There could be no interruptions, no mistakes, and nopony to bother him. For the first time in a while, Spike had time to practice. It had taken a while to convince Twilight to leave him be, but he had done it. In his left hand was a lowball glass with ice and a brown liquid in it. A smile was on his face as he moved to the back room of the library. A knock stopped his trek. He sighed and went to the door. Opening it, he found a butter coloured pegasus. She had a solemn look on her face.
“Hello, Spike,” she said. “Do you think we can talk?”
“Sure,” he ushered the pony inside. “Follow me.” He closed the door and led the yellow pony.
“I need to talk to you abou…” Spike raised his right hand.
“Not yet, Fluttershy,” he interrupted. “Just wait for a bit. Normally, I don’t like it when ponies bother me during my practice time, but I can see you need somepony to talk to.” The two of them walked in silence until they reached a black curtain. Spike walked behind it and Fluttershy followed. On the other side of the curtain was a black baby grand piano. Spike sat down at the bench and placed a coaster on the piano.
“Okay,” he placed his drink on the coaster. “Talk to me Fluttershy. What’s bothering you?” His hands moved across the keys. A soothing melody came from the piano as he played.
“Well, it’s about Twilight,” she explained. “I really really like her. She’s one of my closest friends. But…”
“But?”
“Being close friends isn’t enough. I want something more,” Spike took a pull from his drink. “I treasure the friendship I have with her, but it isn’t as satisfying as it was before. I think, I think I want something more from her.”
“That being the case,” Spike said. “Why not ask her out?”
“I can’t do that!” Fluttershy screamed. The only sound between the two was the song that Spike was playing.
“You’re going to have to explain this to me,” he said. “Why can’t you do that?” Fluttershy tapped the floor.
“Because if I ask her out and she doesn’t feel the same, then there’s going to be a rift between us. The rift is going to get so big that we won’t speak with each other ever again. And then our friends will eventually have to pick whether to spend time with either me or Twilight. Then they'll hate me for separating us!” the room’s occupants were silent.
“You’ve really thought this out haven’t you?” Fluttershy nodded. “Why come to me?”
“I don’t know what to do,” she hung her head. “Twilight is very important to me, and I feel so lost.”
“Again, why me?”
“Because you know Twilight. If anyone knows how she would react to something like this, it’s you.” Spike closed his eyes. His fingers were still dancing across the piano’s keys.
“I say take a chance and go for it,” he said. “Twilight is an understanding pony. Even if she doesn’t see you the same way you see her, she’ll still want to be friends with you. She won’t push you away just because you like her. Twilight cherishes all of her friendships, including the one she has with you.” Spike’s fingers played the last notes of his song. He pulled from his drink.
“And besides,” he continued. “You’re only focusing on the negatives. What happens if she feels the same about you?”
“Does she?” Spike smiled.
“She may have a thing for a certain yellow pegasus who cares for animals,” Fluttershy turned beet red. “And she may have been trying to find the right words to say to her.” A smile formed on her face.
“Thank you, Spike,” she said. “I’m sorry for interfering with your practice.”
“Don’t be, it was nice to have somepony to play to. Do you know what you’re going to do?” Fluttershy tapped her chin.
“Actually, I do. And I could use your help.”
“What do you need?”
“Do you know how to play Dream a Little Dream of Me?” Spike turned back to the piano and placed his drink on the coaster. He cracked his neck and fingers before pressing the keys. Fluttershy smiled as the melody moved around the room. “Perfect. Here’s what we do.”