Twilight grumbled a bit as she felt her mind trying to make her get up even though her body was refusing. Eventually, her mind won and Twilight yawned as she walked onto one of the castle’s balconies. She used her magic to raise the sun for the day while lowering the moon for that night. She looked down at Canterlot, even in the twenty-eight years since she had taken on Celestia’s duties the view was always one of the biggest upsides and downsides to the job. Canterlot was beautiful and had only gotten bigger and better as she had allowed all creatures to make their home there as long as they had the bits. Crystal Ponies, some Changelings, and even the occasional dragon had come to her to ask if they could move in and she allowed it, even commissioning the city’s boundaries to be expanded.
Through all the growth and joy of Canterlot, she couldn’t help but feel sad when she looked over the city. This city is her hometown and she did love it but her heart belonged to the quaint little town that welcomed her so long ago. Ponyville had its fair amount of growth with many parents moving there to be close to their children during their schooling and Crystal Ponies made Ponyville their prized destination due to the dragon that lived in the town. Twilight smiled to herself as her thoughts turned to her closest friend and assistant and she began to prepare herself for the long day ahead. The mirror showing an alicorn whose mane flowed in an invisible wind and resembled a violet sea of stars (with completely accurate constellations) with the occasional stripe of magenta, yellow, and purple here and there. She was just a bit taller than Cadence had been at her age and had a taller horn than before.
Spike had grown also, no longer the baby dragon he had been for so long. After his twenty-first birthday and finding he was the same size as he had always been he asked Ember on the reason and she had come up with a theory. Now every dragon is capable of their own magic and most of it is applied to their size as their greed fuels it and changes their body, should a dragon not have a hoard their magic stays dormant and instead extends a dragon’s lifespan. The only exception would be the dragon lord who is overflowed with magic from the bloodstone scepter as it gathers a tiny bit of magic from all the dragons in the world and gives it to the wielder.
Now Spike, who had been hatched by the powerful magic of a pony who had untold potential, only once ever used a bit to grow and then immediately shut it down to revert back to his size, then was overflowed again as he grabbed the bloodstone scepter was a curious case as his body turned all that magic into increasing his lifespan. He had yet to take a hundred-year nap that most his age would have to start preparing for as the naps increase a dragon’s life by three hundred years every nap. Spike stayed a baby dragon despite his age being nearly equal to Ember’s herself until a few years later when he finally began taking more of a teenage form, one that Ember guessed he may be stuck in for the next fifty thousand years should he survive that long.
Spike was content with that as his new form was tall, lean, and strong allowing him to do much more than before and made him the right size to actually court mares and creatures of all kinds if he so wished. Twilight was happy to let her assistant go out and find a mate even if she would be sad to see him leave her, he didn’t, instead only ever going on the occasional date. He stayed by her side until she started giving him ambassador missions which sent him all over the world in her place and made them many allies among the other races of creatures as if the ponies trust a dragon to represent them, it shows their respect and trust in him.
Twilight finished her grooming session and headed downstairs calling for Spike when no answer came and one of her servants took that as a sign to begin making breakfast for her. Twilight thanked them and asked for the royal checklist and her captain of the royal guard, Gallus, flew in with a smile. He bowed his head and Twilight smiled at her old student and nodded as he began to tell her of her jobs that day. Most were simple everyday tasks until he mentioned overseeing the Gala and Twilight groaned in frustration. She hated the Gala and while it had become a bit better when she had opened it to other creatures, it was still a night of boredom and welcoming strangers for her. Gallus chuckled a bit, glad to see his old headmare was still in there under all the princess trinkets and power.
“Not a fan of the Gala?”
“You know I’m not, you don’t get it so bad with there never really being any trouble anymore. Oh my Celestia, I forgot to send out any invites!”
“Whoa whoa, calm, princess… Spike already sent out all the invites, remember? Oh yeah, I get to relax all night and enjoy that griffon grub that you import from Griffonstone.”
“Right, I did tell him to do that… Speaking of which, how is Griffonstone? They got our shipment of supplies?”
“Yes, princess, Griffonstone has turned itself into a city almost worthy of Canterlot itself. Thanks to all that you’ve given us we are now a solid power in the world.”
“I only helped you all achieve all that was already there, Gabby had been a big help with getting them to agree to Spike’s plan of turning Griffonstone into a city and making the Griffons be seen as an organized force.”
“Maybe, but you were the one that allowed Griffons onto your council.” The Council of Friendship as it was called was a meeting of the most powerful rulers of every race where they would talk and settle disputes civilly. Ponies, Dragons, Changelings, Deer, Yaks, Buffalo, Griffons, Hippogriffs, and Crystal Pony were all represented and respected under Twilight’s orders. The Guardians of Harmony and Young Six were offered spots but they refused as they all had lives by that point but insisted that if they were needed they would come.
“All creatures are worthy of my council should they seek it, so are the other Young Six coming to the Gala?”
Gallus smiled a bit at the thought of his friends before shaking his head.
“I doubt it, Yona and Sandbar have been pretty busy lately with the boutique. Ocellus and Smolder are getting ready for midterms with the members of the CMC and Trixie as the students come back from their break. Silverstream is back home visiting the family for her vacation. With us getting higher in age maybe the Young Six should be revised, heh.” Twilight nodded but then took on a mischievous smirk.
“Noted. So how are things between you and Silverstream? I heard some rumors among the guards saying-”
“We are just fine! I asked her if she wanted to get some ice cream with me the last time she was at the castle and the guards took it the wrong way! I made them do a hundred laps for that.”
Twilight giggled a bit at how flustered her captain was before a familiar feeling came to her horn and a scroll appeared with a green seal that had the image of a flame. Spike insisted that he was given his own seal so when other creatures received his letters they didn’t throw them away as he wasn’t always in Canterlot to get Twilight’s seal.
Dear Twilight
I bet that you forgot the Gala was today, right? I bet you were panicking like you used to back when we lived in Ponyville, hah! I sent out invitations to all our friends but everyone seemed to be busy, Fluttershy is out with Discord, Applejack has to watch Sour while Big Mac and Sugar Belle are on their anniversary, Pinkie is out with Cheese somewhere, Rainbow is training new recruits, Rarity is trying to get Sweetie Belle a date and still training Yona and Sandbar to run her old place, and Starlight is busy with the school. I won’t be able to make it either… one of my negotiations with the Diamond Dogs is not sitting well with them so I’m gonna be pretty busy and then I may just have to stay the night in Ponyville. I’ll see you tomorrow though.
Love, Spike, Your Royal Advisor, and best friend
Twilight smiled sadly as she reread the letter. She felt conflicted as she thought about how far her friends had come since the day they met. She was happy for them but jealous that they were living their lives to the fullest and she wasn’t.
Fluttershy married Discord fourteen years ago and with his help, she became the caretaker of the largest animal sanctuary in all of Equestria and even allowed others to help her with the animals as a job. Applejack was a proud aunt and worked to spread Sweet Apple Acres across Equestria with several more farms that grew other crops that were connected to her family, such as oranges and pears. Rainbow had finally achieved her dream and took Spitfire’s job as the captain of the Wonderbolts. Last she heard, Rainbow was spending much of her free time with Applejack. Pinkie was still Pinkie but was now tempered by new responsibility and love. As Pound and Pumpkin had grown, the Cakes retired and gave Sugarcube Corner to Pinkie and soon after that she met up with Cheese Sandwich again and the two began to date. Rumor has been that Pinkie is waiting for him to propose. Rarity became famous as she had spread her boutiques across every ally of ponies and personally trained every creature best she could and became close to Yona and Sandbar who she gave the original Carousel Boutique to.
Her friends were growing older with each passing year, yet she would remain the same. She couldn’t imagine what she would be right now if she didn’t finish that spell. If she didn’t become an alicorn. Would she be happier? Married? Those thoughts plagued the princess until Gallus brought her back to her senses as the court was about to begin and she sighed but smiled when he bought her breakfast. She thanked him and prepared her princess face as the first pony walked in.
. . .
Spike smiled as he was looking over his checklist, something he had picked up from Twilight. He did feel a bit bad for his lie as he was not in Diamond Dog territory, having finished negotiations a few days before, he was in Ponyville preparing to give Twilight the greatest night he could and hopefully put something else into motion. His first task was to find the crusaders and see if they were going to be ready for their job. Going to the teacher’s lounge he found many of the teachers rather bored since the students were on break.
“Well don’t all come hugging me right away.” They all turned to the voice and Smolder was the first to react, leaning against the wall and smiling at him.
“Only in your dreams, short stack.”
“Love you too.” Everyone laughed before going to hug their old friend, most had not seen him or Twilight for a few months since both had been too busy.
“Howdy, Spike, we were wonderin’ when ya get here so we could get started.”
“Great! I’ll be counting on you three to be our music stars, with Sweetie taking the lead of course.”
“Hey, I’ll let you know that I’ve been getting way better at singing! Especially rock music!” The other teachers all gave looks at Scootaloo’s comment with Smolder having to hold back a laugh. Sweetie Belle giggled and pulled her best friends into a hug.
“Don’t be worried about anything, Spike, we’ll get going right now and be ready when you make your move.”
“Thanks, you three, this means a lot for me and I know it will to Twi. She should be asleep by the time you all get there, but check in with Gallus first.”
“Don’t thank us yet, buddy, you’re gonna owe us one after this.” The way Scootaloo said that made Spike hesitate for a moment but he nodded, willing to do anything to make tonight great. He watched them leave before turning back to Ocellus and Smolder.
“You two sure you’re up to watching the school?”
“Oh no, we couldn’t possibly watch over an empty school for a day.” Ocellus giggled and nuzzled the dragon, causing her to relax and blush a bit.
“Don’t worry about us, Spike. You go give her the best night ever! Headmare Starlight is in her office.” Spike thanked them again and promised to send over a crate of jewels for Smolder and a cool lava lamp for Ocellus’s collection. He rushed over to the Headmare’s office and barged in, causing Starlight to yelp and send papers flying everywhere. She glared at Spike and he chuckled nervously.
“Oops… hey, you mastered that angry headmare look though!”
“Why am I not throwing you out of the window?”
“Because you love me?” Starlight looked at him before her horn glowed and he felt himself levitate. “Whoa whoa! It’s Gala day!” She dropped him before running to her calendar.
“Oh, Celestia I forgot! I’ll go get the girls and-” Spike lightly grabbed the unicorn’s hooves and softly held them still.
“Hey relax, it’s like I went back in time and Twilight is Twilighting. I know the school has been your first priority so take a moment to relax. While we go out to get everything ready let Trixie take over your work for a while.”
“I can’t just dump all this on her.” The room immediately was covered in smoke as a voice rang out.
“No need to worry, for the Great and Powerful Trixie is here!”
“Trixie! We talked about the smoke! It-” The school’s fire alarm began wailing and drenched the three and Starlight grumbled. “Sets off the alarm…” After the three sent away the firefighters and shook off the water, Trixie agreed to finish Starlight’s work while magically drying the papers. Starlight thanked her best friend and went off with Spike to get the others.
. . .
Twilight questioned herself, not for the first or last time, if that was the day she would lose her sanity. She would never understand how Celestia had handled thousands of years of having to hear ponies go on and on and on about things that didn’t matter in the slightest. She wished the sweet hoof of death to take her if it meant escaping the endless complaining, heck, she’d rather fight her old enemies again. At least they kind of knew when to shut up. Gallus chuckled seeing her tiredly trot out from the throne room and told her to get some rest and he would handle the Gala set up. She denied saying she couldn’t do that to him but he insisted.
Twilight sighed as she stretched and went to her bed, wondering what her friends were doing. Were they having fun? Was Spike doing okay with his job or did he need her to come over? Her thoughts were dashed away as a tiny owl flew through her window and took a break on her horn, looking down at the princess with big eyes. “Hey, Tiny, what are you doing up? It’s daytime and you need your sleep.”
“Hoo.”
“You silly.” Tiny was the son of Owlowiscious. Twilight made a promise to her old assistant that she would take care of him before he passed away. “You came to check up on me, didn’t you? Your dad used to do that when Spike was asleep and I was overdoing it. Somehow he always knew when I needed a friend.” Tiny blinked before Twilight hugged the owl and smiled before yawning and taking her nap.
. . .
Spike sighed as he prepared himself against the impact that was coming as they knocked on the door of Sugarcube Corner. Pinkie Pie answered the door and welcomed her two friends and Spike suddenly found himself on his back. He chuckled a bit at how predictable the Princess of Creativity had become. A pouting Flurry Heart was on his chest and glared down at him. She had taken to living in Ponyville until she felt ready to return to the Empire and take over as it’s new ruler.
“Heya, Flurry.”
“Don’t ‘Heya Flurry’ me, mister The Dragon, I’m mad at you.”
“Aww what I do?”
“You missed my birthday and I expect you to make up for it!” Spike laughed at her pouting, the mare having taken her cuteness from her mother had no fear factor at all.
“Hey, I was busy on royal business.”
“Royal business? My birthday is royal business and no excuses!” Flurry began to poke at him with her hooves before he began to tickle her. The two played as Pound and Pumpkin ran out to help their friend. Starlight shook her head as the four adults played like foals. She turned back to Pinkie and smiled.
“Well good to see all of you still have your energy.”
“Course! I’ve been training the kids to be party ponies in their own right.”
“They’re not kids anymore, all of us are getting older.”
“Maybe, but those two will always be kids to me, isn’t that right, Pound? Pumpkin?” The two kids nodded as they were busy wrestling Spike.
“Where’s Cheese?”
“He’s checking the store’s delivery to make sure we have enough ingredients for the week. Is it time?!”
“Yep, you can design the Gala the way you want, but are you sure you have enough time to decorate the whole place?”
“With four party ponies? The castle doesn’t stand a chance, hehe. We’ll get everything ready, just have Rarity send over the decorations to the castle.”
“Right, Spike has some guards coming to pick you soon. Flurry, Pound, Pumpkin, could you let him go for now?” Spike was upside down as Flurry and Pound had his feet and Pumpkin was swinging in his hands.
“Aww, do we have to, Headmare Starlight?”
“Sadly yes, we need to go make sure the others are ready.” The kids let Spike down and he promised to make it up to Flurry and have more fun with the three later. He and Starlight walked over to Carousel Boutique and Spike’s smile turned a bit sad. Starlight put a hoof on his shoulder and gave him a kind smile.
“I’m okay, just wondering what could have been.”
“Well if you two did happen then you wouldn’t be doing all this right now for Twilight, right?”
“Right, I have a second chance to be happy and this time I’m going to do all I can. Thanks, Starlight.” Spike knocked and Sandbar answered covered in glue and paper. He had bags under his eyes. “Heh well looks like you’ve been having fun. Sorry for pushing you all so much...”
“No no, it’s cool, no worries, Spike, we were happy to help you with all this. I just didn’t expect that we would need so many decorations to decorate a castle but Yona has had so much fun that it was all worth it. We may not go for the Gala but we’ll be at that afterparty.”
“Yona finished last decoration! No party can beat Yona!” Sandbar chuckled and let the two into the store. The entire lower floor was filled with decorations of all kinds and Spike felt a bit bad for piling all of this on the couple and promised he would pay them immensely. “Spike and Starlight come just in time. All work is done and Yona is ready for party!” Even as she tried to dance a bit, her moves were sluggish and she seemed tired. Sandbar hugged her and told her that they would party after a nap. She tried to refuse but she soon agreed and apologized to Spike for not having time to teach him a Yak’s mating dance which made the dragon blush and Starlight burst out laughing at the thought.
“I asked so much of all of you for this night, I’ll have to make it up to each one of you.”
Starlight shook her head.
“We agreed to help you because we thought you can make her happy in a way we can’t. If you wanna make it up to us then make her happy, if you don’t then you’ll see what kind of forbidden magic I have stored away.”
Spike nodded and held up his claws as a giggle echoed through the building.
“My darlings, you two haven’t grown up much.” Rarity smiled walking down the stairs with a suit floating above her and wearing a purple coat. Even with her age, she was as stunning as ever and her fashion sense hasn’t faded in the slightest. “Here is your suit, Spikey Wikey, I tailor-made it to show off all your best features and be comfortable, I know how much you usually hate things like this.” Starlight excused herself to give the two privacy and Rarity began to cover his scales with a sapphire paint and turned his spines a deep red. Rarity stared at the dragon's eyes and smiled gently rubbing his face. “You’ve grown so handsome, Twilight is a lucky mare.”
“Heh, so is everypony you ever liked.”
Rarity sighed and hugged the dragon after making his paint dry with her magic. “Rarity. Why did you say no?”
“I’ll tell you someday, my darling. But please, let me just have this.” Spike nodded and hugged her. “Promise me that you’ll take care of her. I know it’s far off but once we’re gone, she’ll need you more than ever.”
“I promise and we’ll watch over all that you girls leave behind. Thank you so much for everything, especially for the last few years.”
“I should be the one saying that for all that you’ve given me over the years, really sometimes I wonder why none of the elements ever came to you. You’re loyal to Twilight no matter what, your generosity knows no bounds, while it usually took you a while to get there you would always be honest in the end, You’re kind to a fault, and do I have to mention how funny you are?” Spike blushed at her praises and he moved a stray hair from her face.
“Maybe but the hero stuff would always be you all, the only reason I’m all that stuff is that I learned from the best teachers around. Especially generosity.”
Rarity giggled and playfully pushed him away. “I see your skill for flattery is still well, make sure to put on the suit after you visit Sweet Apple Acres, no lady wants to dance with a drake covered in mud.” Spike nodded and took the suit, thanking her before going to meet Applejack and Rainbow. Rarity smiled softly and looked around at her old home before seeing a picture on the wall of the day that she had given Carousel Boutique to Sandbar and Yona. It showed the Young Six, the element bearers, CMC, and Spike of course. He was between Twilight and Rarity, smiling with a lampshade on his head.
“Never change, Spike.”
. . .
Spike ran and panted as he caught up to Starlight who was laughing with Applejack. The farm mare hadn’t lost any of her strength with age but had learned to put more trust into others, letting other ponies work for the Apple family for once. She had given her father’s old hat to Applebloom and took to wearing Granny Smith’s old bandana after she passed away.
“Well, there’s the dragon of the hour. Sheesh, Spike, with all that travelin Twilight has ya doin Ah would think ya would have built some stamina or somethin’.”
“Hey, it’s not my fault that the royal carriages have gotten so comfy. I like to relax when I’m thinking up new ways to convince creatures to join us.”
“You make it sound like we’re tricking them.”
“Starlight, some of them need to be tricked a bit. I told the Diamond Dogs that if they come for at least one council meeting that we’ll give them a wagonful of gems.”
“And?”
“Well, I was planning on using Scootaloo’s old kid wagon. Those jewels are coming out of my food stash!”
Starlight shook her head at the dragon’s reasons and turned back to Applejack.
“So the food’s all ready? Even the meals for the other races?”
“Eeyup, Sugar Belle and Ah followed every recipe and the whole thing is ready to make its way to the castle.”
“Thanks for all this, Applejack, I know you all are the best cooks in Ponyville and I was already pushing all the other girls with their jobs, I didn’t want to pile all of this on you...”
“We know you been stressin’ a lot over all this but you know that she doesn’t need all this, right, sugarcube? Ya know that she already loves ya.”
“That’s what I already tried telling him but he still wants to do all this.”
“I know that it seems like a lot but this is my chance to make her a memory that will last forever. I want to give this all I got because she is worth that and so much more.”
“Now that was a very sappy answer, Twilight would have loved it.” Everypony and dragon looked up at the voice as Rainbow Dash was relaxing on a cloud, dressed in a jacket with loads of ribbons and medals on it and wearing her old shades. Her mane was longer and she had several scars from the years of being a Wonderbolt but she had achieved her dreams and became one of the fastest in Equestria history. Spike remembered seeing her cry as she took over for Spitfire and became captain of the squad, leading them under Princess Twilight’s rule to ensure harmony around the world.
“Nice to see some ponies never change.” Spike said with a small smile. Rainbow smirked and looked down.
“Why change when you’re the best?” The group began to laugh as if that was a joke, causing the pegasus to pout and Applejack smiled sweetly at her friend and partner. The pegasus was still as stubborn and self-centered as a bull sometimes but the farmer had come to see the side of her that she hid under her pride. Rainbow had grown to see the world as something to enjoy while she can, taking time when she could to talk to her friends, walk with Applejack, or fly through the skies slowly. She finally learned that speed wasn’t everything she wanted, she wanted to be happy and to live her life to the fullest. Of course, a good argument never did anypony any harm so Spike grew a smirk of his own.
“I don’t know why you would, but maybe you should ask me, Rainbow, I am the best after all.”
“The best at losing maybe~” The two had a small arguing session while Starlight talked to Applejack over some pie. Eventually, Spike realized he was losing daylight and needed to check on his last friend.
“Dash, will the clouds be gone by the time of the Gala?”
“Course, this is Rainbow ‘Danger’ Dash after all!”
“Thanks, RD. I know this kind of thing is pretty mushy to you.” Rainbow looked at him and smiled.
“You better make this work or I’m gonna be pissed. I’ve done a lot as Twilight’s captain of the Wonderbolts but I would never have gotten here without her, none of us would have. We trust you with her because you’ve showed more loyalty than even me at times and you both deserve to be happy.”
Spike hugged the mare who tried to pull away before groaning loudly as Applejack and Starlight joined the hug. Spike and Starlight waved as they left towards Fluttershy’s and Spike promised Big Mac to come back soon and visit the kids.
. . .
Fluttershy’s sanctuary had become more than just the tiny hut it had once been, Fluttershy having come to let Discord design a new house for them once they married. The Draconequus had the earth itself form a natural boundary for all the animals Fluttershy could ever want before using the old hut as a template before making a new one out of the trees around and raising the ground. His work turned into a house that was all-natural while held all kinds of secrets that Fluttershy would come to love as much as her husband himself. Animals from around the world would appear in her sanctuary and many stayed due to her kindness, thriving and coming to protect and take care of each other.
Spike felt joy when he thought about his two old male friends and how they came to find their happy endings. While Discord was still Discord, his troublesome qualities had completely vanished by then and while he would play a prank here and there he had found he enjoyed making others laugh and have fun with his chaos than hurt with it. Fluttershy’s love destroyed all the traces of the villain he had once been and he even admitted that he would even become mortal for her if she asked. Spike knocked on the door as it grew legs and moved to let them in. He shook his head as walked in with Starlight.
“Fluttershy? Discord? We were coming to see if you and your animal friends are ready for the Gala? I was also wondering about that special favor I talked to you about.” The inside of the house looked to be made of nothing but staircases that led every which where. As they walked down a flight of stairs they found themselves soon walking up and the entrance they were just at was now above them. More walking just led them to a spiraling staircase that led down to another staircase that went right back up. After that flight, they were met by a staircase that split into two paths.
“Okay, this is getting ridiculous! Spike, you can fly so pick me up and fly us to wherever they are!” The dragon bit his lip knowing that Discord would have had a plan for someone with wings but he nodded and took Starlight into his arms before shooting into the sky. Everywhere were stairs and now he couldn’t even find the exit. “Look out!” Spike turned as a staircase was twisting and tried to hit him before Starlight blew it up with a spell. All around the house of stairs began to move and attack them.
“Oh, Horseapples…” Spike was twisting and turning in the air as he dodged anything that would block his path while Starlight protected their back with her magic. The stairs made a wall to block them as the ones chasing them were coming too fast for Starlight to destroy them all. Suddenly the two found themselves on the ground in Fluttershy’s house.
“Discord, I‘ve told you about using our friends as playthings.”
“Aww, but I was just about to get a new high score.”
“More like we almost got a game over!”
“Oh, pish posh, Glimmer, if I had let you two die Fluttershy may make me sleep on the couch for eternity.”
“Some punishment…”
“We actually came because we were seeing if you two had everything ready for the Gala?”
“Oh yes, my birds will be all ready to help and put you in a calmer mood for your big move.”
“And I suppose I could help you and do that favor you wanted but if Luna and K-K get mad you’ll be the one I point at.” Spike jumped with a resounding yes as he hugged the pegasus and Draconequus. “Yes yes, now don’t dirty my body, you need to keep that paint in perfect shape if you will fool Sparkle.”
“With all of us working together anything is possible, the carriage will be coming soon for you two.” Spike and Starlight went to leave when Spike fell. He groaned and turned to glare at the culprits, a group of bunnies continuing their father’s grand work of tormenting the dragon. “You know the world is a cruel place when Angel found love and did the deed before me.” Spike shook his head and left. They had one last thing to do before heading to the castle and Spike looked at the setting sun. “We should hurry.”
“Don’t worry, with the spell I been practicing it will have us in the Empire in a moment, just have to focus on Sunburst’s magic… and…” The two vanished and popped back into existence on the doorstep of the Crystal Castle.
“Not bad, you unicorns are so lucky. Let’s get the gift from Shiny and Cadence before the entire empire gets the news that I’m here.”
“Right, I’d rather not be pushed out of a crowd today.” The two were let into the castle where there were many changelings among the staff. Since the Empire opened its walls to them, many made their home there due to the love that always surrounded the place. Many bowed to him out of respect, seeing that he was their king’s friend and one of his advisors. Spike bowed back to them and made a note that he needed to check up on Thorax as he had been neglecting his old friend a bit. A changeling named Kevin announced Spike and Starlight as they entered the throne room and Cadence dropped her regal look before excitedly rushing over and hugging Spike.
“Oooo!!! I’m so excited for you two! This is happening just like one of my stories!! They end a bit more maturely but I want details tomorrow of whatever happens, mister!” Starlight laughed at Spike’s misfortune as Sunburst walked over and talked to her. Shining Armor also soon pulled his wife off Spike to let the dragon breath.
“You don’t know how rare it is for one of her shipping things to come true so try not to mess this up, Spike.” The prince chuckled and ruffled the spines on his head. “You know I trust you, Spike, more than anyone else, promise me that you’ll keep watch over her.”
“You have my word as a noble dragon.”
“Heh, I heard that code of yours is getting pretty popular in the Dragon Lands.”
“Well, who wouldn’t want to be like Spike the brave and glorious?” Starlight rolled her eyes and pulled him away by the ear.
“That’s enough ego-stroking, we still need to help finish setting up the castle.”
“Right, I left the gift behind my throne.” They ran over and found a flawless purple telescope with stars, moons, and suns painted on in gold paint. The lens was made of the finest crystal the empire could produce.
“It’s perfect, thanks for this, you two, and I’ll send a scroll telling you everything tomorrow!” They wished him good luck as Starlight charged up her spell and the two vanished with the gift.
. . .
Twilight yawned as she finally woke from her rest, feeling better than she had in a long while. She kissed the little owl as he nuzzled her and left out the window, his job completed for now. She checked the time and saw the Gala would be starting soon, she cursed to herself and called Gallus to her as she looked for her dress.
“Yes, Princess?”
“You know you can call me by my name, right, Captain?”
“As soon as I put on the uniform I’m acting as your first line of defense which means to put away our friendship somewhat, princess, but I’ll make an exception for tonight. The Gala is perfect and your friend Rarity had this sent over.” Gallus pulled out a special dress that was dark violet with sparkles that seemed to shine and move as the dress did. It was like looking at an evening sky had taken the form of a dress and the mask covered the space around her eyes. It was violent also but with gold as the trim.
“It’s amazing… even with not being able to come they always come through for me. What’s the mask for?”
“Spike changed the Gala this year a bit and decided to make it a masquerade party in order to let you enjoy it a bit more.”
“He what!? He has to start telling me things like this so I can be mentally prepared! But… it was nice of him to think of me when I’ve been working him so much this last year. I’ll make it up to him once he comes back.”
“I’m sure he’ll be looking forward to that, now get groomed and ready and try to have fun tonight, pri- Twilight. You deserve it.”
“Thank you, Gallus.”
“No problem.” The griffon left and smiled to himself. Spike would owe him after this night was over as he would a lot of ponies. Twilight took a quick shower and used a tiny bit of makeup that Rarity had given her. She usually wasn’t a fan but this time she decided to give it a chance, mostly on the space around her eyes making just pop that bit more. She slipped on the dress and mask and admired herself in the mirror.
“Heh, Rarity could make any creature look like a princess. Okay, try to have fun, I can do that. Maybe I’ll make a new friend, or maybe Thorax and Ember were able to make it?” She left and headed downstairs in awe at all the flawless decorations that littered her entire castle. “How did Gallus do it? This kind of decoration would have taken the whole royal guard!” As Twilight passed a painting, the painting moved and Pinkie Pie giggled.
“Nope just four super party ponies right?” Cheese, Pumpkin, and Pound agreed appearing beside her. Twilight was drooling a bit at the smell of food coming from the throne room.
“Mmmm it smells like the food was actually homecooked instead of all that fancy stuff they feed us. I hope there are hayburgers!”
Applejack chuckled behind her mask as she saw Twilight talking to herself.
“Course there are, Spike, made sure to ask us to make an extra amount of those just for ya.” Twilight rushed into the throne room which had been turned into a darkened dance floor with different colored spotlights above moving around. She walked right around and finally found the food, grabbing a bit of everything and happily eating to her heart’s content. After around ten minutes, the princess patted her stomach content with all she had eaten and picking her teeth with a toothpick. Very unprincess-like maybe but hey she was told to enjoy this and by darn, she deserved to! She turned however when she heard a chuckle and saw a dragon in a suit and mask was standing there. He was drinking punch and gave her a tiny wave as he finished his cup.
She nearly called him Spike due to the size and general shape of the dragon but this one was a different color and by luck would have it, A scroll appeared before her from Spike, showing the dragon before her wasn’t him. She read it, smiling softly as it told how he had completed his mission and he’d see her soon and he hoped she liked his surprise of turning the Gala into a masquerade party.
“Hmm, I’ll have to thank this Spike guy.” Twilight yelped and turned to see the dragon was behind her and reading Spike’s letter. She frowned and held the letter against her. His voice sounded like Spike’s also but strange, gruffer and deeper than her dragon’s.
“And why would you need to do that?”
“I’m not one for parties like this, I’m much of a party animal kind of guy but the mask thing was a good idea and I didn’t have to worry about any other dragon seeing me here really. If they say they saw me then I’ll just say that their mask was too tight and it suffocated their brain. Also, it seems like even your rich and noble may be just normal under all of it.”
“That isn’t a thing with these kinds of masks but I do see what you mean about the nobles. I guess if they don’t have to worry about being judged then they can have fun.”
“Heh use enough big words and you can convince almost any dragon of anything except like Dragonlord Ember. Speaking of her and of you miss, I haven’t seen someone eat like that since she did after staying at one of those council things for a few days.” Twilight blushed and pushed the dragon’s face away before thinking of that particular venture, the meeting lasted far longer than it should have. It was discussing whether or not to include Discord into the council as he represented Draconequus but others argued that that was mostly only him. Spike ended up eating most of their gems as he watched Discord arguing with the council, leaving Ember hungry as refused to eat the other food.
“I’ve had a long few weeks don’t judge me.”
“Judge the princess of friendship? I’d never.” The dragon smirked playfully.
“How did you-”
“Umm… wings and a horn? It’s dark but I’m not blind.” Twilight muttered that she should have hidden her wings but Rarity usually makes things for comfort, not really practicality. “So princess, this is a pretty sweet party you have going on, I expected you to have it all proper and rather dull.”
“Well, usually the Gala is meant to be that but I have a great assistant that actually knows how to have fun…” Twilight smiled seeing everyone having fun but she wished that she had one of her friends there. Seeing her mood damper a bit the dragon rubbed his chin before snapping and moving some, bowing before her.
“How about a dance princess?” Twilight flinched thinking about her dancing “talents” but before she could deny he gently grabbed her hoof and smiled. “Trust me, let me lead if you’re scared.” She stared at him, trying to see his eyes which were hidden by the mask and lack of light. Something about how sure he was of himself and the genuine smile gave her the confidence to take the risk and she nodded.
He led her into the crowd as the lights all began to die down and the stage illuminated to show three new singers. Sweetie Belle was well known around Equestria for her musical talents but also for denying all the promise of fame and fortune to stay at the school with her friends. Applebloom and Scootaloo were at her side and began to dance in rhythm as DJ-Pon3 nodded at them and started a soft and more romantic beat. Twilight smiled at the three and was glad they were about to make it.
“Here’s a song dedicated to a special princess and her best friend! When they came to us so long ago they put something in motion that would change all of our lives and bring peace to all of Equestria! I hope you all enjoy.” Twilight tilted her head as she looked around for Spike but then a spotlight shined down on them and Twilight looked up to glare at the light but found Rainbow Dash smirking at her and winking before pointing behind them. Twilight turned to see all of her friends smiling and waving making her tear up before noticing Spike wasn’t there. She looked back at her hooves still in the dragon’s hands and then at his face which held a playful smirk on it. She used her magic to take off his mask as the CMC began to sing.
“I know we've been friends forever,
But now I think I'm feeling something totally new,
And after all this time,
I've opened up my eyes,
Now I see,
You were always with me…”
“Spike… you did all this? For me?” The unmistakable emerald eyes of her dragon sparkled in the light and he chuckled. He began to dance, taking the lead and keeping her on her hind hooves.
“Course I did, like I’d leave my best friend to suffer a boring party without her number one assistant. I did get loads of help though.”
“But your voice? That letter!”
“Discord.” The draconequus popped out of Spike’s chest pocket in a miniature form and snapped his fingers as Spike’s voice turned back to normal and the paint vanished from his body. “Thanks, buddy. As for the letter, I blew one earlier and Starlight captured the smoke with her magic and only let it go once you could see me.”
“Pff, thank me by actually making me the best draconequus at your wedding.” He vanished leaving both pony and dragon blushing. They turned back to each other and continued the dance.
“Could it be you and I never imagined,
(Could it be)
Could it be suddenly I'm falling for you (I am falling),
Could it be you were right here beside me,
And I never knew,
Could it be that it's true that it's you (Could it be),
That it's you…”
“Thank you, Spike…”
“Don’t thank me yet, the night is still pretty young and I do like outdoing myself~” He spun her and caught her, laughing at the slightly sick face she made. “Sorry.” He held her closer and went back to a calmer pace which she felt better in and leaned her head on his shoulder with a smile. He blushed and rubbed his face against her horn softly.
“It's kinda funny you were always dear,
But who would ever thought that we would end up here,
And everytime I've needed you,
You've been there to pull me through,
Now it's clear,
I've been waiting for you.
Could it be you and I never imagined?
Could it be, suddenly, I'm falling for you?
(I am falling)
Could it be you were right here beside me?
And I never knew
Could it be that it's true that it's you?
(Could it be?) Oh, it's you”
Twilight felt the stares of the crowd and her friends vanish from her mind as she felt something she only had two other times. With her good friend, Flash Sentry but the feeling died when she saw him happily married to Sunset Shimmer, the two often visited from the other world and even made both Twilights the godmothers of their child. The second time she felt it was with a brilliant unicorn she met during a friendship mission but that soon died too as they apart with her role as princess taking up her time.
The warmth that came from her heart was stronger this time however as it was built up over the years and in this moment of bliss, she finally understood and accepted what she felt. She looked into his eyes and found nothing but love and devotion gazing back at her.
“Cause today is the start of the rest of our lives
I can see it in your eyes
Oh, that it's real and its true
And it's just me and you
Could it be that it's true that it's you?”
Twilight smiled back and wrapped her hooves around his neck, pulling his head down with a playful grin on her lips. He blushed looking into the eyes that he had seen almost every day of his life and only noticed now how much they sparkled and the true beauty of them. They both leaned forward slowly as the song was coming to its end.
“Could it be you and I never imagined?
Could it be, suddenly, I'm falling for you?
(I am falling)
Could it be you were right here beside me?
And I never knew
Could it be that it's true that it's you?
(Could it be?) Oh, that it's you
Could it be that it's true that it's you?
That it's you
Oh, it's you”
The two neared each other as the light softly faded but then felt their lips mashed together as Rainbow Dash held the backs of their heads and pushed them towards each other.
“Oh my Celestia! How much are you gonna drag this moment out?! We’ve been waiting for this for years and you two were taking your sweet time!” Rainbow was forced to let go as a lasso fell on her and she was pulled away to the others as she crossed her forelegs. “You better not take that long for sex or so help me!” She was silenced when Applejack shoved an apple in her mouth and apologized to everyone. Spike and Twilight separated and looked away as they blushed and touched their lips, savoring the tingling feeling that remained.
“Now let’s really party!!!” Pinkie shouted as she blew her party cannon over the crowd.
. . .
The rest of the Gala passed with Twilight not remembering much other than having fun but the real fun began when the Gala ended and the after-party for just her friends began. They all drank, joked, and danced the night away. Twilight smiled sitting and watching Spike, Sandbar, and Big Mac agreeing to have a dance-off with Discord, Shining, and Cheese. Rarity sat beside her looking flawless even if she was a bit red in the face and had a glass of red wine in her magical grasp.
“Haven’t you had enough?”
“Darling, I can never have enough besides I am a graceful drunk.”
“What about that time at Fluttershy’s wedding?”
“Graceful, not clean.” The two shared a laugh before Twilight turned to her and felt a question she had for years return and after what had happened that night she felt she now needed an answer more than ever.
“Why didn’t you say yes? You know Spike loved you but you told him no… why?” Rarity smiled softly thinking back and leaned back her head.
“The dear was generosity and kind beyond his years but those few years, I didn’t because he was young at the very least in looks he was. I… well you know how I was darling. My vanity and reputation often overpowered my better features and seeing that he showered me in gifts and compliments I let it continue… I never did apologize to either of you for that. The years I took him from you and really from letting him grow closer to the others or anypony else.”
“I never blamed you and he didn’t either, at first he did help you because he had a crush but as it went along I think you really did have an impact on what he likes. I even leave the decorating of the castle to Spike now because of his talent with colors and what matches.”
“And he helped me unknowingly. He was like my first student and now I train dozens of creatures the best I can. Now back to the matter at hoof, when he did grow up I did start seeing him in a different light. He was brave, handsome, strong, and a hero known all over. He grew smart and never let that fame go to his head as he focused all his time on making Equestria better for every creature and dedicated all his free time to help you or the rest of us. I soon realized that I did fall for him a bit… then he asked me the second time for a date and I wanted to shout yes.”
“But you didn’t?”
“You know I didn’t.”
“But why?” Rarity turned and looked into her friend’s face, a smile graced her lips as she rubbed Twilight’s cheek like a mother.
“I couldn’t… I didn’t want to hurt the dear or you. I knew that he would focus more and more time on me and away from where he was needed which was by your side.”
“B-but we could have made it work! Portals, teleporting, we have magic!”
“Yes I thought of that but then I realized something… Twilight if Spike was given an element of harmony which one would he get?”
“I don’t understand where this is-”
“Which element?” She gave it thought, finding that many of the elements would match Spike. He was kind to everyone he met, he was pretty funny just more in a snarky way than Pinkie, he was generous and was willing to give up anything to make someone smile, he did have problems with honesty sometimes but he had truly grown into an honest drake, he didn’t much fit magic but…
“Loyalty. He would be Loyalty.”
“Exactly. Spike is loyal beyond everything else, his heart knows so much loyalty that despite fear or the threat of pain he would walk into certain danger if any of us were ever threatened. When the rest of us abandoned you during the Storm King nonsense, he alone stayed with you. I realized then that if I said yes and gave into my feelings… when I eventually passed I would have ruined his life…”
“Rarity…”
“His heart would have been loyal to me for centuries after my death, he would never have been the same… I couldn’t hurt him like that and leave you to carry him for years. I chose then to deny him and helped him open his heart to others. One day a few years ago, he finally decided on who he wanted.”
“Me?”
“Yes, I was so excited it felt like I was a filly again writing a romantic novel. The childhood friends going through so many struggles until they find they loved each other.”
Twilight blushed and shook her head at her friend’s imagination. “You really were the element of generosity… to give up a life of happiness for us. Thank you.” She hugged her friend and Rarity rubbed her back.
“Oh posh darling, you’re gonna make me cry and I look dreadful with makeup smears.” The two rejoined the party and Spike came out of the dance-off tired and sweaty, shaking his head.
“Never dance off a chaos god.”
“Noted heh.” Rarity whispered something in Spike’s ear and he nodded back before wiping his hands on Discord and grabbing Twilight. “Spike! W-what are you doing?!”
“I have one more gift.” He carried her to the balcony nearby and removed a tarp that covered a telescope. She gasped at how perfect it was and gushed over it. “I thought why not end tonight with stargazing?” He pointed up and Twilight’s eyes were assaulted by a sea of stars which became a shower of shooting stars. “Thank Discord and Dash… I asked the princesses and they said that we were allowed to do it so I had Dash clear the sky and Discord pull the moon and stars closer. He added the shower.”
“They’re amazing… so beautiful…” He looked at her and smiled.
“Yeah, beautiful.”
. . .
As the party came to its end, Twilight insisted that everyone stay at the castle for the night and everyone agreed. She finished taking off all of her princess garbs and was about to head for bed when she was interrupted by a knock at the door. When she answered, no one was there but Spike was just about to go into his room.
“I never thought you the type to ding dong ditch mister the dragon~” She smiled and walked to him as he shook his head and blushed.
“I-I just wanted to check up on you but thought that you didn’t need me to do that anymore so I-” He was silenced by a hoof on his mouth and Twilight giggled.
“You’re cute flustered.” He blushed more and rubbed his head and Twilight looked away. “Thank you, Spike… for tonight and for everything.” She hugged him and he held her back, nuzzling his face into her shoulder.
“No need to thank me Twi, I just wish that we had a do-over on that kiss.” Twilight smiled and pulled him towards her, kissing him and holding the kiss for several moments.
“How was that?” He seemed dazed and she giggled again, taking the chance to peck his lips several more times before he came to his senses.
“Y-You just.”
“A bit of a late reaction~.” He chuckled and pulled her on him by her hind legs, kissing her with all the love he had for her. “Spike…”
“I… I love you Twi…”
“I love you too.” They shared a smile and leaned their foreheads against each other. After several moments he let her down and began to turn back to his room when he heard a huff. He looked back to see Twilight with a pout.
“What?”
“This is where you invite me in.”
“Oh… OOH! Umm, do you wanna come in?”
“You are gonna need a lot of training, good thing we have all the time in the world~” She went in his room with him following and locking the door. Down both sides of the hall hid all their friends who cheered before heading off to bed.
Author's Note
Well... this was my first attempt at a full romance story and I hope it turned out okay! It felt sweet to me and the song is from the Kim Possible movie and is not owned by me. Well, what you all think? I'll be getting back to my other stories now! Oh, this got the sex tag for the ending as a just in case. Never tried a clop so not really planning a sequel for this but maybe one day.
