Spike sighed as he set an alarm clock down on one of the many shelves lining the walls of his room. The alarm was set for 6:30 AM, a half hour before Twilight got up. Plenty of time to shower and have breakfast well underway by time Equestria's newest princess came stumbling into the kitchen for her beloved coffee machine. Its quiet ticking was quickly swallowed by the sound of the rest of his alarm clocks as he turned away and glanced out the window; the moon already high in the sky.
Just as he was ready to turn in for the night, there was a knocking on his door.
“Spike?” Twilight called from the other side, “We... we need to talk.”
Despite a nagging feeling that he knew what she wanted to talk about, the dragon begrudgingly opened the door, looking down on the pony who was just slightly more than half his height now. His teenage growth spurts had been kind to him.
“What-” Spike paused, cutting himself with a sharp, long yawn. Smacking his lips, he continued; “What's up, Twilight?”
The alicorn winced, her ears pinned back as she looked across the walls of his room, each coated in shelves that were themselves coated in alarm clocks of various sizes and shapes. The sound from them all was deafening, and how the dragon slept with such incessant noise was beyond most ponies who saw his room.
“Can we talk in the hall?” She practically had to shout to hear her own voice. Spike snorted, but again complied as he crouched down and stepped out of his room, closing the door beyond him. The sound was immediately silenced by a spell Twilight had placed around his room when the clocks became too loud for her.
“What's up?” He asked again, though his tone told her he knew exactly when she was going to say.
Twilight frowned. “You know this isn't healthy, right?”
“Is it?” Spike asked - somewhat rhetorically – as his eyes narrowed accusingly. “Because to me sleeping for a hundred years is the unhealthy thing to do.”
“Please, Spike; this has been going on for almost two years. You're constantly tired, constantly falling asleep. You can' focus on anything, and you're getting sick every couple days. How many alarm clocks does it take to wake you up now? One hundred? Two?”
The dragon rolled his eyes. “I'm fine, Twilight.”
“But you're not!” She insisted. “You're getting weaker too; don't think I haven't noticed. You can barely lift some of my bigger books now. And when was the last time you went flying? When was the last time you ate a full meal?”
Spike looked over his shoulder at his wings. Once large a proud they now sat unused against his back, wrinkled and emaciated from disuse. He bit his lip. “I'm not napping, Twilight.”
“But you have to. We both know you have to, Spike. I can't stand to see you doing this to yourself.”
“I said no, Twilight,” he practically growled.
“Spike-”
“I said no!” Spike roared, turning away as though he hadn’t seen the tears leaking from the corners of his slitted eyes.
Twilight hesitated a moment, hoof half-raised as though to reach out for him. She never got the chance as her grumbled a half-hearted ‘goodnight’ and stepped back into his room. The slamming of the door ending their conversation before it could begin. Spike took a second to calm himself down, his fists clenching.
“Good night, Spike,” he heard from the other side of the door, and he knew she was crying. For a moment he thought about apologizing, but another yawn reminded him why he was angry in the first place. What did she know? Did she even realize what she was asking him to do?
“I’m fine,” he said to nopony in particular. The sound was swallowed by the ticking that perpetually permeated the room. Spike sighed, shaking his head. “I’ll be fine.” Despite the noise and the thoughts and emotions whirling around in his head, sleep quickly claimed the dragon as soon as his head hit the pillow. Much like it always did these days as his body tried to cope. It was restless, and in the morning he felt no better than he did the night before. Still tired. Still feeling like a bus had run him over.
This time, however, when he woke up, it wasn’t to the sound of a hundred alarm clocks blaring. For a moment he was hopeful/ For the first time in a long time, he’d woken up on his own, without the alarms. This hope was quickly crushed when he realized what had woken him up; he was being shaken. Quite vigorously.
“Spike!”
Through the fog and haze filling his mind he could make out his name being shouted at him. Spike groaned and waved a claw lazily at the voice. Did Twilight still want to have this talk?
“Spike! Please… wake up…”
“Twilight? What-” he yawned, smacking his lips and blearily blinking open his eyes. When he did he saw the purple alicorn standing over him. She was crying. “What’s wrong?”
Twilight smiled through her tears. “Spike…” she looked to the side, nodded her head, and then stepped back.
A nervous ball grew in Spike’s gut. There was sunlight streaming in through the window; it was well past when his alarms should have gone off. Why weren’t they? He tried to sit up but found his muscles stiff and aching, his bones cracking as he forced himself out of bed. “Twilight? What time is it?”
He couldn’t see her face, but he could hear the quiver in her voice. “It’s… Spike, you’ve been asleep for a week.”
“A week!?” The dragon practically jumped out off bed, immediately regretting his as his head spun. The room around him shifted and faded and he felt himself falling.
“Whoa! Easy there, Spike.” A pair of orange hooves caught him with a southern-accent drawl.
Spike blinked up at the mare who’d caught him, then at the other sin the room. “Applejack? Rarity?” He paused, realizing the small crowd all gathered in his room. Along with Applejack and Rarity he saw Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, and Rainbow Dash. Twilight helped lift him back up and guide him over to sitting on the edge of the bed. “What’s going on? Is Equestria in danger? Again?”
“Darling…” Rarity bit her lip. Her mascara told a story Spike was afraid to know. “Equestria’s fine; it’s you we’re worried about. When you didn’t wake up…”
“Somepony must have messed with my alarms,” he muttered, shooting a glare at Twilight.
The alicorn shook her head sadly. “I didn’t touch them, Spike. You slept through them until their batteries died. I’ve been trying to wake you up for days.”
The ball in Spike’s gut popped and a wave of nausea and dread washed over him. “I…”
Fluttershy sat on the bed next to him, placing a gentle hoof atop his claw. “We’re all really worried about you, Spike. We can all see you’re not doing well, and it’s only getting worse. You need to sleep.”
“I-I can’t…” his voice was shaking as much as his body. “I can’t do that to you girls.”
“Oh, Spike…” Pinkie Pie trailed off, her eyes wide. “We’ll be just fine, right girls?” She received a round of nods, and Spike had to clench his eyes tight to fight back the tears.
The dragons took a few slow, deep breaths. He felt a pair of hooves wrap around him, then five more sets. His shoulders hooves and he cried into the embrace, openly and freely. The mares just held him as he cried, and when he regained enough control of his voice to speak, he said; “I… can’t.”
“You have to,” Twilight insisted. “You’re getting worse. If this doesn’t stop you’re going to kill yourself.”
Spike heaved a shuddering breath. “I know. You’re right; I know. Look at me; I can’t even stand anymore. I… I need to nap. I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.”
Spike sighed, pacing the large, cavernous cave he found himself in. “So… this is it, huh?” he asked. More to himself than the ponies with him. “You’d think a cave would be a little nicer.”
“I don’t know why you won’t stay in the castle,” Twilight said, awkwardly standing at the entrance of the cave, high in the mountains.
Shaking his head, the dragon smiled at her. “And cover Ponyville in the smoke? No… it’s best if I’m out here.” He looked at the large, circular bed that had been placed near the center. His smile faded quickly as reality came crashing down around him. It’d been almost two weeks since his… ‘episode’, and since then it’d been a struggle to even keep his eyes open, but he was too scared to fall asleep. Last time it had been a week, how long would it be the next time?
“If you’re sure…” Twilight trailed off awkwardly, not quite sure what to say. What could she say? What could anyone say?
Princess Celestia lowered her head. “You shouldn’t put it off much longer,” she said in that way that only a Princess could, calm and clear despite the emotion carried by her her words. “You’re body can’t hold on forever.”
“I know…” he took a long, shaky breath. “I know but… just… just a bit longer.” He went and sat on the edge of the bed. His bed, now. For a long time. He’d talked to many ponies over the past few weeks, shed many tears with them. But now it was just him and his closest friends. “Just a little while longer with you all.”
“Of course, Spike,” Rarity spoke up before Celestia could, and the six gathered mares, the two princesses, and three fillies that were more mares than fillies now, all gathered around him.
For a while, a good, long while, they talked. About nothing. About everything. Just… anything to fill the silence before the inevitable. Through it all Spike was fighting to stay awake. Just a little longer, he kept telling himself. Even as yawns replaced words Spike fought to stay just a little while longer. Then the conversations grew quieter, and tears fell as everypony realized the dragon’s eyes were more closed than opened.
“You should sleep now,” Fluttershy said gently.
Luna nodded her agreement. “I will keep your nightmares at bay and your dreams pleasant. Always.”
Spike gave her his thanks and laid back on the overly plush pillows that tried to drag him kicking and screaming into the realm of dreams. Not yet. He turned, looking at the gathered ponies. His closest friends. “G-Goodnight…” he choked on his own tears.
“Goodnight, Spike,” FLuttershy whispered, smiling even as her cheeks were matted.
Rainbow Dash and APplejack each gave the dragon a hoof-bump. “‘Night, little dude,” Rainbow Said with a smile that didn’t quite reach her eyes.
“No so little any more,” Applejack corrected with a weak chuckled. “Sleep tight,” she added.
Pinkie Pie gave him a hug the squeezed the breath from his lungs. “Nighty night, Spikey!”
“Spike, dear…” Rarity gave him a much gentler hug, though no less comforting. As much as it could be, at least. “Good night.”
“Good night, Spike!” The Cutie Mark Crusaders all chanted in unison, stacking their hooves on top of his claw. They nodded between each other, an unspoken agreement wordlessly exchanged. Or perhaps a promise.
Celestia smiled down at him. “Goodnight, dearest Spike.”
Then Twilight came up next to him, the cave filled with the sound of crying mares. Spike’s eyes were closed, now, but he was still awake. Still fighting. He felt a hoof wrap around his claw and he grabbed it like a final lifeline. “Goodnight, Spike. My number one assistant…” she sniffled, but tried her best to keep her voice level. “I’ll be here when you wake up. Promise.”
Lacking the strength to verbally respond, Spike squeezed her hoof tighter in thanks, then yawned. Finally, the last dregs of his will used up, the dragon faded off to a deep sleep. True to her word, his dreams were bright and pleasant and never once did a nightmare slip past her watchful gaze.
When he opened his eyes next, they felt heavy. Not from him being tired, but because they were physically larger and heavier than they were when he’d last closed them. The first thing he saw was the dark ceiling of the cave above him, some swirls of deep black smoke still trapped there and the walls covered in a thick layer of soot. For a long, long time he just stared up at the cave as feeling slowly returned to his body. His muscled were stiff beyond belief but felt stronger than they had in a long time. Larger, too; his entire body felt larger. It probably was, he realized.
“Twilight?” He called, surprising himself as he heard a deep, unfamiliar voice echo back from the cave. Was that what he sounded like now? When the alien echo was the only response he got, Spike panicked. Twilight had promised she’d be there. Where was she? Had something happened?
He sat up, and though sluggish his body responded to his commands. All at once he realized just how truly big he’d gotten; the bed that he’d fallen sleep on had started out comically large, but now he dwarfed it, barely able to lay on it fully and still the edges of his body hung out. He wasn’t as big as some elder dragons, but he was certainly much larger than he had been .
Spike groaned, blinking at the sun bleeding in through the mouth of the cave. It was bright and seemed to be shining directly at him. The sun was low; either early morning or late afternoon. He couldn’t remember which way the cave was pointing.
“Spike!” A silhouette appeared in the light from the entrance. Large and with wings and a horn. “Oh my gosh I’m so sorry. I know I promised I’d be hear and Luna said you’d be waking up soon but I was in a meeting and I had to drop everything and Canterlot’s so far away and-”
He held up a slaw, silencing the mare’s panicked apology. “It’s okay, Twilight. I just woke up,” he said, laying back down now that he knew he wasn’t alone. Again he stared at the roof of the cave, a question brewing in his mind that he didn’t really want answered. “How… How long?”
Twilight hesitated. He heard her hooves on the hard rock floor as she came up next to him. She hugged him, as best as she could when she was so small comparatively. “113 years last month,” she said.
Spike fought hard to keep his tears back, at least for now. “Guess I overslept a bit.”
“I’m so happy you’re awake,” Twilight whispered into his scales, refusing to let go. “It’s been so long… your voice is different.”
“I noticed…” he lifted a claw to his throat. “It’s all so weird. I don’t even feel right in my own body anymore.”
For a moment there was silence, then, eventually, Twilight said; “Wait right here; I need to go do something. I’ll be right back, I promise.”
Hesitantly, Spike nodded, and felt cold and alone as soon as she let him go. There was a flash and a pop and she was gone, and he really was alone. Looking around, the dragon noticed a pile of boxes and envelopes piled near the corner of his cave, untouched by the soot that covered everything else. Curious, he forced himself out of bed and staggered over to them.
Picking an box at random, he took the envelope taped to the top, noticing the white parchment had yellowed with age.
Happy 23rd Birthday, Spike! It read in the elegant horn writing that could only have been Rarity’s. Spike gasped, and quickly picked up another box. The label said it was for his 35th birthday from Pinkie Pie. Another was for his 40th from Applejack. Hesitantly, Spike picked up one of the letters that was on its own.
Hey, Spike! It started in the messy writing of Rainbow Dash. The date showed it to be from a few years after he’d gone to sleep.
It’s been a while! I know i haven’t been writing to you as much as I should be… Twi’s been on me about that. I just didn’t have anything to say, y’know? Well, I finally do; I got a promotion today! I’m officially the captain of my very own Wonderbolt’s squad! Isn’t that great? It’s taken a long time to get here, but I’m really living my dream. I know my last letter was kinda a downer with everything that happened, but everything turned out okay in the end. Anyway, I just wanted to let you know things are going pretty great on my end. I’m not one for long-winded stuff or anything, so yeah. I’ll write you another one when I take Spitfire’s job, ‘kay?
Rainbow Dash
“All of them got you gifts on your birthday, and Rarity came up with the idea of writing you letters.” Spike jumped as Twilight trotted into the cave.
Spike’s claws shook as he gently lowered the letter back onto the pile. “A-are… are they…?” His unasked question hung in the air. He knew the answer, but that didn’t stop him being afraid.
“I’m sorry,” Twilight hung her head. “They wrote you letters right to the very end. A lot of ponies did; not just the girls.”
“I… I can’t believe… everypony’s just… gone...?”
“Not all of them.” There was a squeaking sound, and a moment later a elderly mare in a wheelchair enter the cave. Her yellow coat was greying and her mane held only the ghost of red colouring, but that cutie mark was unmistakable.
“A-applebloom?”
Applebloom grinned at him. “Howdy, Spike! Long time no see!”
Spike couldn’t fight back his tears any longer, rushing over with a speed that seemed unnatural in his larger body and snatched the mare out of her chair hugging her close. “I… I didn’t think I’d ever see you again.”
“Hey now, easy; I ain’t a stuffed bear,” she chuckled, playfully swatting his snout. “‘Sides, I had to make it ‘till you woke up; me an’ the girls promised one of us would still be around, and we Apples don’t back down on a promise.”
“We’ve all been waiting for you, Spike,” Twilight said, looking fondly over the stacks of letters and presents with a melancholy glimmer in her eyes. “We thought about you every day. When the girls…” she trailed off, shaking her head. “I just focused on knowing that one day, you’d wake up.”
Spike carefully put Applebloom back in her chair. “113 years,” he said, and it felt like his heart was being smashed by a hammer every time he looked at those letters. “How much has Equestria changed?”
“A lot,” Twilight said thoughtfully, then shrugged. “And not at all. Come on; let’s go back to the castle and I can start catching you up on everything, introduce you to a lot of new ponies who have heard the stories of the Ponyville Dragon. You can open your presents when we get home.
“You have a lot of reading ahead of you; the girls all did amazing things while you were asleep.”
Spike smiled through the tears. “I bet they did.”