Twilight and Spike sat inside the library at a desk. The window was open, letting the fresh air in and to listen birds sing. Twilight had her face buried in a book and Spike leaned on her side. Spike closed his eyes and let in a deep breath of fresh air. His eyes shot open as he the scent of smoke hit his nostrils. He out the window to see a trail of smoke covering the sky.
“Hey Twi, is that smoke?” He asked. Twilight looked up. She tilted her head in confusion.
“Is it a fire?” Twilight asked. Just then, Spike let out a burp and a letter fell on the floor. He picked it up and started to read.
”My faithful student, I have been notified that their is smoke covering Ponyville and Canterlot. Do not be alarmed, for it is not a fire. It is a sleeping dragon. You and your friends must go to the top of the mountain to wake the dragon up before he covers all of Equestria in smoke. I am counting on you.
Yours truly, Princess Celestia.” Spike read out loud. Twilight got up from the desk and stretched her legs.
“Let go get our friends so we can stop this.” Twilight said. Spike nodded his head and they both made their way outside. Ponies stood outside, staring at the sky in fear. Some let out gasp of shock at the smoke. Twilight stood on a nearby crate and started to speak loudly, making everyone turn around.
“Listen up! Smoke is spreading all over Equestria. I just received a letter from the Princess informing me that the smoke is not from a fire.” She said. Ponies sighed in relief.
“It’s coming from a dragon!” She claimed. Ponies gasped in shock. They all started to murmur to each other. Twilight hopped off of the rock and Applejack walked up to her.
“What in the name of all things cinnamon swirled is a full grown dragon doing here in Equestria?” She asked.
“Napping.” Twilight said in a matter of fact tone. “According to the Princess Celestia he’s taking a nap, which is causing all of the smoke.”
“He should really see a doctor about that. That doesn’t sound healthy at all.” Pinkie pie said while hopping over. All of their friends had approached them.
“Well at least he’s not snoring fire, but what are we supposed to do about it?” Rarity asked.
“I’ll tell you what we’ll do about it: Give him the boot!” Rainbow dash said as she did a karate kick into the air. Twilight gave her a stern look.
“We need to encourage him to take a nap somewhere else or all of Equestria will be covered in smoke for the next one hundred years.” Twilight said. Fluttershy let out a gasp.
“Hmph talk about beauty sleep.” Rarity said.
“Alright everypony, I need you to gather your supplies quickly. We’ve got a journey ahead of us. Let’s meet in front of the library in less than thirty minutes.” Twilght said. Rainbow dash, Applejack, Pinkie pie, and Rarity all nodded there heads before running off in different directions. Fluttershy cowered lowly and slowly walked off.
Spike and Twilight walked into the library and grabbed their bags. Spike started to put water bottles into his blue backpack. He went up stairs and grabbed the first aid kit. He looked over to Twilight who was packing a map in her saddle bag, not paying attention to him at all. He reached under his mattress to pull out a pocket knife that he had stole from Shining Armors room a few years back.He quickly shoved it in his bag, hoping Twilight wouldn’t see. She had no idea that he had it.
The doorbell rang. “That must be them!” Twilight said. Spike ran down the stairs and saw all of Twilights friends standing outside. He walked outside as Twilight pulled out the map.
“Alright girls, listen up. I’m mapping out the fastest route, but we’ve got to get good pace if we expect to make it up the mountain by nightfall.” Twilight said.
“M-m-mountain?” Fluttershy stuttered out while shaking.
“The dragon is on the top of that mountain.” Twilight said as she pointed at a mountain in the distance. Spike squinted at the mountain.
“How have I never noticed that.” He muttered to himself. Fluttershy walked over to Twilight.
“Um excuse me, Twilight I know you’re busy but...” Fluttershy started off.
“Uh huh. Well we could go this way.” Twilight said, her face buried in the map.
“But if I could have a second...”
“Uh huh. No we should avoid that.” Twilight said, still not paying attention.
“So, um, I was thinking that maybe I should stay here in Ponyville.” Fluttershy said as she cowered down.
“Uh huh.”
Fluttershy’s was perked up and she stood up straight. “Oh good, I’ll stay here and-“
“Wait you have to come! Your way with wild animals can come in handy.” Twilight said cheerfully. Fluttershy wimpered and backed away. Rainbow dash flew over to Twilight.
“Are you sure that we should bring Fluttershy? I mean that pony’s afraid of her own shadow. She’ll just slow us down.” Rainbow dash said while gesturing to Fluttershy. Fluttershy looked down to see her shadow and jumped in the bushes in fear.
“Oh I’m sure she’ll be fine once we get going. Okay girls, let’s move out!” Twilight said as she headed towards the mountain. Fluttershy let out a tired sigh and followed.
They all aproached the bottom of the mountain, ready to start their journey. A loud snore echoed from the top of the mountain, making the ground shake.
“Whoa, what was that!? Rainbow dash asked in shock.
“That’s what it sounds like when a dragon snores.” Twilight said. Fluttershy stared up at the mountain.
“It’s so high...” She whispered. Rainbow dash rolled her eyes.
“Well it is a mountain.” Rainbow dash said as she started to fly upwards. Fluttershy gulped as everyone started to climb.
“I hear the only thing that sparkles more than a dragons scales are the jewels they used to build there nest. Ooo, if I play my cards right, I might convince him to part a few!” Rarity said happily.
Spike rolled his eyes. “Wow that’s so genrous of you.” He mumbled under his breath.
“Rarity this is serious. Fluttershy, you’re the animal expert what do you think the dragon will be like? Fluttershy?” Twilight turned around to see Fluttershy at the bottom of the mountain, hiding in a bush.
“Hey what are you waiting for, an invitation!?” Rainbow dash shouted.
“Ooo I think I have one of those!” Pinkie pie said as she pulled out a invitation. She opened it, making confetti and party streamers pop out.
“I-it’s s-so steep.” Fluttershy stuttered out. Rainbow dash rolled her eyes.
“Well yeah, it is a cliff. You could just, I don’t know, fly up here!” She said impatiently.
“Come on Fluttershy, flap those wings!” Pinkie pie cheered. Fluttershy swallowed and opened her wings slowly. The dragon let out another loud snore making Fluttershy squeak and her wings snapped close. She hid her head in her hooves.
“We don’t have time for this!” Twilight said in an annoyed tone. Applejack grabbed the map from Twilights bag and made her way to Fluttershy.
“I’ll need this if I’m gonna take her around the mountain another way.” She said as she hopped down the hill. Rainbow dash groaned.
“Around the mountain? That gonna take them forever.” Rainbow dash complained.
“Don’t worry Twi, We’ll be up there lickety spilt.” Applejack said. Twilight sighed.
“Let’s go.” Twilight said as she walked up the steep mountain.
“Woo-hoo, I win again!” Pinkie pie said as she drew an O into the dirt. She and Rarity had been playing tic tac toe.
“Ugh thats thirty five games in a row. Best of seventy one?” She asked.
Applejack came up the mountain, completely out of breath while dragging Fluttershy by the tail.
“I told you they were going to take forever.” Rainbow dash whispered to Twilight. The group continued to climb the mountain until they aproached a small cliff. The opening was so small that you could just hop over it. Rainbow dash ran over to the ledge and jumped over it. Everybody else followed, landing safely at the other side.
Fluttershy looked over the ledge and quickly jumped back. “It’s so wide...” She whispered as she clung to the side of the mountain.
“Come on Fluttershy, we should be much farther along by now.” Twilight said tiredly. The dragon snored again making her squeak in fear. Spike rolled his eyes.
“We don’t have time for this.” He said grumpily as he jumped over to Fluttershy. He picked her up, making her gasp in surprise. She was surprisingly light. He jumped over the ledge and landed safely on the other side.
“There, now we’re across.” He said as he put Fluttershy down. Everybody stared at him with a shocked expression. Twilight shook her head and continued walking.
“Let’s go, I don’t want to get up there by tomorrow.” She said as her friends followed her. They soon aproached a narrow path.
“Let’s keep it down. According to the map, we’re entering an avalanche zone. The smallest peep can cause a huge rock slide.” Twilight whispered. They all walked down the path in silence. Rainbow dash flew under a tree, making a few leaves fall off. A single leaf slowly landed on Fluttershys flank. Her eyes widened in fear.
”AVALAN-“ She started to scream, but was cut off by Spike covering her mouth. Everybody froze, listening for any signs of movement. They all let out sighs of relief. Suddenly, the ground started to shake and rocks started to fall.
“AVALANCHE!” Everybody shouted as they ran for cover. Large boulders hit the ground and every one ran in different directions while screaming. Rainbow dash stayed high in the air, successfully dodging every rock. Spike looked over to Twilight, who didn’t see a giant rock heading towards her.
“TWILIGHT WATCH OUT!” Spike shouted as he tackled her out of the way. The rock hit the ground with a big bang. Everyone started to cough at the dust that had piled up. The rocks had blocked their path.
“Is everyone okay?” Twilight asked. Everyone nodded there heads. Rarity let out a long whine as she noticed that she was covered in dust.
“This will take forever to get off of my perfect coat.” She whined out.
“Sorry.” Fluttershy whispered out. Twilight let out a sigh.
“I guess we’ll have to climb over it.” Twilight said. Everyone groaned and started to climb. This was going to take forever.
They finally made it to the top of the mountain, panting and sweating from all of the hard work. Spike reached in his bag and handed everyone a water bottle.
“Thanks Spike. Rainbow dash, I need your wings to clear the smoke.” Twilight said. Rainbow dash nodded.
“Rarity and Pinkie pie, you’ll create a diversion to distract the dragon if things get hairy from there.” She said. Rarity nodded and Pinkie pie shook a rubber chicken in her mouth.
“Applejack, you’re ready with the apples in case he decides to attack. But it shouldn’t come to that because Fluttershy will do what she needs to wake him up. Is everypony ready?” Twilight asked. Everyone nodded there heads except for Fluttershy.
“I can’t do it...” Fluttershy whispered. Everyone’s attention snapped to her.
“Why is it now?Rainbow dash said with a groan. Fluttershy gulped.
”I’m afraid of dragons.” She whispered.
“What?”
”I’m afraid of dragons.” She said slightly louder.
“I still didn’t get that.” Twilight said.
“I’M AFRAID OF DRAGONS!” Fluttershy shouted. The dragon snored making her hide behind a rock. Everyone groaned.
“Spike is a dragon and you’re not scared of him.” Pinkie pie said.
“But that’s because he’s a cute baby dragon, and he still scares me a little.” Fluttershy said softly. Spike smirked slightly.
“If you’re so afraid of dragons, why didn’t you say something before we got all the way up here?” Twilight asked.
“I was afraid to.” She whispered. Rainbow dash rolled her eyes.
“Ugh fine we’ll go on without you.” Rainbow said as she flew towards the cave. Twilight grabbed Rainbows tail with her magic, making her jerk back.
“I’ll go first and try to compromise with him.” Twilight said as she walked in the cave. Spike gave a nervous look before quickly following her.
Twilight walked over to a large,red, snoring dragon. “Um, excuse me Mr dragon.” Twilight said softly. He slowly opened his eyes and let out a loud yawn, cause Twilight to nearly gag at the horrid smell.
“My name is Twilight Sparkle, and my friends and I are residents here in Equestria. Ponyville, to be exact. We've come here to ask that you find another spot to take your nap. It's just that you seem to be doing an awful lot of snoring, and every time you do you send out a terrible cloud of smoke. Equestria simply can't survive a hundred years in a dark haze. You understand, don't you?” She asked sweetly. The dragon rolled his eyes and let out a puff of smoke in Twilights face.
Twilight and Spike started to cough and exited the cave. “Well that was a bust.” Twilight said dissapointedly.
“Well yeah, you tried to handle it like a pony would handle it.” Spike said.
“And what is that supposed to mean?” Applejack asked.
“Twilight was being too nice about it. If you want a dragon to listen to you, you have to show them that you’re tougher.” Spike said.
“Tougher, got it!” Rainbow dash said as she zoomed into the cave.
“Rainbow dash wait, you didn’t let me finish!” Spike shouted. She didn’t listen and continued to rush towards the
“Hey lizard brain, get out!” Rainbow dash said as she kicked him in the nose. The dragon got up and let out a loud roar, making Rainbow fly backwards. She crashed into her friends, knocking them all over.
The dragon slowly came out out of the cave, towering over them by forty feet. They all stayed close to each other, shaking in fear. Spike stayed in front of Twilight, protecting her from whatever would happen next.
Fluttershy looked at them from behind a rock. Her eyes started to glow with anger. “How dare you... How dare you! Listen here, mister. Just because you're big doesn't mean you get to be a bully! You may have huge teeth, and sharp scales, and snore smoke, and breathe fire. But you do not-- I repeat-- You do not! Hurt! My! Friends! You got that?” Fluttershy said as she flew up to eye level with the dragon.
The dragon wimpered in fear. “Well?” Fluttershy asked, waiting for a response.
“But that Rainbow one kicked me.” He said softly. Rainbow dash nodded her head making Spike glare at her.
“And I am very sorry about that. But you're bigger than she is, and you should know better. You should also know better than to take a nap where your snoring can become a health hazard to other creatures.” Fluttershy said angrily. The dragon started to tear up before letting out a loud cry and flying away.
As the dragon flew away, everyone started to cheer at her act of bravery. “I knew you could do it!” Twilight said happily. Fluttershy grinned widely.
“Now let’s go home.”
Twilight and her friends stood outside the Golden Oaks library, laughing and cheering at there accomplishment. Spike stayed inside, thinking deeply to himself.
“I need to take better care of Twilight. If something happened to her I don’t know what I would do.” Spike said to himself. He shuddered at the thought of losing Twilight. Suddenly he got an idea. He grabbed a scroll, a quill, and a bottle of ink. He dipped the quill in ink and started to write.
Dear Shining Armor, can I ask you a favor?”