Spike woke up with a gorgeous yellow furred mare with long pink hair by his bedside. She had bulky grey hoodie and dark blue jeans. He remembered seeing her when he went to get his bird just before the fight. Right now, she was sitting in a chair, fast asleep, with Peewee cuddled up in her lap. As he rose, she murmured something and blinked awake. Peewee rustled from her lap onto Spike’s bedside as he sat up straight. When the mare saw him, her body tensed. She rose out of her chair and stumbled away.
Spike raised his hand out to her. “Whoa, whoa, calm down. I’m not going to eat you.”
“You’re not?” She stood with her fists clenched tight.
“Of course not. I’d never eat a pony. I prefer gemstones. Anyways, my name is Spike.” He extended her hand to her when he realized he was still covered in soot. More embarrassing than the dirt was his nearly nonexistent clothing, singed and tattered from the fire. “On second thought, you don’t have to shake my dirty hand if you want.”
She took a few steps towards him. “My name is Fluttershy. I really like your bird, Peewee.”
“Yeah, he’s a sweetheart,” Spike said stroking his bird’s head. “Wait. How do you know his name?”
“He told me.”
She cupped her hands and in a second, Peewee flapped into her arms. She stroked Peewee delicately down his neck, scratched him under the chin. The bird cooed and fell into her hands like putty.
“You can talk to animals?” asked Spike.
“Sort of. I get along with them.” She smiled warmly like a meadow breeze. Spike felt his cheeks turn red even though he couldn’t explain why. “Peewee loves you a lot. He calls you ‘his lizard daddy.’ It’s pretty cute.”
“‘Lizard daddy?’ What a name. I found him abandoned as an egg and raised him. Tried sending him back to the wild but he wouldn’t leave me.”
“Phoenixes are normally feral. They don’t let most people touch them.”
“Yeah, that’s probably why he makes for a great guard-bird.” Spike finally noticed the bandages on his body. He looked at Fluttershy and smiled. “Thanks for fixing me up.”
“Oh, well, it was mostly Zecora, but you’re welcome.”
“Hey, is there a shower on board? Some place I can wipe all this grime off?”
She pointed him down the halls and offered him a particular set of instructions.
“Thanks,” he said. “Hey, would you look after Peewee while I’m out?”
“Rarity’s sending me out on a mission in a little bit.”
Spike glanced at Peewee, cuddling up with Fluttershy.
“Then, you should take Peewee with you.” She looked at him with surprise. Spike nodded. “He’s loyal, ferocious and his light flares can make for a good getaway. Plus, he’s a natural source of light.”
“Light,” Fluttershy mumbled the word. “Yes, that would be helpful where I’m going. But are you sure?”
“I can’t look after Peewee if I’m in the shower.”
He rolled out of bed, where his lack of dress became more apparent. Fluttershy stared at his barely clothed chest, the shredded pants that he had to hold up, and flushed red. Embarrassed, he quickly left the room, leaving Fluttershy with Peewee. Soon, Rarity came along with Twilight, Trixie, and Applejack. The trio beside the captain was geared up for a quest into Everfree. Rarity turned to them and gave them a brief rundown of their plan.
“You four will be going on the quest into Everfree. Twilight, you’ll guide the expedition with Moondancer’s notes. Trixie, you’ll use your trickster magic to help them avoid any dire confrontations. Applejack, you’ll provide extra muscle. And Fluttershy, you’ll keep any savage animals at bay.”
“Spike lent me Peewee for the mission,” Fluttershy said gesturing to the bird in her arms. “He said Peewee could be a natural light source.”
Rarity nodded thoughtfully. “Yes.” She frowned. “You didn’t tell Spike about the mission, did you?”
“Kind of. I mean, I told him that you were sending me on a mission, but other than that.” Fluttershy shook her head. “Should I tell him more?”
“No. In fact, it’s better he doesn’t know. I doubt Everfree would take kindly to his fire-breath and sword chopping. Foresters and arsonists tend to go missing in that island. Besides, he needs time to recuperate from his fight.”
“Shouldn’t I tell him?” said Twilight. “He’ll want to know where I am.”
“No.” Rarity stated adamantly. “If he knew you’re going into Everfree, he’d insist on coming along. I’m worried he could jeopardize the mission.”
“He’s going to find out eventually.” Trixie had a troubled look.
“Not if I keep him busy.” Rarity smirked with half-open eyes. Twilight’s eyes narrowed into a skeptical scowl. The white unicorn noticed Twilight’s expression and waved a hand. “Don’t worry. It’ll be fine. Now, you all have your orders. Get going.”
Starlight got out of the infirmary sooner than most. Her magic held her together for long enough for Zecora to make a healing potion. And thankfully, a single cut could be healed. The worst thing was the wide scar on her tummy. With a little magic, nobody would even notice it as she made her way through the ship to the showers with a towel and a fresh change of clothes. Her head was still sore where the knight kicked her, but she couldn’t complain.
Others weren’t so lucky. At the end of it all, the Sun Knight took down twelve of their friends, put Pinkie’s hand in a sling, and left Bulk close to death. He got the worst of it out of everyone. He was barely breathing when they got him in there. Even hours later, they still weren’t sure if he could pull through.
She hadn’t seen that Spike person everyone was talking about since he arrived, but heard he dealt a fatal blow to the knight just before Twilight blasted him into the ocean. Truth be told, Starlight had trouble believing this Spike managed to swim all the way back to the Rogue Diamond after being at the center of a massive explosion. All she knew was that she needed a hot shower for her aching head.
She heard the sound of running water. Doubtless one of the girls was bathing. She rounded the corner and came to the waiting room just before the showers. Starlight dropped her duffle bag on a little bench. She took off her black vest and green shirt, then slipped out of her blue jeans. She was about to unbutton her bra when she caught a glimpse of something green and purple just beyond the corner in the shower stalls. Curious, she wrapped a towel across her body and peaked inside.
Never in her wildest dreams would she have expected to see a dragon standing in the corner showering. His hands pressed into the tile wall, his broad back turned to her as the water came down on his scales, and his daggered tail curling across the ground, revealing his shining wet, muscular, round … She looked on, transfixed, feeling dirty and excited at the same time. But then, her eyes drifted to his back. She counted several jagged scars beneath the black soot caked to his scales. Most notably, he bore two identical, gaping scars in between his shoulders and spine. They looked like amputations that closed off.
He turned off the shower nozzle and reached for a nearby towel, which he wrapped around his waist. He turned around, revealing an incredible physique coupled with a not-too-bad face. When he saw her in a towel, his eyes widened and his cheeks turned red.
“Oh,” he stammered, “crap. I …” He turned back around, flustered beyond Starlight’s imagination. “Is this the girls’ showers? I didn’t know.”
“No, no,” she said quickly. “It’s fine. There is only one other guy on the ship. Usually, he just showers when we’re not.”
“I’m so sorry. I didn’t know.”
“It’s fine, really.” She tightened the towel across her chest.
He managed to stare only at her face, never letting his eyes droop down to her chest or her waist. Starlight was impressed at his restraint. She smiled, trying to help him relax. He managed to smile back.
“Heh,” he said with a sheepish grin. “I’ve been having a lot of weird encounters with beautiful women lately.” That made Starlight laugh. Spike walked over to her with a slight limp in his gait. “Um,” he said, pursing his lips. “How long were you…?”
“I’m Starlight Glimmer.” She extended her hand, cutting off the question.
“Spike.” As he reached out to shake her hand, the towel on his waist slipped. He managed to catch it before it fell too far down and revealed too much. Starlight felt her face growing hotter by the second. She wasn’t sure how much longer she could take this adorkable tease.
“Hey, do I still have any dirt on my back?” He turned around, revealing that wondrous back.
“Yeah.”
“Damn. I’ve been scrubbing for a half an hour and I still can’t get all this crap off.” He gave a little chuckle and turned back around to face her. “I don’t suppose you have a back brush?”
“No, I don’t.” She bit her lip. Starlight wasn’t even sure what part of her brain made her blurt out the next thing that came out of her mouth. “I could scrub it off.” He instantly flushed an even deeper red, a shade on his bright purple cheeks that Starlight found instantly charming; a youthful boyish complexion.
“I…I…don’t,” he stammered, “don’t want to force you to do something you don’t want to.”
“Who said I didn’t want to?” Starlight had to ask herself why. Why was she flirting with someone she just met? And why was he so fun to tease? “Besides. I owe you for saving us from the Sun Knight.”
“Twilight was the one who threw him overboard.”
“But you stabbed him.”
Spike rubbed the back of his neck. “I mean, if you really want to, I’d appreciate the help.”
They headed back into the showers, still wrapped in their towels. Spike pulled up a stool and sat down, trying to keep his cool. He could hear her taking a bath sponge, squirting it with soap. He heard her footsteps against the wet tiles, which only drove up his anticipation and nerves. When that soapy sponge touched his back, he tensed as an electric sensation tingled down his spine, as if all those scars were fresh.
“Are you alright?” she asked.
“Sorry. It kinda stings.”
“I’ll try to be more gentle.”
The unintentional innuendo in that line made him even more nervous. Starlight began rubbing down his back in delicate circles. This helped Spike relax a little, releasing tension in his shoulders. She lathered his scales for a good thirty seconds. He began to find her palms quite soothing.
“So, you’re from Canterlot?” she said scrubbing more dirt from his back. “Do you know about a stallion named Sunburst? He was my childhood friend who moved to Canterlot to study magic. Do you know if he’s still alive?”
“I left Canterlot before the floods started, so I don’t really know who made it out. Sorry. But I do know Sunburst. He was one of the ponies helping my friend Moondancer with her research on the Elements. She wouldn’t have finished Twilight’s research in eight years if it wasn’t for him,” said Spike. “I never really knew him personally but he seemed like a decent guy. He was one of the best magical scholars in the kingdom and one of my brother’s best friends.”
“Wow.” Starlight felt warmth in her heart. “I’m so happy to know he did alright. Thanks for telling me.”
She finished scrubbing all the dirt off his back but took another minute washing him to make sure he was extra clean. When she was finished, she wrung out the bath sponge. Spike stood up smiled at her.
“Thanks. This dirt tends to get stuck under my scales and it can take forever to get out.”
“Yeah, I’d imagine so.”
“Hey, could you promise me something? Please don’t tell anyone about the scars on my back. They … bring back unpleasant memories.”
Starlight found the request odd. But she promised not to tell anyone, which made Spike release a breath she didn’t know he was holding. He walked back out of the showers to the changing room. Before she could start her own shower, she heard him call, "Hey? Starlight?"
“Yeah? What is it?” asked Starlight as she entered the changing room.
“I left my cloths out here. Where’d they go?”
“Sorry,” she said, “there weren’t any clothes when I got there.”
“Those clothes were filthy and repulsive.” They turned around to see Rarity. If Spike was blushing before, he looked redder than ketchup now, standing before the beautiful mare with nothing but a towel. “I felt the need to pitch them. And before you say anything, I’m willing and ready to make you a new pair of clothes.”
Spike’s jaw dropped. “You threw out my only clothes?”
“Yes. I’m sorry, darling, but honestly, that bath towel does a better job covering you than those charred rags could.”
“I can’t go around naked!” He exclaimed with an honestly fearful expression.
“Of course not. That’s why I offered to make you new clothes. As a member of the Rogue Diamond, you must dress appropriately.”
“Wait, a member?”
“Yes,” said Rarity with a smile. “Twilight nominated you for membership and all but one crewmember voted in support. So, let me be the first to welcome you to the Rogue Diamond, Spike.”
“Thanks. I’m honored.”
“As a member of the Rogue Diamond you have several responsibilities. First, you are expected to alternate chores with the crewmembers. This includes cleaning the decks, doing the laundry, scraping barnacles off the sides, and any other necessary chores.”
“Fine by me. I used to clean Twilight’s room all the time when we were kids.”
“There are also regular combat exercises where we improve our teamwork in a fight.”
“Not to sound ungrateful, but I’d like some clothes soon, if possible.”
“Go to my room so I can take your measurements. Don’t worry, I’ve cleared the halls so nopony will see you.”
Spike left the stalls in a hurry. When he left, Rarity took a brief moment to look at Starlight. She noticed a light scowl on Rarity’s face.
“Starlight, kindly refrain from flirting with Spike until he’s had time to adjust.”
“I wasn’t flirting.”
“Good. Try to keep it that way. Heaven knows we don’t need hormones running wild on this ship.” She walked away, her heels clicking on the tile floor. Starlight couldn’t shake her suspicions that Rarity had ulterior motives behind pitching Spike’s clothes and inviting him to her room.