Spike's Ensemble

by SmegAndTheHeads

Rating: everyone
Tags: Twilight Sparkle, Slice of Life, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Romance, Spike, Comedy, Rarity
Length: 6335

Spike needs an ensemble for an upcoming party. Hilarity enuses.

Spike and Twilight have been invited by Princess Celestia for an upcoming garden party at her castle in Canterlot. However, Spike does not have anything to wear to the party. Spike finds an book on DIY suit making and decides to make a suit, but will he succeed?

Some Rarity and Spike shipping may be included.

Edit: Changed Cover Art to something more relevant.

(This is my first story, so it may not be all that good. Any comments or criticism are greatly appreciated.)

Published 2012-02-01 09:24:05 UTC
Last updated 2012-02-01 09:24:05 UTC

Chapter 1

Spike’s Ensemble

Note: This is my first MLP: FiM fan-fiction, so I decided to start with a single-chapter affair, spanning over 6,000 words. *sigh*

There aren’t any warnings to be found here, and any support or criticism is greatly appreciated.

The morning sun slowly raised over the mountains of Ponyville, shining down on the town and basking it in the morning light, the summer air gently stroking the quiet town. The ponies of the town arose from their houses and started to get on with their daily lives, same as any other day. The sun beams reached the library and shone through its windows.

The sun shone through the front windows of the library. The sun penetrated the blanket of Spike’s basket and he turned away from the light, trying to get more sleep. He eventually got up when the sun got brighter. Spike poked his head out of his basket and looked at the alarm clock perched on Twilight’s bedside table. It read '8:25AM.'

Spike shook his head and sat up, tossing the blanket off his head. Twilight wasn’t sleeping in her bed; she must have already got up. Spike rubbed his eyes and heard the sound of magic from downstairs. It was the sound he always woke up to, apart from her voice or the alarm clock when he usually slept in. He clambered out of his basket and he yawned whilst stretching his body, some smoke emitting from his nose. He walked down the stairs slowly, still half asleep. He eventually walked down the stairs to find Twilight busy sorting some books, same as always.

Spike smiled and yawned, “Morning, Twilight.”

Twilight turned her head and asked, “Morning Spike. Had a good sleep last night?”

“Kind of. That party last night did drag on a bit, didn’t it?”

“Well, it was ‘The first day of summer’ party, of course it was going to be long.”

“I gotta tell you, Pinkie can hold some truly amazing parties. When’s the next one?”

“Uhh, the next one’s the ‘Pinkie Pie Pool Party’, that’s next week.”

“Cool. I’ll make us some breakfast then, shall I?”

Okay, Spike. Go ahead.”

Without another word, Spike walked to the kitchen and started making eggs and toast, which was kind of the usual breakfast at the library. Instead of using a cooker, Spike had found a perfect way to flash-fry their usual eggs and toast breakfast, using just the right amount of flames to cook them evenly. Spike served up their breakfast and sat at the table. Twilight joined him shortly and ate her breakfast.

Whilst eating, Spike said, “Hey, we haven’t heard from Celestia in a while. Do you know what she’s up to?”

Twilight gulped her eggs down and replied, “I think she’s preparing for a get-together of some of Canterlot’s biggest celebrities.”

“Were we invited?”

“Spike, this is a get together of some of the biggest names in Equestria. I don’t think she’ll need us for now.”

“Well, you never know. You have saved Equestria on a few occasions, she may invite you.”

Just as Spike finished his sentence, 3 knocks came from the door.

Twilight got up and said, “I’ll get it.”

Twilight walked to the door and opened it. To her surprise, it was Derpy, standing there with a letter in her mouth. Twilight smiled and took the letter from her using her magic.

Twilight said, “Thanks, Derpy.”

Derpy smiled back and replied, “No problem. See you later, Twilight!” and flew away.

Twilight closed the door behind her and looked at the letter. Her eyes opened widely and she looked at the letter in awe.

She said, “A letter from the Princess? She never sends a letter through post.”

Spike replied, “Yeah, why bother when she has a Dragon that does it for free?”

Twilight opened the letter and read it aloud,

“Dear Twilight Sparkle,

I hope this letter finds you well, and I wish to formally invite you to my garden party, which is in a week’s time. I have sent your friends a letter saying that they can come along, and I do hope to see you there. Be sure to dress nicely for the party.

Yours sincerely,

Princess Celestia.”

Twilight smiled and said, “Wow, I’m going to the dinner party after all, and so is everyone else!”

Spike laughed and said, “That’s great! Wait, she sent an invitation to all our friends?”

“Yeah, that’s what it says.”

“You sure there isn’t one for me?”

Twilight looked at the letter, examining it and replied, “Nope, nothing for you.”

“That’s strange... why wouldn’t I be invited?”

“Maybe it’s a more adult party Spike. It’s a meeting of some of Equestria’s biggest names.”

“So was the gala, and I was invited.”

“Well, maybe this one’s different. Sorry Spike.”

Spike nodded and walked back to the kitchen, still downtrodden from not being invited to the dinner party. He cleared the table and started doing the washing up. Twilight could obviously see that Spike was unhappy, not as unhappy when he wasn’t invited to her own birthday party after the argument they had that day, but still unhappy. She couldn’t make it up to him unlike her birthday party, so she was a bit stuck on what to do. She sighed quietly and got back to her work without saying another word.

About ten minutes had passed, and Rarity had come over to invite her over to Carousel Boutique for dress fitting, so she had to leave. Spike was busy sorting out the shelves upstairs.

Twilight shouted out, “Spike, me and Rarity are going over to Carousel Boutique for dress fittings, do you want to come with me?”

Spike replied, “No thanks, I’m busy sorting out these shelves. Sometimes, I think you do this just so I have something to do.”

Spike had just hit the nail on the head, and Twilight blushed a deep red.

Twilight called up, “Alright Spike, I’ll see you later.”

No response. She sighed and walked out the door alongside Rarity, closing it behind her.

Five minutes had passed, and Spike was busy sorting out the shelves when he felt a rumbling sensation in his stomach.

He thought, “Uh oh, feels like a letter...”

He belched a burst of flames and a scroll emerged from the ashes. He picked up the scroll and unravelled it, a small note also dropping out. The scroll read,

“Dear Spike,

I apologise for not writing back to you sooner, but I have in fact lost your invitation to the Celestial Dinner Party. Please use the note enclosed as a form of invitation to the Dinner Party, and I hope to see you there. Be sure to dress smartly for the party.

Yours sincerely,

Princess Celestia.”

Spike felt his heart skip with joy. He was going to the party! He smiled and read the small note that had dropped out. A Celestial ribbon was adorned on the bottom right of the note. The note read,

“To Garden Party staff,

This letter is an invitation for the bearer of this note, Spike the Dragon. Please allow him to use the castle facilities as he pleases, and make sure his experience is an enjoyable one.

Princess Celestia.”

He smiled as he read the note, knowing that he was invited to the garden party, despite the small mess-up. He hugged the note tightly and kept it in a small drawer next to his basket. He sighed happily, and got back to re-arranging the shelves.

Twilight returned to the library about half-an-hour later, with Spike still working upstairs. She closed the door behind her and walked to the bottom of the stairs.

She called out, “Spike, where are you?!”

Spike heard Twilight’s voice and grabbed the letter from the small drawer. He ran downstairs and stopped near Twilight.

He said, “You won’t believe what just happened.”

Twilight tilted her head and said, “What happened?”

“I was invited after all!”

Twilight read the letter that Spike was holding and smiled, “Well, I’ll be darned. You were invited. That’s nice of Celestia to arrange this for you.”

“I have GOT to get ready. I’ll go iron my suit.”

He ran back upstairs and Twilight laughed to herself, admiring Spike’s bright attitude compared to earlier.

Spike pulled out a small iron and an ironing board from a cupboard, containing his clothes. Spike didn’t have many clothes, same as Twilight. He had a borrowed dinner suit, a soda-drinking hat, and some white swimming trunks with a red horizontal stripe running across it, and his Halloween Dragon costume. Spike brought out his dinner suit and laid it flatly on the ironing board. He flamed the underside of the iron and pressed it against his suit, steam emitting from the iron.

As he ironed his suit, he heard a rapping on the window. He turned to see Derpy with a letter in the mouth. He opened the window and took the letter from her. He saw the letter and dreaded what it said, ‘Canterlot Suit Rentals’.

He said to Derpy, “Derpy, could you wait there for a moment?”

Derpy said, “Sure, Spike.”

He opened the letter dreading the worst thing he could imagine.

And it was.

The letter read,

“Dear Spike,

Your dinner suit that you have borrowed from us in now since overdue, and we would like to see the suit returned today, or we will increase the fine that has been placed. The bill currently stands at 105 bits.

Thank you for your co-operation.

Canterlot Suit Rentals.”

He sighed, now knowing he had no suit for the Garden Party. He got some wrapping paper and folded the suit inside it. He wrapped up the paper gently around it and tied it up with red string. He also included his payment, which paid for the bill, but wasn’t enough to re-rent it for the Garden Party. He adorned a stamp and wrote the address of the Suit Rentals.

He handed it to Derpy and said, “Hand this to the Canterlot Suit Rentals, the address is on the package, if you please.”

Derpy replied with the package held in her mouth, “Can do!”

Spike watched Derpy fly away and closed the window behind him.

He thought to himself, “Great, just great. Now what am I going to wear for the party?”

He looked at the iron and ironing board, putting it away in the cupboard and sat on his basket, thinking through all the possible options.

He thought to himself, “What options do I have now? Twilight hasn’t got enough money to help pay for another suit, and she’s going to be very busy with the others this week.”

He pondered slowly and an idea came to his head, “Oh yeah, Quills and Sofas now do suits, maybe I can ask the owner. Wait, he does charge a fair price, and he only does pony suits. What else do I have?”

He walked through the library and stared out the window, looking for inspiration. He stared at all the possible buildings, until it hit him like a ton of bricks; Carousel Boutique.

He thought, “Of course, I could ask Rarity! She’s a close friend, and she could whip me up something in no time!”

As good as the idea was, something stopped him in his tracks. Carousel Boutique is a MARE’S clothes shop, not a colt’s. Also, he was a dragon, nothing would fit him.

He pondered some more, “Wait, what if she wouldn’t accept my offer? What if she laughed at me? I couldn’t let such a thing slide! I need another idea, but what?”

He looked around the library and saw a book so great, that it would change how he looked at his problem forever; A DIY clothes making guide.

With the spare sewing machine that Rarity gave Twilight a few months ago, he could whip something up for himself. This idea was brilliant! He grabbed the book and thought that if he couldn’t find a suit, he’d make one.

Spike walked downstairs and saw Twilight busy reading a book out on the balcony. He walked towards the basement door and placed a ‘Do Not Disturb’ sign on the door, walking into the basement and closing the door behind him. He lit the lamp on the side and walked downstairs, turning on the light downstairs. Why the basement has electric lighting whilst the stairs have not is anyone’s guess.

He walked into the basement and closed the door, locking it behind him. He walked into a small room at the bottom of the stairs leading to the laboratory. Flicking on the light inside, he saw the sewing machine in front of him on a table. He placed the book down beside him and looked around. Along with the machine, Rarity gave Twilight some materials, a dress form, and some tools, such as scissors and some thread.

He opened the book and looked for a section on suits. He found a section titled, ‘Suits’, which was all about Pony suits, but it was the best he could work with. He found something simple he could whip up, and fished out the materials needed for the suit. Firstly was the blazer, and he needed some satin material and some synthetics, so he pulled out some large sheets of polyester material and started to read the instructions, which spread out for about 20 pages of non-stop text.

This was going to take a while...

Four hours had passed and Spike was busy working on his suit. Well, he had just learnt how to make sleeves. He used the dress form to place everything together and made a sketch on what the suit would look like. His design consisted of a black dinner suit with a shawl collar, cuff linked shirt, fresh pressed trousers and some stylish shoes, which he found lying in his cupboard. The design looked better than his idea, and him drawing art while his friends were away really paid off. Too bad putting idea into reality was harder than it seemed.

He finally got a form on the sleeves he got from his measurements, using cardboard to seal in a shape. After much pressing, he got them into a shape he wanted and sewed them closed. Sadly, he forgot to take the cardboard out, and it felt like swinging from two peoples arms when you were child, only less fun. He sighed and trying to open them up via the string, he ripped the fabric. Tossing the sleeves in the bin, he decided to save the sleeve idea for later.

This was not going well.

Spike had his meals on a regular basis, but had to eat them quickly so that he could get back to his design. Twilight looked at Spike as he shovelled his meal in and thought how weird he was being, but before she could ask why he was eating so fast, he was gone.

Spike got the back of the suit finished, and cut the materials evenly, so that nothing could be wasted, save the heap of failed attempts in the nearest bin. He started to work on the front of the blazer, still whittling away the hours.

An hour later, Spike had finally finished the blazer for his suit. He tried it on, but the right shoulder tugged and pulled, while the left shoulder sagged. He examined the suit and he found out that one half of the suit was longer than the other, as examined by the blazer tail. He tossed the design in the bin and tried again.

Three days passed and Spike had been working on his design while the others relaxed. He wanted the design finished, and he wanted it finished now. Twilight started to worry about Spike, feeling that the project may start to take over his life, like she did when she wrote her novel.

Twilight rapped on the door and asked, “Spike, could you come out here please?”

Spike replied, “Alright, hold on.”

Twilight backed away from the door, waiting for Spike’s arrival back into the real world. As the door opened, Twilight saw what a wreck Spike was. His spines were messy, his scales were turning an interesting, yet unhealthy brown, and his eyes had so many bags under them, he looked like he was 120 years old.

“Hi, Twilight... it’s been a while, hasn’t it?”

“Spike, I’m worried about you. You’re showing the exact same symptoms I was showing when I wrote my novel a while back. I think it’s time you took a break from your project.”

“I really need to get this done Twilight, I can’t stop—“

Twilight shut his mouth through the means of her magic, and said, “Spike, you need a break. Short and simple, understand?”

Spike nodded and Twilight released his lips. Twilight added, “You look like a wreck. Come on, I’ll take you the spa.”

Spike replied, “Alright, Twi.”

They both left the library and shut the door behind them.

Two hours later, both Twilight and Spike returned from the spa, both feeling refreshed. Spike stretched his body out, feeling his scales sparkle from cleanliness.

He then stopped to look at his clean scales and then added, “Twilight, my scales don’t usually sparkle when clean. Should I get that checked at?”

Twilight looked at Spike and said, “No Spike, the spa really did a wonderful job on you. You’ve never looked cleaner.”

“Thanks, Twi. Could I get on with my project again?”

“Alright, but come up to bed this time, Spike.”

Spike nodded and headed down to the basement, closing the door behind him. Twilight got out a book, sat down and started to read.

As Spike reached the sewing room, he looked at the sewing machine, rolled up his imaginary sleeves, which he thought was a bit weird doing so, but it had a good effect, and continued with his project. He really wanted to get this done, and he wasn’t going to give up just yet. He still had hope, for his own sake.

One point, Spike was busy working the inside of his suit, when a moth had landed on the table. He looked at it as it fluttered beside his suit. He thought that it would go after his suit, so he swatted the table with his hand, trying to squish it, but it took off.

He was chasing it around for a good minute, running over some stools and knocking over a box or two. He eventually stopped when it had disappeared, and got back to the suit. Unfortunately for him, it had nestled in and inside pocket and started to chew the fabric.

The next day crawled into affair, and Spike emerged from his bed, his eyes heavy from only 5 hours of sleep. He got out from his bed, sneaking downstairs as not to wake Twilight. He walked downstairs to the basement, and walked into the sewing room. He turned the light on; and with a sewing needle in one hand, and a spool of thread in the other, he went to work on the seams, finishing off what he had started 4 days ago.

Finishing the seams, his suit was finished, and looked just like the design... sort of. Sure it wasn’t high quality, the blazer was a bit big for him and the shirt buttons had been permanently fixed to the button holes, but it was a good effort in the time that he had.  He looked around the suit and found something nesting inside it, the moth from yesterday. He pulled his suit of the dress rack and the inside of the suit had been gnawed away by the moth, and there were a huge amount of holes in the silk. The moth did nothing but flutter away, full from its meal.

Spike looked in horror at the large amount of holes in the suit and started to tear up. He had a design finished for the night and looked amazing in the time he had, but nature had won, and she was cruel. As Spike placed his ruined suit on the floor, he sat down and moped.

He thought, “Why must these things always happen to the people like me? People who work for something important in their lives and then it gets torn out of their hands and shredded like some unused tissues?”

He sat quietly as he heard a knocking on the door.

Spike mumbled, “The door’s open.”

Twilight walked in and said, “I knew you’d be down here. I just wanted to see how you were--“

She stopped mid-sentence to see Spike sitting on the floor upset and moths chewing away at his suit. She shooed the moths away and looked at the suit.

“Was this your project, Spike, a suit?”

Spike mumbled something incomprehensible, but it sounds like a “yes.”

“And it was eaten by moths.”

“It wasn’t even that good. There were a lot of things left unfinished and I really wanted to surprise you. But then this happened.”

He grabbed the suit as it fell apart in his hands. He looked down on the ground and said, “The only reason I made this was because my dinner suit had to be returned, and neither of us had any money to rent another one, not even a cheap one. So I made this.” Spike choked up and started crying again.

Twilight looked at Spike solemnly and nuzzled her snout against Spike’s cheek, wiping away his tears.

She asked, “Spike, I think you bit off a bit more than you could chew, but you made a good effort. Why don’t you ask Rarity for a suit? I’m sure she’d be more than happy to make you one. I’ll clean up in here.”

Spike nodded and left without saying another word. Without a moment to pause, he saw the moth on the wall, and squished it with his hand, and didn’t even stop walking. Twilight stayed in the basement and cleared away the clutter that Spike had made while making the suit.

Spike walked slowly towards Carousel Boutique, coming to a stop when he reached the door. The sign read ‘Closed’, but her friends could enter at any time. His head was swimming with thoughts about how Rarity would react, and would she accept the offer. He slowly reached for the door handle and opened the lower door. He walked into the shop, closing the door behind him.

No-one was working there, and it was strangely quiet. The amount of leftover fabric in the shop made his head spin, and Rarity was surely working hard to make dresses for the other ponies going to the Garden Party. Spike walked up the stairs, and came to a stop when he reached the top and saw a light coming out of Rarity’s own room.

He walked forward, his breathing became slow and heavy, he started shaking as he finally reached Rarity’s room. He heard Rarity singing a song and a sewing machine working. After what happened with his suit, he wanted to take a sledgehammer to any and all sewing machines. This was a very bad idea.

No, it wasn’t a bad idea. He had to ask, otherwise, he would have nothing for the party. He sucked in his gut, took a deep breath, and knocked on the door. The singing stopped, the sewing machine stopped, and he heard a voice as Rarity walked to the door.

Rarity said, “I’m sorry, but Carousel Boutique is closed for the—“

She stopped talking as she saw Spike waiting in front of her.

She smiled at him sweetly and said, “Hello Spike, it’s so nice to see you here!”

“Hi Rarity. Do you mind if I come in?”

“Sure, come in.”

Rarity walked away from the door and showed Spike in. She stopped in the middle of the room and Spike stopped as she walked towards her sewing machine.

“You’re just in time, Spike. I have the designs ready for the girls. Oh, they’re simply divine!”

“That’s great. It’s so nice that you can make these for them in such short time.”

“Yes, I guess that’s kind of a talent rather than a skill, Spike.”

“What do they look like? Can I see?”

“Why of course you can. Fluttershy was here earlier and she adored her design, same as everypony else.”

Rarity pulled back a curtain and her designs were unveiled before Spike’s eyes. He looked in awe at the designs, which looked like basic designs of their gala dresses, but still looked fabulous.

Spike said, “These dresses look great. I’m glad the girls like them.”

Rarity replied, “So am I. Aren’t they to die for?”

Spike nodded and gulped in a breath.

This was the perfect time to ask. Nothing could stop him.

Spike said, “Uh, Rarity. I know this may seem a bit sudden, at a time like this...”

Rarity turned and replied, “What is it Spike?”

“Uh, this may seem a bit... girlish for me to ask, but—“

“Yes, Spike?”

Spike started to stammer. “C-could you—“

“Could I, what?”

“C-could you please, make me... an-- an ensemble?”

Rarity blushed at what Spike just said. He wanted an ensemble to call his own, even though he said he wasn’t into frilly frou-frou nonsense such as ensembles? Spike looked at her with a pitiful face, trying not to cry in front of Rarity, bracing the worst. Rarity pondered about what Spike had said, and then looked at him.

Spike stood firmly, bracing the inevitable, but then Rarity walked towards him and wrapped her front legs around him. Spike didn’t know how to react. He just stood there, upset and confused. Rarity lowered her head and nuzzled Spike’s cheek, same as Twilight.

Rarity broke the silence, and said to him softly, “Spike. What you have said, may be the most grown-up thing a dragon your age could ask.”

Spike sniffled and replied, “Really?”

“Yes, Spike. You asked one of the nicest things you could have ever asked for me, and I couldn’t be prouder of you...”

Spike felt his insides grow warm, and he wrapped his arms around Rarity, leaning in closer so he could enjoy the cuddle. Rarity replied by kissing him on his cheek, to which Spike smiled. His tears turned from tears of fear to tears of joy, and even Rarity started to cry.

They broke the cuddle and Rarity said, “Alright, I’ll get on with your suit. I just need your measurements.”

Spike stood there whilst Rarity got out a tape measure and said, “Spike, could you spread yourself apart?”

Spike spread apart and Rarity took the tape measure to his arms, legs and chest. She wrote down the measurements on a piece of note-paper and stuck them on a board above her desk.

Rarity then said, “Alright, it’ll take me about a day to get this ready. What do you want it to look like?”

Spike shrugged and said, “Surprise me.”

Rarity nodded and said, “Understood. I’ll call you back when it’s done.”

As Spike turned to leave, he stopped for a moment and said, “Rarity...”

As Rarity turned to Spike, he nodded, and said, “Thanks.”

Spike turned and walked away, leaving Rarity a smile. She looked at the door and pondered, thinking of how sweet Spike had been today.

After Spike had the guts to ask Rarity for an ensemble to call his own, Spike walked back to the library, with a smile plastered on his face, his cheeks turned a nice pink. He walked into the library and closed the door behind him.

Twilight turned to him and said, “Well, how did it go?”

Spike looked at her and said, “Better than you could expect...”

Twilight smiled at Spike, as he giggled to himself. Spike added shyly, “Rarity’s so sweet, you know that?”

Twilight nodded and added, “I agree...”

Spike was a bit love struck, so he couldn’t speak all that well. Twilight understood, and cuddled him gently. Spike started giggling uncontrollably, and Twilight started to laugh herself.

Twilight said to Spike, “Got a bit of the giggles, have you?”

Spike replied, “Well, Rarity did kiss me, so give me credit.”

Twilight started to giggle along with Spike, and blushed.

They both cuddled for a while, giggling like idiots for a few minutes and managed to calm down. Twilight broke the cuddle and said, “Want to go over to Sugarcube Corner for a milkshake? I’m buying.”

Spike replied, “Alright, as long as you give me a ride.”

Twilight laughed and said, “Spike, Sugarcube Corner’s a minute away from here, why do you want a ride?”

Spike shrugged and said, “For fun.”

Spike hopped up onto Twilight’s back, and they both went off to Sugarcube Corner, still smiling and giggling.

The next day had come around, and with two days left until the party, everyone was getting prepared. The early morning had risen, and Spike sat on the same window-sill he read the book about owls on, looking at Carousel Boutique, as Rainbow Dash flew out the first floor window with her dress in tow. She noticed Spike staring out the window and waved at him, to which he waved back. As Spike watched Rainbow Dash fly off, Rarity leant out of the window and noticed Spike at the library window-sill.

Rarity waved her hoof and called out, “Yoo-hoo, Spike!”

Spike looked at Rarity and replied, “Hi, Rarity! Is it done yet?”

“Just about, come on over and see what you think!”

“Alright, I’ll be right there!”

Just as Spike had finished her sentence, he heard Pinkie Pie call out, “Will you two SHUT UP?! I’m still trying to get some sleep!”

Spike stared at Pinkie Pie for a brief moment and said, “So is everyone else!”, and got down from the window-sill. Pinkie Pie took his words into account and felt a right hypocrite. She blushed to herself and shouted out to Ponyville, “Sorry, I didn’t mean it everypony!!”

Rarity replied bluntly, “You know, you are kind of making it worse...”

Pinkie Pie stopped for a second and said, “Darn it!”, and slammed her window. The looks of the ponies outside mostly consisted of confused, and trying not to laugh.

As Spike opened the door, the summer shade rested on the side of the library, and he headed towards Carousel Boutique. His head spun with the thoughts of his suit, losing concentration of walking. He walked down the grassy path towards the Boutique, staring at the shop as he slowly approached it, daydreaming about his suit. He was looking up at the first floor window when he collided, head first into the door with a loud thud.

He fell to the ground, his head spinning. He shook his head and looked at the door Rarity opened the door, saying, “Did you knock?”

Spike got up and replied, “Er... you could say that.”

Rarity walked behind Spike and covered his eyes with her hooves, and said, “Okay, I want this to be a surprise, so I’ll guide you.”

Spike replied, “Alright then. Lead the way.”

Rarity started walking, and Spike did the same. Rarity walked forwards, guiding Spike along the way. All that Spike could hear as he walked through the Boutique was the sound of Rarity’s magic opening doors. Also, he wondered what Hoof-Soap Rarity was using, since there was a strange, yet divine smell of flowers emitting from Rarity’s hooves.

Spike said, “Rarity, what hoof-soap are you using? There’s a nice smell coming from your hooves.”

Rarity replied, “It’s a lavender and rose soap I got from the Spa. Doesn’t it smell lovely?”

“I may have to get some, it’s very nice smelling.”

Rarity giggled as she eventually came to a stop. Spike did the same and Rarity said, “Okay, I’m going to remove my hooves from your eyes, and you will see your ensemble.”

Spike replied, “Okay, will I like it?”

“Spike, you will simply die when you see it. Ready?”

Spike nodded and Rarity said, “Okay then. One, two, three!”

Rarity removed her hooves from her from Spike’s eyes, and Spike blinked. As he re-focused, his breath hitched when he saw the suit in front of him.

The suit rested on a stand, a black tie affair, with a blazer with 2 diamonds studding each side of the step collar. The breast pocket had a red rose adorned to it. The shirt was pressed; wing collared and had a red tie with a green flame down the middle of it. The shirt was fastened with sapphire cufflinks. The suit came with a pair of freshly-pressed trousers and some black leather shoes.

Rarity broke the silence and said, “Well, do you like it?”

Spike stammered, “L-like it? I... I LOVE IT!!”

Rarity was shocked to hear Spike repeat what Rarity had done when she was making gala dresses for the girls, and she never told him that she did so.

Spike hugged Rarity and she replied, “I’m so glad you like it, Spike. I also had the gala in mind, so I made it quite fancy.”

Spike said, “Well, when I said “Surprise me.”, you definitely didn’t disappoint!”

Rarity giggled and returned the hug. Spike looked at Rarity and blushed.

Rarity looked at Spike and said, “What is it, Spikey?”

Spike replied, “Um, this may seem a bit... shocking of me, but...”

Rarity asked, “But what?”

Spike closed his eyes tightly and gave Rarity a kiss on her lips. Rarity’s eyes opened in shock as Spike kissed her. Her mind filled with confusion, but she just enjoyed the moment and closed her eyes, holding Spike’s cheek with her hoof. Spike held it for a short moment and broke the kiss slowly. A trail of saliva connected from their lips as they gazed into each other’s eyes.

They smiled at each other and Spike lowered his head onto Rarity’s chest and said, “Thank you. Thank you so much...”

Rarity sat down and cradled Spike in an embrace. They sat there for a good few minutes, and they didn’t say anything, just listening to each other breathing. They were only cuddling for a few minutes, yet it seemed like forever.

Rarity said, “Spike. Do you want to show your friends the new suit?”

Spike thought for a moment and said, “Maybe later. However, Twilight may want to see it.”

Rarity replied, “Alright then. Put it on, then.”

Spike broke the hug and he lifted the suit off the stand, walking behind a screen. He put on the shirt, trousers, shoes and then the blazer. He did up his tie and walked from the screen. He stood in front of a mirror and admired himself.

He looked at the reflection and remarked, “Darn, I look good.”

He struck a few poses, while Rarity stared and giggled. Spike blushed at Rarity looking at him in the reflection. Rarity said, “You stay here, I’ll go and get Twilight for you.”

Spike turned and said, “Alright then, go and get her.”

Rarity nodded and walked out the room. Spike admired his suit some more and wondered how nice Rarity was to him these past 2 days, especially with how he thought she wouldn’t accept his offer, because she specialises in mare’s clothing. He looked at the suit and thought, “Rarity, my lady, you are a genius.”

Rarity returned a few minutes later with Twilight in tow. Spike turned to see Twilight walk into the room. He said to Twilight, “Hey, Twi. Check me out, do I look good or what?”

Twilight couldn’t believe her eyes, Spike’s suit was literally amazing, and it looked even better on him. She replied, “Wow, Spike, you look amazing! I’d never thought I’d see the day where you would dress this smart.”

Spike asked, “Thanks. I guess you like it?”

Twilight nodded and said, “I love it, Spike. It looks so you.”

Spike replied, “Well darn, thanks. Have you got a scroll and a quill on you? I think I have a friendship report to share with Celestia.”

Twilight nodded and materialised a scroll and a quill. Spike grabbed both and started to write down a report. He spoke out what he wrote.

“Dear Princess Celestia,

It’s Spike here, and I wanted to share my findings on friendship. What I learnt over this week, is that taking a matter into your own hands can be a great thing you can do, but taking on something you have no clue about can lead to disaster. It’s always nice to stop and ask for help on what you are trying to achieve, and your friends may surprise you in the most interesting of ways.

Your faithful subject,

Spike.”

He rolled up the scroll and walked to an open window and sent it up in flames. The scroll flew out the window and disappeared in a puff of smoke.

Twilight added, “What do you want to do now, Spike?”

Spike took off the suit and folded it up, saying, “What we’ll do, Twilight, is treat Rarity to something for making us this suit.”

Rarity replied, “Oh, Spike. You don’t have to do that.”

Spike waved his hand and said, “No no, you did a lot for me Rarity, and I want to treat you to something. How does a picnic sound, girls?”

The girls nodded in agreement and Twilight added, “That sounds like fun. We’ll go back to the library and pack us a few things.”

Spike replied, “Alright then, lead the way!”

Both girls laughed as they walked out the door, Spike following suit. He looked back at the suit and smiled, saying, “Well, you’ve done a lot for me. See you at the party.” He closed the door behind him and followed the girls.

The end.

(Well, that was my first story. I know it may not have been spectacular, but I had fun making this story. Any comments or criticism is greatly appreciated.)