The Five Stages of Greed

Chapters

The First Stage
The Third Stage: Full Inertia
The Fourth Stage: Attack Mode
The Final Stage: Last Resorts
Bonus Chapter: The Epilogue
The Second Stage: Social Decline

The First Stage

Smolder lie in her bed, staring at the ceiling. She was turning thirteen in a few hours, it was nearly midnight. Everycreature else was asleep, though, everycreature but her.

She still lay there, waiting idly by as the clock on her dormitory wall continued to tick faster. That mocking tick. It was like the stupid thing was teasing her. Tick, tock, tick, tock. She allowed a bit of smoke to flare from her nostrils.

She glanced at the clock, still mocking her with that stupid sound. That stupid clock.
On that stupid wall. Fwoosh! She allowed gigantic flames to course through her throat, leaving nothing but ashes, and a slightly charred wall. Great. Now she didn’t know how much time she had left. The time she had until it happened. Her birthday.

Smolder wasn’t really the type to get excited about birthdays. She’d always thought that getting all riled up for them was a waste of energy. If she felt that way about anycreature else, it would, of course, be even harder to even try and conjure up any excitement for her birthday.

But, that wasn’t the problem. The problem was, every year she got older, the closer she would get to... it. The stages. The phases. Something she so desperately wanted to run away and hide from, but, she told herself time and time again, you can’t reverse time.

...And she was right. She couldn’t. But the closer and closer she got to that phase, that... terrible phase... she had dreaded every second of the truth. That she couldn’t reverse time.

She knocked her head up against the bed frame, waiting, and waiting. Waiting for that dreaded time. She knew she couldn’t hide from it, and so, she was fed up with it. She just wanted to get it over with. To end the endless anticipation. For... it.

She wished so desperately that she could stop inviting that word, that... term, into her head. it, it, it, it. The phases. The stages. It.
“Argh, enough, already!!!” She tossed her pillow at the wall, followed by an emotionless sigh. She knocked her head up against the bed frame for the last time, succumbing to that feeling. Deep down, she knew. It was here. And it was here to stay.

That same morning, promptly when class was in session, Smolder sat with her head resting in her palm, looking the most nonchalant she’d ever been. Ocellus glanced at her, taking note of the emotions she was feeling by occasionally(and discreetly) sticking her tongue out. She tasted bitterness, like, taking a sip of bubble soap.

She smacked her lips a little, keen on making sure Smolder was alright. This dragon, in particular, was very special to her, after all. Ocellus, you could say, had feelings for her, special feelings. She would hate to admit it to any of her friends, but she does tend to occasionally find herself staring at the orange reptile.

She was a changeling, after all. They did seem to have huge, glittery eyes, but, something about Smolder just made her gush. She wasn’t sure, what, or how, but she knew. She knew that she had feelings for her. She just wasn’t sure how to tell her. She knew this one thing, surely, that she couldn’t just keep her in her
peripheral vision. She had to be watching her at all times.

She knew this- it’s not that she didn’t trust Smolder or anything- these thoughts had often clouded her mind. She always felt guilt for having to evaluate her thoughts about her all the time, even though she knew how she felt about her. She loved her, still, she just didn’t know how to figure it out. How to figure herself out.

“Eep!” She cried out as the bell rang. She sighed in relief, satisfied that she didn’t draw any eyes on her as she cried out in surprise. Just as she was relieving herself, she noticed Smolder leaving the classroom while she was trying to get herself together.

As she noticed this, she quickly packed her saddlebags and rushed after her in a trotting motion, making sure not to draw any attention to her in the process.

“Good morning, Smolder!” This caused Smolder to jump before she instantly turned around, sweating a little.

“...Oh, hey, Cel’. Sorry I didn’t say anything before class.” She gazed into Ocellus’ giant eyes, instantaneously losing herself in them, somehow. She had fixed her position so that she was standing up straight.

“It’s... fine.” Ocellus then remembered. Something was missing. It had been nagging at her all morning. The one thing she didn’t say to Smolder at first this entire morning. “Um... H-Happy Birthday!”

Smolder tensed up, gritting her teeth slightly
“Y-you know it’s my Birthday...?” Ocellus’ cheeks turned a light shade of teal.

“I’ve... heard from a few ponies, I guess.” Ocellus’ blush grew stronger as she pulled out a book, burying her face in it. Just as she did what she did, Smolder had tensed up.

Smolder was feeling... something. Something SO unbearable and uncomfortable, yet, it was like a cluster of energy pumping and coursing through her body. That book. She had to have it.

She suddenly grabbed the book, holding grip of it for a while. “The book, Cel’. Can I have it?”

“Maybe if you ask a little more politely,” Ocellus giggled.

“Please, give me the book.” Smolder urged. “Now.”

“...Okay, you can have it.. I guess-“

That word. It. She immediately slammed herself in the head with it, giving it back to Ocellus turning away from her.

“Woah! Are you alright?!” She prodded Smolder on her shoulder, trying to get her to go turn around, but, each time she tried to look at her face, but Smolder kept turning away from her.

“It’s not mine, it’s not mine, it’s not mine-“ Smolder insisted to herself.

“Smolder! I can’t help you if you won’t look at me!” Ocellus cried, still trying to get a look at Smolder’s wound.

“I don’t need any help, I’m fine...”

“Okay, just... don’t do that again, okay...? You scared me...” Ocellus stated firmly, giving her scaly friend a hug. Smolder reluctantly hugged her back, resisting the urge to try and retrieve the book she had given up.

Once Ocellus completely reassured herself, she finally left Smolder alone, going about her business. She had just wondered one thing, what exactly happened?

The Third Stage: Full Inertia

Ocellus sat at the foot of Smolder’s bed, making some crafted “jewelry” to satisfy her greed.
“How many do you want?” She asked.

“As many as you feel like making, I guess.” She had scampered up on top of her junk pile, which was growing bigger and bigger each day.
Just as she was about to make a following statement, Ocellus had realized. The Third Stage happened to be in operation. Smolder, as she noticed, had both physical and mental inertia, putting her hoard first. She hadn’t seen her friends in days, besides Ocellus. It had been about three days since their rather embarrassing agreement, rendering Smolder completely isolated from the outside world. Aside from being with Ocellus, of course.

Now, Ocellus’ plan was a little haphazard, granted that she didn’t do any proper research on how to help Smolder, but, at this point, she felt that she couldn’t leave her alone. She felt like this was her only chance to help her. To be with her. She took note of this: If Smolder was still talking to her, still in tact with reality and what was and wasn’t real, she still had room for a little assistance while she could. Before it got full control of her.

“About 2 in 5 dragons lose themselves to the five stages,” She mumbled to herself, Smolder too focused on her hoard to pay attention to what she was saying. Ocellus has looked over her shoulder to Smolder, still making the little trinkets she had planned to gift to her.

Smolder was stroking some of the contents that lay on top of the giant heap, her eyes sparkling in admiration and awe. It was hers. Only hers.
Ocellus let out an exasperated sigh, going back to making her little necklaces and bracelets. Hate it or love it, She thought. Im going to help you.

She turned to look at Smolder once more, peering her tongue out slightly, and tasting Smolder’s intense love for her hoard. It drove her crazy, the sweet, the spice, the flavor- she couldn’t take it. If only Smolder would- If only she would love her like she loved that hoard. That intense heap of junk. She didn’t think herself to be one of the jealous type, but, when she saw Smolder and her love for that hoard, she just couldn’t help herself.

As she continued with her crafts, she wondered. What did Smolder see in that hoard? It couldn’t walk, it couldn’t talk, it couldn’t even feel. What did she see in that gigantic pile of junk?

It was hopeless, she felt, to try and confess to Smolder at that moment. Even if she felt the courage to, Smolder wouldn’t have payed her any attention. It was useless, she might as well have just waited. It didn’t matter how she felt towards her, or what she felt, she was going to help Smolder survive these awful stages. Eventually. Right now, she was going to finish making her little baubles, taking her time with each one so that Smolder might be satisfied with what she was gifted.

She knew she was a Dragon, and, Dragons would take anything they could get, like Dragons would. Ocellus didn’t see anything coming at this point. She always saw Smolder as rough around the edges, sometimes even distant, but she never thought that this would be her now. That she’d turn so distant and cold just to protect a pile of junk. To Smolder, of course, it wasn’t any regular old pile of junk. It was, frankly, a hoard.

Ocellus didn’t see it that way, though. She couldn’t bear to see Smolder like this. And for a junk pile. Just the sight of her caring so intently for that thing was unbearable. She would give anything to just get rid of it. She was teased by the constant sight of it everyday. Every time. For Smolder to just give up on everything for it. To give up on her.

She stopped abruptly to get up and make Smolder some tea. After all, she needed to calm down after all that thinking. Smolder had watched her stand up and walk into the kitchen, sitting up slightly. “Where are you going?” This question made Ocellus jump slightly.

“To make you some tea...?” She reluctantly turned around to Smolder, who had quickly curled up on top of her hoard. She blushed a little, shaken up that Smolder had been so quick to ask why she was getting up. Did she think of her as part of her hoard?

“Oh, okay...” Smolder mumbled, prompting Ocellus to continue on getting some refreshments. Her nostrils puffed some smoke, as they flared up, her face was grazed with a light shade of crimson. She didn’t think of one of her closest friends being owned by her, like they were one of her valuables, not like she didn’t treasure each and everyone of them, it’s just, she never thought of herself being so possessive of one of them, let alone Ocellus.

Hours ticked by as Smolder was still curled up on top of her pile, smoke puffing out of her nostrils as she drifted off to sleep. It was now about 7 o’clock, a suitable time for Ocellus to leave, or so she thought. She slowly creaked open the door to leave, looking back at Smolder while wishing she could stay a little longer.

As she was near leaving, the creak of the door woke Smolder up. Before Ocellus could fully exit the dormitory, Smolder had slowly opened her eyes, her nostrils now puffing out less smoke.
“Where are you going...?” She asked with a yawn, Ocellus stopping abruptly.

“I...I was going to leave... you know, since... you were going to sleep...” She turned back to Smolder.

“No. Stay. Now.” Smolder glared at Ocellus, her nostrils puffing more smoke.

“You sure? You kind of look like you’ll set me on fire if I do.” She giggled.

Smolder let herself giggle softly, before clearing her throat. “No, you’re fine. Just stay here.” She reassured, shutting her eyes again once Ocellus had shut the door.

“O-Oh... okay. If it’s alright with you.” Her face was stained with her trademark teal blush.

“You can... sleep in my bed if you want.” She said between puffs of smoke.

Ocellus blushed once more, now getting snug under the soft blanket on top of her specially plush mattress. “Goodnight, Smoldy~” she mumbled to herself, drifting off to sleep.

Ocellus galloped around the dark, desolate school building, looking for Smolder. She was tired, sweat beading from her forehead. She felt that she couldn’t go on any longer, but she had to. She had to go on. For Smolder. As she galloped faster and faster, she finally made it to the dorm. Smolder’s dorm. She briskly knocked on her door, getting no answer, but persisting as she knocked on it faster, putting twice as much force onto it. Just when she finally put it past herself, she knocked down the door.

BAM! She was in. “S-Smolder! Where are you?!”

“Leave me alone...” Someone coughed in reply. It sounded like- like Smolder.

The room was filled with so much smoke, Ocellus couldn’t see. She galloped quickly to where her voice was coming from, as time seemed to slow down quicker, and quicker. After what seemed to be an eternity of searching, she finally found her, her beloved. There she was, curled up on the floor in front of that dastardly junk pile.

“Smolder! Are you okay?!” She cried, as she lifted her up the best she could, shaking her violently.
She hadn’t eaten, slept, or drank anything ever since Ocellus left her alone about a week ago. This had been going on for weeks on end.
Even as Ocellus kept shaking her, trying her best to keep her alive, Smolder strayed further, and further away from consciousness, and driving Ocellus to tears. “No, No, No, No, No! Stay with me!” She cried, shaking her even more violently. Smolder was unresponsive. Ocellus couldn’t handle the truth, how she so desperately yearned to turn back time, but, it was over.

Smolder was dead.

Ocellus shot up, panting, and in a cold sweat. Smolder, surprisingly, was at her bedside, heavily concerned about the kind of dream Ocellus had.
Before she could speak, Ocellus tackled her in a warm embrace, crying into her shoulder.
“Woah. You alright?” She asked, despite her friend’s emotions clearly showing.

“I... I had a nightmare,” Ocellus sniffed, drying her eyes with her hoof.

“I see that. What happened?”

Ocellus blushed at this question, not wanting to reveal how much she cared about Smolder, being that she might have cared about her a little too much. “I-I’m Sorry!” She urged, hugging her a little tighter.

“What are you sorry about...?”

She immediately turned her head, still blushing as much as she already was. “I don’t wanna talk about it... you probably don’t want to hear it anyway.” She sniffed once more.

“If it’ll make you feel better, I guess.”

“S-So... I-I was running around the school trying to look for you... it was really dark, so I was wandering around the building for what seemed like hours on end—“ She paused. “—When I had finally gotten to your dorm, you told me to leave you alone. I tried looking for you, but by the time I found you, you were- y-you were...”

Ocellus began to shed tears, the lump in her throat growing bigger and bigger.

“Hey, hey, it’s okay... I’m right here...”

“Y-You hadn’t eaten in days- it was part of the Five Stages... if you don’t get better by the fifth stage, you’ll-“

“Five Stages...?” Smolder asked, causing Ocellus to look up at her with wide, teary eyes.

“Y-You mean you don’t even know what’s happening to you?!” She exclaimed, jumping from her embrace and onto her own hooves.

“What?! What’s happening to me..?!” Smolder stood up.

“Y-You’re changing, Smolder!”

“W-What do you mean?!”

“Y-You’re still busy guarding that big pile of junk!!!!” Ocellus snapped, pointing her hoof at the heap of the items Smolder had gathered over the days.

“What..?” Smolder folded her arms, tapping her foot and giving Ocellus a glare. “This is what this is about...?”

“Of course it is!!!! You don’t do anything else but sit on top of that thing and stare at it all day!” She shouted, more tears threatening to fall from her eyes.

“Fine! I like to guard this ‘pile of junk!’ So What?!”

“Because, Smolder! That thing isn’t real! It’s not going to talk to you, and it’s not going to love you!!” She hissed, slightly lunging her.

“Maybe you're just salty that I like to hang out with my hoard more than you!!” She shouted back, bringing Ocellus to tears.

“W-well... fine, then... I-I understand you wanna be alone... hopefully you’ll enjoy looking at your hoard... alone...” She said in between sobs, leaving the dorm and slamming the door behind her.

The Fourth Stage: Attack Mode

Ocellus galloped through the hallway, the clopping of her chitinous hooves becoming endless, as it seemed like hours before she would arrive where her dormitory stood.
Tears streamed from her eyes as she had finally made it. Her comfort zone. She immediately rushed into the room and threw herself onto the bed, sobbing into the pillow.

Her mind was flooding with so many emotions, thoughts, and feelings. Until she could help Smolder, she knew she had to keep her emotions in tact. She couldn’t crack under the pressure she was under all the time, like she usually did. The problem was, she wasn’t ready to accept it. That burden to have Smolder’s life on the line, and depending on her. Of all the creatures. It was her. Of course, she was grateful for the role assigned, given the conditions, but, the worst part was, she couldn’t handle that thing. That precious life that she loved to coexist with, yet loathed to carry such a heavy burden.

What if Smolder died because of her? What if she couldn’t save her? All these doubts, these feelings, they rushed out of her mind, and straight into her pillow, soaked with tears.

As she continued to cry, she eventually fell asleep, her face buried in the pillow.

Two hours later, Ocellus woke, getting out of her bed and heading to the kitchen to get some water. She scanned the cabinets, searching for a glass cup. As she finally reached up to grab one, there was a large noise, followed by the smell of smoke. It must’ve been-

“Smolder...?” Ocellus asked to herself, trying to follow where the noise had came from. There was another large thud, followed by a roar. A roar far too loud to be coming from Smolder. She dropped the glass, rushing out into the hallway and frantically knocking on Smolder’s door. “S-Smolder...!” No one answered, save for the enormous crackling noises.

She turned into a unicorn, using a magical blast from her horn to bust down the door. As she entered, the room was engulfed in smoke. “S...Smolder...?” She called out in between coughs. The smoke slowly cleared, revealing a ginormous hole in the wall.

“What the-?!” She was cut off by distant roars and the sounds of nearby buildings crashing down.
As she galloped near the slightly charred hole in the wall to get a closer look, there was an even louder roar. It was coming from a full-size dragon with orange and light yellow scales, and purple spines. It wasn’t- no, it couldn’t be. It was.

“Smolder!” Ocellus called out, failing to catch the dragon’s attention. As Smolder continued to rage, destroying buildings and setting them on fire, Ocellus was fed up. She leapt from the gaping hole in the wall, opening her elytra and exposing her wings, flying as fast as she could toward the scaly beast.

Turning into an alicorn, still carrying herself in the air as best she could, she charged up all the magic possible through her horn, and blasted the beast with a powerful green beam. The dragon roared in pain, collapsing onto the ground and taking most of the buildings with it.

She changed back, hovering to the ground while still trying to keep herself from collapsing. Her chest heaving, she looked angrily at Smolder.
“What in the name of King Thorax’s hive were you doing?!” She hissed, stepping closer to the dragoness’ lightly charred body. The dragon blinked softly and recognized her friend. She quickly shrunk back to normal size and groaned in pain.

“Huh...?” She croaked, squirming lightly.

“Do you know how much damage you’ve done?!” Ocellus tried to levitate her, but couldn’t, Otherwise, where would all that power come from? She had, in a sense, wasted most of her magical energy. It was going to take a long time to restore it, especially since she was angry at the moment.

Smolder coughed “I... I don’t know what you’re talking about...” she scratched her head.

“You don't know what I’m talking about?! Look around you, Smolder!!” She snapped, getting angrier every second.

“Oh...? ...Oh.” She muttered as she looked around her. Ponyville was destroyed. No building was left untouched. Ponies were injured.

“Oh?! You just destroyed an entire town, and your reaction is ’Oh?!’” She shouted back, knocking Smolder across her spines.

“Ow,” She deadpanned.

“How can you be so nonchalant about this?! Do you see what you’ve done?!”

“What’s there to see...?” She joked.

“This isn’t a joke, Smolder.”

“Who said it was?” She turned to Ocellus.

Ocellus snarled at her, before trying to gain back her composure. “You’ve burned a hole in the building, destroyed a whole town, injured lots of ponies, and you have the audacity to joke around like this?!” Ocellus took a breath. “Are you proud of yourself...?”

“And what If I am...?”

“Smolder, you’ve practically started an international war! You shouldn’t be proud of yourself! Not when it’s this serious!!!” She hissed once more, the venom in her voice increasing steadily.

“You know what...?” She started to hover. “I’m not gonna sit and argue with you.” She grumbled, smoke puffing from her nostrils as she flew away.

Ocellus was tired. She collapsed onto the ground, sweat beading from her forehead. She was still breathing very heavily, trying to recuperate from that heavy use of magic.
She looked up in the sky only to see Smolder still in the midst of flying away. Just before she could get up, she saw a gigantic burst of flame rage her way. She couldn’t run. She couldn’t even get up.

Ocellus shot up in a cold sweat, tears streaming from her eyes. “Oh my hive-“ she sobbed, gasping for air. It was finally morning. The daylight shone through the window.

She got up, still sniffling, and grabbed a few tissues to dry her eyes. Just as she went to grab a glass of water, there was a knock on her door. Ocellus unlocked the door and opened it to her early guest. It was Gallus.

“Hey, are you alright? You were yelling and screaming, like... a lot.” His face was displaying pure concern, as he looked Ocellus straight in the eye.

“I’m... fine, thanks.” She relied sheepishly, looking away and rubbing her hoof.

“Oh, okay, I guess. Class is starting in an hour,” he said. “Cheer up, okay...?”

“Yeah,” she replied. “I-I’ll get right on that...” she said as she closed the door, sighing. “How am I supposed to help Smolder when I can’t even help myself..?” She pondered, drinking her glass of water and preparing to brush her teeth.

As she entered the bathroom and looked in the mirror, levitating her toothbrush with her magic and proceeding to brush her teeth. As she finished brushing, she decided to pay Smolder a visit, and to apologize to her.

She exited the dorm and proceeded to march forward to Smolder, being harsh on herself to play it cool, and be firm. Like in Professor Fluttershy’s class.

She knocked on the door. There was no response. “Smolder? Smolder? Open up! I need to talk to you!” She yelled, grateful not to get every student in that hall to open up their doors and look at her quizzically.

“Smolder, open the door. Please.” She knocked in the door even harder.

“Leave me alone!” Smolder hissed in reply.

“Come on, I just wanna apologize.”

“Go away!” Ocellus then heard Smolder spurt flames at the door with its usual “fwooshing” sound. The door started to crumble, revealing a scowling Smolder. “I said go away.” She growled through clenched teeth.

“I just wanna apologize for how I lashed out last night...” She started to quiver slightly, forgetting how she kept telling herself she was going to be firm.

“I. Don’t. Care. Get out!”

“I-I just... I just wanted to talk...”

“Did I stutter?! GET OUT!!!!!”

“Wait... just... just wait a second...” There was silence. “I... I know you’re really keen on trying to protect your hoard... and... I’m okay with that.” She stepped closer to Smolder, inch by inch.
“But, the way I lashed out wasn’t... it wasn’t nice of me.” She said as she stepped even closer.

“W-Wait... what are you doing?! Step back!” Smolder yelled, getting into a very protective stance in front of her pile.

“There are some things you might never figure out,” she giggled tiredly, sniffing before stepping closer, and closer, until finally, she was close enough to Smolder to wrap her in a warm embrace. “Y-You mean a lot to me...” Ocellus didn’t know if the statement she just made had been too forward, or if she had hit just the right spot, but all she knew was this; she had her dragoness’ attention.

“W-What do you mean...?”

“I mean that... that I lo-“ She paused. “That you’re my favorite dragon...” tears in her eyes threatened to fall. There was even more silence. Smolder began to see what she was doing wrong, but didn’t know why she couldn’t stop doing it. It just felt so right- to protect her hoard with her life. But maybe, just maybe, Ocellus could be part of her hoard. That precious pile of valuables that made her happy.

“Thanks... you mean a lot to me too...” Smolder croaked, making Ocellus’ heart skip a beat.

In class, Smolder was glancing every now and then at Ocellus and watching her compete her work to make sure no one else would mess with her. After all, she wasn’t too fond of her treasure being taken from her.

After class, before Ocellus left, she caught Smolder still in class and sitting at her desk with her feet kicked up. “S-Smolder...? The next class is soon-“

“I know. I just have detention.” Smolder stayed bluntly, causing Ocellus to gasp in horror.

“What?! What in Thorax’s name could you possibly be in detention for?!” Ocellus asked frantically while putting a hoof to her mouth.

“I got into a fight.” She stated, keeping her gaze straight ahead while nonchalantly stretching her hands behind her head.

Ocellus was.. dumbfounded, even more concerned than she originally was before. Sure, Smolder might have been a little(a lot) rough around the edges, but she wasn’t the type of creature to fight someone. “W-Who were you even fighting...?!”

“Some kid that cheated off your test.”

“B-But... why...?” Ocellus asked, her eyes fixed on Smolder.

“I dunno. Just kinda shook me up, I guess...” she replied, keeping gaze toward the front of the classroom. Ocellus took notice of this and stepped in front of her, resting her hooves on her desk.

“I just don’t understand... how can you be so calm about this..?!”

“I... I don’t know... I’m sorry, I’m just.. not sorry.” Smolder chuckled, causing Ocellus to sigh.

“M-Meet me after school. In the library.”

Ocellus didn’t know what was happening with Smolder, specifically why she was acting this way, but she knew this; she was running out of time.

The Final Stage: Last Resorts

“I...I don’t understand..” Ocellus choked, putting her focus on Smolder.

“What’s there to understand?” She asked. “I just thought you were too smart to have your paper cheated off of.”

“That’s not the point, Smolder!” Ocellus sighed as Smolder quieted down. “The point is... I’m worried about you...”

“Cel. C’mon, seriously? I’ll be fi-“ Smolder was cut off by a rude interruption.

“Ahem, sorry to interrupt, but...” A unicorn colt paused as he walked up the the two of them, two smirking smugly. “About that rematch...” he scowled, in a much deeper voice. Smolder stretched her wings.

“Fine. You already lost to me once. Next time, just don’t cheat off of other’s papers.”

“Alright, scales for brains.” He deadpanned. “Let’s hope you can back up those fighting words. Creatures like you don’t belong at the school of friendship.” This caused Ocellus to step up, a determined look on her face.

“Hey! Smolder does belong here! Don’t you dare ever say that again...”

“Easy for you to say, bottom feeder.” He replied in a snarl, causing the rest of the creatures in the library to crowd around them.

“Hey!” Smolder snapped, pointing a claw at him. “You’re looking pretty confident to be calling some creature a bottom feeder, leech.” There was a gasp in the crowd, followed by a distant Oh snap!

As they both neared each other, Ocellus began to try and protest against their fight, but stopped abruptly right in the middle of it. This seemed oddly familiar. The fifth stage was... what...?

“The Last and Final, The Attack Mode Stage, where said dragon will attack anyone that comes near the hoard, including their closest loved ones. On top of that, if not given an awakening, the dragon might lose its life to lasting conditions if not treated thoroughly.
Example - Starvation, Thirst, Sleep Deprivation.”

This must be it, the last and final stage. No wonder Smolder had been acting so possessive lately. She looked to Smolder, then at the colt. Before she knew it, the trash-talk session was over, and it was time to scrap.

The unicorn sent a fierce punch toward Smolder, who was missed by a single scale. Straight after she regained her balance she punched hard at the colt, landing straight on the side of his face.
He hit the ground, regaining air and slamming into the ground again before crashing into a bookcase.

“How d’ya like that...?” She chuckled as she cracked her knuckles.

“Wait!” Cried Ocellus, jumping out in front of her. “Don’t you think you should just calm down a little...?“ Before she could finish, Smolder had enveloped Ocellus into the hardest dive roll, dodging a beam from the colt.

“Name’s Onyx, by the way.” He laughed, as Smolder puffed smoke from her nostrils.
“So why don’t we just settle this outside?!! He yelled, before shooting a laser beam at Smolder, who threw Ocellus from her grasp.

Ocellus, as she regained her balance, cried out. “S-Smolder!” She quickly ran toward the hole in the wall, seeing her crush who made her impact at the base of a now-broken tree. “Oh my gosh, are you okay?!”

“I’m... fine... just- just move.” Smolder urged, standing up. “He’s not gonna mess with you anymore.” She growled, getting into the best fighting stance she could as she grumbled, “You’re lucky I won’t set you on fire.”

“I hope you’re ready-“ he shot another beam before Smolder unleashed a ginormous flame from the depths of her throat and toward that beam. Her throat started hurting while her nose started to bleed. “Just- just give up, dragon!”

Before he could blast Smolder once more, Ocellus tackled him, sending them both tumbling. “Stop fighting! It’s not going to change anything!” She shouted as the colt stood up and wobbled a little.

“Not until we finish...” he growled while smirking. Before he could turn away from Ocellus, he was already blasted by a wave of flames, scorching his mane and tail.

“Thanks for distracting him for me.” She said while walking over to Ocellus.

“You could’ve just let me handle that. You didn’t have to set him on fire.” She groaned.

“You say that now.” Smolder was now glaring at the colt, who was heavily charred and shaking. “I believe there’s someone you need to apologize to.”

The colt looked at Smolder. “You?” He sighed, as Smolder did a face-palm.

“No, you idiot.” She turned him to face Ocellus. “I’m not the one you cheated off of.” She continued, causing Ocellus to blush lightly.

“Fine,” he rolled his eyes and took a deep breath. “I’m sorry I cheated off you.”

“Like you mean it.” Smolder growled.

“Okay, Okay! I... I apologize for cheating off of you...”

Ocellus sighed. “I forgive you. Sorry for... today.”

“Don’t apologize to him!” Smolder yelled. “Ugh, fine. Just stop cheating off of others.” She said as she let him go. “Alright, see you later, Cel-“

“Not until we talk.” She cut her off as she trotted back into the school, Smolder following closely behind. As they neared her dorm, Ocellus stopped abruptly.

“What’s wrong, cel?”

“Everything! How are we supposed to explain to the teachers that gaping hole In the library wall?!”

“Hey, that wasn’t even my fault.” Smolder deadpanned.

“And the pony you burnt...?” Ocellus added.

“Okay, That was my fault.” She admitted with a sigh.

“What’s gotten into you lately?”

“I don’t know, maybe it’s just me being a dragon.”

“I- That was a joke, wasn’t it...?”

“Yep.” Smolder added, as she and Ocellus were now at her dorm. She unlocked it and opened it, both of them entering the room. She closed the door behind her and turned to Ocellus.

“Okay,” She said. “I’m going to explain this now. What you’re going through are called the Five Stages of Greed.”

“The wha-“

“Let me finish.” Ocellus stated uncharacteristically firmly, causing Smolder to jump uncomfortably. “Right now, you’re on the fifth stage. Very dangerous. That’s why I’m trying to help you.” She stressed this with a lump in her throat. “If you don’t let me, you're going to-“ She paused, the lump in her throat growing bigger while tears formed in her eyes.

Smolder groaned, trying to be the most sympathetic she could. She didn’t think anything would happen to her, so, why would Ocellus bring up something like that? It was probably an excuse for her to get rid of her hoard. She discarded these examples as she hugged Ocellus close. “...There, there...”

Ocellus sniffed. “I’m serious. You’re going to- you’re going to die if you don’t let me help you...” she sniffed again before nuzzling into Smolder’s shoulder, causing her to blush.

“W...What are you trying to say...?” Smolder was now burning up.

“I’m trying to say that... that I...” she choked, her face covered in an endless blanket of teal. “I love you!” She flushed, burying her face in her crush’s chest.

“I... uh...” she stuttered, not sure what to say. Ocellus was now uncomfortable and embarrassed from all the silence, hugging into her chest even more. There was still silence in the air. She took a deep breath, opening her mouth to speak, but as soon as she tried, there was a knock on the door. “Ah, hold on.” Smolder walked toward the door, opening it to the pony on the other side.

“Smolder, I wanna have a talk with you.” Said Twilight Sparkle, disappointment clearly worn on her face.

“...Okay, I guess.” She said as she walked with her to her office. As they arrived, Twilight sat on her desk while looking sternly at Smolder.

“It has come to my attention that you’ve been getting into fights lately.” Twilight discussed. Smolder winced. She knew she was going to get in trouble eventually, and she thought that she didn’t care. Maybe something changed about her. Maybe it was wearing off. Thanks to Ocellus. “Onyx reported to me that you’ve been repeatedly picking fights with him, along with setting him on fire.”

Smolder groaned, slamming her head on the desk. “He told you that...?”

“Three weeks detention,” she replied, eliciting a smaller groan from Smolder.

Ocellus sat in the middle of Smolder’s dorm, having a near heart attack. She was hyperventilating out of control, set on edge by what could happen to Smolder if she continued any further. As she continued to panic, there was another knock on the door.

”Who else...?” she thought, opening the door to what turned out to be Gallus.

“Whoa. Didn’t know you’d be in here.” He deadpanned, Ocellus tapping a hoof impatiently.

“Why wouldn’t I be in here...?” She replied, stamping her hoof lightly.

“Because you’re not supposed to be?” Gallus replied, scratching his head.

“Oh, right...” she rubbed her hoof on another, grinning sheepishly.

“So, where’s the pyro?” Gallus inquired while looking around for Smolder, searching under her bed covers.

“She’s- busy.”

“I’m guessing she wasn’t busy sleeping.” He joked, causing Ocellus to giggle.

“No, she’s just... doing stuff... you know her.” She giggled nervously while darting her eyes around.

“Definitely.” He replied, suspicious of Ocellus’s reply. “Something’s going on with her. Come on, Ocellus.” Ocellus didn’t even reply. All she could muster was a simple squeak.

“Let’s go. Everyone else should be pretty keen on helping her out.”

“But-“

“Huh?”

“But shes going through... a lot.”

“Like what?” He asked.

“Like-“ she stuttered.

“Like... hormones...?”

“NO!” Ocellus yelped, her face burning up.

“Then... she’s looking for a mate or something...?”

Ocellus squeaked again, blushing even more. “N-No... at least I don’t think so...” She plopped down on her rump while tapping her hooves together. “Look, the point is,” she breathed. “Smolder is going through some phases. if we don’t save her in time, she could seriously hurt herself.”

“...So she’s not having hormones...?”

“No!” She screamed, blushing even harder.

“I mean, she seems to be around you a lot more than usual.” He chuckled, causing Ocellus to swat at him defensively.

“H-Hush!!!” She hissed, still swatting at him.

As she continued to futilely attack him, who was in stitches, they heard Smolder unlock and open the door. “Hey guys.” She sighed, closing the door behind her.

“S-So... what’s the verdict?” Ocellus asked her while trotting over to her supportively.

“Three weeks detention,” she replied. “All because of that leech.”

“Leech?” Gallus repeated, putting a claw to his chin. “Who..?”

“She got into a fight.” Explained Ocellus.

“Oh.”

“That reminds me, Gallus,” Smolder interjected. “What are you doing in here?!”

“Uh-“ Gallus tried to explain, failing as Smolder cut him off.

“Get out!!!” She shouted, shoving him out of the door.

“Wow,” Ocellus giggled. “Who fed you the wrong gemstones this morning?”

“Hardy har, har.” She deadpanned, smiling and rolling her eyes.

“But... h-how do you feel..?”

“I feel fine.” She said, missing the point. “I just- ...Oh.”

Ocellus looked at her. “So, you don’t feel the same way...?” She filled in her answer, turning away dejectedly.

“No! I just... no. That’s not it-“ she replied. “It’s just... I dunno. You kind of threw me off there-“ She stammered. “The point is...” she paused, thinking about how much quality time she had spent with Ocellus. Failing to finish what she said, she hugged Ocellus from behind, nuzzling her cheek as she blushed. “I-I love you too...”

These words caused tears to form in Ocellus’ eyes. She giggled slightly, turning to give Smolder a hug. “Thank you.” She whispered while nuzzling into her neck.

“You said there was these stages I needed to worry about...?”

“I dunno. I mean, you haven’t noticed that your junk pile was missing this whole time.” Ocellus giggled, glancing at the section of the room where Smolder’s hoard once stood.

“What?!” She frantically looked around. “B-But...”

“Shhh.” Ocellus comforted her. “You don’t need it anymore. I mean, you’ve got me...” Ocellus suggested meekly while blushing.

“Of course.” Smolder looked at the ceiling. “Right.”

“So, are you ready to apologize?”

“Let me guess, to you?” Smolder sighed.

“Nope.” She replied. “I have somecreature else in mind.”

Smolder pouted as she folded her arms. “Why are we here...?” She groaned as they both stood in front of a familiar pony.

“Smolder,” Ocellus urged. “We’re not leaving until you apologize.” She said, gesturing to Onyx, the pony standing in front of them.

“I guess we’re not leaving.” Smolder deadpanned, turning the other way.

“Maybe I should leave,” Onyx chuckled.

“Nope, neither of you are leaving until Smolder apologizes.” Ocellus replied, causing Smolder to snort.

“Fine, but only because I can’t stand to look at your face anymore.” She sighed. “Im... sorry.” She muttered.

“So he can hear you, Smolder.”

“I’m sorry!” She shouted.

“I forgive you.” He whispered, chuckling at her.

Ocellus giggled. “Okay, we can go now.” Ocellus giggled some more as Smolder grunted.

Once they arrived at Smolder’s dorm again, She plopped on her bed. “So,” she started. “We’re a couple now...?”

“Maybe.” she added while playfully nuzzling her.

“Definitely.” She breathed, her face burning into a crimson inferno.

“Mmhm.” Ocellus replied, snuggling up to Smolder. “So, what do we do now?”

“Depends.” Smolder started. “What do you feel like doing...?”

“I feel like cuddling.” She whispered, snuggling up to her some more.

“I can see that.” Smolder whispered back. Ocellus decided to take charge and tackle Smolder onto the bed while weighing her down.

“Then cuddle me, you doofus.” She added playfully. “You’re not a doofus.” She giggled, smooching her on her neck.

“You don’t treat me like one,” Smolder chuckled. “Or, at least not how I’d treat a doofus.”

“Mm, hush.” Ocellus kissed Smolder once more.

“Man, I haven’t eaten at all today.”

“Seriously!?” Ocellus exclaimed, jumping up instantly.

“I honestly haven’t eaten in a week.” Smolder replied.

Ocellus grabbed her claw as she rushed her into the kitchen. “Hold on, I’ll make you something to eat.”

“It’s... really not that serious.”

“Okay, I know me might not have any gemstones, but I think we might-“

“OCELLUS!!!” Smolder shouted, causing her girlfriend to stop dead in her tracks. “Calm down. Let’s just go find something for me to eat, like, a restaurant.”

“Are... are you asking me on a date?” Ocellus blushed, rubbing her hoof, while Smolder froze.

“I-I guess...” She stammered.

“Well, I’ll get ready.” Ocellus giggled, heading to her dorm to change.

“Um-“ Before Smolder could explain, Ocellus was well on her way, kissing her cheek as she left. Smolder was set on edge.

“See you there, Smoldy~” Ocellus winked at Smolder as she left, her first attempt at being flirtatious.

“S-See you there...” she muttered under her breath, blushing heavily.

Author's Note

So, this story wasn’t a total train wreck. If you made it to the end, thank you. I appreciate you for reading this story. I tried to do a little better on it by adding a little more depth to it, and making Ocellus a little less... Emotional. Anyway, looking back on all the stories I’ve made before just made me cringe. It was like having Vietnam flashbacks.(That was a joke.) So, I tried to improve a bit, and move out of my comfort zone. Hopefully you enjoyed. Bonus chapter coming soon!

Bonus Chapter: The Epilogue

"So," Ocellus started. "Where do you wanna go...?" She asked as they walked through the hallways of the school.

"Canterlot, obviously." Smolder replied. "The always have the best gemstones."

"And, where would we get those?"

"I have a couple ideas." Smolder pushed open the door to the school, heading outside with Ocellus.

They were on their way to the train station as Smolder got some bits ready to pay for the tickets. They boarded the train, taking their seats and giggling to each other. "You think any of our friends with notice we're gone?" Inquired Ocellus as she nuzzled Smolder's cheek.

"Nah. If none of the teacher's could notice we were gone when we ran away, then..." Smolder thought for a second. "Yeah. Definitely." She then looked away, thinking about what she was going to say next. "Remember when I told you that class was probably ending soon?" She asked nervously.

"Yesssss?" She replied, blinking adorably and making Smolder even more nervous.

"I lied." She flushed out.

"What?!" Ocellus gasped while Smolder winced.

"Woah, chill." She hushed Ocellus as she put a claw to her muzzle. "We'll just enjoy our time now, and worry later." She said as she sheepishly smiled. Ocellus groaned, burying her face into her girlfriend's shoulder. "I swear. It's gonna be fine."

Fast forward to the end of the train ride, the couple entered Canterlot. "It's really beautiful here! Too bad I won't get to... see it..." Ocellus deadpanned, being dragged around by Smolder.

"Hey, no worries! We're almost there." Smolder replied as her eyes sparked with devilishness as if she were up to something.

Ocellus sighed while she let Smolder drag her around a little longer before asking. "Um.. where are we even going?"

"It's funny you ask that, because we're here." She looked over at the building they were standing next to, which was a bakery. Smolder chuckled as she walked inside with Ocellus following close behind.

"Oh my gosh!" Ocellus exclaimed as she ran up to the display case and pressed her face against the glass. "I love sweets! How did you know?" She turned to Smolder, who was blushing slightly and brushing her foot on the floor shyly.

"Research." She replied. "Lots of research."

"Hush." Ocellus replied, kissing Smolder on the cheek to calm her down.

"Which one do you want?" She looked to her chitinous lover, who was, unsurprisingly, pressing her face against the glass on the display case.

"All of them!' Ocellus gasped, her eyes sparkling. "I-I mean... two or three..."

"Five." Smolder added, kissing Ocellus on the forehead and causing her to blush.

"If you say so..."

"C'mon, pick the ones you want."

Ocellus thought for a moment as she continued to press her face on the glass. She picked out a few. A pink frosted cupcake with a few sprinkles, a slice of regular chocolate cake with buttercream rosettes, a slice of vanilla oat swirl cake, a bowl of strawberry-cherry ice cream, and a doughnut. She stared intently at these desserts as the salespony took them from the shelf. "Will that be all...?" He deadpanned.

"Yes sir! Thank you so much!" Ocellus spoke enthusiastically, earning an eyeroll from the stallion. Smolder grabbed each of the desserts one at a time and set them at a coffee table where she and Ocellus sat. Smolder sat with her head resting in a claw, while her girlfriend stared at the desserts, not knowing which one to eat first.

"..Is it that serious..?" She asked?

"Of course." Ocellus replied, sliding one of the desserts her way. "Besides, how was I supposed to tell if you wanted something or not...?" She smiled, watching the scaly creature slowly lift her head from her claw. "You haven't eaten in days anyway."

"I dunno, you asked for them." She replied.

"But you paid for them."

Smolder groaned. “Whatever,” she said. “I paid for them so you could eat them. Besides, all I’m really looking forward to is those gemstones.” She continued, licking her lips.

“I can tell.” Giggled Ocellus.

“Mmmhmm.” Smolder was now daydreaming about the mischief she would cause, especially in turn for a few gems.

"This isn't all we're doing today, is it...?" Sighed Ocellus, who was now on her last dessert.

"Of course it is... n't." The reptile jumped up from her seat. Tossing a few bits onto the table, she left the bakery with Ocellus.

"Alright, you got me. Where are we going now?"

"I told you, I already have an idea. Just hush." She continued to lead Ocellus to different places, until they were near the princess' castle in Canterlot.

"Alright, alright, care to explain, maybe...?" The bug looked around frantically. "We're supposed to be back at the school by now!"

"I told you to relax. We'll be done just as soon as I get outta here." Smolder pointed to the building they were standing in front of. As she rushed into the building, her partner not getting a chance to object, she paced around it in search for her goal. Meanwhile, Ocellus stood at the base of the structure. While upset that she wasn't given the option to object, she knew her date wouldn't be too fond of her leaving her 'post'.

When she finally reached her point of interest, Smolder decided to take a look at it first. In front of her stood a statue made of gems she caught the Headmare going on about in one of her lessons. It looked just as delicious as it was described to be. She desperately wished she had brought a basket for her convenience, but she had spoken too soon. Her cards were all played in the right places, but not at the right time. She paced around the statue while scanning it to find out which gem would be the best to yank from the statue without having it collapse. "Aw, man." She whispered to herself. Looking around hastily she found a basket lying around. It was slightly wilted, as if it had been submerged in water and left to dry for the past three years. As she grabbed it, she quickly collected all the gems she could before dropping them into the basket. The statue collapsed, causing Smolder to wince. After all this, shouldn't she take advantage of all that free space in the basket and just take the rest of them?

She frantically left the building, full statue remains in basket, and looked at Ocellus. "What.. what did you just do?" The changeling asked.

"Don't worry about it. Let's just go." Smolder flushed out shortly, Ocellus looking at the basket sternly.

"I can tell you're lying." She added. "Just tell me what you did." Before Smolder could answer, Ocellus interrupted her. "You just stole those gems, didn't you...?"

Smolder blew a raspberry as she waved a claw dismissively. "Why would I-"

"Why would a pony be yelling about something being gone straight after you left?" Ocellus asked, pointing toward the entrance to the building where a pony was yelling and screaming about the missing statue.

"Burn me," She replied, looking down at the basket. Just a second after she looked up, there was a crowed of ponies storming toward her. She looked around frantically as she turned to Ocellus. "I think I have an idea."

"You sure it's a good one?" She groaned.

"Just... fly with me. Quickly." Smolder then grabbed Ocellus' hoof and flew away with her as fast as she could. They reached the train station, but with all the angry unicorns and pegasi storming after them, she decided to just book it toward the school.

"How exactly do you plan to get out of this!?" Ocellus hissed, breathing heavily while she flied as quickly as she could.
Smolder shook her head in reply, trying to clear her head as they flew faster and faster, her dragging her company rather than just letting her fly on her own. "And where are we going to go?" She continued to heave, still waiting for an answer. If they were both going to be caught, she at least wanted Smolder to take up for her actions rather than not respond. She looked at her as she waited for a reply, growing more and more anxious each second. Eventually, the turned a few corners once they reached Ponyville and dove into a pile of hay. Ocellus began to hyperventilate as Smolder quickly covered her mouth with her claw.

"Hush," She spoke in a low voice. "They're probably just gonna pass by or something."

Ocellus removed the claw from her mouth. "Why would you steal? I know you're not that kind of creature." Ocellus whispered back. "Is it worth it just to make everycreature panic?" She continued, making Smolder growl softly. "It's not like you.."

“Well- whatever! So what?” She snapped back. “What If I took a few gems because I was hungry?! Sue me!!” As Smolder continued to shout, Ocellus quivered a little while she hoped that the crowd of ponies had dissipated. “I’m not going to give up my only bucking source of food just because I’m being chased by some flower-frolicking ponies!” Smolder quieted down, breathing in humongous amounts of air. The pile of hay collapsed.

Ocellus began to shed tears. “This... this isn’t you.” she choked. Turning away, she took to the air and flew away as fast as she could.

“Ocellus!” Smolder shouted before taking off with the basket in claw.

As she arrived back at the school, Ocellus ran back to her dorm to collect her thoughts. She slammed the door shut once she was in, locking it and plopping down on the floor next to it. There she was, again. Just a day ago, she was right here, crying.

Smolder rushed through the hallways to find her lover, who was unintentionally hurt by her. She kicked her self as she ran for her actions and how she acted. When she arrived at Ocellus’ dorm, she pounded on the door, still standing at the other side. “Ocellus!” She shouted. “Open up, c’mon! You know I didn’t mean what I said!”

“But you said it!” The changeling replied in between sobs. “You said it! That’s all that matters!” Smolder was going to reply, but Ocellus spoke once more. “You’re being a jerk!” She sobbed even louder, causing Smolder to jump slightly before cringing.

“Look, I know. This is only our first date, and I already managed to screw it up, and I’m sorry!” Smolder leaned against the door. “But I need your help.” Smolder was surprised once she saw the door open, revealing a teary-eyed Ocellus. Before she could speak again, She was embraced by a surprise hug.

“Just so you know, I’m... I’m really angry with you.” Ocellus croaked in between sniffs.

Smolder blushed. “Hug time later-“ she urged, pushing Ocellus off her. “Right now, we gotta hide these gems.”

“Or, just give them back.” Replied Ocellus, Who was now at a shy glare.

“Um-“ They were interrupted by what appeared to be a very confused Yona.

“Why friends shouting so loud? Yona trying to catch up on sleep.” The yak rubbed her eyes, inspecting the scene with sketch. “What changeling and dragon doing in hallway...?” She asked.

“What are you doing napping in the afternoon?” Smolder asked in reply, turning toward her.

Ocellus interjected. “I think we should go before word reaches the headmare.” Ocellus looked to Smolder, Who had already stuffed her face with most of the gems. “Smolder! What in the hive are you doing?!”

“I was kind of hungry after all this small talk, so-“ She chewed the gems up before swallowing them, and Ocellus fainted.

“Yona no understand. Why can’t Smolder eat gems?”

Smolder was apt to reply, but Ocellus had already jumped up promptly. “Because they were stolen!” She flushed. “If she doesn’t return them, she’ll be in huge trouble!”

“Oh,” Yona responded. “THEN SPIT THEM OUT!” She rushes to Smolder, shaking her violently in hopes for her to cough up some gems. The reptile choked, cough, and gagged, but no gems.

“Yona, stop it! That’s not helping!” Ocellus pushed a hoof on Yona’s as she prompted her to drop the dragon. Smolder lay on the floor, coughing still. Groaning, she finally spoke.

“Okay! Maybe... we can just replace them...?”

“How can dragon-“ Yona began to reply, but was cut off by another opening door.

“What are you three doing out here mid afternoon...?” Sandbar inquired, approaching the trio calmly.

“No time to explain!” Ocellus rushed. “Just follow us!” The group then started out of the school quickly as they could, bumping into Silverstream and Gallus on the way.

“We-“ Smolder was quickly interrupted/

“Don’t care. We’re in.” Said Gallus, Who had already taken his place alongside the group of creatures, followed by Silverstream.

"What are we doing?" Silverstream asked.

"Yona not know. Yona only here for about ten minutes." Yona replied.

"Smolder stole a statue and ate it." Ocellus spoke up, finally.

"How can she-" Gallus started.

"Gems." She replied.

"Look," Smolder tried to explain, clearly frustrated about how her time was slowly being wasted and how she'd be caught if they took anymore time clarifying everything else. "Basically, I'm gonna be thrown in Tartarus because I ate a special 'friendship' statue, and we need help fixing the massive storm I just caused."

"I have an idea," Ocellus interrupted. "Maybe we can get a spell on how to reverse time!"

"How about-" Smolder started, but Ocellus quickly put a hoof in her mouth.

"I don't really think you have a choice here." She said, glaring at Smolder sternly.

"Okay, let's all calm down." Sandbar turned to the two.

"And to sum it all up, we're supposed to travel back in time and stop Smolder from eating a statue?" Gallus deadpanned.

"Precisely." Ocellus almost singsonged, grabbing Smolder's claw and trotting back into the school with the others following behind.

"The Book of Titanic Tables of Time!!" Ocellus declared, clearly proud of herself. Smolder grumbled.

"Is it this serious?"

"Very." Ocellus replied, flicking through the book.

"Doesn't anycreature find it odd that Headmare Twilight would leave a book on time travel in the catacombs despite her history with it...?" Sandbar asked, putting a hoof to his chin and tapping it thoughtfully.

"Yona saw Headmare hide it in here." Yona noted aloud.

"There goes our booksmart Mac-hoofin." Gallus deadpanned.

"Okay, so on the count of three, we'll all hold.... appendages- and I'll cast the spell." Ocellus assured the group, who all nodded except for Smolder. "Smolder, you have to do this; It's the only way!"

"But is it!? All because I ate a statue on our date!?"

"Hold on- You two are dating!?" Gallus gasped, along with the rest of the group.

"Yona isn't surprised. Yona's seen how dragon and changeling stare at each other." Yona added, causing both Ocellus and Smolder to blush.

"Smolder, she's right!" Spoke Sandbar. "If you get in trouble for this, you'll be sent to Tartarus, and if you're sent to Tartarus, then Ocellus'll be sad and lonely for the rest of her life!"

"Hey!" Ocellus hissed, blushing even more.

"And we're in this cult circle because I ate a statue!?"

"It's because we care about you!" Silverstream interjected. "We wouldn't have you here if we didn't."

"Whatever." Smolder sat down, holding Ocellus' hoof.

"Finally," Ocellus said. "Now, on the count of three, one, two, three!" And with a magical blast, they all teleported to a few hours ago, in Canterlot.

The six stood watching the scene as Smolder entered the building. They all closely followed, watching her carefully. “So all I have to do is just... attack her...? Me...?” Smolder whispered.

“Don’t attack yourself. Maybe just- a light tackle?” Ocellus blushed. “I just can’t stand you hurting yourself.”

“Wow,” Gallus deadpanned in a hushed voice. “Never thought I’d hear you saying that. Or anycreature for that matter.”

“Alright. I’m gonna do it- right now-“ Smolder continued to stall, uneasy about this entire ordeal. Ocellus planted a kiss on her cheek to calm her down.

“Relax. You can do this!” She reassured her while pushing her forward.

“Yeah, yeah I can do this!” Smolder charged herself up as she ran toward herself, yelling like a mad dragon. She tackled her past self, tumbling on the ground with her.

“Ow! What the-“ Her past self was shut up by a hard impact of her own fist. Her ‘future’ self’s fist.

“Hush!” Smolder told Smolder, who had a claw pressed to her mouth. “And don’t touch that statue! If you do, you’ll be forced by your girlfriend to travel back in time!”

“O-Okay.” She replied. “I’ll get out of here, I guess.” She slipped from under her future self, who had already shoved her out of the building.

“Okay, Ocellus!” Smolder- the real one- had rushed up to her friends, who were all overcome with sketch. “Now get us out of here!”

“I’m so confused-“ Silverstream thought to herself aloud.

“Totally confused.” Replied Sandbar.

With a zap, Ocellus had magicked them out of the building, and into the present. Before she could speak, Gallus had taken the cake.
“That was weird, right?”

“Exactly.” Replied Smolder.

“So, what we do now?” Yona asked Ocellus, Who was snuggled into Smolder’s shoulder, with the dragon’s wing wrapped around her.

“I dunno. Just wait it out, I guess.” Ocellus looked to Smolder Who was leaning against a bookcase. “What do you think?”

“I think I’m done for the day.”

“Me too.” Silverstream sighed, laying against a stack of books. “Time traveling is hard.”

“I think we’re all finished,” Sandbar started, but fainted as he was reduced to snores. Everycreature started sleeping peacefully, satisfied with how productive they were today.

After all, the six had stuck together no matter what.

Author's Note

Well, this was a fun little chapter. Took me about three days, but I made it work. Bonus update, I plan on writing an nsfw Smolcellus fic over the weekend, so, look out for that next week. Thank you so much for reading this bonus thingy, and see you next week!

The Second Stage: Social Decline

Sandbar and Yona trotted to the Library, followed by Silverstream, and Gallus, flying not too far above them. They were each going to study together, Ocellus saying she would catch up later. Since they knew she would meet up with them later, the only missing creature in the latter was Smolder, whom had declined their invitation due to... certain unknown reasons.

“Anyone else wondering why dragon refuse to come?” Yona asked as she held open the door to the library so that the others could enter.

“She might be taking a nap. You know her.” Gallus deadpanned, grabbing a book and flicking through it.

“Dunno. It depends on how she was feeling today. Anycreature see her any other time today?” Sandbar inquired.

“Nope.” They all answered.

“Maybe Ocellus would know. She was sitting next to her in class. Maybe they talked or something, and Smolder was just tired.” Silverstream suggested.

Suddenly, the library door was gently creaked open. Ocellus had entered the library.

“Ocellus!” Sandbar exclaimed, causing her to jump as he trotted over to her.

“Eep- I-I mean... yeah... s-sorry.” She said timidly.

“Have you talked to Smolder today? We haven’t seen her around a lot.” Gallus said from across the the room.

“Yes... she’s been.. a little peculiar today.”

“Like, what kind of peculiar?”

“Like... hit her head on a book kind of peculiar.”

“Why dragon do that?” Yona asked.

“Is she okay?” Silverstream asked as well.

Ocellus put a hoof to her chin, slowly pondering how Smolder would be doing without her. She’d left her alone for a while without any supervision, no one to pay her any attention.
As much as she wanted to go and check on her, she didn’t want to impose on her if she wanted to be alone. Didn’t want her to get suspicious.

Smolder was laying on the floor, staring at the wall. Her dorm was trashed, nearly everything in there was all piled up into one heap of junk, with Smolder looking at it with determination, and, mostly, protectiveness.

She was abruptly disrupted from her lingering awe for her junk pile when some creature had knocked on her door. She scrambled to the top of her hoard, gripping tightly to the contents that lay on top. “Who is it?!” She hissed.

“It’s me, Ocellus-“ She creaked the door open, Smolder mentally kicking herself for not keeping the door locked. As she walked inside of the dorm, she was immediately awestruck by how junky the room ultimately was. “What happened?!”

Smolder was unresponsive. Ocellus could taste some form of anger and determination, but sprinkled on top were fear, and shame. Spicy, yet, bland, distasteful. She adjusted herself to where she was standing in front of Smolder, without getting so close as to make her feel like she needed to get anymore defensive than she already was.

“What? What do you want...?” Smolder interjected, making Ocellus jump.

“I-I... I wanted to see if you were okay...” She replied meekly.

“I’m fine. Anything else?” The tip of Smolder’s tongue singed with small curls of flame from her throat.

Ocellus was a little shaken up by the way Smolder was acting. This wasn’t like her. This wasn’t her. “You seem a little... troubled lately-“

“I’m not troubled! Just leave me alone!” Smolder hissed, with twice as much venom in her voice.

“I’m trying to make you feel better, okay?”

“I don’t need you to make me feel better. I’m fine.”

“Well if you’re fine, you’d care to come join us once you’re being less rude!” Ocellus exclaimed, trotting out of the dorm, somehow gingerly slamming the door behind her.

“Tch.” Smolder scoffed, rolling her eyes and curling up on top of her hoard. Then, she realized it. She had succumbed to it. Yes, it. She sighed in exasperation. “What am I gonna do...?” No one answered. None except the cool air brushing through the window.

Ocellus trotted back to the library, her mind swirling with ideas and certain thoughts. Why was Smolder acting this way? What’s gotten into her? Was she okay? All these ideas clouded her mind as she paced back and forth in the hallways, forgetting her original course. She then decided to do some intuitive research in the library once she got there, just to make sure.

Later, when she arrived, her friends had all gone, presumably to their dorms. After all, not everyone had all day to wait for her, and she accepted that. She trotted over to the “creature feature” section of the library to read about dragons and their cycles. She pulled one out, and immediately started flicking through it. She was going to find it. That one little thing that was messing with her lizard. She was going to be the one that found it. And once she did, she’d be keen to make sure that Smolder would get all the care she needed.

And, then, there it was. The words, on that page. There it was. There, it was. It. “A-ha! The Five Stages of Greed!” She skimmed through the page, finding all the stages and how her scaly friend would act through these phases.

The Five Stages of Greed: A Dragon’s Guide

The Five Stages of Greed - First Symptoms

The “Gimme!” Stage, where said dragon feels an urge to grab everything that appeals to them. And, in this case, everything.
Example - Taking your favorite book.

The “Social Decline” Stage, where said dragon will slowly extract themselves from everyone they normally interact with to devote more time to protect and guard their hoard.
Example - Making up excuses not to do certain things here and there.

The “Hoard Only” Stage, where said dragon will take time away from everything in order to devote more time into building up their hoard.
Example - Refusing to eat, drink, or sleep to put more time into defending their hoard.

The “Grueling” Stage, where said dragon will continue to defend their hoard with the same conditions, but also refuse to move from it.
Example - Sitting on top of it while growling and hissing at anyone.

The Last and Final, The Attack Mode Stage, where said dragon will attack anyone that comes near the hoard, including their closest loved ones. On top of that, if not given an awakening, the dragon might lose its life to lasting conditions if not treated thoroughly.
Example - Starvation, Thirst, Sleep Deprivation.

Ocellus began to tear up. She knew that if she didn’t help Smolder on time, then she would leave her. For good. She knew immediately what she had to do.

Smolder heard a knock on her door.
“Come in...” she said, a little less hiss and venom in her voice.

“Are you feeling a little better?” Smiled Ocellus, trotting into to the room.

“No... I was being such a jerkwad, and I had no idea... I’m sorry, Cel.”

“Smolder. Come down here.” Ocellus spoke firmly, as Smolder reluctantly obliged.
She engulfed her in a tight, warm embrace. “You’re not a jerkwad, don’t ever call yourself that again.” She said, hugging her tighter.

“But Cel-“ She was cut off.

“This time- I’m going to help you. But you have to let me help you, Smoldy, I can’t help you if you don’t let me.”

A crimson wave of blush covered Smolder’s face. Did she just call her Smoldy? Ocellus had just realized- “Smoldy” wasn’t a regular name she had been calling her for a while, she only just thought about it off the top of her head. Just as these thoughts clouded her mind, a teal colored blush grew across her face. “Eep! I’m sorry- I didn’t know if you wanted me to call you that, or-“ Ocellus panicked, letting go of Smolder, yet, she had instantly caught her in her arms.

“U-Um...” Smolder’s face turned even redder as she pulled Ocellus up. “S-Sorry-“ she apologized, quickly avoiding eye contact with her. Ocellus giggled nervously, sharing the embarrassment with her crush. Ocellus loved every bit of this moment, along with the opportunity to bond with Smolder, and get a little closer to her. Snug even. Either of them worked for her, of course. But she wouldn’t expect Smolder to be that passive, and definitely not in the state she’s in.

“W-Well- until you’re better- I should probably stay here with you...” Ocellus timidly stated, shuffling a little closer to Smolder, making her blush a little more, and Smolder to be set on edge. Ocellus felt like she was on thin ice with Smolder, and it was either make her move, or dread it later. To be truthful, she’d rather not give Smolder a whole lot else to think about, but, she’d definitely fancy being a part of Smolder’s hoard, to be owned by her. As these thoughts overcrowded her mind, she found herself burning up, her face turning an endless shade of teal.

What kind of ownership had she meant? Maybe the kind of possessing something, or, maybe the other kind-

“Cel, you alright?” Asked Smolder, waving her claw over Ocellus’ giant, teal eyes. She squeaked in discomfort, blushing even harder. Smolder found herself blushing at the cuteness of the squeak, and even lowly chuckling at her.

“I-I’m... f-fine.” Her mind was still filled with so many things at that moment, but she knew she had to pay no mind to them, as she had a lizard to take care of.