Growing older meant no longer being able to justify sleeping in late as much needed sleep for a growing baby dragon, not that the excuse held much water to begin with considering how late he'd try to stay up. Still, if there was any day to be allowed to sleep in, it should've been today, or at least, that's what Spike figured somewhat bitterly as he tried to record Twilight's massive shopping list while fighting back yawns.
"And finally, a dozen donuts from Sugar Cube Corner," Twilight finished. "Remember, a dozen donuts, that's the very last thing. Got all that, Spike?"
Spike rubbed his eyes and held up the roll of parchment that fell past his knees. "Okay, six packs of standard goose quills, eighteen orders of ink, milk and eggs from the grocers that won't be opened for another hour." He paused. "You sure I can't just stop by Applejack's and Fluttershy's?"
"No!" Twilight shouted, her hooves slamming on the table. "Ahem, no, no, Fluttershy's chickens are, um, sick. Yeah, they're sick with chickenpox, so we can't use their eggs."
"And the cows on Applejack's farm?"
"Also sick," Twilight replied. "With chickenpox."
Spike's brow rose. "The cows are sick, with chickenpox," he deadpanned. He glanced at the unicorn leaning against the wall on the other side, watching as she ate an apple. In response, Starlight Glimmer gave him an unhelpful shrug.
"Did I say chickenpox?" Twilight coughed. "No, I said--" She lowered her voice to an unintelligible mumble. "Anyways, you'd better hurry," she said, vanishing with a flash and appearing beside Spike in another flash. She pushed him toward the toward door. "And remember, you need to follow the list in the exact order it's in."
"Yeah, so you keep saying." Spike rolled the list into a neat scroll.
Starlight Glimmer stepped forward to his side. "Don't worry, Twilight, I'll make we get everything," she assured. Something must have gotten into her eye just then, perhaps some leftovers from the sandpony's visit, forcing her to wink to dislodge it. Twilight Sparkle must have suffered from something similar as she winked back.
The two made their way to the front door, with the princess following closely behind. Spike stifled another yawn as he reached forward and pulled open the door. Two ponies stood at the entrance, blocking their path Both mares carried bags with colorful streamers sticking out of the tops, which they quickly set down behind them, out of Spike's view.
"Hey, Applejack, Rainbow Dash. What's up?"
"Hey, Spike," the pegasus with the rainbow mane greeted. "What are you doing here?"
"I live here?" Spike tried to look past her to peek at the bags she was hiding. The pegasus mimicked his every motion, blocking his every curious attempt. The triumphant grin she wore disappeared once her companion, an earth pony, swatted her with the wide brimmed farm hat the orange mare had been wearing.
"'Course you do, Spike," the earth pony said, ignoring the annoyed glare the pegasus shot at her, her words accented by a rural emphasis. "Just, we figured Twilight'd have you out runnin' errands about now." She tilted her head to the side and glanced over at the alicorn standing behind Spike and Starlight.
"Actually, he was just leaving," Twilight said as she pushed Spike out and past Applejack and Rainbow. Starlight quickly followed. "Now why don't you two come in? I'm sure whatever you came here for must be important."
"Laying it a bit thick, aren't you?" Rainbow Dash whispered a little too loudly as the castle doors closed shut behind her. Spike and Starlight shared a look before shrugging and made their way into town. The castle's crystal spires eventually grew smaller, though never completely out of view.
"They're up to something, aren't they?"
Starlight Glimmer smirked. "I have no idea what you're talking about," she sang.
Spike sighed. "Okay then, I'll just practice pretending to be surprised." He unraveled the scroll. "So first, quills. The quill and sofa shop should be pretty close by."
"Say Spike," Starlight suddenly interjected, "how about we take the scenic route?"
Spike looked up from the list. "What scenic route? And why? I can see the store from here," he said, pointing out to the distance.
"Yeah, I know, but I figured this would be a great opportunity to get to know Ponyville, you know, as a town. Get to know the layout, where everything is, all the stores, that sort of thing."
"But, but you've been living here for years!"
"Have I? Well, better late than never."
Spike groaned as he planted his face into his palm. "Alright, which way to the scenic route?"
The sun soon rose to its peak as the clocktower chimed away the hours for all the town to know. The scroll Spike held in his claw was replaced with several paper bags filled to the brim with groceries and odds and ends. Starlight trotted next to him, munching away at a caramel glazed donut, the remaining eleven in a little pink paper box on her back.
"Alright, finally, that's everything," Spike said. "Let's head home. I'm dying for a nap."
"You sure we have everything?" Starlight asked. "Maybe we should quadruple check the list, you know, to be sure."
"We have everything."
"But isn't it better to be safe than--"
"We have everything," Spike repeated a little more forcefully. His glare was met with the frustrating grin Starlight had worn practically the entire trip. With a sigh, the dragon continued his way toward the castle. He could already see the front entrance, and it drew closer with every step.
They arrived at last before the front doors. "Hey, Starlight? Could you..." Spike, with his arms full, motioned toward the doors.
"Hmm?" Starlight looked up from her donut. "Sorry, what?"
"Never mind." Spike leaned his shoulder against the doors and pushed. The doors slowly creaked open, and he stepped forward. A burst of confetti and strips of colored paper flew out to greet him. His eyes widened, and his mouth fell open. A mix of turquoise and violet lights covered the bags in his arms as Starlight and Twilight took hold of the groceries placed them to the side
"Happy birthday, Spike!" everypony cheered. Nudged forward by Starlight, Spike stepped inside. The entire hall had been decorated with streamers and balloons, many of them green and purple. Pinkie Pie bounced by and strapped a party hat neatly over one of his head spikes. As he made his way to the center, where a table of snacks and sweets stood, he received pats on the back and playful punches on the shoulders. Twilight Sparkle stood at the table, her own hat covering her horn as she served fruit punch into cups.
"Happy birthday, number one assistant," the princess said, smiling as she gave held a cup toward him. Spike accepted it with a smile of his own.
"Thanks, Twilight." He looked around. "Wow, this is, wow, thanks."
His arm suddenly felt heavier. Spike turned and found Pinkie Pie leaning against him, staring at hum intently. She hummed thoughtfully as she rubbed her chin. "You don't look all that surprised," she determined.
"I am, I am," Spike quickly assured as he tried to move away. "I mean, I figured something was up, but I just thought I'd come back to some cake, not all this." He gestured to the table that was covered in pies, candied apples, cotton candy, chocolate fountains with fruits and emeralds, fritters and strudels, and cupcakes with frosting and sprinkles piled high. Starlight Glimmer placed their box of donuts with the rest of pastries. He eyed the massive cake in the very center, multiple layers of flavors coated with vanilla frosting with several large shards of sapphires, topaz, chocolate, and strawberries sticking out along the edges, the longest. He forced down the saliva flooding his mouth. "And you even decorated the castle. I mean, that couldn't have been easy."
"Tell me about it," Rainbow Dash groaned as she squeezed by and grabbed a cup of punch before turning to Spike. "So, still no wings yet?"
Spike glanced over at his back. He shrugged. "Guess not year, either."
"Bummer." Rainbow gulped down her drink as Applejack now approached. "So, how're you feeling?"
"Pretty good. I mean, I'm surrounded by good food and friends," Spike answered with a motion of his arms. "So, yeah, pretty good."
"What, you don't feel any different?" Rainbow Dash scoffed. "Come on, you're an adult now. Don't tell me you feel the same."
"Hey now, pretty sure he's got another year to go," Applejack said. "'Course, that's still pretty excitin'."
"It is?" Spike tilted his head and hummed. He shrugged after a moment. "Nope, not feeling it, sorry."
"What?" Everyone winced at Pinkie's shriek. The pink pony placed her hooves on Spike's chest and leaned into his face. "How can you not be excited? It's your birthday!"
"No, wait, I'm excited for that," Spike said hurriedly with his arms raised. "Honest, it just doesn't feel that much different from any other birthday."
"Why would it?" asked Twilight as she pulled Pinkie away. "It's just another year."
"Pft, I'm sure you'd think that," Rainbow Dash said with a smirk. "Bet you spent yours with your family or something like that."
"Library, actually," Twilight answered.
"Yeah, thought so." Rainbow tried to swing her foreleg around Spike's shoulders. Her second attempt, as she hovered closer to Spike's height, was more successful. "Next year, leave it to me and Applejack. We're going to start your adult life right."
"Hey, I'm not agreein' to nothin'," Applejack protested. "Don't go volunteerin' me."
"Aw, comes on, AJ. You owe me a rematch. You know the only reason I lost was because I had a cold."
Applejack rolled her eyes. "No, you lost cause you're a lightweight."
"Oh, you'd better take that back."
"Hey, you didn't mention me," Pinkie Pie exclaimed. "How could you possible have such a fun time without me? That's like, having a cupcake without sprinkles. Or frosting. Or sugar and flour."
"Because I want to show Spike a good time, not completely nuke his liver." Rainbow turned to Twilight. "Uh, dragons have livers, right?"
"Livers? Yeah, I, wait. No! Spike's too young for that," Twilight shouted. "I already told you when I took away that bottle of yours. You better not have touched the punch."
"Ha, another year and you won't be able to stop him," Rainbow Dash laughed. Twilight grabbed the staff leaning against the piñata. As Rainbow danced away from Twilight's clumsy swings, the castle hall filled with laughter that doubled once Pinkie Pie managed to tie a piece of cloth over Twilight's eyes. Laughter quickly became gasps and shouts as the front door opened and Fluttershy stepped right into Twilight's swing.
The stick stopped less than a foot from Fluttershy's head. Twilight's blindfold slid off. The alicorn gasped and let the stick drop. "Fluttershy, I'm so sorry. Are you alright?"
"Umm hmm." Fluttershy began to sway. "Oh, I'm fine. I feel g--" She collapsed, and the group quickly gathered around her. They carried her to the snack table, and a few cups of punch and a cupcake later, Fluttershy was back on her feet, laughing off Twilight's apology.
"It's alright, really. I was just surprised that's all." The pegasus turned to Spike. "Happy birthday Spike. Sorry I wasn't here to help with the decorations. Angel was having a little trouble picking this out for you."
She extended her hoof toward Spike. From it, Spike accepted a carrot, a little longer than his smallest finger, with a small bow crudely tied around it. "Oh, uh, thanks," Spike said, dangling the vegetable by its stem. "A carrot, my sixth, no, fifth favorite root. He really shouldn't have."
"I'll be sure to let Angel know how much you appreciate it. Um, it is okay, right?" Fluttershy rubbed her front hooves together nervously. "You aren't going to grow into a big mean dragon now, are you?"
"Something like that should be fine," Twilight replied. "How are you feeling, Spike?" she asked, turning to the dragon.
"Still not too different," Spike answered with a shrug.
Fluttershy sighed. "Oh, that's good. So, is everypony else here?" She looked around the hall. "Am I the last one here?"
"Almost," Starlight replied. "Looks like Rarity's not here yet."
Pinkie Pie bounced by. The balloon she rode popped, and she dropped right next to Starlight. "Come to think of it, I don't think I've seen Rarity since telling her about the party."
"You think we should go check up on her?" asked Twilight. There were a few mutters of agreement.
Fluttershy turned to Spike. "Um, has Rarity spoken to you recently?"
Spike shook his head. "No, not for a while anyways. Why?"
"Oh, nothing, no reason," Fluttershy said quickly. Her gaze fell. "I just thought, maybe, maybe she would have by now."
"Aw, come on, the party just got started," Rainbow Dash said dismissively. "You guys know Rarity, she's probably just, you know, fashionably late like she always is."
"That does sound like Rarity," Applejack agreed with a nod. More nods joined her until only Fluttershy and Spike looked uncertain. "Guess there's no reason to start worryin' just yet. She'll show up sooner or later."
Applejack's words were punctuated with a solid strike against Spike's arm. Slowly, as he was pulled over to the first round of pin the tail on the dunked, he broke into a smile.
"Yeah, yeah, you're probably right."
Laughter once again filled the castle as Twilight stumbled by, trying to stick the tail onto Rainbow Dash's nose.
*
Rarity's first sign that something was off was how much cooler the morning air was. Her grabs for the covers produced only more cool air, and as she grew more aware, she realized just how hard and uncomfortable the pillow against her head was. It wasn't just the pillow, she soon concluded as feeling returned to her body, but the entire bed. Or rather, as Rarity discovered once she opened her eyes, the lack of bed. Instead, she found herself slouched over a desk with her head against her sewing machine.
Every part of Rarity's body screamed in soreness as she stretched. Further examination confirmed her suspicions that she was not in her bedroom. The desk covered in sketches and seaweed wrappers, the sewing machine that was thankfully free of her mane, and the rolls of cloths and the pony mannequins around her all suggested that her workroom had served as her sleeping quarters. An odd place to bed for the night, Rarity figured. What could have possible driven her to sleep in such an uncomfortable position when there was a perfectly fine bed in the room nearby? She rubbed her neck and groaned. She'd have to schedule an immediate trip to the spa once she finished the suit.
Spike's suit! Spike's birthday!
Rarity's eyes flew open. She ran along the edge of the workroom, unraveling cloths in a frenzied panic as she searched, stopping only once she found the jacket and pants combination folded neatly in the corner. Rarity unfolded the black jacket, her hooves brushing against the collar, smooth as silk, and sighed in relief. She had managed to finish everything in time, right down to polishing those little brass buttons until they shined like gold.
It was finished. Now, she just had to wrap the gift, present it to Spike, then get him alone. She had postponed long enough, it was time the two of them had a chat. After a shower and a fair amount of brushing, she added, noting her rough waking appearance. Rarity walked over to the window and brushed aside the curtains. It was already pretty late in the day. When did Pinkie Pie say the party was? Rarity couldn't remember, but surely there would be time for a shower.
She exited the workroom and made her way toward the bathroom, only for a loud knock on her door to interrupt her. Rarity frowned and shifted her path down the stairs and toward the front door. Now who could that possibly be? She wasn't expecting any visitors today, and she was certain she made sure the boutique appeared closed for the day. Yes, the closed sign was still up, so it probably wasn't a customer.
Well, there was little point in continued speculation, Rarity reasoned as she reached for the door handle. The door opened. What she found nearly caused her heart to skip a beat.
Spike stood in front of her holding a plate with a slice of cake on it. He seemed almost surprised that the door opened, but the odd confusion was swiftly replaced with a small smile and a wave. Rarity returned the wave even as she felt her stomach beginning to twist.
"Spike, this is, well, this is a surprise," she said. "I do hope I don't sound sound too direct, but, well, what are you doing here?"
"Me? Oh, I, uh, came to see you," Spike answered. "You weren't at the party, and we waited for a couple of hours before we realized none of us knew how long fashionably late meant, so we decided to check up on you, you know, make sure you were okay." He held the plate out to her. "I brought cake, just in case you weren't in the mood for a party. It's not much, but it's a pretty good cake. I already took out all the gems since, I figured, you'd probably wouldn't be able eat those."
"Ah, thank you Spike. It looks--" Her stomach churned violently. A wave of familiar nausea crashed over her. "Excuse me," Rarity managed to say before hastily retreating back inside. She ran, her hooves barely touching the floor as she charged to the bathroom, not even bothering to shut the door before collapsing against the toilet and threw up into the bowl.
"Rarity? Are you--"
"Get out! Stay--" A fresh torrent of vomit forced her head back into the toilet. Her throat grew sore and mouth turned dry as the last bits of bile and digested food left her stomach and splashed into the pool of water at the bottom. With one shaky hoof supporting her against the toilet seat, Rarity reached for the lever to flush away the physical evidence of her sickness. Her hoof slips, and she pitched over. A pair of powerful claws grabbed hold of her, saving her from a face full of toilet water and vile vomit.
"Thank you," Rarity said weakly.
"Yeah, no problem. Um, sorry for coming in after you, well, said not too."
"It's fine." Slowly, Rarity got to her feet. "I would like a moment, however, to get cleaned up."
"Oh, yeah, of course." Spike released her and stepped outside. "I'll, um, just leave the cake in the kitchen, and, um, do you want me to, should I go home?"
Yes. She nearly answered yes. Any confidence she had for today had been flushed with the waste. "No. Can you wait in the kitchen?" Rarity said instead. "I'll be with you shortly."
"Yeah. Yeah." And with that, Spike left the bathroom. Rarity made her way to the sink and lifted her toothbrush. Covering the bristles with toothpaste, she went to work, brushing away until the taste of vomit was replaced with mint, finishing the task with a couple of mouthfuls of mouthwash. She rinsed the toothbrush and quickly gave her hair a few quick brushes before checking the mirror. She sighed. There wasn't much she could do to salvage her mane with what little time she said, sleeping against a hard sewing machine having done her no services.
Rarity left the bathroom and walked to the kitchen. The cake sat in the center of the table. The dragon stood close by, stopping in the middle of a pace. She gestured, and Spike took a seat at the table. Rarity joined him.
For several moments, they sat there silently. Occasionally, there was an audible inhale as they both prepared to speak, only to immediately exhale to allow the other talk first. "So," Rarity managed to say, "was this from your birthday cake?" She pointed to the slice on the table.
"Yeah," Spike replied. "It's yours."
"Thank you. Perhaps later, however."
"Oh, right, right. Um, how're you feeling?" Spike asked.
"Better. A little better. I haven't been feeling too good lately," Rarity explained. "It's, well, I just haven't been feeling all that well."
"Oh. Have you gotten it checked out?"
Rarity shook her head. "Not yet. Soon." She bit her lip.
"Rarity, have you, have you been avoiding me?"
She flinched. Her head suddenly grew heavy, and she found it difficult to raise. Rarity nodded.
"Does it have to do with what happened the night you came back from Manehattan?"
Again, Rarity nodded. She heard Spike exhale. She glanced up. Spike sat there with his head lowered and with one claw clutching the opposite arm. "I'm sorry," she heard him say. "I know I can't take back what I said, but if it makes you this uncomfortable, you, you can pretend I didn't say anything." Spike's voice was shaking. He sounded close to tears. "I don't, I didn't mean, if it means getting our friendship back the way it was before--"
"Getting our friendship back to how it was before?" Rarity's heart sank. What was he trying to say? "Spike, after that night, how can we possible go back to how things were before?"
"I just thought, maybe with a spell or a potion from Zecora--"
"A spell? A potion? Are you, how could you--"
"If you forgot my confession, everything would be back to normal." Spike rubbed his eyes. "If you didn't remember what I said, then everything would be back to normal. Then maybe we'd still be friends."
"I, confession?" Rarity blinked. The storm of heartbreak now competed with a symphony of confusion as she tried to interpret Spike's words. The uneasy mix of emotions made her head spin. "What confession?"
"That night you came back, I told you that I, I, that I--" Spike swallowed. "That I love you. Isn't that why you've been avoiding me?"
"What? No, that's not it at all. I, I don't even remember you saying that. You actually said that?"
"Oh." Spike turned bright red. "Then, what's going on?"
"Spike, I'm pregnant. I'm pregnant, and you're the father."
Rarity expected the silence. Beyond that, she wasn't sure. Would Spike try to deny it, attempt to make excuses and alternative explanations? Would he make demands of evidence? Shouts, whimpers, accusations? Rarity braced herself, her eyes closed shut, her hooves digging into the kitchen table. And still the silence persisted, lasting far longer than Rarity had anticipated. The wait was becoming unbearable, the silence suffocating. She opened her eyes.
"Spike?" she said cautiously.
"That night," she heard the dragon mutter. "I was in your bed in the morning. So, you mean, we, that night we--" He gulped. "Um, Rarity?"
"Y-yes?" Rarity said, her voice just as nervous and unsteady.
"Are you mad at me?"
"Mad at you?" She blinked. "For what?"
"For, you know." Spike coughed. "The sex. And getting you pregnant. Is that why you've been avoiding me?"
"Mad? At you? I'm upset at myself. I'm the one who let this all happen, and then I couldn't even live with the aftermath. Instead, I just tried to hide. I was afraid of how you'd react, Spike, how you'd see me after learning the truth." Rarity turned away, refusing to look up at Spike. "If anything, you should be mad at me."
"At you? Why?"
"Because I'm the one who pulled you into all this. Because I'm the one who should have stopped myself when I had the chance but didn't, who couldn't control myself and ended up hurting you when I couldn't face my mistakes. And now you're stuck here dealing with my mistakes. After everything I've done, nopony would blame you for hating me."
Spike's claw slowly closed around Rarity's hoof. Reluctantly, she looked up. Spike stared back. Emerald eyes met azure ones. "Please stop blaming yourself. I don't hate you."
"You should."
"I don't. I could never."
"You're father now, because of me."
"You're pregnant, because of me. It's just as much as my fault. Do you hate me?"
"You were drunk."
"So were you."
Rarity fell silent. She placed her other hoof on top of Spike's closed claw. "You know this will change everything, right? Our lives, our relationship, nothing will be the same. We won't be able to go back to normal."
Spike nodded. "I'm okay with that. That is, as long as you are."
Rarity closed her eyes, then nodded. "Tomorrow I'm going to set up an appointment with the doctor."
"Okay."
"When they give me the news and make everything official, will you be there with me?" she asked.
"Yes, I'll be there."
"And when I'm too round to move and run the boutique?"
"I'll be there," answered Spike.
"And when it's time to foal?"
"I'll be right at you side, then and beyond, if you'll have me." He began to frown. "Um, should we start coming up with baby names?"
Rarity let a laugh escape. "Later, definitely later. For now, perhaps we should return to your party. And I believe I still have your gift to give."
"Oh, right, the suit. You really didn't have--"
Rarity's lips brushed against Spike's cheek, lingering for several long seconds. Even once the sun set and evening fell, Spike still felt the kiss's warmth.