> A Dragon's Wake
>  by Cold Spike
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> Chapter 1: The Dragon Lands
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Darkness. It is the visible absence of light and, ironically, has the greatest potential for light. Without light, creatures are unable to distinguish colors from one another. Shapes become anything that your imagination can think of under the veil of darkness. Perceptions are ultimately blinded; with no visible light the perceptions of reality are limited to only what we hear, feel, taste and smell. It is in these moments, surrounded by darkness, that we refuse to trust our logic over instinct. Fear takes over and fear can be anything.

The Dragon Lands: a small continent surrounded by caves, mountains, and dragon hoards. Very few expeditions have ever taken place there by ponykind, or any other race, for that matter. Those that dared venture in never stayed for long, dragons are territorial creatures. Most hoards are split up, with a few full-grown dragons in each one to watch over the younglings until they are deemed old enough to form their own hoard. Dragons do not need concepts such as parenting or love, they merely need to survive.

It was in the darkness of a cold, moonless night that one of those dragons began to wake. The young dragon was lying on the earth, defenseless and utterly alone. His eyes opened to the sight of nothing, the darkness was too thick to pinpoint anything. For a moment, he was unable to move and was quite confused.

“Why is it so dark?” It was then that he snapped his eyes open in shock. “And why is my voice so high?”

His hand reached down to the ground and it was at that point, he noticed he was no longer in his bed, he was outside. He quickly stood up only to fall flat on his back. Everything, including his body, felt foreign to him.

“Why can’t I get up?" He tried again, grunting, but nothing would work. "Why am I outside?”

Unable to come up with any reason or answer, he decided to feel around to make sure nothing was wrong with his body. His first surprise came from his skin, it was rough and felt like a lizard he had once owned back at the home. His second surprise came from his fingers, not only was he missing one on each hand but his nails felt much sharper. His final surprise came from his tail.

“WHY DO I HAVE A TAIL?!” The child screamed in surprise, it was starting to feel like too much for him. Tears were starting to form in his eyes but he quickly shook his head to stop them.

“Okay, get a grip. I guess I’m some type of big lizard, but is this a dream?" He looked up at the massive expanse of stars. "Why is there no moon out if I can see the stars?” He shrugged and switched back to the problem at hand.

For several minutes, he attempted to stand up, but every time he tried his tail wagged violently and he felt dizzy. After ten minutes of falling down, he decided to try a different tactic. He noticed each time that he moved his tail would move with him, but it would stay upright. He thought that perhaps he could use it for balance. So, slowly, he stood up while keeping his right arm firmly holding down his tail, it took some practice to hold it down. After another five minutes, he was standing and in full control of his tail. Walking still felt natural so, after a few more minutes, he was off. But then it dawned on him. He was completely lost.

He walked around and noticed that he didn’t always need the tail down to balance. He reasoned that if he couldn't use his eyes then he might as well try his other senses. Smelling was the first one that came to mind; he smelled dirt everywhere, so that was no help. His next idea was to try and listen for other people or things, but the only thing he heard was the wind. The wind made him confused, it was cold out, but he didn't feel freezing, just cold. I guess I don't need clothes.

After a while he decided to just slump down, sit, and wait for the sun to rise. He sure hoped he was dreaming because he had never seen a night’s sky without a moon unless clouds were blocking it. After an hour or so of exploring his new body and growing bored, he started to yawn. He did not feel like he was in danger outdoors, he just felt strange. So he did his best to get some sleep. Lying down on the ground was not his ideal place to sleep, but his new body did not seem all that bothered by it. After one more yawn he let his dreams take over, hoping that this one would end.





The sun rose high up in the sky, washing over the Dragon Lands. The shining light bathed over the young creature causing him to stir from his sleep. His eyes sprang open and, to his relief, he could see, but to his utter horror he was still a lizard. All around he noticed a path he had been lying on and a small lake off in the distance surrounded by several mountains, but no trees.

He ran up to the lake and looked at his reflection. To him, only one thought came to mind. Dinosaurs. His whole body was colored purple which reminded him of a certain character from a video game that he liked. His scales were red and his chest was a light yellow. The random color combination did nothing to faze his young logic.

“I look like a T–Rex, I have got to be dreaming.” He looked all over his body and noticed his scales and the spikes on his back. “But I don’t remember a T-Rex that had spikes on his back. Am I a stegosaurus?”

He stood up and looked around, he was still quite lost with nobody around to help. He sighed and took a seat near the lake to try and figure things out. Before he could start thinking, however, his nose began to twitch. He tried to hold in his breath to hold back the inevitable, but it was useless. A split second later, his mouth erupted in one large sneeze followed by a fire trail, to his astonishment.

“THAT WAS FIRE! DINOSAURS DON’T BREATHE FIRE!” He was panting heavily, and then it dawned on him. “I’M A DRAGON!” He was about to panic again, but then something else dawned on him. Dragons are awesome.

“Okay, so I’m lost and I’m a dragon. Cool. But where are my wings?” It was simple logic, all dragons had wings, but after looking all over, he found none.

“Grrr, Spyro had wings, so why can't I? If this is a dream it’s a pretty lousy one!” The child dragon stomped his feet in frustration. “Also, why am I so short? It’s like I’m five again! But I’m supposed to be ten years old!” He stomped on the ground, his short temper wearing thin.

He took a few deep breaths to calm down; he remembered at the home some of the other adults teaching him this trick when he got angry. It worked.

“Okay, I guess I need to start looking for people, or is it dragons?” In that instant, a wave of confusion overloaded his brain, but after a minute it was over, leaving him dazed. “What was that about? Oh well, I better go find some other dragons.” He stood up and slowly walked back to the path from before and chose to follow it in a random direction.

After twenty minutes of not running into a single dragon, he came across a large sign.

This way to the dragons’ hoard. Ponies BEWARE.

“Ponies? And what’s a hoard? Well it did mention dragons so I guess I’m going the right way.”

His walk was again uneventful, but he did spot more signs pointing toward the hoard and warnings to ponies to stay away. He even saw a sign that told gryphons to stay out. After thirty minutes of walking, he was exhausted, thirsty, and hungry, but he heard a noise up ahead and ran towards it. He spotted a rocky surface that he would need to climb in order to reach the noise. He got to the top and slowly looked over the surface, spotting dozens of dragons in a crater of some type with crystals all over the place. All the dragons were split up into different groups.

In the middle was one of the biggest dragons he had ever seen (not that he had seen many before). He was a brown dragon and looked quite intimidating with spikes and scales fully grown all over his body and, to the kid’s annoyance, he had a set of fully grown wings.

“At least he gets wings,” the child explained to nobody. He looked around and saw that the groups of dragons were separated by size, so he assumed also by age.

What was bothering him was the appearance they had compared to him. So far, he had not spotted any dragons that were as small as him or without wings. In the smallest group stood several dragons twice his size so he assumed that he would fit in the best there, but again, every one of them could fly. He gulped and climbed up to the top and began a slow descent. He noticed plenty of dragons taking crystals from the large pile in front of the biggest one and, to his confusion, eating them.

“I guess I’m supposed to eat crystals.” At first this made no sense to him, but then he remembered that in the game Spyro he used and collected them. He now assumed that the character consumed them.

He slowly made his way up to the youngest group; even in their small size they looked tough to him. Slowly, he inched closer to the dragons until they finally noticed him. All eyes fell on his tiny dragon form; they looked annoyed rather than angry.

“Yeah?” a taller, red dragon asked. The question was so simple that it caught him off guard.

“Uhhh,” he had nothing to say to the other dragons so he just stood there, dumbstruck, while the others sighed in frustration.

“HA! You don’t even have your wings. Why don’t you run off to the baby dragon hoard,” the same red dragon said, waving his hand dismissively but not pointing to anywhere in particular.

“Hey! I’m not a baby dragon, and you’re the youngest dragons I could find!” He instantly regretted saying this; the other dragons from their young group gathered around him.

“Let me see here, you have no wings, you are half our size and you look like a scared hatchling. Last time I checked, that was a baby,” the same red dragon said, laughing at his own comment. The others followed suit.

While it was true that he lacked wings, he didn't feel that much smaller than them. But the crowd of older dragons and the hurtful words of the red one made him feel uneasy. It was an instinct he had not felt for a few years, but he suddenly had the urge to suck his thumb, which now was a claw. Before he could comply with his overwhelming urge to comfort himself, his mind blanked. Out of nowhere some of his senses felt overpowering, particularly his sense of smell.

He smelled a… well he wasn’t quite sure, but he soon followed it and walked past the other rude dragons. The other dragon looked at him but soon decided to shrug him off, glad to be rid of him. The child soon stopped, having arrived at his destination where, before him, lay hundreds upon hundreds of gemstones all guarded by one very large dragon.

He looked up at the dragon, unsure of himself and why he had done something so crazy, but, to his amazement, he noticed the dragon was not looking down at him, or any other dragon for that matter. He wanted to turn around and leave, but fear was keeping him rooted to the spot. His sense of smell and his hunger were also keeping him from moving. He looked at the gemstones as hunger started to overpower logic. Without thinking, he grabbed a red one and stared at it. Upon looking up, he noticed the large dragon did nothing in response. He slowly brought the gem to his mouth and, with a loud crunch, half of it was gone. This unfortunately brought his presence to the attention of the older dragon. The large one stared down at him for what felt like hours, the younger dragon rooted to the spot. The large dragon narrowed his eyes and took one last look at the younger one before huffing out some smoke and continuing to gaze off into the distance.

Okay, I guess that means I can stay here, he thought while he ate the rest of the gem. Unsure of what to do next, he grabbed a few more gems and sat down next to the bigger dragon and waited.

He ate his gems in silence and noticed other dragons throughout the day had come up to grab some before quickly returning to their groups. They all seemed afraid of the largest dragon, but the smallest one, ironically, felt calm with him. He decided to just sit there with the biggest dragon and wait for something to happen, it wasn’t like the other groups were giving him a chance.

When the sun started to set, it became apparent that the moon was going to come up that night. It all seemed so weird to the young dragon. Almost instantaneously, the sun went down and the moon came up. But instead of thinking that this was still a dream, he simply accepted it as a fact, like it had always been that way.

Out of nowhere the oldest dragon let out an ear-shattering roar, streams of fire shooting out of his mouth. It was the scariest thing the young child had ever seen or heard before. The ground shook which caused him to fall and land on his tail, which hurt, but he didn’t dare say anything. After a while, some of the other groups were gathering around in a half-circle, forming around the bigger dragon and him. He gulped and joined the other groups in the front and sat down, feeling more confused than ever.

“Gather around young dragons and hear my tale,” the biggest one said with the voice of someone wise and old, “hear my tale of ponykind and their evil ways.”

Ponies again, I don’t get it.

It would seem that gathering around for a story was a nightly event for this hoard. The youngest dragon listened with interest, feeling relieved that his boredom was gone and something was happening.

“In the time before the wicked princesses of the sun and moon, there was a dragon by the name we all know as… DISCORD!” The entire crowd behind the young dragon roared in cheers at the mention of the name.

“Discord was the mightiest of all dragons; he was able to bend the other nations to his will. Ponies bowed before him, gryphons cowered before him,” the eldest dragon explained, his voice keeping the same volume the entire time. “A dragon was in control of this world for centuries. He controlled the moon, he controlled the sun, and he ruled above all!” The crowd’s interest was growing, other dragons continuing to cheer, while the youngest one just stared at him like he was crazy. 

“His reign was ended by the evil sisters of the sun and moon.” The large dragon paused to hear the other big dragons hiss at the mention of them. “The pony sisters and their kind believe themselves to be above us dragons!” This time, he yelled in anger causing the others to do the same.

“The wretched ponies live in peace and harmony,“ the large dragon said with disgust as the others followed. “They believe our way of life is unsettling!” Again, more boos from the crowd at the mention of ponies. “There is nothing wrong with chaos and greed, it is the nature of our race!” More cheers erupted.

“But the ponies accept love as their nature.” More boos as he continued. “They live their useless existence to try and spread and force that nature on other races.”

The young dragon listened to the entire story about the pony race being evil and the nature of the dragons being good despite the irony of mentioning greed. The more the dragon talked, the more disconnected he felt with the other dragons; to him, they seemed nuts. The only good things he had gotten out of this so far were the tasty gems and the ability to breathe fire. Which, in all honestly, made up for it, but the dragons still seemed crazy.

After the dragon finished his tale, the entire crowd cheered for the dragon race until everyone went silent. Before they could leave, he decided to speak up.

“I don’t get it,” the young dragon said speaking as loud as he could.

All eyes fell upon him, including the largest one. The rest of the crowd looked at him like he was crazy, but the largest one eyed him with curiosity.

“What do you not understand, young dragon?” the elder dragon said.

“Well it’s just that you said that greed was good and love was bad. How can that be?” he questioned, ignoring the protests behind him. But the dragon said nothing so he kept questioning. “And what’s so bad about peace?” The elder dragon’s large head moved down closer to him but slowly so as not to intimidate him. “Also, what’s so bad about ponies? I never really liked them that much, but why be afraid of them? I mean we are dragons, right?” When he finished speaking, he realized that the crowd was silent but all standing and staring at him and, to his horror, the elder dragons head was mere feet away from his.

“What is your name?”

Name? Uh, oh, hmm... Spyro sounds cool, so I’ll go with that!

“Spyro,” he casually replied hoping it sounded like a dragon’s name.

Behind him, he heard others laughing at the name, which did nothing to ease his nerves. He even started to feel embarrassed and when that happened he would usually start to…

HICCUP!Spyro let out one great big fire breath on accident after his loud hiccup; it was puny in comparison to other dragons’ so they just laughed even more.

“Spyro, you dare question the wisdom of our race?”

HICCUP! Another embarrassing burst of flames caused more snickers and giggles.

“And you dare question me?”

HICCUP! He cleared his throat. “Um, yes?” He quivered in fear, looking up at the dragon who might as well be king for all he knew. HICCUP!

The dragon let out a final roar.

“Then you are banished from the hoard! Leave now!” He pointed off into the distance, but Spyro just stood there, unable to move out of fear.

“I. SAID. LEAVE!” He let out an even bigger roar than before and used his claws to point in the direction of the path from before.

Without thinking, Spyro stood up and ran as fast as his small body could carry him, hiccupping along the way. Spyro ran for ten minutes straight, trying to keep himself under control. But his exhaustion won out in the end and he sat down and cried. He wasn’t sure why, but he either figured this was a nightmare now or that he was in big trouble. His crying was loud enough to be heard from all directions, but no dragon came to his aid, there was no one there, or so he thought.

“Hey, you!”

Spyro perked up at the sound of the voice. It was similar to his. At least, it was high and squeaky just like his was. “Huh?” He looked around and saw no other dragons or any creature.

“Up here!” The voice said, obviously annoyed.

Spyro looked up and saw another dragon just as young as him with no wings. He could not clearly see much more than the other dragon’s general shape as he was mostly hidden behind leaves. Only his green eyes were clearly visible.

“Oh, hi.” Spyro sniffled and took a deep breath.

The young dragon moved closer to Spyro. “Hey, my name’s Claws.” He reached out his claw for Spyro to shake and Spyro did so after fumbling around in the dark.

“My name is Spyro.”

“So why were ya crying?”

“Oh, cause I was banished from the hoard.”

“Oh really? Me too,” he said in defeat, but he didn't seem very sad.

“How come?”

“I was too… nice,” he said after some thought. “How about you?”

“I questioned the biggest dragon.”

“Ooh, not a good idea.” He took a seat next to Spyro.

“So what happens now?” Spyro asked.

“I don’t know. Unless you have a boat so we can get off this island, we’re kind of stuck.”

“I guess this is an island,” Spyro said quietly to himself.

“Yeah, it is. You don’t have a boat do you?”

“No,” Spyro said plainly.

Claws slumped down next to Spyro in defeat.

“Have you ever seen boats come to the island?”

“Well sure, every once in a while some stupid ponies show up, but they don’t stay for long.”

“How often?”

Claws tilted his head to the side. “I dunno. Why?”

“I was just thinking, if one did show up we could sneak on board maybe?” Spyro really wasn't sure how much sense that made, but he didn’t feel like giving up and dying on an island.

“Yeah right! All those ponies are, like, four times our size. Unless you have a plan…”

“Well, no, not yet. But if we can go find one of their boats I can think of something. I mean… why give up?”

“But why go to the land of the ponies?” Claws asked, dumbstruck.

“Why not? We are banned from this place and if we don’t try something we’re going to die anyway. Plus, they sound nicer than these other dragons, so… why not?”

Claws had to think about this. Sure he was considered nicer than other dragons, and some of the things the ponies did sounded better than this life. It was true that they were both stuck and out of ideas so he concluded that Spyro was right.

“You know what? You’re right! In the morning let’s go look for a pony boat and hitch a ride!” Claws sounded like someone out of a movie that Spyro had seen before. He sounded friendly enough.

“COOL! But what do we do tonight? It’s gonna be really cold.”

“We’ll make a fire, duh!” And with that, he started to sniff around on the ground in random directions.

“Um, what are you doing?”

“Sniffing for sticks and tinder, duh!”

“Uh, right.”

Before long, Claws had gathered up a bundle of sticks and wood and placed them in a pile. He then put some rocks around it and waited, staring at Spyro.

“Well? Go on. Light it!”

“Me? Why not you?” Spyro pointed at what he assumed was Claws in the darkness.

“Because I gathered the sticks, now light it!”

Spyro sighed; it was true that Claws did half the work so he should do the other half. He tried to breath out some fire by taking in deep breaths and letting them go, but nothing came out, only air. He tried again by breathing out harder, but all that came out was spit.

“Fine! I’ll do it!” Claws said in anger. Within a few seconds, fire came out of his mouth and lit the wood. Claws was a red dragon with a red belly and blue spikes; he looked pretty similar to Spyro.

“How do you control your fire?”

Claws looked back at Spyro curiously and after a few seconds he noticed that Spyro wasn’t laughing.

“You’re serious?”

“Yeah, how do you control fire?”

“Didn't any dragon ever teach you?”

Spyro simply shook his head.

“Okay, I guess I can teach ya.” He sighed and stood up. It was then that Spyro noticed that Claws was slightly taller, and probably older, than him.

“Okay, first you need to get down on all fours.” He waited for Spyro to comply and continued. “You don’t need to take in any breathes like you were doing, you just need to visualize the fire coming out and cough it out.”

“Cough?”

“Yes, just visualize the fire you’re trying to make and try to cough at the same time and it should come out.”

He sighed and tried it the way Claws had instructed. After a few coughs, a loud burst of flame came out causing both dragons to jump.

“Now that’s what I’m talking about! Nice going!”

Spyro smirked. “Thanks!”

After a few minutes of excitement, they both sighed and sat down near the fire. It warmed them up just fine, but they still felt glum. The odds of a pony ship randomly showing up just seemed improbable.

“Hey, Claws, what if we can’t get off the island?”

He laughed nervously. “Then we’d better get really good at stealing and hiding!”

With two sighs they decided to call it a night and slept on opposite sides of the fire. It wasn’t long before darkness crept up on both, leaving them fast asleep.

The sun came up just as quickly as the mood did the previous night; it shined on everything in sight. The fire had long gone out, but the two dragons were not in the same position as the previous night. Spyro was lying on top of Claws, huddled into him for warmth. Claws was the first to wake up.

“Hey! Get off me!” Claws instantly shoved Spyro off, rudely awakening him.

“Hey! I was just cold, okay?!” Spyro said in his defense.

“Well, ask next time!”

Spyro felt like yelling some more, but thought better of it. “Okay, next time we sleep can I—”

“NO!”

“Fine, sheesh.”

Claws looked back at Spyro and gave him a curious look but then shrugged.

I’m in a strange land, I’m a dragon, and I’m standing next to another one, but I don’t care? I mean my house wasn't fun but still… I wonder why I don’t care. Spyro shrugged and figured he would think about it later.

“Okay, weirdness aside, now what?” Claws asked him.

“We find a ship, duh!” Spyro exclaimed, feeling completely satisfied at being able to throw a ‘duh’ back at Claws.

“Heh, okay. Which direction do we go?” Claws stood, staring in one direction as Spyro was turned around, looking in the other. It felt like they were close to the beaches on the island, but they weren't sure.

“Eenie meenie miney mo, catch a tiger by its toe—”

“What are you doing?” Claws asked, he brought out his claw and stopped Spyro’s hand from moving.

“You said we needed a direction to go, so I’m choosing randomly.”

“That sounded stupid. What you were saying?”

“It’s not stupid! Now let me finish!” Spyro stamped his foot on the ground, he looked like a child throwing a tantrum and it caused Claws to giggle.

“Okay, go ahead,” Claws motioned his hands up and down and he encouraged his new friend to continue.

“Eenie meenie miney mo, catch a tiger by its toe, if it hollers let it go, eenie meenie miney mo!” Every time Spyro said one word he would spin around back and forth and on the last word he pointed in the opposite direction of the dragon hoard.

“So we go this way!” Spyro said excitedly.

“You’re crazy, but let’s go.”

Claws walked forward with both his claws behind his head. Spyro chose to copy him. For a while, they walked in a silence, but Claws kept looking back at him. He looked like he wanted to ask him something but thought better of it until curiosity got the better of him.

“Spyro, what’s a tiger?”

“…What?”

“You said ‘tiger’ in your… in whatever that thing you said was. You mentioned a tiger, so what is it?” Claws asked.

“You’ve never seen a tiger before?”

“Nope, can’t say that I have.”

“They’re large cat-like animals; they have stripes all over them and they use these large paws with claws on them to hunt other animals.”

“Oh, that’s weird.”

“Ooooookay.”

They continued in silence for a while, but Spyro’s stomach interrupted them.

“I’m hungry,” Spyro said while looking down at his stomach.

“Yeah, me too. But we don’t have any gems or anything. Sorry.”

“I’m guessing there aren't any shops around here where we can buy food?” Spyro asked while they both stopped.

“Okay, stop saying weird things. I don’t know what you’re talking about, and dragons don’t usually use money. If we want food we either need to hunt for it or get lucky.”

Spyro was about to protest, but he stopped and sighed and they continued on in silence. They walked for what felt like hours until eventually they found the beach. To their astonishment, docked on it was the largest ship they had ever seen, and in front of it were ponies all over the place.

“We did it! We found a ship!” Spyro jumped in the air for joy before being tackled to the ground by Claws who covered his mouth to silence him.

“Are you crazy? We need to stay hidden. We were lucky enough to find a pony ship, but we can’t get caught.” Spyro simply nodded and let Claws take his hand off his face.

“Okay, sorry I’ll keep quiet.”

“Right, so we found the ship, now what?” Claws asked as he looked over at Spyro. Both were on the ground looking over the beach, hoping to remain hidden.

They both looked around the beach, ponies were all over the place, but they followed a certain order. Like the dragon hoards, they remained in groups which could be easier to sneak around. Spyro noticed that there were crates all over the place and some seemed to be filled with gemstones while others were empty, but they were all being loaded onto the ship.

“You see those crates?” Spyro pointed to some empty ones.

“Yeah?”

“If we can sneak into a big one and close the top maybe they will bring us on board without noticing us.”

“But there are ponies all over the place; there is no way they won’t notice two dragons running to the middle of the beach.”

“Maybe. But look at them closely, they look bored and most of them are barely paying any attention at all.”

“Well, I guess we can try.”

They both nodded and slowly inched their way to the largest crate they could find. There were two piles of crates. On one side were the closed ones filled to the brim with gemstones, and on the other side, empty ones waited to be filled. Spyro figured if the ponies saw a crate that was closed then they would assume it was filled and his plan would work. After five minutes of crawling in the sand, they made their way to one of the crates. They looked around and, sure enough, none of the bored-looking ponies had noticed them. With a shrug from both, they each slowly climbed into one of the crates and quickly brought up the top. With quiet thuds, the crates were sealed, leaving them in darkness.

“Now what, Spyro?”

“We wait. If they bring us on the ship then we should be fine as long as we keep quiet.”

“Spyro?”

“Yeah?”

“You’re one crazy little dragon,” Claws said with a giggle. Spyro just smiled and took a seat.

They waited for twenty minutes. All around them, they could hear other ponies lifting up gem-filled creates, but so far none had lifted theirs. After another twenty minutes they heard a noise outside the crates.

“Hey is this one filled?” They heard a foreign voice ask.

“What? Of course it is, haul it on board!”

A soft, violet glow enveloped the box as it was lifted into the air with the two dragons riding along. Spyro felt weightless in that moment. It was surreal.

“What’s going on, Claws? What’s that glow?”

“They must be using unicorn magic to lift it,” Claws explained while keeping his voice as low as possible.

“Oh,” Spyro paused and had to process what he was just told. “I didn’t know they could use magic.” Spyro did a double take, but Claws could not see him.

“Duh! You really don’t know a lot, huh?”

Spyro just made an annoyed groan back at him and sighed; he figured it would be best to just stay silent until the crate stopped moving.
> Chapter 2: Parley
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The crate that was holding the two dragons was slowly being moved to the bottom of the ship. Spyro began scratching the floor of the crate out of sheer nervousness, though not loudly enough for even Claws to hear him. The crate was being moved gently enough that they didn’t slide along, but the silence was still causing them some concern. Finally, after ten minutes, the crate was lowered down gently and the unicorn in question left in a hurry to get another.

"Are we on the ship?" Claws asked.

"I think so, but I don't hear any ponies," Spyro said while attempting to remove the top of the crate to peek around.

He saw a dark room filled with dozens upon dozens of large crates; a quick smell told Spyro they were all filled with gems. Though it was too dark to to notice anything else, it was unmistakably part of a rather large wooden ship, and that's all that mattered.

"Yeah, we are on the ship."

"Good! Okay, quickly jump out and go get us some gems to eat," Claws basically commanded.

"Why me?"

"You're smaller and quieter. You need to hurry, though, once the ship sets sail I'm sure there will be guards down here or something."

Spyro sighed and jumped out of the crate. He looked around and noted that he could barely see a thing. He shrugged and felt around for a nearby crate and eventually found one. Feeling around again, he lifted his claw to the top of it and attempted to pry it open, but it wouldn't budge. Spyro turned around and gently knocked on the crate behind him.

"What?!" Claws hissed.

"The crate's locked or something! I can't get it open."

"Well, try harder. And hurry!"

Spyro grabbed the top of the other crate and tried again to pry off the top. With quite a bit of exertion, he finally heard it break off with a loud noise that made the two flinch. He looked around quickly and saw no ponies coming to the attention of the noise and sighed in relief. Climbing to the top of the new crate, he looked down and his heart stopped; there were hundreds of gemstones that somehow made the ones in the hoard look… lame. He grabbed as many as he could carry and tossed them gently into the crate where Claws was still sitting. He did the same thing a few more times before giving up and closing the crate as tightly as he could. Climbing back in their box, he sighed and placed the top back on.

"Finally, some food!" Claws cheered quietly and started to immediately eat a few gems.

"You know, you could say thank you at least," Spyro said, huffing in anger.

"No, I'm good. Now start eating; we don't know how long we will have to go without food so… eat!"

The serious tone that Claws gave him was all Spyro needed. He grabbed a random gem in the darkness and started nibbling on it slowly. The taste was amazing, at first he thought it tasted like a lemon candy, but that was wrong. The flavor kept changing the more he chewed on it. He ate a few more and so did Claws. They decided it was best to keep the rest for later. So they sat there in silence, occasionally hearing another unicorn pony come by and drop some more crates in the cargo hold. So far, the ship had not set sail.

"Claws, why do you think the ponies came here if they aren't welcome?"

"Because ponies are greedy and they wanted to steal all the gems off the island."

"Do you really think they're evil? How can love and harmony be evil?"

Claws stared at him for a while. All Spyro could see of his body where his eyes. After several minutes, Claws spoke. "Spyro, you're weird."

"Stop calling me weird!"

"Shh! We need to stay quiet. And I can't help it you say weird things."

"But you said you were banned from the hoard for being nice, and they made the ponies sound nice."

"How do you know? You ever met a pony?"

Spyro scratched his head but had a quick comeback. "Have you?"

"Well… no, but for now let's just assume that they are bad. We don't wanna get caught."

"No, I don't want to be caught, but once we get to their land what do we do?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean once the ship sets sail and we, um, dock in their land then what do we do?" Spyro nervously shuffled his claws.

"I… guess we didn't think that far ahead, Spyro," he admitted while sighing.

"Well, we need to think of a plan. Evil or no, I doubt some random ponies are just gonna invite us into their homes and let us stay."

"Right, let me think for a minute."

They both went silent again for a while. Occasionally they could hear more crates and occasionally Spyro heard Claws shuffle around to get more comfortable. After a while, Claws decided to voice his ideas.

"I got nothing."

Spyro facepalmed immediately after hearing his "idea".

"Well I can't think of much. I mean, I guess it's possible that the ponies aren't evil which would change things, so to speak."

"Right. But we won't know that until we actually meet a pony, and we can't do that until we are off the ship!"

"Exactly, so I got nothing."

Spyro sighed. "Claws, I'm thirsty."

"Well, unless you can mash these gemstones into liquid, I doubt we will be getting water anytime soon."

Spyro sighed again and slumped down in the crate. The noise of moving crates had long since stopped. It wasn't until recently that he sensed his growing need for water; he was starting to notice a few other things too. Ever since he woke up on that island, he had felt numb, but now it seemed his dulled senses were returning and so was his dulled mind. It was unnerving how he accepted the fact that he was a dragon so quickly. To any child, this would seem like a dream come true, yet he knew that he didn't used to be a dragon. But whenever he tried to think of his previous life, he only saw vague memories and nothing showed his past self in them, even if he could still think of the memories clearly.

He knew that he had grown up in an orphanage until age ten and he knew it wasn't easy or fun. He also clearly knew about stuff from his world while his dragon friend clearly did not. Could that mean that things like tigers and video games didn't exist here? Shuttering at the thought of no video games, he pushed it aside to try and clear his thoughts. He wasn't a stupid child and he had always been quite curious even after getting past that innocent age where he would ask question after question to his caretakers until they were driven crazy.

Clearly, ponies could talk here and had magic like in storybooks. But why wasn't he excited to see these things? There he was, on a very large wooden ship surrounded by magical ponies, sitting with another dragon, as a dragon, and he wasn't phased at all. He was far more uncertain than phased, if anything. When the elder dragon had given his story, Spyro was certain that he was insane, but clearly something about the ponies had bothered Claws and, annoying as he was, Claws was still his only friend. Spyro had always been good at trusting others and he wasn't about to stop doing that, so for now being surrounded by ponies that might be evil made him feel uncertain and maybe a bit scared. Instinctively, he moved close to Claws for comfort but stopped when he thought of their sleeping incident earlier, so he slumped back and kept thinking.

Thoughts seemed so clear, but the more he thought of his world that was devoid of dragons and mythical ponies, the more they became muddled. It was an odd feeling; if thoughts of his old world popped up randomly they were clear as day, but if Spyro chose to willingly bring up old memories then they became clouded again. Mentally sighing to himself, he decided to clear his mind and focus on the problem at claw. They were in a dark crate and both of them were stowing away on a ship, they had food in the form of gemstones, but they had no liquids or water. Darkness was quickly becoming a theme for the two but so was silence. After twenty minutes of sulking in silence, they finally heard a noise and they felt the whole ship move in a big thrust.

They both listened eagerly on the edge of the crate with their ears pressed to the wood. They heard voices saying things like 'move out' and 'set sail for Central Equestria'. They both sighed in relief, glad to be rid of the island. To their relief again, nopony had came down in the storage room after an hour of sailing; apparently there was no reason to. After a while the silence was getting to Spyro.

"Hey, Claws?"

"What?"

"Well, we can't stay in this crate the whole time. Eventually we need to get out and try and find some water."

"Yeah I know, but we don't know how many ponies are on this ship. We need to be really careful when we start sneaking around. It's best to wait for nightfall."

"Sounds good, but there's kind of a problem with that."

"What?"

"We don't have watches and there are no windows down here. How do we know when it's night time?"

Ignoring the watch comment, Claws replied, "Well I guess after a bit we should get out of the crate and sneak upstairs to check on the time of day. We can sneak back up every once in a while until it's night. After that, we find some water."

All Spyro could do was nod at this and wait. After another hour they decided to leave the safety of the crate. They both looked around and saw all the crates and after feeling around, they eventually found some wooden stairs. The stairs led up to a door that barely showed any light behind it. Taking a big gulp and some encouragement from his friend, Spyro walked slowly up the stairs and opened the door to peek outside. He saw a long hallway, but no ponies yet. The hall led to other doors and what he assumed was more stairs.

"What do you see?"

"A hallway and more doors, but no ponies."

"Good. How bright is it?"

"Very bright, it's still day time."

"Okay, well let's close that door and wait here for a few more hours and check then."

After a few hours, the thirst and the silence was starting to get to them. They decided then and there that they would need to start sneaking around the ship in hopes of finding a kitchen or food storage room that held fresh water. After those hours wore out, they both decided to walk up the stairs and leave the safety of the storage room. They tiptoed through the hallways, still not coming into contact with ponies. After a few turns, they finally spotted a pegasus pony, but he seemed oblivious to the two dragons standing behind him. After a few minutes of them hoping he wouldn't turn around, the pony trotted forward, leaving them alone.

"Where do you think he's going?"

"Well, judging from the time of day, maybe to get some dinner? We should follow him!"

"Alright. But let's be careful," Spyro replied. He was certainly nervous, but he couldn't deny that Claws was making sense.

They followed the pegasus pony, trailing far behind. After walking a few hallways and climbing two sets of stairs, they noticed more ponies heading in the same direction and started to hear loud noises coming from a mess hall of some sort. Both of them quickly hid behind two barrels and waited for all the other ponies to enter the hall.

"Okay, we found where all the food is, but also found all the other ponies. Now what?" Spyro asked, turning to his friend.

"I have no idea. We can't just sneak into there, someone is bound to see us. Maybe we can sniff around for a kitchen, someone has to be making this food and it would be easier to sneak in a less populated area."

At this, Spyro looked back at Claws, what he said made perfect sense but it made him sound more mature. "Hey, how old are you anyway?"

"Nine. Why?"

"Uh, no reason. Let's start sniffing." There was actually a big reason. Spyro was ten. It didn't make any sense that a dragon younger than him would be bigger and seem so much older. Then again, he had bigger problems to worry about right now.

They sniffed for a while away from the mess hall. Eventually, both of their noses landed on one specific door off in the distance. They peeked inside and saw a few chef ponies busy making food. They walked inside and closed the door behind them. With another sigh of relief, they noticed the two pony chefs were far too busy to notice them walk past. After searching around, they found a pantry room and slipped inside. They found plenty of food and, to their luck, some barrels. After sniffing at the barrels, they felt confused.

"This is not water. What's inside?" Spyro said.

"I don't know. Definitely not water, but it is something to drink at least." Claws shrugged after saying this and pried open the top of the barrel.

Inside, they found a red liquid and, after a few sniffs, they concluded that it at least seemed sweet. Finally, Claws decided to dunk his mouth in and take one large gulp. He immediately began to relax.

"Okay, this stuff is good, you need to try it." Claws sounded far more relaxed and slightly more incoherent, but he still sounded like Claws.

Shrugging, Spyro decided to follow his lead and take in a few gulps of his own. The drink tasted wonderful. He finally had something to quench his thirst. After one final gulp, he decided to sit down with Claws while they both sighed in content. Spyro felt far more at ease and slightly dazed, but then he snapped back into alertness.

"Okay, we got something to drink and now know where it is, we need to get back to the crates."

"Yeah you're right. I just wish we could take some of that drink with us." Claws stood up and began muttering to himself, looking around for something to carry the drink in.

Spyro looked around the pantry and eventually spotted two smaller barrels made out of wood that seemed empty.

"Here, grab one of these barrels and fill it up. If we're lucky we can drag them back without anyone noticing," Spyro said, praising himself for thinking on his feet.

Claws and Spyro filled up the two barrels and they again walked past the chefs unnoticed. After some luck and sneaking around some more, they made it back to the storage room down below and shut the door behind them. They slowly dragged the two smaller barrels to their crates and lifted them both inside. After climbing back in, Spyro gently lifted the top back on and they both sighed with relief.

"I can't believe that worked. These ponies are so stupid!" Claws was giggling louder than he probably should have for someone who was trying to conceal himself.

Spyro only giggled back, relieved that they now had food and liquid. They sat there for a while talking about whatever, sipping more on their new drink and munching on more gems. After a while, an ease began to form between the two with their new drink relaxing their bodies far beyond what they could comprehend.

"Hey, Claws?" Spyro said in a slurred voice, sounding very tired.

"Wha?" Claws barely responded. They were both slumped on opposite ends of the crate in relaxed states.

"Um, when… when we go to sleep tonight, can I sleep with you?" Spyro felt confident in asking this, it just seemed normal to him.

"Fine, I guess so." For no reason, Claws smiled back at him and nodded at his request. They knew that sleeping would be required soon and that drink they found was making it harder to stay awake.

Spyro nodded at his response, stood up, slowly lay himself down next to Claws, his head resting on Claws' shoulder, and shut his eyes. Claws instinctively did the same back and soon they were fast asleep. However, they failed to notice the top of the crate was not fully in place, and the two barrels they had dragged back with them were, in fact, leaking.





"Sir! Somepony appears to have broke into the pantry and stolen some our alcohol. There is a trail leading to the storage room." A rather large earth pony sailor exclaimed, facing the captain of the ship.

"What? Well, follow it! I want to know who in their right mind would do something so foalish!" The captain, a pegasus pony, barked out the orders to several other ponies and they soon were following the trail.

Three ponies followed the trail of wine into the storage room. One of them, a unicorn, used magic to light the way to the usually dark underbelly of the ship. It didn't take them long to notice that the liquid led them to an obviously opened crate. They all walked up to it and removed the top. Three very loud gasps followed. Inside were the two dragons sleeping with each other, completely unaware of their horrible mistake.

"What do we do?" The unicorn pony turned to his shipmates after looking back at the two dragons.

One earth pony spoke up, sniffing the air. "I guess we take them to the captain. From the smell of it, they are clearly… drunk. It won't do us any good to try and wake them yet."

The unicorn shrugged and enveloped the two smaller bodies in his magic and gently started carrying them back upstairs. They remained sleeping the entire time. The other two ponies followed him in utter confusion. After several minutes, they were in front of the captain's quarters with his door closed. After a few knocks, they heard his voice.

"Come in."

"Sir, we found the problem… we have some stowaways, sir!"

"DRAGONS? What in the holy mother of Celestia…" The captain stopped himself before he said something that he would regret.

"Right, leave them here. I will deal with them when they are awake."

"Sir? Shouldn't we turn around and send them back?"

"NO! We are not turning this ship around for two little dragons. I don't know why they decided to sneak on-board, but clearly they didn't want to be there. Can't say why, but we will find out soon enough." He paused and took a few sniffs. "Still, judging from their age and the smell on their breath, they will not be happy when they wake up!" The captain, always being a dark joker, couldn't help but laugh. The others joined in nervously.

"Now, GET OUT!" the captain barked. In a bit of a panic, the ponies followed their order, blindly shutting the door as they ran out of the room. The captain looked at the two dragons, shook his head, grabbed a blanket, draped it over them and left the two sleeping on his desk.

Spyro's eyes began to stir several hours later. He immediately regretted that decision as his senses began to slowly return. He had a splitting headache that, coupled with waking up in a strange room, did nothing to ease his mind. He slowly looked around and recognized it as some type of private quarters on the ship with a giant map in the corner and a private desk that both he and Claws were resting on. He saw no ponies, but he knew that they had been caught somehow. Claws was still sound asleep and some nudges did nothing to wake him.

The door in front of him opened and closed rapidly causing Spyro to flinch and grab his head for support. His headache had gotten much worse.

"Heh, a splitting headache no doubt?" asked a pony with a very deep voice.

All Spyro could do was nod slightly and moan in response.

"Right. That will get better with time, but I have no concern for your head, dragon." The pony's tone was one of anger, but it held an odd calmness as well.

Spyro just stared at him with wonder, taking a specific interest in his wings.

"What is your name, dragon?"

"S… Spyro." His voice sounded weak and child-like.

"And, Spyro, what is it that you and your companion are doing on my ship?"

Spyro was now feeling pretty terrible about their plan to sneak on board, but he spoke up. "Um, me and Claws here… well, we are banished from the dragon hoard, so we sneaked on-board so we could, um, live?"

"And what caused you both to be banished?" The captain was now speaking with a sincere voice, but still one that demanded respect.

"Claws was banned for being nice." This statement caused the captains eyebrow to raise but he let Spyro continue. "And I was banned for questioning the elder dragon, I guess."

"Questioning?"

"Yeah, he told this story about how the ponies lived in love and harmony and were evil and it didn't make any sense. How can love be bad? So I questioned it and I got banned." After speaking, Spyro smiled sheepishly back at the captain.

"Hmm, I don't see how those things can be bad either. So you two decided to sneak on board because you thought you could survive better with the ponies than being on that island?" the captain questioned with his full curiosity.

Spyro simply nodded his head.

The captain started to laugh. It was powerful and caused Spyro to grab his ears out of fear for his headache getting worse.

"Well, I suppose that is brilliant in its own right, but that still leaves us with a few problems, Spyro."

"Problems?"

"Quite. For one, we now have two young dragons on-board, illegally, which means I will have to do some paperwork and report them to the princess." He paused and waited for the words to sink in and when Spyro said nothing, he continued. "And now I need to think of what to do with you until we get back to Equestria and then you meet her." His words echoed in Spyro's soul. Her. He definitely meant the princess, but he failed to mention what kind of princess she was.

"Is she nice?"

"I should think so. Otherwise I would be out of a job." He laughed again causing Spyro to flinch but laugh out of sheer nervousness back.

"Right, it will be a good two weeks before the ship ends up in her—"

"TWO WEEKS?!" Spyro spoke out so loudly that it caused Claws to wake up slowly.

"Yes. Two weeks is the standard sailing rate on this ship. Why does this alarm you?"

"Spyro? What's going on?" Claws spoke up, looking around with his right claw massaging his scalp for comfort.

"Do you at least have video games so we don't get bored?" Spyro said the statement so plainly for such a foreign word to both the other dragon and the captain.

"Video games? I beg your pardon, but I do not know what you mean."

"You have never heard of video games?" Spyro turned his head to the captain and back to his friend, Claws. Claws was really confused at this point but simply shook his head not knowing what he meant. The captain did the same.

"No Sega Genesis or Super Nintendo or even arcades?" Each word he spoke sounded higher than the last. And with each phrase, the captain only looked more and more confused.

Spyro had to pause and think for a minute. What else hadn't they heard of? "Excuse me, but have you, um…"

"Captain Sailing Winds, Spyro."

"Excuse me, Captain Winds, but have you ever heard of a television?"

Again, Spyro got the same response from both of them, two shakes of their heads and confused looks.

"Ever heard of electricity?"

Claws shook his head, but the captain responded this time.

"Yes, back in Equestria we have a few things powered by it, but I'm afraid nothing on this ship. I wonder how is it that a dragon who has lived on that island his whole life knows about it."

"I just… do." Spyro paused and continued. "So no such thing as a television or video games?" Spyro stood up on the captain's desk and waited for the answer that he already knew.

"I'm afraid not. Since I have never heard of this I would imagine they don't exist in Equestria, but judging from, uhh, your friend over here, I would imagine he has never seen these things either."

Spyro had to grab his head. He felt dizzy for a few reasons. First, the realization dawned on him that this new world he was thrust into had no video games or modern comforts that he was used to. Second, the same dizziness that he felt back on the island was returning. Video games had always been his life back at the orphanage; they comforted him and brought him into other worlds, but now that he was literally in another world he simply wanted it to end. The dizziness finally stopped and all he could do was say one thing.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" Spyro sounded like a child throwing a tantrum. He felt angry.

"What is the matter with you?" Claws walked up to him, attempting to calm him down.

"How can video games not exist here? And television? And how can you live like that?" Each question seemed more comical than the last; not only did the captain and his friend have no idea what he was talking about, but they both felt uneasy from his outburst.

"Listen to me, Spyro, on this ship you will both follow my lead and obey my rules. For one, I want no further outbursts from you like you just did. I have no clue what video games are, or for that matter, television, but it sounds to me like an addiction of some sort. Now if you would please calm down and listen to me, both of you."

Spyro simply nodded and took in some deep breaths like before. He wasn't sure why he got so angry so quickly. Ever since he got his new body, it was like being a young child again; outbursts were commonplace now and difficult to control. His emotions were now the most difficult thing to manage and being in a new body wasn't helping things any.

"Now then, you are both under the authority and rule of Princess Celestia's Naval Command. Technically, you are prisoners now, but being so young, I cannot treat you as such."

"How did we get caught anyway?" Claws said, relieved that Spyro had stopped screaming.

"The wine you stole was leaking into the crate that you stowed away in," the captain said, laughing to himself.

"We drank wine? We are too young for that!" Spyro said.

"Quite. I'm surprised you even know what wine is. But regardless there will be no more for each of you."

"We just wanted something to drink, sorry," Spyro said, smiling sheepishly.

"I must say, you are quite polite for a dragon, but for now, don't worry about it. We need to find you two a room to stay in and some food and I guess a guard to keep you under control." The captain said sternly.

"You want us to spend two weeks in a room with nothing to do?" Spyro said sternly.

"Well, if you're good I will let you see the ship, but at least for tonight, yes." And with that, the Captain stood up and told them to stay put in his quarters until further notice.

The door slammed shut again, leaving them alone.

"I can't believe we got caught and I let you sleep next to me again," Claws said, grabbing his head. He looked like he was in pain.

"Well, it could have been worse."

"What's worse than this?!" He practically yelled, but winced in pain and stopped, lowering his voice.

"They could have killed us or something. He said in two weeks we will see their princess though, it doesn't sound like a death sentence to me." Spyro stood up and crossed his hands in a smug triumph.

"You don't know that; for all we know their princess is just as crazy as the elder dragon!"

"I dunno, but we don't have much choice unless you can fight, like, a million ponies with your fire when we get there. Otherwise, we're stuck," Spyro said dismissively as he got off the table to look around.

Claws, being taken aback by his statement, had no choice but to shrug and do the same.

After ten minutes of looking around the captain's quarters, they both came to one realization; they were bored. There wasn't much to look at other than the massive map in the back that showed them Equestria and all the land markers. Spyro had to stifle a giggle at the mention of a pony town named Ponyville. After another five minutes of sitting there, the door swung open revealing Captain Sailing Wind.

"Right, you two follow me," the captain said, waiting for them to obey.

They followed him to a less secluded spot on the ship. All around them, the sailor ponies had to stop and stare at the two new dragons on-board. Eventually, they found a room with two guards out in front who had orders to not let them out under any circumstances. Inside was a spare room with two beds large enough for adult ponies and some books in a rather plain-looking room. Before the captain left them for the night, Spyro felt he had to ask something out of curiosity.

"Excuse me, Captain?"

"Yes, what is it, Spyro?" The captain said, turning around to face the young dragon. He was smiling while Spyro just looked as curious as ever.

"How come you were on that island anyway? It said clearly all over the place that ponies were not welcome so… it just seems weird," Spyro said, stammering the entire time like a lost child asking a question that he knew that kids shouldn't ask.

"Hmm, Princess Celestia had ordered us to sail here and do our best to chart out the island. Occasionally, a crew is sent to your dragon islands to do this, but we usually come up empty-hooved. We cannot venture too far for risk of angering the other dragons."

"So why do it then?"

"For the gemstones, of course. The island is full of them and they can be quite valuable. Speaking of which, I will have some sent to your new room, but we cannot have you both eating our entire supply, so you will both have to get used to pony food," the captain said, leaving them in the room and shutting the door behind him.

They both shrugged and decided to call it a night. It was getting late and they weren't in need of any food or water, plus, Spyro remembered what the captain said; if they behaved, they would get to see the rest of the ship. So Spyro climbed into his new bed and let the darkness take him for the night.

> Chapter 3: Questions
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Spyro and Claws woke up early in the morning feeling far more refreshed. They were also now headache-free. Spyro looked around and, to his disappointment, realized that they were, in fact, stuck in a room together with nothing to do but wait. Spyro decided to stretch his new body some and Claws decided to watch him, still giving him that curious look.

"Spyro, again, you're weird."

"Good morning to you too," he replied sarcastically.

"Okay we’re up, stuck in this room and are now prisoners. So now what?"

"We wait for the captain to come get us, I guess. He did say he would show us around the ship."

"Oh no. No way am I going to be paraded around with those ponies staring at me!"

Spyro gave him a quizzical look but stopped when the door swung open to reveal Captain Sailing Winds.

"Good morning, dragons. I trust you're both ready to see the ship." Spyro gave him an enthusiastic nod, but Claws was simply glaring daggers at him.

"No! I will stay here, thank you!"

"C'mon, Claws, you really want to spend the next two weeks just sitting here?" Spyro questioned while walking away from the captain.

"Yes! If it means staying away from those ponies then fine by me!"

The captain was unable to reply so he simply stood by to wait out their argument.

"Fine by me. I mean, it's okay if you're scared."

"What? Of course I'm not afraid of them!"

"Then let’s go!" Spyro was pointing to the captain and smiling.

"Fine!" In a momentary lapse in judgement, Claws ran out the door and into the ship. He looked around and was greeted to over a dozen eyes all staring down at him.

"Gentlecolts, these two dragons will be accompanying me today. They are prisoners, but just treat them as you would treat anypony that's underage." The captain finished speaking and all the other ponies simply nodded their heads but did nothing else.

"Oh, and… GET BACK TO WORK!" With a command from the captain, they all hastily attempted to follow his order but only caused some chaos. But they eventually fell back in line.

"Now, come along you two, and keep up!" Immediately, the captain started his daily routines, not waiting for them to listen or not. Spyro did his best to follow, with Claws looking reluctant to do much of anything, but he kept up as well.

They both followed the captain, with Spyro asking a million questions a minute on every single task he was doing. Meanwhile, Claws was nervously twitching his fingers every time a new pony would greet them and keeping as silent as he could. It turned out, a captain had a lot of tasks to take care of just in the morning alone, and most of what they did seemed like busywork below the decks. After a while, the questions became less about the ship and how it operated and more about ponies.

"Can magic cause lightning bolts to appear?"

"Well, sort of. Pegasus ponies can manipulate the clouds and make thunderstorms. Does that answer your question?"

"No, I meant can, like, a unicorn pony summon a cloud and cause lightning so they can target something?"

"Why in the world would you want to do that?" The captain was taken aback by such mention of violence.

"Sounded cool to me!" Spyro exclaimed defensively while crossing his arms.

"Harming others is not in any way cool. And to answer that question, I very much doubt it."

Questions would start like that; Spyro would think of all manners of magic that he had witnessed in fiction and video games from his world and seem to ask about topics relating to them. But a lot of the magic he remembered either involved wishing or harming others, so the captain would grunt and simply ignore him for a while and go back to his duties. After a while, Spyro made a note to not ask about harming others, but it still didn't stop him from asking question after question.

"Can magic make a carpet fly?"

"Well, yes it can."

"Can you use magic to make wishes come true?"

"Absolutely not."

"Oh, can it make you invisible?"

"Well, yes, but to be honest, Spyro, I don't know too much about unicorn magic, not being one and all," the captain said dismissively.

At this, Spyro had to think. He wondered if other ponies would feel jealous of the ability to use magic. For that matter, wouldn't earth ponies feel jealous of both? He would wager that the captain was at least thankful to be able to fly so he couldn't be that jealous, but still, using magic sounded like the best option if he could become a pony. The dismissive nature of the captain at the mention of a simple question was starting to bother Spyro. Still, they were already in trouble so it wasn’t not like more annoying questions could make it worse.

"Hey, Captain?"

"Yes, Spyro? What is it?" The captain was already at his wits end and the constant drum of questions was not helping.

"Do you or earth ponies ever feel jealous of unicorns?"

The captain had stopped walking when he heard this question to think. Why in all of Equestria did that dragon ask such a random question? Sure most non-unicorns had wished in their lives to use magic, but flying itself was always enough for him. He couldn't speak for earth ponies, not being one himself, but they all certainly seemed happy enough.

"I'm not sure why you ask, but I'm perfectly happy not being a unicorn and so are other earth ponies." The captain continued to walk, not bothering to even look down.

"I just wanted to know. Magic sounds cool!"

"Well, it is, but all of us can use magic, Spyro."

"Even me?"

"Uh, well, not really, but dragon's do have some resistance to magics."

"So I have, like, magic defense points?"

"Sure, whatever that means."

The rest of the morning was spent under the ship while they went back to eat some breakfast in the captain’s quarters. Spyro noticed that Captain Sailing Winds was a rather quiet pony; he only seemed to speak when necessary and always looked like he was deep in thought, even when busy. Eating with him was awkward to say the least. Both dragons could note his silence. After some more questions, the captain agreed to let them see the rest of the ship and hopefully find some other pony to watch after them. They were heading for the deck.

The walk to the deck was excruciatingly boring to Spyro but just made Claws more nervous. The way the captain said nothing the whole time did not help his nerves much. The closer they got to the top of the ship, the more nervous Claws started acting. He was near the breaking point. Spyro was near the breaking point of boredom and wished to speak with other ponies. The captain was cool and all, but he was just too stoic and silent for Spryo’s tastes.

They finally reached the top while they ascended one last set of stairs. All around, they could see ponies working on the ship. Unicorn ponies were using their magic to move around ropes and sails, among other things. Pegasus ponies were busy flying up above to make sure that the weather was clear enough while the ship moved at a brisk pace, for a ship, anyway. And finally, earth ponies were on the ground directing others and making sure that no pegasus pony strayed too far behind on their weather duties and got lost. Overall, it was a sight to behold and to the untrained eye it looked like chaos, but in reality, it was organized chaos.

The waves hitting the ship made just enough noise to be louder than the ponies. All around they could see nothing but ocean with no clear landmarks or other ships. All three neared the middle of the deck and waited while the captain spoke with some of the other ponies. Spyro waited, feeling more bored than ever, and Claws simply stood by, nervously waiting and expecting a pony to pounce on him at any second.

"Um, Spyro?"

"Yeah?"

"I really, really don't like it up here," Claws said while looking all around. His eyes kept locking onto random ponies from earth ones to flying ones like he was being distracted, but it was more than that.

"Why?"

"All these ponies just make me nervous, okay?"

"They're just ponies. I know they are bigger than us but we do have fire you know? We're dragons, dude."

"I know, but… can we just go back down? I'm scared…" This comment caused Spyro some concern so he went up to talk to the captain.

The captain agreed to let another pony lead Claws back to his guarded room, and Spyro demanded to stay up on deck for as long as possible. The captain was far too busy to notice him wander off, but he decided to look around the deck while trying his best to stay out of the way. He wasn't exactly sure what to do so he tried to drum up some conversations, however, most were not interested in speaking to a dragon. He tried to talk to the pegasus ponies, but they were all too busy attending to the clouds. He tried the earth ponies, but they just grunted at him, and finally he tried the unicorns, but they all seemed far too busy.

With a sigh, he walked back to the captain and waited, after a while the captain had stopped ordering others and was now enjoying the ocean breeze. Spyro took his chance to act.

"Hey, captain?"

"Yes, Spyro?"

"Ever see any pirates?"

"No. There haven't been pirates in these waters for over three centuries."

"That's so boring! Does anything exciting ever happen on your ship?"

"The most exciting thing to happen recently are two very annoying baby dragons who stowed away. So, yes."

"I'm not a baby! And we are not that exciting. We don't even have wings!" Every word was followed by a stomp of his foot and a grunt. After, he simply sat down, sulking to himself.

"You will get your wings eventually. True, pegasus ponies are born with them, but it’s not like we could all fly at your age."

"Really?"

"Oh yes. It takes quite a bit of training and practice. I believe my first real flight was at the age of eleven. Before that, most pegasus ponies can only glide or barely manage to break off the ground," he replied, smiling down at him.

"So, you're saying that I just need to wait and I can fly eventually?"

"Well, yes. One thing I can say that you have on me at my age is the ability to breathe fire. I would imagine that is something exciting at least."

"I guess so."

"Right, I'll order one of my stallions to bring you back down. You have plenty of books in your room. You seem quite content on staving off boredom, so try some reading."

Spyro agreed to walk back in silence. With some encouragement, he picked up a random book and started reading. Claws appeared to be taking a nap, but the two guards remained just outside. They were still prisoners, but they didn't feel like it; they only felt slightly annoyed. The moon was just about to rise which caused Spyro to sigh loudly. It had only been two days at sea. They still had around ten days to reach Equestria.

"This is going to be a long trip," Spyro said to himself, placing extra emphasis on the word long. With another heavy sigh, he decided to call it a night.

> Chapter 4: Welcome to Equestria
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The following two weeks of sail were awkward to say the least. Odd days would be spent with the captain and even days were spent in their room reading. Just from books alone Spyro found out plenty about Equestria. It talked about how the princesses controlled the sun and moon and how the lunar princess was recently rescued from something called the Elements of Harmony. The more he read, the more foreign the place felt to him when compared to his world. But it also started to feel far more like a fairy tale that had come true. He tried to entertain himself after nonfiction became too convoluted and boring, but, overall, the rest of the trip was excruciatingly dull.

Questions were still buzzing in Spyro's head, but he knew once they arrived that some of them would be answered. He had gotten quite used to pony food, but he still craved those gemstones more than anything. He knew Claws was feeling the same way, but the captain was stern with their allowed supply. By the end of the journey, tempers were wearing thin, but the very second they heard that Equestria was near, they calmed down.

"Spyro?"

"Ya, Claws?"

"What do we, you know, say to the princess when we meet her?"

"Um, I don't know. Are you worried that saying the wrong thing will get us killed or something?"

"Well, yes."

"Well, then keep your cool and only speak when she wants you to, I guess. I've never met royalty before, so, honestly, I have no clue what to say to her. The captain said she was nice."

After a while, the ship came to a full stop. It was halfway through the day already. Spyro wondered where the captain had gone to. He hadn't seen him all day but he figured he was busy. A loud knock on the door answered his question, though.

"Dragons? Please come with me. We have arrived at our destination. I will be escorting the both of you to the castle." The captain sounded tired but seemed to be in better spirits than during the rest of the trip.

They agreed, not wanting to upset the captain. They were both just glad to get off the ship. The ship seemed creepy with most of the ponies gone as if it were deserted. They walked back up to the deck where they noticed a type of drawbridge-like structure was now lying on top of the ship. They quickly crossed it to land. There was a small town near the massive shipyard, but the two dragons were unable to explore as they were being taken through via carriage. They climbed in and, without warning, the carriage was off in the air. To the dragons’ amazement, it was being carried by several pegasus ponies.

"We got word back from the princess this morning. She is very interested in meeting you two," the captain said.

"She is? Is that good?" Spyro asked nervously.

"Oh, we shall see. You never know what's on her mind. In my day, I have heard every crazy punishment carried out by her command," the captain said, snickering to himself and leaving the two dragons sharing uneasy looks.

"What kind of punishments?"

"Oh…" He paused when he noticed that both dragons were sweating and hanging on his every word. "…this and that."

Before they could question him further, they heard several of the pegasus ponies call out. They were nearing the castle already after only a matter of minutes. They looked out the window to the most impressive and odd-looking castle they had ever seen. Canterlot Castle had no normalcy to it; not only was it hanging on the edge of a cliff (which in its own right seemed insane) but most of the castle and its weight was hanging off the side. They landed in a courtyard and both dragons were told to wait inside.

"Spyro! You said she wasn't evil, but he just mentioned crazy punishments!"

"Well, maybe he was just joking."

"Who jokes about that kind of stuff?"

"The crazy captain?"

"THAT’S NOT HELPING!" Claws yelled so loud that the guards from the castle came rushing over.

"Quiet, you two."

Claws was about to protest, but the massive build of the ponies and their sickening glare told him to think better of it. With a heavy sigh, they both waited in silence for the captain to return.

After a few minutes, they saw the captain returning with two guards trailing behind.

"Right then, you two will follow these guards to meet with the princess. I will be returning to my ship. So I guess this is goodbye."

"Oh, goodbye, captain! It was nice meeting you," Spyro said as politely as he could.

Claws just remained silent.

"Yes, it was nice knowing you two as well," he replied with another snicker as he re-entered the carriage.

The dragons left the carriage and waited with the guards. In a flash, the carriage was out of sight. Both dragons shared more uneasy looks considering the way the captain phrased his departing.

"You two follow us, and don't try anything in the castle," one of the guards said. He waited for them both to nod and then they set off on their short journey.

They followed the guards, trailing nervously behind. The castle was filled with tons of ponies going about their business. It seemed to have an endless series of corridors, rooms and paths. Getting lost in the massive structure seemed like an easy thing to do. After climbing an almost endless series of staircases, they had finally arrived at a massive circular room. A tall door with the emblem of the sun was on the other side of the room. They presumed that the princess was waiting inside.

"Wait here." Both guards left their side and went to knock on the door. It opened slightly. They saw the guards speak some quiet words and heard something in response. After a few minutes of conversing, the door was slammed shut and the guards returned to their side.

"The princess will see you in ten minutes time. You both will wait here. We will be downstairs in case you think about trying anything." The tone of voice they were using was enough to convince them to not argue. So the guards left, leaving them both waiting in front of the massive sun-door. The silence let them hear a quiet conversation going on inside the room; clearly the princess was not alone.

"Who do you think she’s talking to?" Claws asked, trying to converse to get over his nerves.

"Um, I don't know. Another pony?"

"Well duh, but… Nevermind."

"You’re nervous aren't you?"

"Duh. Aren't you?"

"Well, I'm kind of excited." Spyro smiled sheepishly back at him.

"Why?"

"I don't know. I never met a princess before, like I said. She sounds kind of cool."

"But what if she throws us in a dungeon or something?"

"I really doubt that will happen, but if it does, we can maybe use our fire on the bars."

"I don't think our fire is powerful enough to break out of a heavily guarded prison, Spyro."

"Well, we just have to really hope that she doesn't do that."

Claws groaned to himself but agreed, so they waited in silence. From the sound of the conversation, she was talking to a male pony. Sure enough, after ten minutes, the doors opened to reveal a white unicorn pony with a huge horn. He had a blue mane mixed in with other shades of blue and on his flank was a shield of some sort. He looked at the two dragons and smiled.

"The princess will see you now," he replied while motioning them to enter her quarters. They slowly followed and, to their surprise, the door was closed by the unicorn after he left. Standing on the other side of the room was a winged unicorn pony whose size made Captain Sailing Winds look small. They both gulped and slowly walked over to her, waiting for a response. At first, she began to study them. She showed no smile for the first few moments but, slowly, she began to speak.

"I am Princess Celestia, co-ruler of Equestria, young dragons."

"Yeah, I read about you and your sister on the ship. It said you and princess Luna rule together?" Spyro said, much to the horror of Claws. He looked like he thought Spyro had just committed a crime against nature.

"That is correct, but you seem to have skipped ahead passed introductions," she said while giggling.

"Oh, right. I'm Spyro and this is Claws."

"Well, it is a pleasure to meet you both," she said while offering a hoof to shake their claws. Claws did so nervously and Spyro did so while smiling.

"So are there any kings or queens? And if you're a princess then do you have a prince?"

"Well, no, it does not work that way in our kingdom."

"That’s how it works in all the fairy tales I've read."

"Well, this is not a fairy tale, I'm afraid. But now I'm curious, if you are both from the Dragon Lands then where did you get to read such books?" She was now looking down at Spyro and ignoring Claws.

"My caretakers used to read them to me at the orphanage all the time."

She stared at him for a few seconds before continuing.

"And where on that dragon island would there be an orphanage, Spyro?"

"Um…" He smiled up at her sheepishly. In truth, he wasn't quite sure how to say he was probably from another world so he didn't. He wanted to try and tell the captain or Claws several times, but every time he attempted a conversation it was like his brain was telling him to stop.

"From what the captain has told me, you were both banned, correct?" Her voice was stern but seemed motherly.

They simply nodded.

"And you both figured a life over here was safer, no?"

"Well, we didn't want to die. It just seemed like a good idea at the time." Another sheepish smile from the two of them.

"Well, if I was in your position at the time, I would have done the same. But you two living among ponies as dragons is not the easiest life."

"But unicorn ponies sound awesome! Oh, since you’re one I wanted to ask, can your magic teleport you?"

Celestia stood still for a while after his question. She, of course, already knew the answer, but it was the way he phrased it that made her blood run cold. That very question was spoken by one in the past, and he used those exact same words. She stared down at Spyro, deep in concentration and thought. He was worried that he said something stupid so he remained silent and looked down at his feet. It couldn't be a mere coincidence that this young dragon knew so much about the modern comforts that ponies all shared and seemed so curious. His friend, Claws, was silent the entire time, acting just like she expected any other dragon to act in his situation, but Spyro did not.

"Unicorns can teleport, but it is very difficult magic. Myself, Princess Luna, and my personal student, Twilight sparkle, are the only known ponies in modern times to have perfected using the spell. Star Swirl the Bearded, however, was the first to perfect the spell. You remind me of him." She considered him for a while longer and then turned around to gaze out her balcony and continue her speech.

"As I was saying, there are very few dragons in our lands. And living among ponies will be difficult. I know because of Spike. He is a dragon of your age who lives with my student down in Ponyville. He is mostly happy, but being the only one of his kind living there, he can often get quite lonely."

"How come he lives with her? Did he run away too?"

"No, his egg was discovered under circumstances that I would rather not discuss. According to the ponies that found his egg, it was considered a dud. They decided to use it for a test that my student aced. This was before I had become her teacher. Twilight was never meant to do much with the egg during the test, just show what she could do with her magic, but something happened. It’s a long story, but in the end she hatched the egg herself and, thus, Spike was born here in Equestria."

"So, she’s like his mom?"

Celestia was again taken aback by how Spyro spoke. True, Spike had never really called Twilight Mother, but she would like to think that Twilight was a good parent to him.

"Well, yes, Twilight is like a mother to Spike. She did raise him after all." She seemed to stare off into space for a moment before continuing. "For now though, we have a problem that needs addressing; what to do with the both of you."

They both shared another set of uneasy looks and simply waited. The princess was considering what she could do with the two dragons. Her first thought was to send them both to live in Ponyville under the careful eye of her most beloved student. It would do Spike some good to make friends with dragons that could at least hold a conversation, and they seemed nice enough. She would also have to consider the implication of those actions, not that Twilight wouldn't agree to it, but it wasn't fair to just drop in her lap two new dragons to take care of.

"We could live with Twilight and this Spike?"

Celestia's train of thought was interrupted by his suggestion. It was like he was reading her mind. "Yes, I have considered this. You both will need a home, however, it would be best to discuss this with her first, perhaps her friends as well."

"I don't need to be taken care of, I'm ten years old," Spyro said, crossing his arms.

Claws looked back at him and gave him a crazy look. "Spyro, I'm older than you and I'm not even ten. What are you talking about?"

"Well, uh, grrrr, nevermind."

Celestia looked back to Spyro. It was truly an odd thing to lie about, but she never sensed him lying. Everything Spyro said just seemed far too weird for a dragon to ever converse about, especially one that was not raised by ponies. If he had been Spike, it would have made sense. Any who grew up on the dragon islands, especially such a young drake, should not have had such knowledge. Curiosity got the better of her.

"Claws? Do you mind waiting just outside? I need to speak with Spyro privately if you will." She spoke calmly and gave him a warm, motherly smile. Claws agreed without hesitation but gave one long look at Spyro and hoped he would be okay.

"Did I do something wrong?" Spyro asked in a panic.

"You did nothing wrong, but I want to try something, Spyro. I want you to take some deep breaths and clear your mind for me. Can you do that?"

"Um, okay." He sat down and obeyed. After ten deep breaths, he followed up by clearing all thoughts from his mind.

Celestia approached him and her horn started to glow as bright as the sun. She pointed her horn down towards his head and in an instant he was out like a light. Celestia closed her eyes, deep in concentration. Floods of images began to pour into her mind. She saw another world filled with strange bipedal creatures. She saw massive cities and countless personal memories pertaining to Spyro. Although she hated herself for doing it, she had to find out as much as possible about Spyro's life. After twenty minutes of prodding, she got what she needed. Spyro was not a dragon at all but something called a human, an orphaned child in his world that somehow was brought here in the form of a younger dragon. What concerned her the most was the lack of information pertaining to his presence and how he came to be in her world. This meant that sending him back would either be impossible or too dangerous to even try. If Spyro's mind did not know how he came to be here then it was hopeless to try and question him. With a heavy sigh, she ended the spell. Below her, Spyro slept, dreaming now of his world.

She wept for him and the loss of his world, a few tears forming in her eyes. Celestia shook them off and used her magic to gently levitate his body onto her back, then she walked over to her bedchambers and let the small drake sleep. She composed herself and brought Claws back inside.

"Claws, Spyro here is exhausted and chose to sleep after… well a rather exhausting spell was used on him. It's a long story, but do not worry for your friend. He will be fine. I must go see my sister, Luna. Please remain here with him in my quarters. Feel free to rest as well. There are some gemstones on that table over there. Do you agree to stay?"

"Uh, yeah."

"Good. I will be back soon."

"Luna, we have work to do," she muttered to herself and, to Claws’ amazement, flew out the window, extending her wings.





Princess Luna was peacefully resting in her private chambers waiting to initiate her duties of raising the moon. Rude or early wake ups were very uncommon as of recent. There were exceptions such as her sister needing her aid. However, due to the important nature of raising the moon and tending to the nights sky, well… you better have a very good reason for waking up Princess Luna early.

Slowly, Celestia descended her flight and landed quietly on the balcony of Princess Luna's private room. Inside, she could see her sister snoozing, unaware of the personal battle her elder sister was fighting in her mind. Secrets were very common among royalty, even between sisters.

Even Luna did not know about Star Swirl, but she did not need to.

Celestia knew that coming clean so her sister could aid her was the best course of action. But the truth was just so freaky, she couldn't bring herself to wake Luna. So she sat down at the balcony and gazed at the ever-setting sun. It would be soon that her sister would wake up anyway, but for the moment, she felt it best to stall the inevitable. She kept thinking about memories long past over the centuries when she first met Star Swirl. The implications of that young dragon… that young 'human' being tossed into her lap. Why Star Swirl had ended up in her castle and why that young child had ended up in the Dragon Lands instead no longer mattered.

Losing everything from your own world just seemed like too much to bare. Celestia knew it was only a matter of time before Spyro figured everything out; she could already sense his magical daze wavering. She could only imagine one of her own little ponies being transported to a strange land as a strange creature, never to return to Equestria. The thought of her own personal student turning into one of those humans and being forced to stay in another world due to circumstances beyond her control was simply unspeakable. Shaking those thoughts aside, she began to focus on Spyro.

Clearly, in his 'human' form he was a young child, but from the looks of his 'dragon' form he seemed much younger. This made sense. Star Swirl would never explain why but he lost at least twenty years when he came to them. Then again, they could never fully explain how it all happened. Spyro still had vast knowledge of his world, but he seemed (at least for now) content in being a dragon. Returning him was, of course, impossible, even if they knew how he came to be, the sheer amount of magic required to send one across dimensional planes was beyond even a being such as Discord. Yet here he is. Sure it bothered her that she did not know how Star Swirl and now how Spyro came to be, but there was no use changing the past.

She began to tear up when imagining what that poor child had lost and was about to lose. The only bright side to this whole mess was the child's history; he appeared to have no known 'human' family and no relatives to speak of which made her job slightly easier. She hated herself for trying to find something to make her feel better about the problem. No, she needed to focus. She needed to wake her sister.

But the sun had another twenty minutes so, again, she sank down in thought. This child was about to lose everything that made him what he was, and to make matters worse it would leave him a tad confused through the process. Both dragons had no home to go to and they could not be treated as prisoners, being so young. The only mares she could think of to take care of the dragons, at least the ones that properly came to mind, were the Elements of Harmony, but she had called on them for so much. Fluttershy no doubt could take in at least one if she was not too afraid. Even so, she had other options. It just didn't feel right to simply ask Twilight to take care of two new dragons so they needed to plan, but in order to plan she would need to finally wake her sister.

And what of the mental toll his long life would put on him? Clearly 'humans' did not live as long as dragons, from what Star Swirl has informed her of. All of it just seemed like too much for one to accept, but maybe she was thinking too much on it?

No.

This was a very serious issue that needed to be handled delicately. With a heavy sigh, she walked up to her sister and started to gently nudge her awake.

"Tia? Why has th…" She paused to correct her language. "What is wrong?"

"Luna, we need to talk, after you raise the moon, of course." The serious tone her sister gave her told her everything she needed to know, something big was up.

"Very well. Excuse me for a moment."

With that, Princess Luna walked off to her balcony and prepared the spell that was cast each and every night. With a loud humming noise and a dark blue color illuminating from her horn, the sun was set. A few seconds later, the moon started to rise. With that spell done, she went to cast another. In an instant all the stars in the night were sparkling as she refreshed the nights sky.

"Now then, what must we speak of?"

"It concerns one of the dragons that we accidently picked up."

"Ahh, the stowaways. What of them?" Luna said dryly.

Oh nothing, just one of them is from another dimension.

"Well, do you remember Star Swirl the Bearded?"

"Of course. A very gifted unicorn for his time, but how does he concern those dragons?"

"Do you remember it strange that Star Swirl had no origin to speak of, no parents or family?"

"Well, it was a bit odd, but we had always assumed that he was uncomfortable when speaking of private matters."

"Do you not think it strange that he had no relatives to speak of even after his passing?" Celestia questioned with a hint of playfulness in her voice.

"Dearest sister, what are you getting at?"

"My sister, for centuries I have kept a secret from you regarding Star Swirl, for he was such a special case that it warranted secrecy. It pained me to keep something from you, but now it makes sense to talk about, considering recent events. Star Swirl the Bearded was from another dimension. Across the veil if you will."

"I do not understand. Crossing the veil for anything even resembling matter should be impossible."

"And yet, Star Swirl did it, although we could never figure out how so we could never send him back. Before he came to Equestria, he was not a unicorn, he was something called a human."

"That is a bit difficult to believe, dear sister." She paused when she noticed Celestia giving her a menacing look. "But I do, regardless." She added the last part in rather quickly.

Celestia sighed. "This matter also concerns one of the dragons."

Luna’s eyes widened in shock. Celestia took a deep breath and started to speak.





Celestia returned to find both dragons resting on her bed. Spyro was spiraled out just as she left him, but Claws was on the other side, sleeping peacefully.

"I shall not move you two, but where do I sleep?" Celestia chuckled a bit and went to her desk to prepare her letter. She knew sleep would soon come for Spike so she made haste to write down as much as she possibly could.

With a quick spell, her newly written scroll was sent. With a huff of irritation, she grabbed a few blankets and pillows and decided to rest on the floor. It was the least she could do for Spyro to leave him to a restful and peaceful night.

"Good night, you two. Rest well, Spyro, for tomorrow is not going to be an easy day for you."





With a loud burp, a peacefully resting purple dragon was woken up. A scroll now lay before him and, with a huff of irritation, he ran up to show his caretaker the message.

"Hey, Twilight, we got a message from the Princess," the dragon said casually.

"THE PRINCESS? SPIKE! WHERE IS IT?" Twilight asked in hysterics. She was now grabbing him with both her front hooves and rapidly shaking the young dragon.

"Um, in my claw?"

"Oh, right. Sorry, Spike. Let me just read this," Twilight said while using her magic to levitate the scroll away.

My most faithful student, Twilight Sparkle,

Two weeks ago during the Dragon Lands expedition, there were a series of stowaway's, two very young dragons. Apparently, they were banished from the island and decided it was best to stow away as they feared for their lives. They are both perfectly safe and sound, currently sleeping in my private quarters. The first dragon, known as Claws, is roughly Spike's age, if maybe a bit older, and should make a good companion. But it is his younger friend that concerns me. His name is Spyro and he appears to be no older than five. I cannot say much in this letter for I would rather talk with you and your closest friends, or the elements, in person although this technically does not require the use of the elements.

This issue is not a matter of the falling of a kingdom or stopping somepony as powerful as Discord. No, this concerns both dragons, but young Spyro has the most to lose here. It pains me to see such bad things happen to one so young. I know I have asked so very much from you and your friends, but now I must ask again. Tomorrow, I expect you and your friends to take the train to Canterlot (tell them not to worry there cost for the ride up and any missing work will be repaid). I need all of you here to discuss what shall happen with both dragons. They will be living with one of your friends from now on, should your friend choose to accept them. I do not wish to burden you, my student, so please try and convince at least one of them to take in one of the two dragons.

Again, I'm sorry that you must be brought here under such circumstances and that I must forcefully drop the two dragons in your lives, but you must understand they have nowhere else to go. And please bring Spike along, this concerns him as well.

Your Faithful Teacher,
Princess Celestia

"Two new dragons? Wow. But that sure sounded like a weird way to write that letter, Twi. What do you think is going on with this Spyro?" Spike asked while re-reading the letter.

"I don't know, I need to go wake the girls; it sounded urgent. I guess we can all sleep in the library tonight and head there first thing in the morning," Twilight said while walking to the library door.

"I'll get some refreshments and sleeping bags out," Spike said while grumbling to himself.

"Thank you, Spike. I'll be back soon!" And with that, she darted out of the library.





It was already dark out, so Twilight had to move quickly to ensure that her friends would still be awake. Pinkie Pie was her first stop; she wagered using her special ability to… well do the impossible would be enough to gather her friends in a hurry. Twilight found Sugarcube Corner in a hurry just as they were about to close. She opened the door with her magic and ran in, looking for her friend.

"TWILIGHT! Hey! Wait it's closing time. Did you really want cupcakes this late?" Her energetic pink friend asked with concern.

"No, Pinkie. I'm here because I need you to gather the girls and bring them to the library."

"Oh, AWESOME! We can have a sleepove…" Pinkie stopped talking suddenly to think. "Wait, Twilight, why so sudden?"

"I just got a letter from the princess. It's concerning two very young dragons and she needs our help."

"Okie dokie loki! I will gather them as quickly as possible," Pinkie said, giving a comical salute and darting out of the store.

"Oh, Pinkie."





Pinkie Pie was now sitting down in the middle of town deep in concentration.

Okay, let's see. Rainbow Dash will be the last one, but if I plan it just right with my party cannon, I can launch us all at once and nab her. I will have to work double time to pick up Rarity and swing around to get AJ without hesitation. Fluttershy will, of course, be the easiest and second to last. OKAY READY GO! Wait? Why am I talking in my head? OH WELL!

In a random whirl of motion, Pinkie Pie started dashing at the speed of sound into Rarity's boutique and instantly bounced on her bed, waking her up.

"PINKIE? What are yo—"

"NO TIME! TWILIGHT BABY DRAGONS PRINCESS LEAVE NOW!" Pinkie Pie immediately grabbed Rarity and, without warning, darted out of her home. Ignoring Rarity's protests, she whipped around to go to Applejack's farm.

Following the same pattern, Pinkie Pie darted into Applejack's home uninvited and jumped on her bed in the same manner as she had to Rarity.

"PINKI—"

"NO TIME! BABY DRAGONS PRINCESS LEAVE NOW!" Using her ridiculous strength, Pinkie Pie lifted up Applejack, again without warning, and was now carrying two ponies against their will, again ignoring their protests.

With their third and final stop being at Fluttershy's cottage, she did the exact same thing, but instead of giving an explanation she simply shrugged and picked up the light pegasus pony and prepared them for her party cannon, aiming it at Rainbow Dash's cloud-home.

"Darling what in Celestia's name do you think you are—" Rarity never did finish that sentence. In an instant, the cannon exploded, sending them through a cloud-home while Pinkie grabbed the final pony she needed. Reaching the end of their fall, the five ponies all landed in front of Twilight's library with a loud thud.

Pinkie simply smirked to herself and stood up, unharmed, looking down at her four other friends who were all now looking pretty dizzy.

TOO EASY

Pinkie Pie picked them up again and ran into the library. She sat each one of them down on the couch while they still struggled to shake off the dizziness.

"TWILIGHT! ALL HERE!" Pinkie Pie beamed with happiness.

"Oh good, you are all…" She paused to look at the state her friends were in. "Pinkie! Did you even tell them what this was about before grabbing them?"

"Of course I did, you silly filly. Right girls?" Pinkie turned to her friends who were all now glaring daggers down at her. With a quiet, "Whoops," she gave them all one big sheepish smile.

"Sorry about that everypony. Please read this letter from the princess, it will clear everything up." Twilight levitated the scroll up and they all began to read.

After a few minutes, they all composed themselves and began speaking.

"I don't get it, Twi, it sounds like this isn't, like, a huge problem or they are destroying the planet. Why does she need us to deal with two baby dragons?" Rainbow Dash questioned her friend.

"That's just it, I'm not entirely sure, Dash, but it sounds to me like they are homeless, which would make sense. But it certainly does seem suspicious."

"Well, ah reckon if the princess needs us then she needs us."

"I, um, wouldn't mind a little dragon living with me... if that 's okay with him."

"WHAT?! Fluttershy, you said you were afraid of dragons!" Rainbow Dash was now flying too close for comfort in front of her friend.

"Well, yes, but not baby dragons. Especially if they have nowhere to go."

"Oh, right."

"So, she wants us to be there tomorrow?" Rarity asked.

"Yes, Rarity. I have sleeping bags here so we can spend the night and get there as soon as possible. Is this all okay with everypony?"

"As long as we get back soon, ah reckon it's fine."

"Yes. Far be it from me to turn down a decree from the princess.

"Of course it's fine with me! I get to throw a party for two, count 'em, two baby dragons!" Pinkie Pie jumped up in the air with glee.

"Eh, I had nothing better to do tomorrow."

"Angel should be fine on his own. So, yes, this is fine, Twilight."

"Okay, good. Everypony, let's get some rest," Twilight said with the rest of her friends agreeing.

> Chapter 5: The Spell
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The sun started to shine into the library, quickly enveloping everything and everyone in light. Six ponies of various colors and race were all sleeping soundly inside their sleeping bags along with one snoring baby dragon. Despite the mental alarm clock Twilight had set for herself, she never stirred. All of them slept away peacefully until the morning slowly died away and two began to wake. Unfortunately, neither of those two were Twilight Sparkle. Applejack and Rainbow Dash woke up with no intention of waking their friends.

They both made breakfast quietly, hoping not to wake up their friends. Dash was smirking to herself while Applejack was looking back unamused.

"Wha?" Applejack asked while jamming food into her mouth.

"We were supposed to be awake a couple hours ago to catch the train. When do you think Twi will wake up and freak out?" she asked while trying to stifle a giggle.

"Oh, soon enough. Should be any minute now," the farm pony said while remaining as calm as possible.

They continued to eat in silence and stare back at their friends with nothing else to do. Slowly, they all began to wake until the last one who was sleeping was, in fact, Twilight. After some quiet yawns and quiet 'good mornings', they heard somepony twitch, out of nowhere a lavender colored unicorn who went from quietly sleeping to frantically yelling to her friends in no time at all.

"THE TRAIN LEAVES IN TWENTY MINUTES!"

"Uh, Twi, ah don't think we are going to make it to that—"

Before Applejack could finish her sentence, she was lifted into the air at the hoof of her friend’s magic. And before any of her friends could protest, every single one of them was lifted into the air, enveloped in a lavender colored magical embrace. Twilight grunted, then concentrated her magic and, in a flash, they vanished from the library and reappeared at the train station. She gently put them down and began to pant.

"Twi, you are really, really scary with your magic sometimes," Rainbow Dash said while trying to shake the dizziness off.

They all somberly agreed but decided to drop the issue and pay for their tickets. After a quick wait, they boarded the train heading to Canterlot. They all found a quiet cabin and began to converse.

"So… dragons?" the cyan pegasus questioned, trying to sound casual, but failing as she let a hint of excitement out.

"I know! Oh fir—"

Rainbow Dash placed a hoof in Pinkie Pie's mouth. "Sorry, Pinkie. Not that we don't want you to throw a party, but I would rather talk about the weirdness of this first, you know?"

"It does seem mighty strange. Other than Spike, when have we ever seen any other dragons just pop up that ain’t tryin' to destroy the town?"

"Ah C'mon, Applejack, dragons aren't that bad!" Spike said while feeling a bit offended.

"Spike, one tried to kill you when you stowed away in his cave and then you met those jerk dragons during the migration," Dash said while feeling just a bit smug.

"I think what Dash means, dear, is that typically those of your race tend to be on the brutish side. And it is a bit odd to have two dragons just drop into the princess's lap that seem to act more along the lines of, well, what we find in you," Rarity exclaimed while keeping her calm demeanor. "At least I hope they do…"

"Now that you put it that way, I guess it is pretty strange." Spike began to scratch his head.

"The princess has been sending ships to and from the Dragon Islands for a while now, but this is the first I've heard of a stowaway problem. The banishment part, though, makes a lot more sense. I just wonder what they did to end up banished in the first place," Twilight said while gazing out at the scenery.

"Well, maybe they acted a bit different," All six passengers turned their heads to Fluttershy who let out a quiet 'eep'.

"Why, whatever do you mean, dear?"

"Um, it's just, I kind of know what…" She looked around and noticed all eyes were locked on her, making her feel far more unnerved, but she continued. "…it's like to be tossed out." She finished in a very meek tone.

"What do you mean?" Pinkie asked, tilting her head to the side in a manner that seemed painful, but still she kept her playful innocence.

"Just trust me when I say, I think I know why they were banned and it was probably from their… differences." She finished, hoping her friends would drop the subject.

Twilight did not buy her act for a second and knew she meant something deeper but felt it was best to focus on the main problem first. "That seems like it makes sense, but that still leaves us with a few problems. First, who are they going to be living with?" She looked around and everypony gave a big shrug so she rolled her eyes and continued. "Also, what did the Princess mean by 'Spyro has the most to lose?'"

"That's the youngling dragon right?"

Twilight nodded.

"No clue, what do you think, Spike?"

"Me? Why me?"

"Um, you’re a dragon, doofus," Dash said while giggling.

"The letter was too vague, Dash. I really have no clue," the young dragon said while throwing his arms up.

"Okay, then who wants to take which dragon in?" Twilight asked growing more annoyed by the minute.

"Oh, oh! I can take them both!" Pinkie beamed with pride.

"Do y'all even know how to take care of a baby dragon, sugarcube?"

Pinkie blinked twice and she concentrated as if she was deep in thought for several moments. Then, without warning, she let out one big “NOPE!”

"Well, to be fair, none of us really do. Not that our Spikey Wikey is that much trouble. Isn't that right, Twilight?" The lavender mare blinked and then let out a single soul screeching laugh before calming herself.

"Sorry about that… And yes, right now he's not because I taught him right. This Claws was raised in the dragon lands so we do not know what his behavior is like. And Spyro sounds like he is still in the—"

"Youngling phase?" Spike finished, knowing exactly what she meant.

"Yes, thank you, Spike. That phase. Not to embarrass you, but when I was still studying in the castle, you were quite the charge," she finished while chuckling.

"You mean burning down books by accident and causing you all sorts of troubles? Those were good times!" Spike finished while chuckling to himself with his eyes closed. After a moment, he opened them to five extremely confused mares and one angry one glaring him down.

"Yes, that, Spike. Good times. But basically, whoever takes them in needs to know what they are getting into. Claws may very well turn out to be just like Spike and would, in theory, not be much of a problem. On the other hoof he could be…" she paused to try and think of a word.

"Barbaric?" Rarity offered.

"Well, I didn't want to use a word that would insult them, but yes, he could be."

"Just sounds like any other young colt that needs a proper mare to teach him manners. I'm up for the challenge," Rarity exclaimed while trying to imagine her life with a dragon other than Spike working under her. The purple dragon let out an audible groan at the mention of this, but kept his comment to himself.

"As for whoever takes in Spyro, just be prepared for possible… accidental fires. Being so young, he wouldn't know any better, so whoever takes him will need experience in taking care of foals at the very least. And how to manage fires, at the worst."

At the mention of this, all of them knew which ones among them were far more qualified to take in the younger charge. Twilight was the first to come to mind, but she was still reluctant to say yes. Next was Applejack who had been taking care of her sister for ages. She would be better fit to take care of him. Rarity knew some things about foal care, but she did not always sit for her sister. And finally, Pinkie Pie had some experience taking care of the cake twins, but the age range was off. Still, it did not count her out. Rainbow Dash was out from the start unless somepony could invent some type of permanent cloud-walking spell. Fluttershy knew how to take care of animals and was clearly not against the idea, but Twilight wanted somepony with real experience for the youngest one at least.

"Well other than Twi here, I guess I have the most experience takin' care of young’uns. Apple Bloom was a hooffull, but I never dealt with dragons before."

"Most ponies haven't. If you do decide to take Spyro in then I would be glad to help in any way," Twilight offered.

"Well, we'll see. I guess in the end it's up to the Princess, right?"

"Right."

The rest of the train ride was spent in silence. Each and every pony was thinking over what Twilight told them and even though most wanted the dragons, they kept thinking the very idea was nuts. Rarity did not seem to mind the idea of having her own assistant if she could teach the older dragon her definition of manners. Pinkie loved the idea to death, but all of them were reluctant to even let her try, but Twilight was still not counting anypony out. Even herself. It almost felt like a lottery where the prize was a new family member for life.

The train arrived in Canterlot at around three PM. They all decided it was best to get to the castle as fast as possible first and possible make plans for the city later.





A tall figure stood above two very sleepy dragons. The two were peacefully unaware of her presence. The figure decided they had slept enough and decided it was time to wake them. She stretched out one of her wings and gently tried to rock them awake.

"Dragons, it's time to get up!"

Claws immediately started stretching until he noticed the tall alicorn hovering above his size. "Um, hi?" he added. Her presence still unnerved him.

"Good morning, Claws. Did you sleep well?" Her tone was as motherly as she could offer.

"Yes, yes I did. What spell did you use on Spyro, by the way?"

She was hoping to avoid this topic, but, in a way, she had no reason to keep it from him, especially if he was friends with young Spyro.

"I suppose there is no harm in telling you the truth, but it is quite the hard pill to swallow…" She trailed off when she noticed Claws probably did not get that saying, but she still continued. "How long have you known Spyro?"

"Just a couple of weeks."

Celestia wanted to sigh in relief, but kept it to herself. It was good, in her opinion, that they hadn’t known each other for any longer. She sighed and leaned down to his ears. Then she started to whisper exactly what she had told her sister the night before. When she was finally finished, Claws simply looked at her in shock.

"I will admit it is quite harsh, but it must be done for his own safety. Just stay his friend in the end and everything will be alright. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to make preparations for our coming guests." She was about to leave when she hesitated. "Whatever you do, you must keep this a secret!"

"Uh, okay…"

She had her doubts that he would but decided to leave and let him work it out on his own.

Claws began to shake Spyro almost violently. "Hey, wake up!"

"OW! What?!"

"The princess just said a bunch of crazy stuff. Are you from another world?!"

"Probably?" Spyro started scratching his head. He felt disoriented.

"Why did you not tell me before?!"

"Would you have believed me?"

"Um, good point." With the mention of that, Claws decided to calm down.

"Besides, I really thought this whole thing was a dream until now."

"How can you go to sleep in dreams? We have been doing that for two weeks now!"

"Good point."

They both started laughing, but Claws still felt nervous.

"Where did the princess go?" Spyro asked while standing up and started brushing himself off.

"She said something about preparing for guests or something."

"Ah, did she say to wait here?"

"Um, honestly no… Why do you have that crazy look in your eyes?"

"Wanna explore the castle?" Spyro was giving him a toothy grin.

"Honestly? No!"

"Ahh c'mon, while we wait for her guests, let's do some exploring. It's not like there's much else to do in here."

"If we get caught, I'm telling them it was all your idea!"

"Deal. Now let's go!"

They slowly opened the chamber doors. To their relief, there were no guards posted during the day. They had no clue where Princess Celestia went or where to even go. They decided it was best to slowly sneak downstairs and make their way through some chambers. Claws was nervous as ever. Spyro seemed giddy and, in truth, did not feel like they were breaking any rules; Celestia never said to stay put this time. They ended up in a long corridor with dozens of doors and pathways to take.

"Which way, Claws?" Spyro was looking left and right and in every single direction. So many doors with so many possibilities.

"Me? This was your idea!"

"Fine, let's just pick a random hallway and start walking!" Following another (in Claws terms, hilarious) antic of playing eenie meenie miney mo, they choose one that led to another side of the castle. Walking for over twenty minutes straight, they came to a stop when they noticed the sun was not visible anymore. The hallway they ended up in was quite dark and very secluded.

"Where the heck are we?" Spyro looked around and noticed this part of the castle seemed less than clean. It was obviously not used that often.

"How should I know? Can we please go back now?"

"No, we sh—"

"That would be a wise decision." A deep bellowing voice interrupted Spyro. They both looked around and saw no creature or body that the voice could have come from. After a second, they saw a purple light imitating from a very large alicorn. Spyro looked at her in awe. She was very much like her sister, only slightly smaller. Claws was stiff.

"Um, hi?" Spyro spoke up with an audible high pitched voice that would come from a young child who is nervous.

"Hello, young dragons. Is there any particular reason why you find yourselves near the castle dungeons?"

"Dungeons?" Spyro looked around to find the stereotypical wooden doors with metal bars where the window should go. He couldn't help but let out a small smile. "COOL!" Claws looked at him in disbelief and couldn't help but take his claw and smack his own head in annoyance.

The alicorn shook her head, but spoke up. "While I fail to understand the mannerisms and interests of the present and youngest generation, I believe introductions are in order. No?"

"Oh! I'm Spyro and this is Claws."

"And I am Princess Luna, ruler of the night."

"Cool!"

"I fail to see how my title would be related to a natural element."

"Huh?" Spyro titled his head. Now all three were confused, but, oddly enough, Claws decided to speak up.

"I think he means that being a princess is cool. It's kind of like saying that someone is amazing. But can we please leave now!" He looked around. Just the site of the dungeon doors filled him with more unease.

"Very well. Tia's guests have arrived and I believe they are waiting for you," Luna said while beginning to lead them away.

"Who's Tia?"

"Oh, that is what I call my sister, Princess Celestia."

"Oh. Sorry we wandered off, we just got bored and Tia never said not to explore."

"She didn't? Then perhaps we can have a bit of fun. They are quite frantic looking all over for you two right now." The princess now wore a smile, the kind that would not be unheard of on a super villain.

"You want to play a prank on your sister?" Spyro couldn't resist giggling. Even Claws shared in a laugh.

"We may be royalty, but the life is quite boring. We are often found 'pranking' one another as you put it. But you will both need to play along for it to work."

"Well, what did you have in mind?"

"A simple invisibility spell will be placed on you two. The spell does not hide noise, so be as careful as you can and follow my lead." Luna's horn glowed and enveloped both of them in a glowing aura. In an instant, neither dragon could see the other and, to their amazement, they couldn't even see their own claws.

"Now, the spell will wear off in around twenty minutes time, so let's hurry and just have a little fun, hmm?" She looked down at what she hoped was the dragons and they continued to the main chamber room.

All three emerged into the chambers to find six ponies, one princess and one baby dragon all looking tired and defeated.

"Any luck, Luna?" Celestia asked. She sounded worried.

"I'm afraid not. I checked down in the dungeons but found no trace of them."

"We looked everywhere for them! How can two little dragons just up and disappear?" Twilight Sparkle was pacing back and forth. The two invisible dragons shared what they hoped was a look and decided to think of the best way to go about their prank.

"I'm sure they will turn up. Now calm yourself, Twilight," the lunar princess said. It took every fiber of her being to stop herself from breaking into a grin.

They began to converse among themselves, slowly getting nowhere. Meanwhile, Claws had decided it was best to slowly stalk the pegasus with the rainbow mane. Spyro wanted to freak out the lavender unicorn. They both decided to wait until they were busy talking to go in for their kill.

"Perhaps we should focus on the other problem first. The castle is on lockdown after all, hmm?" Luna suggested.

"I guess so…" Twilight took a deep breath and then turned to Princess Celestia. Princess… what did you mean by Spyro has the most to lose?"

Princess Celestia regarded them all. All eyes were on her. After ruling a kingdom for over two millennium, it still did not get old. Talking in public is not something natural and presenting bad news to others would never seem natural to her.

"Right, both dragons will need a place to stay, but there is a problem with the youngest one. Tell me, Twilight, do you remember asking me about Star Swirl and his family? Do you remember me trying to avoid the topic as much as possible?"

"That was a long time ago, but yes. Why?"

"Star Swirl was originally from another realm and was not always a pony."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, you saying that egghead unicorn was an alien?" Rainbow Dash questioned while slowly floating in the air. Claws cursed under his breath at his opportunity leaving him.

"In a sense, sure. He was something called a human. We never fully understood how he showed up and, thus, I was never able to send him back. His world was full of magic which would explain why he was so good at constructing new spells. But pretty soon we found a problem. He was comfortable with being a unicorn, oddly enough. Eventually, however, it started to affect his mind. His human mind, as it were, was having trouble adjusting. Doing some calculations of his own, he discovered that if we did not try something that he would have gone mad. We developed a spell that would sever any and all connections with 'humanity' as he called it. In the end, he was a full unicorn in mind, body and soul. He willingly used the spell on himself even knowing that it would destroy any and all memories of his planet, for his own good." The stoic voice never wavered or cracked into a grin or a frown the entire time she spoke. All occupants in the room stood by, staring in shock, even Spyro. Claws looked away, feeling a bit guilty. Twilight was flabbergasted, but she spoke up.

"Princess, that is astounding! But what does this have to do…"

"Yes, Spyro was a human and now he is a dragon. I know this because of a simple mind-reading spell I used on him. I saw quite a bit about his world and his life. It was wrong to use it on him, but I had to know. And my suspicions did not prove false. Now you see the problem? If we do not do something soon, I fear for his safety."

"What do you mean?!"

Everyone in the room let out a gasp with the exception of Princess Luna who knew the game was up. With a sigh, she relieved the spell on the two dragons and revealed their forms.

"The dragons!" Applejack let out an ear-screeching gasp. Spyro ignored it and walked up to Celestia to question her.

"What do you mean, my safety? I feel fine!" Spyro ignored everyone else in the room and their stares. His eyes were locked on Princess Celestia and only her. The sun goddess gave her sister a menacing look, but Luna simply shrugged and smiled.

"Spyro, you must understand, if something is not done soon then your mind will start…"

"Cracking?" Spyro finished.

"Basically, yes. I understand that your life has not been easy, growing up in an orphanage is never something any child of any race should have to go through. Changing races is another one of those things. But do you trust that I, and everypony here, want what is in your best interest?"

"How can I trust 'em? I haven't even met them!"

"Well then, do you trust me?"

He eyed the princess. After hearing that she invaded more than his personal space, his initial response should be no. But he was a reasoning child and he had to admit that his knowledge of this world and magic was next to nothing. If the princess of an entire land was concerned for him and said his mind would go insane then she would have to be telling the truth, right? She had no reason to lie. With a sigh, he nodded.

"Then my student and I will prepare this spell. Please, all of you wait outside. I have matters to discuss with my pupil here." The chamber doors closed and they all waited around awkwardly. After their little chat, nopony or dragon felt like talking. Luna was eyeing the door intensely as if deep in concentration. With a heavy sigh, each and every occupant waited.





"Princess, this is… this is…"

"Crazy?"

"YES!"

"I understand the seriousness of the situation. But it is the  truth. Spyro is from another world and needs your help."

"Me? Don't you know the spell?"

"I do, but to be honest, and forgive me if this comes off as selfish, I do not have the heart to destroy his memories. It is practically destroying a life!"

"I, um, understand. What will happen to him once it is complete?" Twilight questioned. She noticed Celestia had levitated a spell scroll in front of her. Twilight began to memorize the spell.

"Most likely, confusion, mental regression, and an unnerving sense of belonging in a brand new world. Right now, he is treating this situation as if it were a dream, perhaps even a vacation."

"You mean, to him, turning into a dragon seemed better than wasting away at an orphanage?"

"Correct. And if it is any consolation, Twilight, at least he gets adopted this way, even if it is a new life." A single tear fell down her face. It did not go unnoticed.

"If it helps, my friends and I will take great care of them. We promise!"

Celestia looked over at her student's sincere smile and couldn't help but break out into a grin. "I know you will. Do you think the spell is too much for you?"

"Oh, no! It is actually quite simple. I'm ready now if you are."

"Yes, remember to use an extra burst of magic. His dragon skin will be resistant to it."

"Of course."

Celestia opened the door and asked for the youngest individual. They shoved him inside and he waited with his arms crossed.

"Are you ready, young Spyro?"

"Is it gonna hurt?"

"No. It is a simple spell. Although you may find yourself feeling dizzy for a while. Ready, Twilight?"

"Yes. Stand back please."

Celestia complied and waited.

Twilight's horn began to glow. At first, it was in a simple neutral state while she summoned up the runes of the spell in her head. After a moment, her horn began to let out a quiet pulsating noise and then it enveloped the dragon. At first, he felt tingly, but he felt nothing affecting his mind as he thought it might. After a moment, his whole body began to pulsate. Princess Celestia began to look nervous. She looked like she was trying to remember something. Soon his tingling sensation stopped and, in it's place, his claws began to burn.

Twilight Sparkle's pupils began to dilate and glow to an extreme level. Slowly, the spell built up more until Spyro's claws began to glow with the burning sensation slowly turning into a twisting sensation. He felt his claws twist and change before his eyes. After a second, a flash of lightning began to emit from both his hands until it filled the entire chamber with random, chaotic lightning. Spyro was too shocked to say anything.

"TWILIGHT STOP THE SPELL!"

Through her spell induced haze, she tried to speak, letting out something that was almost inaudible. "I C… Can't!"

The lightning began to change color to the same lavender hue of Twilight's coat. Spyro was lifted into the air with his arms held out to his sides. Slowly, his eyes began to glow the same color as Twilight's. In a literal flash, his whole body pulsated and vibrated. He let out one big sphere-shaped arc of lightning that seemed to grow from his claws and push out towards the living beings in the room. The world of all three living beings were cut short and then there was darkness. The spell stopped with Princess Celestia, Twilight Sparkle and the young dragon plunging into darkness.

> Chapter 6: Magic is Fun
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Following what was quite possibly the loudest noise to ever come from within Canterlot castle was the sound of three bodies falling to the floor. Then, only silence filled the air. In Princess Celestia's entire reign, in her entire life span, which seems infinite to most, she had only ever been knocked out three times. One was by Discord in their first battle. Thankfully, Luna was there to back her up. The second time was during the Changeling invasion and the third and final time was at the claws of this young dragon and her pupil's misfired spell.

All living creatures who were patiently waiting outside her chambers immediately fled in and found three unconscious bodies. They first saw Princess Celestia, who looked quite out of place sprawled out on the ground. She seemed very much unharmed. Princess Luna used her magic to gently levitate her sister up and plop her down on a cushion. When checking for injuries, she found none. All five of the Elements of Harmony ran over to inspect Twilight Sparkle. Although she was unharmed, the smoke rising up from her horn did not go unnoticed. Finally, Claws ran over to inspect his friend. Like Twilight, he had smoke coming up, but it was coming from his now slightly altered claws.

"What in the hay happened?!" Applejack, having concluded that her friend was fine, turned to Princess Luna along with everyone else.

"I'm not sure. I have never used the spell before."

"Um, P-Princess Luna, I think something is wrong with Spyro," Claws hastily said.

"There is something wrong with all of them."

"No, I mean, look at his claws!" The frantic act he put on was enough to warrant everyone to come over and inspect the youngest dragon.

The nails coming out from his claws had stopped smoking, revealing their new form, lavender. All eight of his nails were now the color lavender. They took note that it was the exact same hue as Twilight Sparkle's horn and coat. The change of color was the first thing to warrant panic. The second thing was their new shape. Where smooth, sharp nails once grew from his claws were now rigid and spiraled nails. They were not unlike…

"Unicorn horns!" Everyone turned to face the announcer, Pinkie Pie, who was just smiling away.

"Pinkie what are you talking about?" Rainbow Dash was staring down at the young dragon's claws, too perplexed by the strange site to even look up at Pinkie Pie.

"Just look at his nails…" She paused, letting them all deeply study his nails. "…and then look back at Twilight's horn!"

Princess Luna was the first to abide. Looking each and every nail over, she came to one conclusion. "I have no idea what is going on, but Pinkie is correct. His claws do, in fact, remind me of Twilight's horn."

"Um, so what does that mean?" Fluttershy questioned. For a moment, her need to care for the hurt was overwhelming her shy nature, but seeing as how she was unsure on Spyro's health, she began to revert to a passive state of panic.

"At this point, nothing. And I feel reluctant to even try any healing spells, or scanning. for that matter. For now, we simply wait for them to wake and then we question them." The lunar princess was swift to answer, but, in truth, she had no clue what to do.

All of them simply waited in the room, unwilling to speak and unwilling to even move. All of the elements were now more reluctant than ever to take in the youngest dragon. They knew he couldn't possibly be the cause, but Twilight did cast the spell on him. His nails were now almost freakish in nature. They now contained something that should not be on any dragon, but here they were. Spike decided to sit by Spyro's side with Claws and wait, something they had been doing a lot of.





After several hours, Celestia began to stir. To her, it was quite the foreign feeling to be both knocked unconscious and wake up from an unnatural sleep. Unlike most beings in her state, she knew exactly what happened and decided not to ask the almost cliché question.

"Luna, where is Twilight?" Celestia looked around and noticed all the odd stares from the fellow Elements, but they all gestured to the other cushion where she found her student resting peacefully.

"What happened? Was it a magic spike?" Luna asked, but Celestia shook her head.

"Far too violent of a reaction for it to be anything like that, but it was certainly unexpected. Where is Spyro?" She looked around and found the desired dragon resting peacefully.

"Princess, his nails, they’re—"

"I see them. Thank you, Fluttershy." She gave her a motherly smile, but returned to concentrate on his lavender nails. She looked up to the Elements and then to her sister and each were just as perplexed over the situation as she was.

"Does this mean he can use magic now?" Spike asked, breaking the unnerving silence.

"No," Celestia said, looking over the group and noting their ever-curious stares. "While it is true that all living creatures in Equestria harbor some form of magic, whether it's for flight or simply living with nature, it would be impossible for a dragon to manipulate magic on a level that a unicorn or even a changeling would. I do not know why he has these… well, horns now, but I'm sure we can figure this out. I'm sure my student has an answer." They all gave Celestia curious looks while she gestured to Twilight. It was at this point that everyone in the room noticed that she was now awake and rubbing her head for support.

"Twi!" Spike ran over and hugged her, which caused her some physical discomfort. Most ponies have poor memory skills so when knocked unconscious they tend to forget the event in question. Twilight was not that type of pony. She remembered everything, but it didn't stop her from trying to ask a million questions before her teacher could calm her down.

"Twilight, everything is fine. Except for Spyro's nails, that is."

"What happened to his nails? And why did the spell fail? I don't get it!"

"Come see for yourself. As for the reason, well, I have a theory, but perhaps you could enlighten us." She looked him over in his sleeping form, but decided against doing any form of magic-detecting spell. After inspecting his nails, she came to an uneasy conclusion.

"The spell didn't work because dragons are resistant to magic! But I used so much magic in that blast. I mean, I can levitate Spike if I concentrate hard enough so the spell still should’ve worked," she said while shaking her head. Meanwhile, Princess Celestia was actually smiling to herself.

"While it is true that dragons are resistant to magic, it is not enough to warrant a failure of the spell. I'm confident in your ability to pull it off correctly and I did not detect any missteps in your actions. Do you think there is any other reason why this happened?" Twilight looked over the spell and then turned her head back to her teacher and then read over the spell again. Finally, after a minute, a look of realization dawned on her face.

"It refused to work because he didn't need it in the first place?!"

"It would seem so, but I only just realized that myself."

"But I don't understand. You said that if this spell wasn't used he would go insane."

"That is what I believed to be true."

"You said this spell was required to sever his 'humanity'."

"I did, but it would seem that was not necessary in the first place. Can you think of why?" That motherly tone, to Twilight it was always soothing, but in some cases, this being one of them, it was frustrating. She furrowed her muzzle and concentrated.

"It was already severed?"

A simple nod was all she received.

"But I was talking to him earlier. He knows he is from another world and he always talks about stuff from it, at least I think he does." Claws was scratching his head.

"That is because he still has his memories. I do not understand how that part is possible, but it would seem this little crisis was averted the day he woke up in his dragon body."

"So he still knows he was a human and has all his memories?" Twilight asked while still examining his nails.

"I believe so, but we can't know for sure until he wakes up."

"Y'all won't have to wait long." Applejack pointed over to Spyro's previously sleeping form. He let out an ear-screeching yawn, then looked around. Every single eye was on him. Unlike previous encounters, this unnerved him, so he said the first thing that came to his mind.

"Stop staring!"

Half of them did a massive synchronized face hoof while the others just rolled their eyes. Twilight was the first to speak back.

"Spyro, how are you feeling?" She seemed genuinely concerned for his well-being over what exactly happened, but on that question, he had to think. Normally he would feel fine and say just that, but this wasn't the case. He felt weird.

What should I say? I guess the truth. Stupid truth, Spyro thought while sighing.

"Honestly? I feel weird, my claws feel tingly and I feel…"

"Dizzy?" She finished, noticing the child was almost certainly not going to come up with that last word at the rate his voice was trailing off. He nodded. He then looked down at his claws and his eyes widened.

There is no way this is a dream anymore. And what happened to my nails? He thought while looking them all over. Out of all the sensations he was physically feeling right now, his claws felt the oddest.

"I'm sorry, Spyro, but we're not quite sure why your claws are like that now. But the good news is we did not even need the spell in the first place."

"Um, okay." He blinked and continued to study his new nails. He was certain that he noticed tiny horns instead of nails and, like it would any child, it gave him an idea. There is no way this is gonna work, but why not try? He lifted up his right claw and focused on a gem that was resting on a tray nearby. He strained his brain, imagining the gem floating in the air. All of them were looking at him like he was crazy while Celestia and Twilight were giggling to themselves, having already guessed that it won't work. After a moment, a faint light appeared over the gem which immediately ceased all laughter. After another second, the gem shot up in the air at a violent degree and hit the ceiling, causing a small dent. The gem then fell down from where it came. Spyro couldn't resist. "COOL!" He turned around, hoping to find smiling faces or amazement, but, instead, he saw shock, on everyone's faces. Simple and pure shock.

He stood up, snapping some of them out of their daze, and started towards the princess. He walked up and started waving his hand in front of her. "Earth to Tia!" This statement caused even more shock, but to different degrees depending on who you were looking at. Most of the Elements winced when they saw such a young child use the princess's nickname instead of addressing her with the proper title. Twilight and Celestia noticed the term he used. Earth. Clearly, he was referring to where he was from and not where he is now which proved he had not lost a single memory. Celestia shook it off and decided to address a less serious issue, attempting to come to grips with what they all just saw.

"Spyro, did you just address me as Tia?" Her head tilted to the side. She betrayed her amusement with a light chuckle.

"Yeah. That's what your sister calls you, right?" He turned back to Princess Luna who simply smiled and nodded, which caused him to relax.

"Indeed she does." She giggled some more which caused him to laugh. Finally, Twilight broke the silence the only way she knew how.

"THAT'S IT?!" The sudden outburst caused Spyro to flinch, but then he shrugged it off when he noticed both Princesses were just smiling away.

"What do you mean, dearest Twilight?"

"He, that…" She paused to collect her thoughts and took in a few deep breaths. "Not only does he keep his memories, but he seems perfectly fine AND he just performed unicorn magic with his CLAWS! And it doesn't faze you?! Princess forgive me, please do, but WHAT THE HAY?!" To her, the sheer impossibility of what Spyro just did was too much to handle. She had long since passed the point of losing it. No, she was having a nervous breakdown while her mind tried to piece together how it was possible when, in terms of basic logic, it shouldn't be. Spyro was quite literally an impossibility, yet he was standing right in front of her smiling away. This infuriated her and, against her better judgment, she interrupted what the princess was about to say to tell him off.

"AND YOU!" She pointed to Spyro which caught him entirely off guard. The furious tone in her voice did not go unnoticed by anyone in the room. "You got changed into a dragon, whisked away to a new world and now have access to magic. And you’re not even scared?! How can you not be scared? How can you just be happy?!"

Okay, mean crazy lady… he thought while trying to come up with a response. Again, he decided on the truth before any of the princesses could intervene. 

"I was living in an orphanage! Do you think those places are fun?" He raised his voice as high as it would go, attempting to mimic her scolding.

"Well… I—"

"Do you think that I was happy there?!"

"I wasn—"

"Do you think, 'oh, all kids on Earth are just happy?'"

She sighed and waited for him to continue, but he had nothing left to say. "You seemed so happy here, I just thought—"

"Of course I'm happy here! MAGIC EXISTS! This place is amazing. And now I'm one of my most favorite things, a dragon!"

Spyro was giving her a smug smile, one that seemed very out of place on someone so young. The things he said struck her heart. He wasn't happy on his planet, but was very much the opposite here. With a loss for what to say or do, she turned to her teacher who simply smiled and spoke.

"Twilight, my sister and I have lived for over one thousand years. When we see something that is impossible and yet happened, we accept it as that. Young Spyro here has proven us wrong on something that we have known for eons. He just used magic. You saw this and you cannot deny it. How this is happening? I'm afraid I don't know, but I think it's a safe bet that it has something to do with you."

ME?! ME? What did I do? I just cast the spell on him like she told me. I concentrated the magic and just used en— Twilight stopped thinking when she noticed Celestia had gathered her into a hug using one of her wings.

"I know that look, Twilight. It's when you are trying to figure something out without evidence. But since we do not understand how this happened, then perhaps it is best to let it be. I do not mean to ignore his new ability. We all know how dangerous magic can be when left unchecked. But we have more than we could ever hope for now and no memories need to be erased, so forgive me for feeling overly pleasant to this strange situation."

Twilight looked up at her teacher and accepted her motherly embrace and smile. She nodded. "Okay, he has magic now and that's fine. Spyro, I'm sorry for yelling."

"It's okay," he said while smiling. It was the kind of smile a child gives after having finally caught an adult doing something wrong and not the other way around.

"Right. So now what, Princess?"

"Now we focus on the problem which is still present. Both Claws and Spyro need homes. I will talk to him about his magic later today."

Spyro smiled up at her sheepishly, but he couldn't help but feel giddy. He had magic!

"Who has decided to take them in?" Princess Luna asked with an air of authority. All of them gave her a very sheepish smile.

"We didn't, Princess. This isn't an easy decision and now with Spyro's new magic it just became far more complicated." Twilight slumped down and let out an exasperated sigh.

"Can't I just stay with you? And what's so bad about me having magic?"

"Because you have never used it and are most likely prone to magical outbursts. The reaction you had to the spell was a good example of one. They can be dangerous."

"Oh. That was still pretty cool!" He smiled, but the annoyed stared caused him to stop.

"Princesses, we tried ta decide on who would be best ta take care of young’uns. Ah have experience, but never took in a dragon before or handled a magical child."

"I still say I can take them both!" Pinkie said.

Claws looked over at the pink pony. To him, it was a mixed bag sort of choice. Spyro wasn't sure about her either. She looked so pink!

"I wouldn't mind taking in one of them. I do need extra help around the shop after all. I earn plenty and the idea of raising a child does appeal to me, believe it or not." Rarity was thinking of Claws more so than the youngest one, but he did not go overlooked either.

"I have no problem with taking in one of them if that’s okay, but I have never raised a child or a dragon. Sorry." Fluttershy's squeaky voice did not go unnoticed.

"Unless one of these dragons can walk on clouds, it ain't happening."

Clouds? Whatever. She looks weird anyway, Spyro thought. He attempted to scratch his head but decided against it. He felt defensive of his new nails, fearing that he might break them.

"I see. Then perhaps I might suggest talking about this over dinner. Getting to know our little dragons better before making an informed decision." It was tough to deny the unquestioning wisdom of the sun goddess. Plus, she was hungry. They all nodded, most just hoping to get their crazy day over with.

"Wonderful. I will inform the chefs. LuLu, do you think you can escort them?" At the mention of Luna's nickname, both Spyro and Claws giggled. Luna scowled at her sister but held her tongue. She knew the reason Celestia used the nickname. An attempt at a prank and the use of her nickname was enough to warrant it.

"Yes. Come, everypony and dragon, we shall all trot down to the dining room." They all followed the night goddess, with only a few snickers.

"Right behind ya, LuLu!" Spyro yelled, purposely not concealing his voice for his own humor.

Rainbow Dash had to give it to Spyro. Kids got guts.





The dining room had been set up. Everyone was now sitting uncomfortably in silence. Three dragons sat near each other, only one of which was perfectly happy. Two pegasi, two unicorns, two earth ponies and two alicorns were all stealing random glances at the two new dragons. Food had been set up with the dragons getting their own courses. They had everything a pony would like embedded with gems, all sorts of gems. But only one of the dragons was eating happily. The other two felt too nervous to move. Everyone at the table felt too nervous, so, with an air of authority, the two alicorn ponies dug into their food which caused a huge sigh of relief from everyone just begging to do the same and they copied.

Twilight also had to give it to Spyro. That dragon can eat. And so soon after his outburst over his planet. Something does seem off, though. Then again, children do eat when they are ner—

"So," Rainbow Dash said. She was eyeing Spyro intently while he was still eating gem after gem. He finally stopped and humored her.

"What's up?" Spyro offered. He failed to notice everyone was now eyeing their 'private' conversation.

"Well, what's Earth like?"

"It’s… Well, what do you mean?" He felt that, usually, when adults asked these types of questions they were after something specific.

"What do humans eat?" again Dash asked. No one seemed brave enough to speak up despite their eavesdropping.

"Same stuff as ponies except hay and flowers. Oh and hamburgers, steak, chicken—" It was the mention of the last type of food that caused the distinctive sound of a spoon dropping. The ponies did not know what he meant by hamburgers or steak, but the word chicken was all too common. Fluttershy was the culprit. She had dropped the spoon. Spyro looked up and noticed all the uneasy looks. Claws looked just as confused as he did.

"What? All I said was we eat chick—"

"SPYRO!" To his surprise, Princess Celestia had spoken up to interrupt. Her voice was stern. "Ponies do not eat meat. We understand that being a human is different and so is being a dragon. However, for the sake of a certain pegasus at the table, perhaps it is best to not mention the consumption of meat." Spyro looked confused and then looked over at the only two pegasus ponies sitting at the table. Rainbow Dash looked indifferent and seemed to shrug it off, however, Fluttershy almost looked sick and very uncomfortable.

What is the big deal, Flutters? Gilda ate fish all the time, it's meat so what? Rainbow Dash thought while sighing.

I have no problem with animals eating meat. Some require it, after all. But somepony who can help it… I can't help but feel sick. If I take one of them in, I hope they can live with just fish! Fluttershy grunted in annoyance at her thoughts, but decided to take a deep breath and calm down. It worked.

"Oh." He paused and looked over at Fluttershy who was giving him a nervous smile. "Sorry, um, hmm?" Spyro just realized that no one other than the princesses had introduced themselves. He actually found it a little funny. Usually, that was the first thing that adults asked off the kids.

"Oh, goodness. I'm sorry. My name is Fluttershy."

He smiled then turned to the other ponies.

"Name's Applejack."

"Rainbow Dash.

"Rarity. Charmed to meet you both."

Spyro rolled his eyes.

"Twilight Sparkle. But from my previous, um, outburst, I believe you know that.

"And I'm Pinkie Pie!" Unlike the others, she sprang up from her seat and refused to back down until they both shook her hoof.

"Name's Spike," he grinned, having already gotten over the shock regarding Spyro's situation.

"Okay, no talking about food. What el—"

"What do you like to do in your free time, Spyro?" Celestia offered this question. She sensed everyone in the room feeling far too uneasy and missing the point of getting to know them.

"I love to play video games, but Captain Sailing Winds said they don't exist here. So that sucks."

"Sucks? I'm unfamiliar with that term. And what, pray tell, is a video game?"

Ponies are weird, he thought while trying to come up with an answer.

"I've never had to explain a video game before. I guess it’s like a movie only you get to play as a character in it?" He was mostly questioning himself. He knew this was very inaccurate. True, he was young, but gamers knew what a game was and they were not movies.

"I see. And by movie I'm assuming you mean a film?"

"Yeah," he deadpanned when he realized something. "Please tell me you at least have those?"

"Of course. However, they are rather uncommon, being quite new technology. I'm going to go ahead and assume that they are very common back on Earth?"

"There are, like, thousands of movies, probably more. I guess explaining them doesn't matter."

Twilight had decided to finally join the conversation at the mention of his question. "Actually, since you did not lose your memory there may be one way for us to experience some of your movies and these 'video games'. But we can only see what you have seen and nothing more."

"How? Magic?!"

Twilight nodded with a wink until Celestia spoke up. "Before we try something like this, I would still like to have a chat with him regarding his magic. While I'm sure it would be entertaining and educational, we still do not know how magic will react to you, dear Spyro."

"Oh," Spyro said while everyone joined him in a sigh. They were all curious about his planet and his life. "So who are we staying with?" He looked at all the other ponies. So far, he had no real opinions on them other than the fact that Twilight could get REALLY mad.

"That choice is left up to them. We are merely here to observe." Luna looked around, hoping for somepony to voice their opinion on the matter. Oddly enough, Pinkie Pie was the first to catch the hint.

"Do you dragons like parties?" It was such a blunt question, but Spyro had to admit, it made the pink one sound far more interesting than the others.

"Sure, I love parties!" Pinkie grinned at this comment. "How come?"

"Well I love to throw parties! Every single occasion you can think of, I find a way to make a party happen. Like when Twilight first came to Ponyville. Oh wow, she was nervous. I then grabbed everypony in Ponyville and planned a surprise party for her. She was definitely surprised. Then again, she was acting real frantic, probably over eternal darkness or something about Nightmare Moon."

Spyro had to admit, he now liked Pinkie Pie more than the others. Claws had to admit, he was more confused than he had ever been in his young life. Pinkie then began to describe their adventures in stopping Nightmare Moon and saving Princess Luna and all of Equestria. She did give the short version, but she was speaking so fast that Spyro could’ve sworn that he heard the other ponies trying to interrupt or get a word in. She finished with both dragons jaws wide open.

"Wow," Spyro said while looking back at the others who were all smiling back and blushing. "You girls are crazy." His statement was blunt, but he was smiling. Pinkie was just grinning even wider. Rarity looked insulted while Applejack took it as a compliment. Both Twilight and Fluttershy just giggled a bit.

Following that, everyone decided it was best to dig into their meals and see what would happen as time passed. Spyro, however, had finished early and was feeling quite bored. He was used to eating at various diners back on Earth where he had to wait for the adults to finish their meals, but this time he at least had something to experiment with. Looking around, he noticed no one paying attention to him, not even Spike or Claws, so he shrugged and put his little plan into action.

Here goes nothing! he thought while grinning.

Spyro took both his claws and gently placed them underneath the table. The long, elegant table was adorned with various decorations, food items, silverware, plates and everything else. Spyro was attempting to use his new magic to levitate his plate and other items in front of his eyes. He closed his eyes and slowly began to imagine his plate floating in the air. After a second, he strained his head and concentrated as hard as he could. Experimenting was always fun for a child except when things go wrong.

When he opened his eyes he was astonished to see the world in a new light. To the other ponies, his eyes were glowing. To him, the entire world was glowing. Everything on the table slowly began to levitate and, after a moment, every single item was hovering at least ten feet in the air. No one spoke. No one wanted to ruin the moment, but every single unicorn-type pony at the table knew what was about to transpire and it wasn't going to be fun. Without warning, Spyro's eyes twitched and, in an instant, everything was thrown out into chaos. Not one item was traveling in the same direction.

Time started to slow down for everyone, but for one pony in particular it slowed even more. In a manner of milliseconds, she knew exactly what to do and how to prevent the oncoming disaster. To watchers, a blur of pink swept passed them at an impossible speed. Even Rainbow Dash was at a loss for words or even thoughts. First, the silverware was neatly put back where it belonged, with the plates and their food slammed down gently. Then the decor was whisked back to the table as the pink blur ran from the beginning of the table to the end. Following the blur was every single piece and missing item being thrown back down to their original locations.

Finally, the blur ended in the location of Spyro with his magic spike coming to an abrupt end. When it was all over, everyone spotted Pinkie Pie holding two towels which were now gently wrapped over the young dragon’s claws. Pinkie was saying soothing words to him to calm him down which ended his confusion over what just happened, but not everyone else’s. They all gave her a glare, but she was ready.

"Oh, Pumpkin Cake has these magic surges all the time. Spyro just had one so I acted, I recognize those signs anywhere." Pinkie was just smiling away over the fact that she just defied the laws of physics themselves. Spyro just felt grateful that he hopefully wasn't going to be in trouble thanks to the pink pony that he was starting to like more and more. He couldn’t resist commenting on what he just did and almost caused.

"Magic is fun!" Pinkie gave him a wink, but the rest of the table was now glaring at him. He was in trouble. He gave a sheepish smile and let out one big gulp. Twilight, however, was busy staring at Pinkie.

Okay, Pinkie, you can take him in, she thought, hoping the others would agree.

> Chapter 7: The Talk
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Spyro was now looking up at the pony that many had dubbed a goddess. Her snow-white face held a stoic expression while she tried to think of the proper lecture for the young dragon. The child was no stranger to being in trouble and felt it was best to remain quiet. Every once in a while, the princess would begin to speak only to fall short when she realized what she thought of was not the right thing to say. Spyro wanted nothing more than to break the silence, even if it meant digging himself an even deeper hole, but he remained quiet.

"Spyro…" She paused to makes sure that he was, in fact, paying attention. "…you now possess unicorn magic—"

"Duh."

She gave him a menacing look. He responded with a sheepish smile and kept his mouth shut. "Normally, when a unicorn is born they are given time to develop their powers and their focus. You, on the other hoof, have been given them out of the blue. This means that your body is now straining to keep up. It is speeding up the process and developing your focus much quicker than it needs to. Hence that magical surge earlier."

"So… I'm super powerful now?"

"Maybe. But that does not mean that you get to just use those powers for your own benefit. You must first train to keep them under control. I'm sure Twilight can help."

"So why doesn't she just take me in?"

She stared at him for a moment before continuing. "She has informed me of her recommendation for who should take you in. But before I say it, I want to hear who your choice is."

"I get to choose?"

"In a sense. I still get the final say, but I thought it was unfair to keep you in the dark. Is there any particular pony that you would like to stay with?"

Who do I want? I only wanted Twilight because she knows about magic, but she doesn't seem all that great. "Do they all live near each other?"

"But of course, they all reside in Ponyville. Some are closer than others but all well within walking distance."

That pink one seemed like she could be fun. Plus, she stopped me from getting into deeper trouble. "Who was that pink pony?"

"Pinkie Pie. She is quite the pony. Left an impression on you, did she?"

"Yeah, she was amazing! How did she do all of that anyway? It was so fast!"

To his surprise, she laughed and chuckled without holding back. "Oh, I can't tell you how many times a pony has asked that. Twilight has tried to discern the how and reasoning, but at the end of the day, it's just Pinkie being Pinkie."

"Huh?"

"To put it simply, it's best not to ask that question. You will never find the answer."

"I think that is why I like her so much, she's so…" He scratched his head gently.

"Random?"

"Yeah! She is definitely random."

"So, if given the choice, Pinkie Pie would be who you wish to stay with?"

"Yep!"

"That was Twilight's choice. Very interesting. I think we have that settled, but we still need a place for Claws."

"I don't think I can help with that. So… how do you control magic?"

"I suppose I can give away the basics of safety. Twilight can teach you more, but for now, I need you to keep your emotions under control. Do you understand?"

"Yeah, but is it bad to get angry with magic?"

"It is very bad, yes. Violent emotional outbursts can lead to violent magic, which can leave destruction in its wake."

"COOL!"

Her eyes widened like dinner plates.

"Uh, I mean, not cool?"

"Not cool, indeed. Why does violent magic interest you so much?" She tilted her head to the side, betraying her curiosity but not her hidden disgust.

"I dunno. I see it so much in movies and video games, it just seems kind of cool. To be able to cause lightning storms, or summon monsters to your side to fight in battle, or to use magic to fight off an army of zombies and save the day!" Throughout his little speech, Spyro had stood up on the table twice and waved his claws around like a mad dragon. To her surprise, no magic leaked out, but she still felt cautious around him.

"I see, so it is heroism you are after?"

"Yeah, I guess. What's so wrong about that?"

"Nothing at all. But there is a difference between wanting a violent fight and being prepared to defend oneself preemptively. We do not teach such violent spells, especially to children. Being a dragon, however, you will be able to be the 'hero' as it were at some point in your life. You wouldn't believe how big you are going to get." She paused and gave him a wink which momentarily stopped his sulking. "But for now, let us focus on your magic and not the wishful acts of violence."

"Okay."

"Good. Now may I ask, how do your nails feel?"

"Kind of tingly. I dunno, weird?"

"Hmm. Normally, a unicorn’s horn is one of the most sensitive spots to them. It is very easy to cause bodily harm to a unicorn simply by causing harm to their horn. Your body might be trying to deal with the new magic. I would exercise caution when doing anything that requires excessive force. You may damage your, um, horns."

"Is there a spell that could, well, harden the horns?"

"Harden? Hmm… That would be useful in this situation. There may be a way. But we still do not know how your body will react to outside magical influence."

"Huh?"

"We don't know how your body will react to other unicorns using magic on it."

"Could you test it?"

"Yes, I suppose I could, but I would rather not get knocked out again."

"Yeah, that wasn't fun. Just try and lift my body then and see what happens." He smiled up at her, giving his best puppy dog face, which looked odd with dragon eyes.

"Very well. But, Spyro, I need you to remain as calm as possible through this. No using your magic. Do not even think about magic. Just focus on the floor. Can you do that?"

"Uh, sure."

She nodded and began to channel magic into her horn, it slowly enveloped him and after a moment he was lifted into the air. She then gently put him down and stopped the spell.

"Okay, good. Your magic should be working just fine."

"So, can we get back to the group?"

"In a moment. We need to discuss something else. Spyro, do you realize what being a dragon entails?"

"Um, being awesome?" he asked while chuckling.

She narrowed her eyes. "I'm not joking here. What do you know about dragons?"

"Um, they breathe fire, eat jewels, they usually can fly, but, for some reason, I have no wings!"

"They will grow given enough time. But no, I mean… First off, dragons live for an exceptionally long time. Longer than any human or pony."

"What is not cool about that? When they told me that someday I was going to die, I asked how long… I don't think they expected that question, but death was always something that just seemed… scary. They said one hundred years at the most. Is that how long a pony lives?"

"Well, when they said one hundred years they were probably meaning a best case scenario, but, yes, that is close. Dragons, however, live much, much longer."

"Why is that a problem?"

"For many reasons. I have lived for a very long tim—"

"How old are you anyway?"

She looked down on him and her eyes slowly increased in size. "You know, it has been so long that I have lost count. I want to say well over two thousand years."

"So you just live forever? You will never die?"

"I'm sorry, but neither I nor my sister have the answer to that question, but it would seem so. The point is, when you live that long you end up watching your loved ones die, your friends, your family. You see generations come and go. It is quite taxing on the mind."

"Um, I don't have any loved ones. I lived in an orphanage."

"Not yet you don't. But I guarantee that you will in time."

"So, what, how long do I get to live anyway?"

"Most dragons live five hundred to one thousand years."

His eyes grew wide, a small smile formed on his face.

"Yes, but there are other issues about being a dragon. And stop smiling!"

He giggled a bit, but let her speak up.

"Living among ponies as a non-pony might be difficult. I’m simply warning you now; not all ponies are very accepting."

"If they don't want anything to do with me then why would I want anything to do with them?"

He surprised her yet again. She smiled while looking down at him and nodded. "I suppose that is all for now. We should get back to the others."





They retreated back to the dinner table. Everyone had all but finished by the time they arrived. However, everyone was waiting for their little talk. Spyro remained silent while he hopped back onto his seat. He noticed everyone giving him odd glares so he stuck his tongue out, causing a snicker from both Spike and Claws. They all rolled their eyes and turned their attention to Princess Celestia.

"Thank you all for waiting. I simply needed to speak with Spyro about a few matters. I have made my decision on who will be taking in young Spyro. Pinkie Pie will be the pony who will take care of him from this point on." Everypony turned to her, some looking on in shock while Twilight, Spike and even Claws simply shrugged.

"YAY!" Pinkie Pie jumped up in the air, higher than any human that Spyro had ever seen. He couldn't help but smile.

"Pinkie…" Celestia waited for her to stop cheering and turn to address her. "…I will need to speak with you when the dinner is over, regarding your new charge." Pinkie just nodded and then turned to her friends, giving them a smug smile.

"Now, have there been any decisions regarding young Claws?"

"Well, it's between Applejack and Rarity. Applejack seems fine with it, but Rarity keeps—"

"She keeps tryin' to make excuses for usin' him."

"Darling, I was not trying to suggest he would be only just my assistant. I just thought it would be a perk."

"Raisin' a child is nothin' like that. You shouldn't just see him as that!"

The two continued to bicker amongst themselves. Princess Celestia remained stoic. She looked over at Twilight who was giving her a sheepish smile and attempting to calm her friends. Then she looked down at Claws who seemed indifferent throughout the whole ordeal.

"Claws."

"Huh?" His name being used broke him out of his thoughts.

"Claws, who would you feel more comfortable with?" He looked up at her and then back to all the ponies at the table. Everypony had stopped talking while he swallowed what was stuck in his mouth.

He first looked at Applejack. She gave him a sincere smile. He then looked over at Rarity who did the same. Twilight gave a half-smile and gestured to her other friends. Obviously, she had no intention of keeping him. He reached out his claw in order to choose. He glanced over at Fluttershy and noticed that she had remained unusually quiet throughout the dinner. He did like quiet and being kind to others. With a shrug he pointed his right claw firmly on her.

"I want her!"

"Eep!"

"I'm sorry, Claws. But it is between Applejack and Rarity. Fluttershy admitted she would not be the best in this situation."

He sighed and looked from Applejack to Rarity. He then looked over at Spyro for support.

"You could try eenie meenie miney mo." He said it quite loudly which caused everyone to glare at him, very confused.

"Spyro! That doesn't work every time!"

"It worked when we needed to find the ship!"

He sighed again and ignored him. He took a good long look at both ponies. He had to admit, the white unicorn did look pretty, but he honestly had no way to tell which would be better. Finally, after a moment, he pointed at Applejack and kept his claw extended.

"Applejack, do you wish to take in young Claws as your charge?"

"I reckon, yes."

"Wonderful. That is all settled then, hmm?" They all somberly nodded. Claws looked back at Applejack who simply gave him a nod.

"Pinkie, will you please come with me?"





"By taking in Spyro, do you know exactly what this means?"

"That he gets a mommy! And that's m…" She stopped talking as realization dawned on her. "That would be me, huh?"

"Yes, you will be his mother. Claws' relationship might be different. From what I can gather, dragons are used to hoards and not the concept of families. Spyro is still a human in mind, they all have families. Spyro has grown up in an orphanage his entire life. I don't even know if he understands the very concept as well as the most of us. But tell me, Pinkie, do you?"

"Of course! A mommy is supposed to be there for her children for anything. They are supposed to watch over them, teach them, play with them, um—"

"All of that is true, but what I mean is the very idea of motherhood. Has it ever interested you? Think, is this really something you want?"

"Well, for a while, no. Not that babies aren't cute; I love babies and children. For the longest time, I don't think I ever wanted kids, and then the Cakes had the foals. They changed everything. But at first, it just made me not want foals even more. They were crazy!"

"Yes, I heard of the difficulties you faced through Twilight's letters, but you said at first. Did something change?"

"Yep. I started to love them. A lot. After a while, I just started to feel sort of jealous. I tried not to. I mean, what kind of meanie pants feels jealous all the time?"

"You are only a pony; it is a very natural emotion. Just look at my sister. She felt jealous because she saw the love of our subjects was only for me. So it happens to the best of us."

"So to answer that question, yes, I want to be a mommy. Even if it's a human… or dragon. Well, you know what I mean."

"I see. And if worse comes to worst, can you put his needs in front of your own?"

"Yes."

"Would you support him through bad and through good?"

"Yes."

"Would you protect him, even if it meant putting yourself in harm’s way?"

"Yes."

"Even if that means that by protecting him, it could lead to your demise?"

"Er, yes."

"Good. Then young Spyro will be your son from this day forth. Oh, and, Pinkie, I don't think he realizes what it means by you taking care of him. If you know what I mean." She gave her a wink which Pinkie returned with a confused stare. After a minute, she understood what she was getting at. Her face beamed with excitement and she jumped in the air.

"Oh, before you throw said party, please make sure his magic is under control first. I don't think you will have too many problems with that, but you need to do your best to keep his emotions in check. That is, until Twilight can teach him proper magical control."

"Easy, peasy. So was that all?"

"I believe so. Are you sure the Cakes will be okay with a dragon staying in their midst?"

"Oh, I never asked them. But I'm sure they will be fine with it!"

Celestia giggled and nodded. "Then let us return. Oh, and, Pinkie."

"Hmm?"

"Welcome to motherhood."





"Okay, everything is settled. So, now what?" Twilight asked while they all looked at each other. They had been summoned to find homes for two baby dragons and they had now completed their task.

"Oh! You said that you can look in my mind and I can show you movies and video games n' stuff, right?"

"Err, yes, as long as Princess Celestia has cleared it."

"I believe it will be fine. But, Spyro…"

"Hmm?"

"Please do not show us anything too violent."

He sighed at the mention of this but agreed. "So how does it work?"

"I will concentrate on your mind and project the images into the heads of any who want to see them. I think I can keep up with everypony. You simply need to think of a movie or a 'video game' and we will see what you have seen. Anyone want in?"

Everyone agreed to have a look. Even Fluttershy let her curiosity outweigh her aversion to violence.

"Do you all want to see a whole movie?"

"For now, try to only think of a scene in a movie or a clip. I don't think we all have enough time for a whole film. Are you ready?"

He nodded and shrugged. She began the spell. For a while, they all saw a white screen, that is, until he thought up something that he wanted everyone to witness, including himself.



"Was that a movie?!" Twilight broke the spell after watching the scene unfold.

"It was part of a video game. See, they’re time travelers and they are trying to save the world."

"I see. Could you perhaps show us part of a film? That was interesting, but I would like to see real humans."

He shrugged and she fired up the spell again. She failed to notice Dash saying something about what she just witnessed being awesome.



"Spyro! I said nothing too violent!"

"Ahh c'mon!"

"Do humans always bleed that silver stuff?" Pinkie asked, tilting her head to the side.

Fluttershy chose to remain quiet and decided that she had seen enough and backed away.

"No, those were robots, not real humans. It's not like there was any blood or anything!"

Princess Celestia glared at him.

"I could learn so much from him!" Twilight did not even bat an eye at the violent scenes. She only saw potential, potential to learn.

Fluttershy was on the verge of tears in the corner of the room. It did not go unnoticed by most. Spyro certainly took note. Without warning, he walked up to her and jumped up into a hug. "It's just a movie. It's not real."

"I know. And thank you for the hug, um, Spyro. But I still don't ever want to see that again."

"Sorry." He looked down at his feet, truly feeling bad for upsetting the pink-maned pony.

"It's okay."

"THAT WAS AWESOME!" They all looked up to Rainbow Dash who was beaming with excitement. "You gotta show me that movie!"

"Sure—"

"Another time, Dash. It's getting close to bedtime and I think we should leave our dragons alone with their new caretakers, hmm?"

"Fine. But you are showing me that movie!"





For the second time that night, Spyro stood, staring up at a pony, with nothing much to say. He wanted to get to know Pinkie better, but she seemed just as nervous as he did. What happened to that fun, loving pony?

"Um, hey?" Spyro offered.

"Hey. So it turns out that you will be staying with me from now on. How… do you feel about that?"

"Fine by me. You seem like a ton of fun!" He tried breaking her out of her mood, but all it mustered was a shy smile.

"Well, I can be, sure. But, um, Celestia told me a few things and that kind of means I need to take care of you." He noticed her words seemed awkward coming out of her mouth, and she seemed very nervous.

"Yeah. Is something wrong with that?"

"No! Nothing at all, but when it comes to your friend Claws it is a bit different. Dragons are known for hanging out in large groups like hoards, but the princess told me that humans are just like us; they have families. Did you ever have a family?"

The dragon froze, unable to respond. He knew that Pinkie was asking a very innocent question and she was nice enough to ask it gently, but it still made him feel, well, he couldn't quite tell what it made him feel. He knew the answer of course, no. Why would that matter? "Um, no I didn't." Pinkie Pie's heart nearly exploded right there. She wanted nothing more than to squeeze him and hug him to make all of his bad feeling's just vanish. But then she remembered that he now possessed unicorn magic and it was best to try and keep his emotions under control.

"Well, have you ever wanted a family?" She knew it was a very basic question and the answer should have been YES. But instead, she got something that caught her entirely off guard.

"No. Families just get in the way. Plus, no one wanted me at the orphanage so—"

"I wanted you!" Pinkie interjected in a frantic voice. Spyro stopped talking and stared at her.

"Yeah, you did. Um, how come?"

"Oh that's easy; I always wanted to be a mother!" His eyes blew wide open.

"Mother? Wha?"

"Well, yes, silly. I kind of adopted you. It's different for Claws, but from now on, I will be your mother. Is that okay?" She was giving him her best sympathetic smile. He simply nodded, unable to respond. How could he?

I have never had a mother. How am I supposed to treat her? This is just weird!

"Are you sure that you're okay?"

"Yes," he responded very quickly. She took one long glare at him but then nodded. Just then, Princess Celestia returned.

"The train to Ponyville will be leaving soon. Are you two ready?"

They looked at each other but then nodded.

The train was loaded with six ponies in one car and three dragons in another. They said their goodbyes to the princesses and the train departed. The six ponies began to converse among each other, but it was soon apparent that the most excitable among them was lost in thought. Twilight and the others were quick to realize this and decided to address her.

"Pinkie? Is something the matter?"

"What if I'm a bad mommy?!"

They turned to each other and shared an uneasy look.

"Well I—"

"What if I screw up and he hates me forever because I didn't raise him correctly?!" Pinkie was now standing on the table that divided the six ponies, not caring that her eyes were now twitching.

"Pinkie, I really must protest. You—"

"What If I mess up and his new magic goes crazy and he wrecks the town and then Princess Celestia bans both of us to the moon?!"

Twilight sighed and then slowly used her magic to levitate Pinkie Pie into the air. She then exerted her force to slam Pinkie's face into the glass. She admitted later that she went too far, but it seemed to have snapped Pinkie out of her out of it.

"Ow! Twilight, that was mean!"

"I'm sorry, but you were freaking out!"

"Oh, yeah I guess I was. Sorry."

"It's okay, Pinkie. If you are that nervous then, as your friends, we would be happy to help! I will be teaching Spyro to keep his magic under control and I'm sure the rest of us can help, right?"

"Ah raised Apple Bloom mah whole life. Ya ever need advice, just ask."

"Watching Sweetie Belle is nothing short of exhausting. She does require a good authoritative figure. And with Mother and Father gone so often, I might as well have raised her. She lives with me most of the time after all, so please do not hesitate to ask for advice, Pinkie."

"I, um, might know a few things, but I don't know anything about humans," Fluttershy admitted. She had to admit that she was curious of Spyro, but could not raise him by herself.

"I know absolutely nothing about being a mom," Dash said without skipping a beat. Twilight shot her an angry glare and then she hastily corrected herself. "But I'm here for ya when you need me!"

"Thanks, girls. I want to throw him a 'Welcome-to-Ponyville-and-welcome-to-my-family' party, but the princess said no parties until his emotions are under control, whatever that means."

"Well, unicorn magic can be quite odd at times, especially in his case. As for his emotions, they should be well balanced or more magical surges might occur." She stopped for a moment to think and then turned her attention to the pink pony. "Pinkie, what did you two talk about when you were left alone?"

"Oh, I asked him if he had ever had a family before and he said no. Then I asked him if he even wanted a family and he said that families get in the way so, no. I tried to tell him that I wanted him, badly, and that's because I wanted to be a mommy more than anything in the world. But when I mentioned being his new mother he kind of froze, like he wasn't all there… Is that bad?"

"I'm not quite sure. Maybe having a mother is just too foreign to him. It might wreak havoc with his emotions though…" Twilight admitted, much to the annoyance of everypony near her.

"Twi, what is the worst thing that can happen with magical surges?" Dash asked.

"Well, my first surge, um, I kind of turned my parents into plants," she admitted sheepishly.

"Great, that's just great. Remind me never to prank that kid, ever."

"Once we get him to control his own magic, that shouldn't be too much of a problem, Dash. But I don't know how he would respond to pranks. I hope he's okay with Spike in the other carriage though."





"Guys, um, how are you supposed to act around a mom?" Spyro asked out of the blue while they were all having a random conversation about gems.

"Beats me. Dragon's don't really have moms," Claws admitted while shrugging.

"Well, I guess Twilight is kind of like my mom. You never had one?"

Spyro shook his head.

"I guess, just be respectful and listen to her. Although, since Pinkie is now your mom, I dunno how much of what she will tell you to do will make sense."

"What do you mean?"

"Pinkie Pie is the most random pony in all of Equestria. Not that she can't handle herself, but let's just say you are in for one wild ride, Spyro."

"But I like that about her! It was so weird though, when we were left alone, it was like she was a completely different per… err, pony. I don't get it!"

"Maybe she is nervous. I will admit though, I have never seen Pinkie calm before."

> Chapter 8: Ponies Are Weird
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The train ride was mostly uneventful. Pinkie's friends spent the time trying to teach her the finer points of being a good mother. They had to convince her to hold off on her inevitable Pinkie Party until Twilight could teach Spyro to keep his new magic under control. Meanwhile, Spike was doing his best to tell the two dragons about Ponyville and what they could expect.

"So I'm gonna be living in a bakery?"

"Well, that's where Pinkie lives. Yeah."

"Cool."

"Is there anything that you don't think is cool?" Spike snorted in a sarcastic manner.

"Hmm… Not in this world," Spyro replied and held his tongue out.

"Right… So, do you two have any other questions about Ponyville?"

Claws and Spyro stared at each other for a while until one of them spoke up.

"Yeah. What is there to do in Ponyville?" Spyro questioned in innocent curiosity.

Spike decided to smack his forehead and slowly roll his claw down his face in annoyance. "I just finished explaining all of that. Were you not listening?"

"I got bored…"

Spike resisted the urge to slap his own face again. "Alright, what do you mean by 'do'? What do you want to do in town?"

"I dunno. I never got to go into the city that often at the orphanage… Um, I don't know."

"I see. Well, I'm sure we can find you something to do. You’re lucky you got magic now. It should make your day more… intriguing."

"Yeah, if I knew how to use it. I don't want to derail the train or something."

"Good call, dude, good call" Spike said as he and Spyro shared a chuckle. "Did you ever do anything other than playing these video games?"

"Not really. I mean—"

"What about friends? Didn't ya have friends?" Spike asked in genuine concern.

"No I didn't! So what?"

"Hey, I'm not trying to put you down, dude. But both of your stays in Ponyville will be better if you went out and made some friends, other than me I mean."

"Okay, but aren't most people in Ponyville, well, ponies?"

"Yes. Never stopped me from making friends before."

"Oh," was Spyro’s only reply.

"Are you… nervous, Spyro?"

"No, I'm not nervous!"

Spike nodded. "What about you, Claws?"

"Same!"

Spike was not buying it. The closer they got to his home, the more distant they seemed.

"Some dragons you are," Spike replied, hoping to get some reaction out of the two. Claws was the first to respond.

"Hey! I am so a dragon! What makes you say that?!"

"Yeah! Me too!"

"Spyro, you’re a human," Claws deadpanned with his reply.

"I'm also a dragon, and a wizard," he replied with his arms crossed. Both dragons turned to him in confusion.

"A wha?"

"A wizard. You don't know what a wizard is?"

They both shook their heads.

"That doesn't make sense. This is a world with magic but wizards have not been heard of?"

"Never heard of a wizard before. I hang out with Twilight all day and learned all sorts of things about ponies, but I've never heard of a wizard."

"Ponies are weird."

"Now just why is that so weird? If it's a word from your world then why would we know of it?" Spike challenged.

"Because a wizard is someone that can use magic, duh."

"So, Twi would be a wizard?"

"Um, well, wizards are boys, so no. I guess she would be a… witch?"

"I don't know what that word means, but it sounds mean."

"Well I don't think it is. At least it wasn't in Harry Potter. Oh wait, that means I can be a wizard!"

"You lost me. Humans are weird."

"We are not! Right, Claws?"

Claws stared at his friend for a moment, giving him a sheepish smile. "Um, sorry, dude, but you’re pretty weird."

"Whatever," he replied with a grunt before choosing to remain silent. Spike and Claws decided to do the same, but Spike did not fail to notice Spyro's change in attitude.

The train eventually slowed down to a halt. A pony announced their arrival at Ponyville as the final stop. They all left the carriage with Spyro noticing the six ponies leaving first. He spotted his 'mother' happily bouncing up and down out of the train. It filled him with hope.

She is pretty cool. I hope she stays that way, the human-turned-dragon thought while slowly following behind. Normally, on a return trip, Pinkie would feel the need to throw a party, especially for this particular occasion. But she gave a promise not to for now which led to the others in the group quickly making excuses to get back to their lives.

"Well, that was fun, but I really need to get back to my weather duties soon and some more practicing for you-know-what," Dash said before flying off, not waiting for a reply.

"Ah need to get back to the farm. You ready, Claws?"

He nodded and gave a shrug. He felt it was too silly to ride on her back so he quickly followed behind and, after a few moments, they were gone.

"I promised Mother that I would be watching Sweetie Belle later today, so ta-ta for now, Spyro and Pinkie."

"Angel is usually good for a couple days, but I better go check on him. It was nice meeting you, Spyro, and, um, good luck, Pinkie."

"Yes, well, it's been fun. Pinkie, make sure to bring him to me so we can start a schedule for his magic lessons. Until then, no excitement. Got it?"

She nodded in understanding, much to the annoyance of Spyro. Without warning, Twilight lifted Spike onto her back and left Pinkie and Spyro alone.

"It's not like I'm gonna blow up or something. What's so wrong with excitement?" He turned to Pinkie and finally addressed her. She was looking back nervously as if she was trying to find the right thing to say but also fighting back in her natural behavior.

"We're just worried that something might spark that magic of yours and Twilight warned me that magical surges can be dangerous," she replied with her normally upbeat attitude entirely lost.

"Cool!" Her eyes widened at the mention of something so trivial.

"NOT COOL! WE NEED TO MAKE SURE IT NEVER HAPPENS! OR ELSE!" she hissed which caused him to pay attention.

"What happens?" He asked slowly in a meek voice.

She sighed, noticing his shift in attitude. "The thing with magical surges, well, they can be chaotic and random—"

"Like you!" He beamed proudly, causing Pinkie to stop and think.

"Yes, like me. Only, random magic can do bad things."

"What kind of bad things?"

She sighed before saying anything. Hopefully, she could scare him just enough to make him wary of his magic. "Well, when Twilight experienced her first she… turnedherparentsintoplantsandgrewSpikeuptoafullgrowndragon!" She was not sure how much he got of that, but the last thing she wanted was to traumatize him.

"WOW! That's pretty cool!"

Maybe a little bit of the trauma thing was a good idea.

"Random magic can do much worse. It can harm others… Even to, um, death." Pinkie hated saying those words. She hated herself right now and she hated having to be the pony to teach him a lesson. But she was told by all of her friends that sometimes being a parent meant saying things that the child did not want to hear. Spyro was struck dead in his tracks. He had nothing to say. What could he say? Both were at a literal loss for words, but Pinkie could tell by the shocked look on his face that her words had finally sunk in.

"Look, I'm not trying to scare you. I'm just trying to warn you so nothing bad happens. I mean, you don't want anypony to get hurt, right?"

"Of course I don't want that!" Spyro stomped his leg down which caused her to flinch in surprise.

"Why would you think I want to kill anyone?!"

"No one's saying that! Just take a deep breath. Please? for me?"

Spyro sighed but did just that.

"Good. I was just trying to warn you. I'm not trying to scare you away from using magic, but you need to learn how to use it carefully and, right now, those nails of yours could do anything…" She trailed off at the end, hoping he would get the message. He looked down at his nails, wanting nothing more to do with them. Sure, he wanted to be a wizard and help save the day and be the hero, but heroes don't hurt others or kill. Killing was for the villain. He never wanted to be a villain.

"I-I don't think I want to do magic anymore," he finally replied in a sickly voice.

Without any prior warning, the pink pony wrapped her front hooves around the dragon into what she hoped was a motherly embrace. Spyro didn't fight it, but he didn't hug back. She kept the hug for a good two minutes until she was confident that he was, in fact, calm.

"Feeling better?"

He was about to nod but stopped. Was he feeling better? Ever since he came to Equestria, not only had he been taking everything in stride, but he was enjoying every single minute of it. Even when he was bored down in the bowels of the ship, he was still enjoying himself. Magic was real and, for that, it was a dream come true. Dragons existed and now he was one, and he even had a mother now, although he still did not feel like calling her that. But for the first time since he came here, he truly felt sad. It wasn't like crying over something as simple as getting yelled at like back on the dragon islands. No, he felt more sad than he could ever remember feeling in his entire life. The bright colors of Ponyville seemed dreary. Hesitantly, he looked up at Pinkie and then slowly shook his head, trying to hold in all the tears that were building up.

Pinkie put a hoof to her chin and was intensely thinking of something to cheer him up. He finally saw the random, funny pony before him again, if only for a brief moment, and he had to admit that it cheered him up. No one can possibly think that long, but she was trying and, to him, it seemed silly, but it still didn't help. Finally, after a minute, she shot up in the air and turned her attention back to Spyro.

"Do you want a piggyback ride?!" Her enthusiasm and randomness returned full-form. It was such an odd question, but piggyback rides were not something that ten-year-old's generally indulged in, especially for him.

But she was smiling so much.

And he wanted to smile again.

But it seemed so embarrassing. Slowly, his thoughts drifted back to a long forgotten memory.





"Listen up. Some folks will be stopping by soon."

"Yeah, so what?" A childish voice said, not really caring much for the adult speaking to him.

"So they might adopt you, that's what!"

"Oh," the child replied, suddenly standing at attention and doing his best to listen to everything the adult said.

"Yes, oh. Now, listen to me very carefully. Remember to be yourself, but under no circumstance are you to make them disappointed. I know that is asking a lot. I don't want to put any stress on you, but you do want to get adopted right?"

The child nodded as quickly as he could.

"Good. Then just do what they say and try your best to make them happy. Even if you do get adopted, they can still take you back. I know that sounds scary, but you are already here so it's not all bad. But, sorry, I'm getting off topic. Do you understand?”

"Yeah, I think so. Make them happy and do what they say or they might take me back?"

"Right. That's if they adopt you. You ready?"

"Yeah," the child answered without hesitation.

"Good. I will go get them."






The dragon blinked a few times and shook his memories away. He then noticed that Pinkie was still waiting for an answer.

Not screwing this up again! Spyro thought.

"Yeah!" He suddenly jumped up on her back without warning and screamed out, "ONWARDS TO ADVENTURE!" He then pointed to the town of Ponyville.

"Okie Dokie Loki! Although you might have to replace 'adventure' with meeting the Cakes!" Before he could respond, she had jumped up in the air and started her descent into town. To his amazement, she was jumping up and down, up and down over and over. He thought the other ponies might give them odd looks, but no one was batting an eye. Clearly, Pinkie did this often. He couldn’t get much more from the ponies since he was hanging on for dear life, but he did get one thing from their 'adventure'.

Ponies are so weird! But Pinkie is back! My M… Um, Pinkie is so random! AWESOME!

Luckily, throughout his journey, his emotions remained in check. His little breakdown earlier was quick to be wiped away with the excitement of the best piggyback ride he had ever had. The only disappointment stemmed from the lack of attention he was getting from the town. A baby dragon riding on the back of a pink pony who was jumping through town… Ponies had to be odd to consider THAT normal.

"Here we are!"

Spyro shook his head a few times to get rid of any dizziness and instantly looked up. If there was any doubt in the young child's mind that his life was about to get simple and boring, it was instantly squashed. He stood in front of a full-sized gingerbread house.

This was where she worked.

This was where she lived.

This is where I'm going to live?! The child's thoughts were frantic yet excited. To a boy, a gingerbread house was far from ideal, but to him it was just another thing to counteract the dreary, boring world he once knew.

"You ready to meet the Cakes and their Twins?"

"Um, sure?"

"Great! Let's go!"

He slowly climbed off of her back and they slowly walked into the bakery together. He quickly noticed a bright-yellow stallion running the register. He wore a bow tie and some type of apron along with a makeshift chef’s hat.

"Mr. Cake, I'm home!"

"Pinkie! Oh it's been… Oh, and who is this?" Spyro noticed his hesitant tone when addressing him. Pinkie looked down nervously at Spyro.

Can't disappoint her!

He ran up to the stallion and quickly started a conversation without warning. "Hi! I'm Spyro," he said while offering his claw. This simply made the stallion's eyes bulge out of his sockets.

"Oops, forgot about my nails…"

"Uhhh…" He was at a loss for words, but Pinkie quickly caught up.

"Yes. This is Spyro, Mr. Cake. Um, do you mind if I talk to you in the back?"

"S-sure, Pinkie, bu—"

"Great! You just wait here, Spyro, okay?" She did not wait for a reply and simply shoved the poor stallion in the back using her hoofs.

Spyro decided to sit down in an empty booth and wait. He only hoped that he did not overstep his boundaries. What was wrong with saying hi?

"Pinkie…" Mr. Cake paused to take in a deep breath to calm his nerves. It didn't work, but he continued. "…why is there a dragon down there and why did he come in with you?"

"Well, it's funny…"

"Pinkie."

"What?!" she said in an annoying, almost childish voice.

"I know when you are up to something, and I know when you try to make things seem less serious than they actually are. I want the truth."

"Okay, okay. Remember how I kind of ran off and yelled out something about the princess needing help with dragons?"

"Yeah?"

"Well, as it turns out, Spyro needed a lot of help. He needed a home and somepony that knows how to raise him right. I offered and now I'm his, well, mother."

"What?! Pinkie! I… He… What about his nails? I've seen Spike and I've seen dragons, something is wrong with—"

"Nothing's wrong, but after a little mishap, he ended up with unicorn magic, silly. Although we do need to keep his emotions under control, which is why I can't throw him my super duper pinkie party yet."

"Unicorn magic? I… Why do we need to keep his emotions under control exactly?"

"He's prone to magical bursts…"

"PINKIE! That's extremely dangerous! We can barely contain Pumpkin's magical outbursts, let alone another."

"I know, but I always stop Pumpkin from doing anything dangerous. I can do this!" Her face now pressed into his face in an attempt to exert her domination. It usually worked.

"Pinkie, uh… Is he talking to my wife?" He forgot about Pinkie and went back to the shop with her following him.

"And then she was all like, WHOOSH, BAM, and then everything was fine! I don't know how she moves so fast though," Spyro said.

"Yes, Pinkie has been known for her speed, especially in the kitchen. That was quite the tale, Spyro. Oh, did you enjoy that gem cupcake?" The voice of Mrs. Cake could be heard from the kitchen as the two ponies entered.

"Yeah! That was tasty. Can I have another?" he asked with pleading eyes.

She had to stifle a giggle. "Oh, I don't know. We wouldn't want a certain dragon to have a tummy ache. Oh, dear, come in here and meet Spyro."

Spyro turned around to face a frantic-looking Mr. Cake and Pinkie Pie. "Um, I have and—"

"Oh, wonderful! He tells me that he will be staying with Pinkie from now on. Be a dear and help her set up their room, please."

"But, honey—"

"What was that?"

Mr. Cake knew that voice. It was the kind she used when she was NOT to be trifled with. He hesitantly nodded, noting her wide eyes and steady determination.

"Yes, dear," he said and left the room by use of the stairs.

Pinkie just watched it in awe. Meanwhile, Spyro couldn't help but giggle. He was about to ask for another cupcake again when Mrs. Cake spoke up.

"Pinkie, do you mind if we have a little chat in the back?" Pinkie looked over at Spyro with a worried glance but nodded.

"Wonderful, Spyro feel free to grab one more cupcake, but just one."

He saluted her off as the two entered the kitchen.

"Mrs. Cake, I'm sorry—"

"It's fine. I take it this young dragon is here to stay?"

"Yeah. I kind of adopted him. Please don't be mad." She gave her the best Pinkie smile she could muster.

"Pinkie, I don't think I could ever be mad with you. Granted, this is definitely up there with some of the crazy things you try… But I couldn't be more proud of you for helping a po… err, dragon in need."

"He’s actually a human that's now a dragon," Pinkie said without skipping a beat.

Mrs. Cake blinked once. "A what?"

"It's a long story, but basically, he used to be a human that was raised in an orphanage and he woke up as a dragon. The princess told us so herself. I know he's not a pony, but I always wanted to be a mommy and I jumped at the chance," Pinkie said but stopped herself when she noticed the odd glare Mrs. Cake was giving her.

"It really is a long story, Mrs. Cake. I promise I will tell you when I get the time. But there is probably something else I should tell you about his, well, his—"

"Nails? I believe he said something about having magic now."

"Yeah. He's prone to magical outbursts, but I'm taking care of it. Plus, I may have scared him a bit about using magic…"

"Pinkie, what did you tell him?"

"I may have said that it can accidentally cause things like… death," she admitted with a hint of shame.

"Pinkie! That poor dear. You know that is extremely rare. Why would you say something so awful?"

"I was worried that if he had another outburst that you two wouldn't let him stay! Twilight made such a big deal about keeping his emotions under control and I was worried. I panicked, okay?"

"Pinkie, I'm not mad, but do you honestly think that telling him that would balance out his emotions in the slightest?"

"Uh, no. I'm a terrible mommy, huh?"

"No, Pinkie. You just made a mistake. I understand that you thought you might lose him, but lying isn't going to solve anything. You best go tell him the truth, alright?"

"Alright. I'm just stressed. I have to act all motherly-like now and I don't feel like myself and I don't even get to throw him a party! How can we not throw a party for something so big?!"

"Oh, my little pie, I'm guessing this has to do with keeping his emotions in check again, hmm?"

She nodded with downcast eyes.

"Well, it couldn't hurt to throw him a small party for now. Say, inviting only a few guests. I don't see how that can hurt things, Pinkie, what—"

Without warning, Pinkie Pie burst into the air with glee. "YIPPEE! Oh my gosh, I need to get together some streamers and a banner and dragon treats and I can invite Claws and Spike and—"

"Pinkie, perhaps for now it's best to apologize to your son, hmm?" Pinkie stopped in midair, landed on the floor and nodded.

"Oh yeah. I'll just go do that. Thanks, Mrs. Cake."

"Anytime, dear, anytime."

Pinkie left the kitchen in a flash leaving a bewildered Cake.

"That Pinkie…"

"Oh, Spyro."

"I did nothing!"

Pinkie rounded the corner and caught the young dragon red-clawed with a box of cupcakes open and clearly missing three. Pinkie snorted and rolled her eyes. "Put the box down. There's something I need to tell you."

He looked down at the box but nodded and brought his attention to her. "Listen, what I said earlier about the magical bursts, they can't kill anypony… I lied and I'm sorry."

"Why did you lie?" His voice sounded strained but he kept it under control.

"Because I was worried that if the Cakes saw a magical outburst from you, even if it was an accident, that they might not let you live here. It was stupid, but I'm just trying to keep you balanced and it's pretty hard. I've never been a mother before…" She paused when she noticed he winced at the word mother but continued. "…and I just want to makes sure that I don't screw it up."

"So that's why you’re not all crazy anymore?"

"Yeah. Trust me when I say that it's killing me inside but—"

"Then stop it! I liked you crazy. It's why I picked you in the first place!"

Pinkie blinked and had to stop talking at the sound of this. Before this, she had never questioned why she had ended up with Spyro. She had simply thought that Twilight's recommendation had helped. She never thought that Spyro had actually wanted her. But had she left that deep of an impression on him that she was simply thought of as the random pony? Is that all he saw in her? She was about to agree with him. She was about to do a complete turnaround and switch back to good old Pinkie, but then a nagging feeling in the back of her mind stopped all of that.

"Good mothers aren't random. Good mothers do what is necessary. Still…" Pinkie shook her head of those thoughts and glared down at him.

"I'll tell you what. If you promise me that you will listen to Twilight, and that means listen to EVERYTHING she tells you about your magic, then I will go back to what you saw before. But until you get your magic lessons, I can't be the random pink pony you saw before."

"But that's no fair! That's not fun!"

"I know, but you still want to use magic, right?"

"…Yes."

"Then those are the rules. Do you promise me to listen to Twilight?"

"Yes, I promise."

"Make a pinkie promise."

He looked down at his claws and noticed that he still did, in fact, have a pinkie. He was about to bring it up to her's, but then he realized something. Ponies don't have pinkies. "Huh?"

"It's easy. I'll show you. Lift up your, um, claw and repeat after me. 'Cross my heart, hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye.'" Pinkie finished by hurting her eye which caused him to giggle. He repeated the phrase. The simple, silly action gave him hope that his home was still, at the very least, not normal.

"Good. Now how about I show you your new room?!"

"Sure," he replied and, without warning, he jumped onto her back which caused her to giggle.

They walked up the stairs and were about to round a corner when Pinkie heard the sound of a certain foal crying. Without warning, she jerked up ahead and opened a door which lead into a nursery.

"Pound? Pumpkin? What's the matter now?"

Spyro looked ahead and spotted two pony foals who were locked inside a crib. He noticed the unicorn foal was on the verge of tears. Pinkie grabbed the unicorn and immediately began checking her all over until a realization dawned on her.

"Pumpkin, I think somepony needs a diaper change!"

Spyro flinched at these words, but what grossed him out was the way that Pinkie was carrying Pumpkin. Pinkie was holding the little filly with her teeth on the hem of her diaper as it drooped down. He watched in awe as the pink pony quickly changed the diaper with speed that should be impossible, but in a flash, she was changed and placed back in the crib. He wanted to make some comment about how odd it was to carry a foal by their diaper with bare teeth, but he shook it off. He just had to accept that not all surprises in this new world were going to be positive.

"Now that we've taken care of that, I can finally show you my room!" She kept walking but then stopped in her tracks to speak up again. "Sorry, I mean our room."

She rounded the corner and slowly opened the door to her room, letting the dragon in. He looked around and noticed it was the perfect atmosphere of random and neatness. He spotted her bed, but right next to it was a basket with a blanket and a pillow. He hesitated but asked anyway.

"I thought they said they were going to set up the room. Where do I sleep?"

"In the basket, you silly filly… uh, silly human?"

He looked back at the basket and noticed it was, in fact, the perfect size for his new body, but it still didn't stop him from repeating himself.

"Ponies are weird."

> Chapter 9: Meet the Crusaders
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Spyro had spent a good ten minutes trying to explain to Pinkie how it seemed ridiculous to sleep in a basket, of all things. But she silenced him with the simple words, "Please give it a try. For me?" It was at that moment that he realized saying no might disappoint her and that was the last thing on his list. With a heavy sigh, he had climbed in and found it to be comfortable yet embarrassing. Pinkie had given him a hug and wished him a good night and was out like a light in no time at all. Spyro, however, was not. He did not feel all that sleepy. There was something more that Pinkie hesitated to do during the hug. Spyro nearly lost it then and there.

I think she just tried to kiss me… the dragon child thought while quietly studying her sleeping habits. She snored, but it was quiet and, for the most part, not annoying. His basket was close enough to her but still on the ground.

Why did she do that? The child was racking his brain, trying to desperately discern the reasoning for the kiss. He continued to stare at her. She seemed happy.

I pushed her away… What if I made her mad?! But she seems happy… He finally decided to just drop it and get some rest. Within minutes, he was also out like a light.

He woke up somewhat late in the day and noticed certain pink pony missing from her bed. He yawned and then set off downstairs but noticed it seemed like a madhouse. It was a bakery, after all, and Pinkie did live and work there. He spotted her hard at work. He wasn't sure what to say or do, but a quick glance made it clear that dozens of ponies used the bakery for their breakfast destination. Hesitantly, he tapped on Pinkie's leg to get her attention while she was busy managing several cooking appliances and not looking the least bit tired.

"Oh, good morning, Spyro. I left a bowl of gems for ya just right over there." She pointed to an empty table and, sure enough, there was one large bowl of gems and a glass of orange juice. He noticed it was the only unused table, but he shrugged and went over to eat.

He noticed several glances from pony families but decided it was best to just act casual. Casual meant eating his bowl of gems as quickly as possible and then asking Pinkie what he should do next.

"Well, I would go see Twilight for your first magic lesson. That is, if she isn't too busy. She should be at the library, the giant tree. You can't miss it. Just be back by closing time around seven, got it?"

"Sure. Um, later, Pinkie!"

He could not get out of there fast enough. He felt all eyes upon him and even though he kept telling himself not to care, he did. He really cared. Outside, the ponies seemed much friendlier going about their business. Everyone seemed cheerful. They seemed to be mostly ignoring him, which he welcomed. It didn't take long for him to spot the library. Standing in front of it, he couldn't help but stare.

"Wow…" That lasted about twenty seconds before he gently opened the door and ran inside. 

Inside, he found Twilight and Spike still enjoying breakfast. He shrugged and entered the kitchen without warning.

"Oh, Spyro, good morning. I take it that the Cakes took to you well?"

"Yeah. Mrs. Cake is pretty nice. I just wish I didn't have to sleep in a basket…" he said, mumbling off in the end. "So, I'm here for my magic lesson." He smiled expectantly.

"Oh, I'm sorry, Spyro, but I have far too much to do right now to start anything. Let's see, can you come back at around two?"

"Um, sure." He was about to walk away, but then he paused and sighed and then awkwardly turned back to her. "Twilight, what am I supposed to do in town?"

She finished what she was chewing on and then spoke. "Well, I would go and check out the park. Maybe try and meet some ponies?" He was about to nod and leave again when he paused one last time and let out an exasperated sigh while looking at his nails.

"What if I want to climb some trees? What about my nails?"

"Why would you want to climb trees?" she asked while putting emphasis on the word trees like it was the oddest thing she had ever heard.

"Ponies don't climb trees?"

"No, no we do not. Do humans do that a lot?"

"I do, yeah. But my nails might, um, break and—"

"Oh, that's right! Celestia sent me a letter on a new spell for those nails of yours. It should harden them right up and then you should be fine. Though I still don't know why you would want to climb a tree." Without warning, she concentrated on her horn and let out a soft hissing sound and a lavender colored glow that absorbed into his claws and nails. They pulsated for a bit and the then magic wore off. "There, now they should handle anything. Now go play, but make sure not to get too excited…"

"I'll be fine. I wish you two would stop worrying so much!"

Spyro ran off before Twilight could ask who the other worrying pony was, but it didn't take long for her to figure it out.

He made it to the park in no time at all. He spotted dozens upon dozens of young ponies out playing various games, but he had only one prospect on his mind. He spotted a nice tall tree off in the distance and gave an experimental swipe with his claws. The swipe left one long dent into the tree and, to his delight, his new magical claws were faring just fine.

"COOL!" He wasted no time and eagerly began to climb to the highest point on the tree. In under a minute, he was looking down at all the children ponies playing. He sat down on a branch after making sure that his tail would not get in the way and then continued to watch the other ponies play, unsure what to do next. He failed to notice three particular fillies making their way towards the tree after spotting his form in it.

"Hey, other dragon!"

He turned around, still hanging onto the branch and spotted three fillies looking straight up at him. Curious as to what they wanted, he took both of his feet and used them to swing himself upside down like a monkey to face them, still hanging onto the branch.

"Hello."

"Uhh, why are you hanging like that, you look like a monkey," the white unicorn replied, causing a few snickers from the other two. Spyro just rolled his eyes.

"Cause I'm bored and climbing trees can be fun."

"Uh huh. We were wondering if you wanted to play with us. Claws, the new dragon that lives with Apple Bloom, doesn't want to…"

"That certainly sounds like Claws. What did you want to play?"

"Well, we were hoping you could help us find our cutie marks!" the white unicorn squeaked out. Spyro dropped onto his head by accident after slipping.

"Ow. What's a cutie mark?" He stood up and dusted himself off. All three fillies looked at each other, giving odd glances and then turned back to Spyro.

"You don't know what a cutie mark is? How can that be?"

"Uhh, I'm new to Equestria?" He shrugged.

The orange pegasus sighed but began to explain. "A cutie mark is a special mark that appears on your flank when a pony discovers his or her special talent, duh!"

Spyro looked around and noticed all sorts of ponies with those weird marks on their flanks, but then turned back and noticed that these three fillies had none.

"Can dragons get cutie marks?" This question caused the three fillies to break down in a fit of laughter. Spyro did not find it amusing. "Stop laughing! How the heck am I supposed to know?!" They immediately stopped when they noticed he wasn't joking and he was feeling a tad hurt.

"Ah'm sorry, Mr. Dragon. We thought you were telling a joke or somethin'. We're real sorry, right, girls?" They both nodded and gave him their best adorable-looking triple smile. What they failed to factor in is that smile did not work on other children. He just sighed.

"Whatever," he replied while rolling his eyes.

"Hey, we said we were sorry, sheesh. So do you wanna play with us or what?" Spyro could tell that the orange pegasus was losing her patience.

"I guess so. I'm Spyro, by the way." He offered his claw in what he hoped was a universal gesture, but the three fillies simply stared at it.

"Why are your nails like that?" He inspected his claws again. The three fillies did not take their eyes off them.

"Oh, I have unicorn magic now. It—"

"Magic?! A dragon has magic? Show us!" All of them going from childlike curiosity to this pure excitement caught him off guard, but he remembered what both Pinkie and Twilight had said.

"Uhhh, Twilight told me not to until she can teach me how to control it…"

They all gave downcast looks at hearing this. "Oh, well, can you still help us today to find our cutie marks?"

"Sure. Just one little problem."

"What?"

"I don't know your names," the dragon replied and then giggled a bit.

"Oh, I'm Sweetie Belle!"

"Scootaloo!"

"Ah'm Apple Bloom!"

"And we are THE CUTIE MARK CRUSADERS!" the three replied in a unified scream. The dragon, however, was able to keep his emotions under control.

"Ow. So you just go around and try to find your special talents?"

The three nodded. Spyro tapped his chin for a while and pondered on this.

"What have you tried so far?" They all looked at each other and groaned.

"EVERYTHING! We're out of ideas! You got any?"

Spyro slowly took in his surroundings again. He spotted the park. He spotted several other buildings, but, finally, he spotted a dark-looking forest. "Hey, what about that forest? We can try to explore in it. Can you get a cutie mark for that?"

Scootaloo groaned. "We tried something like that once and it didn't end well. Fluttershy ended up saving us."

"Well, Apple Bloom, do you think Zecora would have something for us to do?" Scootaloo questioned.

"Ah guess so. Maybe she can help ya with your magic, Spyro. She is a potions expert, after all!"

The dragon studied his claws one last time. It was true that he wanted to use his magic. The prospect of hurting someone sounded terrible. Pinkie did admit she was lying, but his magic seemed far too overpowered and out of control. "Do you think she can brew up a potion that makes it weaker? The first time I tried to use it, um…" He trailed off, hoping that they got the message.

"Well, only one way to find out!" Sweetie Belle squeaked out. They all nodded and started their short journey into the forest.

After ten minutes of walking in silence, Apple Bloom couldn't help but take a few glances back towards the young dragon. He was walking just behind with both of his claws draped behind his back in a casual manner. He was taking in the sights of the forest, but none of it really phased him. To Apple Bloom and her young friends, on their first visit to the forest, it was quite the opposite.

"Uh, Spyro?" The farm filly spoke almost timidly.

"Yeah?"

"Claws was saying a few things about you… Did ya… We're you always a dragon?"

"Nope." He said it so quickly that not only did it cause all three fillies to stop in their tracks, but it caused him to chuckle. To him, hiding that simple fact was like lying and he was not fond of liars.

"So it is true. You used to be a hu-man thing!" Apple Bloom accused, her eyes wide in shock.

"You mean a human? Yes, I used to be one. Does it matter?"

"Well I…" She stopped and turned to her friends who simply shrugged and shook their heads. "I suppose not, but how'd ya end up as a dragon? Claws told me about the journey you both took, but why this?" She gestured to his dragon body. For a moment, he was dumbstruck.

"I have no idea, and you know what?" They shook their heads, admitting that they did not know what he was getting at. "I don't care." He continued walking past them for a little while but stopped when he got a good distance away. "You coming or what?!" They quickly ran up, leading the way once more, but the conversation continued.

"So, that's it? You now have a dragon body and you don't care about your old life?" Scootaloo asked, vaguely putting facts together. She was told very little of the two dragons, but Apple Bloom had insisted that Spyro's story was real before they met him earlier in the day.

"I lived in an orphanage, in a world without magic. I think I'm good," he finished with a smirk.

The three fillies gave each other uneasy looks but nodded.

"So, uh, how is livin' with Pinkie?" Apple Bloom questioned, causing him to glance down at her.

"Good? How is it supposed to be?"

"Crazy," Scootaloo exclaimed.

"Exciting!" Sweetie Belle Squeaked.

"What they said."

"Well, it's not. I was hoping it would be! This sucks…"

"Uh, right. So, Pinkie is not being Pinkie?" One of them asked. He had still not gotten used to their voices and was not aware who was speaking, not that he cared at the moment. His thoughts we're lost somewhere else.

"I guess…" They all sighed and figured it was pointless to keep talking. Eventually, the odd house in question came into view.

"Zecora! Are ya in there?" They all waited for a few moments until a Zebra came walking out, causing the Apple filly to jump up and take her in a rib-crunching hug. "Hi, Zecora!"

"It's good to see you, Apple Bloom! And who is this you've brought to my room?" Spyro looked her over and decided almost immediately that whatever she was (he assuming that she was in fact a zebra) he liked her and let out a smile.

"Oh, this is Spyro."

"Hey," was all he said in reply.

The Zebra regarded him for a moment, until she decided to speak. "Why, a dragon! What a strange sight to see. Why is he traveling with you three?"

"Well, he's our new friend. Plus, Pinkie adopted him," Scootaloo exclaimed.

"Yeah, we were wondering if you could make me a potion to help me control my magic. You do make potions, right?" Zecora was taken aback by both questions but for separate reasons.

"As for potions, I have many, not few; but for learning magic, there is no potion to brew. Although I find it strange you should ask. I am quite able to assist in your task. But why, I must ask, would a dragon need such a flask?"

Spyro sighed and then gently raised his claws and walked forward, he then showed off his tiny unicorn horns and her eyes widened.

"Unicorn horns are what I see? Are my eyes playing tricks? How can this be?"

"Sort of," he interrupted and sighed. "The only time I've used it so far is when I nearly destroyed a dinner table. So, can you help me and make my magic not so powerful for a while?"

"Although using such power requires training intense, it is easy to brew up a magic defense."

"Good, 'cause Twilight said she would start training me around two, but I don't want to go all haywire and blow up something."

"So… can you teach me how to use this magic? I don't see a horn on you though…"

The zebra chuckled at hearing this. "You look for a horn? A novice-like turn. I will teach you the basics and the things you should learn. For though magic looks easy and quick to the eyes, the complexities surely would give you a surprise. To start your training, you must not be faint, and master patience, endurance, and most of all, restraint."

Spyro had to think on this for a while until he smiled up at her and spoke. "So, how do we start?"

"Would you like to join him, you curious three? Step one in the process is learning to breathe."

They all nodded except Spyro who groaned, but did as the zebra commanded. They had spent several hours doing various exercises and 'practicing' calming techniques, although Spyro was growing bored with it, as was Scootaloo. Eventually, it was nearing one o'clock and they had to bid the zebra farewell. Together, they walked aimlessly into the forest along the same path they came from, only much slower. Eventually, the sound of four occupants slowly became five. None of the three fillies or the human-turned-dragon wanted to admit it. They had all hoped it was their imagination. But out of the blue, they heard a much louder noise, the noise of a howl. They all darted around and spotted a creature of nightmares. Standing before them, was a manticore.

It let loose a mighty roar that seemed to shake very ground they stood on. They were all rooted in place, stricken with fear. The beast walked forward, its stinger ready to strike. Spyro saw this and knew what was going to happen. He knew this was the end and he also knew that standing still was not the best way to respond.

This is my chance… but can I even do it? His thoughts were interrupted as the tail of the beast had immediately chosen him as the prime target. Without thinking, he brought up his right claw and tried to will magic into existence. He had barely any training and barely any hope, but somehow, his right claw responded. The tail was frozen in place and, for a moment, everything was going to be alright. The three fillies and dragon simply stared on with awe until, finally, his emotions twitched. He willed new life into his newfound magic and the tail moved backwards, striking the beast in the back. For a moment, time ceased to move for anyone, not for the fillies, not for the dragon, not even for the beast. Until finally, the manticore fell with a loud thump, laying still, dead. Spyro's eyes were wider than any dinner plate imaginable. The three fillies turned their heads to him. Finally, one spoke up.

"S-Sp-Spyro, are you okay?" Scootaloo asked, her voice dripping with concern.

He turned to them, still in shock, his emotions empty. He nodded slowly and slowly turned around to walk out of the forsaken forest. The fillies followed closely behind, unwilling to say anything to confront their friend in his desperate time of need. Somewhere in the deepest regions of his mind, one thought lingered on.

I killed something. I'm… a killer…

When they were safely out of the forest, they all stopped close to a certain cottage. They each tried to say something. First, Scootaloo wanted to speak her mind but the cold stare of their new dragon friend caused her to keep her mouth shut. Next, Apple Bloom wanted to thank him for saving them all but thought better on it. Which left Sweetie Belle who, without thinking, jumped up and hugged the dragon into submission. The other two fillies did the same. Spyro did not fight back but he did not move.

"Thank you for saving us, Spyro. But, uh, are you alright there? You haven't said anything…" Sweetie Belle's words trailed off and the three fillies kept the hug, hoping upon hope that the comforting act would bring back the dragon they'd met.

"I—" His words choked in his mouth, the fillies unraveled their hug and tried to let him speak. "I killed it." It was a simple sentence and yet it had so much meaning. To the three fillies, it was a reminder of their fear. To Spyro, it was a loss of innocence. The fillies turned to each other, silently trying to figure out exactly where to take the young dragon, their thoughts practically synchronized as one.

"Pinkie." They immediately began pushing him in the direction of Sugarcube Corner, the dragon only faintly aware of his surroundings as his head drooped low to the ground. They entered the shop and spotted the pink mare working with a few customers. Spyro did not dare look up. He waited just behind them as the fillies silently argued on who was to tell the party pony. Eventually, they shoved Sweetie Belle up front, leaving the unicorn standing just beside Pinkie with two fillies nervously pawing the ground.

"Sweetie Belle! What's up?" The party pony was busy messing with the cash register with several customers still waiting for their orders. The unicorn noticed this but knew she had to speak up.

"Hey, Pinkie, um, can we talk in the back? You know, when you’re not busy…" Pinkie looked down at her and then examined her friends faces and nodded. She then turned to address the crowds.

"Sorry, folks, little emergency so I will be on break for ten minutes!" Ignoring the boos of protests, she immediately grabbed the three fillies and quite literally stuffed them back in the kitchen. Not seeing Spyro just standing there, she joined the crusaders.

"Okay, so what's wrong?" Her head turned from side to side, trying to get one of them to speak up. 

"WetookSpyrointotheEverfreeForestandafterZecorawewereattackedbyamanitocoreandSpyrosavedusby…" one filly screamed out, trying to be heard among the two other voices.

"NowSpyroisallfreakedoutandyouadoptedhimand…" a second filly said. Before the third one could yammer on, Pinkie had placed a hoof in each of their mouths before falling down comically and straightening herself up.

"Remind me not to do that again. Now, would one of you please talk? I can't understand any of you."

"Look, we took Spyro to go meet Zecora and it was neat. She taught us some breathing exercises and such to help him with his magic. But then we were attacked by a manticore on the way back—"

"Oh my goodness! You’re all okay, right?"

They all nodded and then Sweetie Belle took over for Scootaloo. "Spyro, uh, used his magic to stop it and now the manticore is dead and now he's freaking out…" Pinkie's eyes went wider for a moment and then she took in a deep breath.

"Girls, where is he?" They immediately pointed to just outside the kitchen. Pinkie looked on at her new son with worry and regret. He was simply staring at the ground, unmoving and lifeless. The pink mare then looked at the waiting customers and then back to her son. She sighed and addressed the girls. "You three, please head home. I will take care of Spyro. He'll be fine." They all nodded, unaffected by the change in the party pony's demeanor. Pinkie then trotted upstairs for a moment to find her employer who was busy writing through business and tax forms. "Um, Mrs. Cake?"

"Oh, yes, Pinkie, what is it?" Stress was coming off of her voice, causing the pink pony to become more unnerved for what she was about to ask.

"I'm sorry, but I need to take the rest of the day off…"

"But why, dear? Is something the matter?!"

Pinkie flinched. Obviously, her boss was stressed from the day’s events, but she held her ground. "Something happened with Spyro and I need to go talk with him. He… I'm sorry, but can I—"

"Yes, my dear, go talk with your son. I'm sorry for nearly snapping. Will he be alright?"

"We'll see."

Then, in an instant, she walked downstairs, scooped up her son and left for her room. The door was gently closed and the little dragon was placed on her bed. She looked into his eyes, there were no tears, no bloodshot lasting effects, just shock.

"Spyro," she said with no response from the dragon. He simply looked down at his feet.

"Spyro," she said slightly louder, still getting nothing.

"SPYRO!"

This time he flinched and looked up at her, his eyes almost misty, but unsure what to do. I can't cry. I can't disappoint her… But…

Pinkie immediately grabbed him into a nearly bone crunching hug. The dragon returned it and tried to speak.

"I'm so—" He hiccupped once and that was the crack that broke the dam. Everything he was holding in immediately burst through his seams. The first tear that fell down, she immediately recognized and instinctively pulled him in closer.

"It's going to be okay. You were just trying to protect your friends." She began to gently stroke the ends of his scales and spikes, just now realizing how different he was from a colt pony. She was hoping that her stroking motions would calm him down, but it almost did the opposite so she opted to talk it out.

"Spyro, I need you to tell me how you feel."

"I-I don't kn-know. I killed it. I just wanted to be a hero. But I don—" He broke down yet again, his eyes drenching her pink coat into a mess.

"Shh. I want you to take a deep breath for me, okay?"

He nodded. His first try was interrupted by all sorts of hiccups and coughing. She gave a sad smile and opted for him to try again.

"That's it. In and out, in and out."

His shuddering breaths were slowing down to a regular pace, but his eyes would not tilt up to hers.

"Feeling better?"

He nodded, but only because he felt slightly better about his current predicament. He didn't hate being comforted or being pitied. Those things did not bother him. No. He always tried to remain happy in hopeful situations, the orphanage included. At the very least, he would try and remain casual in situations that were not befitting to him. But he was not happy and felt scared, afraid but not alone.

"Good. It's going to be alright. You’re alive and so are the crusaders."

"I don't want to use magic anymore, Pinkie."

Pinkie stared at him for a long while. She knew her son was hurting, but she had no real way to actually comfort him. Until a small idea came to mind. "Spyro, I need you to come with me. I think I know something that might help."

He gave her a skeptical look but nodded and gently climbed onto her back, too emotionally spent to walk. He hung his head low and clutched her back gently for some comfort. On the way out she nodded to Mrs. Cake who simply gave a side glance smile. The walk was slow with Pinkie glancing back at him every couple seconds.

"Pinkie, where are we going?" She narrowed her eyes, not showing them to him.

"To somepony who can make you happy again."

> Chapter 10: Magical Burdens
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The dragon sat, perched, on his mother's back, clutching for dear life. Pinkie had no intention of telling him to do otherwise, despite the pain. Pinkie smiled to herself with confidence, knowing full well that her friend would help her son make a full recovery. She opened the library door and walked in, shutting it gently.

"Twilight? You home?" Pinkie called out. Her voice was so loud and her tone so urgent that it was pretty much impossible to ignore.

"Pinkie? Oh, you must be here to drop Spyro off for—"

"Uh, not exactly… But, we really, really need to talk. Spyro…" She paused and lifted him off her back, gently setting him down. "…could you wait right here?" He just nodded with no smile and a shrug. Before Twilight could respond, Pinkie had grabbed her and jetted off into the only room that was considered private in the open library. The Kitchen.

"Pinkie… what is going on?" Pinkie sighed, figuring it was pointless to hide things when somedragon needed cheering up, and help.

"Right. I sent Spyro on his way to you this morning to get magic lessons, but I guess you were too busy to do it just yet. So he found the park and met the Crusaders. After that, they decided to go talk to Zecora so he could learn how to better control his new magic I guess. It all went well, but on the way back a Manticore attacked them." Pinkie ignored Twilight's gasp and immediately continued. "I guess he used his magic to help save them but accidently… Killed it."

Twilight was in a miniature state of shock. First off, her best friend's poofy mane had gone straight, but she wasn't depressed or acting crazy. She was simply being Pinkie, but a Pinkie that no one had ever seen before. And now her new son, who couldn't be any older than ten, had killed something and was probably going through his own state of shock. Twilight shook her head a few times.

"And you want me to help him get over it? Pinkie—"

"Please, Twilight! I may be the Element of Laughter, it may be my job to make ponies, and in this case dragons, happy, but I can’t fix that. I wouldn't even know where to start! You have unicorn magic like his and I'm sure you have heard or read about something like this, right?" Twilight gave a slow nod.

"Well," she said, glancing outside the kitchen to make sure that Spyro was still there, "in the case of magical outbursts, accidents or fatal occurrences, a pony, or in this case, dragon, can go in a state of mental shock ranging from minor to extremes such as panic attacks and even fainting. Spyro is most likely going through a case of trauma or even mental scarring. Has he said much at all?"

"Not really. He said he was sorry and cried for a while. He also said that he did not want to use magic anymore."

"…I was afraid of that. I better go speak with him. Just stay right here."

Pinkie nodded and took a seat. Twilight smiled down at her and left to address the young dragon.

"Hello, Spyro."

He said nothing, but glanced up.

"I understand that there was an incident today. Do you want to talk about it?"

A simple shake of the head was all Spyro gave as an answer. Twilight did not allow herself to sigh or show any sign of frustration.

"Hmm, you know, when I was a filly and I was still learning magic, I had accidents all the time. Sometimes big ones."

Spyro raised one of his eyes into a quizzical glare.

"True, I never accidently killed anything…" She paused and noticed that he flinched strongly. "…Not that anyone is mad at you! We promise. Neither Pinkie or I are disappointed or angry."

Pinkie couldn't stand it any longer and, against Twilight's wishes, she came out, walked over to her son and picked him up in a hug. This time he returned it with a vengeance.

"Twi's right. Nothing you could ever do would ever make me angry at you or disappointed." Spyro stared up quizzically. Pinkie looked over at Twilight to make sure she was saying the right things and Twilight simply nodded meekly. Seeing as the young dragon was not going to talk yet, Twilight continued from where she left off.

"Anyway, in addition to the first magical thing I ever did, which consisted of me hatching Spike, enlarging him to almost destroying the castle and turning my parents into potted plants temporarily, often my magic would be chaotic or even too strong when compared to others at Celestia's school. I accidently hurt others as a result and I even gave the princess a nasty cut once, but she was never angry with me. Magic can be an odd thing, hard to control, chaotic even, despite all the years of research that has been put into it. But the point is that as long as you learn to use your magic responsibly and do not harm others on purpose, the one exception being for defense only, then you should have nothing to worry about, Spyro."

Pinkie nodded and looked down at him. He gave a shy smile and looked up to Twilight who returned with an encouraging nod of her own.

"Thank you for making me feel better…" Spyro mumbled, but both mares heard it crystal clear. Pinkie released him from her hug.

"There ya go, kiddo!"

Spyro grumbled at the mention of that word.

"You're very welcome, Spyro. Perhaps this is the perfect time to learn how to wield that magic?"

The dragon child looked up at his new mother and she nodded with an encouraging smile of her own.

"Let's do it!"

Before Twilight could gather any materials, Pinkie whispered into his ear. "Are you sure that you're okay?"

"Yeah. Thank you, uh, Mom."

Pinkie nearly snapped at the mention of that word. In an instant, she had jetted off into the air to an impossible height, causing a fit of giggles to come out of Spyro. Unfortunately, one of his exhales of breath came out too sharply during his laughter and his magic came out nearly full force, causing a stack of books near the stairs to topple over.

"Whoops," both Pinkie and Spyro said in union.

"It's alright. I was going to have Spike reorganize anyway. But perhaps we should start that lesson right now."

Pinkie nodded. "Okie Dokie Loki! I'll be back in a while to pick him up. The Cakes probably need me back anyway. I'll see ya later, son." Pinkie dashed out after one last hug, leaving behind a blushing Spyro. Why he was blushing, he had no clue. In fact, he had done so little of that as a human that to him it actually just felt like his cheeks catching fire. He shook it off and turned to Twilight who was busy levitating out a few books and two mats for them to sit on.

"Okay, let's just start with what you know, Spyro."

"Huh? Uhh, I don't?"

Twilight giggled. "Oh? What about what Zecora taught you?"

"But that's just breathing!" He pointed an accusing finger at her and she sighed.

"Spyro, we are trying to get your emotions under control and those breathing exercises are the best way. So let's begin." She immediately began her exercises as she closed her eyes, lying down on the pillow. Spyro simply stood off to the side with his arms crossed, pouting.

"I'm not doing those. I just want to learn magic so I don't hurt anyone!" He stomped a foot down, but Twilight remained calm and did not so much as open her eyes.

"That will never happen unless you learn the basics first. Now sit down and begin."

"…Fine!" He began his exercises, but his anger kept him from remaining calm, thus missing the point entirely.

Twilight opened her eyes and shot Spyro a menacing glare. "Spyro, you're angry. You can't use magic in anger, ever. Take deep breaths, now."

He wanted to yell at her. He still felt odd taking orders from a pony even if she was older. But she kept up her stare and he sighed. He breathed in and out several times before calming himself.

"Good. That was lesson number one. Never, ever use magic when you are feeling angry. It's a simple lesson but probably the most important. Remember how I said I gave Celestia a cut?"

He nodded.

"That is how that happened. I was frustrated and a spell I was trying just wouldn't work. So that is lesson number one."

"Uh, okay, never use magic in anger. What's lesson two?"

"Never cast a spell unless you know exactly what it is."

"Huh?"

"If you want to use magic then you need to know what a spell does and how to cast it precisely before you cast it. Got it?"

"Not really, no."

"Well, let me give you an example. Hmm. Oh! I know, heh. This happened a few years ago before I came to Ponyville. I was learning to cast a shield spell, quite simple to me now. It allows a circular force field to appear around me or anyone else of my choosing, but I skipped a step. In magic there is often multiple steps you need to know before you cast and even while you are casting, but I skipped one."

"What happened?"

"Let's just say that a part of the castle was missing for a while… The shield spell worked, but it went through the floor and anything else it touched, thus destroying, well, those things."

Spyro was doing his best not to laugh but was doing a terrible job of it. Before long, both were in a fit of giggles. "That's so funny."

"I'm glad you think so. Oh, and it looks like you have kept those emotions in check. No accidental magic, see?"

Spyro looked at his fingers and paused. "Wait, but I laughed before and I knocked all those books over!"

"Yes, but, before, you were also angry and not the least bit calm. Yes you are laughing right now, but you did the breathing exercises beforehand. Get it?"

"Yeah. Cool."

"So that is lesson number two. There are more, but for the first few spells I will be teaching you, you only need those two lessons."

"So I get to learn spells?!" His face was beaming with excitement. She sighed.

"A spell for now, yes."

"Cool! So how do I learn them, is there a scroll or something?"

Twilight looked at him and smiled. "Actually, yes. But I thought there was no magic on Earth, so how’d you know that?"

"Lucky guess?"

"Okay… Anyway, you will be learning how to levitate objects in the air—"

"Oh, cool! It’s like Harry Potter. First spell they learned too!"

"Do I even want to know?"

"He was a character in a book…"

"Really?! Oh I wish I could read… Oh, nevermind, just start reading." She levitated a scroll into his claws and he grabbed it.

"Let’s see, blah blah blah… I don’t understand any of this."

"That is why I need to walk you through it step by step. So sit down. The first step is very simple and actually requires no magic at all."

"…Um, but you are supposed to be teaching me magic!"

"Yes, but the first step of any spell is to imagine it happening and only it. For example, if you wanted to levitate the scroll, you imagine it happening in your mind. If you miss this step or imagine something else happening then there is no telling what might happen."

"Okay, imagine the scroll floating in the air. Got it!"

"Good. The next step is to be confident. If you are not confident in your ability to succeed, then you probably won’t."

"…Anything else that has nothing to do with magic?"

"Hmm, nope! Now we move onto the actual magic part, and here is where it gets tricky. You see the first actual step on the scroll? The one that looks like a glowing horn?"

"Yeah, what’s that mean?" The child was finally stumped on something and was drawing a blank. He had plenty of assumptions about magic, but fictional universes only took him so far.

"That means channeling. Whenever you cast a spell, you need to channel magic through, well, in your case horns. In my case, a horn. Magic is all around us in Equestria and you need to gather it by summoning it. Think of it like breathing in, only you hold in the magic and then cast."

"Uh, but how do I channel it?"

"Well, unfortunately the horn is like a muscle. The more you use it, the stronger it gets. Right now I would imagine they feel numb, weak and probably don’t feel like anything at all, right?"

"Well, they just feel like nails."

"And the more you use magic, the stronger they will get, but for now, yes, they should feel like nails. These are the three basic steps in casting any spell no matter how complex. Imagine, confidence and, finally, channeling."

"'Kay. Should I try?" The child hesitated while he examined his horns.

"Well, we won’t get anywhere if you can’t channel, so yes. Just remember that since you can’t complete the spell yet, you need to let go of the magic in a safe way. Like breathing out. So try."

Spyro nodded and stood up. The first thing he did was glare down at the scroll and do his best to pretend that the scroll was now floating in the air. With that thought stuck in his head, he tried to focus on being confident, though it proved to be tricky. True, he was often confident in anything that he tried, but the few times he used magic, it blew up in his face. Putting those thoughts aside, he felt slightly confident that he would succeed in channeling magic. First, he tried breathing in and out and when that was clearly doing nothing, he thought up a different tactic. He clenched his claws together and froze his muscles in place. He then strained those muscles and, slowly, a bright red glow overtook them. Excited, he wanted to try the rest of the spell but remembered that he knew nothing else, so with a sigh, he relaxed his muscles and the magic that overtook them disappeared.

Twilight immediately began clapping by stomping her hoofs on the ground. "Good job, Spyro!"

"Thanks! So, that was it?"

"Yep. That was channeling magic, alright. Now, keep in mind that depending on the spell, there are different degrees of channeling required. Thus, we name spells in terms of level. The levitation spell is level one and only requires a little magic. Teleportation on the other hoof would be level fifteen and requires a ton of magic before you cast it."

"What happens if you channel too much for a level one spell?"

"For something like levitation? I guess it depends. If you are only trying to do that scroll then you will probably end up flinging it in someone’s face by accident. If you wanted to levitate a bookcase, you would still need a lot more magic channeled first. Understand?"

"Yeah… So now what?"

"Now we focus on the final step of the spell. You see that symbol?"

Spyro nodded. On the scroll was an symbol in the shape of a feather that had several letters in a language that Spyro could not read.

"That is the symbol for levitation and those strange letters are what you need to remember in order to finish the spell."

"But I can’t read t—"

"No one can actually read it; the purpose of the symbols is to activate the magic. As long as you remember them while you are casting then the spell will work, simple as that." She finished with a smile, but Spyro was frowning.

"So I have to remember all sorts of symbols, all the time for all spells?" he asked in sheer disbelief.

"Yes, but to put your mind at ease there aren’t that many symbols in total. Once you get used to the symbols, then you can start learning all sorts of spells. Sound good?"

"Uh, do they have names?"

She nodded. "Yes, but for now I just want you to try and remember these three first in that order only. Then cast the spell. Normally I would be all over you with books upon books, but, oddly enough, when it comes to magic a hands-on approach is much simpler at first."

"Okay, just give me a second…" He studied the symbols for a while; he wanted to make sure that he was good and ready before even attempting something that should be that simple. Eventually, the symbols formed into simple shapes in his head and they were locked in his memory. "Here goes nothing!" First, he breathed deeply and imagined the scroll flying in the air, and then he made sure that he was confident in his ability. Straining his muscles again, he found that it felt like lifting something heavy high in the air, but he channeled enough magic and then finally he focused on the symbols in his mind. One by one the symbols formed and something in his thoughts locked into place. It was as if he knew right then and there how to levitate the scroll and so he did. The piece of parchment was now flying two feet off the ground, but the longer he kept it there the more he had to strain his muscles. Eventually, he had to hold up some heavy breathing and he finally decided that there was no more point in trying. He relaxed and the scroll dropped to the ground.

"That was amazing! On a first try too!" Twilight used her magic to levitate him into her hoofs and gave him a warm embrace. He smirked.

"Pretty awesome, huh?"

"Yep, now we are going to practice that spell again and again until you know it by heart."

"Okay. So—"

"After that, I will start teaching you the symbols and their names—"

"Cool. And then—"

"Please don’t interrupt. Oh and after that, I can teach you the history of magic using some of my books over there." She gestured to a corner and, to his horror, he saw books thicker than he had ever seen. His jaw dropped and he sighed. "I know, quite a lot. But for now, let’s practice some more." He hung his head to the fate that she had sealed and began to cast, again and again.

After a couple of hours, not only did the same task become mundane to him, he was literally getting tired. By the time that Twilight had offered him lessons on the symbols, he felt like taking a one year nap. "Twilight, how come I’m so tired?"

"Hmm? Oh! I almost forgot. Magic can often burden someone so young. Your body is simply having trouble keeping up. But don’t worry, that will fix itself in time. Just make sure to take lots of breaks and pace yourself, okay?"

Spyro was too tired to either nod or shake his head. All he could do was let out a yawn. "Can I take a nap or something?"

The mare looked shocked to hear that. "I guess so. Do you want to just use the couch?"

He gave a single nod. He did not wait for anything else and climbed on the couch and curled up into a ball. He felt too exhausted to question his new sleeping position and fell into a deep sleep. She rolled her eyes and levitated a blanket to drape over him and left for some personal studies of her own.

Pinkie Pie stopped by later to pick him up. Finding the sleeping dragon, she couldn’t help but giggle quietly. "Twilight?" she called out in a harsh sort of whisper.

"Up here, Pinkie."

She walked up the stairs and spotted Twilight working with Spike who had returned from Rarity’s place. "So how was his lesson?"

"Pretty good. He tired himself out though. Magic can do that to you. He levitated his first scroll in the air and knows a few things now."

Pinkie perked up at this and in the same harsh, whispered tone she threw a question at her. "So does this mean I can throw him a party finally? Cause I’ve been waiting forever!"

"Pinkie, it’s only been a day or so. You need to be patient."

"But you said his magic was under control!"

"I said no such thing. I said he is doing pretty good. Magical outbursts can still happen and we don’t want that happening in a closed in space with lots of ponies about, do we?"

"…No, but… Twilight, this stinks!" They both sighed.

"He will get them under control eventually, Pinkie. Magic can be both an amazing thing and a burden, even for me. Right now, though, what he really needs is a loving mother and more friends. Probably best to be hanging out with Spike and Claws though. The Crusaders are fine I suppose, but I don’t think they allow dragons in school. Or at least not this school."

"Yeah, I was going to ask you about that. Was Spike schooled?"

"In Canterlot, yes. He is way beyond what Miss Cheerilee can teach. Don’t worry, in addition to the lessons I’m teaching him, I’m also helping him with a few ‘home schooled’ projects I have planned out. He’ll be fine."

Pinkie thought about this for a moment with her tongue sticking out of her mouth and nodded. "As long as he is getting educated, and I can’t think of a better pony to do it!"

Twilight blushed. "Thanks, Pinkie. Are you… Hmm" She stopped talking when she looked down at Spyro who was still fast asleep. "Do you know if he’s a heavy sleeper?"

"Uhh, I was kind of quiet this morning. I have no idea really."

"I guess just be gentle when you pick him up. I’ll see ya tomorrow, Pinkie, and good night."

"Night!" Pinkie quietly walked downstairs and inspected her son. Shrugging, she gently lifted him up and placed him on her back. Halfway back home, the young dragon began to stir. At first he felt like he was on a soft bed, but the walking and moving confused him.

"Pinkie?" He looked up still feeling slow.

"Oh shoot, you weren’t supposed to wake up until I got you home, you silly!"

"Oh, sorry, uh, Mom." Pinkie glanced back and smirked at him.

"You know Pinkie or Mom is fine. Even Pinks is okay."

"Oh, okay. Oh! I need to show you my new magic!"

Pinkie beamed. "Sure thing when we get back. I can’t wait to see it!" They entered the bakery as the closed sign was flipped over by Mr. Cake. He glanced back at Spyro and sighed, but smiled at Pinkie. "Mr. Cake, could you grab us an empty cup please?"

"I guess so. But what for?" Still glancing back at the dragon, he was beginning to get the picture.

"You’ll see!" Pinkie smiled and the stallion sighed. He then grabbed a cup from the kitchen and placed it gently on a table. "So, do your stuff, Spyro!"

"Uh, Mom, I’ve only ever done a scroll…" He nervously eyed the cup. Logic was telling him that it should be possible, but he already knew how exhausting magic was overall.

"Don’t worry. I just want to see if this will work. I’ll still be proud of you for trying. Now c’mon let’s do magic!"

He couldn’t help but smirk at his mother. He eyed the cup and began his procedures from before. He breathed deep and imagined the cup in the air only this time the images came faster than before. As did his confidence for some reason that he couldn’t quite figure out. Finally, he channeled the magic, which came slightly faster, and brought forth the images in his mind. Straining heavily, he brought the cup into the air four inches above the table. Pinkie grinned. He breathed and Mr. Cake gawked. He strained to keep it floating, but it was too much and he let it down with a loud thump before he could even channel his magic away. The symbols in his mind disappeared and he breathed both air and his magic out. Pinkie immediately started clapping.

"Great job, Son!"

"Thanks… That was hard, heh." He breathed in and out to calm his nerves. He then turned to Mr. Cake who was still gawking.

"Wow…" Was all he said. Pinkie giggled and then invited Spyro back to their room.

"Yeah let’s go. Uh, is he going to be okay?"

Pinkie paused and looked back at her employer. "Mr. Cake? Tell us when dinner is ready! Kay bye!" She then grabbed Spyro and without missing a beat, ran upstairs.

Random Pinkie is back… Awesome! The child’s thought was interrupted when they entered their room. "Hey, Mom?"

"Hmm?"

"What do we do until dinner?"

"We can talk, you silly. I know how your day was, but mine was… actually kind of boring, hmm…"

"…Is it usually boring?"

"Nopey lopey. I guess it’s just been boring at work. No big deal. So how are you liking Equestria so far?"

He was taken aback by that question and he felt it was necessary to ponder it. He had only actually been in Equestria for a little while, so he could only go on that. Aside from the manticore incident, he would say that his experience had been pretty fun, if not as crazy as he would have liked when it came to a magical world. And there lay the problem, magic. He had always thought that actually using magic was to be something delightful, not a burden. He wanted magic to work like it did in the movies and video games. He wanted to do amazing things, so he sighed. "Um, it’s okay so far. I’m definitely happier here than that stupid place… I just wish that I could use my magic for longer periods of time. I dunno."

"Hmm, you want to use magic as a hobby maybe? Something fun?"

He perked up upon hearing that. "Yeah! I don’t know what yet, but it would be nice. I’ll think of something, but I guess I need to keep practicing, huh?"

"That would be best… I wish you could show me more of those movies from your world, but only Twilight can do that right now. Maybe we can read some books or I could read you one… If you want?"

He then felt irritated, missing her social queue entirely. "I can read, Pinkie."

"I know that, but sometimes it’s nice to have others do things for you. Don’t ya think?"

"Sure?" He still did not like the idea but figured it was best to try what his mother had asked. She found a story that she called Daring Do and asked him to hop on her bed. She began the tale and, after a few pages, he had to admit that he was enjoying it. Whenever something happened in the story she would do her best to cause sound effects of her own or even act out the scene in humorous ways. It seemed childish, but he loved every second of it. Dinner was skipped over by them, Mrs. Cake having caught them in the act but keeping quiet when she saw that her body had gone unnoticed. She smiled and left them alone.

Down at the dinner table, Mr. Cake had stopped his gawking, finally, and began to converse.

"Honey?"

"Yes, dear?"

"Are we really housing a dragon who can do magic?"

"…Yes, dear."

"Ahh, neat. I guess I’m just, uh, getting used to that."

"I learned a long time ago that you can never get used to Pinkie, and I’ve accepted that. Besides, Spyro is very nice, and he’s been through a lot so be nice."

"Okay I will. But what happens when he gets bigger? And older?"

"Pinkie will think of something. She has always loved working for us and I don’t think something so trivial will stop her. Are you worried about the twins?"

"…Aren’t you?!"

"Always. But I don’t think Spyro is violent. Plus, it’s up to us to set a good example for Spyro and even for Pinkie."

"Okay, fine, we will." He finished with a smile that she returned.

Halfway through the book, both pony and dragon had fallen asleep. The Cakes found Pinkie hunched over her book and Spyro tucked into her covers. They quickly corrected this by placing Pinkie under the same blanket and wishing them a good night’s sleep. Mr. Cake smirked.

"I think I know a certain set of foals in the other room that could use a good story too."

> Chapter 11: What To Do
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Spyro had woken up again, only, this time he was tucked into Pinkie's bed. After yawning and stretching for a while, he slumped back down on the bed. "What am I supposed to do today?" It was an odd feeling for the child; usually his life was scheduled. Even in an orphanage they still attended class and did what they were told. But in Ponyville, he had choices and it felt weird. He seemed to have no school unless you counted Twilight's lessons, which made him feel like he was getting away with something. It wasn't a guilty feeling, but it was not far off. So he figured asking Pinkie about it was best.

He found the pink mare doing the same routine as before with the same bowl of gems waiting for him in the exact same seat. He still got odd glances from other ponies but shrugged it off and began to ask his question. "Um, Pinkie?"

"Good morning, my little magician!" She winked and he giggled. "What's up?"

"Well, how come I'm not going to school? Not that I'm complaining or anything, but…" He bit his lip and she sighed.

"Well, Twilight is kind of your teacher now, but it's not the same. Um, did you go to school in that orphanage?"

He nodded.

"I see. We can talk to the school teachers, but I don't think the school in Ponyville allows it. Does that upset you?"

"Nope! It's weird, but I think I'm good!"

She giggled. "Yeah, well, you are still going to learn a bunch from Twilight. So don't think you are getting off that easily, mister!"

"Fine. But what should I do today?"

"Well first, eat you're gems, mister!" He groaned at the number of times she kept using that word. It just made her giggle more. "Then you need to talk to Twilight on what your schooling schedule will be. After that, you should probably check in with Spike and definitely Claws."

"Oh yeah! I totally forgot about them!" He smacked his forehead, causing more giggling from his mother.

"Yeah, after your lessons you should check in on both. I want you to make friends after all! Now go eat while I deal with these mean ol' customers!"

He looked to the line and noticed several ponies giving her odd looks. Now, he knew the rules with being polite, or some of them, and Pinkie was certainly not being that way. But for some reason, he was glad for that. She was still the random pony that he chose from the start.

He laughed a bit at the odd glares that were mainly aimed at his mom. Sighing, he went to eat his bowl of gems in silence. Mentally, he tried to recount Twilight's lessons so he would be ready. He remembered a few of the magical symbols but most alluded him at the moment. While eating, he tried to study the other families that seemed to be packed in the tiny bakery. One family consisted of a mother and a father and two children. The kids were facing him while the parents had their backs for him to see. The children were curiously studying him. He smiled and in return they had waved. He waved back, but just then the stallion of the group turned around to face whatever his kids were studying. He huffed and turned his attention away from the dragon. He obviously did not approve of Spyro's existence or presence. Scanning around, he found that the groups were mostly split; some gave him smiles while others angry glares. It was then that he hatched an idea, a simple one that he hoped would not blow up in his face.

Following the same instructions from before, he reached out his claw and began to channel some magic. His right claw started to glow with a shiny color of red which brought the attention of a few onlookers. He then gently lifted a gemstone into the air which was surprisingly light when compared to the cup from before. It was floating in midair for several seconds before he popped it into his mouth with one fell swoop. Chewing with his eyes closed, he savored the taste of the lemon-flavored gem. He sighed and opened his eyes to see at least two other families that were staring at him in sheer amazement. Pinkie was still helping customers and did not notice a thing. He grinned.

He first repeated the process by levitating a red gem into the air. It was then that he looked at his left hand. He had yet to use both at once but figured it might work. To his shock, not only did it work, but it felt right, natural in every sense of the word. He now had a fire-colored ruby hanging in the air along with a blue one right next to it. At this point, most of the restaurant had taken notice, but his eyes were focused on his food. It took him all of two minutes to realize a few things. First, that his magic was not making him as tired as before. If anything it felt like lifting up a heavy box but nothing more. Second, everyone, including Pinkie, was staring at him with unreadable expressions. Finally, that he felt super self-conscious all of a sudden which was making the magic itself waver. He sighed and ate the rest of his gems in one bite after releasing the magic from his claws.

"Later, Mom!" he called and grinned. She then broke out into a grin herself.

"Have a nice day, Son!" she called out and turned her attention to the last customer in line who was still staring off in utter amazement. "What?"





Outside, he decided to sprint directly to the library, ignoring any odd stares from ponies along the way. As soon as the door was in sight, he leapt through. "Hey, Twilight!"

"Spyro, I was just finishing breakfast here. I guess we need to make a regular schedule, huh?"

He nodded and waited.

She finished her food in silence and joined Spyro back in the common area. She smirked. "While you will have a schedule soon, I think it would be best if, for today, you go out and either make some new friends or hang out with your old ones!"

"But I want to learn more magic!"

"And you will. But there is more to magic than just spells. There is also the magic of friendship!" She finished with a grin, but the human mind of the child was not buying it.

"I can make friends anytime. I want more spells. C'mon, please?"

"…Don't give me that face. Spike does all the time and it NEVER works. Just be back here by two again and DO NOT head into the forest without an adult. You really need to check on Claws over at Applejack's farm. Spike will be around later."

He grumbled and sighed. A small part of him wanted to check up on Claws anyway, so he nodded and left the librarian. He was about to break into a sprint when he realized something, something important. "This town, it's like I can just walk wherever I want. Nobody at the orphanage is going to come drag me back or tell me what to do… This is awesome!" He almost decided to explore the town in greater detail but figured it was best to check up on Claws at the apple orchard. It was practically the main feature of the town which meant that it was almost impossible not to see. Still, when he found it he stared on anyway. "That's a lot of apples!"

Out of nowhere, he heard a very loud noise. It sounded to him like a thumping.

"What was that?" He looked around and followed the sound deeper into the farm.

The thumping continued.

It didn't take him long to spot a sight that was way out of place. Applejack was busy hitting a tree with her back hooves. Claws, standing off to the side, was busy collecting the fallen apples in buckets. He looked exhausted. Shrugging, Spyro walked up and leaned up against a nearby tree.

She thumped her hooves on the the tree trunk over and over.

I wonder how long it'll take them to notice me. A nearby apple landed next to his feet. He was about to pick it up but had a better idea. He used his magic to pick it up. It only took him a second to realize that it was kind of pointless since he did have fingers but shrugged anyway. Without thinking, he took a large bite out of it and sighed. It tasted wonderful.

The noise had stopped. He looked up and saw both pony and dragon staring at him. The pony was glaring while the dragon looked relieved. Spyro smiled sheepishly.

"What's up?" he said dumbly.

"A freeloader is up…" he heard her mutter. Claws snickered a bit, who received a glare from the cowpony.

"I'm not a…" He looked at his apple and sighed. "Okay, never mind. I was wondering if I could hang out with Claws today."

Applejack sized up Claws for a while. He grinned as wide as possible. She sighed. "If ah let him go for the day then you hafta promise to help tomorrow, the both of ya!"

"Sure! I have lessons each day with Twilight but not all day. I'm bored anyway!" Spyro's cheerful attitude caught her off guard.

"Well if ya feel bored right now, maybe—"

Claws cut her off. "Too bad we need to do that thing. Right, Spyro?"

"Um… n—"

"Yep, goodbye, Applejack! See ya later!" After pushing and shoving the purple dragon away, he groaned and fell down on the edge of the farm in exasperation.

"Uhh…"

"You have no idea how much work that pony makes me do! Over and over and over… I'm happy to help and all but man! I needed a break. Thanks, Spyro."

"…No problem?"

"No I mean it. So what's up with you?"

"I know magic now, well a bit…" He shrugged.

"Cool. What can you do?"

"Just what you saw with the apple, stuff like that. I also um—"

"Apple Bloom told me what happened. You're okay right?"

"Yeah. So what should we do?"

Claws pondered this for a bit. All around, ponies seemed to walk around the tiny group of dragons. After a while he shrugged.

"Well that bites. What do you think Spike is doing?"

"No clue. But we can go check it out."

Spyro nodded and they left for the library. After asking Twilight, however, it was clear that the other purple dragon was over at Rarity's Boutique. They walked in and spotted the dragon doing whatever the pony wanted. To them it felt weird.

"Hey, Spike!" Spyro said, causing the small reptile to drop all of the cloth he was carrying. Rarity was not amused.

"Spyro, Claws was it?" The last name was said with a bit of spite. He shrugged and nodded.

"We were wondering, can Spike hang out?" Spyro asked the question more to Spike than Rarity.

She looked over at Spike and frowned. "Oh I don't know. My little Spikey Wikey is such a big help! I would hate to send him away…"

Spike blushed at the comment, but it went right over Spyro's head.

"Well if you could convince Twilight to teach me more magic right now then I wouldn't be asking."

"What do you mean, dear?"

"She said it was important for me to make friends and yada yada whatever."

Spike and Rarity shared a glance. They mouthed words to each other, having a semi-private discussion in front of the dragons. Finally, he won the silent conversation. "Alright, I can hang out for a while, Spyro."

"Cool. Let's go!" Three dragons left the building in awkward silence. "So what do we do?"

Spike shrugged. "I don't know. I usually just help others around town or sleep…"

"Or make kissy faces with Rarity?" Claws smirked at his own comment. Spyro looked confused.

Spyro placed his claws to his chin. "Kissy faces… Are you in love with—"

Spike clamped both of his claws over Spyro's face, muffling his voice. "Finish that sentence and I will personally guarantee you will never use magic again!"

He nodded, doing his best to keep his snickers to a minimum. "Fine. But what do we do? I'm so bored!"

"I'm not sure. I guess we could always… Why are you upside down?" Both dragons stared at the human-brained child who was standing on his head, his tail wiggling about.

"Like I said, I'm bored."

"You are weird. Anyway, we could ask Fluttershy if she's needs any help, maybe?"

Spyro fell flat on his back and smiled. "Sure, why not? Dragon Crusaders go!"

"Like I said, weird."

Spyro ignored that and all three made it to the cottage. They spotted the mare singing to some birds. They waited patiently for her to finish and when she finally did, she sighed, only she seemed happy.

"That was neat!"

She whipped around and spotted three dragons, but it was Spyro that made her eyes fly open wide.

"Oh, Sp- Spyro, hello. And to you two as well."

"Hey, we were wondering if you needed any help today. We're kind of bored," Spyro admitted while looking at her birds. She instinctively glanced back at her chicken coop. She knew that she was being silly, but she remembered what Spyro had said about what humans eat.

"Um, no I don't need any help today I'm afraid. But thank you."

"…Are you sure?" Spike asked.

"Yes." She replied almost too quickly. The three dragons sighed and left, Fluttershy silently wishing that she didn't hurt their feelings.

"Well, now what?" The human dragon was growing frustrated.

"I suppose there is always going back to Apple—"

"No. No way. I'm finally getting a break for the rest of the day and that's that!" Claws demanded. Spyro snickered while Spike rolled his eyes.

"Well, I already helped Rarity. Does Pinkie ever need any help, Spyro?"

"Hmm, I never asked. We can try!"

"Sure." Claws seemed to be just going along for the ride. He hadn't been given the chance to explore Ponyville since he arrived. No matter what they tried, he was enjoying himself.

They arrived at Sugarcube Corner and noticed it was only partially busy. Pinkie was still running the register. "Hey, Son!" Her face did not move from helping the customer in line. The customer shrugged, paid and left, leaving behind three dragons and one crazy pony. "What ya doing?"

"Well, we're kind of bored."

"I was doing fine with Rarity…" Spike muttered, but no one seemed to hear it.

"I guess I'm bored too," Claws admitted.

"Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm, did you try asking Fluttershy?"

"Yes."

"Rarity?"

"…Yep."

"Appleja—"

"Yeah, I've helped out Applejack enough for a lifetime."

"What about Rainbow Dash?"

"I guess we didn't… Uh, where do we find her?" Spyro had no clue, he admitted.

"She's probably out doing tricks near the park. Or pranking ponies."

"Pranking?"

"Yep! When she gets bored, that's what she does. Sometimes I come along too." Pinkie said it all with a straight face. Spyro couldn't help but feel a tinge of pride and weirdness. His mother admitted to pranking others, something that he should be doing.

"Okay. Bye, Mom!"

"Later!"

Not two steps outside the store, Spyro could not help himself. The words just came out.

"My mom's weird."

"No argument here," Spike and Claws said in union.

"She's so awesome."

Claws and Spike shared a look and sighed. They had an argument there but kept quiet.

They found the rainbow-maned pegasus, but they also found a certain filly that Spyro had met the other day. With nothing better to do, they decided to sit there and watch the mare teach the filly the basics of flight. Spyro had to admit to himself that it was at least interesting, but it only made the three dragons wish for wings that much more. After a while, the dragons went their separate ways. It was time for Spyro's lessons with Twilight. He only hoped the unicorn mare had food as well. He found the mare in question quietly reading a book by herself. When he walked in, she lowered her book as if she was expecting his presence.

"Have a nice time?" she asked. He assumed she meant hanging out with his friends.

"Sure… Can we do more magic now?!"

"Yes. Just make sure to say please next time," she added with a giggle. "I will be teaching you one new spell for today."

"Yes!"

"Today you will be learning a light spell!"

"…What?"

"It's a spell that creates light in the darkness. It's very useful for—"

"Just use a flashlight!"

"Please don't interrupt. And yes you could use one, but they can be quite bulky to carry around. And you don't always have one with you. This is a very useful spell, Spyro. You can even change the color of the light you use!"

"…Can't you teach me how to summon a lightning bolt or something?" He knew it was a stretch, but he wanted to aim high.

"No. I'm definitely NOT doing that. Nothing violent."

"What about summoning something?"

She raised an eyebrow. "Like what?"

"An animal or something?"

"Spells like that don't exist, Spyro. Now, if you wanted to summon water maybe…"

"Okay, teach me that!"

"No. Light first."

"Awwwwwwwwwwwww, this day is so boring!" He threw up his claws in exasperation. She stifled a full on giggle.

"Well, I suppose we could always just hit the books and forget the spell—"

"Okay, please teach me the spell."

"Right. Here is the scroll." She levitating it over and he frowned.

"Why does it have more symbols than the other one? It's just light!" Twilight had to admit, he had a point. Surely levitating something in midair would require more memorization than summoning light.

"I'm not quite sure, but it's not so bad once you start to memorize each symbol properly. Now, if you want to do more powerful and interesting spells then you need to start off slowly. Now, let's begin."

Groaning, he tried the spell for the first time, but it faltered immediately, mainly because he forgot the first step. Sighing, he tried it again only slower. He was eventually rewarded with a  faint glowing red light that came from both of his claws at once. He felt himself grow exhausted after only ten seconds of holding it up and stopped.

"Great!"

"How is that great?" He had only lasted ten seconds. He felt that he failed.

"I only lasted three seconds the first time I tried that spell, so it was great! Now you just need to keep practicing both spells on and off and in no time you will work up your magic endurance."

"My what?"

"It means the more you practice the better you will get and the longer you will be able to hold up that particular spell and many others."

"Oh."

"Oh indeed. But for now we need to focus on your other lessons." A loud moan was ignored as she began the same study practice that she had once put Spike through. Several hours later, he was exhausted.

"Good night, Spyro."

"Night."

Why is he so anti-social? Maybe I should make that a new lesson… Her thoughts stopped when the door slammed shut and she sighed.

The dragon returned to his mother just as she was closing up shop. "Hey, Son! Have a nice day?"

"More like a boring day…"

"Hmm, sorry. Did you learn anything though?!"

"Hmm…" He trailed off and cast his light spell. She beamed and scooped him into a hug. "It's just a light spell."

"But it's cool! Can you change its color?"

"Um, not yet."

"That's okay. It's still cool!"

"Hmm…"

"What's wrong?"

"I don't know." And for once the human child really did not know what was bothering him. It could have been a lot of things or could have just been one tiny thing.

"I see… Maybe you just need a cupcake. With gems on it!"

Or it could be that he was hungry. He would never know exactly because at that moment a treat would make anything better.

"Okay!"

"Coming right up!"

And so, two cupcakes and one bedtime story later, he was not the least bit tired. But she was. He was amazed at how quickly the party pony could just turn herself off and sleep. He was also annoyed that he wasn't tired. Sighing, he quietly stood up and gazed out at her balcony. Ponyville was weird, nothing like the human city he was from at all. Barely any lights at all except the one that seemed to be moving towards the town slowly.

"Huh?"

After a while, the light took form as he recognized an old-fashioned carriage, but it seemed to be custom made. The thing was seemingly moving on its own accord as a faint blue light had encased the wheels. He followed the light to spot a blue unicorn sitting up top. He scanned around and noticed that this unicorn was the only one in the middle of the town. He frowned.

"Does she live here?"

The pony seemed to be scanning the houses. She obviously did not live there. The thing she was moving seemed big enough to live in. Even with his limited knowledge, he guessed that he was right. He glanced back at Pinkie and then back to the unicorn and shrugged.

Maybe I'll say hi, just for a bit… The balcony was not too tall and with a hop he was down on the ground after bouncing from a wooden barrel that was conveniently placed near the balcony itself. The unicorn spotted him from the corner of her eye. Curious she turned to him and froze. He cautiously walked up and smiled. "Hi."

"Uh, hello?" It was then that he noticed she was wearing a hat, a wizards hat if Mickey Mouse was anything to go on.

"My name's Spyro."

"And I am… Hmm, I guess everypony is asleep, huh?"

"Uh, yeah…"

"My name is Trixie, young dragon, but what are you doing in town?"

"I live here?"

"With… Twilight?" Her eyes practically bulged out of their sockets at her name.

"No, with Pinkie. She's my mom."

"Pinkie… I see…" Her head tilted to the side while she had a quiet conversation on where to go with said knowledge.

"Are you a wizard?"

"What?"

"A wizard."

"I'm a magician! The greatest that— Right, asleep. I'm a magician."

"Cool! Can you teach me more magic? Please?"

"More? What do you mean?"

He groaned. It was starting to get to him that most ponies assumed he couldn't do magical feats or any at all. Quietly going over the steps, he used his magic to gently lift a pebble into the air and grinned.

"See? I can do magic, but Twilight's only taught me like two spells!"

The mare groaned. "Ha! That hack. Why, I could teach you a dozen spells, young dragon!" Her voice sounded almost silly with a harsh whisper.

"Yes! Wait, you don't like Twilight?"

The mare was caught off guard. The shock from meeting a dragon that could do magic was basically tossed aside at the mention of the lavender unicorn. Now the dragon wanted to know how she felt about Twilight. Why should he need to know?

"No, I do not like Twilight."

"How come?"

"That is none of your business."

"Oh. So can you teach me magic?"

She could not believe her ears. All the annoying dragon wanted was to know more magic. She would sympathize with him, of course, if she wasn't so hungry. And as if on cue, her stomach grumbled.

"What was that?"

"Young dr—"

"Spyro," he interjected.

"Yes, Spyro, I can teach you magic, but first you must do something for me."

"Anything!"

"I need some food."

"Oh." He wasn't expecting that in the slightest, but the bakery did have lots of food and the front door was always unlocked. Even at night. He figured it would be okay to part with some food. "Be right back!"

She grinned and waited patiently. It was not as if she was starving, but life on the road would often leave her hungry at night.

He returned with no food in hand. "What did you want?"

"It's a bakery, kid. Just get me a loaf of bread or perhaps some cake if you have any."

"Oh." And there it was again. The repetition to just accept what she said with the dreaded word, oh. She wasn't sure if she should be annoyed or glad. Clearly this dragon was different. She should have figured that out from the moment that he approached her. He returned with one loaf of bread and half of a cake. He then relinquished them and waited. To him, the mare could put Pinkie to shame with how quickly she had finished.

"Thank you, Spyro."

"Sure. So… Magic?"

She groaned and rolled her eyes. "Very well. Trixie is a mare of her word. I will teach you one spell."

"Sweet!"

"What do you know, anyway?"

"Oh, some light spell and levitation."

"Nothing of illusions?"

"No."

"Hmm. Well, I will teach you a basic invisibility spell."

"I can turn invisible?!"

"I said basic. You will only be able to make small objects invisible."

"Oh."

"Yes oh. Now pay attention!" After a few tries, she gently levitated a scroll up to him. He practiced a few times on some pebbles. It took him fifteen tries to get one pebble to turn invisible, but he frowned when he realized it hadn't stopped being invisible even after his magic had ceased to be.

"Is it supposed to—"

"Yes, it will stop in several hours. You've done well, Spyro. Good night!" She was about to push the wagon away when he called out.

"Wait! Where are you going?"

Again she was surprised if not a bit annoyed. He was worried for her? No, he just wanted to learn more magic, she figured. "To sleep. I'm taking my wagon to the other side of town away from others. Good night—"

"Wait! Can I see you again?"

Okay, now it was time for her to feel really shocked. Even if Spyro wanted to learn more magic, and she was fairly sure that he did, his voice sounded genuine like he was losing a friend. And if she was being honest with herself, which she wasn't often, she had very few friends.

"I suppose you can see me tomorrow. Just bring more food please." She added the last part quickly, but it wasn't because she had trouble tracking food down. She felt embarrassed to admit he was her friend.

"Sure! Thanks, Trixie! Good night!" He waved and left to sleep soundly in Pinkie's room. The mother of a dragon would wake up to find that her alarm clock had gone missing, yet still went off. Spyro smiled having made a new friend.

> Chapter 12: The Great and Powerful Annoyance
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Spyro sighed while he slowly ate his breakfast. He wanted to see Trixie again but wasn't exactly sure how to sneak off with more food. They had noticed even if no fingers were pointed. He was also trying to reason out why Trixie disliked Twilight. Sure she could be a bit annoying to the young dragon, but she was, for the most part, nice, smart and, above all, polite. What if she's evil?! No, wait… that's dumb. Evil ponies did not beg for food which led him back to his original problem. If he wanted to learn more magic, then he was going to have to either tell the truth or steal more food.

He chose a half-truth. It was just food after all. "Hey, P… I mean, Mom?"

"Yes?" Pinkie said while not bothering to look up from her morning customers or the cash register.

"I was wondering if I could have some food for a picnic me, Spike and Claws are going to have."

"Sure!"

He wasn't surprised that he got away with it. The better question was why wouldn't she believe her own son? In a flash, she returned with various picnic items, albeit ones laced with gems for the occasion. He figured he could pick them off. "Thanks, Mom!"

"Sure thing. And have a great day!" Pinkie said as an alarm rang. "Stupid alarm clock!"

He chuckled while leaving the shop before he paused. "Where is she?" He draped the bag she let him borrow over his back and looked around the town. There was no magician in sight so he chose to do some exploring. He remembered that Trixie had said she would be somewhere away from ponies, but the other side of town from the bakery could mean anywhere, he figured. "If I was a… hmm." He also figured that using his old trick of 'eenie meenie' was not going to cut it. The first spot he thought to check was near and around Fluttershy's cottage, but she wasn't there.

"There's that forest, whatever it's called," he said as he made his way to one edge of town. The place he was thinking of was called The Whitetail Woods. It was quite big and he soon discovered that most ponies would ignore the place, with only the occasional visitor. He couldn't understand why. To him it was quite tranquil and a welcome change from the Everfree Forest. He spotted several areas where the trees crowded around and the light from the sun cascaded down. He liked that. "She has to be here. She said away from other ponies…"

He walked around while he examined the path. Covering it were dead leaves all over. As he walked, he used some of his magic to levitate dozens of leaves in the air as he shoved them aside. He was enjoying himself and eventually he figured out how to make the leaves follow a pattern and he formed a massive tornado of leaves. Spyro was able to maintain the twister for a while until fatigue took him over. He stopped the magic flow as he panted on the ground.

"Hmm… That wasn't bad. A bit choppy if you were trying to impress an audience."

He was momentarily surprised before whipping around and smiling. "Thanks. I was just having fun though."

She nodded and turned around to walk back to her campsite. It was small, but to him it looked like a nice change of scenery and, in fact, reminded him of something from a certain video game he used to play. He couldn't quite remember the name of the game, but he shook those thoughts aside.

"Oh, I brought some food! Oh…" He had forgotten to pick out the gemstones. He then gave a bashful smile while she groaned.

"It's fine. Gems don't taste like anything to a pony so let me just…" In an instant, the gems were sucked off the food while her horn glowed. She then gently deposited them down in his waiting claws and without skipping a beat, she began to eat and spoke again after the first bite. "Thank you."

"Sure." An awkward silence overtook them, but the child was slightly excited to just be there.

"Do you always travel?" he asked, breaking the silence.

"…Yes."

"Why?"

"Tri… I have always been on the road since I was little."

"All by yourself?"

"Yes, it—"

"What about your parents?"

As it turns out, that was the wrong thing to ask. She glared down at him, but he didn't feel fear. He just knew that asking that was a stupid thing to do.

"I will not be discussing that with you…" Trixie hissed.

She began to eat again and silence took over the campsite once more. He sighed and began to eat his share of the food. The tasty gems did little to ease his conscience. He sometimes felt lower than others or stupid during adult conversations, but he could figure things out. He assumed that something had happened to her parents, and whatever it was, it was not good.

"So how come you don't like Twilight?" he asked, causing her to choke on the last bit of her food and cough a few times. There was no glare this time but a soft longing look instead. "Trixie?"

"I told you bef—"

"None of my business?"

She smirked and nodded.

"Did she do something bad to you?"

"No, Spyro, s—"

"Did you do something bad to her?"

"No! Why do you even want to know?"

"Cause Twilight's my friend and my teacher and you're my friend!"

"The day I call a dragon my friend… Starswirl's Beard, why me?"

"Human," he said in a flat tone.

"What?"

"I used to be a human but somehow ended up here inside the body of a dragon. So… you are now friends with a human!" he responded proudly.

Her mind went blank. She barely even tried to fathom what he meant. She simply assumed it was a child playing around. "Wonderful, Spyro. Just wonderful."

"You don't believe me, huh?"

"I have never heard of a human, so no."

"Oh yeah? Well I've never heard of, uh… Hey what's this?!"

She turned to her side and, to her shock, he had disappeared. Turning around, she eventually spotted the dragon who was now rummaging around in her wagon.

"Hey! Get out of there!"

"Ooh, this is cool! Wait, what is it?"

She groaned and walked over to the wagon to inspect his findings. She then sighed in relief. "Those are just some of my props for my shows. Would you please put that down?"

"Only if you show me what they do!" The child had several jars clutched in his claws with empty threats to drop them. She was about to grab them with her magic, but then she realized that he had magic of his own. She figured that he was indeed bluffing, but then had another idea.

If this stupid child gets a show, then perhaps he'll stop asking me so many questions… Worth a shot.

"Very well. Just place each jar on the ground right here." She pointed to the dirt road and he obliged. "Good. Now pay attention." She lit up her horn and then pointed it at the first jar which was colored red. In an instant, the top of the jar flung off while red smoke began to form from the opening. The child's eyes lit up in amazement, but she was far from finished. She lit up her horn once more and pointed to a blue bottle on the opposite side and the same thing happening, but this time she gathered the smoke on each side and phased them up through the air to form a few twists around each other. Her horn lit up once more for the two remaining jars in the middle. The two sprang up, but what came out was not smoke, it was two brightly colored spheres. The spheres each latched onto each smoke trail and lit them up brightly as they exploded like fireworks. The jars then resealed and her horn stopped glowing. The child was about to clap, but then he realized it wouldn't quite work as well with his claws.

"That was awesome, Trixie!"

She smirked. "They don't call me The Great and Powerful Trixie for nothing, kid."

"Can you teach me that, please?!"

"That will take a considerable amount of skill and I doubt you are up for the challenge." Her smirk was still plastered on her muzzle, but then she looked down to spot the annoyed look of the dragon. At least, she thought it was annoyance. Taking a closer look, she saw something closer to… shame. She hesitated and sighed.

"But, I did promise to teach you magic and you have brought me food. So let's begin!"

"Cool! What's next?!"

"Smoke is next," she replied simply.

"Aw! When am I gonna learn how to summon lighting?!" It had become a simple obsession for the child. He never wanted to hurt anyone, but it would be cool, in his eyes, to summon such forces on a whim.

"No clue, but the magic I'm about to teach you can be wonderful for escape acts and… escaping others. So do you want to learn it or not?" Simple enough spell. He'll learn it and leave so I can have my peace!

He nodded and waited for the new scroll to levitate to him. He caught it with his magic and read it over and over until he had it memorized.

"Okay… Hmm?" He trailed off as he attempted the spell. The first few tries of the spell caused magic to quite literally fizzle from his horns. On the fourth try of the spell he did, in fact, cause a small amount of smoke to come out of his claw as he waved it about, but it was quick to disappear.

"Hmm, how much energy are you putting into it, Spyro?"

"A lot?" He had never heard Twilight say something like that before when it came to magic. He was stumped.

"You need to put your all into it! If you are ever going to impress… Well, if you ever want to be a true magician, then all of one’s magic must be pushed to give it your all! Now show me again!" she ordered, causing him to frown, but then he reasoned that she knew more about magic than him.

He forced the spell out again, only this time, he concentrated as hard as possible. The smoke came out gray, filling their entire campsite, then the smoke started to randomly change color until, finally, he had enough. He stopped the spell and began panting from the exertion.

"Good, Spyro. Keep practicing spells like that and pretty soon you will be ready for the bigger things in life, but for now, that’s it." She turned to dismiss him, but after a moment, she realized that he hadn’t left. Why has he not left?

The dragon chose to stay and began to randomly cast the spells he knew while giggling to himself a few times. Trixie stared at him for a long while. It had been a long while since the mare had seen anypony, or dragon in this case, practice magic with such whimsical curiosity. The grin never left Spyro’s face, but the more he enjoyed himself the more she began to remember locked away feelings from long ago.

"Spyro…" She tried to think of something else, but the memories had already begun to flood in. She barely noticed that her voice had trailed off or that the child had begun to stare.

"Yeah?"

"I think…"

Spyro had ceased all magic completely, but her memories were already there, hitting the inside of her head over and over. She first smiled at some warm memories, but they soon turned sour and then dark. She shuddered and held in her tears and turned her head to Spyro.

"Spyro, I think you should leave."

"But why?"

"Please…" Her voice shuddered once more and Spyro could tell that she was not angry, happy or disappointed in him but very sad. He had hardly ever seen a pony, human or dragon speak like that. All he could do was slowly nod and, hesitantly, he left the woods. When he was out of earshot and back in Ponyville, he took a seat and sighed, staring down at his feet.

"What just happened?" It was a clear question and he really meant it. He had no clue what had happened. He was playing with his magic and then Trixie changed and, boom, he had to leave. He lay near a tree for a long while, mentally counting the time until he had to see Twilight for his daily lesson. "Maybe Twilight would know…"

On his way to the library, he kept going over whether or not he was going to tell Twilight anything. If he didn’t, then his two spells from Trixie would have to remain hidden forever, he thought. If he did, then Trixie might get in trouble. At least, he reasoned she would since she coaxed him into taking some food for him. Taking the food was his choice, but she was still the adult there and he knew how those situations tended to pan out.

He decided that he would take a cautious approach and lie. He frowned when he realized that he had been doing an awful lot of lying lately. Couldn’t it work out if he fixed a problem and no one got in trouble? Wouldn’t that be the right thing to do? He decided that, yes, it would be the right thing to do.

Spyro opened the library door and walked in to find his teacher ready and waiting. He almost chuckled when he realized that she had always been in that exact same spot on the couch each day at the same time. He was late.

"There you are! You’re ten minutes late which means we need to cut that much time from my studies! Now sit down!" she commanded in an authoritative tone.

"Uh, sorry."

"That’s fine. Now, where should we begin…" She began to lecture him on the histories of magical unicorns and some other nonsense that he was not paying attention to in the slightest. He simply nodded his head every once in a while until he found the perfect opportunity to interrupt her and ask about Trixie.

"Twilight?" Spyro interrupted.

"What is it? Do you have a question on Star Swirl?" she replied in an excited tone.

"Uh, no…"

She face hooved but beckoned for him to continue.

"I was just wondering… have you ever heard of someone named Trixie?"

Her quill that she had been holding in her magic nearly snapped in two. "Wh-why would you ask about her?"

"Well, I heard a few things around town. Did she do something bad?"

"Well… kind of. I guess I can talk about her for a bit if you’re really curious. But then it’s right back to studies!"

He nodded.

"Right, she is a show mare or was I believe before she came to Ponyville. She publicly boasted about being the best and her ability to take down an Ursa Major."

He shook his head at hearing that.

"Oh, I keep forgetting you wouldn’t know about some animals. It’s basically like a giant bear the size of my library or sometimes bigger. Anyway, apparently she had gotten a little fan base with two colts named Snips and Snails and they decided to prove her right to everypony by bringing an Ursa Minor, which is like a baby Ursa, to town. I had to eventually intervene and put the Ursa to sleep and bring it back to the wild. I never wanted to show off what I could do in front of others because I was worried my friends would hate me for being better at magic, but as it turns out they liked that about me. Trixie’s trailer was crushed by the Ursa and I never saw her again."

"Oh, um, so is everyone mad at her?"

"Well, I’m not quite sure. I’m not mad at her if that’s what you’re asking. As for the town, well, that’s up to them I’m afraid."

"But wasn’t it those kids' fault?"

"Yes, but if she hadn’t boasted then they wouldn’t have done that. Anyway, we should get back to the lesson, Spyro."

After a while, his thoughts lingered back to helping Trixie in some small way. He ignored all of Twilight’s history lessons until it turned back to magic.

"Now, today you will be learning how to make small objects turn invisible!"

He frowned. "Oh? Cool!" he said with fake enthusiasm.

"Yes, I thought you’d like it. Now let me just…" She levitated the scroll over to him, but he already had the spell fresh in his mind. Without thinking, he waved his hand and the scroll vanished. It shocked Twilight because the scroll with the text on it was facing her and not him. He then realized this after a second and gave a bashful smile.

"…How did you do that?!" she demanded.

"Lucky guess?"

She was not buying it. "I haven’t known you long, Spyro, but I know when you are lying. Who taught you this spell? I know for a fact that none of the basic magic books in the library have it and my scrolls were locked away."

"Uh…Trixie taught me how…"

"She’s in Ponyville?!"

"Maybe?" he offered, hoping for the conversation to stop. Trixie never actually told him to keep her visit a secret, but judging from how she acted, where she was hiding and what Twilight told him, he figured she was supposed to be kept secret.

"Spyro… Where is she?"

"You’re just gonna get her in trouble!"

"I never said that. I just wanted to talk to her," she said in a calm voice.

"I don’t think she likes you, Twilight."

"…Good point, but I want to be her friend."

"She barely wants to be my friend. Plus, she told me to leave earlier and it was kind of creepy…"

"What happened?"

Spyro sighed and told Twilight everything he knew about Trixie. Twilight asked about the spell and he told her he knew one more but that was it.

"I see. So she has been asking you for food as a way to teach magic lessons?"

"Yeah. Is that bad?" he asked, his voice sounding a bit timid.

"No. I mean, she hasn’t done anything wrong and she certainly hasn’t taught you anything violent or anything. I’m not sure why she sent you away for just casting spells around her, but maybe it's something troubling her… Hmm."

Spyro sighed when he noticed his teacher getting that far off look, the kind where she gets lost in thought for minutes. "Twilight?"

"Oh sorry. How about this? You keep seeing her for extra magic lessons and we keep it a secret for now. Don’t tell Trixie I know about her yet."

"Really? Why?"

"Well, I…" Twilight sighed. "Look, when Trixie lost her trailer and was run out of town I felt really bad for her. From the sound of things, she is still a traveling mare, but that means a hard life. I doubt she would accept help from me and I really doubt her shows are going well anymore, but if you offered her food each day for lessons and friendship, then maybe we can still help her. Understand?"

"I do. Only one problem… I’ve been kind of taking food from the bakery."

"Oh, well, we can’t have that. Normally I would punish you, but you did it to help somepony. So come to me each morning and I’ll have some food for Trixie. You will give it to her each day, but you will not say who it’s from, got it?"

"Got it!" He cheered but then immediately groaned. "What if she doesn’t want to see me anymore?"

"I wouldn’t worry about that. I think she just needed time to herself. Grownups sometimes get that way, Spyro."

"…I noticed," he muttered.

She gave him a stern look but dropped the subject. "Right, hopefully she’ll stay out of trouble and so will you!"

"'Kay. Now what?" Spyro asked and Twilight blinked in surprise.

"Um, I guess we’re done for the day. You already know two new spells so, that’s it!"

"…I want to know a lightning spell…" he muttered.

"What was that?"

"Nothing! I guess we’re done. Do you think I should go talk to Trixie?"

"Approach her slowly and it should be fine. Have a nice day!" Twilight waved, but the dragon was already out of earshot after the door slammed shut.

Spyro debated on how to approach Trixie. Thinking it over, if she was still mad or if she was ever mad in the first place, he didn't know. Her eyes did not show much emotion and he knew those situations were bad. He decided on something more risky, as long as the situation called for it, and by that he hoped that Trixie was not upset or crying or worse.

He returned to the campsite to find it devoid of one Trixie. "Where’d she go?"

"Right here. Was just fetching some water."

He turned around to find Trixie with a jug of water in her magical hold. He examined her eyes and noticed no puffiness or signs of crying and sighed in relief. He then sprang into action.

"Trixie!"

"Uh, yes?"

"I have a deal to make with you!" He grinned and offered his claw.

"What?" Her voice sounded less than amused.

"I'll keep bringing you food and you keep teaching me magic!"

"I thought we already had that deal."

"We do, but I was hoping I could be your… apprentice! That’s the word right, apprentice?"

Trixie paused when he heard this. Hmm, I’ve certainly never had one of those before, unless you count those two annoying colts from before that ruined my life. Twilight teaches Spyro, but maybe I could teach him better! Very well, not like I was planning on going anywhere anytime soon…

"Very well, Spyro, you shall be Trixie’s apprentice!" she announced triumphantly.

"Sweet! Can I learn lightning spells now?!"

"…No. For now I will teach you more illusion magic."

"Fine. Can you teach me now?"

"Not right now, I must— Er…"

"That’s fine. How about we just hang out?" he offered while sitting down next to her.

"I think—"

"Please?" He tried his best to make his eyes wide and pleading, but to Trixie they simply looked creepy when compared to a colt’s.

"I do—"

"PLEASE?"

She groaned when his eyes widened more. "Alright fine! Just stop it with those eyes!" She resisted the urge to say they were creepy.

"Um, okay. So what do you do for fun?"

She hesitated and wracked her brain, trying to think of some subject matter that had anything to do with fun. After a few moments, the awkwardness showed up and she hated that.

"Don’t you ever have fun?" he pressed on.

"Well, I’m too busy trying to live my life!" she replied defiantly in a huff of anger.

"Doing what?"

"I'm a show mare! I travel all over Equestria and hold dazzling feats and shows for hundreds of ponies to come see! I don’t have time for fun, not when I’m adventuring and setting up my shows!"

"Sweet!" Spyro jumped in the air and cheered. "So when is your next show?"

"Uh…" Her mind drew a blank. She knew that it had been well over two months since her last show and it certainly did not end well. She looked back at her trailer for a moment and sighed. "I'm working up to it."

"What do you mean?"

"Well I… Wait, why do you even care?!" she demanded with newfound anger.

"Cause you’re my friend?" he replied, not believing it himself. He knew some things about friendship and Trixie certainly wasn’t acting friendly.

"I told you—"

"You never said you weren’t my friend! Now are you or aren’t you?"

Geeze, this dragon is all over the place. First he wants to know magic, then about my shows and now he’s insecure?! "Yes, you are my friend." she reassured. A deep pit in her stomach made her say that in desperation, but she controlled herself enough to say her sentence in a calmed manner.

"Alright, so when is your next show?"

"I don’t know, alright?!" she snapped at him. Spyro flinched and backed up a few steps. "I don’t know…" Her last sentence was quieter than a whisper. She twitched one of her hooves a few times, nervous for hurting her friend.

"Is it because of the Ursa thing?"

"Who told you about that?! Was it Twilight?!" Trixie walked forward, but the dragon was too frightened to move. "You will not mention that incident in my presence!" She was shrieking as loud as possible. The child had never heard an adult yell quite that loud before, neither here nor in his world. When he snapped out of his senses he found himself trembling. Trixie was in a small state of shock and was not blinking or moving.

"Trixie?"

"I—"

"Are you okay?" He was still trembling, but he knew that she was the real one in trouble.

"Am I okay? I just outright yelled at you and you are asking me if I’m okay?!"

"That’s what friends do. I think…" He muttered the last part as he grew more unsure of himself.

"No, I’m not okay. I’m sorry for yelling."

"It’s alright. I know you said not to mention it, but what happened after?"

Trixie looked into his eyes and saw no level of deceit or hesitation. She had first assumed that Spyro was sent by Twilight to discover her location perhaps or send her to jail for the incident like so many others before him, but he was being sincere.

"After the incident, Tri… I tried to start my shows up again in other towns, but as it turns out word travels fast, even to cities. I relied on those shows for business. It was essentially my job. It started slow; first most of the towns would deny me a license to publicly display my shows. It wasn’t that big of a deal since I made most of my money in the cities, but soon they followed the same rules.

"So I had to try other jobs, and for a while it wasn’t terrible. I could at least eat and live comfortable enough for the circumstances. But like I said before, word travels fast and eventually the bosses of the jobs I was working started to question my cutie mark. They started to question how satisfactory of a job I was doing, but that wasn’t enough, no." Her voice turned bitter. "Soon, they recognized me from newspaper clippings maybe or just word of mouth, and eventually I couldn’t get any job and was run out of any city or town I came into contact with. I don’t know why I came back to Ponyville. I guess I just stayed because you were feeding me." She finished and hung her head in shame.

For a while, Spyro contemplated running straight back to Twilight and asking her for help. This situation that Trixie found herself in was far above any of his skill levels and he knew it. He hesitated, thinking up another idea for a good while until he finally heard the sniffling. Trixie had begun to cry.

"Wha?" Spyro ran up and hugged her around her neck for all he was worth. No words were spoken for at least ten minutes. Halfway through, she dried up her tears after returning the embrace. "Why do you care so much, Spyro?"

"I don’t know. You’re my friend?" he offered once more.

"Alright, I guess that makes sense."

"You don’t have to keep giving me magic lessons you know. If you need food, I can get it for you."

"No, it’s alright. I actually don’t mind. It gives me something to do."

"'Kay. Are you feeling better?" he asked. He didn’t feel sincere at that moment but felt it was best to ask.

"Yes. Thank you very much, Spyro."

"Sure!" He stood up and was about to explain that he should be heading home but stopped and turned back.

"You know everyone hating you sounds kind of stupid if you ask me," he said.

"Stupid?"

"Well, yeah. You weren’t the one that brought the Ursa that destroyed stuff. If you’re a show mare, then isn’t your job to make people excited and… entertain?" The last word came off as foreign to him.

Trixie smiled. "Yes, it does sound quite stupid when you think about it. Thank you again."

"Sure, um, I need to head home, but maybe other ponies can forgive you. I can try and help…" He didn’t want to mention Twilight, but she was certainly in the back of the dragon’s mind.

"If you can. And thanks again."

> Chapter 13: Sharing
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Spyro walked home in silence and took his time. Thoughts kept swirling in his head on what to do about Trixie. Twilight had already informed him on his duties involving her and that he was to keep Trixie in the dark about their secret deal. He wasn't sure what to do about Pinkie. Was he supposed to tell her? He assumed that most ponies did not take too kindly to Trixie, but he wasn't sure if Pinkie was one of them.

"Hey, Son! How was your day?" Pinkie asked while counting up the bits in the register.

"…Weird. It was weird."

"Like good weird? Or silly weird or bad weird maybe?"

"Um, the first one? Hey, have you ever heard of a pony named Trixie?" the dragon child asked hesitantly. Pinkie actually started to ponder this, mentally running through all the names she knew.

"Nope! She must be from out of town. Why? You made a new friend?!"

"Uh, yes I did. She's a traveling, um, show mare?"

Pinkie's eyes widened. "That's cool. Oh, we need to throw her a party… wait, we never threw you a party…" Pinkie's voice grew low and she suddenly grew a bit sad.

"That's okay and I don't think a party is gonna work out so well for her…"

"Why not?" Pinkie tilted her head to the side.

"Uh…" He knew exactly why not because everypony in this town and many others hated her guts. No one would give her a chance except maybe Twilight and Pinkie, but she had been acting like a mother to him and he figured telling her story to Pinkie was not in his best interests. "Because… she gets scared of other ponies. It's why she wanted to be friends with me!" A lie, but it held some truth at least… Was she afraid of other ponies at this point? He could only assume so.

"Oh. Well, I wouldn't want to make her uncomfortable…" Pinkie muttered.

"Well, she is pretty neat though. She's teaching me magic like Twilight!"

"Really? Oh, what else do you know now?" Pinkie asked excitedly and sat down on a seat in front of him, waiting patiently. He hesitated and figured what he was about to do was a bad idea, but he could not for the life of him remember why. He shrugged and used some magic to levitate a napkin in the air and then made it disappear before her very eyes.

Pinkie's eyes went from excitement to confusion to realization and finally to anger. A certain alarm clock struck inside her head as everything came crashing down and for once she was actually angry.

"…SPYRO!"

He was still tucked into bed, but as a punishment he had no bedtime story that night, not that he cared. The bedtime stories from her were random anyway and not something he really looked forward to. He was just glad that Pinkie stopped being mad just before she went to sleep, but he couldn't sleep one bit.

How do I help Trixie? That was the question that was plaguing him. He knew perfectly well his standing in the town and it was not great. It wasn't as bad as Trixie, but he was no Twilight Sparkle. His first idea was to make friends with as many ponies as possible and then maybe he could convince them to accept her and move on from there. He shook his head and figured a plan like that could take too long. His second idea was to get Trixie back on stage. It seemed slightly less complicated and certainly possible, but he had no clue how her shows worked or what they were like.

I've never been to a magic show before… He thought back to the events and places the caretakers would take him and the other kids to at the orphanage and a magic show was never a part of them. He then had another idea, but he would need to ask Twilight about it which meant he would need to get to sleep.

WHY CAN'T I SLEEP?! he screamed in his head and groaned loudly. He then looked up and noticed Pinkie was asleep and decided to test the waters. Here goes nothing.

"Hey, Pinkie? Pinkie!" He nudged his mother, but she was still in dreamland. He then made a bold choice. "Mom!" She bolted upright and looked in every single direction but where Spyro was standing.

"What is it?! Is the house on fire?! Oh my gosh—"

"No. I just can't sleep."

She blinked a few times and grew concerned. "Nightmares?"

"No. I just can't sleep so how would I have nightmares?" he challenged.

"Well… alright one bedtime story, but no cupcake tomorrow for that little stunt you pulled!"

"Fine."

He was surprised to find that, halfway into the story, he was actually dozing off and before he knew it, he was asleep. 





The morning flew by and before he knew it, he was standing in front of the library.

"Hey, Twilight?" Spyro called out after running inside.

"Spyro? It's a bit early…" She yawned and waited for the inevitable question or need for help or to be asked to learn a new spell.

"You know that spell you used to look into my memories?"

"I can't teach you that, Spyro—"

"I don't want to learn it. I was just wondering, could it be used to see those memories like a movie projector?"

She considered this for a moment before nodding slowly. "I suppose so. You mean for, like, an audience to see memories displayed on a screen?"

"Yeah."

"Then yes. I guess the spell could be modified to do that, but why?"

"I want to help Trixie with her shows…"

"Oh! Uh, hmm…" Twilight got lost in her thoughts once more, but Spyro felt it was necessary this time to let her think. "Yes, I could see how that might help. But, Spyro, I'm not exactly sure how to get other ponies to trust her again. Putting on a show with Trixie in the name is not going to be a walk in the park."

Spyro frowned at hearing this but then perked up once more. "What if I put on the show but we use Trixie's magic and then when it’s all over we reveal her or something?"

"Uh, Spyro, that's kind of like—"

"Tricking them?" he offered and smirked.

"Yes! That is exactly like tricking ponies!"

He stood there with a dumbfounded expression. "So, what's wrong with that?"

"Spyro, that's lying and that is wrong. You know that!"

"It's lying for a good reason!" he countered.

"That may be so, but I don't think it will turn out well in the end, no matter how amazed those ponies are or not…"

He groaned and collapsed on the floor. "So, basically you’re saying that we're screwed and Trixie is going to be lonely for the rest of her life?"

"…Screwed? What does that mean?"

"I heard an older kid say it once at the orphanage. Means she's sunk?" he offered.

"Oh, and no she's not screwed. We just have to figure out a way around this without lying!"

He crossed his arms and puffed out his chest. "And how do we do that?"

"Through legal means. You did give me an idea and for it to work you will have to star in the show, but Trixie's name will be there."

"And what's the idea?"

"Well, Trixie's shows tend to focus on adults or in some cases families, but from what I can tell there were barely any colts or fillies in the audience. Now, I'm guessing some of those movies in your head and video games will be a big hit with children and it might be a nice change of pace for Trixie. It's just an idea, but it could help."

"So can I show them The Terminator?!"

She deadpanned, "No, nothing that violent. We can discuss this later though. Trixie's breakfast is on the counter."

Spyro sighed and gathered up a picnic basket that Twilight had prepared. He left without saying goodbye and stormed out until he was halfway to Trixie's campsite and sighed once more.

Should I even tell her? She seemed pretty upset about performing… After debating with himself for a while, he decided on a small plan. He was not going to tell her anything but maybe hint to it as best as he could.

"Trixie?" he called out after finding her campsite.

"By the river…" she yelled.

He found the mare dunking her head in the river as water rushed past her neckline. It reminded him of a scene from a movie that he couldn't quite remember clearly. All he knew was the protagonist was on her own and had to bathe in a river similar to this one. Her head came out as she panted for breath a few times before turning back to him.

"I, uh, brought you some food!"

"Excellent, thank you…" She used a bit of magic and levitated the picnic out of his claws. A few moments later, he found himself sitting awkwardly in silence with her while she ate away.

"Trixie? Do you know any magic that involves the brain?" Spyro asked after rewording his question in his head a few times. He tried to think of a subtle way, but he knew he wasn't good at that kind of stuff.

"That is an odd question. Why?" she asked almost dismissively.

"Uh, the princess cast this spell on me a while back…" He paused and noticed that she choked on her food upon hearing the princess, but he kept going. "…that allowed her to look into my memories of films from my world and games… Can you do that too?"

She considered what he was asking for a moment, staring into his eyes with a piercing gaze as her brain ran on autopilot. Whatever Spyro was telling her, he was not lying, she decided. Then she considered a spell she knew and then smirked.

"I do. I used to use it in… shows. Why?"

"Can you cast it on me? How does it work? Same as hers?"

"I highly doubt I could replicate any spell that the princess can cast, ahem, but I suppose a demonstration wouldn't hurt…" she replied and Spyro actually heard a hint of excitement in her voice. "Now, stand still…"

He obliged and she began to cast her spell by pointing her horn down at his head. He didn't feel any different at all. The spell lasted for all of one minute before her horn died out.

"What happe… Whoa!" Spyro flinched back and heard his voice and someone else that he almost recognized talking in sync with his. He looked around and then spotted something that did not belong in their world.

A human was floating above them, someone Spyro very much recognized. Trixie was confused despite it being her spell that summoned him here.

"Superman?" Spyro asked in disbelief, the voice of the hero talking in sync with his once more.

"Spyro, what is this?"

"I don't… I… What spell was that?!"

"It is a spell I use during some of my shows. I cast it on a pony, or in this case a very odd dragon, and it creates an illusion of something or someone that is from their mind. That illusion becomes a puppet to control. In this case you are the puppet master, but what I don't understand is what kind of creature this is?"

"He's a human, but he's not real… I've only ever seen him in that movie before."

"A human. You mentioned that before, but now I'm beginning to think you weren't lying were you?"

"I never was. So you believe me?"

She looked to Spyro and up to the Superman illusion. He wore strange garments with an even stranger design. The S on his chest no doubt signified his name, Superman, which did not roll off her tongue very nicely. He was flying in the air with a cape blowing in a nonexistent breeze.

"I suppose so, yes. You… you really are from another world?" Trixie questioned in wonder.

"Yeah… yeah I am. Is that okay?"

"I suppose so… Just very odd. Tell me, what does this Superman do? What can he do?"

"Anything, everything really. He can stop bad guys without breaking a sweat, fly into outer space without needing to breathe, pretty much nothing can stop him except Kryptonite. He's a superhero!"

"I see. Well, demonstrate for me, go on then."

"Huh?"

"You are in control of Superman, this illusion. Anything he can do, that is if you have seen him do it, you can make him do by just moving around with your body or thinking it."

"But I've never seen him before except in that one movie… does that matter?"

"You mean a film? No, it shouldn’t. Please hurry. The illusion wears off in ten minutes or so."

"Uh, okay…" Spyro gave a few experimental punches with his arm into the air and Superman followed but was awkwardly still flying in place. "Why is he—"

"You need to think his actions and he will play them out. I know you can do this. It's not that hard."

"Okay…" He tried to think of scenes from the movie, but most of them were distant memories at this point. The only thing he did remember clearly was his voice (the one of the actor) and his appearance. Eventually he settled on something that he considered basic for superhero standards, but it did the job. Superman flew up into the sky and then flew right back down after changing directions. The tights-clad hero then swooped down and went back to his default flying pose.

"Excellent. It's been a while since I cast that spell. I was afraid it wouldn't work right."

"So can it make illusions of anything from my brain?"

"From your mind, yes. I suppose it defaulted to this Superman because it chose at random since you were not thinking of anything at the time."

"Can we do Batman?!"

Trixie deadpanned, "…Who exactly names these superheroes?"

"Uh… I don't know. So can you cast it on me again?!"

"Very well, but this is the last time for today. It is very taxing on my horn…"

"'Kay."

She cast the spell and Spyro did his best to imagine the caped crusader. Slowly, the form of a very burly man took shape. He wore a black cape and was completely dressed in black with the exception of his belt which was an odd shade of yellow.

Trixie stood there and examined the superhero for all of two seconds before falling down and bursting into laughter. Spyro was dumbfounded. What was so funny about a giant man wearing black tights? He was supposed to look cool, not look silly!

"Stop laughing!" Spyro demanded with Batman's deep intimidating voice mimicking the same words. It only made Trixie laugh even harder.

"Oh, is this Batman wearing tights?! Oh, this is funny…" She giggled a few more times and tried to compose herself. Spyro narrowed his eyes and noticed that Batman was doing the same.

That's when Spyro had a neat idea. He only hoped it would work. He had seen Batman do it dozens of times in the movies and TV shows, but there was never a clear spot to pull one out. He shrugged and positioned his right arm over where a belt would go and pretended to reach in. He focused on the thought and, without warning, tossed his arm towards Trixie. The fake Batman did the same and, pretty soon, a type of metal bat was whirling towards her at high speeds. She shrieked and fell down before feeling silly as the Batarang went right through her and disappeared.

Spyro smirked and walked up to her. "Never mess with Batman."

"Yes, well… he still looks silly."

"He does not!" Spyro insisted, but was ignored.

"Oh, if only I had you during my old shows… hmm."

Spyro tapped his claws together nervously after seeing the mare get a far off look in her eyes. "Trixie, what was it like to put on shows?"

Trixie looked at him as if he was the craziest dragon in all of Equestria, which he may well have been. She began speaking in a calm and collected manner. He noticed it was like her depressed rant earlier about losing her job and place in society… only this time, she seemed happy. "When I first started doing it, well, I was a nervous wreck. It's weird because as a filly I was always fine in crowds, not the least bit like that at all. But I guess when you grow you start to notice things. You notice… judgment from the crowd. So I started a persona, The Great and Powerful Trixie," she boasted in a playful tone. "It helped a lot. It actually made me seem powerful. It allowed me to focus on making each and every show spectacular instead of focusing on the crowd. I guess after a while it got a little out of hand and I started to believe I could do anything," she admitted shamefully. Spyro noticed her far off look had returned. She was still there but again detached.

"What if you…" He bit his lip as she turned her head back to him. "…start off again slower? You know… maybe start some shows for just kids?"

"…You mean children?" Her voice was dripping with venom.

"Well, yeah! They're easy to please and you won't need a persona, just my memories!"

She narrowed her eyes. "You want to be part of my shows?" She scoffed.

"And what's wrong with that?" he challenged with his arms crossed.

"Many things. For one, a good show requires more than just one assistant… although I will admit my last show, the one in Ponyville… I was lacking my other assistants who seemed to just run off."

"What about those two kids?"

"They were replacements…" she admitted, her voice sounding bitter.

"Well, I could find you new assistants. And I'll be your main attraction!"

She raised an eyebrow. "I highly doubt Superman will win over an audience, even if they are young."

"I got plenty of things in my head!" He knocked his head a few times playfully. "We can practice and put together a planned out show."

Trixie stared at him for a long while after that until finally she huffed. "I wouldn't even know where to start anymore. We can't just lie to ponies and pretend I'm not there. The very second that these children’s families read about a show with my name in it, well, it will all be over."

"I- I can help with that too, but you have to trust me. Uh, do you trust me?"

"I do, I suppose…" she replied slowly.

"Great! Can you wait here? I'll just be right back with someone that can help."

"Very well," she replied. Trixie's mind ran through a million scenarios. She had a good idea on who was coming and she had absolutely no idea what to say to her.

Spyro nodded and left. He figured lying to Trixie about Twilight's help was pointless. She had to find out sometime. He made a near mad dash for the library like a child who couldn't wait to tell an adult that something big had happened. Trixie trusted him so he figured that was big enough.

"Twilight?" he called out into the library after running in.

"Yes?" Her reply came from behind a book she was reading. Spyro jumped and saw her right behind him. He was not sure how he had missed her, but he shook the thought aside.

"Yeah, uh, I sort of got Trixie to agree to our plan, but you need to drop what you’re doing and go greet her… though she doesn't know you’re coming…" He admitted the last part shamefully.

She sighed. "What did I tell you about lying?"

"Uh, that it's awesome to lie if it’s for a good cause?" he offered with a sheepish grin.

"No! I… Argh!" She fumed and stomped a hoof down on the floorboard.

"Just calm down! I got her this far and I'm sure she can't be that mad…"

"Spyro, that is not the point! This whole reason I'm doing this is to help Trixie trust ponies again, and by deceiving her like this you have completely eradicated any chance of doing so!" Twilight exclaimed. "I told you not to lie and what do you do? You lied! Spyro—"

"Okay… I give up," Spyro declared and Twilight tilted her head curiously. "I don't even know what I'm doing anymore, Twilight! Heck, I barely knew what I was doing back at the orphanage!"

"Well, I didn't mean to—"

"I mean, I wake up on an island of all places as a dragon and I thought I was dreaming! I really thought I was in a dream!"

"Spyro—"

"I travel all over the place with a dragon friend who I barely talk to anymore. And I finally get a mom, a mom, Twilight! I barely talk to her and I don't know how to treat her or how to feel and, I don't know what I'm doing anymore! I was trying to have fun and your magic lessons were helping, but I don't even go to school anymore! We had school at the orphanage, with other students and it makes me feel like I'm getting away with something bad—"

He was interrupted and wrapped tightly in a hug. Twilight had noticed that the dragon was on the verge of tears and felt she had to do something.

"Calm down. I didn't mean to yell. I'm sorry."

"I…" He stopped talking and buried his head into her chest and cried for a while.

"It’s going to be okay. You do know what you’re doing, you know. You’re not a failure and you’re a pretty smart colt, err, boy. I understand why you lied, but, well, that doesn't matter anymore. Have you been feeling guilty lately?"

"Well, yeah. Just because I didn't have parents doesn't mean I didn't have guardians. We had school and I sort of liked going there. And I know I'm new at this, but I barely talk to Pinkie and it just feels… weird."

"I see. We've been treating you like a dragon, but I can see you’re no different from a little colt. Dragons are very resilient and resourceful creatures. They have feelings of course, but they mature at different rates than us ponies. They are much faster at it. I don't know if we can enroll you in a school, but I'm sure we can try."

"Thank you. If I go to school can we still do magic lessons?"

"Yes." She stopped their hug and both sighed. "We better go greet Trixie."

"But she's gonna be mad now."

"Yes, but I'm sure I can calm her down. You are coming as well."

"Okay."





"Trixie?" Twilight called out with Spyro perched on her back. They had neared a stream, the very same one that Trixie visited often. Only there was no Trixie in sight.

"That is The Great and Powerful Trixie to you!" a voice called out and she revealed herself by walking away from a tree. The two stared at each other before Spyro broke the silence.

"Uh, so, surprise?" he said nervously.

"Spyro, why have you deceived me?"

"I- uh…" His eyes darted back and forth a few times before Twilight spoke up for him.

"This was my idea, Trixie. Spyro was just my pawn in a sense…"

"I see. What do you hope to gain by helping me?"

"Friendship," she replied simply.

"You expect me to believe that?"

Twilight laughed a bit. "You gained his friendship. Why not mine?"

"That is different! He was… he was…"

"What?"

Trixie gritted her teeth and cursed under her breath.

"Trixie?" Spyro questioned her in concern.

"What?" she snapped at him.

"Twilight's not trying to trick you or do anything bad. She just wants to help, you did say you trusted me," he snapped back with his arms crossed.

She huffed. "I… do."

"So will you trust her?" Spyro pointed to Twilight who now held a stoic expression on her face.

Trixie darted her eyes slowly between the two. Spyro had given her a thumbs up while Twilight's stoic expression remained. Finally, she succumbed.

"Fine. You win, Twilight."

"Uh, I wasn't trying to win anything. I just want a friendship. That's all."

Trixie looked up and saw that Twilight was smiling. She then finally smiled at the other mare. "Fine."

> Chapter 14: Crazy Planning
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

It had been surprisingly quick to get Trixie back to Twilight's library unnoticed and unprovoked. A simple illusion spell shielded her from everypony else and soon she was sitting indoors, sipping tea comfortably. Spyro sat at her side. Meanwhile, Spike and Twilight sat on the other couch.

"You want to put on a show?" Spike asked Spyro with a raised scale. It was during that moment that Spyro realized that dragons did not actually have eyebrows.

"Yep!"

"With her?" He pointed to Trixie, his tone sounding unsure.

"Who else?" Spyro asked back seriously.

Spike looked up to Twilight who gave him a firm nod and a wink. "And you want me and Claws to be assistants?"

"Yes, a good show needs more than just two working on it. I do require your assistance." Trixie said after placing her teacup down.

Spike wasn't sure how to feel. On the one claw, Twilight wanted to help Trixie and he did love Twilight. On the other claw, Trixie had changed Rarity's mane without asking. He had conflicted feelings for sure and Spyro asking for help did not change much. He didn't hate the drake, but he was very weird for sure. He tapped his fingers on the side of the couch over and over, lost in thought.

"Spike." Twilight snapped him from his thoughts. "What do you think?"

He looked into Trixie's eyes, watching her smile slightly. "I think you should apologize to Rarity!" he snapped.

"To whom?" She raised a brow, knowing full well she probably deserved an apology but not who Rarity was. Trixie was looking at Twilight for help, who had her eyes closed.

"Rarity would be one of my friends. You changed her mane color without asking and she ran off I believe. Ring any bells?"

She had wronged many ponies, but it wasn't difficult to remember. After all, Twilight's friends had defended her when Trixie was showboating. "Alright, I can apologize to your friends. Then will you help? Spike?"

He had his arms crossed, but he nodded. "I guess."

Twilight considered this and then nodded. "Alright, I can go gather them and get this out of the way. You all stay here. I should be back pretty quickly." She trotted out through the door and slammed it shut.

"Now what?" Spyro asked.

"We plan for m… our show. Spyro, I believe you had some ideas?"

His mind went crazy thinking about the possibilities. Video game, movie and comic book characters buzzed past his consciousness while he desperately tried to organize his thoughts. Finally, he began to scratch the back of his neck nervously. "Well… how many things from my head can you illusion on stage?"

She coughed. "Maybe a few. For it to be a clear and believable illusion, you need to be thinking about it and focusing."

"Hmm…" He tapped his claws a few times on the couch. "Can you do more than a few if you had more than one dragon or pony?"

"No, that would require another one gifted with magic to help me on stage," she said dismissively.

"What about Twilight?" Spike suggested.

"Humph, she would need to learn my spells for it to work."

"She's a quick study."

She pouted even deeper. "Not just anypony can do the magic that I can!"

Spyro stuck out his claw and recounted the runes in his head and then her hat vanished. Trixie looked up and then back to the strange dragon who was smiling.

"Uh huh, it looks so hard," Spike replied sarcastically.

She rolled her eyes and made her hat visible again. "Fine, she can help out too. But the point of the show is to have the town accept me."

Spike stood up from the couch and walked over to a cup of gems and popped one in his mouth. "I think you’re gonna need more than a show to earn the town’s trust."

"And why is that?" she asked harshly.

"You're going to need the town’s trust to even put on a show, specifically the mayor's. She runs the town and gives out the permits," he pointed out after popping another gem.

"Blasted permits…" she muttered under her breath. "Are they difficult to acquire?"

He laughed. "For you, probably, yes."

"Great." She slumped back into her sofa and sighed.

Spyro remained silent for a few minutes, listening to Spike munch on gems over and over. "I have an idea, but it's kind of stupid."

Spike swallowed his last gem and looked at him. Trixie did the same. "Well, what?"

Spyro smiled slyly and began to speak.





Trixie and Spyro stood on top of a balcony, overlooking Ponyville. Her illusion spell held up fine. Behind them they could see the mayor working diligently. "This is either insane or stupid."

"I said it was stupid."

"Well, I'm desperate. We need to hurry before Twilight gets back with her friends. You ready?"

Her horn glowed brightly and Spyro's form shifted. He became taller, darker and was dressed very oddly. "Well, at least you look somewhat intimidating."

Without warning, he jumped through the window while opening it quickly. The mayor jerked back and gasped. "Who are you?!"

"Silence Earth- Equestrian! My name is Darth Vader!" He paused and watched her eyes widen in fear. "I am an extraterritorial from the planet Vulcan!"





They were walking back in silence. Trixie held another spell over the both of them. Spyro was whistling quietly to himself while Trixie was simply content to remain shocked. Right before they re-entered the library, she had to speak. "Spyro, how in Luna's name did that work?!"

Spyro looked down at the permit that held Trixie's name, the permit that would grant her permission to host another show, and shrugged. "I saw it in a movie once. It worked then."

She blinked. "Must have been some movie."

"Yeah, I wish I had a time traveling DeLorean."

She sighed. "You are one we-"

"Weird dragon. I get it!"

She looked at him and was surprised to find him pouting. Then she looked to the other residents after de-shielding the spell from just him. They either all looked away or stared on. He must be tired of the attention. I don't blame him. She cancelled the spell and levitated him over to her back. "If you were anything but weird then I wouldn't have found you so interesting. Now, c'mon before Twilight throws a fit."

He smiled and hugged her neck. "Okay!"

They opened the door to the library and trotted in. "Oh, Trixie, good. Spike was just telling me how you… How did you put it Spike?"

They saw Twilight and five of her friends all sitting down on the couches. They both noticed all six of them had their eyes closed and looked calm enough.

Spike was busy nervously placing his claws together over and over. "I said she was… out… trying to get a permit to put on our show."

"We did!" Spyro raised up the permit and waved it about.

"How?" Twilight asked calmly.

That's where Spyro clammed up.

"Uh…" Trixie said.

"Did you perhaps freak out the mayor and threaten to melt her brain?" Twilight asked, again calmly.

"…" She wanted to say something, but then stopped. Over on the couch, she watched Spike nervously munch on a few gems, which was funny because she knew his bowl had been emptied earlier. Traitor "Maybe, but technically he wasn’t the one who said it." She pointed to Spyro.

He gasped. "No, it was Darth Vader!"

The two began bickering, which eventually shifted to unrecognizable phrases from Spyro and screaming from Trixie before Twilight called out. "Enough!" Her tone seemed bent on rivaling the Royal Canterlot Voice.

The two clammed up instantly and looked down at the floor. Rainbow, of all ponies, flew up from her seat and stepped slowly over to the paper clutched in Spyro's claws. She looked it over and then whistled. "Well, as dumb as that plan sounded from Spike, it did work. Almost like a prank, heh." She looked back at her friends, but nopony was smiling. Then she switched back to Spyro and spoke in a stern tone. "But I am still very disappointed in you!"

He raised his claws and pointed them at her, remembering something she had said about never ticking him off back in the castle. "Get those things away from me!" Rainbow called out, while dashing behind a couch. He snickered to himself and shaped his finger and thumb into a gun and blew on it.

Twilight was not looking amused in the slightest. She sighed, though, and pinched the bridge of her nose. "Trixie…"

How do ponies pinch things? Spyro thought.

"Y-yes?"

"After you apologize to my friends…"

Trixie looked at them, who all held frowns or scowls.

"…you will then tell the mayor the truth and hopefully she won't make our situation worse. Got it?"

"But we already have the permit," she pointed out. "Why rock the boat?"

Rainbow, who was flying in the air, shrugged. "You know she has a— Woah!" She was yanked out of the air by Twilight's magic and given a glare. "You should apologize to the mayor!" Spyro noted that Rainbow seemed somewhat afraid of unicorn magic in general, not just his.

"Very well." Trixie stood up and walked to the center of the room. "Last time I was in Ponyville we all had… encounters and I was… less than civil to you all."

Rarity, despite her insistence that she was in fact a lady, actually growled under her breath. Rainbow, to the shock of everypony, remained quiet.

"I am truly sorry for what I did. And…" She trailed off and looked back to Spyro who waved her to go on by pushing his claws out. "I could use more friends. Can you all forgive me?"

Fluttershy stood up and smiled. "Sure."

Applejack did the same. "Ah shoot, fine. Ah was all set to let ya have it too. But sure."

Rainbow Dash looked over to Spyro. "If I say no is he going to use those on me?"

Twilight’s glare intensified to the point where the most dark and dangerous creatures from Tartarus would whimper in fear. Rainbow wondered for a split second if that's' where Twilight came from.

"I mean... sure."

Rarity stood up and met Trixie eye to eye. "I'll trust you for now and remain neutral, perhaps even friends."

"Oh good. I—"

"But touch my mane again and they won't even find that hat of yours where you will end up," she said quietly enough for only Spyro and Trixie to hear, seething in anger.

Trixie gulped and nodded.

"Wonderful!" Rarity beamed and went to join her friends.

Pinkie Pie bounced over to Spyro and gave him a hug. "Oh, Son, you did a good deed by helping Trixie."

"Um, thanks."

Then Pinkie's face matched Twilight's in what could only be described as cute anger. "But that was awful what you did to the mayor! No cupcakes for a week! Or desert, or…" She stuck her tongue out to think. "Playing pranks!"

"Okay," he said, sounding confused on that last bit.

Twilight coughed a few times and then Pinkie gasped. "Oh, and first thing first, as soon as we figure out what day first thing is on, you are going to school!" she announced.

"Hmm, okay!" he said cheerfully.

Trixie smiled as well but then was instantly dragged off by Twilight. "Come, let us assess the damage with the mayor."

Trixie gulped and agreed.





After three hours of constant yelling, bickering and finally arguing, the mayor slammed her office door shut as Twilight and Trixie walked away. Twilight was giving Trixie a comforting smile that wasn't helping in the slightest. "Well, look at it this way, she did say you can still perform as long as we are overseeing it."

"I have three weeks of community service at an elementary school of all places," she said bitterly. "Trixie is not happy."

"Better than being arrested. And what's so bad about school kids?"

Trixie noticed that Twilight almost always had an air of positive attitude about her, almost like Pinkie but calmer. "Two of them summoned an Ursa Minor to the town and nearly got it destroyed."

"…Good point. But it won't be so bad. This is like starting anew. And in time you can get your life back on track!"

Trixie thought it over and knew she was right. The mayor had let her off easy, but she also thought that Spyro had gotten off easy. "Fine, I guess you’re right." She huffed. Little pipsqueak can probably use magic to get him a cupcake with Twilight as his other teacher, she thought just a tad bitterly. But she did feel grateful to both of them. She decided to change the subject. "By the way, do they allow non-ponies in schools?."

"It’s allowed in most schools that are large enough. Did you… grow up in a small town?" Twilight asked slowly.

"Yes," Trixie answered quickly.

She nodded. "I see. Pinkie said, as his mother, she would try harder and would be the one to enroll him. I have my doubts though, on both of them."

"I'm sure Spyro has a tendency to get into trouble, Pinkie I can't comment."

She shook her head. "It’s more than that, Spyro might still be prone to magical outbursts. Being in a room full of excited school children might make it worse."

Trixie furrowed her brow in concentration, but Twilight continued.

"The size of the schoolhouse also raises some concerns. Last I checked, Miss Cheerilee's class might be full."

"Outbursts? I never saw him do any."

Twilight remained silent for a minute and then nodded. "Maybe I was wrong about him being susceptible to them. I have been wrong before, I suppose," Twilight mused out loud.

"Anything odd happened since… Where did he come from anyway?"

Twilight chuckled. "That's a long story. The only strange thing would be his encounter with a Manticore."

Trixie's eyes widened in shock.

"He, uh, killed it by accident. But it was going to attack him and his friends."

"H-h—"

Twilight interrupted. "He used levitation to stab it with it’s own stinger. It sounded like more of an accident to me, but there it is."

Trixie leaned up against Twilight's library upon arriving. "I… suppose with no Manticore stinger laying about he should be fine. Right?"

Twilight turned to her and honestly shrugged in reply.





"Pinkie…" Miss Cheerilee began, not exactly sure how to continue.

"Yep?" she asked back cheerfully.

"When did…" The mare paused and rubbed her temples. She was seated at her desk with Pinkie on the other side. "When did you adopt a dragon?"

"Oh… Not that long ago. Why?" Her cheerful demeanor never wavered.

"It's just a little strange is all. And you want to enroll him into my class?"

"Yep!"

"Do you know his level of academics?"

Pinkie furrowed her brow for a few moments and then broke into a grin again. "Nope!"

She sighed. "Where is Spyro then?"

Pinkie pointed just out the window and the teacher spotted him staring down a rock, oddly enough. "Very well. Would you kindly bring him inside?"

"So he can join?!" she asked probably too hopefully.

She counted her desks, noting there had always been one empty one, conveniently. "I believe so but—"

Pinkie jumped into the air and cheered and brought back her son impossibly fast before the mare could even blink twice. They stared at one another for a bit, then Spyro leaned over and blinked.

"How come you got flowers for a mark thing?"

"My cutie mark?" He nodded. "My mark signifies my want to watch my students blossom."

He made an 'oh' shape with his mouth.

"Now then, I am going to give you a series of tests to see where you will fit the best in one of my classes. Is that alright with you, Pinkie?"

"Sure. Son?"

"'kay."

"Wonderful." She paused and brought out a few papers and a pencil. "Complete them in any order, Spyro."

Ten minutes later, he was busy working on his tests while the two mares waited outside. By the time he had finished, he wasn't sure how to feel. He handed her the tests, feeling as though he had failed them, but he did not understand that placement tests did not function that way. The two waited while she silently graded them.

"Okay, I have good news and bad news."

Spyro deflated in his seat, but she kept talking.

"The good news is, most subjects he is doing alright in. The bad news would be history. Aside from a few answers relating to basic magical history, he didn't appear to know much of anything."

"I'm kind of new to this place," he pointed out.

She smiled. "Understandable. I believe you would be a perfect fit in our older class. I see no point in placing you in with the foals and much younger students."

Pinkie cheered once more, but she froze in mid-cheer when the teacher spoke up. "But you will need to work with him to bring him up to speed on his history. He will need to catch up to the other students and pass a few tests that they have already taken."

"Abso-positively!" Pinkie said. "I think I can do that," she said more seriously.

A loud thump brought them out of their thoughts. Sitting on the desk that Pinkie had chosen was a large stack of papers that looked taller than Spyro's head. "You will also need to fill these out. He starts as soon as he is able. Most likely tomorrow if he can?"

Pinkie looked unsure of herself, her smile attempting to falter. She looked to her son who shrugged.

"Sounds good to me. Hey can I do magic in class?!" he questioned excitedly.

Cheerilee raised a brow to that and turned to Pinkie. "You are going to have to explain that one."





"This is gonna be awesome… maybe!" Spyro hadn't stopped talking a mile a minute since they left. Pinkie mused that she must look like that to others and almost chuckled. She was not looking forward to filling out so many forms though.

"Spyro, please stop bouncing so much. Hurts my back, kiddo."

"Oh, sorry." He blushed and calmed down.

"Thank you. Hmm…" She hesitated before speaking her next thoughts. If she was the only pony in a class full of dragons, she knew that nervousness would rule her life. "Are you sure you're okay with a class that has no other dragons?"

"This world has no other humans. I'm okay with that," he pointed out playfully.

She smiled but actually felt a bit tired for once. "As long as you're sure. Let's get something at the bakery to celebrate!"

"Like cupcakes?" he asked hopefully.

"Nopey lopey!"

He groaned in response.





"Alright." Trixie stood up and started pacing in front of three dragons. "Spyro starts school tomorrow, but we still have some time to plan a bit until some of his free time is eaten up. Any ideas?" She looked to the three who all blinked in unison a few times. She hissed and sighed.

"Won't you be at my new school too? We can plan then also," Spyro said.

"Yes, but I very much doubt I will be doing much there other than helping grade papers or cleaning up messes. You will still have less free time. Twilight and her friends said they would help, but the show will still be focused on illusion magic which limits our choices of jobs for Twilight and her friends."

"So you want ideas from my world or something?"

She nodded. "Illusions only dazzle if they show something inspiring or unique. I would imagine things from your world fall into that category."

Spike chuckled. "You know I'm sure the town would accept you even if your show isn't amazing." Trixie stared at him and he continued. "Just saying, there are other ways to make friends rather than enemies."

Trixie didn't puff or huff this time. She simply looked away. Spyro noted that her ears were doing that depressed thing where they flopped downwards like a dog. She really wants to put on a show. He stood up and walked over to her.

"Alright, how about we use The Joker and Batman!"

The two dragons just stared on while Trixie pinched the bridge of her nose. "Please for the love of Celestia…"

"You don't even know who The Joker is!" he whined.

"Knowing who Batman is would be enough," Trixie commented dryly.

"…Fine. Was just an idea."

Claws cleared his throat then. "I don't even know how to put on a show."

Spike shrugged. "I've helped with some and acted on stage. It's not too difficult. Although it might be hard to put on a show that makes no sense."

The four of them all groaned, even Spyro who really just wanted to see neat things from his world. He knew there was no point in putting on a show if it was just random characters doing random things.

Twilight just then started to walk downstairs. "How's the show going?"

"Terrible. We have no ideas or stories."

Spyro tried to speak up but Trixie waved him down.

"With the exception of showing off things from Spyro's mind that I wouldn't wish on my worst enemy."

Spike giggled and Spyro huffed. Twilight blinked at them and slowly nodded. "Well, perhaps you could use Trixie's magic to play out a scene from a book. No offense, Spyro, but things from your world seem better utilized at a time like Nightmare Night."

He scratched his head. "Nightmare wha?"

Pinkie Pie popped out of the couch, literally. "Oh, it's a fun night where everypony dresses in costumes and gets candy and there are pranks and games and—"

"You mean Halloween?!" he interrupted, his heart racing simply from the shock of her appearance.

She blinked a few times and shrugged. "Sure!"

"Okay…"

Twilight rolled her eyes. "Hello, Pinkie. What I was saying is that many of the things you wish to show us from your world, Spyro, are far better suited for a place where scaring others would be generally accepted better. Like Nightmare Night or Hello-ween as you called it."

"Oh. When is that?"

"Not long from now. A few weeks, actually," Twilight replied. "Anyway, Trixie, have you read any of the Daring Do novels?'

"Can't say that I have. Why?"

This was followed by a noise off in the distance, outside the library. It seemed loud enough but was muffled by the walls. "Anyone else hear that?" Spike asked. They all shrugged and were about to go back to talking when the door burst open.

"Did somepony say Daring Do?!"

"Rainbow! What have I told you…" Twilight face hoofed when she realized that Rainbow had in fact used the door normally and also did not knock since it was a public library and all. "Never mind," she said plainly.

"Did somepony mention her?" Dash asked probably too seriously. All of them pointed to Twilight and she huffed and began to explain.

> Chapter 15: Pony School
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

"And do you have your pencils and crayons and rulers?" Pinkie asked Spyro, probably the ten millionth question thus far.

"Yes, Mom…" he said, trying not to scream in frustrating.

Twilight stood with Trixie at the other side of the library. "And do you have the curriculum notes that Cheerilee let you borrow?"

"…Yes, Twilight," Trixie said in a similar fashion to Spyro.

"Well, get going then!" Twilight exclaimed enthusiastically while she used her magic to shove Trixie out the door.

Spyro watched this transpire. "I gotta learn how to do that…"

"And do you have your lunch pail and gems and—"

Spyro took his claws and gently, yet a little firmly, slammed Pinkie’s mouth shut. "Yes, yes, yes! I have everything, Mom."

She blinked. "Okie dokie then! Why didn't you just say so, silly?"

He sighed and smacked his head, rubbing his claws slowly down his face.

"Okay…" Pinkie took out a checklist, something the pink mare was rarely found with. Twilight had insisted she make sure her son’s first day of pony school went well. "Get ready for school…" She stuck her tongue out to the side and checked off the box labeled just that. "Check! Next is… show up on time but have you walk in five minutes after the school bell rings." She furrowed her brow at the oddly specific instruction but shrugged. "Hop on, kiddo!"

He hopped on and wrapped his claws around her neck. He clutched onto his lunchbox and made sure his backpack was strapped on properly. Twilight was intrigued to know how humans made saddlebags. He tried explaining how they worked, but it sounded awkward to her. Luckily, Rarity knew exactly what he meant. Though uncommon, some bipedal creatures in Equestria needed custom saddlebags. Spyro's explanation of what he called a backpack pretty much matched the custom design. In the end, she simply let him have one of her pre-made ones which he happily took. After all, he had saved Sweetie Belle’s life along with her friends, Rarity felt as if she owed him. Even if they were all to blame for getting themselves in trouble.

Halfway there, he wondered what school would be like with ponies. His first thoughts always landed on a zoo. He knew this thought was silly, perhaps even insensitive since ponies were clearly intelligent, but he was having issues imagining a school that was taught by a pony, for ponies rather than taught by a person for kids… who were people. It also started to confuse him on what exactly a person was. He used to just think that word meant other humans, but he had heard some ponies use the word people. He looked it up in a dictionary and was somewhat confused on the summary it gave, but he got that it basically meant anyone with intelligence, an individual. Being a planet filled with many races that could think, person or people just meant others.

Still… a class full of ponies to him seemed comical, perhaps even freaky. Never in his wildest dreams did he think he would see this other than in a cartoon. The same went for Ponyville.

"What’s up? You seem like you’re thinking? Are you thinking?!" Pinkie asked quickly.

"Hmm…" He hesitated and then nodded. He leaned into her neck so she could hear better. "It just seems weird. A school of ponies and all."

"Oh…" She nodded in understanding, slowing down her walk a bit. "What was school like in your world?"

"Hmm… loud sometimes, and during study time it was quiet."

She giggled. "Pony fillies and colts are loud! What else?"

"We have fun at recess, but our playground was kind of small…"

"You saw the play area at your new school. It’s pretty small!"

"Yeah, I guess so," he agreed and took in a deep breath. "I just still think it’s weird to be the only dragon there, or human…" He shook his head. "Whatever."

"It won’t be so bad, sweetie. Plus, the Cutie Mark Crusaders will be there! They like you, right?"

"Hmm, I don’t know. We didn't get off to the best start." He remembered their first day together. A Manticore nearly ate them all. He did save them, but he doubted the three fillies thought much of him after he went into shock and they were forced to head home.

She nodded. "Maybe not, but I’m sure they still like you. So cheer up!"

He thought about it more and finally nodded, giving her a small smile. They were nearing the school, and the bell had just rang. They watched the final filly, a pink one, run inside and slam the door shut.

Pinkie shrugged and walked over to the back. Spyro noticed a door was on the side of the schoolhouse. She let him hop off. "Alrighty, you’re supposed to wait for the teacher who will open the door for you. Are you ready?"

"Ready as I’ll ever be."

Pinkie surprised him by giving him a quick peck on his forehead. "Then good luck, Son! I’ll see ya after class!" She then dashed off in a hurry.

He waited there after that. His mom, which was still a concept that he was getting used to, had helped him feel better. But just knowing that the building in front of him held at least a dozen ponies and no humans to be his classmates unnerved him. He started breathing without thinking, up and down, up and down. Why a classroom would frighten him but not a town full of ponies was beyond him. His nervousness spiked when the noise of the other children suddenly stopped, the classroom going almost completely quiet. He frowned and stuck his ears to the door to listen.

"…to… Spyro!" He had barely heard the teacher speak before the door slammed open. He was quick and was able to avoid being hit in the face at least, but he did land square on his tail. Cheerilee's smile faded. "Spyro? Are you alright?"

He saw several of his classmates peeking through the doorway so he jumped up, while quickly dusting himself off. "Yeah."

She furrowed her brow for a moment and raised a brow to him, trying to figure out just why he was on the ground before shrugging it off. "Alright, come on in!" She gave him no choice by using her head to nudge him forward.

She made sure he stood in front of the class before she began speaking. "As I was saying, this is your new classmate Spyro!"

Spyro looked to the ponies. He spotted the Crusaders sitting in the second row from the back. Sweetie Belle waved while the other two seemed just as nervous as the other ponies in the class. Or were the other ponies simply weirded out? He couldn’t exactly tell. He was certain two particular ponies wanted nothing to do with him, one with a pink coat and the other with a gray coat. They both had their heads held up high and looked away almost distastefully. The rest were simply intrigued.

"And where are you from originally?" The teacher asked him curiously.

That was a funny question in regards to his situation. He wondered what Pinkie Pie put down in her papers, or if she even required to. He knew exactly where he was from though. It was almost funny how no one had asked him so far, not even Twilight or Pinkie. "Uh, you mean before I came here and went on that ship and woke up on that crazy island? Or did you mean that?" he asked, his nervousness making the tone of his voice wavering.

Cheerilee blinked and so did the other students. "Whichever town, city or country you were from before coming to Ponyville, dear. I’m afraid we don’t know too much about dragons after all."

Well, she did ask… He cleared his throat. "New York City…"

The silence was starting to get annoying, most likely for everyone, but none more than Spyro.

"…I see, just where is that?"

"Uh…" He quickly looked at an Equestrian map that was pinned up on a wall. "Not on this map," he simply replied.

She nodded. "Well, why don’t you take a seat just in front of Scootaloo over there." She pointed to the only empty seat in the class, which just happened to be next to the pink-coated filly. He nodded and did just that, putting his things away in a cubby nearby.

"Now then, would you all please open your history books to chapter three?"

Spyro was glad she hadn’t said a higher number. Twilight had tried to catch him up and for the most part he understood the first two chapters. It talked about the war with Discord, Nightmare Moon, the settings of the three pony tribes and a few other things that seemed less important. The teacher began talking about a general in one of the old pony wars and soon he was mostly paying attention, but occasionally his mind would wander.

"Psst…" he heard the pink filly say to his right. He looked over curiously and she silently scowled at him. "What are you looking at?"

She had clearly tried to gain his attention, he knew this because she had been facing him. Whatever…

He continued to study his book, turning pages as the teacher read. 

"Pssst…"

He looked over instinctively, only to recieve a view of the filly’s tongue sticking out. He narrowed his eyes and then sighed and looked away. He went a whole two minutes without being interrupted from his reading.

"Psssssst…"

Not this time, he decided. He would focus on his book and everything would be okay.

She tried again. "Psssssst…"

He sighed and turned pages again, just then realizing that he had not listened to the teacher on the last two pages.

"Hey…"

He slammed his fists onto his desk, sending sparks out of his claws and turned to face her. "What?!" It was a simple reaction. The very second after yelling, he knew that she had won. Her eyes had widened enough for the teacher to see, but behind her eyes was a tiny smirk just subtle enough to miss unless you were looking for it.

"Spyro! Is there something the matter?" The mare asked him harshly.

"Uh, sh…" He realized he had been in this situation before, back when he was still with humans so he sighed. "No, sorry."

"Good. And please keep your magic under control!" she exclaimed sternly and turned around to face the chalkboard again.

She turned around again after speaking about another pony briefly and paused to see most of the children’s hooves high in the air, except three. "What?" She questioned them all.

The pink filly spoke first. "He has magic?"

Cheerilee groaned. it was going to be a long day.





Lunch rolled around and the students were ushered outside.The silver and pink ponies from before giggled at him as they ran by to sit by themselves. He groaned and stomped over to the Crusaders and instantly sat next to Sweetie Belle. "I hate those two."

"Join the club… heh," Scootaloo said quickly before shoving her face into a sandwich.

Sweetie Belle smiled at him while he scowled down at the table. "Aww, don’t let them get to you, Spyro. They’re just a couple of no good bullies."

He calmed down and smiled to her. Then he reached into his lunchbox and found a red gem to munch on. He enjoyed the gem very much and started eating faster.

"So, uh, how have ya been?" Apple Bloom asked from the other side of the table.

"Okay, I guess."

He started eating some more when he noticed all three of them were looking away with nervous expressions. "What’s wrong?" He looked up, confused when Sweetie Belle placed her hoof on his claw.

"It’s just… you left us really sad the other day," she said in an odd, motherly tone.

He blinked and then realization dawned. He had been so busy with Trixie and getting ready for school that he had forgotten about the Manticore incident. His chewing had slowed down so he sped it right back up. "Yeah, I’m good. I guess I wasn’t thinking about it." He shrugged and went silent for a moment until he noticed they were still staring at him. "Are you three okay?"

Scootaloo scratched the back of her head. "We almost kinda… died. I guess it just feels weird. I actually went home that day to read a book. Yuck…"

Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle giggled, the latter speaking up. "Aww… did somepony want to relax for once?"

The pegasus blushed. "Shut up. I just felt like it, okay?"

Apple Bloom smirked. "More like you thought your folks wouldn’t notice anything was wrong. We all got grounded regardless."

The filly shuddered. "I don’t want to think about it. That was so boring!"

They both nodded. Spyro felt a bit guilty for not being punished as well (he still had cupcakes when Pinkie wasn’t looking). He was glad they hadn’t brought up how he was punished.

"Hey, Spyro, how come you weren’t in school before?" Sweetie asked suddenly.

He shrugged. "Twilight said dragons don’t usually go to school here, but I guess she felt I should now. I… kind of told her I wanted to anyway."

All three of them nodded, but then something struck them all at once. Scootaloo was the first to respond. "Wait! You didn't have to go to school, but you actually told them you wanted to?! Why?!"

The three of them found it impossible to ignore her outburst, but Sweetie Belle just chuckled. "Aww, school isn't so bad Scootaloo. I mean what would you do with yourself all day if you didn't have it anyway?"

Scootaloo stuck her face into Sweetie Belle’s personal space. "Are you kidding me?! Learn to fly, do what I want, no homework, I could—"

"Hang out with Rainbow Dash?" Sweetie and Apple Bloom finished for her, speaking in unison.

"Yeah, that!"

Spyro finished his last gem quickly. "You’d get bored really fast. I know I was."

Scootaloo ignored that thought and choose to just drop the whole thing. "So Spyro, is there really a dragon city called New York?" She changed the subject.

Apple Bloom swallowed her food, forcing it down and turned to Scootaloo. "He used to be a hu-man, remember?"

"Oh yeah…" Scootaloo mumbled. "So Spyro, is there really a hu-man city called New York?"

"Yes, why? Did you think I was lying?"

She shrugged. "Sorta, we weren’t really sure if you wanted the hu-man thing kept a secret or not."

"Oh. Uh, I don’t think I’m supposed to… but yeah, New York was pretty cool. It had giant buildings that touched the sky!"

"Like Cloudsdale?"

"No… they didn't fly."

Scootaloo scoffed. "If the buildings did not fly, then how did they touch the sky?"

"They were really tall."

"Taller than the castle?" Sweetie wondered.

"Uh… I think? Canterlot Castle is on a cliff, huh?"

They all nodded, secretly wondering just how it stayed up there.

"A few are taller than the cliff it hangs on."

"What do humans do there?"

"Same thing ponies do here, I guess. Only there’s more yelling and lots and lots of people, way more than here."

They all nodded and finished their lunches.





Back inside, they were confused to find Trixie up front with a book levitating in the air while Miss Cheerilee was busy grading papers. "Hello, students. I will be helping out the class for a few weeks. My name is—"

"Hey, Trixie!" They all heard Snips and Snails, two young colts, call out from the back of the class.

She gritted her teeth but kept a false smile up. "Hello, Snips and Snails. Would you both please take your seat?" she told them as calmly as she could. They frowned but nodded.

"Now then, I will be teaching here as a joint effort for a little while. My name is Trixie Lulamoon. You may call me Miss Lunamoon, although I don’t mind Trixie or Miss Trixie." She waited for the students to respond, but most of them looked confused. Spyro, however, waved, a happy smile plastered on his face. "Hello, Spyro. Now then, would you all please open your science books to page thirty five?"

She doesn’t seem very happy… Spyro thought. Figuring there was nothing he could do to help for now, he opened his book and started reading.

Unicorn magic can be a complicated process when learning multiple spells. Most ponies will strictly stick to a few in their lifetimes. This is due to the connection between a pony’s special talent and the magical field that binds Equestria. The only exception would be if a pony’s special talent was relating to magic in some way. The basic methods for…

He stopped reading when he realized that this chapter was about the basics of casting magic. Of all the things he should be learning in school, that probably wasn’t going to help him with Twilight as his teacher. While Trixie talked, a nagging thought kept going through his mind. Dragon’s don’t get cutie marks… He looked down at his side and frowned. He noticed that Zecora had a mark of some kind, so obviously non-ponies could get cutie marks, right? But, dragon’s don’t normally use magic… neither do humans. It was a puzzling thought. Would that effect what he could do and how many spells he could learn? He supposed it was dependent on how much he could learn in general. Could that mean there was no limit?

He blinked once. Trixie was still talking about the basics of magic, meaning he didn't miss anything. What caused him to blink was how he had just started thinking. He made a lot of assumptions about this place, about Equestria in general. However, he had never really thought critically on that level before. Usually he just acted. It was odd, but he wanted more of it. It felt good. Without thinking, he raised his hand high in the air. Trixie looked up from her book for a split second and looked back down. Thinking she only imagined it, she looked back up and confirmed his hand was still raised.

"Yes, Spyro?"

He grinned. "So if someone never got a cutie mark, could they learn whatever spells they wanted?"

"Well… I don’t think it quite works that way, no. Now—"

Spyro raised his hand again and she stopped. "But what if you didn't end up… getting a cutie mark that had very little to do with magic?"

She raised her brow for the second time. "That would still have very little to do with helping a pony become proficient in magic."

He frowned and went silent again for a while. A couple moments later, Miss Cheerilee stood up.

"Normally we give each student equal attention. However, today I would like anypony who can utilize unicorn magic to stand up. We will be practicing basic levitation. Tomorrow will be the pegasus ponies turn and the next day will be earth ponies. We know that often your guardians and parents will teach you the finer points, but we still need to make sure the basics are taught here. The good news, for the rest of you, is an extra break on the playground starting right…" She paused and saw at least half of her class storm out of the class, she frowned. "…now."

Trixie took charge however. "Go on, stand up!"

Spyro shrugged and did as he was told. Sweetie Belle and two other fillies that he did not recognize and one of the colts in the back did the same. They all looked at Spyro oddly, but Trixie spoke up.

"These…" She trailed off and cast a spell onto the chalkboard. The runes he recognized for levitation revealed themselves. "These runes are the basic building blocks of unicorn magic. Don’t bother trying to read them, that is not their purpose. Instead you must try and memorize them in the correct order. Your mind must be clear when doing this and especially when casting magic. Memorizing these symbols with all sorts of memories or thoughts clouding your mind will do you no favors. Do you all understand so far?"

 They all nodded, Spyro was still lost in his thinking however.

"Good, the first real step is to visualize what you want to achieve with your magic. Though to be quite frank, this step never really helped me all that much. But for all of you, try to visualize levitating a piece of paper or a pencil or whatever you have on your desk right now. It shouldn’t matter. Channeling magic is the next step and that can get kind of tricky. If you’ve never used magic before, then your horn can feel numb or like it’s not even there in the first place." 

Sweetie Belle flinched upon hearing this. All she had ever managed to do before were sparks and everypony knew it.

"In a few moments, I want each of you to try to channel some magic. Don’t even try the spell, please don’t. Unless you’ve done it before, then go ahead and show off." Cheerilee frowned at Trixie’s wording, but the showmare ignored her. "Try right now actually. Clear your minds and just try to channel magic…" Trixie trailed off as Spyro was busy channeling as much as he could, making it painfully obvious with his claws glowing bright red. He would then snub out the magic and try again for fun.

Trixie shook her head and addressed him. "Having fun?"

He looked up. "No. So… the book kept talking about cutie marks, but I don’t think dragons get cutie marks. Does that matter?"

"So that’s why you were asking… to be honest it might matter. I can’t say for sure."

"Could I learn as many spells as I wanted to?" He raised his claw and levitated a pencil high into the air. "Or mix spells?" Before she could stop him, he had snubbed his pencil out of existence, visually at least, rendering it invisible. "Oh I know!" He stuck his tongue out and concentrated, the pencil slowly morphed back into the visible spectrum, but only half of it was visible, the other half remained shrouded in magic. "Half a spell!"

Trixie nodded, half smirking. She tried to keep the other students attention, but Spyro seemed to have them well in check. "Yes, well—"

His eyes widened. "Hey if I used the invisibility spell on myself." He raised his claw, while her eyes widened in horror. "And eat a gem, would the gem still be visible?!"

"Sp-Spyro that spell was not meant to—" Whatever she was about to say was not heard by anypony. The magic he had channeled and cast on himself seemed to backfire almost immediately. He yelped and was soon upside down, his head and eyes spinning. "…To be used on dragons."

"Goodness, are you alright?!" Miss Cheerilee was on him almost instantly, getting him upright and looking him over.

A small puff of smoke came out of his mouth. He looked down at his horns, an odd frown formed. He instantly looked up to Trixie, ignoring his classmates and the teacher. "What was that?"

She sighed. "As I was trying to explain, dragon skin can often reflect magic. Not always, it’s not exactly like a shield, however, it can react badly to magic. That was a bad reaction."

"But I use magic!" he pointed out. It kind of raised a big concern if his own magic could react badly to himself.

"There are ways to learn how to make sure your own magic will not do that. One of them is not casting so many spells so quickly."

"Oh…"

She smiled. "It was actually the next part of the chapter. You were paying attention right?"

"Yes!" He stood up. "But I started thinking really fast about what I could do and it felt… really good. It was weird, but that feeling is gone…" He trailed off, trying to describe what it was.

Sweetie Belle nudged him. "You had a weird, crazy look in your eyes. Last time I saw that was with Twilight!"

One of the unicorn fillies from the back of the class spoke up. "Oh, you mean when she made the town act all crazy over the doll?"

"Yeah like that!" Sweetie nodded and smiled, then she shuddered, remembering what it felt like.

Spyro wasn’t sure what to say to that. "Uh, anyway it felt really weird." He rubbed his head a few times. "What do you think it is?"

"Maybe learning magic mixes with dragon greed and you’ll keep learning more and more spells until you can move the sun! And then Princess Celestia will be put out of the job and you will be the dragon prince of Equestria!" Sweetie Belle exclaimed quickly.

Everypony stared at her, causing her to blush profoundly and chuckle.

"Maybe not?"

"No, but you raised one good point. Dragons do have an inherited attitude towards greed." Trixie pointed out. "At least according to an old book I read. It could be affecting you."

"I don’t feel very greedy…" Spyro said, mumbling his response.

"Oh, but you did. You wanted to learn like Sweetie Belle said. It was a silly thought she had, but it could hold more truth than she knows. Did it feel like you simply wanted more knowledge?"

He nodded without thinking. "Wait, well… yeah, I guess."

"Well it could be your mind getting used to…" She was about to say getting used to being a dragon, but she did not feel like explaining that to the students and the teacher. "To gaining magic from Twilight. It could be greed, but it’s manageable."

"Gah! Why does magic have to be so complicated? Now I have to memorize symbols and manage greed or something…" He slumped into his seat and sighed.

Miss Cheerilee smiled at him and cleared her throat, taking her seat as well. "I believe Spike has had to manage his greed before. You should speak to him and Twilight when you have the chance." He thought it over and nodded, feeling a bit more calm about the whole thing. "At any rate, why don’t we all go back to levitation spells and only levitation spells, hmm?"

"…Fine," Spyro said, the other students sighing in relief that they could finally practice some magic.





The final bell rang, letting most of the students run out, cheering as they left. Trixie groaned, being forced to grade the remainder of the papers was an extremely tedious job. Spyro stood up himself, gathering his homework. Pinkie Pie came bouncing up behind him.

"Hi, Son. How was your first day at school? Huh?"

He frowned a bit. "Okay, I guess… A little weird."

She tilted her head. "How so?"

Miss Cheerilee walked up to Pinkie. "He is a wonderful student, although I think I better let Trixie explain the odd incident today." She turned back to Trixie. "I’ll take care of the rest, you're done for the day. Thank you."

"Oh thank Luna." She groaned and stood up. Walking outside, she began to explain her theory on Spyro’s dragon greed to Pinkie who listened intently. She explained how his human mind, whatever that entailed, might be getting used to his new body.

"But won’t that affect his mind? Like a lot?" Pinkie asked, watching Spyro with a concerned look.

She shook her head. "I don’t believe so. Of course he should be monitored a little, but it could be a good thing. Seems he wants to learn a lot more."

Spyro was only sort of listening when he piped up. "Hey, Trixie, could you teach me how to summon cupcakes with my magic?!"

"Or a bad thing from my perspective," Trixie muttered.

Pinkie giggled. "Are you sure you feel okay?"

Spyro nodded. "Sure, I think so."

"Well, okie dokie then!"

"Yes, for now I have a show to plan."

"Um, do you need any help with it?"

Trixie sighed. "I am sorry, Spyro. Twilight did raise a good point, using things from your world might either be confusing to others or frightening to most of the children there. Plus, don’t you have homework?"

That was the only thing which he was not looking forward to about real school: homework. "Okay…" He sagged down on Pinkie Pie’s back.

"Don’t be sad! I’m sure Trixie can use all sorts of crazy magic and take stuff from Earth to use in Nightmare Night! Right, Trixie?"

Not wishing to upset the dragon, she nodded. "So long as I don’t get arrested from terrorizing ponies." She shuddered at the thought. While she found Batman to be hilarious, she very much doubted many of the ponies in this town or the next were ready to see him as anything but spooky.

> Chapter 16: Deus Ex Twilightina
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Open up," Twilight commanded.

Spyro obliged and stuck his tongue out. The mare had spent the last twenty minutes looking him over, poking and prodding and always taking notes. It was so boring!

"Are we done yet?" Spyro tried to say with something firmly planted on top of his tongue. He couldn’t remember what it was called, only that doctors often used them.

She sighed. "In a moment. I said you would get the cupcake and a new magic lesson when I’m done."

He nodded, not taking his eyes off the cupcake that she had placed just out of his magical grasp. It was gem encrusted, had tons of blue frosting and was made by his mom. The new magic lesson would be icing on the… cupcake, but most of all he just wanted the treat so badly… He could almost taste it!

"Let me go through this again." She ignored his groan and continued. "You felt a sort of euphoric feeling over wanting to learn more magic. Then a series of spells backfired on you due to your dragon skin. That about right?"

Spyro nodded, finally taking his eyes off the cupcake. He watched Twilight control items with her magic, but something seemed off. He hadn’t noticed it before. Had she always been doing that? She could manipulate several objects at once in her magical field, however, she kept wincing. Sometimes the quill would write too fast or sometimes she would almost drop her clipboard and be forced to clench her teeth to keep up with it.

"Um, Twilight?"

"Yes, Spyro?"

"Is something wrong with your magic?"

She stopped writing instantly. He watched her rotate her jaw a few times. "…Maybe. But right now we need to focus on you."

"Maybe? What happened?!"

She slowly stopped her magic and set everything down on a nearby table. "When I was asked to cast that spell on you back in the castle… I changed it. It had side effects for you as well as for me," she said with a somber attitude.

"How did you change it?"

"The spell was designed to wipe the memories of your planet. It was a messy idea. So, in my head I altered it and tried to find a way to save your mind in a different manner. My changes were never designed to give you unicorn magic, which is why I flipped out back there. I… changed the spell to try and implant certain concepts into your mind using myself as a sort of stepping stone for the spell. Clearly I did something right in my design because you are fine, but like I said, there were some side effects."

He nodded. "So you… lied to the princess?"

She blushed. "Sort of. At first I kept this secret. But I was worried when my magic started acting funny the last few days. Princess Celestia was surprised that I went behind her back with this but understood why I did it." She grabbed his claw with her hoof. "I couldn’t destroy a life, Spyro. I don’t have that in me."

He slowly smiled. If there was one thing he could take back in his life, it was thinking that Twilight wasn’t that great back in the castle. She was awesome! "Cool. But is your magic going to be all wrong forever?"

She shook her head. "I had a long talk with the princess in private. That was the other day actually. She was impressed with me for changing the spell that quickly, but I admitted in doing it at the last second." She shook her head. "Spyro, don’t EVER do that, understand?!"

He nodded. "What do you mean though?"

Her stern voice dropped off. "I mean, don’t try and change symbols in a spell on the fly. It was very stupid of me and I could have hurt both of us… I was just so upset. I was in shock. So I changed the spell without knowing exactly what it would do. As it turns out, it did a lot. First off, it gave you magic, specifically a part of my magic. Ordinarily magic cannot affect someone permanently, but that's the weird thing about magic. Magic does have permanent properties, it has to in order to exist. If it didn’t then pegasus ponies would be born with pegasus magic and would be able to use it for a time, but then it would wear off. The laws and rules of magic are not always absolute, so saying that magic can’t be permanent would actually… be wrong."

"So I could turn invisible forever or something?"

"Hmm, probably not."

He tilted his head.

"You have to understand that what is affecting my magic and what is affecting your mind is a result of those little horns on your claws. They appeared as a result of my wishes. Not a wish in the sense of, 'I wish something would happen,' no. I wanted to help you understand this world so desperately that I forced too much magic upon you. Understanding this world so your mind could adjust was what Celestia thought was best, but her method was so wrong. She wanted a clean slate. I wanted your memories kept intact, but with your mind still connected to the magic field that Equestria and this planet has."

He scratched his head a few times. "Huh?"

To her credit, she did not sigh or groan. "Think of it this way, I concentrated so hard on making my spell work that I infused magic into you. Your mind and body wanted to obey my spell just as desperately as I wanted it to work. It worked alright, you got magic, but because you had no horn, your body and my spell along with my mind decided to make one. Or several. You also may have taken some of my personality with you. What happened in class sounds like a reaction to my spell."

"Oh…" He looked down, seeming upset at this.

"What’s wrong?"

"Is my mind all screwed up forever?" He looked up, tears threatening to show up at any moment.

"No! Of course not! I said you may have taken some of me with you, and even if you did… it would be more like memories and feelings. You're not crazy and this isn't mind control. You just have to learn to remain calm when you get over excited about magic. That’s part of your overall magic lesson plan anyway. I had to learn it when I was a filly too," she said matter-of-factly.

"But you said I took some of your perso-personality."

"I said may. I can’t be certain, but what Trixie described seems to make sense. But over time, you can learn to control it and even ignore it. You seem fine right now."

"I… guess. It’s just weird."

"I know. If you can learn to keep calm with it, then you can even use it to your advantage. To study harder in class and learn quicker. At least if my hypothesis is correct. After that, you can develop some better habits and hopefully by then the effects will have worn off entirely."

He thought that over. He had always had issues studying back in the orphanage. Maybe it could help. Either way, this wasn’t the worst thing in the world, but not everything felt right with him. "Are you sure your magic is okay?"

"Positive. At least it will be in a week or so. It’s not that I can’t use all of my magic. Believe me, the princess made sure of that. We had to test me over and over. I still have the same level as before. However, my focus has been off lately. Either I cast too much or too little… My horn became unbalanced if you will. I am working on tweaking it back to the right feeling as before, not too little—"

"And not too much?"

She beamed at him, proud of his deduction skills even if it wasn’t a hard thing to figure out. "Right! I just need to balance myself out. I’m almost there luckily. Princess Celestia was furious with me. I almost… I almost messed up my horn."

His smile vanished. "How do you know you didn't?"

"A simple scan. I’m fine and you will be fine too so long as you keep up with my lessons. Are you okay?"

He slowly nodded.

"I’m sorry I kept this from you, I was trying to see if something like this might happen. I should have just been honest from the beginning."

She expected him to yell or get sour with her or even tell on her to his mom (although she planned on doing that anyway). Instead, he shrugged. "Can I please have my cupcake now?"

She blinked a few times and nodded. Her horn glowed to take the cupcake down from a high-up shelf. She then gently laid it in front of him, happy that her magic had been balanced this time.

It was glorious… Sadly, he ate the whole thing in one bite.

"Happy?"

He nodded to her.

"Good. How about that magic lesson then?"

"Sure!" He chuckled and took a seat in front of her. "It’s pretty awesome that you gave me magic, you know." Then he suddenly stopped talking and froze for a second. "Uh, did you or did you not mean to give me magic?"

"Hmm, like I said before, it was never designed to do that."

He nodded, still looking confused.

"I also said never to change a spell 'on the fly.'"

He nodded again, really unsure where she was going with this.

"Not only can the runes in your head get mixed up, but so can your thoughts. I believe… mine did." She blushed again, not being used to making big mistakes. "I mixed up my thoughts momentarily while I was casting from wanting you to understand this world to obtaining magic. Had it worked the way it was supposed to, you simply would have been fine with no magic to speak of. It wasn’t a perfect spell. I’m still studying what I did. I know for a fact I had my changes visualized near perfectly in my mind up until the final second. Something changed in my head. I believe I… lost confidence in my ability to properly cast it." She clammed up after that statement and did that weird chew thing again. He wondered why she kept doing it, but not for long. "It’s not a feeling I’m used to. Usually I’m just prepared. Part of me wanted you to have unicorn magic, I think."

"How can you not know what you wanted?" he wondered out loud.

She groaned. "I just wanted you to be okay. It was stupid, but part of my wishful desires was you having magic. Even if I couldn’t change your mind to accept this world as reality, I figured a dose of our reality would do the job. Obviously I was correct or you would certainly not be okay right now." She then frowned. "Or Princess Celestia and Star Swirl the Bearded were incorrect on how human minds handle this world."

Spyro was sure that any more explanation would make his brain start to hurt. "Alright. Thanks for the magic and the help."

"You're welcome." She then took a few breaths and sat down once more. "Now, are you ready for your lesson?"

The only answer she got was Spyro shaking his head up and down.

"Great! This lesson is a spell I learned a long time ago, and I think it will help you out quite a bit."

"What?!"

"A relaxation spell! I uh… don’t use it as often as I should." She blushed, recounting in her head all the times she should have used it. "But to be fair, it can place you in a position of vulnerability. You certainly don’t want to use this spell if you need to be alert."

"Okay… What does it do?" He knew it was a dumb question; it was called the relaxation spell after all, or a relaxation spell.

She smiled. "Well, aside from helping your mind focus, it relaxes you!" She shrugged. "The downside is the inability to focus on multiple tasks once you cast it. Great mages throughout history have used this spell to help guide them when they need to do one complex spell after another. Of course you can only do one more and then one more again, never multiple spells…"

He chuckled nervously. "Trixie said I wanted to do that, huh?"

She nodded. "Yes. One spell at a time is enough. The only real way to cast multiple spells would be to invent a new spell that combined them. Also levitation, you can use that and cast another spell."

"What happens if you try to—"

She cut him off. "Remember our first lessons? You need to visualize the spell and remember the symbols. If you try to visualize two spells and two sets of symbols then you will just end up mixing up symbols."

"Oh…" He understood that. Probably not a good idea to try it.

"Just be mindful of that and you should do fine."

He nodded.

"Good. Now, your best bet for successfully using this spell is to be at rest in a seated position."

He nodded again and sat indian style on the ground.

"Good. Now just breathe in and out."

He instinctively shut his eyes and did just that.

"Keep going. Also, open your eyes or you can’t focus on the runes."

He blushed and then noticed that she had levitated a sheet to lay in front of him. He frowned. This set of runes had at least two more symbols to memorize. That was going to be tricky for him. Well, tricky to remember for the future. There was a reason you learned magic with scrolls in front of you after all.

"Got it memorized?"

He snapped out of his thoughts and nodded. "Yeah. Let me try." She smiled and gave him the space he needed. He followed the steps that he normally did to cast magic, visualized himself relaxing which wasn't all that hard and then recounted the runes inside his head. Soon, magic had started pouring out of his horns, then he suddenly stopped everything. "Wait!"

"What?!" Twilight stumbled backwards in surprise.

"What about my dragon skin? It didn’t exactly work out well when…"

Twilight waved her hoof and he stopped talking. "You see these two runes?" she asked while pointing to the two symbols second to last. "I added them for this spell. Sorry, I should have explained. It adds a sort of buffer. I use it on most of my spells by habit. It's useful for creatures that have a built-in magical defense, like dragons." She frowned. "I should have told you about this before, might have saved you the mishap from before."

"Yeah…" He almost felt irritated, but then he dropped it. He was eager to try out this spell so he went back to his previous position. The spell was quick and soon he was finished. His body went limp instantly. He felt as if he was swimming. It was more difficult to move, but it did feel good. "It’s like a jacuzzi," he said in a quieter tone than before.

"I take it you like it?" She smirked at him.

"Hell yeah…"

She tilted her head to the side and raised a brow to him. "What does ‘hell’ mean?"

"Uh… it's like a place…" He didn’t feel like explaining it despite only knowing an abridged definition of the word. He did know it was considered a bad word though. She didn’t seem to know that, which he was thankful for. "Something I heard a bigger kid say once. It just sounded cool to me."

"I… see. Well, I’m glad you were able to cast the spell correctly." She smiled, remembering something. "It's funny, it only took me one try to use that spell."

He shrugged.

"I wonder… the very nature of a cutie mark is magical in nature. Perhaps I transferred more than just my unicorn magic to you…" she murmured, mostly to herself.

"Hmm?"

She shook her head at him. "Just another theory of mine. One of the most difficult aspects of learning magic can be getting a unicorn to feel the magic in the atmosphere. Failure to do that will often mean failure to successfully cast a spell. I believe that transferring my magic and understanding to you may have given you a jumpstart in that. It would explain why you never had to struggle that much when learning new spells."

He nodded, leaning back into his arms. "So we cheated? Sweet."

"Uh… wouldn’t exactly put it like that," she murmured again. "But you are certainly ahead. Anyway, just remember that spell when you think you need it." She walked up to him and touched his chest. "I’m going to be trusting you to know when you need to relax. Okay?"

He nodded again.

"Good. Now—"

The door to the library busted open. "Spyro! I need you!" It was Trixie, who looked very strung out.

He looked over to her, a dopey-like smile plastered on his face. "Huh?"

He was yanked into the air via her magic and whisked out the door before Twilight could say anything.





The relaxation spell was indeed great, probably too great. Spyro barely remembered his little trip from the library to the stage that was outdoors. He was plopped down onto the wooden floor. He took a few dizzy steps and then promptly fell onto his rump.

"Now then… Oh dear, are you alright?" Trixie helped him back to his feet. "Perhaps I went a tad fast…"

Spyro scratched his head. The spell he felt was starting to wear off. "Why are we on a stage?"

"Right, I know you probably have too much homework to learn a part for this show."

He frowned again, feeling bitter.

"However, we need an announcer for different scenes, kind of like a narrator. All you need to do is read from a script. You won’t need to memorize much or practice that often."

"Uh, why me?" He almost did not ask that, fearing it might raise a good point.

"I will be focusing on the illusions during the show. I can’t speak much and cast spells. Rainbow over there will be playing a main role."

"Oh, yeah!" They both stopped and watched the pegasus loop into the air several times before landing in front of them. She had on heavy bouts of makeup and dye. She looked like a completely different pony. The things that stood out to him were her whip, odd jacket and hat. "This is gonna be so awesome!"

"Yes, yes… Now—"

"She looks like Indiana Jones! Ha!" He giggled a bit.

Rainbow looked at her costume and then frowned to the dragon. "Who?"

"He’s a…" He trailed off when he noticed the telltale sign of Trixie's magic forming in front of him. Slowly, the image of a rather tall male human began to take shape. Rainbow noticed he had a hat on, almost a cowboy hat though differently shaped. He also most certainly had a whip by his side.

"Cool…" Rainbow murmured.

Spyro hesitated and then shrugged, causing the man to do the same. "You know he doesn’t really have any sayings. Except ‘Snakes. Why did it have to be snakes?!’" He fell to the ground in exasperation and then began giggling. The illusion soon left the stage.

"So can you do it?" Trixie levitated over to him a small script.

He flipped through it. "Uh, who made this?"

"I copied most of it from the first Daring Do book," Rainbow said.

"Uh, I guess I can. Do I have to stand in front of everyone?" The thought sent shivers down his spine. Plays were no fun at the orphanage.

"Well, yes. Stage fright?" Trixie asked gently.

He tapped his claws together and nodded. "Everyone already looks at me in town… They’ll just think I’m a weird dragon ruining your show."

An odd feeling overcame him, though a second later he realized that Rainbow’s hoof had touched his shoulder. "Don’t even worry about it. I used to be afraid of crowds. You just have to think of your friends and you can work through it. Or whatever Twilight told me."

That got his attention. "Um, I saw you at that dinner in the castle. Are you friends with Twilight?"

She blinked and then promptly smacked her head. "Of course! We’re like totally best friends!"

He tilted his head, watching her close her eyes and shake her head in disbelief. "Since when?"

"Since a year at least."

"Oh. Are you friends with Mom?"

"Mom?" She gave a confused stare. "Oh! Pinkie, yes! Didn’t you wonder why there was like six ponies at that dinner? We’re all friends."

"But I never see any of you."

"Well… I’m not sure why you don’t see the others, but I’ve been kind of busy, I guess. Plus, Twi says your lessons are during our work hours," she clarified.

"Oh… Okay!" He went from feeling weirded out by Rainbow to accepting that she was Twilights friend in an instant.

She raised a brow and considered saying more but then dropped it a second later. "Cool. So… do you want to practice some?"

He frowned just on the first page. "I can’t read some of these words…" A hint of shame coming off his voice.

Trixie walked forward, hesitant to interrupt the Rainbow maned mare. She was glad that Rainbow was willing to work with her. Amazing what a simple apology can do, she thought. "Can you read most of them?"

"Yes?"

"Then we can simply practice. The show is two weeks away and there isn’t much to learn. Unless you would rather have somepony else read them."

"Okay… but then I need to do my homework soon. At home." A nagging feeling in the back of his head kept reminding him to go check in with his mom.

He cleared his throat and started reading. A quick glance showed Rainbow getting ready for her scene and Trixie looking on in excitement. He frowned and tilted the paper back. "Trixie, you are doing this for fun, right?"

Both mares had not expected such a mature question. Instead of nodding or saying yes, she decided to prod further. "What do you mean?"

"Well we went so far to get you the stage, until you got in trouble. I know you were really upset that ponies didn’t give you work or like you…"

"Oh." She walked over and took a seat next to him. He followed suit. "If you're worried about the show, don’t. It is mainly for fun, but Twilight agreed that it would help the town see me in a better light. If they saw me getting along with friends on stage and putting together a friendly show."

That sounded nicer to him. He smirked and picked up the script again. "Okay, let’s do this!"

"Alright!" Trixie clapped her hooves.

"Wait!" They both paused. "What’s that word?"

This may take a while. Trixie thought bitterly.

> Chapter 17: The Show
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Twilight had concluded that Spyro had most definitely taken a small part of her with him, but only a small part. Magic, a few memories and emotions. Spyro got used to it though. Over the two weeks of practicing, he realized that having a part of the mare inside of him was helping a lot. It was easier for him to concentrate and get excited over learning new things. However, a simple test from Twilight laid their fears to rest. It wasn’t mind control, not even close. Her test consisted of giving Spyro some choices without telling him, learning new spells or spending the day with Pinkie. He chose the latter, reluctantly at first. When he did, Twilight explained to him that she would be happy to teach him the spells another day. All was well, for the most part.

Spyro was still extremely anxious, and not from his homework. Today would be the day of the show, specifically tonight. They had agreed that a showing around seven o’clock would be best for the atmosphere. He, Claws and Spike had absolutely nothing to do. It was a week ago when Twilight suggested that he spend more time with the two. They had helped him feel better about everything, and Claws was actually happy to see him. Without calling me weird, too…

"What ya thinkin’ ‘bout?" he heard Spike ask from behind him.

Spyro was over the edge of the stage, his feet hanging down and his hands cradling his head. "Hmm, nothing."

Claws quickly took a seat with him, smacking his claws over Spyro's shoulder, making him jump. "C’mon, you get to be an announcer!" He waved his claws in an arc over the imaginary audience. "Like the old dragon leader… only, you know, not evil and dumb!"

Spyro did chuckle at that. In a way, he would be like that big dragon, only saying something sensible. Ponies were indeed welcoming when they wanted to be. Not all of the ponies in town seemed to like him, but the ones he talked to did. "Yeah, it sounds cool…" In a way it did, but after reciting his lines a million times in front of an imaginary audience, it got old. The real excitement would only begin when tons of ponies would be listening to his every word. He was still nervous, but Twilight reassured him that this whole thing was just for fun and to show the town that Trixie meant well.

He knew that was important, that other places did not welcome her. Some part of him worried that this would not go over well though, despite most of the ponies in town being very friendly. Trixie’s sad story had shocked him to the core. This meant that, to him at least, it was all up to him. If he made a mistake on stage then the show might fail. If that failed then Trixie would be screwed (he thought that was the right use of the word). She would be in trouble.

Every time he pictured himself up on stage, it would either end in disaster or be one of the best moments of his life. He knew he didn't have that many lines so it wasn’t that big of a deal. Still, it wasn’t like he talked in front of a massive crowd of ponies every day for a show, and as a dragon, no less. A distraction lingered into the back of his mind, something that had very much been bothering him for a while. He wanted to be physically human again, if only for a little while. It was probably a bad idea to dwell on those thoughts, he figured. But he had his lines memorized, so why not?

It wasn’t that being a dragon was not fun, it was awesome. He felt like he wasn’t being true to himself, that he was lying. While his friends and new mom had accepted him and knew he was, in fact, an alien in a foreign body, others didn’t. It’s not like he could start every conversation with someone new as, "Hi, I used to be a human…" While he knew it shouldn’t be a big deal, to him it felt like he was deceiving everyone in the town. It wasn’t a very satisfying feeling, and like all feelings relating to guilt it had started to build up. He sighed. It wasn't like he could go back to being human now. After resting on the stage for several more minutes, his mind caught up. Magic!

Without warning, he leapt from the stage, running towards the library as fast as he could. He ignored the protests of his two friends who were close on his trail.





"Spyro…" Twilight began to rub the temples on her head in circles. "Even if I could do this, it would only be temporary. That’s if I can do it." She watched the drake sag in his seat. "Why do you want to do this all of a sudden? You seemed happy before."

"Hmm…" he mumbled and then sighed. He wasn’t sure how to put this into words. "I just miss being like I used to, I guess."

"I…" Twilight started before realizing that, of all the reasons he could’ve given, that made a lot of sense. If she had transformed into another species, she would easily miss her own body. From what she had seen of humans, though, they were close enough to a bipedal dragon like him. True, they had no tails or horns, but fingers and toes were their common link. It made sense that he had felt natural enough in this new body, though she did not know what his first few days were like in Equestria. She assumed they went okay. She would have to ask someday. "Okay, I can try to change you back." His face instantly morphed from depressing to a grin. "But if it doesn’t work then maybe Trixie can work up an illusion spell for you."

He blinked. "How would that help?"

She smiled. "So you can show others what you are inside."

His mouth tried to form words. How had she known? Could she read minds?

"I know you, Spyro. Maybe not that well yet, but I’m sure guilt is something you’re not fond of. Am I right?"

His head slowly nodded.

"Right. You feel like you're not being true to yourself? That you're lying to others?"

For a few moments he remained silent, scratching his legs gently with his claws for no reason. "I guess so…"

"Well, I can try my best. It probably won’t keep forever, a few nights at most though," she replied softly.

Magic isn’t permanent… His face twisted into confusion, remembering something Twilight had said herself. Magic does have permanent properties, it has to in order to exist. He looked down to his claws and then to his tail. He had gained magic and that had stuck, he had become a dragon and it had stuck. He looked back up at Twilight, a fierce gaze. "Magic can be permanent, I’m still a dragon now and that never went away, right?"

She considered what he had said for a few moments in silence. Her eyes suddenly snapped open. "You’re right! If… if you can give me some time and I can perform some experiments on you then perhaps I can reverse engineer the properties that made you this way and the magic I gave you!"

He scratched his head. "What part of that do I understand?"

"It means if I succeed I can make you human again."

"Alright!" Wait… "What about my magic? Will that go away?"

"No, that’s the best part! If I’m right, I can have you keep that too. Hey, I could even turn you into a unicorn." She giggled at the thought.

"No way!" He imagined himself walking on all fours and gagged. "No thanks, I just want to be me again."

"Right. Oh, but I don’t think I can do this before the show, Spyro."

"Oh…"

She smiled again, and walked up to him. Then she placed one of her hooves on his shoulder. "You want others to know you use… are human? Hmm…" Twilight took a seat, trying to think of a plan. Behind them, the library door started to open. In walked Claws, Spike and Trixie.

"Spyro?" Trixie questioned. "Are you alright? It’s okay if you're nervous, but I promise you, putting on a show like this is not that big of a deal."

Twilight looked to Trixie and grinned, much to the mare’s confusion.





"Are you sure they won’t freak out?"

Trixie, Twilight, Spike and Claws looked at Spyro. They all had smiles on, though the two dragons looked far more nervous. Trixie laughed a bit. "I don’t think so, this mini show Twilight spoke of is a wonderful idea. Are you sure you don’t mind taking over for…"

Spike waved a claw to stop her. "It’s fine! I got this. I did a few shows myself." Spike inspected his claws in a rather bored manner, though Twilight could tell he was faking a bit. What she spoke of was a quick change of plans. Spike would deliver the lines for the main show and Spyro and Twilight had another idea for what Spyro could do. Though it was mainly Twilight’s idea, Spyro didn’t mind it and was actually rather excited.

Spyro nodded, looking at the slightly altered sign for the show.



 Trixie Illusionary Daring Do Tale, Featuring Human Magic! 



Spyro still felt odd. "Um, you know humans aren’t magic though."

Twilight nodded but then winked at him. "I think you’re magic enough, Spyro." The cheesy line warmed his heart. It sounded cool to him at least!

"Okay, but you said my world would scare them," he said, remembering her exact words.

"I’ve been wrong before. The illusions we chose certainly won’t. They might even make them laugh," Twilight shot back.

"Alright…" Spyro said nothing after that and chose to simply take in some deep breathes and to try and memorize his little speech, which wasn’t much. There wasn’t too much to say until the show started, which was in a few minutes. He could see practically half the town had shown up. Funny what something free does to anyone. Twilight and Pinkie tried to reassure him over and over that the ponies of this town were actually a pretty friendly bunch, that he had nothing to worry about, but he was still nervous.

"Phew, talk about work!" Pinkie exclaimed, walking up to him and then slowly falling down onto the ground as she wiped some sweat off her forehead. "How you holding up, Son?"

"Okay. A-are you ready?"

"Yep! I may have passed out baked goods and treats to basically everypony in Ponyville, but your old mom is ready for an announcement!"

He never said it, but every time Pinkie or someone else had mentioned that he had a mom, it made him feel so great inside. Like he literally had a second chance in life and things were just so much better than they used to be. Trixie came up behind them and clapped her hooves. "Okay, everypony ready? And everydragon? Uh, human?"

"It’s body."

Trixie was set to walk away and then turned back to face Spyro. "Hmm?"

"When you say, uh, humans you don’t say ‘everyhuman’. You say ‘everybody’."

"Oh, alright then. Everybody ready?" She smiled down at him.

"Yeah… Are you?"

"I am. It starts in just a few minutes…" She trailed off and watched him look down, a familiar gesture. She gently raised her hoof and tilted his chin to lock eyes with him. "You’ll do great. Just take deep breaths and remember what Twilight said."

"That they're not all jerks?"

Trixie frowned and looked back to face Rainbow, who was whistling by herself, avoiding eye contact. "No, that’s what Rainbow said, but I suppose it means the same thing."

He smiled, feeling calmer at least. Spike was already on stage before Spyro knew what was happening. "Mares and Gentlecolts, thank you all for coming tonight. In a moment, you will all witness some of Ponyville’s residents in Trixie’s new show based on the characters from the Daring Do series of novels!" His voice echoed throughout the audience, causing quite a few to applaud. "But first, we wanted to show you a miniature show, if you will. Give a round of applause for Spyro and his Human Magic!"

Spyro did not hesitate to walk up on stage, something that surprised him. After all, the action literally made him the center of attention. This is where he hesitated, where the very thing he was about to do seemed far too extreme. He knew he couldn’t back out now or he would ruin the show for good. He took a deep, shuddering breath and fully opened his eyes. The audience looked on expectantly. He quickly looked to the right to see Trixie smiling at him with her horn lit ablaze. She’s ready… Then he looked to the left, seeing his mom smiling brightly at him. Let’s do this.

He immediately slammed his fist onto the stage below, much to the shock of the ponies in the audience. That’s where the magic that had been idling, waiting to be released, did just that. A blue aura started to seep out and swiftly cover the dragon’s body. The whistling noises slowly died down, as did the magic. What was left of the dragon made the audience gasp. Spyro looked to his newly formed hand, recognizing it immediately. A nostalgic feeling washed through him. He knew he was always still him, but just seeing it helped. He slowly stood back up and smiled to the audience. Then he cleared his throat.

"Hello. My name is Spyro. Some… of you may have noticed two new dragons in your town," he said, remembering the speech he had practiced. Some nodded and others simply looked on, their curious gazes never wavering. "Well, the first is named Claws. He’s one of my friends and is very friendly. You see, I had somehow ended up on the island where dragons come from. He helped me and I helped him escape that place on a ship." While he was talking, Trixie had conjured up vague images of his story. It was to help ease the audience into the entirety of the show. "Eventually, we met some real nice ponies who took us in. My mom…" He trailed off and looked over to Pinkie, who nodded. "…Pinkie Pie" – the name caused several ponies to murmur – "didn’t mind that I wasn’t normal. The way I now look is how I used to be."

He stopped talking for a moment and examined himself while the audience did the same. His tan skin almost seemed foreign to him. He chuckled at his blue button up shirt, something he did not miss. Going out naked was fine with him. Finally, he straightened up his hair with his hands.

"I’m a human. We’re creatures that don’t live in Equestria. I’m not sure how I ended up here… as a dragon. But I don’t care. I have friends. I have a mother now. I don’t live in an orphanage anymore and I even have magic!" His arms snapped to attention forming a ‘y’ shape, spitting off from his fingers came sparks of his own magic. He wasn’t casting any specific spell, but it did the job. Some of the ponies stomped their hooves in approval. He even saw his new teacher there. He figured she now understood why she hadn’t heard of New York. "I may not look this way when I’m done, but I just wanted to let the whole town know that this is who I am. I’m human…" He paused and, slowly, the illusion that was his old body flickered out of existence. "…no matter what happens. A good teacher taught me that magic can be funny. It may have made me a dragon, but I’ll always be human." Each sentence came out slowly. Memorizing even this small speech was more difficult than he had thought. There was no way he would be able to host the rest of the show! "Anyway, this is what we meant with ‘human magic’." He slowly smirked. "Although I do want to show you more of my world during Nightmare Night. But for now I just wanted to show you all that I may be weird, but I’d be glad to be a friend to any of you." Unbeknownst to the audience, he had occasionally tilted his head to reach a cue card that his mom had prepared. His words still were his own though. He just needed a little help to say it all in one go.

The stomping of hooves was started by none other than Miss Cheerilee. From there, the rest of the ponies joined her, cheering for the human-turned-dragon. He slowly bowed. "Thank you. Friendship can be pretty neat. A new friend of mine learned that. Trixie, a mare you might all know, also wanted to be welcome in town. Some of my mom’s friends were wronged by her, but they forgave her. She wanted to put on this show to show you all what she really can do." Suddenly, the nervousness he had felt finally faded. He had said the entire speech without messing up once. The hard part was over with. "So, who wants to see some Daring Do?" He asked the audience. Trixie had not actually expressed how he was supposed to introduce the main show. So he guessed. The cheering audience was his response. "Then welcome Trixie and her amazing magic!"

From there, the main show began, slowly at first but quickly picking up and moving at full force. Spyro could tell that Trixie was straining her magic to its limit. The series of Daring Do was playing live, using illusions to surround Rainbow Dash. It was like watching a live play only with the visuals and special effects of a film. He felt a hoof nudge his side and looked over to find his mom.

"That was great, Son. Do you feel better?"

He looked down at his claws and smiled. "Yeah. Yeah I do."

"Great! Then let’s go enjoy the show!"

The very first part of the show the ponies looked somewhat confused. Pinkie thought it was due to Spyro’s speech and little show of his. Maybe they were wanting something bigger and expecting ‘human magic’ to be more than just a speech. It didn’t matter though. The rest of the show they all thoroughly enjoyed.

Spyro certainly enjoyed it since he was standing next to Trixie the whole time. He and Pinkie Pie had a sort of back view of the whole show that somehow still worked. He didn’t fully understand her illusion magic yet, but it didn’t matter. To him, it just looked like a hologram, which was epic in his opinion. Holograms still didn’t exist where he came from, at least, he didn’t think so.

After a solid three hours, Trixie’s horn finally blinked out, extinguishing her magical flow. As soon as the curtain closed, Spyro was certain his eardrums were going to rupture from the noise. It was clear they had enjoyed it.

"Excuse me, Spyro," Trixie said. She was walking away with confidence, smirking all the way. Rainbow soon followed, being the only one in the actual show as did Spike, being the narrator. Out of all of them, Rainbow looked the most tired. Her role required her to fly all around stage, do tricks and memorize plenty of lines.

Spyro and his mom watched the three walk out on stage and take a bow. The audience somehow grew louder. The dragon watched on with his claws firmly clamped over his ears, which he somehow just noticed were odd-feeling fin-like… things.

"Thank you all!" Trixie cheered. "But I wouldn’t be standing here if it wasn’t for these ponies." She paused and cast a quick spell, illuminating the five seated in the audience. Rarity, Twilight, Fluttershy and Applejack blushed. They had helped out with what they could. "Rainbow Dash." The crowd cheered a bit louder as the mare in question did a few loops in the air. "Finally, I would like to thank Spyro. He was the one courageous enough to ask for my friendship when I honestly wanted nothing to do with it at the time. He pushed me into all of this, the show and my new friends…"

Spyro looked dumbfounded and then yelped when a certain pink mare picked him up and bounced him onto her back. "C’mon, the crowd’s waiting for ya!"

He instinctively grabbed onto his mom and soon he found himself in front of the cheering crowd. This was different than before though. Instead of feeling better about himself, he felt pride. He slowly stood up from his mom’s back and bowed with the rest.





After thanking ponies for coming personally and even giving a few autographs, Trixie was on her way back to her trailer, humming a simple melody to herself.

"Hey, Trixie! Where you going?"

She smiled wider, hearing the familiar voice would always be welcome now. She turned around. "Spyro, I’m heading back to my trailer. Why?"

"Oh… you just live in it?"

"Yes. I find it quite comfortable. Twilight offered me a place to stay, but I told her I don’t mind earning a place of my own. So long as I’m welcome here, it shouldn’t be too hard."

"Oh, okay… Uh, I think everyone is going back to my place for something. Wanna come?"

She tapped one of her hooves on the floor a few times. "Hmm… very well. Probably an after-party."

He nodded and they walked there together.





Spyro squinted his eyes, looking at his home. "Hey, Trixie? Were there always things in the windows?"

"Hmm, I’m not sure. Maybe they redecorated… Place could stand to be more subtle if you ask me."

He rolled his eyes and hopped off her back. He noticed he was getting used to just riding ponies in a casual way. Some part of him thought it was wrong, yet nopony seemed to mind. Spyro hopped off her back and slowly opened the front door. "Mom?"

He gasped, seeing the site of dozens of ponies facing him. "Surprise!" Even though he saw them, it still shocked him. A tingling sensation shot out through his horns. They started to pulsate.

"No, Spy—" Twilight tried to call from the crowd.

Spyro felt warm for a few moments. Blinding amounts of magic pulsated all around his body. He didn’t understand what was happening, but he was sure it wasn’t bad. It started to feel right, not pleasant, but like something he had not felt in ages. The magic and the noises it made died out quickly. He looked to his hands. Why did she use her illusion spell? He looked to Trixie, giving him a similar lost look.

"Spyro, are you okay?" he heard Pinkie ask.

He looked down to his body and hesitantly touched all over. That’s not an illusion… He was wearing pajamas, very familiar looking pajamas. The kind with tiny spaceships all over. It was the set of clothes he had worn when he went to bed not too many nights ago. He was human again and it felt great.

Twilight walked away from the crowd of ponies, towards him. "Spyro? What did you do?"

"I don’t know… I, um." He squinted his eyes on his fingernails, something felt off about them. He touched his index finger with his other hand, he felt the claws were still there. The horns still existed. "I think… I wanted to be myself again."

She tilted her head to the side. "You…" She trailed off and shook her head a few times. "That doesn’t…"

Pinkie Pie walked up to her and nuzzled her cheek. "Twilight, we still have a party to give. My son’s party!"

"But I thought no parties…" Spyro said.

"Twilight said it was alright now, right?"

Twilight wanted to scream no. If a simple surprise was enough to physically change his body then what else could go wrong?! She bit her lip and looked to the hopeful Spyro and smiling Pinkie, then sighed. "Yes, but—"

"Let’s party!" Pinkie cheered.

The other ponies who were standing off to the side reluctantly cheered too, wondering just what had happened, but not caring enough to ask. Spyro took a seat off to the side, feeling his body all over. He didn’t care that much about the party right then. It was obvious the other ponies weren’t bothered by him either. He felt right. I don’t get it… Just turning back bothered him just as much as it did Twilight.

"Hey!" He blinked and looked down from his seat. "Wow, you’re taller this way!"

It was Scootaloo. He blinked and just now noticed that she was right, humans were, in fact, taller than ponies. Even in a child’s body, he would tower over the Crusaders and was slightly taller than his mom even.

"What’s with the funny pajamas?" Sweetie poked his pants, feeling them down his leg.

He giggled. "Stop. That tickles!"

She giggled back and complied. He looked over to Apple Bloom who had her face scrunched up in confusion the whole time. 

"What?"

"Oh, well… you look funny, is all."

He looked down at himself again. "What do you mean?"

"Ah dunno. Sorry, ah don’t mean to stare."

"It’s okay, and I’m wearing these because… I slept in them before I came to Equestria."

"But how’d you get here?"

"I don’t know. I…" He really didn’t know. he also didn’t know why he was human again. "I don’t know."

Apple Bloom tilted her head. "You just ended up here?"

He shrugged. "Maybe I had magic back on Earth?"

As silly as that sounded, the three seemed to buy it. It did seem possible given what they saw Spyro do before. He stood up and walked over towards Twilight. She looked at him in a different light. He still seemed childish, but just so foreign. "Do you know why I’m human again?"

For a few moments, she said nothing. She felt fine to just relax and enjoy the party. "Maybe… maybe you always were, like you said before. It’s possible that you had magic within you this whole time and it needed to be set free. You just needed a magical burst like back in the castle to…" He looked at her, not really understanding, so she sighed. "It was magic. Does it matter that much?"

"But don’t you want to know how?"

"I do. I really do. I’m sure we can figure it out together, but for now this is your party and it’s long overdue."

He smiled and figured she was right. Why ruin a good thing?

> Epilogue: A Friendship Lesson
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Um, I don’t know about this, guys," Twilight said, watching two ponies and a human smile at her.

"Ah, c’mon, Twi. The friendship report was your idea," Spike said with his arms crossed.

She rolled her eyes. "Yes, but I typically… No, I don’t write them with two people at once!"

Spyro scratched his head. "What do I write exactly?"

She sighed. "Just whatever is in your heart. You two and myself can switch off, I suppose.

Pinkie, Trixie and Spyro looked at each other and then shrugged. After about fifteen minutes of debating, they had finally written it. Twilight added a line of her own and a few grammar fixes to Spyros part, then had Spike send it off.





Princess Celestia was sipping tea along with her sister. "So, sister, have you heard from your student lately? I’m curious how young Spyro is doing."

She shook her head. "No, Luna. It is a bit odd. Perhaps I should…" A swift noise, followed by a rolled up parchment materialized in front of them. "Oh! Well, speak of the devil."

Luna clapped her hooves. "Open it, do it! Now! I command thee!"

Celestia deadpanned. "Really?" Luna blushed and Celestia slowly opened the letter.



 Dear Princess Celestia,

It’s me, Spyro. I think I learned a lot about friends. See, I was feeling left out in Ponyville, only a few ponies wanted to be near me. Then I met a pony. Her name is Trixie. She offered me lessons in magic if I gave her food, then I wondered why she needed it. No one wanted her in their city or town, she had made a mistake in Ponyville with Twilight and soon everyone heard about it. She was lost and scared, so I offered to help. At first, she didn’t want help from Twilight, but after I told her she could trust her then she opened up. After a… crazy scheme that didn’t work we ended up putting on a free show for the town! Our plan was to get ponies to see that Trixie was a good pony. Trixie is amazing, she can perform illusions like you did only she doesn’t need memories. She barely read the Daring Do book and was soon bringing it to life, after that the town trusted her again. They saw she was sorry and they saw she was a good pony. Friendship is weird, I don’t think it has a real defa definition. But I sure like it and so does Trixie. Also, I’m doing good. I became human again and I can somehow switch back and forth! I feel great even! I love my my new mom and I love this world!

Spyro.



"Human again? How?"

"Lulu… I have no idea. I have faith my student is studying it right now though, perhaps it is best we don’t question it."

"Won’t the townsponies panic?!"

Celestia giggled. "While it is true our little ponies often over panic, I think Twilight would have informed me of a problem by now. He is a just a child, besides."

"True. I wonder what he looks like now."

"I’m sure we'll find out in time."

Another letter came into existence. "Another?"



 Dear Princess,

Hello, this is Trixie Lulamoon. I’m not quite sure what to write here, but Twilight insisted I try. I suppose I learned that no matter how many doors you close, there will always be more to open. I had wronged your student and her friends, humiliated them (and my self). She forgave me and so did her friends, eventually the town did as well. I suppose most of all, I learned to never underestimate somepony, be it the most magical pony in history (seriously you taught her well) or the smallest human.

Trixie Lulamoon. 



"I could get used to these reports…" Luna tapped a hoof under her chin, Celestia watching her curiously. "The positive attitude they contain is a breath of fresh air from the cynical bigots we deal with all day."

"Lulu, they are not all bigots. As—"

"Perhaps I shall get my own student!" Celestia’s eyes bulged out of her sockets. "Yes, I’ll have to go searching though…"

"I—" She was interrupted again by a third note. This one she knew came from her student. She sighed and smiled, unrolling it quickly.



 Dear Princess Celestia and Princess Luna,

I’m sorry it has taken so long to get back to you. I know you weren’t exactly pleased with me on my last visit. It’s in the past though. I’m glad you stood by my decision in the end. I know you just want what’s best for me and, of course, for Spyro in that case. In his letter, he informed you that he is now human again. I cannot fully explain this, but perhaps it doesn’t matter. There seems to be no harm in his transformation and he’s happy with things the way they are. You said Star Swirl came from a world with magic and Spyro came from one without, but perhaps Spyro’s did have magic. That Is just a guess though. Feel free to correct me if you can figure it out. Believe it or not, though, Spyro can now switch back to being a dragon at will. He prefers not to though. He likes being himself more and I think we all like him that way too. He still has his magic and he is living happily with Pinkie Pie. He has friends and a family in the form of the Pie’s. He now goes to school, as you know, and is very intelligent. His magic knows no limits. Given enough time he could surpass my own. I’m proud of him as my first student.

Claws is doing well too. He has taken quite a liking to the Apple family. He can be quite helpful around town, just like Spike. Anyway, I would write a lesson about friendship here, but Trixie and Spyro said everything I wanted to say. I’m looking forward to seeing you both in a week.



"Well, that sort of answers that… Why does she get a student and not me?!"

Flashbacks to a nightmarish time when her sister was really her little sister flooded through Celestia’s mind. Temper tantrums in adult form would not be fun. "Lulu… Oh, nevermind."

The End