“And you’re sure you’ll be fine while I’m gone?”
“Twilight…” Spike rolled his eyes in exasperation, leaning casually on Twilight’s heavy suitcase. “What part of ‘relax on a vacation’ did you not understand?”
Twilight Sparkle glanced away from watching the train tracks and double checking her checklist to give Spike a glare. “My vacation hasn’t started yet mister. I need to know I can really relax when I get to Canterlot. Mom specifically said she just wants casual one on one time with her daughter. I can’t focus entirely on her until I know you’ll be fine while I’m gone. You have the checklist I made you of chores to do while I’m away?”
“Got it right here, Twi,” Spike reassured, waving said list in her face as the Canterlot train finally rolled into the station. “I’ve been taking care of you for years now. I’m pretty sure I can handle a couple days on my own.”
Twilight rolled her eyes but let out a light laugh as she gathered her bag. “Alright, alright. I guess I can trust you for a couple of days. I just worry about you is all.”
“Twilight, I’m your number one assistant. What do you think I’m going to do?”
***
A few days later Spike strolled into SugarCube Corner, a light pink rose clutched in his claw and a smile on his lips. “Hey, Pinkie Pie! How is the cutest mare in town this fine evening? I heard the sun rose today just so it could see you again.”
Pinkie Pie, watching over a relatively free register, giggled at his cheesy line and bent over the counter to give her very-special-some-dragon a peck on the cheek. “Hi, Spikey Wikey! Haven’t seen you around in a while.”
“That’s actually why I’m here. See, Twilight’s been out of town on vacation for a few days and I’ve been working non-stop to get all my chores done early. So since I have nothing to do and Twi won’t be home ‘til tomorrow morning, do you wanna have the mini party we’ve been planning?”
Pinkie gasped so loudly that all two other ponies in the shop turned to stare at her. “Do I ever! Let me go get the snacks!”
And just like that she was gone in a pink blur up the stairs. While he waited, Spike busied himself with placing his rose in a nearby vase and calling out to the kitchen. “Mrs. Cake, can Pinkie sleep over at my place tonight?”
“Of course deary!” The reply came back, “Just makes sure she gets back in time for the lunch rush.”
“Okay, I will, thanks!”
Not very often, but once in awhile, he wondered what it would be like if one of them had their own place.
“I’m back!” Pinkie sing-songed as she trotted down the stairs, saddlebags packed with popcorn, candy, and cake swinging from her back. “Using Twilight’s super fancy projector to watch the Power Ponies Movie is going to be soooooooo much fun!”
Spike couldn’t help it, his excitement bubbled over he hopped in place a little. “I know! And the library has the best acoustics, plus Rainbow never got that giant screen from the Hurricane presentation back. This is going to be amazing!”
In one swift movement, Pinkie grabbed Spike’s top spine and expertly flipped him onto her back. “What are we waiting for then? Let’s go go go!”
***
A few minutes trot found the two in the town library, setting up for a long night of movie watching. Spike did one final check of the projector before hopping off the stool he used to set it up and turning back to Pinkie. “The movie’s ready! How’s the nest coming?” He called into the pile of blankets and pillows that were spread around the room in a kind of organized chaos pattern.
Pinkie Pie popped out of a particularly large pile of pillows, a bright smile on her face. “Super duper, Spikey! This is definitely the best blanket nest I’ve ever made. We’ll be so snug we might never ever wanna leave.”
“I sure hope so. We have enough snacks that I don’t plan on getting up for hours.” Spike grinned and backed up a few paces. “Here goes the comfy test. Cannonball!”
Pinkie let out a surprised squeak as Spike leapt right at her, sending the two of them tumbling through the blankets.
“Comfy test a success!” Spike crowed once the two had resurfaced, Pinkie giggling at his antics as she climbed her way out of a tangle of fabric.
Just then, the automatic timer on the projector ended and the movie started up. Spike quickly got settled into prime watching position and noticed with great pleasure that the blankets were set up at just the right slope that he could practically lay flat and still see the screen. He sighed in contentment and let all his tension ease off as he got ready to watch his favorite show.
A few minutes into epic crime fights and cheesy one liners, Spike was jerked back into reality when something pink and fluffy pressed onto his stomach. A quick glance down found Pinkie Pie using his belly as a makeshift pillow. She snuggled her head into his chest as the rest of her curled up into his side.
Spike couldn’t help but chuckle. “Comfy?”
“Mmmhmm,” Pinkie murmured into his scales, “is warm.”
Spike smiled fondly down at her and started gently running his claws through her poofy mane, mildly surprised at how smooth it was. He had been expecting at least a few tangles from her giant mass of hair but it seemed to actually be very well kept. His fascinated petting elected another sigh of contentment from the pony.
For a while they stayed like that, enjoying each others company, and watching Matterhorn freeze a lake to stop the newest villain. She was just in the middle of a hoof fight when Spike was once again distracted from the show. Pinkie’s ear flicked gently in time to the sound effects right under Spike’s chin. It just barely missed batting his face as it moved and Spike couldn’t help but stare at it. Suddenly the young dragon had a terrible idea. One that would definitely get him a scolding from Twilight if she ever found out. But Twilight wasn’t here so…
With one quick motion Spike tilted his head down and planted a quick kiss on his marefriend’s ear.
Scandalous.
The pink ear flicked away at the sudden sensation but a stifled giggle from the pony it was attached to gave Spike confidence. Gently, like he had read in some books Rarity had lent him, he took Pinkie’s ear in his mouth and nibbled it.
Pinkie yelped as razor sharp dragon teeth sank into her ear. She instinctively jerked up, trying to get away, and her head knocked into Spike’s chin, causing an unfortunate reaction of forcing his mouth shut with a snap. The bite on her ear was then quickly turned from a nibble into a chomp.
Pinkie squealed with pain and yanked herself away as Spike quickly spat and released her. She immediately lost her footing in the tangle of blankets and fell onto her side, clutching her ear with both front hooves.
“Pinkie!” Spike called, scrambling to her side, “Oh, my gosh I’m so sorry! Are you okay?”
“Ow ow ow ow,” Pinkie whimpered in reply, tears mixing with the thin line of blood running down her face.
Spike reeled back at the sight. “P-Pinkie… Don’t… don’t move! I’ll go get bandages and… and I’ll be back!” He sprinted down the hall as fast as his little legs could carry him, panic making him skid on the wood floor.
He burst into the kitchen and snagged the emergency bandages from their place under the sink, Twilight was unusually accident prone in food prep areas, and a damp washcloth off the counter and headed straight back to the library proper.
When he got back, Pinkie was in roughly the same spot he had left her. She wasn’t whimpering anymore but a few tears still leaked through her eyes every few moments. Spike rushed to her side and very gently took her hooves in his claws.
“Here, I got bandages. Let me fix you up,” He whispered soothingly as he lifted her hooves away from the wound. Who he was trying to sooth, however, was still up for debate.
As soon as her ear was free Spike set the damp cloth on it and started cleaning away the blood. Once it was clean, Spike was able to see that the wound wasn’t really that bad. Just a few shallow cuts that would heal completely in a day or two. Still, it was bleeding quite a bit more than Spike liked so he quickly bandaged her ear and set to work cleaning the trail of blood off Pinkie’s face.
He made eye contact with his marefriend as he cleaned her. She was no longer crying, though her eyes were still moist. Pinkie gave him a small lopsided smile. “Thanks Spikey,” She said with a laugh once he was done, “that was a doozy wasn’t it?”
Spike wanted to agree and join in on her infectious laughter, but as his lips twitched into a smile his tongue brushed the back of his teeth and tasted what was still stained on them.
Blood.
Pinkie’s blood.
Spike staggered back a few steps, feeling sick. Here he was, standing over his marefriend in an empty library, a cloth soaked in her blood and his mouth much the same. “I… I…” Spike mumbled, stumbling away from her, “I have to go wash up!” He turned and ran back the way he had come, not looking back as Pinkie called out to him in confusion.
When he reached the bathroom, Spike dove inside like his life depended on it. Throwing the bloody cloth into the sink and sticking his head right under the faucet, he turned on the tap and let the water flow into his mouth.
After a couple minutes and extensive rinsing, mouthwash, and teeth brushing, Spike felt clean enough to turn off the water and back away from the counter.
He didn’t leave the bathroom though. Spike simply stared at the now mostly clean washcloth, it would forever have a pink tinge stained into it.
“Stupid…” Spike muttered under his breath, sinking to the floor, his spined digging into the door as he slid down it. Tears filled his eyes and he fought down a sob as they cascaded down his cheeks. “Stupid, stupid, stupid.”
“Spike?” Pinkie’s voice came directly behind Spike, right on the other side of the door, and made him jump in surprise. “Spike, are you okay in there?”
“Y-yeah!” Spike called back, wiping his tears on his arm. “M-maybe you should just go home Pinkie. I… this wasn’t a good idea.”
There was silence for a few moments, and Spike almost believed she had really left, but it was shattered by Spike’s yelp as the door behind him swung away and he fell into something soft and warm.
“You didn’t lock the door, silly,” Pinkie said, wrapping her hooves around him when Spike tried to scramble out of her embrace.
“Pinkie let me go,” Spike protested, wriggling in her grip. He didn’t try too hard to escape, though. Fear held him back stronger than any hooves could. “I’m fine, really.”
“You were crying,” She said simply, leaning down and nuzzling the wet spots on his cheek.
“Yeah, well, so were you!” He growled, claws balling into fists, “And that was all my fault, so really we should be way more concerned about you.”
Pinkie was silent for a moment, and from Spike’s position nestled against her he couldn’t see her face to tell what she was thinking. “Spikey… that wasn’t your fault, and I’m a-okay now so you don’t need to worry.”
“Not my fault? I hurt you!”
“On accident.”
“I bit you on purpose!”
Pinkie snorted. “You were trying to nibble my ear! That’s not the same thing as biting me.”
“But it happened anyway didn’t it?” He yelled, staring down at his claws resting against soft forelegs. “I… I’m too dangerous. I hurt you without meaning too and messed up our night. I’m a mon...OW!”
He was cut off by Pinkie chomping down on his ear fin. Hard. Though Spike still couldn’t escape, he did manage to twist around and stare up at his captor.
“What did you do that for?!?”
Pinkie Pie frowned down at him. “I don’t like it when ponies talk badly about my special-some-dragon.”
“But I hurt you!”
“I just hurt you!”
Spike sputtered. “That isn’t… Pinkie! This isn’t a tallying score! Getting me back doesn’t undo it.”
Pinkie groaned, pulling him in closed so the two’s noses touched. “I didn’t do that to get back at you. I did that so you could see that just because you can hurt others doesn’t mean you’re a baddy.”
“But you did it on purpose,” Spike argued, trying to stare her in the eye while they were so close, “I did it on accident.”
“That’s worse?”
“YES! It means that even when I’m at my nicest I’m still a danger to everyone around me! I … I’m… Just look at me!” He shoved her back a little and threw his claws in front of her face. “I’ve got all these sharp points and hard scales and fire breath! I could hurt you really bad by just being around you. Sure you could hurt someone if you wanted to but not if you didn’t. I’m...I’m…”
Pinkie quickly squeezed him back into a hug as tears spilt down his face, letting him bury them in her curly mane.
“I’m sorry…”
“You don’t have to be,” She whispered back to him, holding him tight, “You can’t help how you are, and you can’t be taught the things no one else has experienced. We have to make these mistakes and be weirdos together, right? I’m always here for you Spikey and I’ve already forgiven you.”
Instead of being comforted he felt his heart ache at the words. “I know… It’s just… who I am but that just makes it worse…”
Spike felt Pinkie Pie huff underneath him and he had to bite back a yelp as he was suddenly lifted into the air, still hanging around her neck with one of her forelegs looped under his tail.
“P-pinkie!” He sputtered, gripping her neck instinctively, “Put me down. Where are we going?”
“You’re not listening to me,” Pinkie grumbled, heading back into the library where the movie was still running, “So I’m just going to have to cheer you up the old fashioned way.”
She trotted over to the slew of blankets that still covered most of the floor and, before Spike could protest, curled up next to a particularly tall lump. Her back pressed against the blankets while the little dragon was clutched in her forelegs.
Spike struggled a little, but if he was to be honest with himself, he was really just adjusting into a more comfortable position. It was nice, and soft, wrapped in his marefriend arms, his face buried in her mane.
Still he tried to protest. “Pinkie, this can’t be comfortable for you. I’m all hard and pokey.”
“A little,” She admitted, snuggling him more, “But you’re my hard, pokey dragon so I don’t really mind.”
Spike sat there for a moment, letting the rest of his wild emotions be squeezed out of him by surprisingly strong snuggles.
“Now you have to apologize,” Pinkie spoke up after a few moments of silence.
Spike managed to extract himself from her mane long enough to look into her shining eyes. “I… I thought I already did? But I can totally do it again if you need! I’m so…”
A quick kissed silenced him.
“Not about the bite silly,” Pinkie whispered to him, “About saying super meaning things about my super-special-some-dragon. I love him a whole lot you know.”
Spike blinked rapidly a few times, trying to clear the fog that had come with the kiss. “I’m sorry?” He eventual replied.
“You should be!” Pinkie declared, nuzzling his cheek, “He’s the best, most amazing, superiest pony I’ve ever met and I hate it when others treat him different just because he isn’t technically a pony.”
Spike shifted, trying to think up something to counter her words and his fierce blush.
She interrupted anything he was going to say before it could be formed. “I mean, he’s kind, and thoughtful, and a great cook, and does the best voices when he tells stories. He loves to help others and is so funny when ponies are acting silly but also likes to do silly things with me. And and and…” she squeezed him tightly, burying her face in his shoulder. “I just love him so much!”
Spike felt himself smile against his will, and hugged her back. “Well, he must be pretty lucky too, if he ended up having a marefriend a great as you.”
They sat like that for a time, just holding each other. Pinkie being heated by the dragon’s inner flame while Spike was warmed by the pony’s soft fur. Neither moving more than required to release their breaths into the still air. The only sound the crash of fake explosions coming from the projector.
Eventually, Pinkie whispered softly into Spike’s ear, “Do you feel better, Spikey?”
He looked up and gently kissed her on the tip of her nose. “Yeah… I think so. Thank’s Pinkie, you’re the best.”
“Do you still want me to go home?” She asked giving him a concerned look, “Cause if you need some alone time I can totally come back later.”
“No no no,” Spike assured, clinging to her tighter, “Can we just… stay like this for a while? This is perfect.”
Pinkie shifted to more comfortably snuggle him. “Of course we can.”
***
Later that night, Twilight Sparkle trudged through Ponyville towards the tree-library that was her home. Her vacation had gone absolutely horribly, she had forgotten ‘relaxing vacation’ with her mother involved cliff diving, and Twilight wanted nothing more to curl into her bed and go straight to sleep. Something stopped her in her tracks though. The library wasn’t completely dark like she expected it to be at this time at night. The main room’s windows had an odd white light streaming out of them accompanied by a very faint humming noise flowing out an open one.
Curiously, Twilight opened the door and peeked inside. The source of the light was immediately apparent. Her nice projector was running nothing, having reached the end of its film long ago, and now just emanating white light onto the screen. Along with the projector there was also an extreme number of blankets and pillows scattered around the room. Twilight was pretty sure she didn’t even own as many as were laid out.
And there, in the middle of the sea of blankets were two figures curled around each other. Twilight approached softly, taking care not to trip over a blanket or make any loud noises. When she was practically on top of the two and could clearly see who they were, her heart melted. Pinkie Pie was curled into a tight ball, fast asleep with her tail tucked into her stomach, providing yet another blanket for the little dragon clutched in her arms like a teddy bear. Spike snored gently as he buried his face into a mess of pink curls, the spines on his head making an effective pillow for the pony above him.
Twilight smiled fondly at the couple. “You two just get up to all sorts of mischief don’t you?” She whispered, running a hoof through Pinkie’s mane, making the other pony’s ear, which was bandaged for some reason, twitch in response. “I suppose I can let you sleep, you look exhausted.” She leaned down and gently pecked Spike on the forehead, he snorted once through his snores but didn’t stir. Just as quietly she had come, Twilight left the room, heading to her own bed.
She cast one last look over her shoulder as her magic turned the projector off. “But tomorrow, you’re so grounded for doing this behind my back.”