//------------------------------// // Memories // Story: Dragon Bro Z // by MrWriterWriter //------------------------------// "Mom said it was around here..." Spike said to himself once he'd landed in the section of orchard Celestia had mentioned. They had decided to take a break from the dream meetings for a couple of days to let Luna get caught up on her dream rounds and Night Court. And before they separated for the night, Celestia told him where it was located at for when he decided to see for himself. After a couple minutes of walking, he finally found it; resting at the foot of one of the older trees was a small, well-maintained grave. The headstone was surrounded with stuff the others had left, some balloons, a small pile of carefully arranged gems, the last copy 'Power Ponies' he'd gotten (in one of Twilight's special weatherproof binders), Rainbow's old training goggles, and a small plushie that looked a bit like Peewee. "So...this is mine..." He crouched down to read the inscription on it: SPIKE Friend, Son/Nephew, Little Brother... We miss you, wherever you are Embedded in the stone was a photo of him and the girls from their last Hearth Warming Eve. "Eeyup." A voice piped up, making Spike look over to see Big Mac walk up. "At least one of the girls would come out to check on it almost every day." "Hey, Mac. Been a while." "Can say that again. Bloom and AJ were dang near bouncing 'round like puppies when they got home after Tirek. To be honest, Ah didn't think anyone on the farm was gonna be smilin' fer a long time." "Yeah...Mom told me they took it hard." "Ain't kidding 'bout that. AJ... she did her best to put a brave face on, but...well, Ah could hear her cryin' in her room on more than one night. Heck, Ah did a couple times." "You??" That definitely caught him off-guard. "Well, yeah. Ah mean, Ah tend to do it in private like AJ, but when ya think ya lost one of your closest male friends and 'Ogres an' Obulettes' playin' buddy, well..." "Ah. Wait, ONO? Dang, I haven't played that in a while. Though I'm kinda rusty...Haven't played in thirty years, and I don't think anything close even exists on Earth." "Serious!? They don't..." Mac stared blankly for a second. "Wow, Thursday nights must suck there." "Twilight, we need to talk." Spike looked at the alicorn setting across from him, the rest of the Mane Six sitting nearby as well. "Y-yeah..?" She asked, still looking exhausted from helping Applejack on the farm the other day, as well as helping Pinkie spend half the night prepping stuff for the group breakfast they just had. One that she had fallen asleep on. "Twi, for the last couple of days you've barely set foot in the palace, and when we broke up from the last group dream, I woke up to you right beside me." He leaned in a bit. "And you've been helping everyone with stuff to the point of wearing your self out to extremes. Even I can tell something's wrong. " "Yeah, yer Tartarus-bent on avoidin' somethin', sugarcube." Applejack pointed out. "Not to mention the few times you've actually been in the castle, it's only when Spike's around." She sighed. "It's that obvious, huh?" They all nodded. "Well, the truth is....I've been avoiding the castle. Don't get me wrong, it's amazing, but it just doesn't feel like home. And after Spike vanished and we thought he was...even though I barely left Golden Oaks, it felt cold, empty, and it scared me; that's really the first time I've ever lived somewhere alone. Here...that feeling seems to come back tenfold." "Twi..." Spike sat beside her, where she promptly latched onto him. "Well, while I can say, with the utmost confidence, that Spikey is back and not going anywhere, I believe your other issue is simple to resolve." Rarity looked around. "A bit of decorating and I'm sure you'll feel right as rain here!" "I like the idea, but I don't even know where to begin!" Twilight waved a hoof around helplessly. "Still don't know how many rooms this place even has!" "Let us handle it." Fluttershy spoke up. "Meanwhile, Spike can take you to the Ponyville Spa so you can unwind." She gingerly help up a mirror for her. "And you really could use it. Nothing personal, but you're looking kind of...frazzled." "Ew. Heh, well, I really could use the help. And I'm sure you girls'll do a great job." "Actually, why don't I lend them a hand as well?" Spike asked, getting to his feet. "And you say I can't be in two places at once, then I say Split Form!" Once again he separated into two. "I'll take Twilight to the spa." The Spike closest to her said. The second one stepped over to the currently dumbstruck others. "And I'll help with the decorating." Twilight looked on in shock, confusion, and more than a little curiosity. "Wha?? Sp-Spike, how!? That should be theoretically impossible! At least not without an external source like the mirror pool!" She paused for a moment. "Then again, you beat the tar out of Tirek, which ALSO should've been theoretically impossible." "Ok, now THAT was a cool trick!" Rainbow flew around them. "Which ones which?" "Whoa nelly...." Applejack whistled. Pinkie's face quickly lit up. "Ooh! Can you do more? You could have your own buckball team!" "There's the Multiform technique, but I never learned it." The Spikes responded in unison. Rarity's eye twitched vigorously before she fainted, with a rather perverse smile on her face. Fluttershy blushed a little. "Oh my..." Once 'Spa' Spike left with Twilight, the others started work. No sooner than they started, 'Decoration' Spike heard them break out into a eager tune as they scattered to hunt up stuff. He couldn't help but smile a bit at that. 'Damn, it's been a long time since I heard that. A short while later and he was checking through his dynacaps to see if there was anything that might work. The 'camper' - which was actually a three bedroom house - had some comfortable furniture she might be interested in, along with several books from Earth. A few others yielded some vehicles; a couple of motorbikes and a hover-car. While he doubted they'd work, decor-wise, she'd probably jump at the chance to take them apart for research purposes. A storage cap surprised him a little when it had even more books. Most were physics, history, and more than few of classical literature. "Yep, she's definitely gonna like these." He also made a mental note to ask her to help him find a more permanent spot to set the gravitron up as well. "Ow...who taught you how to massage, a hydra!?" An indignant voice hollered from one of the massage rooms. 'Spa' Spike winced a little as he and Twilight waited for their turn. "Wow, they sound pent up." He commented before hearing a light whimper of pain from beside him. "Twi??" "I'm ok, Spike. Just a little sore from all those holes, the racing-" She stopped when a pair of hands started kneading her shoulder. "You looked like you could use this." He said, lightly pressing a knuckle in between her shoulderblades. "Spike, whaaoohh Celestia, that feels goood..." She moaned slightly as she felt a knot start to loosen up. "How did you...?" "Just something I learned over the years, among other things." "Ooh, I don't know where you picked it up, but it's definitely worth it." She started going limp as he work out the dull ache that'd built up. "Heh, maybe you should get a massage too. You've gotta be a little tense as well from what's happened lately." "Hm...that does sound tempting." "Well....hehe, we do have a two for special going on today." Aloe spoke up, her cheeks reddening as she stared at his biceps. Meanwhile, back at the palace, 'Decorate' Spike was heading back to the map room to meet the others. "Guys, I found a few things she might be interested in. Not too sure where she'll wanna put theeekami HAMI!?" He yelped when he saw the room's condition. Hay bales, party decorations, animals running around, gem-studded curtains, and Wonderbolt posters filled the room. "What the heck..??" "Hey, Spike! Whaddaya think?" Rainbow asked. "At least twenty percent cooler, right?" "No...no...this looks horrible!" She stared at him for a before suddenly looking relieved. "FINALLY someone says it!" Rarity let out a breath she'd been holding. "Quite." "Feels more like a storage shed in here, don't it?" Applejack admitted, kicking a loose pile of hay. "I guess I did go overboard with the animals, huh?" Fluttershy asked. "Hey, no one's said anything about my hidden party cannons!" Pinkie spoke up. "Hidden party...?" Before he could finish, a loud bang followed by a wave of confetti blew out behind Spike. Unfortunately, it also sent all the animals into a panic, running into and over everything. At least until he flared his ki, causing every sentient being in there to stop dead. "Guys, this is all stuff that makes you feel at home, not Twilight." Applejack sighed. "Yeah, we definitely let our personal tastes take over." "Well, right now it seems that what makes her feel at home is...well, you, Spike?" Fluttershy pointed out. "Remember? She's only really willing to come in if you're here as well." "So, does that mean we just need to put up a bunch of Spike's photos?" Rainbow asked. "I don't quite think that's gonna do the trick, Dash." He said. "Besides...the majority of my old pictures were at Golden Oak. It's all just memories now." "That's it!" Rarity squeed. "Golden Oak!" "What about it?" Pinkie asked. "just hear me out." She quickly began explaining her plan. "Huh, that...might just work." Dash said. "Quickly now, Dash, you, me, and Pinkie will get the materials! Fluttersh, Applejack, and Spike, head to the library! If we work fast, we'll be done well before Twilight gets back!" "I still can't believe it's gone." Twilight looked at the remains of what was her long time home. "Yeah..." Spike wasn't really sure what else to say. "Heh, you know, in the last six months, the others tried a bunch of ways to try help." A small smile appeared on her face. "Pinkie thought a marathon sleepover would help all of us." "Typical Pinkie." Spike smirked. "It worked a little. At least until the following week when Mrs. Cake threatened her with a diet if she didn't come back to work." "Ouch." "Well, I think she was starting to get a little burnt out after day five. Can only play twenty questions so many times. And there was Luna's attempt, giving me a 'Dream Spike'." He looked at her. "A dream version of me?" "She thought it'd help me get closure." She looked down. "Unfortunately it didn't..." She yelped in surprised when he picked her up. "Twilight, you remember what Rarity said earlier today?" He gave her a quick boop on the nose. "I'm back, and I'm not going anywhere." After her nose unscrunched, she tried, and failed, to keep from giggling before wrapping her front hooves around him. "Thanks, Spike, I needed that. You know, now that I think about it, it's not Golden Oak, but we can still make new memories at the castle. Hop on! The others should be nearly done by now!" "Uh, heh...easier said than done, Twi." She looked at him in brief confusion before it sunk in, and she blushed brightly, wiggling her hoofs slightly. "Oh! Heh, right, I forgot about that for a moment." "Look at at this way." He set her on his shoulder. "You can be the one riding now." Once he took off back to the palace, Applejack, Fluttershy, and the other Spike blurred into view. "Whoooo...think think I left my tonsils back at the palace..." Fluttershy staggered a little. Applejack looked worried. "This ain't good, they'll be back way before we get done here!" "Then we'll just have to move fast!" Spike muttered, planting his feet. "Just hope no one minds the hole until we can fill it back." "What hole-y crap!" Fluttershy yelped when he raised his hands and the entire stump tore itself from the ground, along with a fair chunk of dirt, followed by a beam of light that sliced off the broken, charred section. "There." He quickly hoisted the mass up. "We can clean it off once we get back. Let's go!" Unknown to them, while he was uprooting the remnants, a certain individual was watching not too far off. Looking out over an outdoor display, Chronoa sighed while she watched the draconic fighter use telekinesis to pull up the tree's remains. Given how long she'd been at her job, she had initially surprised even herself about this. Sure over the ages she'd had a schoolyard crush or two, but actually falling for someone? Chronoa took a deep breath as she sat down, relaxing in her usual meditation position. Trunks and the other Time Patrollers could handle things for a little while while she took a quick jaunt down the time stream to make sure nothing unpleasant was trying to pop up. Closing her eyes, she relaxed and entered the flow. Within seconds, she was watching moments from the past and potential futures flow by. Nothing seemed out of place, and she was checking out the beginning of the first World Martial Arts Tournament when a slight ping touched on the corner of her senses. It wasn't big, but it did manage to get her attention. For a moment she was more than a little confused. She'd never felt something like that in the time stream before, and wondered where/when it was from when she felt it again. Now that she was aware, it was a bit more recognizable. It was Spike, the dragon kid she'd fished out of the temporal void not that long ago. And he was still out of phase with his home time. She knew she should be checking for problems, but curiosity won out; what was he doing that tapped her senses like that? Reaching the source of the 'signal', she prepped herself and entered. What greeted her, though, surprised her a bit. It was the World Martial Arts Tournament, but it was a somewhat recent one....and he was jumping around on the platform, with the announcer declaring him the winner. "Yeah! Hahaha! I did it, I won! Ya-ha!" He yelled happily, making Chronoa giggle a bit at his antics. He jumped around a few more times before the crowd vanished and the platform suddenly transformed into a giant donburi bowl. She watched as he cheered and tossed away a handful of zenny before diving in. 'He must really love that stuff.' She mused, listening to the loud munching and gobbling. However, she started to peek in to see what kind it was when the scene suddenly faded out. She looked around wildly, thinking he was waking up when he reappeared. Except there was no food, no tournament...instead the scene was now an orphanage, and from the look of it, the place could use a bit of renovating. And he was handing the head worker a sizable chunk of the prize money, who looked like she was ready to faint, then shifting to him horsing around with the kids there. She was certainly NOT expecting that! She had to hand it to him, though, even if it was just changing his mind in a dream, it was a nice thing to do. A cat-like grin appeared on her face as she remembered the urge to peek at his older self once she left his dream. Normally the rules for temporal management frowned on that, but she couldn't resist and picked a moment from just out of his teens. She'd vowed to never tell anyone what she saw, but a nearby pony gave her a puzzled look at the little beating hearts that appeared in her eyes. Luckily for her, she managed to snap out it before he started to ask questions. And Spike and the others were gone. "Huh? Where'd they all go?" "Guys, Twilight and Other Spike are back!" Pinkie yelped, peeking out the door. "Are we done, are we done??" "Almost..." 'Decoration' Spike replied, making sure the last knot was good and tight. "There!" "Just in time too!" Rainbow said as they came in. "I don't get it, it still looks the same..." Twilight trailed off at what greeted her in the map room. Hanging above the map was a large root system. Hanging from were numerous strands of gems, glinting brightly in the light. "Woah...!" 'Spa' Spike looked up at the sight. "The ornaments are reminders of the fun we had." Fluttershy said, moving one to show an image of them at Donut Joe's. "Like the time we all went for donuts after the Grand Galloping Gala." "And this one shows the 'Welcome to Ponyville' party we threw you when you first came!" Pinkie chirped, holding the in question. "We figured that remembering all your wonderful older memories would help inspire you with making new ones." Rarity added. "Is...that what I think it is?" 'Spa' Spike asked. "Yep, Golden Oak's roots. Something to help us both remember that the old tree isn't full gone." 'Decorate' Spike replied before they fused back together. Applejack joined in. "And to help you always remember where you came from." Twilight looked at it for a moment, then they heard a small sniffle from her as she turned back them, eyes welling up. "It's exactly what the castle needed...!" Before a group hug was initiated. "Actually...now that I'm getting the memories, the me that was helping here thought you'd might want a few things from the dynacaps to study...and a lot of Earth literature." Spike chuckled. "Actually, I think we all did couldn't resist." Rarity admitted, blushing. "The dining room was begging for a personal touch." Applejack looked sheepish. "That, an' probably some rustic farm decor in the kitchen, Twilight." "Aaand a few 'Daring Do' posters that might be in the library, ehh-hehe." Rainbow scratched the back of her neck. "And some stuffed animals in your bedroom." Fluttershy whispered, just before another confetti cannon went off right behind them. "An' that would be one of Pinkie confetti cannons..." Applejack muttered. "Whaaat?" Pinkie asked when they all looked at her. "Not my fault I was good at hiding them!" "So, looks like this is the start of a new life for us, Twi." Spike said, admiring the chandelier. "Looks like it. But, I think we'll handle it just fine." She replied.