The Life and Times of the Equestrian Dragon

.

The warmth of Pendragon Castle’s main kitchen wrapped around Pinkie Pie like a blanket as Spike rummaged through cupboards, searching for ingredients. An array of cooking utensils were spread out on the counter in front of her as memories of her own grandmother’s foods flooded her mind, the same foods she made whenever someone in the family fell ill.

“It’s a real pleasure watching you cook,” Pinkie said as she reached for the hem of her shirt. “The way you handle cutlery just gets me...”

Spike blushed. “If you’re going to just stand there, could you not take your top off?”

“I know that if I take out my girls, they’ll be safe... even from your choppers,” she flirted.

Her words were filled with playful admiration, her eyes dancing with mischief, as Spike wiped his hands on his apron and he walked around to the stove on the other side of the island.

These women had all had fantasy relationships with him for the past decade, and he was so busy trying to be a better guy that he was cooking for them.

Spike shushed her, held a hand to his ear, and asked, “You hear that?”

Pinkie said, “I don’t hear anything.”

“That’s the sound of all my clothes being refolded,” he told her.

“Man, they don’t stop,” Pinkie said. “How do you survive living with them?”

“I spend a lot of time pretending to be asleep,” he answered as he saw to the steaks.

“What’s that for?” she inquired.

“You, of course,” he replied.

“You left the fat on? My mother always cut the fat off,”

“Why, was she insane? It helps enhance the flavor. Are you going to tell me she didn’t use cheese, either?”

“No, she cooked for health,”

“What could be healthier for you than the food you love?”

“Thank you, Doctor,” Pinkie grinned sweetly.

“Go find the others,” he said. “And I’m sure dinner will be ready by the time you do.”

.

After what felt like countless hours of walking around, Fluttershy found herself in a room containing many rare exhibits of the hunt. Her eyes went wide at the sight of all the hunting trophies: a lion’s head, an alligator, a crocodile, a rhinoceros, as well as deer, apes, buffalo, rams, a fox, moose, a zebra, three tigers, and an elephant--but mostly boars--were all stuffed and mounted on the walls.

When she looked at them, they seemed to glare right back at her. Suddenly, her mind became filled with thoughts of fangs and claws and talons... and her ears filled with every sound the animals made. She heard every roar, every growl, and every snarl.

It wasn’t until she felt someone touch her on the shoulder that the echo of gunshots finally ceased... and she jumped when they did.

It was only Spike.

“Dinner is almost ready,” he said. “Shall we eat?”

“Yes...” Fluttershy replied.

She was trembling, her voice filled with the embarrassment of being caught snooping--even though he had given her and her friends permission to explore his home--trying to get herself under control, as she and the other girls followed him down the hall and into the lavish dining room lit by warm candlelight.

A white linen tablecloth had been draped across the long, oak table. Nine plates were set, and on each plate a silver fork; moreover, there were nine silver knives and silver spoons, nine freshly pressed linen napkins and eight silver goblets, usually reserved for guests of honor.

Sitting at the head of the table, in place of the ninth goblet was a silver tankard.

Spike’s finest drinking mug, it had survived numerous tavern brawls.

The girls took their seats--except for Celestia and Luna sitting at either side of Spike, there was no particular seating arrangement--and Lemony Crumble served shrimp cocktails while Cobalt Stone poured water.

“I’m starved,” Rainbow Dash said.

Dash was so hungry and thirsty that she downed hers in four seconds.

“May I be excused?” she asked after she’d finished.

Celestia cocked her head. “You’re full already? That was just the appetizer. Here comes the first course.”

Spike clapped his hands and a procession of female servants, blondes and brunettes, each of them 19-years-old, entered with silver platters of steaming roasts, wine in crystal carafes, and ripe tropical fruit in golden baskets. The girls gasped and Pinkie started drooling at the sight of a prime rib and no less than eight different kinds of tender, juicy, beef steaks: T-bones, sirloins, and a rather generous cut of filet mignon, as well as golden mashed potatoes, and a lobster tail with steamed broccoli.

Smothered pork chops and fried shrimp for Applejack, a seven-decker turkey club sandwich for Pinkie Pie, potato stew and fruit salad for Fluttershy, a rolled omelet for Sunset Shimmer, Rigatoni with meatballs for Rainbow Dash; and for Rarity, Chateaubriand with capers and shallots and radish rosettes.

“Mmm. That looks so good,” said Sunset.

Everything looked splendid.

The food was literally shining!

Spike watched Applejack as she stared down at her plate, picked up her knife, carefully cut up her steak, and took a bite.

“Wow, Spike!” Applejack exclaimed. “This is amazing!”

“Help yourselves, I made plenty,” he said. “Take all you want, but eat all you take.”

“You made all this?” Rarity asked as food practically floated onto their plates.

“That’s unbelievable,” Pinkie said.

“What a guy,” she added in thought. “Busting a leg to whip us up a really swell feast...”

Spike smiled—a genuine, heartfelt expression they hadn’t seen often—as they were served a 12-course banquet.

“Is that tuna salad?” Pinkie asked. “Mayonnaise... fresh dill... fresh ground pepper... mashed potatoes, pinto beans, fruit cocktail, Prench dressing, horseradish sauce, this is wonderful. Ohh! Apricots! My favorite delicacy! Oh, Spike, you know how long it’s been since I’ve had apricots? I mean really good apricots, not those store-bought apricots. I love apricots. And is that steak pizzaiola? Real steak pizzaiola with a thick layer of cheese on top?”

“Naturally,” Spike replied. “What am I, a barbarian?”

Pinkie was shocked.

“If I’m dreaming, don’t wake me up!” she warned them. “Don’t even pinch me!”

Fluttershy nibbled some of the fruits, fresh vegetables and bread.

“Wow... th-this is... that’s delicious...” she said.

“Yes! It’s like I wandered into a mythical forest where even the deepest of fried food tastes like they were combined in heavenly wonder!” she and Pinkie Pie both thought. “That was definitely deep-fried, and yet it tasted refreshing.”

“Spike, you have got to share your recipes with me!” Pinkie exclaimed as she gulped down bites of roast turkey, pineapple, custard and a cherry tart.

“Oh, this wine is fantastic!” Rarity declared after taking a small sip from her goblet. “What a lovely bouquet.”

“Red Alpha, a gift from an old friend, Colonel Bud Diamond, ESAF,” Spike said. “I’m... glad you like it.”

“Spike, confess,” Rarity told him. “What is this divine-looking amuse-bouche?”

“If I told you, you probably wouldn’t even try it,” he replied.

“Well, can I please have more of that mushy stuff, whatever it is?” Pinkie asked.

“Certainly,” he said.

“Mmm. Boy, this beef tastes good,” Applejack said with her mouth full.

“Oh, that wasn’t beef,” Spike told her. “That’s alligator.”

“Alligator?” Fluttershy echoed, with a sudden loss of appetite.

She didn’t feel any better when Spike told Applejack to try the chicken. But that wasn’t what bothered Fluttershy. What bothered her was that he accidently called Applejack “sweet cake” and Applejack suddenly recoiled at those words.

The only people who had ever called her that were the Oranges; more specifically, her glamorous, aristocratic relatives Uncle Mosely and Aunt Orange Blossom (née Pear Blossom), when she spent a summer with them in Manehattan.

After her parents died, Applejack didn’t want to spend her life on the farm; she wanted to live the sophisticated life, so she went to live with them, but she found it hard to fit in.

She had never felt more homesick in all her life as she did right then.

“And what about you, dear?” Celestia asked, trying to lighten the mood. “Fluttershy, is it? I understand that you volunteer at the city’s veterinary clinic and animal shelter.”

“Oh, yes, Miss Soleil,” she replied. “I love all animals, great and small.”

“As do I,” she grinned.

“What’s the matter?” Luna asked as a wistful look crossed Fluttershy’s face. “Is it not to your liking?”

The truth was Fluttershy had fantasized about this for so long. The food, the candlelight...

“I just feel a bit guilty enjoying such a lovely evening when one of our former classmates is still listed as a missing person,” she shared.

The other girls nodded in understanding.

“May I confess something awful?” Sunset Shimmer asked. “I can’t help but feel relieved. It’s horrible, I admit it. But, let’s face it, so was the sound of her voice.”

The rest of dinner was quiet, with each bite giving them more time to reflect on the events of the day. Pinkie Pie literally licked her plate clean.

“Mm, attentive service, excellent cuisine,” she critiqued. “However, the décor leaves something to be desired. I’d give this place a solid four out of five stars.”

“That meal was to die for, Spike,” Rarity said as she delicately wiped her mouth with her white lace monogrammed handkerchief.

“It wasn’t much, but I was hoping you’d like it,” he replied.

Fluttershy wanted it to last.

It was a meal to remember.

.

Later that evening, as the maids cleared the dining room table, Pinkie, Sunset and Applejack wandered around Spike’s living room as Rainbow Dash propped her feet up on the sofa, and Rarity reclined on the plush couch while Cobalt Stone mixed a gin martini behind the bar, the warm glow from the fireplace casting soft shadows all around them. He dropped an olive into the cocktail and served it to Rarity, who downed the drink.

As the girls relaxed, their gazes landed on Spike at the grand piano. His fingers instinctively found the keys as he began to play a soothing melody that seemed to resonate with the very room itself. From out in the hallway, Fluttershy--who had excused herself to use the restroom--was quite speechless; she couldn’t take her eyes off Spike as he played. It was like, it felt like, she was waking up from a dream.

Then, as she stepped into the room to join them, Spike abruptly halted his performance, the final notes of the melody lingered in the air.

“I didn’t hear you come in,” he lied.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to interrupt you, it’s just... That’s the song my grandmamma used to sing to me,” she said softly. “How do you know that song?”

“I have heard it in a dream,” Spike replied, “and now it is the only song I hear.”

“Please go on,” she said. “You play beautifully.”

As Fluttershy looked at one of the portraits of a dragon, she noticed something in Spike’s face--a flash of pain--but it was gone as soon as it had appeared.

“Your castle is filled with such amazing things,” she said.

“They have been collected over many years,” Spike replied.

“Still, it’s so strange, that this place should be filled with such unusual things...”

It was true. He had objects of mystery, items worth a lot; some had quite a history, but...

“Sometimes things aren’t as mysterious as they seem,” Spike said.

Despite his casual dismissal, Fluttershy remained unconvinced.

“I am curious, though, if it’s true what they say. What people say... about dragons,” she said. “I want to know more. Please... tell us what you know about them.”

Fluttershy not only believed in dragons, she believed they were real. Ever since she was a girl, Fluttershy wished that dragons were real, and considered herself a “supreme authority” on them and all their marvelous adventures and exploits.

“She’s been obsessed with dragons since we were kids,” Rainbow Dash told him. “She thinks they’re fascinating... especially that Equestrian Dragon.”

“Equestrian Dragon, what’s that?” Rarity asked.

“Ask my sister,” Luna said. “She can tell you more about him than even I can.”

Celestia smiled, but it was a guarded smile, one tinged with caution.

The girls had heard tales of monstrous, man-eating creatures. They had been recounted for centuries by tribes of the Amarezon Basin, some of whom were said to worship giant reptiles as gods and protectors. There was even a legend passed of a journey to a sacred lake. First, one had to pass a waterfall protected by wild animals and other vile beasts. Once those guardians were passed, travel through the land of the Equestrian Dragon until one came to a mountain so high it blotted out the Sun. Follow that mountain for seven days, finally reaching its peak, the head of a giant dragon.

Even Applejack had heard these stories. She had heard these stories all her life, but she had never believed a word of them... that is, until her fifteenth birthday. They had heard, they knew, that dragons were among the most ferocious – and enormous – creatures on earth, growing, in certain cases, as long as several hundred feet. They were known to attack humans when provoked and if their territory was being invaded.

“It is more than just native stories and folktales brought over from the old countries,” Celestia shared.

“Could you please tell us?” Fluttershy asked.

Celestia glanced into the fire then she began to speak of the monstrous creature.

“According to legends, he is over ninety feet long, with a wingspan no less than eighty meters from tip to tip... and some people say that he has the strength of over one hundred thousand lions. But I know--for a fact--he’s more fearsome than any shark, bigger than any whale, and that he stands the height of two Spike’s Peaks,” she said. “When the moon is full and the air is sweet he soars alone through the sky over Equestria, piercing the silence of the forests with his mournful roar. And when he walks, you can feel his footsteps for miles around.”

“You mean... you have actually seen him?” Fluttershy stammered.

“No mortal has ever really laid eyes on him, and those that say they have never got a good look at him,” Luna admitted. “But plenty have claimed to have heard him, stomping his way through the darkness of the night, searching for his favorite food: a rack of garlic roasted lamb served on a delightful bed of angel’s hair.”

“Is that served with a white sauce?” Pinkie inquired.

Sunset Shimmer elbowed her hard in the side.

“Some say he thirsts for human blood, others say he is calling for a mate... I say he is searching for the redemption that he longs for but will never truly achieve,” Celestia went on. “By day, he rules the entire North Equestrian continent from its highest mountain peak, ready to attack anyone who dares trespass on his domain, but by night...”

“He and Bigfoot run the candy counter over at the New Canterlot City Cineplex,” Rainbow Dash interjected. “Now playing on all 14 screens: Dragonheart.”

The girls were so glad that they had decided to spend their evening with Spike. The only way it could be better was if his maids hadn’t entered just to bring him a glass of water.

Tote Bag and Twinkleworks had studied art in Mareis, Prance--that was where they met. They both spoke four languages and had recently worked for one of New Canterlot City’s wealthiest families.

“Unfortunately, they were always on the brink of divorce,” Twinkleworks had shared.

“Well, that wasn’t your fault,” Pinkie told her. “So what if men like to look at you in your birthday suit?”

“Excuse me?” she asked.

“I think what she means to say is that the only way ya get a tan like that is by layin’ out butt naked,” Applejack said.

Spike’s reaction was immediate and intense. He set down his glass with such force that it shattered, scattering shards across the room.

“That’s enough!” he snapped at their explicit rudeness. “They used to work for Filthy Rich! They worked themselves to the bone for that wretched snob and he treated them like dirt, then his whore of a wife had the nerve to fire them!”

Spike’s words cut through the air, echoing sharply in the quiet chamber, his demeanor as cold as the stern look on his face. His sudden shift from inviting to intimidating was disarming, that natural sense of authority that made people hate and fear him.

The girls were about to apologize, but Spike’s face hardened, his jaw clenched, and he said, “You will go now.”

Sitting rigidly, they looked up at him, taken aback by the intensity of his voice.

“You will go!”

Spike watched them stand up, collect their things and then walk to the door, his gaze held, unyielding and dominant, reinforcing his command over his space and the objects within it.

They tried to not look at his eyes as they put on their shoes and left. They stepped out the front door--Park and Fancy Pants were waiting outside with the limo--and it shut after them.

It took all of Spike’s self-control to force them to get out of his castle without assaulting them. It would have been so easy, too. He had them right where he wanted them... and it nearly made him come undone. He knew he had to get them out of there before he did something he would regret—before they did anything they would regret.

Spike’s rage melted into despair as he pounded up the stairs to the sanctuary of his quarters, hiding his face from Celestia as she followed him.

“You didn’t have to be so harsh,” she told him.

Spike didn’t answer her.

“You are so frustrating sometimes,” she said. “You were never like this.”

Spike shrugged. “That was a long time ago.”

“I’ve known you too long,” Celestia said. “You can’t hide your feelings from me.”

“What feelings?”

“How about loneliness?” she asked.

“I’m not lonely. I’ve got everything I need,”

“No, you don’t. You refuse to let anyone love you,”

“Love is for poets,”

He couldn’t risk those girls being there for one more second. It was too dangerous.

He was too dangerous.

His primal emotions would have been too much for them.

He wouldn’t make the mistake of loving them in return. He couldn’t.

As Spike locked himself in his bedroom, his mind wandered back to a day in ancient times—a more primitive, almost prehistoric time—a crucial time in the development of many species, where every man had a private club, every woman wore fur, and backyard barbecues were truly mammoth. A time when boys on the cusp of adulthood spent more time with their elders, seeking wisdom, and telling stories around the campfire...

It was the time when he first gave Celestia and Luna food, shelter, company... and safety.

.

In a forested valley, a band of ten tall men in animal furs, wielding torches and pitchforks, huddled around a rather small man with a big mouth and large eyes dressed in a simple brown cloak, named Bray, who was holding up wanted posters offering rewards for ogres, dwarves, and other “magical creatures.”

“All right, this one’s full,” an orcish soldier with a pig-like snout and tusks said as a bearded dwarf looked through the barred window of a wooden prison wagon. “Take it away!”

The wagon rolled away as seven more dwarves, chained together, were escorted away from a table where an armored guard broke a witch’s broomstick over his knee.

“Your flying days are over,” he stated.

“That’s twenty pieces of silver for the witch and five shillings for the gnome,” Bray said. “Take them away. Next!”

“Move it along. Come on! Get up!” one of Bray’s guards shouted as he dragged the gnome off to one of the prison wagons.

Next in line, a beefy human man with a round head, wearing brown pants and a brown vest over a dirty white tunic, scowled as he held the end of a rope binding a pair of tall, thin sisters—one fair-haired with sun-kissed skin, dressed in sheep wool and soft, deerskin boots that were laced up to her knees; the other was pale, with hair dark as night, clothed in form-fitting studded leather armor and comfy leather boots with fur trim—who cast worried looks at groups of primordial men in animal-skin tunics who were being sold as slaves, and three other men with painted faces—guerrilla leaders, wearing bearskins—as they were put into cages.

“What have you got?” Bray asked.

“Well, I’ve got a pair of fallen angels!” the man grunted as he pushed them roughly.

“Right,” Bray sneered. “Well, that’s good for ten shillings... if you can prove it.”

At first, Bray was suspicious, as the two sisters gazed at him with big, pleading eyes.

His guards inspected them with curiosity; they were most enthralled by the women’s hair.

“Well?” he asked.

“Oh, they’re just-- They’re just a little nervous,” the beefy man told them.

“That’s it. I’ve heard enough!” Bray shouted. “Guards, get him out of my sight!”

“No, no, no, no, they’re angels! I swear! They are! They are angels!”

As he was being dragged off, the mushroom-headed man kicked the elder of the two sisters in the rear, and a pair of white feathered wings shot out from her upper back in a cloud of shimmering gold dust. She quickly retracted them, but not quick enough.

“They are angels!” Bray shouted. “Seize them!”

Two armored guards converged on the sisters as they made a run for it, dodging two more as they fled across a field and entered the woods.

“After them!” Bray kept shouting as he and his soldiers gave chase as the two women ran into the forest. “They’re getting away!”

Huddled together, the crowd of armored creatures trampled over a “Stay Out!” sign mounted next to another sign depicting a monster surrounded by the words, “Beware: Dragon!”

Frightened, the two sisters kept on running through the trees as Bray and his forces trailed behind them. Suddenly, the pair tripped over the end of a very large, pointed tail. And when they looked up, they gasped in terror at what it was they had stumbled upon.

It was a dragon--a big, shiny, purple dragon--not a friend.

His senses were keen enough to detect the subtle vibrations of every footstep... and hear every breath. Even in his human form he had leveled entire castles... definitely not a friend.

“They went this way! Get them!”

With a panicked look, the two sisters ran into the bushes behind the Dragon as the guards raced over and then stopped.

“You there, Dragon!” Bray shouted.

The Dragon scowled, “Aye?”

“By the order of Emperor Grogar, I am authorized to place you under arrest, and transport you to a designated... resettlement... facility...”

“Oh, really?” the Dragon asked as he loomed over the little man. “Ye and what army?”

One guard, a pig-snouted ogre, snorted as he waved his torch in the dragon’s face, and shouted, “Back! Back, beast! Back! I warn ya!”

The Dragon frowned at the torch-bearing guard as he towering over them. Then the Dragon stuck out his tongue and wrapped it around the flame, snuffing out the ogre’s torch.

The soldiers gasped and then cowered as the Dragon’s mouth opened, revealing rows of sharp fangs. The Dragon roared as they cowered and trembled before him, tears glistening on their whimpering cheeks.

Then the Dragon leaned in close and whispered, “This is the part where ye run away.”

The creatures screamed as they dropped their weapons and took off in a panic.

“And stay out!” the Dragon roared after them.

He turned to walk away, but briefly halted when he heard the sound of laughter among the trees. It was the two women that had tripped over his tail. Their breasts jiggled as they laughed, but they immediately stopped laughing when he found them in the undergrowth.

“I think he’s looking over here,” the older one of them gasped. “Head down.”

“I think he saw us. Now what?” the other asked.

“Act like we’re not here,”

“We’re not here!”

“Shh! What are you doing?”

“Thou said to--”

“Don’t say anything. Shh! We’re sorry,” the elder one apologized to the Dragon as he saw them. “We didn’t mean to trespass in your territory. We swear, we didn’t come here to steal anything, or to anger you, we promise. Please spare us!”

“Please, don’t eat us!” the younger one added. “Thou wouldn’t like us. We’re gamey.”

“Eat her!”

“Oh, thank you very much, Breastia!”

“Moon worshipper!”

“Miss ‘Praise the Sun’!”

“Wide load!”

“Cake butt!” the younger one shouted and then gasped. “We are so sorry.”

“You went too far that time,” the older one said sadly.

“We said we’re sorry,”

“I’m not going to hurt ye,” the Dragon said as they came out from their hiding place.

“You’re... not going to hurt us?” the older sister asked.

“No,” he said simply.

“Well, that’s very comforting to hear from a fire-breathing reptile the size of a small fortress,” she said. “So, if you’re not going to hurt us... does that mean you won’t kill us, or just that you won’t make our deaths painful?”

“I doona eat people,” the Dragon said.

He obviously meant them no harm, and as suddenly as he had appeared, he started to walk away again.

“So the legends are true,” the older sister whispered.

“May we sayeth something to thou?” the younger sister inquired. “That was incredible!”

“Are ye talking at me?” the Dragon asked.

“Yes, as a matter of fact, we art speaking to thou,” the younger of the two replied. “And may we say that thou were truly something back there? We mean, really, really great!”

“Ye’re welcome,” the Dragon told her. “Now, why doona ye go and celebrate yer freedom with yer own friends? Hmm?”

“Well, that’s easy enough to answer: we don’t have any friends,” the older sister answered. “And we are not going back there again!”

As they continued to follow him, the older sister wondered what type of animals roamed these woods. They wanted to keep some distance between them and the Emperor’s forces before finding a safe place to sleep for the night. He was waging war on half the continent of Europone. He was preparing to march against the Drow soon; it would take a few months before he was done with the Dwarves and other Elves.

Then the younger sister got an idea. “We shall stick with thee,” she told the Dragon. “Together, we shall drive away anybody that crosses us.”

“May we stay with you?” the older sister inquired.

“What?” the Dragon asked.

“May we stay with you, please?” she repeated, more politely.

“Well, since ye asked nicely, why the Tartarus not?” he replied.

“Really?” both sisters asked hopefully.

“No! Ye just want a meat shield so ye doona become the next predator’s victim,” he said.

“Thou art one very shrewd male,” the younger sister said.

“Listen, fallen angels, look at me. What am I?”

He stood tall, grim-faced, as if cut from the rugged granite around him.

When they’d first laid eyes on him, they hadn’t seen the crisscrossing scars marring his smooth scales. This male had seen battle, a lot of battle.

When they couldn’t give an answer, he said, “I am a dragon. Ye know, ‘Slay the dragon!’ Does that not bother ye?”

The elder sister shook her head and asked, “Should it?”

“Are ye serious?”

“We have never been more serious about anything in our life,” the younger sister replied. “We know that doesn’t sound like much reassurance, but it’s true.”

Then the older sister asked, “Who are you?”

The question seemed to catch him off-guard.

“We should start with introductions,” she said. “We can’t just keep calling you ‘Dragon,’ after all, so... What is your name?”

“I’m Spike.” His deep voice, drawn rough and strong, reflected his Highland heritage. “And ye are?”

“My name is Celestia. Celestia Soleil, thank you for asking,”

“Luna. Luna St. Selena. Pleased to formally meet you,”

“And may I say that you have beautiful eyes,” Celestia remarked idly.

Spike the Dragon growled as he stomped away from the now smiling sisters.

“You know what we like about thee, Spike?” Luna asked. “Thou hath that I-don’t-care-what-anybody-thinks-of-me attitude. We like that. And we like you.”

They followed Spike uphill until he had reached his destination: a cavern in the hillside.

“You don’t get many visitors, do you?” Celestia guessed.

“I cherish my solitude,” he stated as he left them at the cave mouth set in the rock wall. “I’ll be back.”

Ancient Earth provided primitive Man with all the food he could eat... provided he was smart enough to catch it. By leaping up and grabbing the best fruit from the trees, not only did the dragons eat it and grow strong, but they left the crumbs for mankind so that their species would prevail over the bearded bipeds.

Primitive Man was a hunter. He had an intimate relationship with his food, a spiritual intimacy. They were at one with their meal. The hunter would stalk and kill his prey, then pay homage to the animal’s spirit. He would give thanks to the animal for giving its life.

Now, as the Sun began to go down, the powerfully-muscled Dragon stalked an elk through a thicket. The Dragon slinked under a fallen tree, creeping steadily through the tall grass toward the unsuspecting animal. He crouched low on all fours, his back arched. Locking his gaze on the elk, he snarled as he chased after it. He nipped at the elk’s legs, jumped onto the animal’s head, grabbing it by the antlers, then swung down to the animal’s mouth and yanked it, sending them both to the ground.

“We’re-- we’re going to eat an elk?” Celestia asked.

“No. I am eating elk,” Spike grunted as he shoved a claw into the creature’s mouth and pulled out a fistful of small, round, red fruits. “And only because he stole my berries.”

He gave thanks for the elk--and to the elk’s spirit--before carrying it back to his cave.

Luna had made herself useful picking up sticks to start a fire with before darkness fell. The last thing she wanted was to be out in the dark with no fire. She returned with an armload of sticks, pleased with herself, as the Dragon turned at the entrance to his cave, looked down at the two sisters, and asked, “That’s yer shelter?”

“You are a dragon, you have a whole cave,” Celestia replied. “We are two fallen angels.”

“Ye’ve got half a bundle o’ wood,” he said.

And he began to skin the elk.

The sky darkened as Celestia set about starting the campfire, trying to light one by rubbing two of the sticks together. In the haze of late evening, she and Luna could smell the rain coming. A sudden flash of lightning sparked across the moor behind them, followed by a deafening crack of thunder. Celestia jumped at the noise while Luna tried to hide behind the bundle of firewood she’d gathered.

Inside his cave, the Dragon bent down to the small pile of brush he had collected and gently blew fire into it, which snapped upward. Rain dripped on Celestia and Luna’s heads and they wiped at it, still attempting to make fire, as another flash of lightning lit up the cloudy sky.

Spike looked down at the open flames of his own campfire, which flickered as they cast their golden light across the walls of his cave before glancing toward the cave’s entrance. He sighed as his eyes moved back to the fire.

Then he growled softly and asked, “Do ye... want to share the shelter?”

“Yes! Please! Please!” the sisters begged.

“If you want to stay, ye can,” he replied. “But one. Night. Only.”

Celestia and Luna raced in and sat on the ground by the fire. They were quick to notice that his cave was stocked with furs--and not just bear or wolf, but rabbit, Europone wildcats and beavers, eleven foxes, and a Scolttish red deer. There was even a pelt of an animal they did not recognize; it was orange with black stripes. And a big iron pot hung above the dancing flames.

“That smells good,” Luna said. “Is that squirrel?”

“Nay,” he replied. “Rabbit.”

In addition to the elk he’d just killed, the Dragon had gathered strawberries and a skinned hare was roasting on a rotisserie spit over his fire.

“Keep yourselves warm,” he said. “I’m going to get some water.”

The two sisters must have been hungry, Spike thought.

They had not eaten for days... and their throats were parched. He briefly disappeared deeper into the cave and returned with two wood cups filled with water.

“There’s a natural stream that runs through this cave,” he spoke softly. “Here, drink.”

Was he trying to dispel the thick unease between them?

The cave was cold and the two fallen angels even colder, in body and in mood. Spike the Dragon draped the tiger pelt around the women’s wet shoulders where they sat against the rough, curved wall. Other than that, he didn’t seem to notice them. He didn’t even look their way.

Celestia took a small, round bread roll he offered. For a moment, Spike thought she would refuse or even throw it at him.

“Thank you,” she gritted out and took a bite.

His eyes rose in silent astonishment; manners, even toward a dragon. He shook his head. He’d never understand these beings.

“What are ye doin’ here?” he said at last.

“What do you mean?” Celestia asked.

“Ye doona belong here in my woods,” he told them. “That much is clear.”

“And what do you mean by that?” Celestia demanded.

“Isn’t it obvious?” he replied. “Ye’ve been here for almost two weeks. I’ve watched ye for most of that. Yer idea of hunting is throwing rocks at birds and rabbits and slinging sticks at fish. It’s pathetic. The only thing I think ye’ve eaten since ye arrived here were a few berries and a fish that was already dead. Well, that and the tree bark ye tried to eat.”

He was right. They had been wandering for what felt more like five months, living on what they could find—plants and small animals—and sleeping in the forks of trees so the wolves and other predators couldn’t harm them... until they were captured.

“Why didn’t you help us?” Luna asked.

“That’s easy enough to answer: I didna care. After all, ye are strangers trespassing in my territory... I give trespassers a wide berth, it’s safer that way. I figured ye’d be eaten by wolves by now. Besides, ye would have run as soon as ye saw me. And ye’ve seen how well approaching humans and other creatures works for me,”

“So why now?” Celestia wanted to know.

“Let’s just say I have grown... fond of ye,” he replied honestly. “Like I said, I’ve been watching ye since ye came here. And the longer I watched, the more curious I became. It was amusing, watching ye stumble about, trying to feed yerselves... at first. And then I started to pity ye... a little. I even thought about leaving some food at yer campsite the day before yesterday.”

“Why didn’t you?” Celestia asked.

“Well, because ye had already found food... ye just didna take it,”

“The baby deer,” Luna breathed.

Spike nodded. “Aye. After two weeks, on the brink of starvation, ye came across a fawn; the perfect prey, food for a couple of days right in front of ye... and all ye would have had to do was pick up a rock and bash its skull in... but ye couldna do it, could ye? As hungry as ye were, ye couldna bring yourself to kill a defenseless animal. It was then that I decided giving ye a meal wouldna be enough. It would have only helped ye for a day, maybe two, and then what? Ye’d be back to trying to catch fish with wishful thinking! I know ye doona have any tools, or skills, and yet ye’re still here.” Then he said, “Ye doona have a home to go back to... do ye?”

Judging from the looks on their faces, his guess wasn’t far off.

“Why are ye here, in my forest?” he asked. “What happened to ye?”

Celestia told him that they had been cast away to the realm of mortals because of their disobedience and rebellion. They possessed Light elements by nature, but had acquired Dark attacks through their betrayals, taking advantage of humanity’s greed. They had taken refuge in a settlement under the care of a company of demons that had been kicked out of Tartarus for being “too noble.” And when the “noble demons” were slain by a group of hunters who took over the village, the sisters realized just how foolish they had been.

“But then a plague ravaged the town, killed half the population,” she said.

“Including yer friends?” Spike inquired.

The two sisters nodded.

“My condolences... No one should have to go through that,” he said. “So... ye came here to escape the disease before ye became ill?”

“We were exiled,” Luna said.

“Why?” he asked.

“We were the only ones who didn’t get sick... so they blamed us for it,” Celestia replied.

“I’m surprised they didn’t offer us up as a sacrifice or burn us as witches,” Luna added. “My sister and I started a fire, after that the hill tribes raided the area, took us captive... we managed to escape, until slave traders captured us again, marched us to the coast and traded us to a group who brought us here.”

“I’m sorry,” he apologized. “Ye doona have to talk about it.”

Wind and rain thrashed outside as thunder rumbled and shook the mountainside. But they were safe in the cave. These mountains held numerous caves and conduits; he’d explored them in his youth and still didn’t know where they all led.

The Dragon cleared his throat as he turned the hare.

Celestia kept the tiger pelt about her shoulders as she sat before the fire, pulling the ends together in front of her barely concealed breasts. Her body still trembled from the near fatal experience of earlier that day. She and Luna kept their eyes on the fire as Spike removed the hare from the spit, cut off some of the warm, delicious-smelling meat and handed it to them.

“Here. Eat all you want,” he told them. “I have plenty.”

“Oh... I see... hospitality,” Celestia thought.

In addition to warmth and shelter, he was offering them a meal... with no ulterior motive.

Celestia barely stifled her automatic response of “thank you” as she took it.

She looked at her sister as if to say, “Now pay attention... non-verbal communication is key here. We have been offered just enough to be polite but not obligatory... so take a bite, but don’t finish off your food. That signifies courtesy and gratitude, not reciprocal promise.”

However, Celestia finished hers, licked her fingers seductively, deliberately eyed him up and down, and batted her eyelashes at him.

She was about to ask him what she would have to do to make him her mate.

She wanted to make raucous love with him so badly.

And then the Dragon asked, “What deities do ye serve?”

Celestia was almost mortified, but quickly regained her composure.

“We pray to the Maker of Earth,” she answered. “And you?”

“To the Almighty, the Great I Am,” Spike replied. “But I seldom pray to Him. He does not hear me; nor do I hear Him. But He gives me strength. And when I die, I will have to stand before Him, and He will ask me, ‘Were ye a good and faithful servant?’ If I say no, he will cast me out of Paradise and into Tartarus. That’s Him.”

“The Fates said thou would come,” said Luna. “From the isle of scaly creatures, a male of great strength; a kingmaker... One who would someday be conqueror by his own hand... one who would crush the rams of the Earth.”

“Rams? Did ye say rams?” Spike asked.

“What is it thou seeketh?” Luna asked him.

“A symbol on a banner... two rams facing each other...” he said.

“With a sun and a moon below,” Celestia said. “A black sun... and a red moon?”

“What do ye know of this?” he demanded.

“There is a price, Dragon,” Celestia said.

She was offering him a deal, as a prehistoric wolf gained a warm, dry place by the fire in exchange for keeping the cave free of mice, rats and lesser vermin.

Celestia and Luna watched Spike as he tore off one of the elk’s legs and gnawed at it as if it were a turkey’s leg while they ate... until the animal’s bones were picked clean.

“I have no sweets to finish the meal,” he said halfheartedly.

“Raspberries sweetened with honey,” Celestia murmured. “’Tis my favorite.”

Spike the Dragon walked around them to place another fur blanket out on the ground furthest from the rain misting into the cave. Celestia and Luna stiffened as he neared.

“I do not rape,” he said, his eyes level with theirs. “So ye can sleep soundly knowing that I willna approach ye... at least not until ye ask me to. Neither my love nor my body comes cheap. Do ye understand?”

His words hung in the air, a subtle barrier he was placing between them. Clearly, he was not one to make quick decisions regarding personal life.

“Get some sleep,” he said as he lay down near the dying embers. “It’s late and I know ye are tired. We can talk more in the morning.”

The Dragon’s strong tail slid across the cave floor and wrapped around their waists. Celestia nearly screamed when she felt his warm breath against her chilled ear. Luna smiled as she slept against Spike’s side and she and Celestia snuggled under his wing.

So that day ended like all the others did: with no particular objective and nothing to feel passionate about... just another unexceptional day.

What would happen to the two angel sisters tomorrow was unknown, but for the night, they could sleep and recover from their ordeal.