//------------------------------// // A Date? // Story: Onii-Chan's Interesting Life // by MrWriterWriter //------------------------------// Spike sighed and looked at the shopping list. "Ok...Twilight, Fluttershy, Rarity, and Scootaloo want eggplant parm; Rainbow, Sunset, and Pinkie want pizza, and Apple Jack, Apple Bloom, and Sweetie want burgers." He looked around at the produce section of the store. "And the ponies all want a little bit of everything from here, and a cake." He shrugged and started looking through the artichokes, not noticing he was being watched. Peeking around a spice kiosk, Luna took a deep breath and smoothed out her dress. "Ok, girl, you can do this. Just act natural." She peeked back around to see where he was. "Hmf, it should be illegal to be that tasty!" She grabbed her cart and headed over, doing her best to act nonchalant. The closer she got, though, the more she realized something. 'How the heck did he hide those arms in that costume!?' By the time she was in speaking distance, she nearly ran into a tomato display while staring at his back. "Mama liiiiike..." "Huh?" Spike looked up from his shopping, causing Luna to clamp a hand over her mouth in a panic. He glanced around for a moment, wondering what that sound was. When he finally shrugged and resumed, she took a minute to calm down, bracing herself against the tomatoes. 'All right, Luna Solaris, you've been practicing for this since yesterday! Just go up, and say 'hi'! That's it, you can do this! You're ready!' She strode towards him, "Spike? Fancy seeing you..." She froze when he turned around. "HeeEEK!" She yelped when her feet caught on each other, sending her falling towards him. "Wha--uff!" He grunted when he caught her on reflex. "Um, hi?" At this moment, Luna was grateful for two things; that he couldn't currently see the look of embarrassment she was sporting, and contemplating if he'd ever let her use his stomach to shave ice. "Wait...you're Luna, aren't you?" He asked as she back back to her feet. "My girls talked about you." "I deny everything!" She replied, chuckling weakly at the bad joke. "Heh...uh, didn't expect to find you here." "Yeah, well, this is the only place with any decent produce, and when one girls a vegetarian, another's an apple junkie, and the rest all have their own tastes...you get the idea." "Heh, sounds like they can be a handful at times. Ever get time to yourself?" "Does watching a little tv after they all go to bed count?" "No, I mean, going out and doing something you personally enjoy." "Oh...well, I've thought about it. More than once to be honest, but the problem is finding someone to look after them while I'm away." He sighed, slightly ruefully. "Tried hiring someone from a babysitting service one time last month...something I still regret doing." That sent up a couple of warning bells for Luna. "Dare I ask...?" "They sent over someone named Harshwhinny. She seemed a little strict, but I figured it wouldn't be too bad." His expression darkened a little. "By the time I got home, they'd barricaded themselves in their bedroom and she was pounding on the door screaming at them." He ran a hand through his hair. "Let's just say it's the first time I was seriously tempted to break a woman's jaw after they told me what'd happened." Luna winced a little. "Ooch! Sounds like the aftermath wasn't that much fun." "Not really...after I finally kicked her out and called to complain, it was a good long while before any of them calmed down enough to sleep. Don't think I went back downstairs at all that night. Was the last time I ever considered getting a babysitter." Luna considered her options carefully. She'd heard about the local babysitting service taking a big hit to their reputation because one of their workers had crossed a line somewhere, but she'd never heard the details. And from the sound of things, Spike didn't seem too keen to take the chance again. "Well..." she started, "...how about my sister?" "Huh?" He looked at her. "You have a sister?" "Celestia. Older sister, technically, but she loves kids. One of the main reasons she became a teacher. And, between you and me, she hates acting her age at times. I don't think any of the girls are in her class, but she won't mind. "Well...I wouldn't mind being able to do something myself on occasion. There's a few things I like the girls don't really care for." "And..." Luna's smile turned slightly coy. "If you want, I wouldn't mind helping you enjoy that night off." Spike stared at her for a second, chuckling slightly. "Miss Solaris....i-if I didn't know any better, I'd assume you were asking me out on a date." She shrugged, leaning in. "Is it working?" *A Couple of Hours Later* "All right, you lot. Let's get this stuff inside and unpacked. I got something to tell you all." After getting groceries, he'd managed to leave just time to pick the girls up after school. Now the whole group were marching in, each one with a bag or two in their hands. "W-what is it, Onii-chan...?" Fluttershy asked uneasily. "It's nothing bad, if that's what you're thinking." He replied, putting meat and things in the freezer. "I....well, I have a date this weekend." "Really!?" "That's great!" "Woo-hoo!" "That's wonderful, darling!" 'pony'Rarity trotted up. "Who's the lucky lady?" "It's Luna Solaris" "You got a date with Miss Luna? That sounds fun!" Twilight squeak. "Um...Onii-chan?" "Yeah?" "What's a date?" "Uh...well...ohh-boy..." "Hey, Tia! How do you feel about winning some points with Mr. Hunky!?"