Mask

Morning.

In the morning, Spike had hoped to get up, make Mayor Mare coffee, and hopefully get some reading done before she yelled at him for going out there, even if he did bring supplies and books back. At least, that was what he was hoping for, perhaps a quick thing of scolding and grounding, though when he woke up, all he had found was Mayor Mare cradling him as if he was nothing more than her own child. She was still asleep when he woke up, though her grip was as iron as ever, and he struggled to move as he was afraid to wake her.

He would just lie there, waiting for her grip to loosen, silently enjoying her soft, warm body. He slowly hugged her tight and nuzzled into her, feeling her shift a bit and hum a bit. She gave a groggy noise as she.slowly let go of him, only to sit up and stretch, popping a few joints in the process.

"Morn..." She mumbled out, slowly getting up and stretching, slowly stretching out. Spike turned around to give her some privacy, as he just realized she was in her underwear, her butt was pointed directly at his face. "We need to talk."

"Yeah."

"About yesterday."

"I know."

She sat back down, before slowly scooting over to Spike, before wrapping her arms around him, drawing him into her breast. "I know what you did really helped the others out. In fact, I'm sure Big Mac would have died out there without you, but..." Mayor Mare spoke, giving him a soft squeeze, before continuing, "I feel like I have to look at for you since Twilight...isn't here."

"I know."

"And I'm not angry, I just...care a lot about you, Spike, and I don't want you hurt." The Mayor pulled away and lifted Spikes chin, staring into his beautiful green eyes, giving him soft, motherly smile."So, next time you wanna be a hero, just warn a lady, okay?"

Spike smiled and nodded, before blushing a bit as he turned. "You uh...still have no pants..."

"Oh. Right. Sorry." She felt her own cheeks heat up as she started getting dressed, Spike giving her some privacy. She soon smoothed out her shirt and pants, before ruffling Spikes hair, ignoring the boys hiss about his looks. "I have to attend an official debriefing, so feel free to eat breakfast without me. And if you do sneak out, make sure you are home before dinner, okay?" She teased him, before walking out of the room.

Spike sat there in silence, before starting to dress himself, thinking about what he was going to eat this morning. Before that thought continued, he heard cursing in the next room and smiled a bit. "I told you that the coffee gets hot."

"You can swim in lava and react like its nothing more than a warm bath, your sense of temperature scale is strange to me!" Mayor Mare called back, making Spike shake his head. He got up and stretched a bit, sighing a bit.

He walked out, seeing a few people up and about already, getting ready for the day. It seemed early in the morning, or as far as he could tell it was early in the morning, his eyes scanning over the people setting up stands and getting ready for the day, before he looked over at the medical tents. His eyes softened, deciding to check up on Big Mac before breakfast, making his way towards the tents.

Seeing Nurse Redheart standing there, Spike smiled as he walked up, the woman giving a soft smile at the young man. "Hey Spike."

"Hey Miss Redheart. Is Big Mac awake?"

The nurse chuckled, then adjusted her clipboard, pointing back with her thumb, saying, "Yeah, but the docs keep telling him he needs rest. I think farm life is too engrained in his brain, he rises with the sun."

"May I see him?"

"Normally I'd say no, but he's been asking for you since he woke up. Head on in." Nurse Redheart said, letting Spike through the flap. She watched his form disappear, cute tail waving excitedly when he saw his friend. "Such a cute kid. Gonna be a real looker when he grows up." Nurse Redheart mumbled to herself, before walking off to get herself some breakfast.

Spike walked in, seeing his strong friend lying in a bed with an IV bag attached to him. The man was reading a book, though Spike couldn't see the cover from where he was standing. Once he heard the tent flap, Big Mac looked up, only to smile warmly and wave him over, Spike happily walking over.

"Hey Mac, how are you feeling?"

"Chest aches, but I'm feelin better." Big Mac said, before adjusting a bit on the bed. "Doc says you saved mah life, an...that if you hadn't stitched me up, I'd be another photo on tha wall." Big Mac smiled and grabbed Spikes hand, squeezing it, before continuing, "I can't thank ya enough, Spike."

"Big Mac, you-"

"Spike, let me finish." Big Mac said, the dragon blooded youngster falling silent, the larger man squeezing his hand a bit. "Applejack was too proud to admit it, but I ain't. When ya saved her life, and helped us outta those scrapes, ya did so cuz it was the right thang. Wouldn't even let us talk about rewardin ya or nuthin." Big Mac adjusted a bit in the bed, his gaze travelling downwards towards the sheets. "What ya did fer Granny...it just cemented what I thought of ya."

"Big Mac, any one of us would-" Spike fell silent as he saw the look Big Mac gave him, before he cleared his throat a bit. "Sorry, continue."

Big Macintosh took a moment to think about what he would say next, before clearing his throat and looking back up at the young lad, finally finding the words he wanted to say, "Spike, all I'm tryin ta say is that...I'm proud of you. And, I'm sure Granny would agree with me when I say that...we would be honored to make you an Apple."

Spikes eyes shot open as he stared at Big Mac, surprise and shock evident in the young lads eyes. He gulped a bit, his jaw uselessly flapping a bit at the sight. It might have even looked comical, had the statement not been so life changing to either men. Finally, Spike found his voice and asked, "Y-you...you really want me as a part of your family?"

"Well, we can't make it official or nuthin like that, and tha only girl close to your age is Applejack and she has her eyes set on certain someone. Had...her eyes set." Big Macs green eyes filled with sadness, before making it disappear in a moment, smiling at the young man, "I'm sure Granny would agree that you are Apple material, and I'm sure Applebloom won't argue with me. Tartarus, AJ already called ya the little brother she never had sometimes. Might as well make ya an Apple at this point."

Spike felt a tear slide down his cheek, though not from sadness or anger, but from happiness and love. He suddenly flew forward and hugged the Apple, Big Mac wincing a bit as his chest screamed in pain, though the normally stoic man never let it slip. Big Mac returned the hug, squeezing Spike a bit, before Spike finally said, "I would be honored to be an Apple."

Applebloom finally busted in, shocking both of them, Nurse Redheart coming in soon after, trying to stop her. "Applebloom! You can't just burst in like that! You have to-", the Nurses voice died in her throat as she saw the glare Applebloom gave her, making the older woman back off and step back outside. "Crazy Apples..."

Applebloom stomped Over, giving Spike a glare, making the youngster shrink under her gaze. Although being slightly shorter than the boy, Applebloom seemed to command an energy when she was upset. Big Mac started to sweat, until Applebloom gave a huff and said, "Big Mac! Ya were supposed to wait until I got here!"

Spike blinked once.

Then twice.

Then thrice.

Finally, his brain kicked into gear, finally asking, "Wait...you planned this?"

Applebloom glared at Big Mac, before sighing a bit and crossing her arms, looking back at Spike, admitting, "Yeah. We know Twilights family raised ya an' everythang, but we noticed ya do too much for us too. And they never really call ya a Sparkle and ya never really refer yourself as one, so, Applejack, Big Macintosh, Granny Smith and I wanted to welcome ya to the Apples. Had a whole bit planned with the family, but we had to postpone it cuz Applejack went off to the Crystal Empire with her friends and the rest of the class too." Applebloom looked back up, giving a soft sigh, "Ya know how that turned out."

"You guys were gonna do that...all for me?"

"Yesterday really cemented what we thought. I mean, ya saved mah big brothers life, mah big sisters life, and mah life on quite a few occasions. Might as well make it official...or, as official as we could, seeing as ya ain't marryin anyone in tha family." Applebloom said, before rubbing the bridge of her nose. "And somebody was supposed ta wait until ah got here!"

Spike watched Big Mac try to defend himself, Applebloom taking the moment to chew her brother out for not waiting. They both stopped when they heard a sniffle, turning to Spike to see him crying. Applebloom made to ask what was wrong, but he looked up at them, smiling, before bringing the two in for a hug. The anger and guilt quickly disappeared as the trio hugged, Big Mac giving a slight wince, though tried to ignore his pain.

"Thank you...both of you..."

"I'm sorry, I must have misheard you, could you repeat that?"

A voice cut through Silver Spear, the guard giving no hint of this though. On the inside, his heart was gripped with anxiety and stress, and the look from the speaker made him wanna excuse himself as quickly as possible. However, he stayed there, his boots planted on the ground, and repeated, "I wish to train your ward, Spike."

Mayor Mare blinked at him, confusion painted on her face, before she pulled her glasses off and rubbed the bridge of her nose, a headache forming. "Before I even ask, you do realize he is a child, right?"

"He is a teenager, ma'am."

"Point still stands."

"I was younger than he was when I started training." Silver Spear admitted, before opening his mouth again, stopping when Mayor Mare held a hand up.

"Spike's still too young. I may not be his mom, or even his adopted family, but I still care about him, Silver. And I can't agree to this in good conscience!" Mayor Mare spoke, standing up a bit and looking out of her window, seeing Spike leaving the medical tent, Applebloom walking with him and talking to him. She clenched her hand into a fist as she rested her arm on the wall, before shaking her head. "I just...Twilight would never let it happen."

Silver took this moment to walk next to her and sighed softly, before turning to you, "I didn't give you the entire briefing last night

Mayor Mare raised an eyebrow and looked at Silver, "What do you mean?"

"Yesterday, when Big Mac was hurt, Spike...changed." Silver admitted, his eyes never leaving the young dragonblooded boy, watching him happily talk to his young friend.

"What do you mean?"

"He...he grew." Silver finally said, tearing his eyes away from Spike and looking at Mayor Mare, crossing his arms. "Grew taller, stronger, claws on his hands and scales appearing on his skin. Tail even grew longer, nearly ripped the bat thing in half for hurting the farmer. Tore into its houlder and back with a machete, damn near broke the handle in his grip. We put bolts into it and it just brushed them off, but Spike just used his hands and some knife, damn near ripped into its back and out of its chest."

"B...but how?"

"I thought you would know, or perhaps a book. Couldn't find anything in the books we had though, and, the only clue we have is the incident you spoke of."

"Spike grew into a full dragon during that incident. Rampaged through town because greed changed him, Twilight told me about it, but...he wasn't greedy this time. It has to be something else."

"Whatever it is, we can't handle it if he starts changing permanently. How do you think the people will react when he loses control?"

Mayor Mare glared at Silver, before giving a soft huff through her nostrils. "He'll never lose control. He's been Twilights assistant since he could read and write, he knows how destructive he could get if he loses control!"

"He's thirteen! He doesn't understand how much loss can change people! He's lost his friends, his home, his family and here we are, telling him that he is safe in this tomb!" Silver argued, Mayor Mare finally tearing herself away from Spike and looking back at Silver, a deep sadness in her eyes, making him let out a long breath. He looked back at her, finally speaking, "Look, if it were up to me, I would let him live his life how he wanted, but...the Fall has changed everything. He needs to learn how to control his anger and his fear, and I know how to help him."

"I just...he's just a boy, Silver."

"He is just a boy, but we won't always be around to protect him." Silver spoke, pushing away from the wall with an arm and walking towards the door. "I can help him defend himself though, and channel that anger and fear into something more." He paused for a moment, looking back at Mayor Mare, speaking, "It's your call."

Mayor Mare returned her gaze back to Spike, seeing him hug Applebloom, before walking away to the cafeteria to get some food. She stood there for a moment, brushing her thumb against her fingers in thought. On one hand, she was right, Spike was just a child when it came to dragons. The older they got, the slower they aged, but even as a youngster he was still much smaller and younger looking than boys his age. He wasn't like an Earthblood, who could kick trees and knock down apples, or a Skyblood who could fly and cause entire storms, or even a Magicblood who could use magic to lift heavy objects or change appearances instantly.

He was a young dragonblood. He fit in nowhere and that is why Mayor Mare had to protect him. She may not be his adoptive mother or sister, or even her strange aunt who drinks wine, but she cared greatly about the young lad as if he was her own. She couldn't stand when he got hurt, and usually had to restrain herself whenever he fell or smacked into something by accident.

Not that it would hurt him, mind you, but she still worried.

On the other hand, Silver was right. He would soon become an official teenager for his kind, and although they grew slow at first, he would soon shoot up in height and strength, and they needed a way to help him control that. And, not only that, he would likely need a way to defend himself if...if anything happened to her or the others. He may be strong and tough, but he wasn't a guard or a fighter, he would get seriously injured fighting like Silver described.

Not only that, but in this strange, broken world, it appears even nature itself had been mutated into something more, something frightening. And now, Spike proved he was willing to literally bite into whatever attacked them, rip these things apart if it meant protecting his friends and family. There was no way Mayor Mare could stop him from doing that, but Silver would be able to train him to control himself.

The pros outweighed the cons. She decided that Silver would train Spike.

Silver nodded with Mayor Mare as Spike walked in, the young dragonblood holding a ration bar in his mouth, pausing for a moment as he saw the two adults stare so intently at him. He bit a piece off, crunching it noisily, before swallowing thickly, staring at the two.

"Uh...Captain Silver." Spike finally spoke, the older man smiling, making Spike quirk an eyebrow. "Did...something happen?"

"Of a sort." Silver spoke, keeling down before Spike, the older man grasping Spikes shoulder and squeezing it. "Tomorrow, I am going to train you to defend yourself."

Spike blinked, only to give a soft chuckle, saying, "Really had me going there. And Storm says you don't have a sense of humor." He kept chuckling, though when Mayor Mare gave Spike a soft look, his chuckling died off as he looked between them both. "Wait...you're serious?"

"Indeed. You will learn how to defend yourself, Spike, and protect those you care about." Silver said, giving him a strong pat on the shoulder. "Now, rest up, young dragon, training begins tomorrow." Silver stood back up, turning towards the Mayor and nodding at her, saying, "Make sure he gets rest. He'll need it."

Mayor Mare nodded, Silver giving a soft noise as he walked out, sighing a bit as he walked away. He hoped his decision would help Spike out, though he could just as easily create a new disaster.

Whatever that disaster was, future Silver could handle it. Right now, he was feeling like eating some lunch and reading a nice book.

Celestia knows he needed a break.

"Private Storm Chaser, private Meteor Storm, corporal Steel Wing." He called out, seeing the guards in the middle of a card game of some sort. He rolled his eyes, seeing them stand up at attention. "Tomorrow, we'll be training some greens, including one Spike, ward to the Mayor."

"Sir, permission to speak freely?" Silver looked at Storm, quirking an eyebrow at the woman, before nodding, letting her continue, "Why are we training him, sir? Why not just let him be? He already beat the shit out of that bat thing. Pardon my Prench, sir."

"A good point. However, I believe we can help him control the beast inside of him and redirect all that anger at any threat that comes knocking. Any other questions?" Seeing none of them raise their hands, he nodded and spoke, "Everyone get some food and some decent shut eye. Tomorrow, we'll be training the newbies."