on the edge of his bed. Spike rolled his eyes, an jabbed a thumb towards the doorway pointedly. "Alright, alright! I'm going! See you downstairs, Spike."

With that, Rainbow left his room, shooting him a wink on the way out. Spike shook his head, and closed the door as he got dressed for the day. When he got downstairs, the sweet scent of cocoa met his nose. He followed the delicious smell to the kitchen, when Fluttershy was currently making two cups of Hot Chocolate. She noticed his approach, and smiled gently at him.

"O-oh, you're awake!" She greeted, turning and offering him a mug of Cocoa. "Good morning, Spike!"

"Morning, Flutters." He said, taking the Cocoa and offering her a smile. "How's your morning going?"

"I'd say it's going well. I'm planning to visit the local animal shelter and see if there's anything I can help with."

"Hey, that's great!" Spike said, patting Fluttershy's shoulder. "Good to hear your animal skill are gonna be put to work."

Fluttershy blushed and muttered something about her skills being novice level at best. After a few more minutes of talking, Twilight entered the kitchen clutching her own mug of coffee. Her eyes flicked from the book she was reading to Spike, and she smiled happily.

"Spike, you're up!" She said, excitement present in her tone, before shifting to worry. "Are you feeling alright? No pain from your injury?"

"No, Twilight. I'm fine!" Spike insisted, smirking at the alicorn's concerns. "When are you gonna let me back onto one of your projects? I'm wasting away here!"

"I'll let you help out again when I'm certain you're in condition to help again!" Twilight responded, frowning slightly at her host. "I don't want you getting hurt again."

"I know, and I appreciate that, Twi." Spike admitted, before smiling lightly at his friend. "I just...wanna help out still. Or you know, do anything except lie around and be lazy."

"Well, you're in luck." Spike nearly jumped as Sunset spoke, and turned his head to see her to his left, dangling her keys pointedly at him. "Star and I gotta go run some errands. Wanna come with?"

"Hell yeah!" Spike exclaimed, before turning to Twilight an offering a apologetic smile. "I promise I won't strain myself."

Twilight groaned, but nodded in acceptance and gestured to the front door. "Well, if you promise...go for it."

"Thanks, Twi!" Spike crowed, even giving her a kiss on the cheek before heading for the door. Twilight's face became a bright shade of tomato red, while Sunset chuckled and Fluttershy giggled quietly.

"Do you think he even knows?" Sunset questioned, drawing a sigh from the purple equestrian, along with a shake of her head.

"Not a chance. Spike's smart, but his skull is thicker then granite when it comes to romance."

"When do you think we should tell him?" Sunset asked, receiving a shrug in response as Twilight turned around and moved back towards the library.

"Whenever we're all ready to."