//------------------------------// // 1. Heartbreak and Healing // Story: Harmony of the Heart // by Archivist Nightwatch //------------------------------// A/N: First chapters proofread and up. See how you like it now. Chapter 1: Heartbreak and Healing Spike was certain that his life was over. The love of his life, the mare he had such deep feelings for, had finally decided to tell him that it would never work out. After Spike had stopped by the boutique to help Rarity with all her chores and duties, she had pulled him to the side and given him a bucket full of his favorite gems. Just as he was enjoying them. She decided it was time to cut him loose. “What do you mean it won’t work out, Rarity?”   “I'm sorry my little Spikey-Wikey, but I can’t feel that way about you. You’re a dragon, not that that’s the reason. You're only a baby dragon not only that, I don’t think I could stand the idea of you having to go through the pain of losing me. Just think about it you will live several thousands of years;  while I will die by the time I am 100, most likely. I cannot in good conscience give you the same feelings.” Rarity explained to Spike, who was shocked beyond belief and he could not understand why she felt that way.   “But there has to be some way we can work this out.” He pleaded with her as his eyes became misty.   Rarity sighed and lowered her head, closing her eyes. “I am so sorry Spike, but there is nothing we could do… I am sorry.” She finished as she walked into the back room before shutting the door. She couldn’t face him as tears streaked down her eyes. To say she felt nothing for the little dragon was a lie. She did care for him, dearly. There was just no way she could return his feelings, knowing that he would one day have to deal with the fact she would pass on before him.   Spike couldn’t piece together what went wrong. He was broken beyond repair, as the one mare that his world revolved around had taken his heart and crushed it. Not just into fragments but into a fine dust. He couldn’t think properly, he could barely even breathe. Tears streamed from his eyes as he left the Boutique, the bucket of gems completely forgotten. He just had to get out and go somewhere... somewhere but there... anywhere but there.   He wandered aimlessly through Ponyville, not noticing the concerned looks that everypony had for him. They didn’t know what had occurred, but from the look of Spike’s face they knew something had broken him. In his broken state he didn’t even realize when he made it to the park; he didn’t hear the buzzing of a certain little filly’s wings as she pulled a cart,with her two best friends in tow, approaching him through the trees. Well he might not have noticed them coming, but he sure felt it when they collided with him.   Scootaloo had nailed him, sending him flying through the air straight into a shrub. Though it didn’t end well for the Cutie Mark Crusaders either, as Scootaloo was streaking through the air when she crashed into Spike and her body went into the shrub too. Though Sweetie Belle and Applebloom were lucky as they only found themselves thrown from the wagon and onto the grass beside it, though the pain was still present.   Pulling herself from the bush, Scootaloo let out a scream as she was getting angry. “Spike why don’t you watch where you’re going, you could have ruined my…”. She trailed off, seeing Spike pull himself out of the bush with tears in his eyes. Her eyes widened as she tried to figure out how to diffuse the situation, that she began to suspect might have been her fault. “Spike, listen I am SO sorry. I think that might have been my fault. I didn’t see you there when I came through. There no a reason to cry about it, crying is for little foals and I know you’re not a little foal are you?”   Spike just ignored her and just dusted himself off. His scales had stopped almost all of the damage and he barely felt any pain from the impact. He just wanted to continue his walk and forget about life. ‘Maybe if I just continue walking forever I might just forget about her. I just want to forget.’ He made his way on further into the park and away from town, failing to notice the three fillies looking at him with great concern.   Sweetie Belle, for reasons she would let nopony else know, just felt an overwhelming need to comfort Spike. She couldn’t stand to see him sad, though he never even noticed her, when he was around Rarity, and Sweetie knew it was because he had a crush on her sister, nevertheless that didn’t stop her own little crush from developing. Though over time that crush had grown stronger, stronger even than the crush Spike had on her sister.   Seeing this as a chance to get close with Spike and maybe make him see her as a possible friend if not something more, Sweetie decided to try and cheer him up. “Um, girls... why don’t you go on ahead? I think Spike needs some comfort...” Scootaloo was shocked at these words, “But what about the plan we made? We were going to try and get our Cutie Marks as Lumberjacks.”   Sweetie didn’t even want her Cutie Mark as a log and saw or something like that. So even if it wasn’t a big deal to help Spike she would have taken it as an excuse to get out of the Crusade that only Scootaloo could come up with. “I am sure now go on I want to try and cheer him up. Please?”   “Alright, alright. Just try and hurry up, we won’t do too much without you.” Scootaloo had gotten her scooter back up and attached to the wagon with Apple bloom already piled in. “See you in a bit, I guess.” Scootaloo said as she started up her wings and raced off with the wagon in tow. Sweetie, now alone with Spike who was now a good distance away even at the slow pace he was making, tried to put together a plan to help him feel better. Nothing she could come up with though would do the trick she thought to herself. She needed to know what was wrong. She hurried along to catch up with him.   Spike failed to notice as she approached him. “Spike what’s wrong?” Spike, hearing Sweetie speak right behind him, jumped and gave a little blast of green fire in surprise.   “Sweetie, don’t sneak up on me like that you!! scared me almost enough to catch the trees on fire. What do you want anyway?”   “Well,” Sweetie started, “I just wanted to know what got you so down. You seem so sad I couldn’t help but want to cheer you up.”   Thanks Sweetie, but I don’t think you could cheer me up right now. Unless you could get your sister to stop thinking that I would never be a good Special Somepony...Err… dragon to her. She just won’t see reason and keeps saying how I would have to watch her grow old and die, or how I am too young to be with her, or how….” He trailed off lost in his depression again. Sweetie knew she shouldn’t be happy but she couldn’t help but feel that she might now have a chance.   “Spike I am sorry my sister didn’t accept you. You would make a great Special Some..dragon to anyone who could see that.” Sweetie stated blushing heavily and looking everywhere but at Spike. Even with his depression Spike took notice of this. He couldn’t understand why she was blushing about that statement. He was glad she said it though maybe he still had a chance. ‘Nah who am I kidding, Rarity will never like me.’ Spike thought to himself while Sweetie slowly got her composure back.   “I am serious Spike. She doesn’t know what she is missing.” Sweetie looked at spike now even with the dark crimson blush on her cheeks. Spike still looking at Sweetie finally started to piece together what Sweetie meant.   ‘No way, I must be just overthinking things. Sweetie couldn’t like me like that. Maybe my mind is just trying to find an out now that Rarity has rejected me. YEAH! My mind is just using Sweetie as an out to get over Rarity.’ Using these thoughts he tried to push the idea of him dating Sweetie out of his mind. He couldn’t just drop Rarity and move on like that it would mean so little.   While these thoughts played out in Spikes head, Sweetie had her own thoughts going on. Mainly about how to tell this young dragon in front of her how much she loved him. There had to be some way something she could do that would tell him. Closing her eyes she thought and just like a curtain was pulled back an idea came to her. Opening her eyes she met Spikes gaze as she opened her mouth and began to sing.   The song lacked words her magic projecting her emotions directly into her voice even though she had no idea how. The song came and so did the meaning it was as if the very earth and sky sang with her. Spike was entranced everything he felt everything he was became locked on this one filly before him. He felt the love he had for Rarity shift. It moved like a living substance and slowly wrapped around the pony before him. His emotions once a raging sea calmed. His anger, his hate, his love all harmonized with the song.  It felt to him like he had woken from a bad dream to find himself back in his soft bed at home.  Yet at the same time it felt like home was with the one in front of him. He couldn’t stay still he inched forward afraid that the wrong move would break the beautiful sound coming from Sweetie. Finally he made it to her.   Just as quickly as it came the song left. Sweetie felt drained yet oddly empowered, like she had just run a race and yet came out in first. The song had left her blind to the outside world and she didn’t notice Spike right in front of her until he had already pulled her into a very tight embrace. Tears seeped down his face still but this time Sweetie could tell they were tears of joy, of happiness. She returned the embrace as Spike looked deep into her eyes. “I am sorry I never noticed you Sweetie. How someone as beautiful as you was overlooked is a mystery to me.   Oh Spike there is no way I am as beautiful as my sister your just saying that.” To which he quickly replied, “No. While she has her outer beauty you have something on the inside that shines so bright even the sun pales before it.” Looking down he also notices something else. “Well that makes sense your singing did sound like the most wonderful bells ever made.” This confused Sweetie what was he talking about. He followed her gaze right to her blank-flank…’UMM… that’s not blank... IT’S NOT BLANK “I GOT MY CUTIE MARK!!!” She screamed to no one in particular. Where once her flank had been a solid white two masterfully crafted Crystal Bells sat mid ring with smaller music notes in different shades of color surrounding them.   “OH SPIKE THANK YOU!!! THANK YOU SO MUCH!” She screamed leaping into him, giving him one of the biggest hugs she had ever given anyone. Spike turned a much darker shade of purple as he blushed beneath his scales.  Just as he was about to reply he looked up and saw the sun slowly making its way below the horizon.   “Sweetie look.” He said pointing out the sunset. He pulled her beneath a nearby tree as they sat down to watch the sun set. There they sat as what they could only believe was one of the most amazing sites they had ever seen occurred before their very eyes. As the sun sand below the horizon so did their eyelids. Lower and lower they went. The last words before he left the consciousness were spoken. “Thank you, Sweetie. So much I just wish I had seen you for the amazing filly you were sooner.”  There they slept cuddled tightly against each other. Unseen by either of them was the little white wing that slowly swept itself over the sleeping dragon as it pulled him closer to its owner.