Finding Your Family

Being that he was most often filling in as a host or assistant to the host, and also very caring by dragon standards, Spike made sure to serve everypony a brick of ice cream cake before taking one for himself. Thankfully, there were still four slices of butterscotch left. It was not only the smallest layer, but also the most popular, just outpacing the fudge.

"You know," chuckled Thorax, "You really should have reserved a piece if you wanted butterscotch. It's your cake, after all."

"I know," answered Spike. "But it's all okay. Even if it wasn't an option, I still like vanilla, and there's plenty of that left."

"And fudge," added Pharynx. "Who doesn't like a good fudge?"

"I'll give you this," shrugged Spike. "It's better than straight chocolate ice cream."

"It's just a shame Discord had to leave early," sighed Fluttershy. "I think he was just upset that Pinkie wouldn't let him take over and plan the party himself. Perhaps that's why he kept trying to change things."

"I kinda feel sorry for him," shrugged Spike. "I don't dislike him, but... half a dozen other ponies were also mad that they couldn't help plan the party. And that included Twilight and Thorax, at first. But I wasn't trying to ruffle any feathers, I just... I already had three party planners trying to decide the best way of doing things, you know?"

"Too many cooks spoil the broth," proclaimed Twilight.

"What broth?" asked Pharynx. "Did we forget to make soup?" He glared at Thorax. "Were we supposed to bring soup?"

"It's an expression," explained Twilight. "It means that too many ponies trying to make a party for Spike going in too many different directions would have made the party basically nothing because everypony would be competing for the right to say that their contribution was what made it special. Three of us was already a crowd; five more would have been a nightmare."

"This seems a dour subject," swallowed Thorax, setting his empty plate aside. "Perhaps we should move on?"

"Yes!" smiled Twilight. She set down her own plate and galloped out of the room. Spike didn't know what to make of it until she came back with a small cart loaded with presents.

This actually was a surprise to Spike. Gifts were not part of the plan he'd written down, meaning they were added outside of the planning committee. "Did Pinkie okay this?" he whispered to Thorax.

"It was her idea," he whispered back. "And don't be too upset with Twilight's; she's only trying to help."

"Why? what's wrong with it?"

"You'll see..."

Twilight started pulling presents from the top. The last guests to arrive would have put theirs on top, meaning Twilight's would be among the last to be opened.

First came a gift from the Cakes. They had purchased him a set of attachments for a stand mixer that he didn't have. As soon as he brought that up, Mrs. Cake started to say something, but her husband cut her off. Still, the damage was done, and Spike now knew what wedding present he should expect from them.

Berry Punch was next, and she'd bought him a crate with six bottles of wine. That paired well with the bartop tools that Misty Step had given him, which included six wine glasses, six champagne flutes, and a corkscrew.

Big Macintosh had given him a present that both of them would enjoy together, as well as Cudgel; a new expansion to Ogres and Oubliettes with eight new character pieces. While some might have assumed that this was a gift from Big Mac to himself, Spike would make no such claim. This was something Spike really had wanted.

Then came a gift that had four names on it: Raspberry Delight, Applejack (who had not made it to the party due to being busy), Corn Pudding and Elastic Snap. Apparently, they had all gone in together on a gift, and it was very large and heavy. It was actually three boxes packed together; The largest was a charcoal/woodfire grill, the middle, a smoker barrel that would attach to the side, and the smallest was filled with accessories, those being a steel brush, spatulae, tongs, a grill fork, and all manner of other tools for use with a grill. No lighter, but Spike had that covered five times over, as Scootaloo and the kids could all breathe fire.

A selection of naughty gifts followed from ponies that didn't read the whole invitation or took the smiley winky face Pinkie had put on the card as a sign to disregard that part, when it was meant to just be a smile and a wink, and attached to the next sentence, "Don't be late!" Included in this cavalcade, Spike received a blow-up doll, four fleshlights, free passes to a strip club, some bondage gear (which was one of the few things he might actually use), a picture book filled with scantily-clad or completely nude mares and a steamy romance novel about a mare being kidnapped by and making love to a very large dragon. For as upsetting as that last one was, Spike still smiled and thanked everypony for their gifts as he went along.

Fluttershy openly admitted that she had not bought Spike a gift; that she and Rarity had opted to join together and make one for him, and that it wasn't ready yet, but would be before the wedding. Spike was more than happy to wait, as the personal touch of making the gift almost guaranteed that it would be spectacular. The fact that Rarity was involved meant that, even if it wasn't spectacular, Spike would love it anyway.

Now for Twilight's present. Twilight was known for giving the same present every time; a book. It wasn't always the same book, and sometimes it was even relevant to the situation. While most of the time, it was just something to be enjoyed, his eighteenth birthday saw her giving him a book on tax law. When he'd first bought the land for his house, she'd given him a book on house construction techniques from all across Equestria. When he finished the house, she gave him a book on decoration. Tonight, she gave him two books.

"Reigniting the Spark: The Therapist's Guide to a Long and Happy Marriage," read Spike, looking at the first one.

"You're breaking up?! gasped Berry Punch.

While Berry Punch was not known for being the most in-control of her state, some of the guests had to wonder if the flames of passion Spike had for Scootaloo had gone out. Why else would he need such a book? The mutterings finally made the thought click in Twilight's head why Thorax had told her this was a bad gift idea.

"How considerate!" shouted Thorax, patting Spike on the back. "Princess Twilight wants your marriage to be long and happy, and gave you something to ensure that, whatever happens, you have the knowledge required to prevent it from coming apart! Good gift, Princess; to reinforce their love and make sure they never break apart!"

Twilight could tell by how forced his smile was that Thorax was covering her mistake. He'd tried to warn her, and she'd fallen through, regardless.

Spike moved to the next book. This was a far better gift, but one that Spike was embarrassed to find that Twilight had even considered. Still, he had to remember that she was just trying to help, and was looking to improve his relations with his soon-to-be wife. Hells, she'd watched them have sex before to make sure they were staying safe.

"Th-the Draco S-sutra..."