Dragon Swap

by Trinary

Rating: everyone
Tags: Smolder, Slice of Life, Alternate Universe, Twilight Sparkle, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Spike
Length: 6357

AU: Oneshot - What if it was a different dragon egg Twilight hatched as a filly?

As a filly, Twilight Sparkle used her incredible magic to hatch a dragon egg. That dragon then became her lifelong companion, friend, and even sibling: Smolder.

Now Smolder has a chance to learn more about her own kind by meeting a dragon born and raised in the Dragon Lands. She has to figure out what to do next and what that could mean for her--and her family.

A one-shot contest submission for Secrets: A Swapped Roles Contest

Published 2020-06-24 02:40:01 UTC
Last updated 2020-06-24 02:40:01 UTC

Dragon Swap

The train huffed and puffed as it crawled its way up the mountain to Canterlot. The train’s sole dragon occupant didn’t mind the occasional stare—in fact it was almost welcome. Nothing wrong with standing out, after all.

Though at the moment, perhaps the attention was focused on the poorly contained eagerness of her traveling companion, one Twilight Sparkle. She was busy peering out the window, her excitement growing with each passing minute as relayed by her frantically shaking tail. “We’re almost there!”

The dragon rolled her eyes. “Yeah, I think I remember how travelling works, Twi. Especially since you’ve been saying that every five minutes for the last hour.”

Twilight tore herself away from the window to frown. “I have every reason to be excited, and don’t pretend like you aren’t either, Smolder.”

Smolder shrugged, laying down languidly across her seat. “Meh. Just another family visit.”

“Just another—?” She saw Twilight practically goggling at her. “Cadance and Shining Armor are coming home from their honeymoon! That isn’t ‘just another’ visit! I can’t wait to catch up with them!”

“Seriously?” Smolder lifted her head. “Think about it for a second: what do you think a pair of newlyweds on their honeymoon were mostly doing? If you’re excited to catch up about that, then I’m gonna need a barf bag.”

She was unable to repress a grin when she saw Twilight’s cheeks turn scarlet. “S-Smolder!” Twilight cast her head around, but as Smolder predicted, nopony seemed to be paying them any mind now that Princess Celestia’s prize student was no longer wriggling her plot. “Of all the—you’re being impossible today.”

“I’m a dragon. Goes with the territory.” Smolder snickered and rolled over on her seat, getting comfortable once again. “Still, I guess seeing Shiny again will be cool.”

“A huh.” Twilight quirked her brow. “I think you’re more eager to see him than you’re letting on.”

“How’s that?” Smolder instantly regretted asking when she saw the grin gracing Twilight’s muzzle.

“Oh, I don’t know…” Twilight said in a sing-song. “But your tail is wagging quite a bit.”

Smolder jolted up and craned her head back around, glaring at the offending appendage. “Stupid thing has a mind of its own sometimes,” she grumbled as she willed it to stay still.

Twilight chuckled. “If I wasn’t in such a good mood, I’d say something about how much sense it’d make for your brain to be lodged down there—” Smolder made a gesture with her claws that ponies couldn’t reciprocate, “—but I won’t. I’ll just settle for knowing that I’m right and you do miss Shiny and Cadance.”

“Eh, I always get the best gems from them when they haven’t seen me for a while.” Under Twilight’s skeptical brow, Smolder yielded with a sigh. “Okay, fine, so I missed Shiny.” She hugged her knees to her chest, snorting. “Don’t go making a huge deal out of it or anything.”

Unfortunately, Twilight was never one to leave well enough alone. You’d think she’d have read in a book of aphorisms something about not poking sleeping dragons, but nooooo. “Smolder, we both know you like Cadance too.” If she was waiting for an admission, it’d be a long time coming. Twilight seemed to realize that after a moment. “I know you get very … possessive sometimes. Especially when it’s somepony who really matters to you.”

Smolder would’ve chimed in with another reminder of her being a dragon—but she’d seen how Twilight reacted to the news that Shining Armor was marrying somepony whose name she didn’t even recognize at first. More to the point, Smolder knew Twilight was right.

“But Cadance isn’t some stranger, she’s been with both of us since we were little,” Twilight pointed out. “She’s the best!”

Not that Smolder was prepared to give Twilight an easy win. “You’re just saying that because she never put you in time out.” She huffed, crossing her arms and determinedly keeping a scowl on her face. “She always liked you more, Miss Ladybugs Awake.”

Her completely rational response merited something more than one of Twilight’s patented Knowing Looks. “She likes you plenty, she always did. She just didn’t like it when you squirmed and blew smoke at her whenever she had to give you a bath.”

“Dragons like lava. Not bubble baths.” Smolder crossed her arms.

Twilight snorted. “As if that ever stopped you from loving them. You just didn’t want to admit to loving them.”

Smolder let out a strangled noise but was spared from answering by the sensation of the train slowing and beginning to pull into the station.

As Twilight started grabbing her bags, she made one last appeal. “Tell you what: if you make a little extra effort with Cadance, I’ll make it worth your while.”

Smolder perked up at that. “Yeah? What’ve you got?”

“Sorry, it’s a surprise!” Twilight grinned. “But I promise you’ll love it.”

Smolder frowned and wrestled with her response for a while, but they both knew what it was inevitably going to be. “Okay fine. But this better not be some trick. Or another book.”

Twilight tossed her head. “Come on, would I do that to my Number One Assistant?”

“Partner. That’s Number One Partner, Twilight,” Smolder scoffed. “How many times do I have to remind you?”

Twilight sighed. “For a dragon, you sure have thin scales.”

“Says the pony who can’t admit that the only reason you don’t take your own notes is because your horn-writingship is terrible.” Smolder ducked to avoid the playful hoof-swat she knew was coming and rushed out of the train car, cackling.

Twilight rolled her eyes. “I swear, dragon assistants can be such a pain in the flank.”

“That’s ‘partner’!”

Even though the walk from the station wasn’t a long one, both Smolder and Twilight were both feeling anxious by the time they arrived at home. Well, it used to be home before Twilight moved into her own tower at the castle. Still, the memories here were strong. Smolder flew on ahead and began pounding on the front door with all the subtlety of an erupting volcano. She knew her tail was wagging again but she didn’t care. Her face lit up when the door opened, revealing a beaming Shining Armor. “Twily! Smoldy!”

“Shiny!” Smolder leaped up to throw her claws around his neck, her legs left dangling in midair as she hugged him. She spotted Cadance standing behind him and unconsciously clung to him a little tighter.

Peering over her husband’s shoulder, Cadance smiled at the scene. “Aww, there are my girls.”

“It’s so great to have you both back!” Twilight went over to hug Cadance.

“Did you bring us anything?” Smolder looked up at Shining. “Actually, forget that. Did you bring me anything?”

Twilight groaned, giving the response Smolder wanted. She snickered at the display and Shining winked at her. “Come on, I’d never go anywhere without bringing something back for my favorite scaly little sister.”

She tried not to grin but knew she was doing a poor job at it. “That’s Sibling Supreme to you two.”

“You’re never going to let us forget that, are you?” Shining patted her head. “You know, we really need to have another competition just so you can’t hold it over us for months on end.”

“Like a new one will make any difference.” She held out her claw. “Now, you said you brought something back for your Sibling Supreme?”

Shining Armor made a big production of rolling his eyes and pulling something out of his saddlebag with his magic. Smolder’s gaze was riveted and her eyes widened further when he pulled out a flawlessly cut sapphire so large she needed both hands to hold it. “Hmm, now what was it you were sayi—”

“ThanksShinyit’sthebestyou’reawesome!” Smolder reached out and grabbed it, clutching it to her chest.

“Glad you liked it.” Shining rubbed her head-spines. “Cadance picked it out!”

Smolder blinked, turning to Cadance. “You did?”

“Of course! Did you think I’d really forget your favorite flavor?” Cadance winked and nudged Shining Armor. “He was thinking of getting you a pearl-beryl necklace he found in a marketplace, but I remembered when we tried making a beryl cake for your fourth birthday.” Everyone shuddered at the memory.

“In my defense,” Shining spoke up, “I thought that maybe she’d be ready to give it another try.”

“Hard pass.” Smolder nodded to Cadance. “Thanks. This is … well, thanks. And, you know.”

Cadance nodded knowingly. “I do.”

Smolder shuffled awkwardly and felt a surge of gratitude when Twilight cleared her throat. “So, if we’re done with Smolder monopolizing all the attention—as usual,” Twilight playfully rolled her eyes. “Let’s talk about what actually brought us here!” She grinned widely at the newlyweds. “Where did you go? Did you visit any sites of historical interest? Oh! What about museums and libraries? Did you find any interesting books to bring back?”

“Are we sure she isn’t the one with a hoarding instinct?” Smolder drawled. Cadance and Shining Armor chuckled.

“They do love teasing each other, don’t they?” Cadance observed.

Shining nodded. “I guess it’s a sister thing. And it’s a good thing too. If I wasn’t able to keep playing them against each other, they might team up against me and then I’d be in … deep…” His voice faltered as he spotted the identical looks Twilight and Smolder were shooting him. “I should probably stop talking now.”

“Cadance,” Twilight grinned. “It just occurred to me that since somepony neglected to mention you two were dating until right before the wedding. I never had time to really talk to you, sister to sister-in-law.”

“What she said,” Smolder agreed, wearing an identical grin. “In fact, aren’t the family photo albums around here somewhere?”

“Such an excellent idea!” Twilight hooked a pastern around her and pulled her in for a hug. “Cadance, would you like to join me and Smolder for some sisterly bonding?”

Cadance looked at her increasingly glum looking husband and coyly winked. “Well, how can I say no to that?”

Shining Armor groaned.

“It feels weird being back in our old room,” Smolder commented as she pulled her nightgown over her head. “I mean, we lived in your castle tower for how long and they still have our old beds ready for us?”

“Mom and Dad like making us feel comfortable.” Twilight climbed into her own bed. “But I know what you mean. I can’t believe they found a way for Donut Joe to make a whole box of our favorite donuts.”

Smolder rubbed her stomach before sitting down on her bed. “Yeah, I know the emerald eclairs were a nice touch. Maybe you could talk Applejack into making some more gem-studded pies? It’d make the pie-eating contest at the Sisterhooves Social even better.”

Twilight chuckled. “You are so greedy sometimes. But it definitely paid off when you drag me into competitions.”

“Somedragon has to make sure you don’t keep your nose in your books all day. And your friends don’t live with you.” Smolder folded her claws behind her head, looking up at the ceiling. “Before you say anything … yeah, I admit it: I did have a good time with Cadance. You were right … as usual,” she added in a faux-grumble.

“Thank you. It means a lot to me, and to Cadance and Shining Armor too.” Twilight smiled. “So, you’re probably wondering about that surprise I was telling you about.”

“I do vaguely recall you mentioning it,” Smolder hedged.

Twilight snorted. “I just bet you do. Anyway, Princess Celestia told me that the leader of the dragons, the Dragon Lord, was going to send a dragon to discuss some matters with her. And—” Smolder could see her fight to maintain her composure, always a losing struggle when it came to Twilight and the opportunity for her to geek out. She was right. “—the Princess said she could make sure they’d have enough time for the ambassador to talk to us about dragons! We could get so many questions answered! It’d be a wonderful research opportunity and—”

“No.”

Smolder’s blunt, flatly delivered answer temporarily derailed Twilight’s train of thought. “‘No’?”

“No.” Smolder turned away from Twilight, burying her head in her pillow. “Not interested. If you want to meet this fancy-scales, go ahead. I’ll stay home.”

Even though she couldn’t see her, Smolder could practically hear Twilight’s ears lowering. “Smolder … we could find out so much about where you came from, about your—”

“I said no, Twi!” Smolder shot her head up off the pillow to pierce her with a glare. “What could those belly-dragging lizards possibly have to say that I’d be interested in hearing? They don’t care about me, they never have. So why should I care about them?”

Twilight bit her lip. “I know this is a sensitive subject. The School for Gifted Unicorns said your egg was willed to them by an old pony explorer. They don’t know where he got it from originally.”

“It doesn’t change anything Twilight.” Smolder sat up with a sigh, hugging her pillow to her chest. “Face facts. It’s been years and no dragon has ever come poking their nose around asking about my egg, not once.”

Before Twilight could get in another word, Smolder cut her off. “As for how that old pony guy got my egg? There’s only really three options, which all come down to the same thing: he found my egg and no one noticed or cared that it was missing. He took my egg—and they still didn’t notice or care. Or maybe he had a big shiny gem and sold my egg to him because, say it with me now: They. Didn’t. Care.” She folded her arms. “So, why should I want to find out more about the dragons who lost or gave away my egg and never once came looking for me?”

Smolder felt her own claws digging into her arms, but was too mad to care. Twilight didn’t say anything for a long moment. Just as Smolder was about to lay back down and go to sleep, Twilight spoke up. “Because being a dragon is important to you.”

“Uh, duh?” Smolder felt her brow raise. “I am a dragon. It’s not like I could go around calling myself a pony, not that I’d ever want to. Er, no offense.”

“Right, I understand.” Twilight squared her shoulders. “Because your identity as a dragon has always been so important to you. You embraced it even when you were the only dragon in a land full of ponies.” A crooked grin crossed her face as Smolder watched. “Remember that time you made such a big fuss about not wanting to go to the Grand Galloping Gala because dragons can’t gallop?” Smolder felt her face heat and from her chuckling, Twilight had spotted it. “Everypony knew you were dying to get to wear the dress Rarity made for you, but you stomped your foot and started writing a letter to Celestia to demand she change the name.”

Smolder grunted. “In my defense, you’re really fond of your pony-puns. I mean really, we live in Ponyville.”

Twilight went on as if she hadn’t spoken. “Or that time when you were four, you made Shining Armor promise when he was knighted that he’d never hurt a dragon even if they kidnapped a princess?” She chuckled. “As if that could ever happen.”

Smolder shot Twilight her best hooded-glare. Judging by the way she just chuckled, Smolder concluded she must’ve missed the mark and ended up with ‘pouty.’ She hated it when that happened.

“As much as you like to bellyache and complain about being my partner in my research, you were always willing to work extra hard when we found anything about dragons, even if it was just old stories. You latched onto every bit of information we could find about them and found a way to make it a part of yourself.” Twilight let out a sigh. “Now you have a chance to meet a dragon from the Dragon Lands, who knows things about your culture that ponies don’t know—that I don’t know.” She looked pained by the admission. “I’ve reached the limits of what ponies actually know about dragons. I … I don’t know what else I can do. I can’t help on my own anymore.”

A sudden twinge of guilt flared up before Smolder could stomp it out. “Twi, I—look, I appreciate everything you’ve done and I get you just want to help. But...”

“But what?” When Smolder didn’t answer, Twilight pressed her. “Why don’t you want to find out more about how dragons live outside of books?”

Smolder snorted smoke. “Because when I was just reading about them, I could fit the pieces around however I wanted! Dragons could be almost anything I wanted them to be. Once I meet an actual dragon? I can’t control what being a dragon means anymore.” She squeezed her pillow tightly to her chest. “Maybe I’ll find out that I haven’t been living like a real dragon at all. What if I find out that being a dragon means not liking the stuff that I like?” She let her claw gently brush her nightgown. “Or if it means not having pony friends, let alone having ponies for a family? Or not even having a family at all?” Smolder hastily rubbed the back of her claw across her face. “I … I don’t know who I’d even be if it turns out I’m not a real dragon.”

She registered the sound of Twilight’s teleportation spell a half-instant before she found herself wrapped in a hug on her own bed. “Smolder, listen to me: you’re tough, brave, stubborn and always speak your mind.” Twilight poked her chest. “You breathe fire, love the taste of gems and hoard like Pinkie Pie on a cupcake binge. You are a dragon by any definition that matters.” Smolder felt her spines being stroked, untensing. “You’re also my wonderful, scaly, silly little sister. Nothing will ever change that either.”

Before she even was aware of it, Smolder pressed her face into the crook of Twilight’s neck. “T-thanks, Twi.”

Twilight rubbed her back. “Look, I know this is a lot. And I’m sorry for springing this on you. If you don’t want to meet the ambassador, you don’t have to. But I really think you should.”

She gave Smolder a second to compose herself, which she was grateful for. “How’s that?”

“Because it’s the sort of thing you’ve done for me so many times, and I was always the better for it.” She smiled ruefully. “Remember? You dragged me to Moondancer’s party even when I wanted to stay in to study old legends. And it turned out that Moondancer hada copy of The Elements of Harmony: A Reference Guide anyway, which was really useful when we arrived in Ponyville.” Smolder tilted her head and Twilight seemed to realize she’d gotten off point. “But more importantly—probably should’ve started with this—even if she didn’t have the book, going made Moondancer so happy. And as much as I grumbled at first, I had a really good time too. Well, once you stopped threatening to burn my first editions if I left.”

Smolder cracked a grin. “I keep telling you, first editions toast the best marshmallows.”

“Riiiiight,” Twilight mock-glowered. “The point is, both Moondancer and I stepped out of our comfort zones—well, you basically dragged me out of mine—but we both ended up the better for it. I may have hatched your egg, but you’ve brought me out of my shell so many more times than I can count.”

“Okay, I get it, you don’t have to spell it out,” Smolder sighed. “This is you returning the favor because you really think finding out more about how Dragon Landers live will really help me out.”

“And here I had a whole presentation already worked out.” Twilight chuckled and prodded her. “Way to ruin all my fun.”

Smolder laughed too. “It’s all part of the job description.”

“Of dragon partners?” Twilight asked. “Or of being sibling supreme?”

“Both.” Smolder hugged her, which Twilight soon returned. She let herself just enjoy the feeling for a while before softly piping up. “Um, Twilight? Can … can I—?”

She squirmed but to her immense relief, Twilight read her as easily as one of her books. “Of course.” She shifted over and made room for Smolder. “Good night, Smolder.”

Sighing happily, Smolder nestled in next to her. “Good night, Twi.”

The next day, Smolder accompanied Twilight to Canterlot Castle to meet the dragon emissary. Ambassador. Whatever. But when they got to the room where the emissary was waiting, Twilight stopped outside the door.

Smolder was temporarily taken aback by this. “You’re not going in?”

“I think this is something for you to do.” Twilight nudged her.

“But … you’ve probably got a mile long list of all the questions you ever wanted to ask a Dragon Lander,” Smolder pointed out. “Probably starting working on it ever since I hatched.”

Twilight colored and chuckled awkwardly, confirming Smolder’s guess. “Yes, well, today is meant to be about you. Not about me and all my questions and research.”

“You’re just afraid that if you start asking questions you’ll never stop,” Smolder teased.

“Okay, fine smarty-scales. You got me, now quit stalling. Dragon up and get in here.” Twilight used her magic to move Smolder closer to the door. “Just remember: you’ll always be Smolder the Dragon, my partner and sister. No matter what.”

Smolder paused for a moment, then nodded. “Right. Thanks Twilight. I got this.”

She glared at the doors for a moment, gathering her inner fire before flinging them open and marching in. She was determined not to be intimidated by whatever dragon resided within. No matter how big they were or how many jewels they had to show off. She immediately looked up, intent on staring down whatever dragon awaited within—and saw nothing. “Huh?”

“Down here!” A friendly-sounding voice called out.

Confused, Smolder dropped her gaze a little. Then a little further. Then further still. Finally, her eyes landed on a purple and green dragon sitting at a pony-sized table. In fact, his legs didn’t even reach the floor from his seat.

“Seriously?”

The dragon frowned, drawing himself up by standing on the chair. It didn’t do much to help though. “Who dares challenge the mighty Spike, terror of the Dragon Lands?” He puffed himself up to make himself look bigger. It failed. “My teeth are like swords, my—my—how’s it go? Erm, my scales are a thunderbolt! Wait, no that’s my tail, right? My—” He stopped, deflating. “You aren’t buying this at all, aren’t you?”

“Not for a minute,” Smolder confirmed. “Though, frankly, I wouldn’t have bought it regardless.”

“Can’t say I blame you.” He sighed and hopped off the chair. “Let’s start over: I’m Spike.”

“Smolder.”

Spike looked her over. “So you’re the dragon who was raised by ponies, huh? You’re not what I was expecting.”

Smolder narrowed her eyes. “Is that so?”

Spike shrugged off the edge in her question like it was something he’d heard a thousand times before. Which, Smolder belatedly realized, he probably had. “It’s nothing personal,” he explained. “It’s just that when you hear about a dragon raised by ponies you don’t expect them to be as tough as a real dragon since ponies are so soft and weak.”

Flickers of smoke trickled out of Smolder’s nostrils. Spike must’ve realized he had blundered. “N-not that you’re not a real dragon!” He blurted out, waving his claws frantically in front of him. “It’s just—well, ponies don’t scream ‘tough.’”

Smolder forced herself to untense, unclenching a fist she hadn’t realized she’d be making. “Ponies might be softer, but they’re not weak. Or did you not hear about how they sent Queen Chrysalis packing?”

“We did hear something about that,” Spike allowed. “Didn’t get all the details before I left though. If it’s true, then I guess maybe there’s more to ponies than the soft, cute colors.”

“Of course it’s true.” Smolder squared her shoulders. “Tell you what: I’ll answer any questions you have about ponies if you tell me more about how dragons live in the Dragon Lands. I mean, that’s the whole reason why I’m here and all.”

“Sounds good,” Spike sat down, beckoning for Smolder to join him. Once she had, he leaned back in his chair. “So, about dragons. Dragons. We’re, um...” he drummed his claws on the table. “Never thought I’d really have to explain about dragons, especially to another dragon. Can I start off asking you about ponies first?”

“Sounds fair.” Smolder snickered. “I can tell you one thing: I bet dragons don’t sing as much.”

Spike looked puzzled. “Wait, that’s really a thing? I thought that was just something other dragons made up about ponies. They really burst into song out of nowhere?”

“Yep, totally.” She shrugged. “You get used to it. Well, mostly.”

“A huh.” Spike quirked his brow. “Have you ever…?”

“W-what?” Smolder let out a strangled cough. “O-of course not!”

Spike didn’t seem to believe her. “Right...”

Uncomfortably aware of the growing heat on her cheeks, Smolder switched topics. “So, dragons must be pretty tough. I mean, we’re all about fighting right?”

“Not as much as you’d think.” Spike squirmed in his chair. “I mean, dragons like challenging each other and showing off, but it’s not all fighting. Sometimes it’s just stuff like burping contests or tail-wrestling. Yeah, sometimes we get banged up but it’s not like we go out looking to smash each other’s teeth in or something all the time.”

Smolder leaned forward. “That makes sense. It’s not exactly what the pony stories about dragons say, though I guess I shouldn’t be too surprised they got things wrong. They are afraid of dragons.” Her face brightened. “Wait, so burping contests are a thing? HA! Now Twilight can’t tell me no when it’s part of my heritage! What else have you got?”

Spike, buoyed by her eagerness, leaned forward. “Let’s see ... Do you have a hoard?”

Now Smolder just scoffed. “Duh, of course I do. Dragon, remember?” She hesitated before going on. “Um, but I can’t let it get too big or, um, I get too big. That must be weird, huh?”

“Ooh, no one ever warned you about Greed Growth, huh?” Spike hissed. “Yeah, you gotta watch out for that.”

“I would’ve thought dragons would want to get bigger and stronger? Plus have more stuff?” Smolder pointed out. “I can’t do it here since ponies don’t like having giant dragons stomping on their tiny houses, but that can’t be a problem out there, can it?”

Spike shook his head. “What’s the point in having a bigger horde if you’re too dumb to be able to really enjoy it? Using a little greed to get you a bit bigger is fine, but it’s a real pain when someone goes nuts. That’s when the Dragon Lord usually has to step in and—” Spike winced. “You don’t want to see that happen.”

“Sounds like a real bruiser,” Smolder commented. “What’s he look like?”

“Trust me, you’ll know him when you see him,” Spike deadpanned. “Speaking of, how do you tell ponies apart?”

“What do you mean? They just...” she gestured vaguely. “You know. Look different.”

Spike shook his head. “Not as different as dragons. You ever see a bunch of dragons together and they all look totally different. Some have bigger snouts, some have bigger tails, no two are alike. Ponies? Not so much.”

Smolder looked Spike over. “Yeah, I think I see what you’re getting at. I’m guessing family resemblances aren’t much of a thing.” She hesitated, coming to the question she was the most nervous about asking. She swallowed. “Do, dragons, uh even do families?”

“Why wouldn’t they?” Spike asked in bewilderment.

Smolder almost collapsed in her seat in relief and only didn’t out of sheer, stubborn draconic pride. “J-just something I’ve been wondering about. Tell me about yours.”

If he noticed anything was off about her response, he gave no sign of it. “Alright. Well, I have an older brother, Garble. He’s kinda...” Spike’s voice trailed off. “Geeze, where to even start? He’s loud, he swaggers, he loves mixing it up and showing his dominance. Total tough guy.”

“That does sound like a typical dragon,” Smolder noted.

“Yeah. I totally take after him.” Spike said casually as he buffed his claws against his chest in a way that utterly failed to convince Smolder in the slightest.

Instead of challenging him on it, she simply asked, “What about your parents?”

To her horror, Spike just shrugged. “What about them?”

She wasn’t sure how to process that. “I meant, what are they like?”

“Dunno.” Spike shrugged again. “Dragons usually aren’t the most involved parents. We put all our eggs together during hatching season. Some stick around to make sure they all hatch and help raise them, but mostly each generation kinda keeps to themselves. Especially when the molt effect kicks in.”

Smolder felt her stomach drop. “The what?”

“You know, the molt? Once you start molting and the smell gets really bad, dragons kick their kids out of the cave.” He said this as if it were the most normal thing in the world. Which, Smolder, realized numbly, it was to him. “Even after it’s over, younger dragons tend to hang out with other dragons their own age more than their parents. I mean, when your parents can go into a centuries-long nap whenever they want, it’s better to be self-reliant, right?”

She thought she might throw up. Not just at the idea of dragon kids being tossed out on their own but the wider implications. “So that means my parents might’ve dumped my egg during hatching season in a pile and then went to sleep for a hundred years since it’s not even really their job to raise me?”

Spike nodded. “Pretty much. I mean, what’s the big deal with waiting to see the egg hatch when they’ll all have centuries to catch up? Besides, look on the bright side!” He smiled. “Maybe they’ll wake up in a few decades and look up whatever happened to you and you can have your real family back. Wouldn’t that be good?”

Smolder slammed her claws down on the table. “No! No it wouldn’t!” She jabbed a slightly shaking claw in his direction. “T-they don’t get to just drop my egg off and then not even be around to see me hatch, let alone grow up, and then come waltzing back after some perfect strangers did all the hard work for them! You don’t get to call yourself parents after that!”

To her mortification, she felt hot tears sizzling down her face but was too angry to wipe them away. “You wanna know what happened to me? My egg was hatched by a little unicorn filly so young she still needed a nightlight. I was brought up by a pony family; her family. She became my sister. Her parents became my parents. Her big brother? My big brother.”

Her tail lashed around and smoke was now billowing around her face. “They welcomed me into their home. They made me a part of their family. They did their hardest to make me feel like I was part of the family even as they tried to respect my draconic heritage. As far as I’m concerned they are my real family.” She bared her teeth. “So you can go back to the Dragon Lands and if those belly-crawling lizards who laid my egg ever do get off their fat butts long enough to remember that they even had an egg, tell them I said they can go stick their heads in lava until their brains melt.”

As she ranted, Spike leaned further and further back in his chair, clearly daunted by her rage. She barely noticed. Smolder smacked her claw on the tabletop. “Being part of a pony family probably means you don’t think I’m a real dragon, but you know what? I don’t care. I don’t want to hear anymore about what ‘real’ dragons are like if that’s how they treat their kids!”

She pushed away from the table and started storming towards the door. Her claws pressed against the doors, ready to push, when Spike called out. “I’m not a real dragon either!”

Smolder stopped short and turned around. “Huh? What’s that?”

“You heard me,” Spike said glumly. “The truth is that the only reason I’m the dragon who got sent out here is because no one else wanted to do it, so I got stuck with it. They’re always finding ways to make me do things they don’t want to do because I can’t really stand up to the other dragons.”

Smolder let her claws drop away from the door. “That stinks. Sorry.”

He chuckled mirthlessly. “Garble’s always pushing me to stand up for myself, which is kinda confusing now that I say it out loud.”

“Yeah, it’s kinda hard to browbeat self-confidence into someone,” she pointed out.

Spike sighed. “Don’t get me wrong, he’s great. I mean, yeah, he’s tough on me but he doesn’t let any dragon really push me around. Not too far, anyway. Well, besides himself.”

Smolder made a face. She couldn’t imagine Shining Armor or Twilight pushing anyone around like that, let alone her. Or allowing herself to be pushed around, frankly. “That’s some great brother you got there,” she drawled.

“He’s not that bad,” Spike protested. “It’s just that there are certain expectations out in the Dragon Lands. You’re supposed to be tough. Rugged. Fearless. Like you.” Spike gestured to her. “You might’ve been raised by ponies, but you’re still stronger than me.”

Smolder didn’t know whether to say something supportive or not. She wouldn’t have thought dragons would be receptive to that sort of thing, but then, Spike wasn’t what she thought dragons would’ve been like. Neither was she, if she was feeling honest. “I guess growing up with ponies shows that there’s different kinds of strength. I like the sound of more tail-wrestling or fire-burping contests but even without that, ponies were still able to deal with Nightmare Moon, Discord and Queen Chrysalis.”

“Sounds like there’s more to them than I thought.” Spike rubbed his neck. “Or most dragons thought, really.”

“I guess they’re not the only ones.” Smolder hugged herself. “Neither one of us is really what dragons are supposed to be.”

Spike squirmed for a minute, then groaned. “If Garble ever finds out I told anyone this he’ll kill me, but—can you keep a secret?” He waited for Smolder to nod. “I don’t know if any dragon is really ‘normal.’ I mean, even Gar-Gar—that’s what he lets me call him in private—has his sensitive side. Yeah, he acts all tough and charred on the outside, but he’s a softy on the inside. His big thing? Beat-poetry.”

She blinked, feeling herself going slightly cross-eyed. “Say what now?”

“Yeah, I know.” Spike smiled ruefully. “Not exactly the most dragon-y thing to come to mind is it? But I can’t throw stones since I like embroidering.” His purple scales flushed darker. “I-I found a pony book about it and, well, it’s really relaxing! Even Ember—Dragon Lord Torch’s daughter—spends more time thinking than most dragons. I think every dragon has something like that.”

After thinking it over for a moment, Smolder nodded. “Yeah, I guess that makes sense. My sister Twilight’s pony friends are all over the place—totally different.” She laughed. “If you took any one of them and thought all ponies have to be like them, then met any of her other friends, you’d be totally lost.”

Spike smiled, but then his face fell. “Um, Smolder? I-I really hate to ask, but what you said about your parents—your dragon parents, I mean? Are you sure?”

She nodded firmly. “Never been more sure.”

“It’s just that,” Spike squirmed. “Dragons live a long time and ponies, well … you know?”

Smolder closed her eyes and sat back down, sighing heavily. “Yeah. I know.”

“Sorry,” Spike mumbled.

“It’s not like we didn’t know about it,” she said, unwilling to actually say it outloud. “We’ve talked about it, a lot. Princess Celestia even sat down with me once to talk about … what it’d be like afterwards.” She rubbed her face. “The most important thing is that I’m not going to dwell on it, but focus on the time I will have with them.”

Spike nodded slowly. “I understand. But you’ll live a long time afterwards. Are you sure you wouldn’t want to get to know your dragon parents? Even after all that time?”

Smolder rubbed her temples. “Maybe someday I’d like to meet them,” she allowed. “I don’t know. Maybe I shouldn’t blame them for doing things that they were brought up being told was okay … but they’re not okay. I’d be fine with meeting them sometime, but they missed their chance for me to think of them as family. Even if it’s a millennium after Twilight and Shining and everypony else is g-gone...” her voice cracked and she had to clear her throat. “They’ll still be my family. Forever and ever. No one else.”

There was a long, awkward silence before Spike said anything. “The more I hear about pony families, the more I think they might be onto something.”

Smolder chuckled. “Well, then you’re in luck. My sister Twilight’s been waiting outside for us to finish. She has about a million questions of her own about dragons. If you think you can handle it, how about you come with us when we grab some lunch? If you answer her questions, I guarantee she’ll treat you to anything you want.”

Spike’s eyes gleamed. “That sounds great to me! But what about you? Don’t you have any more questions?”

Smolder shrugged and went to the door. “I might have some more questions, but to tell the truth?” She pulled them open and grinned when she saw Twilight pacing outside. “I think I have all the answers I need.”

The End