//------------------------------//
// Guy Talk 
// Story: One Bolt, Many Questions 
// by Boltsinger 
//------------------------------//

Spike found himself wandering through the castle, hearing the sounds of laughter echoing through the place. He searched for the source, but it eluded him.
“Twilight?” He called. “Starlight? Anyone?” He continued walking, the hall having no end in sight. He broke into a run, concerned about the laughter of Twilight and the others coming from all over. “Twilight, where are you?!”
He ran for several minutes, seeing the laughing faces of all of his friends in the windows. Coming to a large door, the laughter was at its loudest. He opened the door to see Twilight and her friends all gathered in the throne room, laughing with each other. Spike jumped for joy, running over to his seat next to Twilight, but as he reached for it, a spark of electricity repelled him. He yelped in pain, backing off as the laughter stopped.
“Oh, it’s you.” Twilight said, all of the mares looking at him with disdain. “What are you still doing here?”
Spike’s eyes grew wide as he jumped back. “What do you mean? I live here! You all need me!”
Rarity raised a hoof to her mouth and gave an obnoxious laugh. “Oh, that’s just too funny! Why would you ever think we needed you?”
Spike sat on the floor, holding his tail in his claws. “Because… I’m your number one assistant… your favorite dragon… All of that!” He looked back at Twilight, pleading. “You’re not… sending me away, are you?”
“Wow, he’s smarter than he looks!” Twilight confirmed, looking angrily at Spike. “You don’t need to stick around, anymore! We have someone better, now!”
Spike rose to his feet, raising a fist. “Who could possibly be better than me?! Who could you love so much that you wouldn’t have any room for me anymore?!”
“ME!!!” A booming male voice sounded. A ball of electricity formed above the map, surging into a dark orange pony with bat-like wings and fangs, his blue mane and tail crackling like lightning, and more thunderbolts erupting from the rest of his body. “Nopony needs you when they have somepony as ELECTRIFYING as I am!!!” He reared up on his hind legs, Twilight and Rarity rushing to his sides as he put his forelegs around them, laughing maniacally.
Spike fell to the floor, backing up as lightning surged from the pony, striking the ground in front of him. “No! You can’t send me away! NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!” He screamed as the lightning hit him.





“NO!” Spike shouted, sitting up in his bed. He was panting and sweating, looking around to see everything normal. “Oh, good… It’s just a dream…” He threw off his blanket, walking into the hallway to hear laughing in the distance. His face shrank in terror as he brought his claws up to his cheeks. “Or was it?!” He ran to the source of the laughter in a panic.
At the source, Twilight and Boltsinger were standing at the kitchen counter, leaning against one another as they brought ingredients together for the day’s breakfast. They were giggling almost nonstop at every little thing they did. Spike tilted his head, noting that the whole aura around the two felt inherently different. He wasn’t sure how he felt about it. After a minute or two of the sappy scene, Twilight turned to the fridge, pulling out a carton of milk as the baby dragon caught her eye.
“Oh! Good morning, Spike!” the Princess greeted, waving a wing at her assistant. “How did you sleep?”
“Eh. It was alright.” He answered. “There’s something… different about you two this morning…” He pointed a claw between the two ponies, a suspicious look on his face.
Boltsinger turned to see Spike and waved a wing of his own. “What do you mean, different?”
“Something about you two… Feels all warm and fuzzy.” Spike explained. “Did something happen?”
Twilight smiled over in the stallion’s direction, her ears sheepishly low. “Well, I was going to wait to tell everyone at once, but…” She beckoned Spike closer. “You know that thing that everypony’s been teasing us about?”
Spike nodded. “Yeah, what about it?” Twilight leaned in and whispered into his ears from behind a hoof. His eyes grew wide as he jumped back. “You two did WHAT?!”
Boltsinger chuckled as he flipped a flapjack with one of his wings. “You make it sound like a kiss is some sort of indecent filth.” He added the pancake to a nearby plate, starting up another.
“Bu-but... that means…” He shook in place, looking at the ponies as Twilight nodded in affirmation. “I thought it was just a joke! I knew that you were getting closer, but actually DATING? It was supposed to be some kind of… unrequited thing… So, what does this mean?”
“Calm down, Spike. “ Twilight said, pulling the dragon in for a hug. “It’s not like things will change that much!” She looked over at Boltsinger. “Right, Bolt?”
Boltsinger nodded, putting his pan on the stove long enough to sit next to Spike. “Absolutely. Biggest difference is that we’re more honest about one another. Other than that, nothing has really changed.”
Spike squinted his eyes, looking at Boltsinger’s smiling face. “Yeah… Nothing has changed…” He got up and walked over to the dishes. “I’ll… set the table…”
“Awesome! Thanks, Spike.” Boltsinger replied, giving a thumbs-up with his wing. From behind him, smoke began to creep out of the pan. Boltsinger let out a neigh as he turned around. “Ahhh! The pancakes!!!” He grabbed a hot pad and pulled the pan off the burner, looking inside with a frown. Spike let out a small sneer at the stallion as Twilight put a hoof on the pony’s head, petting him lightly before they both laughed, looking into one another’s eyes.
Spike came into the dining room, where Starlight was already sitting at the table. He grumbled to himself as he put the plates, forks, knives, spoons, cups, and napkins all in their proper places, very meticulously ensuring that everything was just right.
“Are you okay, Spike?” Starlight asked. “You look like your world was just blown away.”
Spike sighed, taking a place at the table next to Starlight. “It’s nothing. You’ll all find out later, anyway.”
Starlight cocked a confused eyebrow. “All right…” She looked at the baby dragon, who had his arms crossed with a sour expression. From the kitchen, some of the humming that she had gotten used to erupted, joined by another voice humming in harmony with it. Starlight perked up, looking at the door to the kitchen as the smell of fresh flapjacks wafted into the room. “Well, something good must be going on! Those smell delicious!”
Boltsinger and Twilight came through the door, each taking a seat as Twilight magically brought the food forward. “Good morning, Starlight!” the Alicorn said, placing a large stack of the cakes in the middle of the table. “I hope they taste just as good!”
Spike grumbled some more, taking a few pancakes and squeezing some syrup onto them.
“Oh! I forgot something!” Boltsinger started, shooting up from his chair and going back to the kitchen. He returned a few seconds later with a bowl of sparkly gem flakes, placing them next to Spike. “I know how much you like gems, so I figured you’d appreciate this on your pancakes. What do you think?”
Spike looked at the topping, drool escaping his mouth as his eyes sparkled. He looked over at Boltsinger, recalling the monster he saw in his dream. “Why are you doing this?” He asked, pointing to the gems. “You trying to butter me up or something? Trying to get on my good side?” He pointed at Boltsinger. “I don’t recall needing special treatment from you!”
Boltsinger stepped back, not sure what was going on. “I… just thought you’d like it. They were in the cupboard and I figured you would enjoy a special topping... “ He took the bowl and made his way back towards the kitchen. “I’m sorry…”
As the stallion left the room, Twilight glared at the baby dragon. “What was that about?!” She inquired, her voice stern. “He was just trying to be thoughtful!”
Spike stood up in his chair. “I didn’t do anything wrong!” He pointed a claw at the door to the kitchen. “He’s been getting on my nerves ever since you two got back from Las Pegasus! Now, suddenly he’s trying to warm up to me?! I’m just standing my ground!” His claw went from pointing at the kitchen to pointing at the floor below him.
“Spike, he only even brought those out after running the idea past me!” She told him. Spike’s expression softened at the knowledge. “If I had known you were going to be the grumpiest dragon in all of Equestria, I would have told him not to!” She huffed and stuck her fork in her pancakes, taking an angry bite.
“But… I…” Spike started, raising a claw.
“I thought that my number one assistant would be more accepting of our situation…” She wiped her mouth and got up, trotting out of the room.
“But… Twilight... I…” Spike’s arm fell limp at his side. He slumped his way off of the chair, stuffing the pancakes he had gathered into his mouth and slowly walking away.
Boltsinger came back into the room, looking around to find the number of occupants in the room had been cut in half. “Where did Twilight and Spike go?” He asked, sitting by his own plate again.
“You didn’t hear it?” Starlight wondered, raising an eyebrow. “They had an argument after you left the room.”
“No, I heard it. I just don’t know why they had to leave.” He informed her. “I figured we could at least talk it over over pancakes.”
Starlight facehoofed. “I don’t think Spike would have been able to sit through a meal right now.” She poked her meal with her fork. “I think he feels… threatened by you right now.”
Boltsinger tilted his head, shoving some flapjack in his face. “Threatened? Does he think I’m gonna chase him away or something?”
Starlight opened her mouth, surprised. “You know, if your hunches were any more spot-on, I’d think you were Pinkie Pie in disguise.”
“I see… Should I go talk to him?” the stallion asked. “‘Cause I don’t want him to hate me, or anything.”
“I would give him some space first.” Starlight suggested. “If you try to talk to him while he’s in a state like this, he’s liable to just get angrier.”
Boltsinger pondered her suggestion a moment, coming to a nod. “Yeah, I think you’re right.” He forked another pancake with his wing, holding it up and taking a look at it. “I don’t know why he would feel threatened, though. We told him that nothing was going to be changing.”
“Changing?” Starlight repeated, turning an ear towards the stallion and leaning in. “Why would anything be changing?”
Boltsingers pupils shrank. He dropped his fork, letting the pancake fall back onto its plate and splashing in the syrup all over him. “Well… um… You maaaay need to talk to Sunburst.” Starlight’s jaw dropped. “But not until after Twilight tells everypony. She wants everyone to know at once. Spike was supposed to be the only exception, but I would rather not try to keep a secret from somepony as smart as you.”
Starlight held out a hoof. “You mean you--”
“You know what? I have training with Rainbow Dash, soon, so I’m gonna go clean up and head to the field!” He got up and started hovering in the air. “Can you handle the dishes? Thanks! BYE!!!” With that, he sped out of the dining room, leaving Starlight sitting alone.
“Boltsinger!!! You get back here! I want answers!!!” she shouted, shaking her hoof as the Pegasus flew away.





After a morning of fuming, Spike was sitting in the library’s sitting area, shuffling through the comic books and piling them onto a piece of cloth. “If she’s so happy with Boltsinger, then she clearly doesn’t need me anymore…” He told himself, wiping away a budding tear. “I just get in the way, don’t I? Not enough love to go around, I guess…” He tied the cloth closed at the top, hanging it on a pole and heading for the door. As he reached for the knob, the door opened.
“Spike? You in here?” Boltsinger called, walking into the library and seeing the purple drake. “Ah! There you are!”
Spike squinted his eyes, looking angrily at the stallion. “What do you want?”
“I just wanted to talk with you.” He replied, walking over to a chair. Spike scoffed, turning to go for the door. “Come on, would it hurt that much to have a conversation with me?” He beckoned the dragon over with one of his wings. “I just want to understand your side of things.”
Spike looked at the earnest Pegasus smiling at him. “Fine…” He said, sighing and taking a seat in the chair next to him.
Boltsinger leaned towards Spike. “So, Starlight thinks you’ve been feeling threatened by me.” He started. “Is that true?”
Spike made a ‘meh’ gesture with his claws. “Maybe a little…”
“Why is that?”
“Because… Because you’re not the only one that loves Twilight, okay?!” The baby dragon admitted.
“Well, that goes without saying.” Boltsinger deadpanned. “I mean, she has a lot of ponies who love her. And a dragon.”
“Yeah, well what if there’s not enough love to go around?” Spike stressed. “What if she doesn’t love me anymore because you came in and took it all?” Seconds of silence passed, Boltsinger looking seriously at Spike’s worried face. Finally, he burst out laughing, slapping his knee with a foreleg and stomping on his chair. “What’s so funny?!”
Boltsinger slapped his face with his wings, smiling at the little dragon. “Oh, Spike, you should hear how ridiculous that sounded!”
“What are you talking about?!” Spike fumed.
“Twilight could never stop loving you!” Boltsinger clarified. “You are far too important for her to ever stop caring.” He got up and walked up next to the dragon. “Besides, there’s no such thing as ‘not enough love to go around’. It just means there’s more love in her life. It doesn’t mean her feelings about anypony else have changed. And just because you’re not a pony, that doesn’t make you any less important. Besides, she’s told me on many occasions that she’d be lost without her number one assistant.”
Spike’s face lit up. “She said that?”
“Yep. Without you, she’d be a bigger mess than Rainbow said she was without me.” He got up and moved towards the door. “Besides, your pancakes are way better than mine.”
Spike hopped up from his chair, dropping the satchel he’d created and leaving it on the floor. “You’re darn right they are!” He ran over to Boltsinger and walked with him.
“By the way… Good choice of comics.” Boltsinger told him. “Power Ponies rock!”
Spike’s expression went from happy to ecstatic. He jumped onto Boltsinger’s back as the stallion sped up to a trot. “You know about the Power Ponies?! Which one’s your favorite?”
“Gotta say Hum Drum.” the Pegasus stated with a confident nod. “He’s the one that brings the group together and inspires them all to be the heroes they are, after all.” He took a look back at Spike. “That’s a pretty important role.”
“But he doesn’t have any powers!” Spike interjected. “He gets in the way half the time, and never accomplishes anything!”
“That doesn’t mean he’s useless.” the stallion continued. “Not to mention, he’s relatable. That’s something the Power Ponies themselves can’t say so easily. Hum Drum makes mistakes, which is something anypony can understand.”
Spike nodded in understanding. “I… think I see what you’re getting at.” He said as the two rounded the corner where the doors to the throne room loomed over them.
“All right. So, you don’t even need to apologize. ‘Cause in my opinion, all is already forgiven.” Boltsinger informed him. Spike nodded, and the two made their way into the room where Twilight and the other mares waited.
“All right, everypony, they’re here!” Twilight announced as Spike jumped off of the stallion’s back and plopped down in his seat by Twilight. Boltsinger took his own position beside the Princess, standing like nothing had happened that day as the Alicorn leaned in. “He seems like he’s doing a lot better. What happened?”
Boltsinger chuckled to himself and gave a grin. “Guy talk.”