//------------------------------// // Back To Where We Started // Story: It's A Lonely Cause // by FamousLastWords //------------------------------// The two had exited the Carousel Boutique with two very different views on the experience.  Spike, who was sitting by himself outside, twiddling his thumbs and trying to act natural, was elated when he saw that Flitter had survived Rarity’s onslaught. Thankfully, she wasn’t too battle-scarred, just well-worn. He had been a bit worried when Flitter looked like she saw something rather inappropriate, but that was the price she paid for being his ‘marefriend’. Flitter was absolutely terrified of Rarity. She would never ever make her mad if she could help it, but her mind was convincing her that it wouldn’t be easy. Every time she looked at Spike, her heart thrashed like it was at a concert. It hurt to see him when she was the one using him for this scavenger hunt, but it hurt more when she imagined Rarity stitching her wings together after finding out she was using him to get with Poptart and—  She took a deep breath and looked over at Spike, who had the clue in his claws. He was about to open it up without her at least seeing it, and that made those feelings of guilt shatter into pieces. “Spike, don’t open it! Let me see it first!” Spike defended himself from the flurry of hooves trying to snatch the clue from his claws. “H-Hey!” he shouted. “I’m the one with claws here, it’s easier for me to open it than you!” “Pfft,” Flitter began. She rolled her eyes. “You know, just because I have hooves doesn’t mean I can’t open up a piece of paper, Spike.” “I know, I know. Magic and all that ‘Theory of Hoof-Touching’. Trust me, Twilight lectured me on the subject.” Flitter raised a brow. “That bad?” Spike nodded and held the clue out for her to grab. “Let’s just say, she recorded it in case I forget with some old tape thing in the basement of the old house. Too bad it was burnt to a crisp.” Flitter grabbed the clue. “Hey, Twilight’s a pretty thorough pony. If she’s going to make sure you know something, she’ll go the extra lengths to make sure you know it.” “That’s probably because she’s OCD, but we’ll go with what you said,” Spike suggested, which made Flitter facehoof. “What? Like you said, I lived with her. That’s a front row seat to Twilight’s methods of madness!” “Fair point, Spike,” Flitter responded. She flicked open the clue, her eyes dancing all over the page. Then she stopped and pulled the clue away from her. “Lucky for you, you’ll find no April Showers here?” Her muzzle caved in as she continued, “Who made these clues, because they need a raise.” Spike smiled. “Lucky for you, I’m here to help save the day.” “No, no, you are not figuring this one out without me,” Flitter replied, her brows furrowing.  The dragon threw his claws up. “Hey, just because I get riddles better than you doesn’t mean you have to get angry at me. That’s a you problem and—hey!” Flitter gave him a swift kick to the shin. “Look, if you’re going to tease me, at least humor me, then. Otherwise, I’m going to start charging you a hefty fine per tease.” “That’s totally illegal somewhere in Equestria, but since I’m a nice guy, I’ll indulge you,” Spike said, giving her a smirk. “So, where do you think this clue will lead us, Flitty?” “Flitty? That’s the best you could come up with?” “Hey, you didn’t like Flitter Flitter, Chicken Ditter, so I had to improvise! That one took me a good twenty minutes just idly thinking on how to improve this whole relationship act.” To Spike’s surprise, Flitter’s face fell. She looked away from him and watched as the clouds drifted over Ponyville. Did he say something wrong? Wasn’t this just an act? Or… Was this what it felt like? Even if it was all pretend? Spike’s eyes widened. Could it be that she felt the same way? His view of her told him something was up—Flitter looked like she was about to burst into tears—but he couldn’t just bring it up now. It wasn’t the time or place, especially with all these ponies around trying to find all these clues. He’d bring it up later, when he knew for sure that nopony was around to snoop on them. Spike reached out to her and pulled her close. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to make you upset.” “No, you didn’t make me upset,” Flitter began. She shook her head and nuzzled into his side. “You couldn’t do that. You’d probably lop off your own arm before you did it.” Spike chortled. “Most likely. Depends on the day of the week.” He looked at his watch. “I don’t plan on doing that today, but if I get close to making you upset, just tell me.” “Alright,” Flitter murmured. “As long as you buy me flowers after I get a good cry in.” Spike raised a brow. “Why would I buy you flowers—” “Because the next clue is at Roseluck’s flower stand!” Flitter shouted. She hopped up and down while shoving the clue right in Spike’s face. “It took me a bit, but look! ‘Lucky for you’ normally means that I’m lucky that someone else is thinking of me, but when you think about it, there are very few times you think of someone else when there’s no April Showers around and—” Spike scratched his head. “Are you on crack? Her name Roseluck and ‘April Showers bring May Flowers’.” “I was getting to that!” Flitter replied. “Jeez,” she added, punctuating her distaste with an eye roll. “Yeah, sure you were.” Spike chuckled. “Whatever helps you sleep at night.” Flitter ignored him and grabbed his arm. “Come on, Spike, let’s not dilly dally any longer! We gotta get this done before Cloudchaser and Poptart beat us and—” “What about Poptart and I destroying you at this scavenger hunt?” Flitter’s eyes widened. That couldn’t be her sister, could it? As she turned around, she saw her arch nemesis stare at her with a smirk that made Flitter’s blood boil. Cloudchaser, who had her wing wrapped around Poptart, strolled up to Spike and Flitter. Poptart wasn’t looking as smug, giving the two a smile. “Hey, Spike! Hey, Flitter!” Spike waved a claw up and shared the gesture. “Hey, Poptart.” However, Flitter didn’t share the same enthusiasm. She was battling herself on the inside. What should she say? The same thing? Or should she say something different? Her life was ticking by and the longer she took, the more awkward it could get!  With a bit too much emphasis, Flitter excitedly shouted, “Hey, Poptart!” The gesture got Cloudchaser howling and gasping for air, while Poptart sort of waved her off, even though a smile was still plastered on his face. Flitter, on the other hoof, was dying on the inside. If Celestia could just strike her down, then that would be great. Or, even better, if she could convince Spike to burn her to a crisp, then she would not have to bear with the embarrassment she had right now. It was even more embarrassing than over-explaining the heck out of her view of the clue! Her heart was about to bolt out of her chest, while her mind was ready to overload from all the emotions that she felt. Thankfully, Spike stood by her, keeping space between her and Cloudchaser. “So, how are you two doing at the scavenger hunt?” Poptart’s question hung in the air, and Flitter didn’t have the ability to reply. She was afraid she’d mess it all up again. So, she peered up at Spike, hoping he got the message. Spike gripped her close and smiled at Poptart. “We’re doing pretty good. We’re just about to head to our next one!” Flitter felt her emotions finally cascade down her spine, leaving her mentally panting, while her body simply shivered in Spike’s grasp. He was really good at this. He just needed to cut out all the other nonsense. Flitter watched as Poptart was about to open his mouth. What was he going to say? Were they ahead of them or were they behind? She couldn’t tell, Poptart just looked happy and undeniably attractive all the time to her. However, Cloudchaser butted in her little fantasy. “Probably way farther ahead than you, Flitter.” Flitter rolled her eyes. “That’s what a pony who’s behind would say.” “No way, I know for a fact we’re ahead of you!” Cloudchaser rebutted, unwrapping her stallion from her wing. She pointed a hoof at her sister.  Flitter smiled, stepping forward to get in her sister’s face “Oh yeah? What clue are you on?” “We’re on our fourth clue, what about you?” Cloudchaser bragged. While Flitter and Cloudchaser fought in their first skirmish, Spike had found himself looking over at Poptart, who was surprisingly quiet throughout the whole build up of this fight. Not that he had anything to show for his involvement, since he wasn’t making much of an attempt, but Poptart was trying to calm Cloudchaser. The stallion had tried to butt in to say something, but every time he tried, he just shut his mouth and watched. There was definitely something off here with Cloudchaser and Poptart’s relationship, but he didn’t want to make Flitter angry if he went to talk to Poptart alone. Not to mention he didn’t want the argument turning on him. That would be asking for a death sentence, one that would be carried out by Princess Celestia, if Spike had to guess, since he was royalty and all. Yet, his curiosity got the best of him. He shook his head and steeled forward, leaving his marefriend to handle her sister. Spike slipped beside Poptart and gave him a friendly nudge. “Mind if we just let them go at it for a second? I had something I wanted to ask you.” “Sounds good to me,” Poptart said, still giving the fighting sisters a side glance. “I knew they liked to argue, but I didn’t think they were this competitive. Cloudchaser’s been talking about beating Flitter almost all day. Has Flitter been the same way?” “Oh you have no idea,” Spike replied with a chuckle. “But from what I’ve seen they should run out of steam here in a bit. In the meantime, how have things been? Like I mentioned this morning, sorry I haven’t had much time to keep up with your band.” Poptart waved a hoof. “Don’t even worry about it, bro. I feel ya. We’re not exactly selling out clubs or anything. I guess most of Equestria isn’t ready for our brand of extreme music yet. Maybe someday.” “Heh, yeah, maybe.” Spike snapped his claws. “That reminds me, have you gotten a chance to listen to the new Saltlick Carnage album yet?” “Dude, yes!” Poptart shouted, eyes widening. “It was so good. Completely outrageous. I couldn’t believe what I was hearing!” “I know!” Spike said, fangirling just a bit. “It’s so extreme. Did you hear that it got banned from Trottingham and Canterlot because of the album art?” “Haha, yeah!” Poptart released a snort. “I guess that’s what having an exposed mare cutting off her own tongue and shoving it in her butt as your album cover will do to you. It’s ridiculous, man.” “Of course, dude! The nobles up in Canterlot were probably quivering when they saw that album art! Trust me, they’re sticklers about everything and—”  “Spike… what are you doing?” The dragon felt his heart freeze as the sound of Flitter’s ticked off voice filled his ears. “Oh, well, you see, Poptart and I were just—”  “Just nothing!” She continued, running to his side and grabbing a firm hold of his arm. “You were fraternizing with the enemy. That’s what you were doing!” “Fraternizing with the enemy? What are you, a war general?” Flitter smirked. “I can be whatever you want me to be if we win this hunt. But we’re not gonna be able to do that if you spend all our valuable time chatting it up about Celestia knows what!” “Hey, Celestia would care about Saltlick Carnage’s album too,” he began, stepping away from Poptart. “She’s a huge fan of grindcore, y’know, but don’t tell her I said that!” “Not my point,” Flitter continued, pulling Spike away from his friend. She looped her wing around his back. “Let’s get going! We’re burning daylight!” Poptart sighed, only to yelp at the sudden contact of Cloudchaser’s hoof in his side. “Don’t think you’re off the hook, either, Poptart,” Cloudchaser chimed in. “We need to focus on winning. There will be time for... friendship later.” Poptart nodded and waved at Spike and Flitter. “Hope you all have fun with your scavenger hunt!” Spike returned the gesture, even though Flitter was not having any of it. “You too, Poptart! Hope you survive the war—ouch!” That shin-tingler was totally worth it, in Spike’s eyes.  Spike rubbed at his wrist. Maybe that shin-tingler was not as worth it as it seemed. Due to that whole encounter, he has been yanked around more than a dangling light switch. His arm bore most of the pain, but that wrist of his was going to be sore for a while. He hoped that this wasn’t going to continue being a ‘beat up Spike to a bloody pulp’ sort of ordeal. He’ll have to talk to her about it later, when he could get the chance. Flitter, on the other hoof, was starting to calm down. Granted, she was still feeling the adrenaline rush of shouting at her sister, but she wasn’t yanking at Spike’s arm with her teeth. She probably shouldn’t have done that, since she definitely needed his arm to hold onto the clues and other things that she didn’t want to hold onto for the hunt, but he’ll be fine. He’s a dragon, after all. He’s got scales… and muscles… and green eyes, and a great smile! He’ll— Flitter felt a familiar heat reminding her of her feelings. She really needed to get herself together, because she was feeling a lot about both Spike and Poptart, yet she didn’t know how to classify them. Was she in love with Spike? Was she in love with Poptart? What was her deal, and why wasn’t her heart calming down?  Flitter fanned herself and took a deep breath. She hoped to Celestia that Spike didn’t notice her goofy little act. She was just trying to calm down. Any more of that teasing would probably make her turn into a raging balloon that was about to burst into millions of tiny pieces. Or she could just turn into a pegasus about to run into a tree—  Flitter yelped as she dodged the tree. Spike looked at her, and stifled a laugh. “I’m sorry, but did you almost just run into a tree?” “N-No! I was just trying not to trip over…” Flitter began, searching the ground beside her. She grabbed a branch and waved it in front of him. “See! Totally almost tripped over this branch!” “Right…” Spike said, letting the word trail off enough just so he could get under her skin. She groaned in response, which got him laughing like a hyena.  Flitter rolled her eyes. “So, how far are we from Roseluck’s place?” Spike hummed to himself in thought. That’s like asking how high was up. He didn’t have a tape measure with him, and he wasn’t willing to ask Twilight for an extended one that could actually measure how high up was, let alone the distance between this tree that Flitter almost ran into and Roseluck’s stand.  So, Spike threw out a random number. “About a few houses away.” Spike watched as Flitter’s smile doubled in size. “Great! Let’s keep moving!” It was at this moment that Spike felt his heart twinge. Either that, or his stomach was growling. It didn’t matter which, though, he knew that he needed to get her to slow down and focus on something that was bothering him immensely. “Yeah, but there’s something I need to ask you about. Can we just sit down and talk for a little bit?” “But Spike, we just talked about how we only have a little bit of time to beat my sister and—” “I know, Flitter. I know,” Spike said, shoving a hoof out to put a plug on that muzzle of hers. “But at the rate you’re going, either I will suffer a dislocated shoulder from how much you’ve yanked my arm, or you’re going to suffer a heart attack, and trust me, those are pricey treatments. I should know this, I’m the Royal Revenue Auditor.” “The Royal Revenue Auditor? What type of position is that?” Spike smirked. “Let’s just say, I get to see how much these hospitals and clinics rake in and oh man, do they roll in bits!” Flitter rolled her eyes. “Okay, okay!” She took a deep breath, her exhale fluttering in the breeze. “So, regardless of all that, what is it that you want to talk about? World Peace? Hayburgers? The price you’ll pay if you tease me again?” “Nothing like that,” he replied. Spike darted his eyes around until they focused in on a bench a bit off the road a short walk away. Nopony would bother them there. “Let’s go take a seat at the bench over there and talk, okay?” “O-Okay,” Flitter answered, her voice cracking. She felt an anxious bubble forming in her gut as they walked towards the bench. What did Spike want to talk about? If it was about the argument, then she’d need to apologize… Or worse, maybe it wasn’t the argument at all. In fact, Flitter had a hunch she knew what Spike wanted to talk about. It’s been an incredibly confusing day for her emotions so it stood to reason that he’d be going through something similar. There was an equal or greater chance this conversation was about to be extremely awkward. Once they reached the bench, Spike sat down and patted next to him, bidding Flitter to do the same, which she did. It was still relatively early in the day at this point so the sun was sinking, illuminating the rustic beauty of Ponyville around them. Under normal circumstances, it would be quite relaxing and enjoyable. But these were far from normal circumstances, so all the scenery was lost on one poor mare sitting on the bench. “Look,” Spike spoke up, breaking Flitter from her self-induced paranoia. “Things have been really weird today and I just want to get a grasp on what’s going on.” “You could say that again,” Flitter replied with a snort. “Well, I’ll try my best to answer whatever you wanna ask.” “Well, to start,” began Spike. “What’s the deal between you and your sister? Do you guys like… hate each other or something? Because, not gonna lie, the sheer amount of dedication you have towards beating her is a bit scary. Impressive, but scary. I’m just curious, is all.” Flitter shook her head and let out a large sigh. “No, I don’t hate her. She’s my sister. I love her to death, honestly. But it’s just…” “Go on?” She slammed a hoof down onto the bench. “It’s just that she gets everything I want in life. She tried out for the Wonderbolts, while I still haven’t gotten my flying license. She had always brought oats for lunch to school, while I only got hay. She gets Poptart and I get you.” Flitter yelped and immediately covered her mouth with a wing. “No offense.” “None taken,” Spike replied. “So, essentially she’s living a life that you wanted or something?” “Yes, no… maybe?” Flitter responded. “It’s hard to explain. Just, she always beats me at everything. For once I wanted to beat her. I wanted to be the cooler sister. That’s why I was so excited to get to do this romantic scavenger hunt thing with Poptart. I knew she liked him, maybe even more than me, but it didn’t matter because she got him and I didn’t! It’s always been like this.” “I see.” Spike rubbed his chin. “Well, I’ll tell you what. I think I know how you feel.” ‘Psh.” Flitter leaned back and looked at the dragon. “No offense, but you were an only child. How would you know what it’s like to have a sibling?” “Oh, it has nothing to do with siblings,” Spike stated. “But put yourself in my scales. If you think being around an overachieving sister is hard, imagine growing up with the saviors of Equestria.” Flitter blinked a few times, trying to come up with something to say. “Oh, I guess—” “I mean, every week it seemed there was some friendship problem that needed to be solved, or a competition that needed winning, or a reincarnated villain that needed to be stopped. And every week, I got to see Twilight and the others get called to save the day while I was either left behind or brought along as the third wheel. I could never live up to the bar they were setting. I dunno, I guess it made me feel kind of useless.” Flitter drooped her head down as she listened to him pouring his heart out. Little did he know exactly how similar their circumstances were. “I know the feeling. It’s almost like I have to wonder why I’m even around when my sister is here to be great at everything. I’m not even asking to be great… I just want to be good enough for once.” “Heh,” Spike said with a brief chuckle. “You don’t have to tell me twice. I think that’s one of the reasons I was willing to join you on this wild goose chase.” “Huh?” “You see, when you approached me about all this, it was the first time in a long time someone seemed interested in what I actually had to offer as an individual, not just money and prominence. It felt good, even if the plan was just to use me.” Spike sighed. “I felt like I mattered.” Flitter couldn’t help but remember Rarity’s words: “...the fact that he chose you tells me that you’re somepony very special to him as well.” Oh great. This had officially confirmed that Flitter became what she hated. Here was this poor dragon that just needed some encouragement in his life and what did she do? Used him like a dollar store hooker. Some piece of work she was.  “Well, if it means anything, Spike,” Flitter said. “I’m really glad I ran into you. I’m not sure anypony else would’ve actually helped me like this. And I mean, you’re not the worst guy I’ve ever hung out with.” Flitter sent a sly smile his way. “Oh gee, thanks,” Spike replied with a small smile of his own “But to be honest, today has been pretty fun. I’m glad you asked me. Far be it for me to get in the way of somepony’s sibling rivalry revenge plot.” “Really?” Flitter could feel her heart rate picking up as she focused in on him. “I’ve actually had fun so far today too. I mean that cupcake was good and…” she inched a bit closer to him. “You’re pretty cool, all things considered.” “Thanks.” Spike leaned back into the bench. “I guess that brings me to the next thing I wanted to ask you about.” “Go ahead,” she replied. At least they got the tough part out of the way. The rest of the conversation should be a breeze now. “Are we just going to keep ignoring the fact that you totally kissed me at Rarity’s place? Because, I’m sorry, but you can’t argue about that one.” Now the conversation turned a mild breeze into a full-blown tornado. Flitter’s mind raced back to when they were in her house. Back to when she legitimately grabbed him by the cheeks and planted her lips on him. Why did she do that? “Oh, well, I guess we probably shouldn’t,” she replied, her voice just a tad shaky. “I mean, I guess I should apologize.” Spike shook his head. “Oh man, there’s no need to apologize. It was awesome! Being kissed like that in the moment… it was pretty tight. I just want to know why. It came a bit out of nowhere to be honest.” “Well,” Flitter shook her head. “I guess I’m not really sure. I mean, I wanted to show Rarity just how dedicated I was to you, especially after the warning you gave me. But at the same time, seeing how close you two were, I guess I just kind of acted in the moment. It was pretty dumb, huh?” “Nah, it was cool,” Spike said with a smile. “It’s not every day somepony just gets up and decides to kiss you, so I’m pretty grateful for it. But, honestly, it did kind of make me wonder what’s really going on between us.” “Us?” Flitter asked. “What do you mean?” “Well, we started the day as business partners, but I don’t think that’s the full story anymore.” Spike stared off in the distance. “I’d like to think we’ve at least graduated to acquaintances at this point, wouldn’t you agree?” Flitter chuckled. “Yeah, I’d say we have.” “Awesome!” Spike said. “You know what that means?” “What’s that?” “It means I can officially take whatever food I want from your fridge without asking if you ever invite me over. That’s the important thing.” The two erupted into a small fit of laughter. Flitter had honestly forgotten how much she missed laughing and just taking life easy for a time. It was refreshing. He was refreshing. “Well, I guess that’s enough soul searching for now,” Spike said, standing up from the bench. “But just do me one last favor if you could?” Spike reached out a claw to help Flitter up. She gladly took his claw and rose back onto her hooves. “What’s that?” “Warn me the next time we kiss. I gotta be ready with my A-Game if we’re gonna do that again.” Flitter laughed. “Okay, deal. But it’s awfully bold of you to assume there’ll be a next time.” “Oh, there will be if we keep this up.” He made a point of smoothing back his head spikes. “Mares can only resist my wit and charm for so long before succumbing to my natural magnetism.” Flitter found herself erupting into a giggle fit once more. “Okay, fair point. But for now, let’s just focus on getting to Roseluck’s flower stall. We’ll never win if we don’t hurry.” “Deal.” And just like that, the two ran off toward their next goal, bright and genuine smiles adorning their faces. Maybe, just maybe, the day would get a bit less weird from here on out.   Flitter couldn’t be more happy about what has happened. Well, other than the argument, of course, but she wasn’t going to nitpick it. The only thing she was willing to nitpick was that conversation Spike and her had. It had brightened up her mood tenfold, and really made her feel like she understood Spike’s perspective. It made what she said back at Rarity’s a bit more of the truth than she thought… Flitter’s gaze darted to Spike, who, like usual, wasn’t as focused on her as she was on him, and she would never admit this, but she liked that he wasn’t focused on her so much. Granted, she liked the attention, but she wasn’t somepony who craved it. Besides, she didn’t need him to pay attention to her when they had a more overarching issue to complete: the scavenger hunt. They were super close to Roseluck’s stand. All they had to do was round the corner without running into anything and they were right at that flower mare’s storefront, if you could call it a storefront. The pair rounded said corner and gasped at the sight that laid in front of them. Roseluck’s stand was usually a bit smaller than what it was now. In fact, it was way smaller than the huge stockpile that stared Spike and Flitter in the face. There were flowers of all kinds: red and pink roses, daisies, lilies, and even some beautiful carnations! Oh my! Flitter stared at them, both for how beautiful they were, and also because her stomach was growling, and sometimes flowers made for good appetizers. Spike, on the other hand, couldn’t think of the words to eloquently visualize his feelings. He just stared, and stared, and stared some more, until he picked his jaw off the ground and nudged his ‘marefriend’.  “Hey, Flitter.” Flitter picked hers off the ground too, although hers wasn’t as clean of a transition. “Y-Yeah, Spike?” He turned to her and pointed at the display. “That’s a lot of flowers. Like, not even exaggerating, there’s at least five.” “I know, Spike. I know,” Flitter replied. She had to restrain herself from turning into a giggling mess from his reaction, but luckily, she was starting to get used to his humor… if getting used to his humor involved scrunching her face together with her hooves. “Don’t you want to get me one?” “Only if the price is right,” Spike began. He shrugged. “I guess it really depends on if it’ll sell this whole thing, you know?” Flitter, once again, felt a pang in her heart when he said that. Her emotions were really on overdrive. “Y-Yeah, Roseluck won’t expect a thing if you bought me one of those!” Spike nodded and looped his arm around Flitter. He looked down at her. “You ready?” “Yep!” she cheerfully replied. She nuzzled against him for good measure as they approached the stand. To Spike and Flitter, they looked like a couple. Spike had that old school style of bringing his mare close, while Flitter was keeping in step with him, nuzzling him all the while.  To Roseluck, the interspecies pair looked like a drunk pegasus mare trying to lean up against her dragon friend for support and failing to do so properly every third step. Roseluck gave them a very awkward sort of a smile, a smile that Spike noticed immediately. It was a bit shaky, like the left side of her muzzle was having an anxiety attack due to not taking its meds and the right side was the older sibling that had its life together and therefore became the family favorite. The scene made Spike nearly chuckle, but he was able to stop himself before he embarrassed Roseluck and Flitter alike. He was pretty good at embarrassing those around him, but not today! “Hello, Roseluck!” Flitter greeted. “Hello, Flitter,” Roseluck replied through somewhat clenched teeth. She shook her head to try and shake the awkwardness out of her, with only a bit of results. Spike could see her lips were still twitching like mad. “And hello to you, Spike! It’s been a hot minute since I’ve seen you around.” “Hey, Roseluck. Long time no see. It’s been like… over a month or something.” Spike said, giving her a smile. “Mind if we ask if this is your clue?” Roseluck’s eyes widened. “Ah, so you’re not here to buy flowers, then?” Flitter smirked. “Oh, he’ll get me one if he knows what’s good for him.” “I’ll budget one in for you later, for sure” Spike said with a punctuated eye roll. He pulled out the crumpled up piece of paper and read it out to Roseluck. “Lucky for you, you’ll find no April Showers here.” That awkward smile of hers finally fixed itself, turning into a grin that could rival Pinkie Pie’s on a bad day. “Wow! I was wondering when somepony would drop on by and read off that clue! Was worried for a second that nopony got it!” Spike chuckled. “That would be pretty silly if they didn’t use a clue relating to you, Roseluck. You sell flowers. Everypony in Equestria needs flowers on Hearts and Hooves Day!” “That is true,” Roseluck began, twiddling with her hooves. She looked at her display and sighed. “I just thought I’d have a few more ponies than I’d normally get, but the scavenger hunt has them going around my stand, not to it.” “That was a miscalculation,” Spike said with a chuckle, only to be bopped upside the head by Flitter’s wing. The mare in question smirked. “Then I’m glad we were at least able to brighten up your day by stopping by, right?” Roseluck kept that grin going, her ears up high. “Yep! So, with the clue reading out of the way, I guess you will be getting flowers after all.” “Wait, we are?” Spike said, much to the chagrin of Flitter, who glared at him with miniature daggers. “I was going to pay for one of them, but I guess if you’re offering.” Roseluck giggled. “Well, it’s all paid due to the clue itself, since we don’t want ponies spending money on the vendors… you know, we don’t want ponies unable to buy something if they can’t afford it.” Flitter, like Roseluck, kept that smirk of hers on her face too. “If he didn’t have some bits to spare, I don’t know if I’d be as happy with him as I am right now. I’m totally just with him for the money.” Spike groaned. “Oh boy, looks like I’m going to have to ask Twilight for a stipend or something, because man, Flitter’s got my wallet begging for mercy.” The two mares laughed. “Well, Spike, that’s usually how the cookie crumbles… unless you two decide to trade off each time you go out,” Roseluck stated. She walked over to her display and beckoned the couple with her hoof. “Come on over, the flowers don’t bite!” “Are you sure? Last time I saw a flower, it tried snapping at me,” Spike said with a very serious tone. He watched as Flitter groaned, while Roseluck just facehooved. “Was that a swing and a miss?” “No, I’ve just heard that so many times that it’s become a staple whenever I say that line,” Roseluck said lamely. She presented the many flowers she had to the pair, who were spellbound by her collection. “The clue led you here, but now I have to judge your love for each other, right?” “I guess,” Spike began. He scratched his head. “I’m not sure something as simple as a flower can actually sum up my love for her, though.” Flitter nearly blew up at that comment. It wasn’t that it was bad, because it wasn’t. It’s just… that was a huge bombshell to drop on her without giving her some fair warning. Love was a strong word and—wait, Spike said he loved her. Even though she knew this was an act, her cheeks were burning like a bright flame at that thought. Flitter looked over at Roseluck to see how she was faring.  Roseluck was trying to respond to Spike’s sudden declaration, but she was squee-ing a bit too hard to really say anything. That… was a very interesting reaction. However, it was soon short-lived, as Roseluck finally was able to say something: “That was the most adorable thing I’ve ever heard from a stallion—er… a dragon about his mare!” Spike raised a brow. “What do you mean? It’s true, though, really. If I was lying, she’d be telling me off right now and—ack!” “Stop it while you’re ahead, Spike,” Flitter said, glaring at him. She saw that the dragon was rubbing his side and sighed. “Sorry, didn’t mean to hit you that hard.” “It’s okay, just tell me next time you decide you want to completely incapacitate me. I didn’t even bring my insurance card with me.” Flitter giggled. “Oh you poor baby,” she cooed. “Do you want me to kiss the booboo away?” Spike rolled his eyes. “I’ll live, Flitter. You don’t need to—” Spike abruptly stopped as she nuzzled where she hit him. Suddenly the pain just numbed itself, to the point that he wasn’t sore from the hit. What type of voodoo magic did Flitter have and how could he harness it? “Wow, thanks, Flitter. I just suddenly feel a thousand times—” Roseluck squealed, destroying Flitter and Spike’s ear drums. The two turned their attention to her as she smiled gleefully at them. “You two are perfect for a couple, I swear. His sweetness and your snarky attitude! Too cute!” The two were flushing at this point. They may have dialed that relationship selling point up a bit too high. They started the day with the knob at ‘Super Delicates’ and have since cranked it up to ‘Whitest Whites’.  Besides, they were distracting themselves from the main goal: the clue itself. What did Roseluck have in store? “Thanks, Roseluck,” Spike began. He tilted his head at the display. “So what do you want us to do?” “Yes, the clue. Right,” Roseluck said. She cleared her throat before she continued, “On Hearts and Hooves Day, ponies will come to buy flowers for their significant others, right?” “Yep, following you so far,” Spike said, nodding. “Well, I decided the best way to judge your love is for each one of you to pick a flower that best defines the other.” Flitter blinked. Spike blinked. The sunflowers in the corner blinked. There were about one hundred and eighty-two blinks altogether. “So, Roseluck?” Spike asked. “Yeah?” “You want me to pick a flower that best defines Flitter?” Roseluck bobbed her head very rapidly. “Yep!” “And I have to pick one for Spike?” Flitter asked. “Of course! Make sure you pick one that defines your significant other, or else they’ll most likely feed you to the wolves, or something,” Roseluck instructed. She shrugged. “Well, that’s what I heard from somepony once, but that’s probably not too terribly accurate. You know… probably.” Spike shook his head. He couldn’t believe she just said that. But given Flitter’s rambunctious temperament, he wouldn’t be surprised. After a couple moments to recoup, Spike looked between the two mares. “Well, who should go first?” Roseluck smiled. “Well, it doesn’t really matter, but if I had to advise you, I’d say Flitter should go first.” Flitter stuck her tongue out at Spike. “Mare’s first, Spike! Get with the program.” “Alright, my bad,” the dragon retorted. “Go wild.” Flitter immediately started looking at all the flowers. She perused the petunias, researched the roses and tallied the tulips. She had to find that perfect flower for Spike. But what did she honestly feel were his strongest characteristics that could be wrapped up in a flower? She rubbed her chin for a moment. Well, he was strong, so she’d need a big one. One that had a strong stem. He was also really funny, so something bright and colorful had to be chosen. Add on to that that he had such a positive outlook and he really seemed to care, something calming and not covered in thorns was a must. And that’s when she saw the perfect flower. A sunflower. Flitter took the brief travel over to the said sunflowers and snatched one in her wing bringing it back to the two. “Here you go, Spike! Just for you!” She tossed the flower at him which he gracefully caught. “It’s a sunflower in case you couldn’t tell.” Spike had a huge grin on his face as he held it and looked it over. “Wow, thanks!” He turned his attention back up to her. “Why’d you pick this one?” “Huh?” Flitter felt herself get just a bit shaky. “Yep, that’s the second part of the challenge,” Roseluck said with a grin. “You have to tell your partner why you chose that flower for them. So go ahead and spill the beans, girl.” Flitter let out a sigh. She wasn’t prepared for this. How could she explain things without letting too many of her feelings out in the open? She couldn’t. That was the beginning and end of it. She was just going to have to expose herself for Spike to see. “Okay, so, I picked a sunflower for a few reasons,” she started. “One, they’re big and strong, just like you. Sunflowers are also really bright and sunny, and you’re always super positive and happy. You’re like… a really bright spot, even on a cloudy day. But also, I always feel relaxed when I’m around you, almost like I’m standing outdoors next to a sunflower field, just enjoying the warm, summer breeze.” Flitter giggled involuntarily. “I just think this flower really represents you well.” Roseluck instantly squealed, hopping back and forth on her hooves. “Oh my gosh, that was awesome!” Spike, meanwhile, was just standing and smiling while looking at the flower he had been gifted. “Wow. Thanks a lot, Flitter. I really… really appreciate it. It means a lot.” “N-No problem,” Flitter said, nervously kicking at the ground. “Well, Spike, it’s your turn,” Roseluck said, turning to the dragon. “You have a tough act to follow, though.” “Hmm, let’s see here…” Spike scanned his eyes over the flowers, one by one, taking in their beauty and colors. Flitter watched him do it. What was he going to pick? Probably something dumb as a joke. Or maybe something really simple like a rose for love… which was something she’d still need to check with him about later. Dropping the ‘L’ bomb like that out of nowhere was definitely worthy of a wing smack. She found her thoughts getting cut off as Spike finally seemed to find out which one he wanted. “Got it!” He shouted, pulling a flower out and walking it over to the two mares. “Might I present to you my flower of choice.” The one he was holding was a dark purple carnation. It was pretty no doubt, and a bit unexpected. But it was an odd choice as far as Flitter was concerned. The flower itself was a little undersized and the dark purple coloring was borderline bleak. Where was he going with this? “Ooh, a carnation!” Roseluck piped up. “Interesting choice. So, spill it. Why’d you pick it?” “Well, for a couple reasons,” Spike said, holding out the flower. “I knew not just any flower would do when it came to how I feel about you, Flitter. But this one… this one checked all the right boxes.” He cleared his throat. “For one, this flower is very moody. I mean, I hold it at one angle and it looks all dark and kind of sad. But if I hold it up to the sun…” Spike held the flower up, “It becomes a much brighter shade of purple, almost glistening. Just like this flower, Flitter, your moods seem to change on a dime. But, also just like the flower, I think you’re absolutely beautiful either way.” Flitter just looked at him, her heart practically coming to a full stop. She was… beautiful? “But even more than that,” Spike continued. “This flower was a bit smaller than the ones around it. It was also a bit darker. It really stuck out to me and when I looked at the bunch of flowers it was next to, it was the first and only one that I noticed. You’re different Flitter, just like this flower. You stand out. But that’s why I picked you, just like I picked this flower. I love that you’re different and I wouldn’t have you any other way.” He walked over to her and gently placed the flower in her mane. Flitter felt the flower slide into her mane. It didn’t poke her head like she thought it would, and there were no thorns on it whatsoever. What did poke her head were these thoughts that she was having. They were fluttering around in her mind, jabbing at her like she was getting what she deserved. She was being shown what love truly looks like, yet it was just pretend. It was just for this scavenger hunt. It was Poptart she was after, not Spike. ...right? Her wings twitched. Her eyes widened. Her vision was flurry. Her heart was racing. She couldn’t control what she was feeling, she could only hope that this wasn’t pretend, and even if it was, she’d make sure Spike knew it wasn’t just pretend to her. Or maybe it was! Agh, she couldn’t make sense of this at all! Flitter watched as Spike took a step back and admired her, eying her up and down. He gave her a whistle before he spoke, “See, perfect, just as I envisioned it would be. It really ties in with your bow too and—”  Spike stopped talking when he saw Flitter hiding behind her hoof. It made him raise a brow and walked over to her, cupping her cheek as he spoke, “Flitter, what’s wrong?” “Spike,” she said. “G-Give me a minute.” Spike nodded. He watched as she wiped her face with her hoof and looked at him, smiling, her eyes glistening in the sun. The flower did too, still perfectly tucked in her mane. It made him really happy that she hasn’t thrown the flower out of her mane yet, or even worse, stomping on it and storming out. That wouldn’t look too good for their relationship. What did look good was her nuzzling up against him, her cheek grazing his side. “Flitter…” “Thank you, Spike. That was… really sweet. I don’t think the flower I picked for you even measures up to what you gave me just now.” “Well, actually, it does measure up pretty well. I mean, come on, this sunflower is huge and—ack!” “I didn’t mean by size you goof!” Flitter said, batting him with her wing. He answered with mock pain, groaning as if he was hit where the sun didn’t shine.   “Well, size does matter in some cases, so I was worried that you were thinking with something else, not—okay, okay, I’ll stop!” Flitter’s wing was raised high, but after hearing her dragon plead for mercy, she let it fold to her side. She gave a nod to him and smirked. “That’ll be ten bits for that one, by the way.” “Oh boy, that sounds like a discount and a half. Want another one for a snack?” The mare giggled. “No, I’m good, Spike. Besides, I’m not hungry. I’m just—” Yet again, Roseluck interrupted them, this time without squealing her head off. Instead, she vied for a different approach, one where Flitter and Spike’s eardrums were safe from the flower mare’s onslaught. She simply told them the truth, and only the truth. “I’m sorry for interrupting, but that… that was something else.” The two turned to Roseluck, both with synchronized head tilts. The flower mare giggled at the display, continuing her critique. “I know, I know, that may not be the right wording, but I’m just… blown away by how you two interact. Are you sure you two aren’t married or something?” Now that got both of them flushed beyond belief. “N-No!” Spike began, shaking his head rapidly. “We just started dating recently and—” “And we… wanted to try and figure out what we liked about each other, so we thought this scavenger hunt would be perfect for us!” Flitter finished, giving her dragon another nuzzle.  Roseluck grinned. “Well, I’m glad you both decided to try this scavenger hunt out. It definitely helps couples see if they’re perfect for each other or not.” She looked at her flowers. “Just like my flowers! We’re having a sale next week! Don’t forget to tell your friends!” Spike chuckled. “I respect the hustle, Roseluck.” This clue was definitely one of the better ones, in Flitter’s mind. Roseluck was somepony that didn’t know Spike or herself that well, so she actually didn’t feel like her hooves were weightless… well, until Spike put that flower in her mane. Then it wasn’t just her hooves that were weightless. This was one that she would remember even if their relationship turned out to resemble her current trend of luck: crashing and burning in a horrifying inferno.  Flitter shook her head. Even if this was all pretend, at least she’d enjoy herself. And if this wasn’t pretend, she’ll make sure Spike knew it. She hadn’t decided yet. “That was really fun, Roseluck. Thank you for allowing us to do this,” Flitter said, smiling. “Aww, you don’t need to thank me. Like I said, I’m just glad I could be a part of something that revolves so heavily around love for another pony or dragon, in your case.” She looked over at Spike. “Didn’t know you had it in you there, Cassanova.” Spike smirked. “I’m full of surprises, Roseluck, you just never get to see them.” “You could say that again,” Flitter said with an eye roll. “I’m full of surprises, Roseluck, you just never get to see them,” Spike repeated, earning him a glare from his mare, and a nice, hearty laugh from Roseluck. Life was finally starting to turn over a new leaf for Spike. However, it felt even better to have somepony to share it with, even if it wasn’t as real as he wanted it to be. It— Spike turned away from the mares. Was he really thinking of Flitter like that? He did pour his heart out for Flitter, but he didn’t know if it was too much or too little. Selling this relationship was tough enough as it was, now he was starting to feel something for her and… He felt a certain fire burn inside him, and no, it wasn’t his stomach growling. He knew what it was, and he wasn’t ready to admit it. He needed to figure out if this was something that he could truly pursue, even if it meant having to use Twilight as a point of reference, experimenting fruitfully until he tested his hypothesis to the point of no return. When he turned back to his mare and Roseluck, the two were chatting happily. Flitter was smiling, no longer looking like she was about to cry over something he did. She was so radiant in the sun, just like that flower in her mane. Spike strolled up beside Flitter and looked at Roseluck. “So, Roseluck, since we did your task, do you mind giving us our next clue?” Roseluck sheepishly smiled. “Sorry, Spike. Didn’t mean to forget to give you two your clue. However, I can’t exactly give it to you just yet.” “What do you mean?” Flitter asked. “We gave each other flowers, just like you said and—” Roseluck smiled. “Yep! You did, but I need you to open this box. In it will be your clue and… a souvenir?” Her muzzle scrunched up as she continued, “I’m not sure if it goes with the whole hunt, but that’s what I was told to say when you both completed it!”  Spike laughed. “At least you stuck to the script! I’d be off course if I was in your hooves!” Flitter looked at the box. “So, Spike, you mind opening it?” “Nope! Don’t mind at all!” Spike said, flipping the box open to reveal a small piece of paper, which he assumed was the clue, and a little plush toy to boot. He took them both out and showed the two mares. Flitter grabbed a hold of the toy. “Wow, I didn’t expect the scavenger hunt organizers to be this cheesy.” “Really? I mean, come on, Flitter, Princess Cadance is the Princess of Love for a reason. If this event wasn’t cheesy, I’d think everypony would think she’s fallen ill... or worse.” “You probably would know about it first, considering your position, Spike,” Flitter noted, getting Spike to nearly burst out laughing. “Maybe, depends if she goes to a hospital in Canterlot, or if she goes to one in the Crystal Empire. I don’t get to see how much she spends on that type of stuff,” Spike said lamely. He opened the clue and read it out loud. ““When you arrive at the next destination, you’ll bear-ly be able to keep your eyes open!” Flitter raised a brow. “Did somepony just write a dad joke in this clue?” “Not to defend it or anything, but sometimes the idea well goes a bit dry,” Roseluck replied. “That’s how it goes for me sometimes. Think I have a good idea for my business, and the next it just looks like something a foal would think of and it fails miserably.” Spike shoved the clue in his pocket, and looped an arm around his mare. “Well, Roseluck, as much as I want to talk to you about your business, I think Flitter and I have a scavenger hunt to complete.” Flitter nodded. “Thank you once again, Roseluck. What you did for us was really special.” Roseluck’s cheeks blossomed a generous red hue. “Oh, hush. I don’t need the praise. I just was your guide and you two did all the rest!” “Yeah, but we still needed you to guide us, right? That deserves some praise,” Spike elaborated. He waved the flower mare goodbye, which Flitter mimicked with her free wing. As they turned away from the stand, Spike remembered what Flitter picked for him. He kinda wanted to know more about her pick, but it didn’t really need to be said. He was just happy he had something that Flitter thought reminded her of him. It fit well in his claw, and well, it was pretty tall. Then, he remembered what he gave Flitter, and that made him ready for what was going to come next, as soon as he could figure out what ‘bear-ly keep your eyes open’ meant. One way or another, they were going to find out and very soon. They still had a competition to win.