Spike was awakened in the middle of the night by the sound of his phone alerting him to a notification. He rubbed his eyes.

"Carolyn..."

He unlocked his screen to see her message.

"I can't sleep...I wish you were here."

The dragon typed a response on his device's virtual keyboard.

"I miss you."

"I miss you, too."

"I've been thinking about you."

Carolyn replied with a picture. In the photo, she lied on her side. Her shirt was partially lifted, revealing her abdomen.

"Wanna' see more?"

"Hang on."

Spike sat upright. He took off his own shirt and opened his camera. He snapped a shot.

"Had to get comfortable."

"Naughty boy. <3"

Carolyn followed up with a secondary image. Her upper body was completely bare. One foreleg enclosed around the shoulder above the other, as if to say "I feel your presence".

Spike responded in kind. He held a hand against his cheek.

"My vampiric king."

"With your kiss...I have awakened from death...My princess..."

Carolyn sent one final photo. Her exposed eye was shut. Spike could only assume the eye she kept veiled was closed as well. She covered her mouth, extending her free hoof down towards her bed.

"I think you know what to do."

"And you don't?"

"Smartass."

"...Rest well...Sweet dreams..."

"And you, my dearest..."

"I'll be dreaming of you until the break of dawn's first rays..."

"Morning, Spike."

"Morning, Twilight."

"Are you headed out to see Carolyn?"

"Yeah."

"Think you'll be able to practice without getting too distracted?"

"Hardy har har."

"I'm just saying. It might be a bit awkward to try to skate with an erection."

"Keep it up. See what happens."

"What are you gonna' do? Shave my mane in my sleep?"

"Sure. Let's go with that."

"Boy, get on up outta' here."

"See ya' later, bro," Flash voiced.

"See ya', dude."

Spike plucked a dandelion which swayed gracefully next to the house before flying off.

Spike's appearance as he flew nearer to Carolyn became more contented than anyone would have believed possible. The lids of his eyes lowered into a state of dreamy wakefulness, as though he was seeing something most others could not.

"Hey...," the Pegasus spoke meekly when he arrived. She blushed with a smile, rubbing her shoulder in playful embarrassment.

"I brought you something."

"You're cheeky, ya' know that?"

"Oh?"

"7 Angels 7 Plagues - Dandelion. You thought I wouldn't figure it out?"

"Au contraire. I was hoping you would."

"Corny, but...I love it..."

"Really?"

"Mm-hm."

"I know we came out here to skate, but I was wondering if we could just talk for a bit."

"Sure."

"Do you remember what Twilight said over dinner the other night?"

"She said a lot."

"About my way of thinking, I mean."

"Yeah."

"I don't know if there's a way to say this without sounding completely batshit crazy, but for a long time, I've felt a deep connection with the spiritual plane."

"You mean the esoteric plane beyond ours?"

"Yeah."

"How long have you felt that way?"

"Since I was five."

"That's a long time."

"From time to time, I'd catch glimpses of things that couldn't possibly be here. Sometimes they'd show up as sentient shadows, other times I would see disembodied faces."

"Did you feel like they were threatening?"

"No. That's the weird part. As I got older, the vibes I got off them became more benevolent."

"What was the strongest energy you ever felt?"

"When I was fifteen, I went to visit Rainbow Dash late one night because she needed help with something. On the way there, I got this strange feeling that I was being watched, but I also knew somehow that whatever was watching me didn't want to hurt me. Right after I felt that, I saw into the spirit realm for the first time."

"What did it look like?"

"Imagine an icy blue stream defying the laws of physics. It's still flowing, and you're floating in the middle of it. Gravity is barely a fraction of what it is here. The air is cool, and you feel calm and at peace."

"That's an eerily vivid description. It sounds like you were really there. You think it was an out-of-body experience?"

Spike shook his head.

"I was still on the road, but what I saw converged with our reality, like they were interlinked."

"I guess it makes sense. If there's more than one level of existence, it stands to reason they'd connect with each other."

"I know what was following me that night."

"What was it?"

"I didn't believe it at first, but after we...Ya' know...Had sex...I knew for sure."

"I don't understand."

"It was you. Your life force crossed paths with mine years before we met."

"Are you serious!?"

"Dead serious."

"No way..."

"I spent so much time trying to figure out what happened not realizing all I had to do was give it time."

"I don't know what to say...I'm a little freaked out right now."

"I am, too. I kept asking myself why things escalated between us so fast."

"There was little to no hesitation on my part, either..."

"You can be honest with me. Do you regret what happened?"

"I don't think so. I mean...I had fun...It felt great...And we were laughing..."

"There's one thing I regret."

Carolyn gazed into Spike's eyes. Her own were filled with worry.

"I regret not being honest."

"Honest?"

"We were excited to try something new - something neither of us had ever done before. Because of that, I lost sight of what we were doing it for. It wasn't a truthful expression of how I felt."

"How...How do you feel...?"

"I care about you a lot, and it took questioning my mortality to recognize that."

"I...I care about you, too."

"Maybe we can try again; for real this time."

"I think I'd like that..."

Spike lit one of the candles Carolyn kept in her bedside cabinet. He placed it atop the wooden surface. He turned around and wrapped his arms around her. She placed her hooves on his shoulders. Their kisses were softer than those of their previous encounter...More tender. He pulled her onto the bed by her waist, unzipping and removing her jacket. At first, Carolyn was hesitant to exert her control, concerned she would move things along too quickly, but Spike's body begged to differ. She felt him stiffen beneath her. She welcomed this, although she herself was uncertain as to why.

"I can return the favor from last time."

Spike swiftly declined.

"I want to see you - fully and completely in all your divine splendor."

Carolyn nodded. She reached down to undo his belt. He placed his palm on her cheek. She tilted her head, locking his touch, allowing it to imprint itself into her long-term memory. She held it gently with her hoof.

"Why does this already feel so much better than before? What's going on...?"

"Carolyn..."

Author's Note

"I PRAY THAT YOU FIND THE PEACE THAT YOU'VE BEEN LONGING FOR!"

-Hopesfall, The End of an Era