It was a lovely sunny afternoon in Ponyville. the birds were singing and dancing in the sky. The townsfolk were out and about on the street as they greeted each other. A soft breeze blew pleasantly through the village. And there wasn't a monster in sight. All in all, it was a great day.
And for a young purple dragon, it was about to get even more fantastic.
Over in the Golden Oaks Library, Spike paced back and forth through the main room, eagerly awaiting something to arrive. He couldn't bear to stand still as excitement coursed through his veins, he absolutely could not wait. A new shipment of books was scheduled to arrive today, and he knew for a fact that one of them was the one he was anticipating.
Insomnia: Realm of Nightmares.
It was the biggest horror book on the market right now, everypony was talking about it. It was a must-read, they all said, get it as soon as you can, you don't want to miss out on it. He'd heard all the advertisements and word of mouth surrounding this book, all the reviews, and praise for it, and now he was finally going to get to read it for himself.
Or he'd be able to if the shipment would hurry up and get here already. He looked at the clock, it was half-past one and those books were still nowhere to be found. Ughh, where could they be, he groaned, he had been waiting so long to read this book, and now that it was so close it felt further than ever. He took a break off from his pacing and went to check the front for any sign of the delivery, when it still wasn't there, he let out another groan.
He was just about to resume his walking when suddenly a loud growl began to emanate from his little belly. Who knew waiting was such a taxing activity, he had been so preoccupied with the arrival of his book, that he'd completely forgotten to eat anything. Looking back, he felt kind of sheepish that he had let that slip past him.
His stomach growled again.
Oh well, since he was still stuck waiting for Insomnia to show up along with the rest of the shipment, he might as well stop with his pacing and go grab a snack to distract himself. Slinking off to the kitchen, he opened up the cupboard and grabbed a bowl full of delicious gems. Topping it with ice cream, whipped cream, and a cherry, he held a spoon and took his confectionery treat to the table. Taking a seat, he licked his lips in anticipation as he stared at the mountain of sugar and crystals before him.
Plunging his spoon in like there was no tomorrow, he took a massive scope and brought it to his mouth. His taste buds exploded when it made contact with his tongue, the flavor hitting him like a brick. It tasted so good he could hardly contain himself as he went in for another bite... and another... and another... and another... and anot- you know what, you get the idea.
By now, he had forgotten all about his book - at least to the point where it was no longer driving him crazy - and was fully committed to finishing off the treat. Spike was about halfway through with the bowl when a knock suddenly came at the front door. His eyes went wide, he could care less about the ice cream as he dropped the spoon and tore from his seat. Moving at a breakneck pace, he scrambled down the hall with virtually no regard for his well-being. Arriving back in the main room, he found Twilight at the open door, thanking the delivery pony as she took the shipment.
Closing it behind her, she barely had time to set the box down with her magic before Spike came barreling into it. He tore open the lid and started to rummage through the contents as he searched for his prize.
Twilight jumped back in alarm when he started throwing books away left and right. "Ahh, Spike! What are you- gah!" She dodged a thesaurus that would have taken her out.
"No, that's not it," he said, oblivious to her as he tossed another book away.
"Spike, seriously, what are you-"
"No."
"Spike, I-"
"Uh-uh."
"I can help if you'll just-"
"Nope."
"-Tell me what you're looking for"
"Ugg, where is it?"
"SPIKE!" She shouted as she used her magic to bring the room to a standstill, levitating Spike off the ground and stopping all the books in midair.
Spike adopted a surprised expression on his face as he floated upside down in her magical aura, gazing at the frenzied eyes of his caretaker.
"Spike, what's gotten into you?" She demanded as she held him firmly, unwilling to release him until he supplied an answer.
"I'm looking for a book," he replied plainly.
Twilight rolled her eyes, "Yeah, I got that. What I meant was what book are you looking for exactly, and why did you feel like you had to dive into the box instead of just waiting for me to unpack."
"Sorry Twilight," he said with remorse as she righted him and placed him gently on the floor. "I didn't mean to upset you, it's just there's this book I've been waiting for, and when I saw the shipment I just couldn't contain myself anymore."
A soft, sympathetic smile splayed across Twilight's face. "It's all right, Spike, I was just caught off guard is all. Believe me, I know what it's like to get excited about a book. So, what were you looking for exactly?" She asked the young drake curiously.
"This one!" He said energetically, as he spotted the title he was searching for. Going back up to the box, he started rummaging through it again as he reached for what he wanted, pushing away a copy of the Neightrix. Pulling it out, he hefted up the bundle of bound paper in his arms, proudly displaying it for Twilight to see. The cover depicted a dark forest road, with countless shadowy faces staring out menacingly at a lone pony with a scared look on his face.
As Spike stared at the cover in glee, he failed to see the concerned expression in Twilight's eyes when she saw what he selected. Wordlessly, she took the book with her magic and looked it over. "Insomnia: Realm of Nightmares," she read aloud the title with dismay in her voice. "This is what you've been wanting to read?"
Spike nodded his head with an enthusiasm that rivaled Pinkie Pie. "Yeah, I've been trying to get my claws on it for weeks."
"I've heard a lot about this," she said as she turned the object over in her grasp. "It's supposed to be one of the scariest books of all time."
"Haha, I know," he chuckled as he reached out for it. "I can't wait to-"
"No!"
Before Spike could take hold of it, Twilight suddenly yanked the book away from his grasp and out of his reach. "I'm sorry Spike, she told him apologetically. "But I don't want you reading this!"
As soon as she said this, he felt his hopes and dreams wither and decay, like a flower in the fall. "Wha-what- what do you mean?" He stammered out, feebly grabbing for the book, only for her to yank it away again.
"Because, this kind of thing isn't for you, you're too young to be reading something like this."
"No! No! Please Twilight!" He begged, trying to get her to reconsider. "Don't do this, did I do something wrong?"
"I'm not punishing you, Spike," she clarified as she set the book on a high shelf. "I'm looking out for you. This is a scary read, and I don't think you can handle it."
"I can too handle it!" He protested. "I'm not scared of it. I'm not scared of anything!" He puffed out his chest.
Twilight sent him a skeptical look. "Not scared? Spike, just the other day you screamed like a little filly when there was a spider on your foot.
His cheeks flushed red as the memory came surging back. "It- it was hairy," he coiled in on himself meekly.
"I'll make it up to you Spike, I promise," she told him as she led him away from the shelf. "But for now I don't want you going anywhere near that book.
"Twilight please, I can take it I promise, I want to read this. Please change your mind."
She looked down at him with mournful eyes. "I'm sorry," she said as she brought him in for a hug. "I'll make it up to you."
Spike moped about in the library, ever since Twilight took his book away, he felt empty and betrayed. She had left their home about half an hour earlier to go do some errands, leaving him alone to stew in his thoughts. He paced back and forth in the main room, grumbling to himself. "Who does she think she is, saying I can't handle it. She doesn't know what she's talking about."
It was unfair, she gets to run around Equestria with her friends and do whatever she wants, but the one time he wants to do something, she says no. He balled his fists at his side, he'd been wanting to read that book for the longest time, and when he finally got the chance she took it away. She was always telling him what to do: Spike do this, Spike do that, Spike take a note. He snorted smoke out his nose, feeling anger rising in his chest, Twilight didn't care about what he wanted, he was just a tool to her. What he wouldn't give to tell her what to do for a change: Twilight forget that test, Twilight don't worry about the schedule, Twilight nobody cares about Starswirll.
He felt so mad he couldn't think straight, he wanted to set an object on fire or scream or something. He wanted to do what he wanted to do. He doubted anything could douse his rage, not water, not a bowl of gems, not even a kiss from Rarity... although it couldn't hurt.
Fuming, he looked up towards where his book sat up on the shelf, he had half a mind to disregard her command and read it anyway, the only thing that kept him from doing so was the fact that she would catch him the moment she noticed it was missing. He stared at Insomnia with a glare, it was like it was taunting him, knowing that he wasn't allowed to read it and calling out to him anyway. 'Spike, I'm right here, come and read me, you know you want to.'
He turned his head away, screwing his eyes shut and tuning out the seductive voice he imagined for the book. He wanted to listen to it, he really did, but if Twilight found out, he'd be good as dead.
Trying to clear his mind and calm down, he wandered over to a table where Twilight had unloaded the books from the box. She hadn't gotten around to cataloging them and placing them on the shelves yet, so it gave him a better opportunity to look them over. Maybe he could find something else to read and get his mind off Insomnia and the fact Twilight took it from him. He browsed the collection of books, a few of them looked interesting, but none of them screamed at him the way Realm of Nightmares did. His eyes landed on the Neightrix, the same book he saw earlier, picking it up, he looked over the cover with the ponies in black trenchcoats and sunglasses. He sighed, it looked cool and all and would probably be a really fun read, but it wasn't what he wanted.
Setting the book back on the table, he was pulling his hand away when suddenly one of his claws caught on the underside of the cover. Removing his claw, he was about to fix it when he noticed that the sleeve had come off slightly. Seeing this, a sly idea came to him, he couldn't take his book without Twilight knowing... but what if she didn't? Grabbing a ladder, he took it to where Twilight had stashed his book on the shelf and went to retrieve it. Grabbing it, he climbed back down with his quarry and retreated to the table to enact his plan. Setting the two books down side by side, he proceeded to remove the covers like a surgeon and switch them around - Insomnia became the Neightrix, and the Neightrix became Insomnia. Looking over his work, he felt like an evil genius, or a master spy, having pulled off a daring plan and getting away with it. Leaving the 'Nieghtrix' at its spot on the table, Spike took 'Insomnia' and brought it back over to the shelve, chuckling mischievously to himself as he put it back. This was perfect, now he could read his book and Twilight would never be the wiser; because he'd switched the covers she'd think he was just reading the Neightrix when it was really Insomnia.
Grabbing his book, he went to find a comfy spot and start reading.
Spike was on edge, every nerve in his body screaming at him to stop reading, but he just couldn't do it. Ever since he'd switched the covers without Twilight knowing, he'd been reading the book nonstop, his eyes glued to the pages, unable to put it down.
The night was cold and dreary, a hollow wind blowing through the trees as Star Skipper and his friends trekked cautiously through the Spine forest.
"What are we doing here again?" Asked Pine Scent nervously, her eyes darting amongst the bone-like trees as if she was expecting something to jump out at them. A twig snapping caused her to shriek and jump up into the air before she ran to Star Skipper and clung to him relentlessly. "What was that!" She screamed.
"You stepped on a branch," said Star Skipper, pointing to the broken twig as he pushed her off of him.
Pine Scent's cheeks grew red as she stepped away from him in embarrassment.
"Seriously dude, why are we here?" Added Stone Thrower, fidgeting in place nervously. "Haven't you heard all the rumors about this forest, all the monsters, and creatures that are said to prey on ponies who come in here? This is a bad place."
"Those are just urban legends," dismissed Star Skipper easily, waving off Stone Thrower. "Spread around by ponies who are too afraid to enter, they're just stories that ponies have come to believe, but they're not real." He gestured with a hoof around them. "Sure, this place may seem creepy and haunted, but it's just a regular old forest," he continued to walk calmly down the path, not letting his companions' fears get to him. "Anyway, there's supposed to be an old abandoned house out in these woods, left to rot ages ago. Everypony is too scared to come in here, so that means everything in that house would have been left alone, think of all the stuff we could find there."
"I still don't think it's a good idea,' said Stone Thrower as he and Pine Scent caught up to Star Skipper. "Even if all the rumors about this place are made up, that doesn't explain why ponies stopped coming here, there used to be an old mine in here right, what would make them just abandon it?"
"The mine probably just dried up, when they extracted all the valuable ores they could there was no longer any reason to stick around, so they left," Star Skipper explained rationally.
"Well I- I guess that makes sense," Stone Thrower trailed off, his eyes staring down at the path as he walked. "This place is still creepy through."
"That I agree with you on," Star said as he glanced around at the dark forest. "I know they're just dead trees, but I can't help but feel that one of those branches is going to try to reach out and touch me!" He felt a shiver run down his spine as he thought of one of those spindly finger-like twigs coming to grab him.
Turning a branch in the road, they were soon able to make out the shape of a house growing up out of the ground in the distance. It was quiet and dark, a shadowy structure resting ominously before them.
Star Skipper was about to lead them onwards when suddenly a rustling off in the trees caught their attention.
"Ahh, what was that? Cried Pine Scent, shivering where she stood. "That wasn't me this time, right?"
They all stood deathly still, none of them daring to breathe as they stared at the spot where the sound had come from. There was a sense of pure terror among the group, so much so that even Star Skipper was starting to feel it. When there was no further activity from the woods, Star let his pounding heart calm down a bit, trying to let himself relax. "It was probably just a forest animal, like a squirrel or maybe a bird," he turned his head to face them with a reassuring look. "We must have scared it off, nothing to worry about," He told them to ease their fears, but in a dark traitorous part of his mind, he couldn't help but wonder.
Leaving that scare behind them, Star Skipper led the three of them towards the building in the distance, completely unaware that something was watching them from the shadows.
Spike was interrupted from his book when he heard the sound of the front door opening. "Spike! I'm back," he heard Twilight call out to him, soon wandering into the living quarters of their home as she looked for him. The young lavender alicorn was carrying several bags with her in her magical grip, which she set down on a nearby table before she came to see him.
"How have you been doing?" She asked him, looking at him with concerned eyes.
"I-I'm okay," he replied, putting on a mock depressed tone to his voice so that Twilight wouldn't notice anything as out of the ordinary.
"I'm glad to hear that," she said softly. "How's the book?"
Spike panicked for a split second, his heart welling with dread when he thought that Twilight had somehow caught him, but he calmed down when he saw her looking and pointing toward the book he held - it was working, she believed he was reading the Neightrix. "I like it," he told her, playing on the ruse that he was trying to get her to buy. "Lots of sci-fi stuff going on, it's cool."
"I hope you aren't still too upset that I took your other book away?"
"I am a little bit," he told her, "but I'm getting over it."
She placed a hoof on his shoulder. "Look, I know you wanted to read that Insomnia book, but I told you no for a reason. It's just not for you, maybe someday when you're a bit older you can check it out, but for now, I just don't think it's a good idea." Using her magic, she grabbed one of the bags and levitated it over to him. "I got you a few things while I was out, I said I would make it up to you so I grabbed some things I thought you might like."
Setting his book down at his side, he shifted in his seat as she passed him the bag. Opening it up, Spike was amazed to discover a veritable treasure trove of items that Twilight had hoof picked just for him. Reaching in, he pulled out a box of cupcakes from Sugar Cube Corner, a bag of sweets, and some big juicy gems, as well as the latest Power Ponies comics. "Thanks, Twilight," he expressed his gratitude as he gazed upon the stuff before him. "This stuff is great."
"I'm happy you like it. I just wanted to make up for taking your book away, I really appreciate that you're listening to my wishes."
Once she said that Spike felt a small pang of guilt in his heart, she had got him all this stuff on the pretense that he'd done as told, when he hadn't. It wasn't that he wanted to disobey her, but he really wanted to read this book, and after already starting it and getting pulled in, he just had to finish it, even if it meant going against her back. Burying that feeling of regret, he put on the most convincing face he could and gave her a happy smile. "Well you asked me not to read it, and while I was upset about it, I know you were just looking out for me, so I did as you asked," he lied.
"That's all I wanted to hear, enjoy your book okay," Twilight told him before she kissed his cheek and left him to his own devices.
Once she was gone, Spike picked his book up and continued reading.
"Run!" Screamed Star Skipper as he sprinted blindly through the forest with Pine Scent by his side. The thing that attacked them wasn't far behind, it had already gotten Stone Thrower and now it was pursuing them relentlessly. It had all happened so fast, that large skinny beast just jumped out at them and roared, Star barely had time to react to the hideous thing before it grabbed Stone and impaled him through the chest with its massive claws, spraying blood everywhere. He stood frozen in fear as the monster slowly turned its gaze on him, and he would have been its next victim if Pine Scent hadn't snapped him out of it and gotten him to move.
They could hardly see anything as they ran through the darkness, all around them they could hear more shrieks and roars as all kinds of creatures were alerted to their presence. Things jumped out at them, furry things, scally things, bizarre things, all of them trying to end the lives of the two ponies lost in the shadows.
...
Star moved quietly through the mine, he and Pine Scent had been separated upon entering, and now he tiptoed cautiously through the old tunnels. It was quiet, eerily quiet, the only thing he could hear was the sound of his erratic breathing. It was dark too, so dark he could barely see an inch in front of his muzzle as he stumbled through the dim passageways.
"Pine Scent?" He called out softly, trying to get a response without attracting the monsters that might be lurking around. When he didn't hear anything, he continued onwards, determined to find his friend and get out alive.
Soon, he started to hear what sounded like whispering all around him, and he could feel a cold chill running down his spine. While it was cold down here, this wasn't the same as a drop in temperature, it felt unnerving, evil, like whatever it was wanted to hurt him. Multiple times, he thought he saw things moving in the shadows, but he didn't know whether he was actually seeing movement or just tricks of the mind. After a bit more walking, he came across a figure standing ahead of him, it looked to be a pony.
It was Pine Scent.
Feeling relieved that he'd found her, he called out her name as he stepped closer to her, but when she didn't respond, he slowed down his pace. "Pine Scent?" He tried again, but still nothing. She just stood there in the darkness, unmoving. When he got close enough to see her better, his breath froze in his chest, and his ears flattened to his head as an overwhelming sense of fear took him. It wasn't Pine Scent... at least... not anymore. Her skin had been ripped off, torn from her body completely, exposing her flesh and muscle to the air. Star was petrified, not only at the fact that his friend was dead but also at the brutal manner she's been slain. Her body hung from the ceiling by a chain that had been hooked into her neck, dangling lifelessly as blood dripped to the ground.
...
Star Skipper fled the mine as fast as his legs would carry him, he'd never been so scared in his life, he had to get out of this forest. His friends were right, they never should have come here. He ran back along the path they'd taken to get into the forest, never once looking back in fear that something was right behind him. He was all but blind to the world around him, his eyes focused on nothing other than the path, so you can imagine his shock and surprise when it suddenly ended out of nowhere. Star skidded to a halt, swinging his head around wildly as he tried to find where to go. It was like the trail out had vanished, but, that wasn't possible right, it couldn't just disappear like that, could it? Before he had any time to ponder that question or try to find the path again, he soon became aware of creatures in the darkness, their roars, and bellows making it clear they were coming for him.
With nowhere else to go, he ran off into the thick trees, the branches snapping against his face and body as he attempted to escape the things chasing him. He was terrified, his heart pounding and his breathing heavy, he wanted to get out of here, he wanted to go home back to his family, to his mother. Star didn't know where he was going, he tried to find a way out of the forest but everything looked the same. A heavy fog rolled in that only served to further reduce his sense of direction, essentially leaving him blind.
Star Skipper didn't know what to do, he couldn't get out and those creatures were still coming. He felt himself on the verge of collapsing from exhaustion, he was overwhelmed and feeling defeated. He wanted to keep running but he didn't know how much longer he could keep this up, every second he remained in this forest was another second he came closer to joining his friends.
Just when he felt he couldn't go on anymore and was about to break down, he saw a faint bluish-white light illuminate the area in front of him. Focusing on the glow, he felt his fears slowly melt away, replaced by a calming effect. Completely forgetting about his situation, he started walking towards the light, feeling elated and carefree.
As he got closer, he began hearing a soft and pleasant voice, a sweet and caring one that he'd known all his life. "Star Skipper, come home, it's time for dinner."
"Mom?" Star gasped in disbelief, "is that you?"
"Come home my little Star, I miss you."
"Mom!" He cried out in longing, sprinting towards the voice as fast as he could - but so desperate was he to go home, that he failed to realize there was no possible way his mother could be here.
As he got closer to the light, it started to fade away, his mom's voice growing quiet as he was left in a panic. "Mom? Where are you, where'd you go?" He searched around wildly, swinging his head from side to side as he tried to find the light again, but it was nowhere to be found. "Mom- momma come back," he was crying now, tears pouring from his eyes as he searched for the one that had raised him. "Mommy, mommy please don't leave me, come back!"
It was as if it was his prayers being answered when he saw the light start to flood back. He saw the glow reemerge from behind him, and feeling relieved, he turned around to face it. But when he did so, instead of seeing his mother, he saw the most horrifying sight he'd ever seen.
"AAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH."
That was the last anypony ever heard, of Star Skipper, Pine Scent, and Stone Thrower. Let this be a warning to any poor soul who has the fool-hardy idea of entering the Spine forest: if you go in there, all that awaits you is death, and you will never escape its clutches. Anypony that has ventured into that forsaken place is never heard from again, and if you go, the same fate awaits you.
Spike slammed the book shut, his nerves on edge after finishing it. He felt his heart pounding in his chest at that ending, everything he'd just read left him super freaked out. Shakily, he set the book down and stood, gazing out the window, he found that it was pitch black outside. Man, that book certainly didn't want to let him go, he'd been reading into the dead of night. Becoming aware of how late it was, he stifled a yawn as he stretched out his arms, Twilight had already gone to bed, it was time he did as well. Stalking up the stairs, he approached his basket and climbed in, covering up with his blankets as he settled in for a nice sleep.
Or at least he would have if he'd been able to stop thinking of all the things he'd read in that book. He couldn't stop seeing them, the pasty creature, what happened to Pine Scent, the thing that got Star Skipper, it was all stuck in his head and he couldn't forget it. He shrieked when he heard tapping on the glass, his whole body shivering madly as he pulled his blanket up over his head. It-it was just the tree branches, he tried to reason to himself, trying to think logically much as Twilight would. But despite that, his mind couldn't stop coming up with wilder theories, like they were the creatures that chased after Star in the woods. It's just a book, he tried to tell himself, it's just a book and the monsters aren't real and can't hurt you... right? Another tap on the window caused him to cry out again, pulling the blanket tighter over his body as he shivered under the covers for the remainder of the night.
The sun rose later that morning, filtering in through the window and illuminating the treehouse with natural light. As the golden rays fell upon Spike's basket, the little dragon groaned as he tried to block out the light with his arms. After reading that book, he hadn't been able to sleep at all that night, laying in his bed restlessly, fearing that something was going to come and get him. With a weak whine, he sat up and rubbed his tired eyes in an attempt to dispel the drowsiness he felt.
Getting up, he sluggishly made his way down the stairs, shuffling towards the kitchen like a zombie. Preparing a bowl of cereal for himself, he turned towards the table to sit with his breakfast.
"Hi Spike, good morning," came Twilight's kind voice.
"Ahh!" Spike screamed out, jumping in terror, his cereal flying from his grasp and spilling all over the floor.
"Gah, Spike, why'd you do that!" Twilight exclaimed in frustration, grabbing a cloth to clean up the mess.
Once Spike realized it was only Twilight, he let out a sigh of relief. "Sorry Twilight," he apologized to his caretaker. "You just- you startled me is all."
"It's all right, no real harm done I guess," she told him as she disposed of the milky cloth. She turned to face him with a smile, but quickly adopted a concerned expression. "Are you all right, Spike?" She asked, indicating the tired look in his eyes.
"Ohh, I'm okay," he eased her worries. "I just got to bed a little late last night is all, I'm fine." Technically that was a true story, he just left out the part that he couldn't get any sleep.
"Alright if you say so," she relented. But Spike caught a look in her eye as she glanced away that told him she didn't entirely believe him.
Picking up his dropped bowl, Spike put it in the sink and washed up his hands. Leaving the kitchen, Spike found Twilight in the main room, she was finishing up organizing the books from yesterday, her back turned to him.
"Spike," she addressed without turning from her work. "Later you and I are heading out into town to get a few things, I'm preparing for an experiment and I need your help."
"Okay," he replied.
After Twilight completed her work, Spike followed after her as the both of them left the Golden Oaks Library and went to conduct whatever business she had in Ponyville.
As Spike followed her into town, he tried to do his best to live in the moment and put that book behind him. Twilight stopped at various locations around Ponyville, and he helped her whenever she needed it, gladly providing any assistance she might need. She was grabbing all kinds of things, copper wire, feathers, bubble gum, tinfoil, and other odds and ends, he had no clue what she wanted with this stuff, but he happily helped her regardless.
And through it all, he hadn't thought of that book once. Spike stood patiently by as Twilight chatted with a stall vendor about acquiring something else for her experiment. As she talked, Spike found himself focusing on the world around him, becoming aware of all the horrifying things it had to offer. He became aware of the shadows in the alleys, providing refuge for any host of nightmares his mind could conjure. The unknown creatures lurking in the bushes, just waiting for a chance to strike. He felt his heart begin to race, becoming terrified as he thought of all the things that could be hiding in the mundane world around him, just waiting to strike. Yes, he hadn't thought of that book once.
By the time Twilight was done with her transaction, they were on their way, much to Spike's relief. He'd never realized just how scary the world really was, it was all so horrible. Spike stuck close to Twilight's side, afraid of straying away from her protection, her presence being the only thing that brought him ease.
"We have one more stop to make at Sweet Apple Acres," she informed him. "I need to grab something from Applejack, then we'll go home, alright."
"O-okay," Spike managed out, keeping a wary eye on the world around them.
As they approached the farm on which Applejack and her family lived, Spike couldn't help but notice all of the trees surrounding the property. With their spindly finger-like limbs that might try to reach out and grab him, try to drag him off to who knew where, and nopony would ever hear from him again.
His mind was so preoccupied imagining these horrifying things, he didn't notice as Applejack approached the pair, balancing two large jugs on her back.
"Here you go, Twilight, just as you requested, although for the life of me ah still don't know what you need two whole jugs of apple juice for?"
"Thanks, Applejack," Twilight thanked the farmpony, "I need the acidity from the apples to aid me in an experiment.
"Well, ah'm happy to help," she replied. Her gaze shifted from Twilight to Spike, and she frowned as she noticed his flighty body language. "Everything all right there, Spike?"
"Huh?" He exclaimed suddenly, becoming aware of his surroundings once he heard his name being spoken. He came back to the real world to find Applejack looking down at him with a concerned look on her face.
"Is everything okay, Spike?" She asked him again.
"Ohh, I'm fine," he waved her off reassuringly, trying to convince himself of the matter more than her.
"Alright, if you say so. Well, have a good day you too," Applejack said as she tipped her hat goodbye and turned towards her homestead.
"Come on Spike," Twilight urged him along as she lifted the jugs of juice in her magic. "Let's go home."
She didn't need to tell him twice as he hurried after her, eager to leave and get back to the treehouse, where he could go and cover up under his blankets and hide away from the world.
Spike had hoped things would get better after that, but in fact, they only got worse. Over the course of the next few days, he began seeing all kinds of nightmarish visions, horrible things that scared him to the bone. They came at him whenever they wanted, always chasing him and making him run for his life. He just wanted all this to stop, was that too much to ask, he just wanted life to go back to the way it was, without him having to look over his shoulder constantly.
Even in his own home, he wasn't safe, earlier that morning, Spike had thought he'd seen an army of scary black spiders invading the treehouse, causing him to scream out in fear and run away. At his sudden outburst, Twilight had come to his aid, a panic-stricken look on her face. She had cried out his name and rushed up to him, frantic that he'd hurt himself as she looked him over. He couldn't tell her the truth, that he'd disobeyed her and read the book and was now having waking nightmares, so instead, he told her he'd just stubbed his toe.
And that's what led up to now, after all the scares that Spike had been experiencing lately, it had all grown too much for him and so he'd secluded himself away from the world. He sat huddled in his basket, the blanket held firmly over himself like a shield, as if that thin layer of cloth could protect him from whatever came for him.
He had his eyes screwed shut, humming to himself softly as he tried to calm down. He kept hearing and seeing things, no matter where he was they always kept coming, they were there right now, the loud racket the monsters outside made as they tried to get in, they wouldn't stop till they had him. He was curled up in the fetal position, rocking himself like a mother would their baby, whimpering to himself as the constant barrage of sounds continued. Tears threatened to leak from his eyes, he was scared, so, so scared, he didn't know what to do. Another tree branch tapped against the window, making a horrible clattering sound that made him curl in on himself even more. He couldn't keep this up, he had to go and tell Twilight what was going on, she would know what to do.
Gathering all his strength, he brought himself to get up from his bed, glancing around with paranoid eyes before rushing down the stairs like something was after him. Twilight said that she would be down in the basement working on an experiment, so that's where he headed. Tearing through the main room, he made a beeline for the stairs to the bottom level where his caretaker currently resided. He had to tell her what he'd done and confess, she would probably be mad for a moment, but once she heard what he was going through she'd help him, right?
Just as he was about to reach the downstairs entryway, he skidded to a halt as he saw someone coming up. "Twilight!" He choked out a sob, assuming it to be his lavender friend. "I'm sorry, I-"
He froze, it wasn't Twilight.
Feeling overcome with fear, he subconsciously backed up as a tall, skinny creature came stalking up the stairs. He felt a terrifying cold envelop him, taking him in its embrace and freezing him to the bone, and leaving him petrified. It was the monster that had killed Stone Thrower, it was here. Spike saw its terrifying claws and mouth filled with razor-sharp teeth each as long as one of his arms. He saw its pasty and pale complexion, as it shambled up the stairs on its two lanky and bony legs. It was real, the monster from the book was real - and it was coming straight for him.
Turning tail, Spike screamed out in terror as he quickly backpedaled and made his way for the front door, trying to get away from that beast. Tearing out of the treehouse, Spike ran for his life, not bothering to look behind him to see if the creature was following, he had to get away before it could catch up with him. He blindly sprinted through Ponyville, barely even paying attention to where he was going, he just wanted to get away, he need to hide so the monster wouldn't find him.
Coming up on the Carrousel Boutique, Spike quickly ran inside Rarity's home and slammed the door behind him. Not even stopping to fawn at the fashionista pony like he normally would, he streaked over to one of the mannequins she had set up and hid under its dress, completely concealing himself from view.
"Spike!" Rarity exclaimed suddenly, surprised by his intrusion. "What's going on?"
"Don't let it get me!" Spike cried out from under his hiding place.
"Don't let what get you, darling?" She asked with concern as she crouched down by the mannequin and lifted a corner of the dress, revealing Spike's terrified eyes.
"T-there's a monster chasing me!" Spike stammered out, looking at the front door as if he expected it to burst through any moment.
"Spike dear, please come out from under there," she asked him sweetly and calmly.
"N-n-no," he refused to budge," it's not safe."
"Spike please," she begged him. "Please come out and tell me what's going on, I only want to help."
"B-but the monster-" he was about to object before Rarity cut him off.
"There's no monster," she told him firmly. "And if there is, I vow that I will not let it harm you. So again, I ask, please come out Spike."
Reluctantly, Spike crawled out from under the dress, visibly unnerved at being exposed like this. Resting a hoof on his shoulder, she looked down at him with the look of a concerned friend on her face. "Spike, please tell me what's going on, why do you think there's a monster after you?"
In an attempt to steady himself, Spike took a deep breath and began to explain. "Y-you see, there was this book I wanted to read, and Twilight said no, but I didn't listen and read it anyway. Now, I can't stop seeing all the horrifying things and creatures that were in it, I can't stop thinking of all the things that might be hiding in the shadows, just waiting to grab me," he told her.
"Ohh, Spike, it's just a book, these things you're seeing, they're not real," she told him in an attempt to ease his worries.
"I know," he said, "b-but they seem so real. I don't know what to do, I just want it to stop."
"Spike, you need to tell Twilight about what's going on," she told him.
"I-I know," he replied. "But when I tried to, that huge monster appeared and chased me away before I had the chance."
"Alright, it's obvious you need help so here's what's going to happen, okay," she began, using a hoof to tip his head up and lock his teary eyes with her own. What we're going to do, is I'm going to walk back with you to the Golden Oaks Library, and together we are going to tell Twilight about what's going on."
"But-but what if she gets mad?" He questioned.
"Well, she probably will be," Rarity leveled with him. "She certainly won't like hearing that you lied to her, but do you know what she'll like even less?" She paused, getting Spike to look at her with trembling eyes. "The fact that you're as scared as you are, she won't like hearing that one bit," she said, shaking her head.
"You-you'd really do that?" Spike asked
"Of course, what kind of friend would I be if I didn't"
Spike wiped the tears from his eye, "thanks Rarity."
"Don't mention it, Spike," she told him as she pulled the dragon in for a hug.
They held the hug for a few seconds, before eventually breaking away from each other. "Thanks, Rarity," Spike said with a sniff as he let her go and backed up. "I really-" What he saw next made his blood run cold, his breath froze, and he stumbled backward away from Rarity with terror on his face.
"Spike! What's wrong?" Rarity asked with alarm, but her voice fell on deaf ears to him.
Spike looked at Rarity like he'd seen a ghost, which with what he was seeing now, wouldn't have too far off of a good description. Right now, Rarity wasn't appearing to him in her usual vibrant self, instead, he saw her with her skin torn off, just like how Star had found Pine Scent in the mines. Spike stumbled backward and tripped, Rarity was dead, she was dead, her eyes had been gouged out of her skull, and blood poured from the empty sockets, as well as from her nose, mouth, and ears.
"Spike, what's going on? Please, talk to me darling, you're scaring me."
He saw Rarity's skinned body say something to him, but whatever it was, the blood was pounding in his ears far too loud for him to hear anything. It was terrifying, Rarity kept moving and acting like she was alive, but Spike could see she had been skinned, so her body doing that was extremely unnerving. At one point, the body tried to reach out a hoof towards him, but before he could be touched, he jumped away quickly, turning around and running as fast as possible.
"Spike wait!" He heard the body call after him, but he paid it no mind, he had to get away, away from this Rarity that wasn't Rarity, and go where there wasn't anything to scare him, he had to find somewhere he'd be safe. Running out the front door, he sprinted out in the street in the hopes that he could get away from what he'd just seen, but it quickly became clear that it wouldn't be so easy. He came to find that the entire town had befallen the same fate as Rarity, all the ponies he could see had been skinned as well, blood trailing behind them with every hoof step as they trotted around Ponyville, chatting amicably with each other as if nothing was wrong.
Spike continued to run.
Twilight had just wrapped up with the latest tests from her experiments, recording the results on a notepad as she ascended the stairs out of the basement. She felt confident in her findings, a successful feeling in her chest as she stepped out into the treehouse proper. Setting the notepad down where it would be safe, Twilight began to seek out her dragon assistant and share what she'd learned with him. When she didn't see him in the main room, she went and checked the kitchen, when she didn't see him there, she checked their room, still nothing. He must have gone out, she surmised once she'd searched the entire house and hadn't found him. That meant she had the place all to herself until he got back, so she decided to pass the time by reading a book or two.
Twilight was just trying to decide between Daring Do or a science book when suddenly there was a knock at the front door. Without getting up from where she was sitting, she used her magic to open it. Rainbow Dash was soon revealed to be the one outside, entering the treehouse as the door parted to let her by.
"Hi, Rainbow," Twilight said as she set the two books aside and stood up to greet her friend. "Is there something I can help you with?"
"Um yeah, actually," she replied as she scanned her eyes over the shelves of books. "I've been wanting to check out that new Insomnia: Realm of Nightmares book, and I heard you got a copy with a new shipment of books that came in a few days ago, is that right?"
"It sure is," Twilight confirmed matter of factly. She walked over to the shelf she'd placed it upon and used her magic to levitate it down.
"Thanks," Rainbow said with appreciation as Twilight gave her the book. "This looks awesome, I can't wait to read it."
"Yeah, Spike voiced a similar opinion the other day when it came in. He wanted to read it too, but I had to tell him no."
"Good call," Rainbow Dash nodded her head in agreement. "Can't say I disagree with you, this book is supposed to be scary, and it was never really meant for someone his age," she said.
"I know," Twilight sighed. "He was really upset when I took it away from him, I tried to get him to understand I was just acting in his best interests, but I'm not sure he entirely believed me. He's just been distant to me the last few days like he isn't telling me something, I tried to make it up to him, but I don't know if it made a difference."
"You broke his heart and shattered his dreams, he'll probably resent you for life," Rainbow joked as she flipped through the pages of the book.
"Rainbow Dash, that's not funny!" Twilight said irksomely as she glared at the pegasus. She sat down on her haunches, feeling herself deflate as she thought about how things were right now with her and her little dragon. "I just- I really love him, and I'd hate for him to think I don't care about his happiness."
"Look, I'm sure everything will be okay Twilight, we all have disagreements with the ones we love, but that doesn't mean we stop caring about them."
Twilight blinked her eyes, "wow, that was, surprisingly eloquent, Rainbow."
Rainbow Dash shrugged. "I have my moments."
"You don't say."
"Hey Twilight, I'm not sure this is actually Insomnia," said Rainbow after a few moments as she continued looking at the pages, looking at them like something was wrong.
"What?" Twilight asked with perplection, taking the book from Rainbow to see what she was talking about for herself. Examining the book, Twilight was bewildered to discover that Rainbow Dash was right, this wasn't Insomnia, it was the Neightrix? Twilight was utterly confused, how did this happen, she knew that Spike had been reading the Neightrix, so how did- Twilight froze as that line stuck in her head, if the Neightrix had the Insomnia cover, that what had Spike been reading? As the implications of what was happening began presenting themselves to her, Twilight felt a burning fury surge up in her chest as the truth dawned on her.
"Uggh, Spike you didn't!" Growled Twilight in anger as she stormed over to where the dragon had last left his book. Ripping it open, she was enraged to discover that it was indeed Insomnia, he had gone behind her back and read it even when she told him not to.
"Twilight, what's going on?" Asked a concerned Rainbow Dash.
"What's going on," Twilight said, wiping her head around to face her friend with furious eyes. "Is that I'm going to kill Spike!
Before Rainbow could get any explanation of what was happening, Twilight tore out of the treehouse in a flash. She was mad, running throughout Ponyville as she searched for that dragon, she first checked with her friends around town to see if they knew of Spike's whereabouts. First, she stopped by Suger Cube Corner, then Sweet Apple Acres, and when both Pinkie and Applejack said they hadn't seen him she moved on. She was currently on her way to the Carrousel Boutique to check with Rarity when all of a sudden she heard a scream and turned to see Spike running away in the opposite direction.
As soon as she saw him, she felt her anger boil over. "Spike!" She roared out as she stalked steadily towards him.
"Twilight?" She heard Spike say, turning in her direction with what looked to be a relieved expression on his face. "Twilight!" He cried out in joy, running up to her and holding out his arms as if to embrace her.
"Don't you 'Twilight' me!" She snapped, causing him to freeze in his tracks just a few feet away from her. "You lied to me, you said you wouldn't read that book, yet you did it anyway." As she said this, the look of joy on his face changed to one of shame. "I trusted you, Spike, I had faith you would do as I asked, but you didn't"
"I'm sorry Twilight, I-" he began with remorse, but Twilight interrupted him.
"No! You don't get to say sorry," she shot back at him. "You knew I didn't want you to read that book, yet you disregarded what I said and still did it, even after I got all that stuff for you to make up for it.
At this point, the expression on Spike's face began to grow horrified. "I-I'm s-sorry, Twilight, please d-don't-"
"You are in serious trouble Spike, when we get home you're grounded until further notice."
"Twilight, don't d-do this p-please, I'm sorry," he begged.
"There's no getting out of this Spike," Twilight shook her head firmly. "You need to be punished, and-"
Before she could finish her train of thought, Spike suddenly ran up to her and started hugging her leg, tears escaping his eyes as he sobbed. "No please, Twilight, I'll be good, I'll be good," he cried. "Please don't send me away!"
Twilight did a double take when he said that, completely caught off guard as he continued to sob. She tried to take a step back, but Spike prevented her as he held onto her leg with a death grip.
"Send you away, Spike what are you talking about?" She asked the young boy in shock. He didn't respond immediately, he just kept on clinging to her and sobbing. It wasn't until she slipped a hoof under his chin and directed his gaze up at hers did he react. "Spike," she said, softening her tone. "What's wrong?"
Spike didn't say anything, he just stared up at her as she looked at him with concerned eyes. Finally, after a few moments of silence, he seemed to let out what sounded like a heartbroken gasp. Shakily, he let go and slowly fell backward, his eyes watering as he looked up at her like she had said something unforgivable.
"Spike! Spike what's wrong!" She asked, afraid as she saw how he looked at her. He didn't reply, instead, he tore his gaze from her as he turned around and got to his feet, running away as he cried to himself. "Spike!" She shouted after him as he ran off, she tried to catch up to him, but he seemed to be making a point to lose her as he kept swerving and ducking for cover in an attempt to evade her. Ahead of her Spike made a sudden turn, and when she skidded to a stop and made the same turn, he was gone. Frantically, she swung her head in all directions, desperate to locate her baby. But, when she still couldn't find any trace of him, she began to grow worried and set off to enlist the aid of her friends.
As Rarity was closest, she headed there first, sprinting back the way she came towards the Boutique. Approaching the building, she arrived to find Rarity searching for something in the vicinity of the premises, looking as distraught as Twilight was.
"Rarity!" Twilight called out, alerting her friend as she rushed over. "Have you seen Spike, I can't find him."
Rarity shook her head. "I'm sorry, darling, I don't know where he is. He was just here with me a few minutes ago, but something seemed to startle the poor dear and he took off, I've been looking for him ever since. There's something you must know Twilight," Rarity began. "Spike told me that he read a book you hadn't wanted him to, and how he's seeing all kinds of things that he says are after him."
Twilight sighed, shaking her head. "I just saw Spike a moment ago, I tried to confront him but he ran off, he seemed jumpy."
"The dear is scared witless Twilight, whatever he read in that book it did a number on him."
"Why didn't he come to talk to me, I would've helped him," Twilight said in dismay, the anger she was feeling from earlier giving way to worry and concern as she became aware of what Spike was going through.
"He was going to, but he said that as he was on his way to you he was attacked by a monster and chased away. I think he's seeing things Twilight, things that aren't there," Rarity said dishearteningly.
"We have to get the others," Twilight said with conviction. "We need to gather the girls and set up a search party for Spike, I won't rest until I've found him."
"Twilight!" Spike cried out in joy, feeling relieved that his caretaker was there. Sprinting towards his friend, he ran for Twilight to receive the comfort only she could offer.
"Don't you 'Twilight' me," she snapped at him, making him suddenly skid to a stop as he regarded her with confusion. "You lied to me, you said you wouldn't read that book, yet you did it anyway," she said in an accusatory tone. "I trusted you, Spike, I had faith you would do as I asked, but you didn't."
Spike's spirit fell instantly, she'd found the book, there was no other explanation. Immediately, he felt the guilt and shame hit him head-on as looked on in remorse. "I'm sorry Twilight I-" he started, intending to relay how she was right about Insomnia and how he shouldn't have read it, but before he got a chance to convey that message, she cut him off.
"I suppose it's for the best," she said, her voice echoing as her body seemed to warp and ripple as a shadow overtook her. "If I can't trust you with something as simple as this, how can I trust you with anything, maybe this just isn't working out," she said, impassively, "you ane me."
When she said that, his heart began to grow with fear as the implication of what that meant dawned on him. "I-I'm s-sorry, Twilight, please, d-don't-"
"Honestly, it's probably about time I got a new assistant, you're just far too unreliable to handle anything important."
"Twilight, don't d-do this p-please, I'm sorry," he begged toward the Alicorn, urging her to reconsider.
Twilight shook her head. "No, Spike, you've had your chances. If you can't listen to a simple command then there's no point in keeping you around any longer."
When she showed no sign of changing her mind, he ran up to her and started hugging her leg, tears escaping his eyes as he sobbed. "No please, Twilight, I'll be good, I'll be good," he cried. "Please don't send me away!"
Sighing, Twilight, slipped a hoof under his chin and directed his gaze up at her. "Oh, Spike," she began with a voice soft and as sweet as sugar. "I never wanted you to begin with," she told him hurtfully.
When she said those seven cruel words, he felt his heart break into a million tiny pieces. His eyes watered and his lips started to tremble as she proceed to say the meanest things she'd ever spoken to him.
"Everything that's ever gone wrong in my life, started the moment you came into it. And I can confidently say, that the greatest mistake I ever made, was when I brought you into this world," she finished, turning her head and dismissing Spike.
At that point, Spike couldn't take it anymore, he got to his feet and started to run away, crying softly to himself as he attempted to wipe the ever-pouring tears from his eyes. For some reason, Twilight pursued him, for what he didn't know. She'd already expressed how much she wanted him out of her life, so he had no idea why she was following him. But after all the hurtful things she said, he didn't want to see her, he just wanted to run away and hide. Spike tried to evade her, but she was persistent about keeping up with him as she repeatedly yelled out his name from behind. It wasn't until he took a hard left down a corner and hid under a bush did he escape her. When she came by, she stopped and looked around for him, but when she couldn't find where he went, took off and ran back the way she came.
Sniffling, Spike crawled out from under the bush and looked longingly down the way Twilight had gone, there was nothing more he wanted than to find her and rush into her embrace, but she didn't want him... she never did.
And so, with nowhere left to go, he ran off. He just wandered aimlessly at first, going where ever the wind took him, not really caring where he wound up. Eventually, he found himself at the edge of the Everfree, and seeing as nopony hardly ever came in here, it was the perfect place to disappear, which right now, was exactly what he wanted.
After getting their friends together and relaying the news about Spike, they caught a lead when Fluttershy told them she'd seen him run into the Everfree forest. Once they learned that, they took off right away for that dark place in search of their dragon friend.
Twilight stepped underneath the thick canopy of trees cautiously, the branches above blocking out most of the light and making it appear as night down on the bottom. They were all spread out as they searched for the purple dragon, each of them calling out his name in hopes that he would respond.
Twilight felt a shiver run down her spine, not from the cold, but out of fear and worry. She hated to think that her poor, precious baby dragon was out there somewhere on his own in this forsaken forest, scared and seeing things, lost and alone. She'd been mad at him earlier, but all she wanted now was to know he was safe, she just wanted to find him and bring him home.
"Spike!" She and her friends all called out. "Please come out if you can hear this, you're scaring me!"
She scanned the trees and foliage for any sign of Spike, she was determined to find him, no longer how long it took. Oftentimes, her attention would get focused on a shuffling in the underbrush, but it was just forest creatures making the noise.
"Hey! Over here y'all!" Came Applejack's voice as she shouted out for the others to hear, drawing them to her position.
Without wasting a second, Twilight ran towards Applejack's voice in a heartbeat. She seemed to fly as she ran at top speed, her hooves barely touching the ground as she prayed that the farmpony had found Spike.
"Did you find him?" Twilight immediately asked Applejack when she came upon her, fighting against short breath as she shoved her own needs to the back of her mind.
Applejack nodded, "ah sure did, ah caught a glimpse of him escaping deeper into the forest just over there," she said, pointing a hoof in the area he'd gone.
Twilight tore off in the direction Spike had taken, moving as fast as earthly possible as she fought to catch up with him. Her friends all trailed along behind her, but none of them were able to match her pace as she led the pack.
"Spike!" She cried out his name, desperately searching for her boy as she ran the way Applejack had said he'd gone. She was making another routine scan of the area when she saw him at last, it was only a fleeting glimpse, the top frills on his head - but it was definitely Spike. "Spike, slow down!" She commanded of him, but as soon as he heard her voice, he let out a panicked shriek, casting a glance back her way before running faster into the woods. Picking up her own pace, Twilight fought to keep up with Spike, she wasn't going to lose him now. Just like last time, he attempted to evade her, but she stayed on him - she wasn't going to let him escape her again.
Soon, she caught a break in her chase of Spike when he ran down a squat chasm that led to a dead end. Having cornered him, she watched as Spike attempted and failed to climb the sheer dirt wall in front of him, whimpering to himself as Twilight slowly approached.
"Spike," Twilight tried tentatively as she inched slowly towards him.
When he heard her voice, he let out another whimper and curled in on himself. "I'm sorry, please don't hurt me," he begged.
"I don't want to hurt you, Spike, I want to help you. Will you please look at me?" She asked the shaking baby dragon softly. When he didn't respond, she took one of her hooves and gently stroked the side of his head. "Look at me, please, Spike," she asked again.
Slowly, Spike brought his head out from under his arms and looked up at the caring face of his guardian, caretaker, and mother figure. When he turned his face to hers, it was only then that she noticed the large bags that had formed under his eyes, a clear sign of sleep deprivation. "Oh, Spike," she began sympathetically. "When was the last time you slept?"
"I-I don't know," Spike said between sobs. "Three-four days ago?"
"Was it because of the book?" She asked him.
Spike nodded.
"Spike, I'm sorry," she said as she tried to put a comforting hoof on his shoulder, but he shirked away from her before she could. "Spike, what's wrong?"
Spike looked at her with teary eyes, an expression of fear on his face as he tried to keep as far away from her as possible.
"Spike, please tell me what's wrong?" She asked him again.
A few seconds passed before Spike gulped and looked towards her slowly. "Y-you-you said you were going to s-send me away," he choked out. "You said you d-didn't w-want me, and-and how you never c-cared about me. You said all kinds of cruel things," he cried.
After hearing what Spike just said, Twilight couldn't help but begin to tear up herself. That must have been why he was acting so strange when she confronted him earlier, his mind must have played some trick on him where she said all those hurtful things - no wonder he ran away.
"Spike, that wasn't real, it was all in your head," she told him. "I would never say something like that." Moving closer to the dragon, she held out her hooves to try to welcome him into a comforting hug. "Spike, please come here."
But Spike didn't go to her, he kept on clinging to the wall as he did his best to avoid eye contact with her. Seeing him like this, afraid of her, broke her heart.
"Spike, please come here," she asked again, her voice heavy as she started to cry.
Spike hesitated.
"It's me, Spike, it's Twilight, please come here."
Spike still didn't move, but he did turn his face slowly to look at her.
"Please."
At her most recent urging, Spike finally started to shift his position, hesitantly making his way towards Twilight as she held her hooves out for him. Slowly, he crawled into her embrace, pressing himself against her chest as she wrapped her forelegs and wings around the boy, completely enveloping him.
All at once, the pressure from the events of the last few days seemed to finally catch up to him, as he started sobbing uncontrollably as she held him.
"Shh, it's okay, shh," Twilight said as she attempted to soothe him, stroking the back of his head with her hoof. "I've got you, I'm here now. Everything's going to be alright."
"I, I-I'm, I'm s-sorry," he eventually forced out, crying harder as she tightened her grip on him. "Y-y-you were right, I-I never should have read that book, p-please d-don't be mad!"
"I know you are, I'm not mad at you, Spike."
"You, y-you mean, you don't hate me?" He sniffed, looking up at her with red watering eyes.
"I could never hate you, Spike," she said comfortingly, stroking the side of his face as she leaned down to kiss his forehead. "You mean everything to me Spike; I love you so much, I love you with all my heart, and nothing will ever change that," she finished as she kissed him again.
Twilight nuzzled the top of his head as he continued to bawl relentlessly, tears leaking from her eyes as she beheld the state her little dragon was in. Looking at her friends nearby, it was clear they were suppressing their own tears as they beheld this heartbreaking exchange. Spike's body convulsed uncontrollably as he cried, his sobs sounded ragged and raw as Twilight held him. He clung to her, his tears soaking into her chest and wetting her fur, but she couldn't care less, all she cared about was making her baby feel better.
"You mean the world to me, Spike," she whispered as she gave him repeated kisses. "You're my assistant, my best friend, my little brother, my son, you're all of that to me. I love you more than all the stars in the sky."
"I'm scared, Twilight," Spike cried, his voice muffled by her chest. "I keep seeing all these horrible things, and I don't know whether they're real or not. I want it to stop, make it stop," he pushed further into her embrace, trying to get as close to her as possible.
"I know you do, Spike, and I'm going to take the pain away," she told him reassuredly as she lit up her horn and enveloped him in her magic. Almost instantly, his sobs and cries began to lessen, and his muscles relaxed as he quieted down. As she held him, he began to slump in her grasp, his body growing limp as she turned him over - he was asleep.
Once the commotion had come to a standstill, her friends warily made their way over, curious to see what had happened.
Rarity was the first to lay eyes upon Spike as he slept, a peaceful expression on his face that no doubt was in stark contrast to his last few days. "My, what did you do, Twilight?"
"It was just a simple sleep spell I knew," Twilight explained as she stroked Spike's head while holding him. "After all he's been through recently, he just needed a break." A contented sigh escaped Spike's lips.
"Well, I think you made the right choice," Rarity said in encouragement. "From what I understand, the dear was under a lot of stress."
"Thanks, Rarity," she turned to address her other friends as well. "Thanks to all of you for helping me find him, I couldn't have done it without you."
They all responded, saying it was no problem.
"Well," Twilight began, standing up and lifting Spike in her magic. "Now that all the excitement is over, I should really get this little guy home and get him to bed," Twilight said as she placed Spike on her back and started to carry him back to the treehouse.
By the time Twilight had found Spike and got him home, it was already quite late. Feeling drained from the day's earlier excursion, she was more than eager to head on up to sleep. Taking Spike up to her room, she laid him down in bed with her where she could keep an eye on him and keep him close - after all he'd been through, she didn't have the heart to let him sleep in his bed alone.
Waking up the next day, Twilight left Spike in her bed to rest. Getting word to princess Celestia, she was able to inform her that she would be unavailable for the next few days, explaining what Spike had been through and her need to stay by his side. Luckily, the princess was understanding and agreed to let her be until Spike was feeling better.
Spike ended up sleeping for over fifty hours after being awake for so long. Throughout the next couple of days, all of Twilight's friends came in repeatedly to check on the resting drake, asking about how he was. Twilight would go on to tell each of them the same thing, that Spike was still asleep.
While he slept, Twilight would repeatedly head up to her room throughout the day to check on him, such was the case now. Stepping over to her bed, she smiled softly to herself as she gazed upon Spike sleeping soundly right in the middle. She felt her heart melting with love for the little dragon as she watched him resting there peacefully, there was nothing in the world that could accurately convey how much she cared for him.
Coming up to the bed, she leaned over the side and gently planted a loving kiss on the boy's resting form. After lingering over him for a few more seconds and watching him rest, she eventually turned around and stepped away to leave him to his sleep.
She was almost to the base of the stairs when a sound from behind her made her stop in her tracks.
"Twilight?"
Turning back around in a heartbeat, Twilight was overjoyed to see Spike slowly sitting up in her bed, wiping his eyes as he looked at her groggily.
"Spike! You're awake!" Twilight said happily as she bounded over to him. Getting on the bed, she took a seat next to Spike as she put a hoof on his shoulder. "How are you feeling?" She asked him
He yawned. "Uh I feel good," he told her.
Twilight could tell, he looked a lot better than how he did the other day; the bags under his eyes were gone, and he seemed a lot more energetic.
"Why am I in your bed?" He asked in confusion, looking around and no doubt noting the fact he was in Twilight's bed instead of his own.
"Well, I was having you sleep with me," she answered him. "After what happened I didn't want you to be alone. Do you remember what happened?" She asked after a moment, trying to see if he recalled the events of the last few days.
Spike slowly nodded. "I think so. I read that book, and it made me paranoid, and start seeing things that weren't there. Is that right?"
"Yeah, that's what happened. You got so scared you ended up running out into the Everfree, making me and the girls have to come to find you."
Spike looked down in shame. "I'm sorry I put you through so much trouble Twilight, if I had just listened to you about that book, none of this would have happened. I'll accept any punishment you see fit"
"It's all right Spike, you're not in trouble," she told him as she used her hoof to bring his face back up to meet hers. Truth be told, she had considered punishing him for what he did, but in the end, had decided that he'd already been through enough and had learned his lesson. "You don't have to worry."
"Thanks, Twilight," he said in relief. "What time is it?" He asked, looking out the window where daylight was streaming in from the outside.
"It's just past noon," she replied, a slight uneasiness in her voice. How would he react when he heard how long he'd been unconscious. "You've... been asleep.... for over two days," she told him at last, ripping off the proverbial band-aid.
Spike's eyes went wide as saucers. "T-two days, I've been sleeping for two whole days?" He repeated her words in shock, looking at her in disbelief.
She nodded. "Yes, two days. You were really exhausted from all that you'd been through, you were running on fumes," Twilight chuckled to herself. "You were so tired, that once you were asleep, not even a sonic rainboom could have woken you up."
Spike laughed at her joke, letting the both of them fall into a moment of solace as the past few days fell into the backs of their minds. Once the laughter died down, the mood returned to where it had been just moments before as neither of them said a word. It wasn't until a few moments later that Spike finally broke the silence. "Twilight," he said, gazing into her eyes with a look of sincerity in his own. "Thank you for taking care of me."
Those words, as simple as they were, meant everything to the young alicorn. "Oh, Spike, it's my pleasure," she said as she leaned over towards the boy and brought him in for a large hug, just like the one they shared the other day. "I love you, Spike, never forget that."
"I love you too, Twilight"
After that caring exchange of words, the two just sat there holding each other, lost in their embrace as they let their love wash over them both.
"Well, with that out of the way," Twilight began as she pulled out of the hug. "You want some breakfast, I can make pancakes?"
Spike's face lit up. "With blueberries?" He asked hopefully.
"Anything you want, I love to make my number one assistant happy," she said as she started towards the stairs.
"Anything? How about gems?" Spike asked excitedly as he jumped off the bed after.
Twilight pursed her lips. "Hmm, maybe not the whole batch, I'm going to want some too, but I'm sure we can put some in a few of them just for you," she said, putting a massive smile on the dragon's face.
The two continued on to the kitchen, passing casual and playful banter along the way. While the past few days had been a hardship for them, it was nothing they couldn't overcome. It had been a challenge for both of them, and while it had been difficult, they had both come out on the other side closer than ever. The love they shared for each other was immense, and nothing could change that, the world could throw at them any kind of obstacle it wanted, but in the end, it would never be able to destroy their bond.