Simplified

It's been a few hours since I've finished texting Gabby. We've had a fairly entertaining exchange. And by entertaining, I mean a very arousing exchange of ideas and actions. She's almost as bad of a tease as Ocellus, but the difference with her and the changeling is that the griffon is more into innuendo, Ocellus is just out there with it. One leaves nothing to the imagination when describing their escapades, the other gives clues and won't give it away directly. And as a result of not having it out there, merely describing the actions or ideas surrounding the main attraction, she'll snare you into the trap of mindlessly imagining the things that she could be doing.

Needless to say that she's a fairly gifted writer, I've always known that from us being pen pals. Her messages are by far the best I've ever run into. They're heavily implied, but so descriptive that I might as well be reading a smut novel. Her way with words have translated well from parchment to text, I suppose the mind is all one needs to enthrall the senses. She doesn't like to be left on read, she will stay engaged and make sure to give you a little something to keep the conversation going.

She also seems to be fond of her hind legs, taking pictures of her thighs, the socks and sleeves she'll wear, the annoying but enticing method of censorship she has in keeping things tucked away from the camera's reach. She makes even the smallest detail of her body seem like an experience to be enjoyed in fractions. And of course she ends it with a final picture, a cropped image of her placing a single talon to her beak, devilishly calling for my silence on the matter, all of it sealed with that of a single smiling face with a halo over it's head.

The spell on me activated at least three times in the course of our exchange, each time feeling more agonizing than the previous surge. I had to run to my shower, running the water on cold until I could calm down. And by the passing moments of her messages getting hotter and hotter, the more I feel lied to by the changeling who threw me into this fresh hell. The day I have them both will be the day I might collapse towards the end of my hard work.

I go to bed with a different hunger in my system, one that will unfortunately remain unquenched for some time.

I'll admit that most of this day, I've done a lot to keep myself busy. At the very least I'm doing what I can to keep from thinking about Gabby so much. But even that seems to be an impossibility with the fact that she's scheduled a visit on this evening. So for the better part of the past two hours, I've done nothing but think about her.

The fact that she and I readily exchanged messages with the frequency of a pair of star-crossed teenagers, that coupled with the pictures she sent, they already stir the cogs in my mind that vie for unlocking the pent-up load of dopamine that I truly wish to offset.

But something unusual is happening. Gabby's not here, in fact she's supposed to be here like an hour ago. Even with the job in consideration, I made sure that she isn't pressing schedule too much. The table's set up for the game, but she's not here to help get the dice rolling. I grow a habit of checking my phone on the repeat, idly passing the time just by staring at the screen, hoping and wishing she'd say something. Maybe she canceled, something happened to her and she can't get through. I shoot a text, but I try not to appear as though I'm in desperation in spite of feeling just that.

A knock sounds on my door. I sigh as I quickly pace myself to answer, seeing the smoke-gray griffon, her feathers a bit of a ruffled mess. "Hey, you made it."

She looks very displeased. "Ugh, barely."

"Long day, huh?"

I welcome her through the door, offering to take whatever I can from her to make her feel comfortable. "You have no idea. I got swamped by a double run. Derpy called out sick today with feather flu, so they placed her route on me before I could even start mine." She also hands me two envelopes, some junk items. "Oh yeah, here's your mail."

I guess that explains my lack of mail today. Didn't know she had me as part of her route. "Yeah, it is a bit late."

I look through the two letters, one advertising for a national furniture chain, the other is a bunch of coupons for various food joints. I tossed one and kept the coupons. "I came straight from work. Sorry."

I can tell by looking at her she's in no mood to get all huggy. Maybe I should help her out a bit. "No it's fine. Do you need to shower or anything?"

"Well I could freshen up just a tad." Her eyes suddenly buck open with concern, she quickly panics as she sniffs herself. "Do I smell?"

"No! I mean, I just thought you needed the bit of cool-off after running around Ponyville like it's a marathon. If you wanna wait until you get home, that's cool too. I don't mind."

She's quick to take the offer, darting for the second floor. "Thanks, Spike!"

"I have towels on the rack by the tub! They're mainly for decoration, but they're fresh!"

"Great!" Just a second later, I can hear the sound of the water running. Guess she wasn't wasting any time to hop in. I drop my head to exhibit relief in seeing the griffon taking the time to swing by.

I only wish she had given me a heads-up or something while out and about, but I suppose she was trying to push through her route as quickly as she could before coming here. I suppose I should also cook her a little something to give her some energy. I make my way to the kitchen, opening up the fridge to see what all I have to make a good relaxing meal.

♫Life in Equestria Shimmers! Life in Equestria Shiiiiiines!♪

The ringtone gives away who's calling at the moment, I already feel a bit of annoyance at the name I read on the screen. But I suppose it shouldn't be that bad of a call to take. "Hello?"

"Hey Spike. Just checking in." She starts off with a fairly casual greeting.

I place the phone on speaker and start rummaging through the fridge for the ingredients I intend to use. "Yeah, what's up?"

"You didn't forget about this weekend, did you?" And of course, that's her concern.

"No, the friendship summit is scheduled for Friday and Saturday, right?"

"Actually, it's scheduled for Sunday as well."

...For fuck's sake, now I have no time for my own damn self this weekend. Guess I'll have to nix the possibility of meeting up with Smolder and Ocellus on Sunday afternoon. "Okay, so I guess I'll pack a little extra."

"No need. You'll be staying here in the castle so that way you don't have to spend money on a hotel. Everyone will be spending the night here."

As well-intentioned as that action is, I would much rather pay to be away from the castle grounds. I just don't like being there anymore, it has a stigma of being a workplace with a bed for convenience. "Okay, so I know I'm usually part of the setup, but never the actual summit. So what do you girls actually do?"

"A bunch of things. Spa day, walk in the park, visit a few restaurants, see the buckball game, take a few moments to do some catching up on a few others, stuff like that."

I'm willing to bet because it's Twilight, everything is set to a strict schedule. That's not quite selling me on how fun it's going to be. "I guess that sounds like fun."

"We also have a special guest coming along for this one, that way you don't feel too left out."

"Who?" I bet the surprise is going to be underwhelming.

"Shining Armor!" I suppose it's not that underwhelming, I actually enjoy spending time with him. The only issue is since he became a family guy, everything's been catered towards having Flurry Heart around. And she's a handful to manage, I'm saying that part politely.

I chuckle back at the princess on the other end. "Why do I feel like you just coordinated this to make your schedule work around having your brother here?"

"Not just Shining, Cadance and Flurry will be coming in too." I FUCKING CALLED IT! "They're pretty excited to see you again, I told them how you're living on your own now. They want all the details of the new house. I just hope Blue didn't go overboard with what she did, I was thinking she'd probably give you a simple little house that would best fit your current lifestyle."

The funny part is that Ms. Royal understands my current lifestyle better than you do. "Oh yeah, she got me right."

"Yeah, a little traditional home that blends in well with the Ponyville aesthetic. I know that's what you would've wanted, something that feels a little homey like the old library."

I slept in a basket back then. "Well it is a little spacious."

She groans, seeming mildly inconvenienced. "I told her that you don't do big, so I hope it's not too much."

I take one look at my foyer and see the ample amount of space, I don't feel one bit of regret or discomfort. "Trust me, I'm good."

"Great. So your train to Canterlot sets out from Ponyville at approximately 7:45 Friday morning. You'll be here around 8:30, once you step off, you can hang around town until 4 in the afternoon. Then you should be back at the castle before 4:30 to greet Shining, Cadance, and Flurry. The others will come around whenever they get here. At 4:30, we set off to our first activity."

Great, a schedule with an early departure to the city I've grown to dislike with no time to accommodate for my own doings, I hate it already. "Okay."

"Great, but remember to get up early on Friday morning so you can catch your train."

I want to throw my phone. "Yup."

"Alright! I hope to see you then! Get plenty of rest before your early morning! Make sure that you set your alarm two hours early, that should give you enough time to wake up, shower, make your breakfast, and be at the train station with an hour left to wait for your train. That way you get enough time to load your baggage, make your way to your seat, and hopefully not forget anything of importance. Remember the best kind of travel period is a stress-free travel period."

She's never going to change, despite how many conversations we have about this. "Later!"

"Spike, don't forget to─" I mash the end-call icon, placing my phone in airplane mode. I place it back on the counter and drop my head over the fresh vegetables I put on the island during the call.

I walk over to the utensil drawer, drawing a knife to cut my foliage. I start to work with a manic pace to offset the anger I'm feeling. As I'm dicing my tomatoes, Gabby walks in with a tower over her head as though she lives here. I find some comfort in the idea, causing me to slow down a bit and notice the concern on her face, this time aimed at me. "You okay?"

"Just Twilight things." My work start to speed back up again.

She takes notice of the increased impact my knife makes with the counter as I chop. "Oh, are you two, like, clashing right now?"

"It's nothing." I deny as I continue.

"We can talk about it." She suggests.

I look at her and I start to distract myself with much more pleasant thoughts. "I'd rather talk about what you─"

"NOPE!" She screams, startling me to the point where I nearly drop my knife. She flies over to me and forces the knife onto the counter while dragging me away to the dining room table. "Sit down." She ushers me so forcefully with her towel on top of her head, pulling a chair next to me as she points for me to park next to her. She leans onto the table top, never minding the game I had ready for us to play. "Now. Tell me what's going on."

Sometimes I forget just how assertive she is, and even more so how she goes into this mode with all the love she has. It's truly nostalgic. If I'm not careful, I could get lost in conversation with her like we used to do in our letters. My history is catching up with me, it reminds me of what I felt for her then.

Okay, Spike, dial it back and answer her question. "Twilight dictating my schedule again. She promised that I could be more independent when I got around to being on my own, now she's telling me that I have to be at a certain place at a certain time for this stupid summit. Like all I can think of is how she just treated me back when I was in Canterlot, never giving me a schedule to make on my own, always going by the one she makes instead."

The griffon leans in with her question. "Did she pay for you to be there at a certain time?"

"Of course she did, and without talking to me first. Like how is that fair? I might have had plans on my own, she can't just assume that I'm open to being on her time every time we do this."

She pauses, probably taking a moment to look at both sides. She carefully gauges her response. "I can agree that you do have a good reason to be upset. She should've talked with you before finalizing plans, so you get that one."

She obviously sympathizes with my side, but also shows signs of an opposing view. "Alright, so let me hear the other foot drop."

"Having that said, I can also see that she's probably eager to have you back. Maybe the time apart from you is something that gets to her somehow. Maybe she made that decision so the two of you can have some time to hang out with one another."

I shake my head with denial. "She knows I'm sick and tired of her."

"Is it because she's controlling or something─"

"That part!" I holler, slamming my fist on the table. "She's been like that forever."

She gives a sigh before smiling off to the side. "Well, I know how it feels to be in that kind of environment."

"You do?" I tilt my head in curiosity.

She looks back with a simple nod. "Probably a little more than you know."

"Is your boyfriend like that?" I question her.

"Well... my ex, he was like that." I start to point at myself, wondering if I had ever been like that. She quickly grabs at me to correct my assumptions. "I mean I've dated someone like that, after we broke up. It was when I moved back to Griffonstone, his name was Gilead. He never liked for me to leave home when I had time, or have a social life for that matter. And you know usual griffon behavior, if I made some money, he'd want part of it. But if he made any, no sharing. It's a typical thing for griffon males to be like that, but you know that's not my way of doing things. So I did what any sensible griff would do when they're in a position they don't want to be in. I left, didn't even tell him goodbye."

I'm now curious about her time away, especially her romantic past outside of me. My attention completely blanks on the food I have sitting out. "So you left him, then what?"

"I left town. I left the area. I left him on call block. I live in a small little apartment on the south-side of town, and I can't really do too much because of it. I just go to work, fly low, stay to my route, head back home."

Seeing her in this towel, seeing the way she's comfortable while at this table, I start to wonder if she's actually looking for a place to nest in for a bit. The south side of town is pretty far from the post office, compared to here where it's three blocks over. But then again, I have to take things slow, not rush her into cutting ties and leaving nest. Perhaps I should see what all her situation is like before offering her a place to chill. "Does your boyfriend know of this guy?"

"Yeah, he does." She answered that pretty quickly.

"You and this Gilead guy, how long you two been separated for?"

She takes a second to think about it. "Two years."

Now let's take on the present. Obviously she wouldn't shoot those messages at me like she did on yesterday without having some sort of exit strategy in mind. Maybe she is looking to have a bit of fun on the outside, or maybe I could be right in assuming that she's actually single. "So what's the problem between you and your current? Things not panning out?"

She blows a bit of air at herself, playing with her talons as she rambles a while. "He and I, we don't share any similarities. If anything, we're just roommates right now, at least how I see it."

A roommate, so she's renting with a partner. "So that's all you are together?"

I see a smile creep at the corners of her beak. "I mean he's pretty proud to call me his girlfriend. It's hard to tell if he's playing or not. It's just that I don't feel much when we're together."

An unrequited relationship? Maybe she sees him in a platonic sense. "Have you talked to him?"

"I want to... but..." She hasn't said a word to him.

This evening is starting to turn, and not quite for the better. "What?"

"He let me in his place rent-free for a year. He helped me get back on my feet. If anything, he's a really good guy. I just feel bad because I know I don't feel for him the way he falls for me. Like I gave it a shot and everything, we even... you know."
Slept together, I guess I can't be upset for what she does when she's been warning me of this from the start. Plus we just reconnected, I have no place to judge. "Like what would happen if I told him that I'm basically on the verge of dumping him because I'm not feeling it? Wouldn't that just ruin him? I mean he's a good guy, me doing that could probably turn him out for the worse. So I'm working hard to do what I can, to save up as much as I can to pay him back for that first year."

She's in something she doesn't want to be a part of. I can understand her not wanting to take pride in that, but now I feel terrible. The entire time I'm acting like she's not in something, she's just trying to get out of it. I feel shitty for assuming, but now I feel even worse for knowing that I might be an accessory. Dammit.

I piece together my response, choosing carefully what to say while implying that I'm still open to having her around. "I think with the way we're doing this, you and I, that's ten times worse than anything you could say. Maybe you could... clear the air a bit with him. You're going about it the right way by trying to pay him back, but I don't think you leading him on will work."

While she's quiet about it, I do know the symptoms of her lashing back. She starts low, then inevitably explodes overtime. She's now at her low point. "What about you and your girlfriend? Doesn't she have some reservations over me talking to you, coming over to your home when she's not around?"

Well I guess this is about as good of a time as any. I should come clean on what's in the works before she fuels that flame she's got rolling. "Actually, she's pretty open about having a multi-faceted relationship."

"What does that mean?" She tilts her head.

"Welll, she's... open-minded." I explain bluntly. "Fairly open minded, to everything."

She lurches back with some visible confusion. "...Is she... bisexual or something?"

"Very VERY pansexual." I nod. "Yeah."

"Oh... Uh." She starts to look down, that flame of quiet anger metaphorically kicked over like a small campfire. She groans with a few thoughts in mind. "Spike, I don't know... I've never been with a female of any species before. I don't think I can manage that too well."

I try to keep the air from being as awkward while I make a quick joke on Ocellus' part. "Knowing her, she'd probably say something like 'They always say that starting off.' She's unique, I'll give her that."

A simple chiming noise sounds out in the room. I know it's not my phone because of my ringtones, she pulls out hers and pick up the phone while asking me to hold on speaking. "Hey, hold on, I gotta take this." As she puts her ear to the speaker, I can hear another voice on the other end. It's that of a young male, and he sounds worried. "Hello?... Yeah... I'm just out with a friend. I'll be back home pretty soon... I know... Yeah... I get it... Galefor, I'll be there, I promise!... Alright, I'm coming home... Love you too." She hangs up the call, removes the towel from her head and hurriedly folds it to leave on my table. "Hey, Spike. I gotta go."

While I won't say it, I'll admit that the interaction has me a bit numb. I can tell she doesn't mean it, at least some part of her don't mean the words she uttered. But the fact that they left her lips to begin with is discouraging. I feel sorry for the young male she hung up on, and now I feel regret because the thing I thought wasn't real is just another look into the past from a different perspective.

All these years of chasing and hoping, failing and coping, now here I am on the outside of that dynamic looking back in. I'm almost sick to my stomach. "Yeah, I understand."

She hurries back to the foyer, I escort her to the door. She pauses a while to address me. "So um... Next Wednesday or Thursday, question mark?" And she's still showing eagerness to set our next appointment.

The worst thing is that the guilt is there, but so is the desire to continue the pursuit. "I think we can fit that in." My gut twists at the answer I speak. It's truth, and it's a shameful look now, a glutenous indulgence of possibilities and reliving past times with present ambitions. And it's all at the cost of another's heart.

It's a decision to be made, one she's already made for her own self. "Great! So, I'll see you then?"

I stammer a response, trying not to appear too lost in thought. "Y-yeah. See you then."

She finally notices the sullen look on my face. I glance off, trying not to make it anymore obvious, but she turns my head and bring me into a tight hug. The talons that worked a long day hauling mail runs along my spine. I look down to see her uncomfortably close, she looks up to me, her eyes filled with both optimism and uncertainty. I watch as her beak shapes words that fail, before they finally eject some semblance of language. "...Call me, so we can talk."

Her grip is slow to relinquish, her claws slide from off of my shoulders as she peers down my chest. She's trying to control herself in the moment, psyching herself up to leave. Her wings slowly expand, as it's revealed to me that her tail had lightly coiled around my wrist. She takes to the sky at last, leaving a breeze and a few loosened feathers behind on the floor of my foyer, the steps of my front door. Meanwhile, I don't know what to feel other than melancholy and guilt, simultaneously intermixed with joy and anticipation.

So this is the other side, the one being pursued by another's unrequited crush. What shame, what wonder.

I finally broke.

My entire Thursday morning was spent looking after message after message of the things Gabby sent to me. For many hours, I spent hunched over my phone's screen. My claws were as active as they've ever been with the exception of dragon lust. My body chafed with unsuccessful attempts to piston away the lust that had built over the past few days. With every chance I got close, it slips faster than I can keep myself at attention. For moments, I was priming at nothing after experiencing much in tow. I lived a miserable day, both wanting to cross the line and experiencing that post-session clarity with none of the climax in between.

She and I talked for a bit, but only a short while. She mainly texted me afterwards, citing that her 'roommate' had wanted some reading time together. They were reading from a romance novel. And she would describe what scene they were on, pointing out where he is in the story, if he was reading dramatically. Much to her chagrin, they came across a rather warm scene that details one of the protagonist's romantic exploits with a neighboring prince, a taboo considered by that country's laws.

Her messages informed me that she's letting him get immersed in the plot, but I know her language. It's not the book he's getting into. She sends another message, saying that he's trying his best to play the role, but misses a lot of the character's perspective. I send a message to ask if she needs time away, she replies no. She also adds on that she wants him to finish the chapter, but he's too stubborn to give up. Next comes a dry message that says 'I'm busy. Later.' The minutes pass and she gets back in touch with confirmation of what I already knew. 'Sorry, my roommate took my phone. He saw I was texting you.' I ask if she's okay, she merely replies with a simple message. 'I'll call you when I have time.'

We spent two hours talking into the AM. She ranted a lot about the reading session they had, citing that he used it to get close to her again. She doesn't speak directly of her experience, but her complaints make it known that their interaction was far from enthralling. She makes a comment of our time together with the game on Sunday. And before I knew it, we were both taking under our breath over the phone. Pants and quiet whispers come from her end, while mine is much more subdued in part by the spell that continues it's stranglehold on my libido. It takes a while for her to finish, an indirect confession of her catching a glimpse at my most vulnerable moment. The night ends with a final pant goodbye, and a picture of her bathroom floor after her time over the phone. It's hard to tell at first glance, but the stain against her wall, and the pooling puddle on the floor describes much of her.

I spent another two hours just trying to soldier through the spell, to no avail of course.

My alarm goes off and I'm an unceremonious mess from having only forty-five minutes of rest. I simply compromise with myself over the idea that I could just rent a hotel for a short period before making my way to the castle. But as soon as I step out of my house, I see a pair of guards looking to escort me to the train station. I see we're already off to a fine start of the day.

My time going from Ponyville to Canterlot lasts less than the wait I had while I was at the train station waiting for the damn train itself, but I'm relieved to make it in. The only thorn in my plans is that I am made to report to the castle before setting out to do whatever else. And Inkwell is the first one to greet me after my time away.

She gives me a written itinerary of projected meetings with important personnel for the next six months. My once-free schedule is now a blocky mess of travel-on-travel-on-travel like before. It isn't until I finally spend another five hours reallocating those meetings to other representatives to alleviate my load. Now my schedule is back to being more-or-less free. And I'm back to dragging myself to my usual room for less than a two-hour nap.

A knock sounds at my door, it's yet another guard with a schedule to keep me chained to. And just like in usual fashion, I'm dragged to the location of where Twilight is situated. As I'm trudging forward, I see the smile that only a barbed wire bat can wipe away. "Spike!"

Hey, me, I bet it was a good idea to try to jack off through a chastity spell for two hours, totally worth it. "Hey Twilight."

There's not enough coffee in the world that could make her smiling mug all the more bearable to me right now, especially after that shit they tried to toss on me today. "You're early enough to be on time today. I see you haven't slacked off too much."

Let me at least try to act civilized, despite me heavily leaning into my dragon genes at the moment. "I see you're just as meticulous as ever. But why are we talking like it hasn't been anything but two weeks apart?"

"I don't know. I guess not having you around does make things feel a little different." I know she says that with a smile, but right now I'm feeling like that little dump of dates from earlier is a petty power move.

Then again, she could be genuinely happy to see me. It's hard to tell on three hours of sleep. "I'm sure it does."

"UNCLE SPIKE!"

Oh boy, here comes the bundle of energy that could fuel a thousand suns. Remember, Spike, she's not the one who made you stay up all night. Be nice, turn to her and greet her. "Hey Flurry─" As she glomps down on me, I notice that her body is a bit larger than expected, especially for a six-year-old. Her stature is akin to that of a ten-year-old filly with the wings of a fully-grown pegasus, she's probably got the mind to reflect her current age as well. And because of the strange condition she's born with, she ages up faster than what most normal ponies do. Needless to say that her tackle-hugging me is more than a surprise. "Holy crap you're getting big!"

"That's what I'm saying!" Twilight looms over the both of us, seeing how happy Flurry is while holding on to me. She turns back to speak with her older sibling. "Shining, what in the wide world of Equestria are you feeding this girl!?"

Shining Armor, while having sported a chiseled physique during his days as Captain of the Royal Guard, no longer has that same physique. Instead, he's a stocky fellow with a growing beard and a braided mane that runs down his side. He's a more adult-looking stallion firmly stationed in his mid-thirties. He dons a purple and black ceremonial dress uniform with his trademark shield cutie mark pinned to the left side of his chest. The time up north exposes him to a great deal of barking orders, fighting battles, and negotiating with neighboring Yakyakistan. All of that results in him having a body built for strength over agility, a voice slightly lowered and raspier than before, and a demeanor much more cool and collected.

Even as he now serves as Emperor of the small city state, he's still true to himself. "Don't look at me, I'm not the one who cooks."

"You literally made dinner last night." Cadance goes by the way of her aging husband, going for a more conservative appearance over everything else. Her body isn't as thin as it once was, she's got a little more for Shining to hold on to, probably to his enjoyment because of where she's filled out. She also has a lot more curl to her mane these days, pinning up all the hair that used to dangle down her side. As Empress of the Crystal Empire, she's the leading voice of her citizens and the head of her imperial house.

"Daddy's pizza is the best!" Meanwhile, Flurry continues to oust her father for his culinary abilities contributing to her growth.

And the proud empress makes a running joke of it. "Seems the cooking lessons from our staff have paid off. Who knew that one anniversary meal would turn into him nearly becoming our head chef over five years?"

"Cadie, I could always cook, you know." The blue-maned emperor replies with deadpan.

She smooches her husband lovingly with a quick embrace. "Yeah, I know. That military mantra of fending for one's self is a thing to behold."

"I see it's also made you pick up a bit of weight." Twilight only points out the obvious. "Both of you."

"Well, it's harder to stick to a workout regiment when you're the leader of a city-state." Shining argues for himself.

"And it's hard to stay skinny when you have both a husband that can cook, and a bundle of unburnable baby weight." Cadance rebuts in her own defense.

"Don't blame me for your fat, mom!" And Flurry goes to show her razor-like wit, jokingly attacking her mother with the precision not seen since Chrysalis was last petrified.

Twilight takes a leaning glance to her brother's left hind leg. She sees he's still got a bit of a gimp in his step. "How's the leg?"

"It's better. You see I'm walking on it now." He answers, stomping his leg down confidently.

Twilight highlights a massive scar that seems to run down the side of his leg, it appears to have been a gruesome wound that's healed a significant amount. "I didn't expect you to be fighting Sombra cultists armed with trained snow yetis."

"Another tribulation brought on by the north." He says before turning his attention to me. "Hey, Spike!"

I greet the emperor back with a bump. "What's up!"

"You apparently. You've gotten pretty big yourself." He says with a smirk.

The young filly continues to show her excitement throughout our conversation. "Uncle Spike used to be my height, now he's way taller than we are!"

Cadance also chimes in about my lack of visitation. "All that traveling the world and hardly any time to see you up in the Crystal Empire. I see you're doing well for yourself."

I could still use a cup of coffee right now. "That I am."

As we're talking, I notice that there's a red carriage closing the distance between the castle checkpoint and the front steps leading into the castle foyer. I look over to see Twilight staring back in bewilderment over the unannounced visit. "Uh... who carriage is that?"

Shining goes on to explain himself. "Oh Twily, I know this was supposed to be your friendship summit, but since we're going to make a few specific rounds, I thought we could bring on one more to give us a bit of a jolt, you know, for the guys."

The fact that Twilight's expression has turned for the worse is somewhat appealing to me for the time being. She seems pretty peeved at our prospective visitor. "Please tell me you didn't."

Meanwhile, he tries to reassure her. "Twily, you know he's not even that bad."

"Still!" She calls out loudly before the carriage door opens to reveal the apparently unwanted guest.

A white stallion with a blond mane steps out from the carriage, his locks as luxurious and well-manicured as ever. He proudly stands out with a white and gold ceremonial uniform, his cutie mark is born on a sigil to the left of his chest. His body is going much of a similar route that Shining Armor's has taken, albeit a bit less. Still a prince, but not in a direct line of power, Blueblood greets Shining first with a respectable bow. "Well, if it isn't the Emperor of the North."

"Blueblood, I see we're both just putting it on a bit."

The prince lets out a hearty and proud laugh. "Fatherhood does the body wonders, doesn't it?"

"Who you telling? I feel like some of that unburnable baby fat somehow gets translated to us."

"Excuse you!?" Cadance takes offense to her husband's words.

Meanwhile, the prince now stationed in Manehattan greets me. "Well, if it isn't our little dragon friend. How are you pulling through on Princess Troublemaker's schedule?"

So to explain their dynamic, I should cover a bit of history. Years ago, Twilight had ran into some trouble with her then-appointed suitor. Back then there was a marriage law that stated that a royal could not procreate outside of the boundaries of marriage. She broke that law and was confronted by then Princess Celestia, who issued a punishment to her. Since then, Blueblood has called her that name to get on her nerves on occasion. "I thought we were done with that years ago!" To this day, she can't stand him calling her that.

"Twilight, please, you and your friends never seem to not find trouble in some way." He reminds her before turning to me. "Now back to you, you're sprouting up something fierce. What's gotten in you where you feel like you want to reach human heights?"

I shrug back at him. "I dunno, magic scepter?"

"If that's your story, stick to it." He seems to show approval of my increase of height. As he finishes praising me, another carriage pulls out in front of us. A blue carriage comes to a stop before the guards open the door, revealing a party of five familiar mares. The first to step out is Rarity, who he brings his attention to next. "Well if it isn't our favorite fashion deity."

"Charmed." Rarity rolls her eyes at the lingering prince.

"Come now, no need to be so cruel to me, Rarity."

While the others don't seem to mind his antics as much, the fashion entrepreneur places a hoof to his face to move him out of her way. "So, where's our first stop again?"

In a flirtatious tone, he snakes himself away from her hoof. "Are you still mad at me for the cake, that was years ago!"

"You used me as a shield." She reminds him with a quirked brow.

"Well I would've preferred to use you a bit differently, especially with as well as you've aged, my dear." He takes her hoof and kisses it with a smile, never minding the seven wives he already has waiting for him back home.

Years ago, I remember how Rarity would've favored the nearest sharp object and proceed to chase him around the grounds until the guards get involved. That's no longer the case these days, she's a bit more patient with the prince than she is annoyed. However, they still banter as though that much hasn't changed. "I would still prefer to have a restraining order."

In reality, I feel that the tension between them has grown over time. "Always and ever the hurtful, my dear."

And in some strange way, she seems to reciprocate it. "Always and ever the bothersome, darling."

Ugh, for fuck's sake, just get a room already.

As per Twilight's instruction, we stay to her designated schedule for most of the day. We have a forum in some old church downtown, where they start off with a moment to commemorate the ones who we no longer have with us. A lot of time seems to go into thinking back on all the friends who made ways for us, and the emotional release associated with it. There's a lot of tears shed, and for both Shining and Blueblood, a scroll's worth of names to ring a bell for. The others have a few bell rings but only maybe one to three names. Applejack has a few more than the others, but she's pretty stout about it. Me personally, I don't have a bell to ring or a name to call. I sure hope to keep it that way.

After that, we head to a local eatery in the famous Saddle Row. It's a pretty nice foodie joint with exotic foods from the way of Saddle Arabia. It's packed with rich aromas and flavors, a spot heavily recommended by both Rarity and Pinkie. So Twilight rented out the restaurant for a premium, and we eat dinner there.

All throughout the course of meal, Blueblood proudly pulls out his phone and goes through the pictures of every single one of his kids. He's a proud father of twelve, two on the way in the coming months. Most are boys, an unusual draw for many ponies, but he especially takes extreme pride in his four girls. He waxes on and on about his eldest daughter being interested in ballet, he shows concern for his second eldest wanting to do martial arts, he shows pride in his third being interested in music, but his baby girl is the one he truly holds as his favorite. While Shining has only one, he claims his daughter to be the best thing since the Elements of Harmony. The two have a dad debate, and we all just shake our heads over the verbal carnage that erupts at the table.

Following that, Cadance and Shining break off from the group to get Flurry tucked away into bed. Meanwhile the others look to get a few drinks in to celebrate the reunion. Twilight is skittish in asking me to join them, but Rarity holds a stern opposition to having me drink with them. She protests with the idea of me hanging back at the castle until the night's end, a resolution I argue against. However, Twilight favors the unicorn over me and has a guard escort me back to the castle.

As of now, I sit in boredom and frustration over my current treatment. I start to look at the idea of maybe crossing over to the human world for a bit. But with no magic to transform myself, it's merely a wasted thought. So I just lay in the bed, shooting a few texts to Gabby to keep me going. Inevitably, I get hit with the dry 'I'm busy, talk to you later' message, indicating that her current roomie is now in the attempt to make her feel something other than disappointment.

I shoot a text to Ocellus, who purposefully responds with dry answers. She also brags on how much fun she and Smolder are having together. Seems they've gone back to business as usual, keeping each other entertained while I'm stuck with this chastity spell the next town over. They even send me a picture, one from the changeling's point of view. She's holding the camera from over her chest, looking down to a teasing Smolder who's tongue-first into the changeling's body. At the part where it's truly pornographic, she superimposes a text block with a simple but taunting message: 'Wish you were here.'

Everything around me is devolving into sex again. And now I'm about to lose my fucking mind.

♫What is this place filled with so many wonders? Casting it's spell that I am now under─♪

It's Fluttershy who breaks me out of my mood, especially with her name popping up on my screen. "Hello?"

"Hi Spike... I'm so sorry to interrupt you... right now. But are you busy?" She sounds quite out of breath.

"Not really. What's going on?"

She takes a moment to catch her breath before continuing. "Um... just a bit of a small situation... I need you to come down to the lobby for a second."

Well this doesn't sound good. "What for?"

I hear a bit of a struggle on the other end before a familiar voice calls out in a slurring wail. "SPIIIIIIIIIIKE-UH!"

...Really, chastise me because I get drunk once, but oh no it's perfectly peachy when it's on the other end. "She's drunk again, isn't she?"

"Very." I can feel her deadpan expression through the phone.

I grit my teeth and throw my head back in frustration. "Celestia, why me?"

As the struggle continues on the other end, Fluttershy does her best to keep possession of her phone. "Every time she gets like this, it's always you she's calling for. I wonder if you're somehow the solution to make her sober."

"I'm not." I'm more of the brick wall she drunkenly cries and tells all of her problems to while ingesting several tubs of ice cream. She then wakes up in the morning with a disaster of a hangover, hangs over a toilet for an hour, and then comes back with a cup of coffee and a mask to hide the pain. "Can we please just pawn her off to Discord or something?"

"No thank you, my dear Fluttershy is the only one I deem to take into accountability." And just like that, even he doesn't want to deal with Rarity's drunken shenanigans.

Please, end my suffering. "...I'm on my way down."

There's one thing I find that remains consistent throughout the years is how often I've find myself giving up on Rarity, while quietly using one of her pictures as cannon primer, only to be there in the moment she's absolutely torn out of her mind over a few drinks. The years have been kind to her appearance-wise, but she seems to be a lot more liberal in drinking these days. She's not a total drunk, no, but she does get surly and unreasonable when she's taken a dose too many.

These are one of those times.

She's usually overdramatic, easy to bring to tears, and very whiny when it comes to her relationship issues. It isn't just that those traits get amplified when she's drunk, she becomes loud and even more dramatic, shouting out in spurts that would even annoy the shit out of Pinkie Pie on occasion.

While I carry her on my back, she does a lot of wriggling around that threatens to throw me off balance. I sometimes have to lean in her direction before snapping back some momentum to counterbalance her drunken stupidity. Even now, I find it odd how she's the heavier drinker of the group, even surpassing Rainbow Dash for that title, while also... "It's strange to see how poorly you hold your liquor with as much as you drink these days." ...That part.

"I don't drink, Spiiiiiike. I HYDRATE!"

Now dealing with temporary tinnitus, I continue to fuss at the inebriated unicorn. "Yeah, consuming alcoholic beverages in mass is not my way of hydrating myself."

"Oh don't you judge me!" She knocks against the side of my head. "You and your big fucking dragon head." I have to keep an eye on her, just to make sure she doesn't give me anymore surprises like last time. Because the last time I was around and she was like this, she gifted me a lovely parting gift all over my shoulder, running down my chest and back.

We get to her designated room and I try to place her to the ground. "Okay, here's your room. Where's your key?"

She inadvertently wrings a foreleg around my throat, trying to hold on for dear life. "Where did I put my key?" She feels around on her self for a moment, not coming up with an answer for her own question. "Guh... fuck."

"You forgot it at the bar, didn't you?" This is not the only time this has happened in similar fashion.

"I didn't forget it! I'm just having a hard time remembering where it is!" And that is not the only time I've heard that specific answer.

"I cannot leave you in this hallway like this." I look around, hoping to run into a guard nearby. But even they seem like they don't want much to do with her. I suppose they fear they will end up having a drunken night with the seamstress, only to answer to an angry and overtly-protective princess shortly after. In speaking of which. "Where's Twilight?"

The mare on my back hisses at me with slurred words. "Twilight's chatting away at sssome pony. Finally, poor girl can get a chance at some dick tonight." Did I ever mention how crass she can be when drunk?

I look three doors down and see where I'm usually situated. With a defeated breath, I settle on that option while hoping that she doesn't find the bodily function to make a mess of my sheets... again. "Okay, my room it is."

"ONWARD MY NOBLE STEED!" Well now there's tinnitus in my other ear. That faint ringing is going to be hard to shake off.

A short journey is all it takes for me to quietly tote the drunken mare from her assigned room to mine for just a temporary time. I lay her in the bed and remove myself from her space. "Alrighty then, I'll just let you sleep in here while I go to the bar and see if your keys are there." She gives off a few lazy giggles before turning over. Now I have to worry about finding her keys. At the very least if she's too out of it, we'll just trade rooms for the night and I'll bear with Twilight's spat over the situation come the morning.

As I set to walk out, I feel my phone vibrate. I check to see that Gabby has sent a message. The first thing I see under the current hour is her greeting me and asking about my day. I start to lean into our usual back-and-forth, at least I can still keep it casual for the time being. However, her next question is written out with intent. "Wanna guess what I'm doing right now?"

I know I still have reservations from the other day, but she makes it hard to focus on that. Everytime with these texts in the late hours, it's always going one way. I'll at least keep her entertained for a while before I get back to my task at hand. "What are you doing?"

She sends me a picture of her sitting in front of a mirror. Her talons are reaching for dangerous territory, not revealing much past her belly, the positioning of her other paw ensures that. She smiles like an innocent child, but the tuft of feathers at her chest speak a different story. Her chest is a bit puffier than usual, a sign that she's in a very naughty mood. Gallus explained to me long ago how he had to keep his chestplate from being too uncomfortable whenever Silverstream visits him on shift. And her chest is holding true to her intentions. "I'm thinking about Wednesday."

I message her back, biting my lip in thought. "Game day's about to take a different turn."

"I might bring a few things." She responds back. "Just a few items to help with our immersion."

I know she's not talking about the campaign. "Like what."

Just as I feel my phone vibrate with her response, Rarity suddenly screams out. "SPIIIIIIIIKE-uh!" I nearly drop my phone and break my neck with how fast I turn to the drunken mare I've completely forgotten about. She lazily stares back at me before sluggishly waving her hoof. "C'mere."

For the love of fuck, she scared the shit out of me. She really had me thinking something bad had popped up. Guess that's my sign to pop back to this side of reality for a bit so I can get myself a room. "Rarity, I don't have time for this." I start to walk out, finally back in the mind to go search for her room key.

Unfortunately, her magic is about the strongest thing about her in her drunken state. She's always been a fairly decent spell caster, but her drunken self requires that I might occasionally have to quench her magic manually. "Bring that scaly head of yours here, THIS INSTANT!" On that note, she forcefully levitates my entire body into the bed and demands that I sit beside her.

I still see the message waiting on my phone to be answered, but it will have to wait a little while longer. She even levitates my phone out of my grasp and places it on the other side of the room. "Seriously what's the─"

"Down boy!" She yelps as she leaps on top of me, pulling me to the bed. She wrestles herself into position to keep a light lock on my neck with her hind legs. She starts to play with the top of my head as she drunkenly slurs her request. "Lay a while."

Normally, the first few times she's gone about things this way, replicating these exact motions, I would've been over the moon that she's treating me like this. I remember the first time she did me like this and I thought that she was going to seriously make things happen between us. But both time and experience are great teachers, and my current disposition is that I'm just annoyed by this. "Okay, guess we're doing this again. What pissed you off this time?"

She grumbles in a low voice, playing with my prominent fins again. "You know."

Of course, it would have something to do with the bastard that started her long line of unsuccessful crushes. She doesn't get like this until she runs into one of them again. "Let me guess, Blueblood?"

Her legs lock in tighter, I strain myself to keep from getting inadvertently choked out. "Fucking asshole just loves his kids so fucking much! Seriously, why does he always bring a bunch of stupid pictures on his phone like he's some sort of proud father!? He teases me with the damn things, and he knows that I can't have little bundles of joy like that!"

As per usual, it's always the success they have in their relationships that drive her over the top. "You're upset because of him showing off his kids?"

"You know, he wanted to always make me into one of his little fucktoy wives. All those mares and I can bet none of them actually do anything for him! But he sees me and he greets me like I'm just the one who he didn't marry!"

There's a simple solution to this, but I feel that bluntly advertising it would probably cause her to break my neck at this point. "But you didn't want to marry him."

"SHHHUP" While she's drunk, she also has no proper gauge on her actual physical strength either. She may be a unicorn, but she's very physically fit, and she's got athlete genes flowing through her veins. I'm just lucky she doesn't twist herself in frustration.

I hate it when she's like this. "What am I going to do with you?"

There's a lengthy pause. She stops playing with my head for a moment. I try to wriggle myself free but she keeps me locked in place, even pulling me closer in the silence. Her hindlegs are stout and sturdy, her body smells of wine and worn perfume. She mumbles a drunken question. "When did you and Ocellus start with each other?"

This isn't the first time she's nosily kept tabs on my relationships either. "Does it matter if I tell you?" I ask, knowing she'll probably forget once she's hungover.

But the mare is persistent. "Answer me!"

I guess I'll just say it since I'm apparently not going anywhere anytime soon. "It was a little while back."

"Why her?" She sounds extremely critical of my choice, another trait she has whenever she's inebriated. The version of her that's sober doesn't seem to care what I do, but the drunken version of her might as well be another Twilight with curls... "Is it because she can transform into me?" With even more of an ego than the original.

"She never transformed into you." I partially lie, knowing that in some capacity Ocellus has taken her voice a few times before.

"You seriously never asked?" She sounds strangely offended by that, all while she's the one who requested that I'd keep my relationship as clean from her as possible.

Maybe she drank a little too much. "Rarity, get some sleep. We'll get you feeling better in the morning."

The mare sounds unreasonably upset with my request. "So what, you'll beat yourself off to me but won't take the moment to make me happy?" She quickly unwraps her legs from around the back of my neck and shove me away. I catch myself before falling out of the bed. "Ugh... Some gentlecolt you are."

Now this part, I'll admit, is a new one. "Okay, seriously? Like where did that come from?" Be patient, Spike, she's drunk.

She doesn't answer my question, turning away from me and pulling the covers over her head. "Leave me be, I obviously need to be sleeping, RIGHT!?"

Sometimes, you being drunk isn't an excuse for the way you act. All it does is make you more of an open book. I wish I could say that out loud, but she won't remember any of it by the time she comes to. I might as well just grab my shit and head out. "Okay. Goodnight."

I turn to go grab my phone from across the room, at least that's what I do before I feel a pillow hit me in the center of my back. I turn back to see the inebriated mare angrily staring while her mascara runs down her cheeks. She unleashes yet another scream of frustration before turning herself over again. I shake my head and grab my phone before exiting the room.

I check up on my phone to see a few more messages I've missed. It seems Gabby had her entire evening planned for our conversation. I finally answer her back. "Sorry for the late reply. Had to look after a friend who got drunk."

It takes only a little bit before I get a response. "Call me."

I do as the message instructs and I swipe her name for a call. I hear a sigh on the other line. "Yo, you wanted to chat?"

"BF, huh?"

That's not Gabby's voice. I look back at my screen, seeing her name as broad as day on the screen, I go back to check the number, it's the same one. I answer back to the voice. "Who's this?"

"Better question, who are you, BF?" It's a guy's voice, he sounds around my age.

I grimace at the realization of who I'm talking to right now. "Oh, I take it you must be Gabby's boyfriend."

"Yeah. She's sleep." I can tell he's not too happy to be speaking with me right now.

"I didn't know."

"I'm sure." He answers rather flatly. "That's what happens when you keep her waiting for like forty-five minutes."

I didn't expect to be in a leg-lock for that long either. "Look, dude, I didn't mean no disrespect─"

"Yeah, I'm sure you say that now." He's talking quiet, but I can tell he's furious. "You know, she's been deleting a ton of the messages between you guys. I think it's pretty cool that you sent one back. I had my suspicions, so I stuck around this thing and you popped up. Now it's just you and me."

"I just saw the message, I thought─" Why am I even explaining myself? "You know what, nevermind."

"Yeah." He says with a low growl. "Don't talk to her again, since you don't mean the disrespect."

Hey past Spike, you remember when you thought that this guy was someone Gabby made up just to reject you out of some possible spite built up over the years? Well she's been pretty spot on, good job catching up. "Okay."

"She's not seeing you again either, so please cancel your engagements with Gabriella so that we don't have an issue." He sternly emphasizes. "I'll talk with her tomorrow. Maybe we'll come to an agreement... or not." Even he seems pretty doubtful about that. "But no matter the outcome of us, it's of no concern to you. So can I respect you enough to respect our relationship?"

I can't even be mad, he's totally in the right here. "I'll agree that I won't pursue her." But something tells me that my agreement will be voided at Gabby's next convenience. So it's a moot point.

"So be it. Have the night you deserve." The call ends, leaving me with a number of messages from the griffon who might have more relationship problems than I thought. I want to give him the benefit of the doubt that he's just being protective of his relationship, but even that can be a bit controlling if he's that invested into her interactions. It leaves me with half of my mind understanding his approach, the other half quietly waiting to see what Gabby will do next. And he also called her Gabriella, she hates being called that.

Something's not right here. And I need to take some time away to think about it.