Taking to Wing
"Good night, Spike," I yawned, squeezing my eyes shut and covering my mouth with a hoof. My little dragon was nestled in his basket with a flashlight by his side so he could keep reading his comic once I turned out the lights.
"Mmhmm," he mumbled in response, fidgeting with the corner of a page restlessly as he had been doing since I'd come into the room. Peering at the comic I could see that he was still on the same page he'd been on several minutes ago, and though Spike was clearly looking at the page in front of him I got the impression his mind was somewhere else entirely. He kept fiddling with the paper and distractedly chewed his lip.
I watched him for a minute, searching for some clue as to what might be bothering him, but his distant expression offered nothing. Silently wishing him luck with whatever was troubling him, I turned off the light and laid my head down to sleep. He’d talk to me about whatever it was when he was ready. For now it would be best not to press it.
It was a few moments before I heard the click of the flashlight turning on. Fortunately, the light it produced was too faint for me to see with my eyes closed, and Spike was always considerate enough to avoid shining it towards me. He’d always been sweet like that.
Soon the peaceful silence of night fell upon the room like a silky curtain. The familiar call of sleep began echoing at the edges of my consciousness, and I slowly let it take me. But before I could drift off completely, a thin scratching noise forced my ears to twitch. The sound dragged me back to consciousness and I managed to focus enough to identify it.
Spike was fiddling with the corner of a page again.
I kept quiet and waited for him to stop so I could get to sleep, but the noise persisted. He didn't seem interested in quieting down any time soon.
"Spike?" I called softly. The fidgeting ended abruptly.
"Uh, yeah?" The way he spoke reminded me of myself when somepony unexpectedly distracts me from a particularly tricky spell. He was definitely thinking hard about something.
"You were playing with the corner of your comic. It was a little noisy," I explained gently, still mostly hidden underneath my covers.
"Oh, sorry. I didn't notice." His voice trailed off at the end and I imagined him looking down at his claw, surprised to find it gripping the page.
"It's alright."
The noise never started again, and silence reigned once more. But this time the silence wasn't the same. It wasn't the peaceful quiet of a complete day, reminding those in its presence of the infinite possibilities the next day would bring. It was a different kind of silence. The silence of an incomplete thought, of something important left unsaid.
I waited a bit longer, hoping the feeling would pass, but it didn't. I couldn't sleep with this empty atmosphere hovering around me.
"Spike?" I pressed against the silence, sitting up in bed this time. The room was dark save for the small ring of light around my number one assistant. His eyes shot up in my direction, though I doubted he could actually see me, and a look of dismay spread on his face.
"Was I doing it again?" he asked worriedly.
"No, it's not that," I giggled lightly for a second before the concern I felt returned. "It's just... It seems like something's bothering you."
He lowered his gaze to his comic once more, but I got the feeling it was more to avoid eye contact than to read. "Well..." he began timidly. He wrung his claws nervously, turning his head to the side, looking at nothing in particular. "I've been thinking. I do like sharing this room with you; I really do. but," for a brief moment he flicked his eyes towards me before continuing, "I've been wondering when I'm gonna get a room to myself."
"You want your own room?" I blurted out before quickly clamping my jaw shut. Spike winced as if I'd smacked him. His claws came to rest and he laid down in his basket, guilt written plainly across his face.
"I know. It was a dumb idea. We've always shared a room," he sighed. I hadn’t meant to embarrass him. I hadn’t really meant to do anything. I just wasn’t thinking. What was I supposed to say? Finally, he looked up at me, his eyes pleading. "Can… Can you just forget I asked?"
The room seemed to spin around me. A deep pain in my stomach made me start to feel sick. How had I not seen this coming? Had I missed some sign? Some way he’d been trying to tell me that he was ready to move on? He was still so young. Still so sweet and innocent. Why would he even want a room to himself?
Doubts plagued the deepest recesses of my mind, digging around and uncovering fears I’d buried far, far away. Did my little dragon not need me any more?
Didn't he still love me?
He must have sensed something of my indecision through the darkness of the night because his pleading expression grew worried. "Twilight?" he asked hesitantly.
I didn’t even hear him at first. I was too absorbed in looking at him, trying to see what I’d missed. His eyes still shone with the bright innocence of a child. And his little body… he was still so small. So precious.
"Sor--" My voice cracked when I tried to speak, and I could feel water starting to gather on my lower eyelids. Oh Celestia, was I crying? What was wrong with me?
Desperately fighting to get ahold of myself, I cleared my throat and spoke again. "Sorry, Spike. You just surprised me is all," I assured him, voice hardly quavering. My little dragon was growing up, and he needed my help along the way. I had to be strong for him. With my intonation completely under control, I smiled and said, "Of course you can have your own room."
"Wait, really?" he gasped, the very embodiment of childish wonder. "You mean it?"
"Absolutely," I smiled soothingly. The effort of keeping the corners of my mouth up drove daggers into my heart. "We can clear out one of the spare storage rooms first thing in the morning."
"Oh my gosh! Thank you so much!" he cheered, diving under his blanket and switching off the flashlight. "You're the best, Twilight."
My only reply was to lay back down in my bed. It was hard and cold.
I'd made my little dragon so happy. That was all I ever really wanted. So then why did I feel so empty inside?
There was, at least, one small blessing. The room was dark enough that he couldn’t see the tears dripping silently onto my pillow.
* * *
Hours had passed since my little Spike had fallen asleep. With his mind finally at ease he had dropped off in a matter of minutes. I, on the other hoof, found no such tranquility.
Spike and I had been together since the day I hatched him from his egg. I knew I had raised him well, but he still had so much to learn. There was so much more for me to teach. I wasn't ready for him to grow up just yet.
As if to reflect my restless thoughts, I could hear a thunderstorm gathering in the distance. The low, rolling thunder rumbled through the walls of the library, thankfully giving me something other than my inner turmoil to think about. My eyes had long since adjusted to the dark, and the dancing arcs of lightning I could see through the window stabbed at my retinas.
Turning my head away from the light, my eyes fell upon the sleeping form of Spike. He'd never been very good with thunder. He hid it well when he was awake, but I could tell the powerful blasts still scared him despite the magical lightning rod on the library. Now that he was sleeping, though, he seemed even worse off. I could see his entire body shaking and his mouth was firmly set in a worried frown. Luna alone knows what the terrors the distant crashing was bringing to his dreams.
The floor shook and raindrops smashed themselves against the window, each one letting out a short cry of agony. This was the sort of night that would drag on forever.
Soon I could make out small whining noises emanating from Spike’s throat. "N-No! They... they can't come in here!" he begged in his sleep.
"Spike!" I whispered, hoping I could wake him without startling him too badly. He didn't seem to hear me, so I tried again a little louder. "Spike! Wake up!"
This time his face scrunched up with worry and he kicked one of his feet violently. "Nnnnn... They'll hear!"
I couldn't bear to see him like this. I climbed out of bed and softly trotted over to his basket, being careful not to step on the comic book he'd left open on the floor. Another bright flash illuminated the room and Spike cringed.
"Spiiiike," I cooed, trying my best to comfort and soothe him with my voice. "It's just a dream. Wake up and it'll be over." But still he didn't respond. I reached out a hoof and gently nudged him, but instead of waking up he turned around and latched onto my leg like it was the last floating piece of debris from a shipwreck.
It was so familiar I couldn't help but smile, remembering the months after he was born, when he'd stare at me with wide, loving eyes and try to wrap my hoof with one of his claws. We were both so much smaller back then.
He’d been using this very same basket to sleep since the night I first brought him home with me, already curled up in a snoozing ball of scales. I’d hardly gotten any sleep that night. I was too busy just sitting there looking at him, unable to process how any living creature could be so precious.
Without thinking, I gingerly stepped over him and laid down next to him in the basket, wrapping him in a protective embrace. I could feel him shaking and shivering. His tiny heart was racing and he suddenly wriggled himself closer to me, pressing against my chest and burying his face into my fur.
His breaths tickled my belly, and I struggled to stop myself from laughing. As I held him there, the two of us facing the storm together, his tremors gradually died down and his heart rate descended.
He spoke in his sleep one last time, though his voice was muffled by fur and blanket, I could hear him just fine. "You're... best, Twi..."
And then he was silent and still, save for the gentle, rhythmic motion of his breaths.
My gaze lingered on my peaceful companion. He was growing up. Someday he'd move out and start a life of his own and see all the wonders the world held. For now, though, he was still my little dragon. Still my precious little Spike.
And though the storm raged on around outside, it seemed dim and distant. In here, we were together, just like always. Nothing could have ruined this perfect moment. With my mind and body finally at peace, sleep took me.
That night I dreamt of a young bird jumping from its nest and taking to the wide open sky, and I smiled, because I was there too. I was the mommy bird, and when my baby took off, I followed. Then it was just the two of us, soaring together into the blue.
And nothing in the world had ever made me happier.
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There are some stories that are so good, you just have to sit back and reflect upon what you just read, and what it means to you
Bravo. Bravo.
Aww.
The real fact is that in tag world of mlp dragons only grow as they beacome more greedy they don't age unless they beacome greedy there's a episode of mlp of this theory
Ok this had to be one if the best short stories I have ever read. But down to business.
Opinion: This story was beautiful and I have to say I may have shed a manly tear or two. With great choice of words and only typo I noticed, this story has the making of something fantastic. Possibly a sequel as to complete Spike receiving his new room, and if it's anything like this story, I'll give 10/10 for sure. In conclusion I guess what I'm trying to say i'd like an encore.
Score: 9/10
Summary: a heartfelt story of growing up and how we all feel about it.
As usual please don't take anything I say personally. While my thoughts and opinions are genuine, I only aim to better your writing experience.
I get the feeling that people would be mad if Spike and Twilight's relationship was defined by Hasbro. I can see both parent/child and sibling roles being true but it's undefined status really.
4852628 Wow, that's so kind of you to say! Thank you so much for commenting. It's this sort of feedback that makes me want to keep writing.
4852631 Aw, thanks! You're making me blush!
4852683 Well it's true that they don't physically grow unless they practice greed, but they can certainly mature emotionally. That's more what I was trying to focus on in this story.
Mother Twilight
4853169 I agree. I know I'd be a little disappointed myself. I like being able to imagine their relationship on my own.
4854491 sorry if I had coused a ruckus inbeetween you and someone eles
4854888 Huh? I don't remember any ruckus. What do you mean?
Oh, shoot, I replied to the wrong comment earlier, didn't I?
Sorry about that. There's nothing for you to apologize for!
4852747 Thank you so much for this fantastic review! I know you said not to take it personally, but I'm going to because it makes me feel so good about myself!
I'm sorry to disappoint you but I'm definitely not going to write any sort of sequel or continuation of this story. I'm happy with ending it right here as it is.
Also, do you happen to remember what the one typo you noticed was? I'd love to fix it! But it's alright if you can't remember. I'll just look through the story and find it myself.
Thanks again for taking the time to write this wonderful comment. You've made me very happy!
I shouldn't reply as that is against the rules of how I run but for this story of course I will.
I agree that a sequel wont really help much and it is your story so oh well! As for the typo I believe it was the following:
I hope that was helpful and you can be sure I will follow your stories as you continue to write.
Thanks again for responding to my review! Normally I receive negativity (hence the warning) so this was a nice change!
4855390 Bahaha, oh my gosh, I can't believe I typed nose! Thank you so much for pointing that out. It has now been corrected.
And thank you for replying, despite your policy against it! You've really been making my day! I don't know why you seem to get negativity from others. I found your comment pleasant, helpful, and constructive!
I'm very honored that you'd follow me. I'll try not to disappoint you with my future work.
4854940 ok then не не
Nicely done.
4857648 Thank you for saying so!
I'm so glad you liked it!
I am genuinely sorry that I missed this story when it came out. I must have been in 1864 that day. In any case, it was beautiful, and in the wake of Spike now having his own room in canon this work is all the more meaningful. I wish the series took Twilight's responsibility to the child in her care with as much purpose and meaning as you have communicated in this work. Best of luck with your future writing.
That was fanatic as soon Twilight got the new castle, I wondered when Spike get his own room. If they did an episode it probably play out like this. Good job !
While I can't really judge quatliy persay I usally go by how I enjoy a fic while readiing. On that regard, I quite enjoyed it and the motherly Twilight fics just...gah pull at my heart strings. That baby dragon needs more love in general.
Aw